Category: Romance

Rom-Com Romance

“It Could Happen To You”

By Brett_G on

7.6

Way better than expected! I’m glad the Netflix “Leaving Soon” banner prompted me to finally give this one a whirl. It was just the right film at just the right moment. A nice little jolt of restoration of faith in humanity and love. From Nicholas Cage, of all people. Far departed from his more current role of Longlegs. He and Bridget Fonda have a wonderful ease about their friendship turned relationship that blossoms from a natural chemistry. It’s not often we get to see this side of Cage, but when we do it really shines.

The story was as wacky as they come, but perfectly authentic. I appreciate a film that dedicates itself to bringing such great characters to the screen. Was it clunky at times? Sure was. But it was the clunky that made it feel real and feel genuine.

Side note – is there an artist who cranked out more “late night dance in the kitchen” songs than Sinatra? “The Lady is a Tramp” has some competition now… (One person will get the deeper meaning behind this Easter egg. It’s as inside baseball as it gets. For everyone else – both are kick-ass songs.)

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Romance

“Camille 2000”

By Brett_G on

5.9

So. Many. Mirrors! Dude tried to make the constant sex scenes artsy by filming them through mirrors. Yes, plural. Not just a mirror on the ceiling or a full length mirror in the corner. This house is filled with a funhouse amount of mirrors. Italians… what can you say?

Supposedly there’s a story in here somewhere, but it was about as important to the film as “Beyond the Valley of the Dolls.”

If you’re wondering how I ended up picking this out of the Amazon Prime pile… One of the tracks from the soundtrack was used in a Tik Tok I recently watched. I enjoyed it, so tracked that down to add to my “Currently Vibin'” playlist. Then had to check out the film that it was connected to, which landed me here.

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Documentary Drama Indie Romance

“Love & Mercy”

By Brett_G on

8.6

Alongside “Chef,” this is one of my all-time favorite indie finds on the silver screen. Paul Dano and John Cusack hold down the forts at either end of the Brian Wilson timeline as one of the most legendary figures in rock/pop music takes on a whole new depth. A fascinating tale of love, loss, and the toll that riding the razors edge between genius and instantly takes on a person and the loved ones around them.

The soundtrack is of course legendary. The love story is oddly adorable. The bar for all other biopics was set at a level that few, if any have since reached. There’s not a weak link in the cast or a wasted frame of film.

I suggest a pairing with the documentary “The Wrecking Crew.”

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Drama Romance

“Turtles All The Way Down”

By Brett_G on

8.4

Ah, young love… and intrusive, obsessive thoughts.

All of the John Green Easter eggs… *chef’s kiss. I totally didn’t coordinate drinking a Dr. Pepper while I watched this.

“You’re old-new, it’s different” was the most adorable, heartfelt half insult I’ve heard in a long time. The thing that John Green movies do better than most is relatability. There’s a realness in the stories that is undeniable. This film is no exception. The magical ambiance of a small town Applebees double date is undefeated.

The philosophy wrestled with is something I haven’t had to confront in a hot minute, but is so approachable in the way that’s it’s handled. The return of the god-turtle mythology to the big screen was an unforeseen connection. I never thought anyone this side of Stephen King would touch that.

All this to say what we have here is a wonderfully weird, exceptionally human story that was put on the big screen with a tremendous amount of care.

Tell your friends you love them.

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Amazon Prime Romance

“The Idea of You”

By Brett_G on

7.4

Thank the lord she sat on the piano to hit a random note and interrupt their make out session. Had they missed that must-do, it would have been an automatic deduction of points.

I feel like I’ve seen this movie a thousand times… but not necessarily in a bad way. Is it predictable? Oh hell yeah. Does it still hit? Every time.

Oh no… they fell in love with “the idea of” each other and not each other?!? But then had to wrestle with the fact that they actually got to know each other?!? But she’s old enough to be his mother?!? But he’s got a Yung Gravy level MILF habit?!?

Don’t take it too seriously, and you’ll have some fun frolicking across the globe with our couple here. The runtime was a tad long and the second to third act acrobatics got a little cringey, but all in all it was solid.

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