Does EG "need" to be made into a film?
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Did EG "need" to be written in the first place?
Posted by Neh (Member # 7534) on :
Are they actually planning to do this? I read about this a year ago and i havent seen any more on it
Posted by Sid Meier (Member # 6965) on :
it shall me made for I am the profit Sid Meier... For my God... Atari knows all...
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Yes, they really are planning on it. Here is the latest update. Posted by MidnightBlue (Member # 6146) on :
If only the latest update weren't over a year old. Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
OSC has said several times that it's not important to him to make an EG movie if he can't make a good one. He's willing to wait until the right opportunity comes by. Some of us have been waiting a loooong time.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
See, now that OSC mentioned that his dream was to make the best romantic comedy ever, I'm more excited for THAT to happen than for Ender's Game to be made.
So...how about it? You could steal from yourself and adapt Enchantment to film. You could even call it something else so we wouldn't slam you for changing the book. Posted by Verai (Member # 7507) on :
I'm sure buckets of money are not NECESSARY, per se...
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
You know, at the Philly signing, OSC said that he was thinking of making the Ender's Game movie as a romantic comedy. You wouldn't think that it would work, but if you listen to him explain it, it actually sounds pretty good. It'd be a sci-fi date movie, and that's not bad.
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Wow. i need to get better microphones. I said I wanted to write romantic comedies. Not the best ever, just good ones. And Ender's Game is specifically NOT a romantic comedy. It's a sci-fi adventure/thriller. If it's romantic, who's his love interest?
Aaaargh! i think I'm communicating in those talks, and then I find out that everything is garbled in midair before anybody hears it, apparently.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Scott, I'm pretty sure Squicky's joking. At least, I hope he's joking.
Posted by mimsies (Member # 7418) on :
quote: And Ender's Game is specifically NOT a romantic comedy. It's a sci-fi adventure/thriller. If it's romantic, who's his love interest?
!!! You mean i've been misreading it and misconstruing the whole plot ALL THIS TIME!?!? AAAAAAARGH!
Just kidding, and i think/hope MrSquicky was too.
Posted by TheHumanTarget (Member # 7129) on :
quote: Wow. i need to get better microphones. I said I wanted to write romantic comedies. Not the best ever, just good ones. And Ender's Game is specifically NOT a romantic comedy. It's a sci-fi adventure/thriller. If it's romantic, who's his love interest?
Came across as :
Now, I need to work on my homophones. I said I vaunted right pentamic comedies. Nuts are best ever, just good they won. Hand whats his name a scientific lot of romantic traumadey. Its a hi-fi adventure/thrilling. Ifrits semantic, the Who is the love, interested?
Maybe it's just the audience, and the microphones can't be blamed.
Posted by mimsies (Member # 7418) on :
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Now now, squicky. No fair taunting the newbies. They don't understand. Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
quote:If it's romantic, who's his love interest?
Meg Ryan, of course. But, true to the sci-fi milleu, she'd be a freaky green alien chick.
Posted by mimsies (Member # 7418) on :
quote: Now now, squicky. No fair taunting the newbies. They don't understand.
I think i was just slammed! Posted by TheHumanTarget (Member # 7129) on :
Mimsies, I'm not sure you were slammed...more like a gentle shove.
Posted by mimsies (Member # 7418) on :
Posted by Judas (Member # 7355) on :
Mmm freaky green alien chicks.. - What will happen is they will re-write it to fit present issues and such.
Peter will be arguing with a short Texan president.
The Buggers will just be the alien race that /might/ be connected with a different alien race that was attacking earth; and /might/ have an aggressive fleet being built to create Mass Destruction upon Earth.
and the Battle School won't be called Battle School, it will be called 'The Second Star to the Right' (TSSR), and it will be run by Major Michael Jackson. Parents on Earth will be concerned about their children being abused up in space, and the Fantasy Game will look much more like a bed.
-Judas
Oh, and there will be alot more explosions and an invasion of Ewoks or something, which when they die they turn into trees. And the President will want to chop them down. So people will tie theirselve's to the trees and a big legality war will start and the Sierra Club will try to lobby against it and... i'm done..
Posted by TheHumanTarget (Member # 7129) on :
Judas, you lost me, and I'm generally pretty hard to lose. Or at least that's what my parent's used to tell me when we went hiking...
Posted by Soara (Member # 6729) on :
*runs to look up 'ebertification'*
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
It's a play on Roger Ebert, the well-known movie reviewer.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
quote: - OSC's goal in life. To write and direct a romantic comedy that's even better and more successful than You've Got Mail. And no, I'm not joking.
Ok, so I shouldn't have said BEST. I should have said "Better than You've Got Mail." Posted by mothertree (Member # 4999) on :
I submit that without modification, EG would make a better romantic comedy that "You've got mail." But I've got a slight bug up my butt about that movie.
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
Wow. I never thought I'd have to do this, but . . .
::adjusts OSC's sarcasmometer::
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
I agree, Trish. Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
I also extremely dislike that movie.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Yeah, my thoughts when I read that were "whoa, no need to set the bar *that* low", but I didn't want to be snarky, so I've held my tongue...until now.
Posted by MidnightBlue (Member # 6146) on :
quote: ::adjusts OSC's sarcasmometer::
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
I had the same reaction as Noemon.
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
When you get older, wiser, and more desperate for meaning rather than action, you will understand the genius behind Nora Ephron's writing. <grin>
Narnia: "See, now that OSC mentioned that his dream was to make the best romantic comedy ever, I'm more excited for THAT to happen than for Ender's Game to be made."
MrSquicky: "You know, at the Philly signing, OSC said that he was thinking of making the Ender's Game movie as a romantic comedy. You wouldn't think that it would work, but if you listen to him explain it, it actually sounds pretty good. It'd be a sci-fi date movie, and that's not bad."
I fail to see how an improved sarcasmometer would change misquotations into "humor." People who weren't there would have no clue from these posts that I did not actually say what you say I said. Hence the correction.
But hey, no need to worry. i'll never get a meeting in Hollywood on any subject but sci-fi films or television. I'm very nicely tied up in that little box, so the world is safe from my romantic comedies ... as I also said at those signings.
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
quote: I'm very nicely tied up in that little box, so the world is safe from my romantic comedies ... as I also said at those signings.
...but that's nothing a check with more than enough zeros couldn't fix.
[EDIT] Of course the zeros coming before the decimal and being headed by a whole number.
[ March 15, 2005, 02:33 PM: Message edited by: scottneb ]
Posted by estavares (Member # 7170) on :
As a senior in high school I was voted "Most Likely To Replace Roger Ebert" seeing I was the resident movie buff and film critic for the school paper.
So what does that mean in this discussion?
To quote that fabulous film UHF:
"Nothing! Absolutely nothing!"
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
quote:When you get older, wiser, and more desperate for meaning rather than action, you will understand the genius behind Nora Ephron's writing.
Yes, my primary reason for disliking You've Got Mail was the lack of car chases, explosions, and Vin Disel, so I'm sure you're right.
Honestly, though, I haven't seen it since it was in the theater, and I can't remember exactly what it really was about it that I disliked. Pretty sure it wasn't lack of action though.
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
I'd say it's the preposterousness of the claims.
Ender's Game into a romantic comedy?
A sci-fi date film?
With Meg Ryan?
He's pushing your buttons, man.
See, now I heard that Sister Carlotta will be played by Meryl Streep, and that Steven Spielberg was on board to direct. Also, due to the lack of talented child actors, Ender will be played by Will Smith, and Bean will actually be a CGI character--but he interacts amazingly well with the other actors.
Also, in the end, the bugger homeworld is not destroyed--think what all those millions of deaths would do to the rating!--after Petra, played by Kristy McNichol, gives a stirring speech that brings Ender's jeesh to their senses. Instead, Ender turns the MD on the human ships, and is able to negotiate a truce between the two species.
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
the supposed quote from me was not part of the extravagant joke. i got the joke. But the joke treated the quote as a factual given. It was not part of the humor. Just setting the record straight, folks. Not shooting somebody's dog.
Posted by DarkKnight (Member # 7536) on :
I was at the Philly signing, as I mentioned in another post where I just gushed about the aging guy who types for a living, and he did say what he thought he said. Then again I was in the 4th row so things may get more garbled the further you go back. It was an old building and we were in the basement so all kinds of odd things could have happened. I only take credit for garbled messages if they are better than what i actually said
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
Obviously, I disagree. If I said, apropo to nothing, something like, "OSC said he's going to have to make the Ender's Game movie with teenagers." there would be no reason to not believe that it was true, and it wouldn't be funny. I'd just be lying.
However, the suggestion that I made was built off of sarmup's earlier innocent remarks (she wasn't trying to lie or be funny, she just misremembered "I want to write a romantic comedy better than You've Got Mail as "I want to write the best romantic comedy ever.") and was so completely absurd that had you actually said this, it would have shown up in a thread titled "OSC is off his rocker." Also, I'm pretty sure my reputation and the Hatrack tradition of making absurd claims about what's going to happen in the EG movie (obviously neither of which you're aware of) would mark this as a joke to some people as so they would tell people who were taking it seriously that it was almost definitely not true.
I'm hesitant to say that it was deadpan humor, because, although it has elements of this, it was really more like an April Fools prank than deadpan. Like a good prank, it was superficially convincing but had an underlying concept that was ridiculuous. The humor laid in large part in the greay area between these two things, where you almost sure that I was joking, but there's this lingering doubt. With an April Fools prank, this is eventually dissipated by the pranker saying "April Fools". Here, I figured it would be by someone saying "I was there and he didn't say that." or no one else saying anything like this and the next discussion of the movie that didn't contain any elements of romantic comedy or someone saying "Really. That doesn't sound like it would work at all." and then people pointing out and/or me admitting that it was a joke. The cathartic laughter that accompanies the dissipation of this induced tension is a very important part of the prank and I wouldn't have let this go without it (although, as the catharsis is related to time of tension, I would have hoped that it would have gone on longer). If this idea of Ender's Game as a romantic comedy had popped up elsewhere and was being treated seriously, I would have immediately admitted it was all a joke.
Also, it's funny because of the speculation as to how you could possibly turn a story about prepubescent children training to fight an interstellar war that has only one real female character who is hardly central to the story into a romantic comedy. The suggestion that you had a way that made it sound completely natural was part of the joke.
---
I was disappointed that you took it seriously, in part because it pretty much killed the joke, but also because I've been making a (for me, rare) attempt to bring the funny so that you'd have funny stuff to read as you were taking breaks by reading things here. From what I've gathered about book signing tours, they tend to be pretty stressful, tiring things, and I figure you could use the humor. I've done marathon programming sessions, so I can kind of relate. It was sort of my way of saying thank you. I'm sorry that it didn't come across that way.
[ March 15, 2005, 03:23 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
I thought it was funny, Squick. Of course, I haven't been misquoted for three straight decades and, perhaps, a little gunshy about it.
Still. Funny. Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
quote:I'm hesitant to say that it was deadpan humor, because, although it has elements of this, it was really more like an April Fools prank than deadpan. Like a good prank, it was superficially convincing but had an underlying concept that was ridiculuous. The humor laid in large part in the greay area between these two things, where you almost sure that I was joking, but there's this lingering doubt. blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah With an April Fools prank, this is eventually dissipated by the pranker saying "April Fools". Here, I figured it would be by someone saying "I was there and he didn't say that." or no one else saying anything like this and the next discussion of the movie that didn't contain any elements of romantic comedy or someone saying "Really. That doesn't sound like it would work at all." and then people pointing out and/or me admitting that it was a joke. The cathartic laughter that accompanies the dissipation of this induced tension is a very important part of the prank and I wouldn't have let this go without it (although, as the catharsis is related to time of tension, I would have hoped that it would have gone on longer). If this idea of Ender's Game as a romantic comedy had popped up elsewhere and was being treated seriously, I would have immediately admitted it was all a joke.
Also, it's funny because of the speculation as to how you could possibly turn a story about prepubescent children training to fight an interstellar war that has only one real female character who is hardly central to the story into a romantic comedy. blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah The suggestion that you had a way that made it sound completely natural was part of the joke.
Oh hey, would you look at that. The funny's been killed.
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
That was even funnier. Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Look, I got the jokes, ok?
But you said that I SAID something that I didn't say. So I corrected it. Why is this a federal case? How did this prove I didn't have a sense of humor or needed absurdly condescending help to understand the joke? Or did I need to write a lot of "ha ha ha" or "lol" before I wrote my correction?
geez loueeeeeze.
And yes, I get it, your "defenses" against me were also "jokes." Ha ha ha. LOL.
Posted by TheHumanTarget (Member # 7129) on :
I believe that this became a federal case when you entered D.C. for your book signing. These two gentelmen would like to talk to you....
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
:-\
I ticked OSC off.
Anyway, I didn't hear my version from you.
I read it on Salon.com
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
I don't think that post was directed toward you, Icky. I think that was directly to Squick. He doesn't realize that Squick takes everything very seriously, including his funny.
Still, they're both being Mr. McDefendies.
[ March 15, 2005, 03:42 PM: Message edited by: Ralphie ]
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
Yeah, Ralphie, I got that it was primarily Squicky, but I was the one who referred to his Sarcasmometer. Oh, well. :-\
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
Oh, well then. You should totally take your own life.
Posted by Sid Meier (Member # 6965) on :
quote: I believe that this became a federal case when you entered D.C. for your book signing. These two gentelmen would like to talk to you....
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
You know what, that | works for me. ........... ..................\|/
[ March 15, 2005, 04:43 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
Hey, guys! If we completely change the subject RIGHT NOW, this whole silly mess will be buried on the first page forever, and we never have to think about it again! Posted by TheHumanTarget (Member # 7129) on :
Sorry Rat, these men still need to speak with Mr. Card.
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
I'll start:
Does anyone really know what Ebertification means?
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
It's a play on Roger Ebert, the well-known movie reviewer.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
I like the way you think, Noemon. Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Posted by alluvion (Member # 7462) on :
quote: Does anyone really know what Ebertification means?
I have something of an idea, but it'll cost me more than it'll cost you, so I'm not divulging.
BTW, this thread, in no way, shape, or form, resembles what I thought it would turn into.
*sigh*
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
If we're talking definitions, I'm still wondering what Ralphie meant by "gunshy". I figure it means "having the quality of gunsh", but I'm sure I don't know what that means. Whatever it is, it doesn't sound pleasant.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
See, this is one of those situations where I hope Squicky's joking. Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Gunshy: gun shy, or timid about using guns or having guns pointed at one; metaphorically, to be reluctant to return to a painful subject, place, or person.
Ebertification: The process of becoming either reviewed or a reviewer.
Siskeloony: somebody who reviews movies whether anybody wants to read the reviews or not. Ex.: "Orson Scott Card is such a siskeloony that he doesn't even get paid for his movie reviews and he buys his own tickets."
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
quote:BTW, this thread, in no way, shape, or form, resembles what I thought it would turn into.
Yeah, that's what happens when you let other people participate in your discussions. Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Orsoon: A person who insists on making corrections in other people's jokes, on the theory that misstatements in humor are more, not less, likely to be remembered than mistakes in ordinary discourse. (Backformed by analogy with "buffoon"; unrelated to "saloon" or "baboon" or to a city in western Canada with a similar ending.)
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
Orsaltation: When after being grossly misrepresented and misunderstood you make a triumphant return by owning up to the blame. (Derived from 'exaltation')
Posted by Taalcon (Member # 839) on :
And here I thought Orsaltation was adding new flavor to an already existing tale, IE Ender's Game/Shadow.
Who knew?
Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
Mmmm...Orsalt. The "New" Salt.
PS squick, sarmup != Narnia. I'm just not that cool.
Yet. Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
I think you're both very cool. Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
*eats it up with a spoon* Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
Sorry, sarmup. I don't know why I got you mixed up. I'm also really sorry that what I thought would be an amusing little joke turned into a thing that had the exact opposite effect that I intended. I wouldn't have written it if I had known.
---
E-bertification: What you get when you complete the online course to be a performer at Sesame Place.
[ March 16, 2005, 01:48 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
quote:I figure it means "having the quality of gunsh", but I'm sure I don't know what that means.
I thought this was pretty self-evident, Squick. Anyone with even a modicum of gunsh them would know exactly what I was talking about.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
My instincts are telling me that this so-called "gunsh" is a West Coast thing, and I don't want to play Biggie to your Tupac. So peace out yo.
East Siiide!
Posted by Irami Osei-Frimpong (Member # 2229) on :
Benioff showed his keen eye for story in Troy.
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
I remember exactly why I disliked You’ve Got Mail. It was the ending. The whole setup of the movie was that the corporate bookstore was driving Meg Ryan’s little independent children’s bookstore out of business. There was even that scene that showed us that the employees of the big bookstore didn’t know much about children’s books, and Meg (whatever her characters name was) helped the customer when the employee was clueless. A powerful scene about the benefits of small businesses staffed by people who love what they do.
So then suddenly this is all okay just because the big-bookstore tycoon is hot?
Yuck.
Now if the Tom Hanks character had decided to make an exception and have his big bookstore not carry children’s books at that particular location so that Meg’s store could stay open, that would have been a good movie.
♫ We’re taking a giant step into the future, turnin’ into a thousand other towns, I just heard today the news that they are closing the bookstore down.
[ March 16, 2005, 03:23 PM: Message edited by: dkw ]
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
quote:Now if the Tom Hanks character had decided to make an exception and have his big bookstore not carry children’s books at that particular location so that Meg’s store could stay open, that would have been a good movie.
My goodness. That would have been completely unbelievable.
[ March 16, 2005, 03:27 PM: Message edited by: AntiCool ]
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
Without bringing everything back up, I think the Squicky/OSC exchange is a perfect example of how different their styles of communication and interpretation actually are.
If the original post had simply been this, I don't think there would have been any issue:
quote:You know, at the Philly signing, OSC said that he was thinking of making the Ender's Game movie as a romantic comedy. You wouldn't think that it would work, but if you listen to him explain it, it actually sounds pretty good. It'd be a sci-fi date movie, and that's not bad.
Similarly, if OSC had responded to the original post this way, I don't think there would have been any confusion, either:
quote:OK, I know everybody's joking, but a lot of people read these threads to catch up on what happens at the signings they can't go to. Please don't tie the jokes to specific signings or misquote me in making them.
Of course, I'd have added, "Besides, vague rumors make for much better newbie-tormenting."
Dagonee
Posted by scottneb (Member # 676) on :
*pies Dagonee*
Posted by GoddessVirlomi (Member # 7532) on :
Wow...I found this thread to be highly amusing and I don't think it was supposed to be.
Anyway, back to the topic of EG being made into a movie. Have any of you ever been to Imagine Casting? People put up books/movies/whatever that they would like to see as a movie and the members vote on the cast. The Ender's Game one is....interesting?? Judi Dench as Graff???
Posted by NinjaBirdman (Member # 7114) on :
Interesting site. I have to say some of their picks are pretty good(and some, of course, amazingly bad). I've heard rumors of Graff being a female in the movie, so I guess that's why Judi Dench came up. Posted by alluvion (Member # 7462) on :
*sigh*
It's a shame things didn't turn out the way I'd wished for (apologies to the "prep hanging" nigglers for that grammatic apothecary). This, likely one of my most successful (and unintended) threads... why? direct appeal to celebrity?
celebs: can't smoke 'em out of their holes, can't stuff 'em in gold-embroidered gunny-sacks.
*schedules despressing sobs for yet another little death of idealism to be made in private momemts later*
I lost my train of thought. criminey!
tissue please?
Posted by Eaquae Legit (Member # 3063) on :
I really hated You've Got Mail. He closed her bookstore! She should kick him in the tonkers and remove his dingle, not fall in love with him!
Um. Yes. So it wouldn't be hard to make a better romantic comedy.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
quote:Still, they're both being Mr. McDefendies.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
I think she just needed to get over the fact that Fox sold books cheaeper.
Hobbes Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Isn't that one of the unforgivable sins?
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Well just don't tell Annie.
Hobbes Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
btw, Squick - This:
quote:My instincts are telling me that this so-called "gunsh" is a West Coast thing, and I don't want to play Biggie to your Tupac. So peace out yo.
East Siiide!
was so funny I couldn't even think of a response.
You die now. You go to hell and you die. Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
What, you want him to go out on a high note, is that it? Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
It depends. If this becomes a trend, then it's best to nip this sort of behavior in the bud right away. However, if I regain my kung fu ninja skills and have the ability to best him in the future, then you have a point.
In the meantime, I think I may have misplaced my mojo. I'm not sure where I left it, but I lost my sunglasses at the same time. Very disconcerting.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Well, keep looking. It's a big mojo; it should be easy to find.
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
You'd think that, wouldn't you? But it's small and very dense. Like lizard muscles. My mojo can lift five times it's own weight.
But if you see some mojo walking around with a pair of Ray-Bans, e-mail me pronto.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Don't you see Ralphie, you've had your Mojo this entire time!
Hobbes Posted by Constant Reader (Member # 7282) on :
I saw your mojo running around naked in my backyard!
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
Yeah, that sounds like my mojo. Tell it to come home and I'll bake it brownies and let it watch trash TV guilt-free.
Posted by MrSquicky (Member # 1802) on :
I'm on the ebb tide of my bring the funny to Hatrack mood anyway. My inhuman, make long, boring, pedantic post side is reasserting its dominance. So I'll send your mojo back to you Ralphie and you don't even have to worry about those pictures I asked for. The darn thing eats too much anyway and I don't think it's even housebroken. I'm going to get a drink at 2am and I step in in a pile of mojo mess. You can't tell me that's right.
[ March 17, 2005, 02:33 PM: Message edited by: MrSquicky ]
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
quote:My inhuman, make long, boring, pedantic post side is reasserting its dominance.
But you always get so whiny when this happens!*
(It's not the house training you have to worry about, it's the egoballs it coughs up on a daily basis.)
*Not your posts, but when you don't think anyone is reading them. Wah wah wah.
[ March 17, 2005, 02:58 PM: Message edited by: Ralphie ]
Posted by Constant Reader (Member # 7282) on :
I think I'll keep your mojo around for a while. While the egoballs are gross and it eats me out of house and home, it's a monster in bed! Posted by BannaOj (Member # 3206) on :
Back to "You've Got Mail": I figured in the "happily ever after" Meg's character then talked Hank's character, into having the chain become a "kinder-gentler" good supergiant with educated knoweledgable clerks that were paid reasonably (with benefits), more like Costco and less like Walmart. And she started writing childrens books of her own, and went to all of the stores doing autograph sessions and seminars teaching the stores how to be kinder and gentler.
You know I had no idea I had their fictional future worked out in that much detail, but it was obvious I had when I read dkw's post, because my fictional future had solved all those problems.
AJ
[ March 17, 2005, 05:08 PM: Message edited by: BannaOj ]
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
Part of the genius of You've Got Mail is that they worked out these normally insurmountable problems. He hired her former employees and turned their children's section into something great. Also, we saw that the customers made their choice. There was no subterfuge - the customers abandoned the store. He didn't foreclose on her, he didn't bribe the city to rezone her location, etc. She lost the vote.
Then Nora Ephron worked very hard to get him to see things from her point of view, and to show how she could get past her depression and how he was part of that; he also showed contrition in a charming but sincere way. Plus, he was ALSO her online friend, too.
For me, the problems were perfectly solved. Ephron is a wonderful writer. But nothing works for EVERYONE. Sorry you weren't pleased with how it worked. There are plenty of people who hate MY solutions to story problems, too. All you can do is your best, and hope people will be pleased. When it came to Nora Ephron and You've Got Mail, I was completely pleased.
I should live to do so well with my stuff.
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
Banna, you are such a girl. *grin*
Posted by BannaOj (Member # 3206) on :
hmm ok, so the seeds to my happily ever after vision for You've Got Mail were in the plot.
My own personal hangup is that I wish they could re-make the original Robin Hood with Errol Flynn. In my version, Maid Marian throws the peice of paper into the fire and doesn't entirely act like a helpless ninny. (If she threw the parchment warning Robin Hood into the fire, then even if they snatch it out of the fire and read it and the plot continues on the same from there, at least the bad guys get their hands burned.) The problem is, other than that flaw, it is head and shoulders above any of the newer versions IMO. You have to watch it more like a stage play rather than a modern movie, but if you view it like that, it works.
AJ
[ March 17, 2005, 05:30 PM: Message edited by: BannaOj ]
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Nora Ephron is fab, but my romantic comedy writer crush these days is Amy Sherman-Palladino.
If you miss the opening credits of the Gilmore Girls, you can still totally tell if she has written that particular episode.
EDIT: One of the text ads below is for "Wheres Your Funny T Shirt."
[ March 17, 2005, 05:27 PM: Message edited by: Zalmoxis ]
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Well, if nothing else, this thread has convinced me to add You've Got Mail to my Netflix queue. I'm not bumping it to the top, but I'm adding it.
Out of curiosity, OSC, what would you say is the best romantic comedy you've seen? Would it be You've Got Mail? My vote would probably be for French Kiss.
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
Mine would be While You Were Sleeping.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I like While You Were Sleeping fairly well. When Harry Met Sally is also a contender for me. One that seems to be fairly popular that has really never done anything for me at all is Sleepless in Seattle.
Posted by Constant Reader (Member # 7282) on :
Whew! I thought I was the only one who hadn't seen You've Got Mail. (adding it to my Netflix too, Noemon!) I usually can't stand romantic comedies but I gotta say I'm a sucker for Pretty Woman Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
"Out of curiosity, OSC, what would you say is the best romantic comedy you've seen? Would it be You've Got Mail? My vote would probably be for French Kiss."
Gah. My poor brain. You know, as enjoyable as When Harry Met Sally was, romantic comedies don't have to star Meg Ryan to be any good. Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
There's no contest: Bringing Up Baby.
Posted by Mormo (Member # 5799) on :
True Romance Posted by Fitz (Member # 4803) on :
Though it's not exactly a romantic comedy, I would vote for Before Sunrise. It has comedic moments, and it's definitely romantic.
[ March 18, 2005, 09:42 AM: Message edited by: Fitz ]
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
You've got Mail has a special place in my heart for obvious reasons. Not sure if I really think it's my favorite though...
On the Sleepless in Seatle note, I know a lot of people seem to think it was bad, but as someone who normally distinctly doesn't enjoy romantic comedies I thought it was pretty good.
I hated French Kiss though, sorry.
Hobbes Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Oh dear, now I'll have to kill you.
Seriously though, what about it caused you to dislike it so much?
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
I took my wife to While You Were Sleeping right after I proposed to her and she had accepted. That makes it kind of hard to judge romantic comedies. I almost have no choice but to consider WYWS the best.
Posted by urbanX (Member # 1450) on :
My favorite romantic comedy is Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's the only romantic comedy I've ever watched that I wanted to watch again. Plus it has Sci-fi elements. You can't beat that!
Posted by mimsies (Member # 7418) on :
My favorite romantic comedy was
So I Married An Axe Murderer
Although the Princess Bride is pretty high up there too
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
How are we defining romantic comedy here? There have been a ton of great movies listed that I don't think of as romantic comedies.
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
I'd have to give my vote for "The Wedding Singer."
I wouldn't call "Eternal Sunshine" a romantic comedy. It was too well woven. Romantic comedies are light and fluffy and should give you some level of sugarshock.
[ March 17, 2005, 09:13 PM: Message edited by: Ralphie ]
Posted by urbanX (Member # 1450) on :
ok, strike Eternal Sunshine from the list and replace with Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Posted by Verily the Younger (Member # 6705) on :
I've never seen You've Got Mail, but man, Sleepless in Seattle sure sucked. And I say this as a guy who prefers emotional content in a story. (I'm an OSC reader, after all.) Don't get me wrong, I liked Tom Hanks's character and his son. I thought they had a great, realistic relationship, and he really did deserve to find a good woman.
Meg Ryan's character, on the other hand, was creepy and manipulative. Based on having heard this guy's story over the radio, she becomes a stalker--even going so far as to hire a private detective to hunt him down and surreptitiously photograph him--and leaves the man she's already engaged to.
Now, if she were single, or if she were with a man who was abusive, I could have accepted it. But by everything we saw, he was a great guy. He was nice, he respected her, he had a good sense of humor. Aside from his multitudes of allergies, he was everything women claim they want in a man. And we're supposed to be happy when she dumps him for a man she hasn't ever met?
Well, I was happy for her ex-fiance. Now he can move on and find a good woman, who won't use him up and throw him away like a tissue. Tom Hanks's character is the one I felt bad for.
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
quote:Part of the genius of You've Got Mail is that they worked out these normally insurmountable problems. He hired her former employees and turned their children's section into something great.
Was this in the book? 'Cause I sure don't remember it in the movie. Granted I only saw it once, when it was in the theater, so I could have forgotten.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Noemon, to be honest, I saw it many moons ago and now basically all I remember is that I strongly disliked it. While you were Sleeping same thing.
Hobbes Posted by Posable_Man (Member # 5105) on :
I'd be interested in what people thought of Amelie, Bridget Jones' Diary and My Big Fat Greek Wedding as romantic comedies. To me, these are the three best I've seen of this genre in the past 10 years.
I believe this type of film is made better when you can enter the characters world and see it through their eyes. Sad to say, I don't get that same feel from most romantic comedy. Most of it is like watching a long-format TV show (a double episode of something pretty good, but not all that great).
The characters in their environment is what makes it work, and the three I named had both great characters and great (absorbing) surroundings.
Of the older stuff, I'd say Annie Hall was about the best of the modern era. From the 30's - 50's...I'd probably go with Desk Set as the best, although there's something to be said for Bringing up Baby too.
Posted by Leonide (Member # 4157) on :
While Your Were Sleeping was my first favorite romantic comedy...it will always have a special place in my heart.
Following that, French Kiss
And now I love a bunch, namely Amelie and Happy Accidents (has anyone seen this?) and Sabrina.
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
There's a reason why big budget thrillers are likely to make more money than romantic comedies - there are people who just hate them.
But I'd suggest that perhaps those who dislike most romantic comedies are not those best qualified to vote on which ones are best.
To me, "Eternal Sunshine" isn't a romantic comedy - it actually borders on tragedy. I do count it as the best science fiction movie of all time. And Charlie Kaufman, the author also of "Being John Malkovich," as the first writer of sci-fi movies to bring the film genre up to the level of the literary genre. Ever since Star Wars, filmmakers have settled for doing thirties sci-fi - only with better and better special effects.
Likewise, Bringing Up Baby is a "Screwball Comedy"; but the genre boundaries are SO flexible. It Happened One Night is generally regarded as one of the best, and I do like it a lot. And is His Girl Friday a romantic comedy or a comic detective movie?
So, recognizing that boundaries are flexible and that not every movie is to everyone's taste, let me suggest a list of romantic comedies, sort of in order:
- Sense and Sensibility (number one alltime) - The Truth about Cats and Dogs - You've Got Mail - His Girl Friday - It Happened One Night - Sleepless in Seattle - Adam's Rib - French Kiss - 50 First Dates - While You Were Sleeping - The Rainmaker (Burt Lancaster and Katharine Hepburn, NOT Matt Damon and Claire Daynes) - Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (Gary Cooper) - Mr. Deeds (Adam Sandler) - Born Yesterday - Lion in Winter - Far From the Madding Crowd
(The last two are very iffy on genre assignment. If I were sure they belonged in this category, I'd rate them much higher, because I think they are two of the greatest films ever. But since they probably don't belong here, I can't put them higher than movies that clearly do.)
This is more than you ever wanted to know about what I admire in romantic comedy.
If we added romantic fantasy, then we'd have to add:
- It's a Wonderful Life - Miracle on 34th Street - One Magic Christmas
And no, it's not a coincidence that these are all Christmas movies. It seems that Christmas is the season when filmgoers are willing to accept contemporary fantasy that doesn't involve horror.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
If The Lion in Winter counts, you bet it's up there! (My God, I'm 50, alive, and a king, all at the same time! )
Bringing up Baby is also good. I thought it had what any good romantic comedy needs (in my unlearned opinion), characters we can care about, funny, fast and witty dialog, and good actors and actresses (and of course the ending we all want). Monkey Business falls into this category too, though lower down. And yes, I enjoyed It Happened One Night.
And I would finally like to take this opportunity to say that the color version of Miracle on 34th Street was one of the only movies that didn't get destroyed by colorization.
Hobbes Posted by Leonide (Member # 4157) on :
Which reminds me that I have to make Greg watch Sense and Sensibility.
Emma Thompson is a goddess in that movie. And Alan Rickman is at his very best.
*sighs happily*
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
quote:But I'd suggest that perhaps those who dislike most romantic comedies are not those best qualified to vote on which ones are best.
Like not being qualified has ever stopped me from offering my opinion.
[EDIT: In my own defence, most romantic comedies I've seen are ones my sister rented or otherwise obtained and then I saw against my will. She did not go out of her way to obtain the classics, these were basically all teen-flicks for girls. I enjoy most of the screwball comedies and a lot of the "classic" romantic comedys, with a few notable exceptions like French Kiss and While You Were Sleeping.]
Hobbes
[ March 18, 2005, 02:36 AM: Message edited by: Hobbes ]
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
I'm one of those people that doesn't get much out of romantic comedies.
That said, I thought Sense and Sensibility was a wonderful movie.
But if I want to get my Emma Thompson fix, I watch Much Ado About Nothing.
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
If we can count those romantic movies with a fantasy twist, y'all MUST see Dead Again. It is one of my all-time favorite movies.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
It's been a long time, but itsn't that movie just about as romantic as War of the Roses?
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
I don't think I dislike romantic comedies, but I can't stand Meg Ryan.
I really didn't like Sleepless in Seattle. I couldn't get what the fuss was about.
I was surprised by how much I liked Bringing Up Baby.
I really liked My Big Fat Greek Wedding, but even though I think it is a better movie, I would not make it my favorite in this genre, because I consider light airy sweetness to be a defining characteristic in the genre. My favorite romantic comedy is probably While You Were Sleeping.
Is anybody else disappointed in Sandra Bullock since then, because, while she is good at what she does, she has never been as charming again?
[ March 18, 2005, 12:34 PM: Message edited by: Icarus ]
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
To add to and try to clarify my thoughts on My Big Fat Greek Wedding, I think what it comes down to is that it was not the romance in it that did anything for me. It was the family, and the many ways that Greek family life resonated with my experience of Latino families. It gave me a big warm fuzzy. So I think it's a very good movie, but not an especially good romantic comedy. Does that make any sense, Bob?
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
quote:I really didn't like While You Were Sleeping. I couldn't get what the fuss was about.
quote:My favorite romantic comedy is probably While You Were Sleeping.
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
AC, I'm not sure what movie you are thinking of, but Dead Again was incredibly romantic. A key difference is that it had a happy ending and lovers devoted to each other.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
**** spoilers *****
Isn't Dead Again the one where the couple have been reincarnated several times, and there are memories of one of them murdering the other with a pair of scissors? Doesn't it die with one of them trying to kill the other and dying in the process? Posted by Leonide (Member # 4157) on :
Lady Jane, are you sure you don't mean "Hello Again?"
And I'm convinced it's "Sleepless in Seattle" that Icarus doesn't like, and "While You Were Sleeping" that he does, because I like the thought and the Sleep words could've gotten him all kerfuzzled.
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
I am positive I meant Dead Again.
*******SPOILERS**********
Yes, the couple is reincarnated, but the whole point of the story is that it WASN'T the husband that killed her the first time, but the jealous psycho son of the housekeeper. The husband took the rap for it because he felt so guilty about not firing the possessive housekeeper when his wife asked him to. Besides, with her gone, there was nothing to live for. It is a GOOD thing that they are reincarnated and find each other again. I just love that movie - go watch it again.
Added: Hello Again?!? Shelley Long, mugging for the camera, bad jokes, dumb plot? You'd think that of me? Honestly, I'm insulted.
[ March 18, 2005, 11:51 AM: Message edited by: Lady Jane ]
Posted by Taalcon (Member # 839) on :
Billy Wilder's THE APARTMENT needs to go on a list of amazingly wonderful-yet-painful romantic comedies.
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
Okay, you've got to refresh my memory on this. I could have sworn that the husband killed the wife the first time, and that the husband was reincarnated AS THE WIFE the second time and tried to kill the wife/husband again. If this isn't what happened, then I completely misunderstood the movie. What really went on?
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
That's really close to how I'm remembering it. It ends with the original murderer dying (but, of course, not being killed by the victim).
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
Okay,
Movie opens with a b&w flashback to headlines telling of the love and death of Margaret and the death walk of Roman, the husband.
Cut to modern day. A detective that looks remarkably like Roman is summoned to the orphanage where he grew up to deal with a woman who looks remarkably like Margaret that was found wandering on the grounds, voiceless and memory-less. They don't remember each other, but something softens between them. She can't talk, he takes care of her, and most of the movie is the detective story of figuring out who Roman and Margaret were, and did Roman really kill Margaret. By the time they realize that it's a possibility, the modern day heroes are in love with each other (her voice and memory have come back).
The movie does end with the original murderer dying, but in both the flashback death and the modern death, the killer is never one of the couple.
I am not going to completely spoil the ending, and especially not the twist, but no, Roman did NOT kill Margaret way back when, it was a great love story, and everything turns out happy and incredibly romantic. Mystery, murder, truly deathless love, funny lines (Robin Williams facilitates the mystery), and Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branaugh when they were together and happy. This is a wonderful, wonderful movie.
It does require that you pay attention. I don't feel too bad about spoiling as much as I did, because it helps to know what is going on. There is everything in the movie that is necessary to understand, but you have to, have to pay attention. I love it.
[ March 18, 2005, 12:15 PM: Message edited by: Lady Jane ]
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
I think you dreamed part of that.
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
You didn't pay attention, did you? Next time, no getting up to refill the nachos during the dramatic climax.
[ March 18, 2005, 12:18 PM: Message edited by: Lady Jane ]
Posted by Leonide (Member # 4157) on :
I honestly couldn't remember what Hello Again was about, kat Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Well, it was 13 years ago when I saw it, and my uncle *did* have a major seizure in the middle of it.
But I still refuse to believe you.
[ March 18, 2005, 12:26 PM: Message edited by: AntiCool ]
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
D'oh! Yes, Leo has it exactly right.
For my excuse, I will point out that I got home from the hospital last night around 3:30 am, and had to get up at 6:30 to go to work. (Mango has had a really bad asthma flare-up, in case you're wondering. I posted about it elsewhere, but I'm not sure where.)
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Kat's got it right. And it is a very good movie. Been too long since I've seen it.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
La la la. I'm not listening. Nobody's hearing nothing.
Posted by dkw (Member # 3264) on :
Kat's got it right. And it is a very good movie. Been too long since I've seen it.
Posted by Constant Reader (Member # 7282) on :
I thought about it and found a romantic comedy I like besides the goofy Pretty Woman. It's only a comedy under the most technical definition of the word comedy though. The Secretary! Awesome movie, funny and romantic. (in a way) Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
I changed my mind. My favorite romantic comedy is the original Manchurian Candidate. You have to stretch the definition of the genre a bit, but I think you can see why it wins.
Posted by Jasmine (Member # 7370) on :
i really liked how to loose a guy in 10 days Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Because it has an evil Angela Lansberry?
Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
Angela Lansberry was in How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days?
[ March 18, 2005, 04:08 PM: Message edited by: sarcasticmuppet ]
Posted by Lady Jane (Member # 7249) on :
Yes.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
She was in The Manchurian Candidate.
She was one of the main characters.
[ March 18, 2005, 04:11 PM: Message edited by: AntiCool ]
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
That was a good movie for sure, but I can't see how it can be considered a romantic comedy.
Hobbes Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I just assumed he was joking. I had been kicking around something similar, but hadn't yet decided between Koyaanisqatsi and Quest for Fire as my nomination for best romantic comedy.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
I think he was joking.
Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
If Koyannisqatsi is a Romantic Comedy, then "Manos" the Hands of Fate is a musical.
.....
...
I'm joking.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Ohh. Now I feel stupid.
Not that this is the first time...
(Noemon, if you weren't already my friend you would be now! Koyaanisqatsi was great! I just watched it again yesterday )
Hobbes Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Have you seen the other two? I was just thinking about adding them to my Netflix queue. What about Baraka?
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Own all three.
Powaqqatsi was kind of different, but still very good. Naqoyqatsi had moments of sheer genius, but it was also so faked and disconnected. One and two showed the world and the third showed how if you do things to the images of the world it proves your point.
Hobbes Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
I've never even heard of these movies.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Huh. I'll have to see them, but it sounds as though I won't like them as well as the first. Did I ever tell you that when I was at KU Philip Glass came and conducted a live performance of the music during a screening of Koyaanisqatsi? By all accounts it was a cool experience, but unfortunately I wasn't able to go for reasons that I no longer really remember.
Porter, the first of them came out when I was in 5th grade, I think. I remember sitting in the theater just completely entranced by it. There's no narrative to the movie in the traditional sense, although meaning is definitely conveyed. It's hard to describe. You can read what its creator has to say about it here.
Posted by maui babe (Member # 1894) on :
Kat,
I agree with you about Dead Again. It's one of my favorite movies of all time.
I watched it several years ago with my older children - it's rated R, so I watched it by myself first. I decided it would be appropriate for my 16 and 17 year olds, so I watched it again with them. (If I recall, it was probably rated R for some language and the tense nature of the film. What violence there was was in shadow and off screen). I'll probably add it to my Netflix to watch again with my BF. I think he'll really like it.
<goes to the phone to ask him if he's seen it>
Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
I saw it at Governor's school. It's like, 3 hours long. I fell asleep and didn't feel like I really missed anything. After watching it you will chant "Koyaaaaaaaaaaanisqatsiiiiiiii" for (looks at watch) three years after you see it.
but then, that's just me.
[ March 18, 2005, 09:05 PM: Message edited by: sarcasticmuppet ]
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
Back to the subject of You've got mail ( ), I have to say that I hated it when I saw it for the first time. I didn't see it again for years until TBS started showing it every other day. My sister and I (diehard While You Were Sleeping fans) started watching it when it came on...and it grew on me like a very stubborn fungus. I bought the DVD last month and we've watched it twice a week ever since...even my younger teenage brothers will go into my room, grab the DVD and watch it.
Isn't that bizarre?
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Yeah, it's one of those movies that will either really do it for you, or won't at all.
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I think 50 First Dates would've been MUCH higher on my list except for the sad, sad portrayal of his assistant and the brother on steroids. They took the whole movie down with them, IMHO.
Don't even know why they felt like this was a necessary set of characters.
Also, we should probably give mention to Groundhog Day which has a great concept carried to perfection by Bill Murray. It could've been beaten to death, but he really pulled it through.
I was pleased to see OSC's list as it reminded me of some really great films. The Truth about Cats and Dogs is great. Adam's Rib is amazing.
I obviously need to get a copy of Sense and Sensibility.
I can't see Far from the Madding Crowd as romantic comedy. The book is not a romantic "comedy" is it? I think of it as a romantic tragedy.
???
The Lion in Winter is great, btw, for any who haven't seen it.
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
Groundhog Day - Yes, brilliant.
Posted by Orson Scott Card (Member # 209) on :
I'm with you on the miserable brother and assistant in 50 First Dates. Now I just tune those parts out (while admiring the actors for being so game as they played such repulsive parts). So 50 First Dates had to grow on my during repeat cable showings. Now I cry like a baby at the end.
I would have included Groundhog Day, only it's a romantic FANTASY isn't it? <grin>. Depending on how widely you spread the tent, it should certainly be on any list. How many other movies lead so many people to have parties for a particular obscure holiday just so you can watch them?
Another couple of movies that should have been on my original list: One Fine Day and Green Card. (Given that I really hate watching Andie McDowell, why is she in two of my favorite romantic comedies/fantasies?)
How do we characterize "About Last Night"? Besides its being a guilty pleasure ...
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Groundhog Day is not a fantasy.
I know I keep living the same day overandoverandoverandover again . . .
Posted by urbanX (Member # 1450) on :
I love Groundhogs day. I was going to say it but I'm not sure if it counts as a romantic comedy.
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
Okay...I cry at the end of 50 First Dates too. I could love that movie but for those two characters. You're right about the actors being game enough to pull off those parts, 'cuz they really are bad parts.
I'm going to wonder a long time why they did that to a great movie. Maybe Adam Sandler was insecure about doing a straight-up romantic comedy? He needed a crutch?
I doubt I'll ever buy a copy, but I'd watch it again...
I'm not sure on the whole "comedy" "tragedy" and "fantasy" distinction. My drama-wise future spouse informs me that "comedy" doesn't necessarily mean you laugh. I say "oh, like that Gallagher guy? Not funny?"
"No," she says patiently. "Like 'not funny,' as in it wasn't intended for you to laugh."
Oh...
I'm just not working with the agreed upon vocabulary here. It's not that I'm completely dense (although that's certainly part of it).
Anyway, there are two ways that "fantasy" description seems to be used:
1) The setting: Annie Hall set in Oz would be a romantic fantasy. Set in New York and Hollywood, it's a romantic comedy. I guess The Princess Bride would fit that bill...a basic romance story set in a fantasy kingdom.
2) The situation (i.e., the setting is present day reality, but the events or people are so bizarre (or surreal?) that it can't be construed as a movie about real people living real lives. Amelie might be a mildly good example, I suppose, or maybe All of Me in which the major premise involves mind transferance. Oooh, better yet, L.A. Story.
But if it's just bizarre behavior that changes something from "comedy" to "fantasy" then You've Got Mail must certainly cross that line. Who would ever meet and have a romance with someone they met over the internet?
[ March 20, 2005, 09:29 AM: Message edited by: Bob_Scopatz ]
Posted by Icarus (Member # 3162) on :
*snicker*
Posted by Suri-cool (Member # 7599) on :
About the movie, I read that OSC said that Andserson and Graff were just adult placehold.ers Not importent but not even minding if they were changed into women and stuff. I find that wrong, I found that Graff at least was a major part in the book. Anyone agree with me?
Posted by Brian J. Hill (Member # 5346) on :
I don't think anyone has mentioned Ten Things I Hate About You. I admit there's a possibility that it's because everyone here thought it sucked. But it's in my top five. Speaking of top five lists, High Fidelity was also a pretty good romantic comedy that no one has mentioned yet. Not one of the best, but decent nonetheless.
Why did I like 10 things? I dunno. I guess I've always liked The Taming of the Shrew story--and it definitely makes a good fit with the high-school-movie-where-all-the-actors-are-WAAAAY-too-old-to-actually-plausibly-be-in-high-school genre.
Posted by SailorNaboo (Member # 7604) on :
I happened to catch part of "You've Got Mail" on television and since Meg Ryan's character (who owns a children's book store and is shown as an expect in the field) can't spell "Noel Streatfeild" correctly, she deserved to have her business taken over by a big box book store one street over! It's EI not IE!
/end rant.
Posted by SailorNaboo (Member # 7604) on :
quote: About the movie, I read that OSC said that Andserson and Graff were just adult placehold.ers Not importent but not even minding if they were changed into women and stuff. I find that wrong, I found that Graff at least was a major part in the book. Anyone agree with me?
Looking at what an absolute SMASH hit the new Battlestar Galactica is (in my opinion, the best Sci Fi TV or even movie EVER), OSC is free to replace any character he would like with a female. I never in a million years expected to like the new Battlestar because of this, but I was totally wrong. As long as he thinks it will make the movie better, Go for it!
Posted by Agnes Bean (Member # 7614) on :
I can’t believe Notting Hill hasn’t been mentioned yet! It’s most certainly my favorite romantic comedy of all time. It has two romantic comedy greats as the leads (Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant), plus the minor characters are all lovably quirky. Nothing about that movie isn’t great.
I also adore The Princess Bride, but I don’t consider it a romantic comedy, and not just because it’s fantasy. I just feel that it focuses too much on plotlines that have little to do with Westley/Buttercup to be a romantic comedy. Plus the fact that their love is assured from the beginning kind of puts it outside the genre. I’d consider it more action/adventure/fantasy/parody/romance than romantic comedy. (Besides, in the end it transcends any normal genre and is just one of the best movies EVAH! It wouldn’t be fair to compare it to a normal romantic comedy, because they all just fall flat when compared to the genius of The Princess Bride. IMHO, that is).
quote:About the movie, I read that OSC said that Andserson and Graff were just adult placehold.ers Not importent but not even minding if they were changed into women and stuff. I find that wrong, I found that Graff at least was a major part in the book. Anyone agree with me?
I agree that Graff is much, much more than an adult placeholder, and I would be rather upset if his gender was changed. Anderson is not so important (in fact, is it ever confirmed that the character is in fact male? I don’t remember…). But as we learned eairler in this thread, not everything we’ve heard/read that OSC said is true Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
SailorNaboo, have you seen Firefly?
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Also, have you seen Babylon 5?
Posted by SailorNaboo (Member # 7604) on :
quote: SailorNaboo, have you seen Firefly?
Absolutely. I purchased the box set the day it came out. I adore all of Joss Whedon's work and I am really looking forward to Serenity this fall. (I even read his X-men comics- it's great to see the great dialogue and banter back in the series!)
Until about 5 episodes into the new Battlestar, I still ranked Firefly at #1 and Classic Star Wars (A New Hope and Empire) as #2, but slowly the brilliance of the new Galactica won me over and it jumped from #3 to #1 in my book. I think I've seen every episode at least 5 or 6 times now. As much as I adore Firefly, I've never watched an episode and then went back to the beginning and then watched it again right away (except when I watched it plain the first time then with commentary the second time).
Moving from #1 to #2 doesn't lesson my feelings for Firefly, Shoot, Serenity the ship even has a few cameos in BSG! I just found something that I feel takes it to the next level. I do get a little bit annoyed when it gets some of the credit for innovations in special effects that Firefly was responsible for, but they did have the same fx house.
As for B5, I never got into it. I think I would enjoy it if I had all 5 years of the show and watched it in order, I just never put the time into it.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
BSG has jumped to being my second favorite TV SF, edging out DS9 by a pretty wide margin. It's a fantastic show, no question about it, but it still isn't able to touch Firefly for me.
I haven't watched B5 either, but like you I expect that I'd like it if I were to sit down and watch it from beginning to end.
Lately I've been watching Stargate SG1 and Stargate Atlantis, but they strike me as fun-but-forgettable popcorn shows.
Never got into Farscape. I rented an abridged Season 1 DVD set and was put off by the few episodes I watched. I'm told that I should give it a second chance, and I probably will at some point, but I don't see myself getting around to it any time soon.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
Really, Noemon? I'm surprised. Firfly is as good scifi as I've ever seen/read/etc..
And while B5 is my favorite scifi story ever told, it suffered from two huge deficiencies: 1) The first season is *extremely* rough, and enough to turn many people away. 2) It's very difficult to get into the story after the first season.
I started watching it during the second season, but I had a friend who explained all the back story that I had missed in the first season.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Hmm--what did I say? I must have misspoken. Firefly is far and away my favorite TV SF, period. The new Battle Star Galactica is my second favorite. It's a phenomenally good show, but still can't touch Firefly. Deep Space 9 comes in third.
Is that what you thought I was saying Porter? 'Cause that's what I meant.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I'm watching DS9 on DVD, getting it a disk at a time from Netflix. In the second season there is a 3 episode story arc that deals with the same ideas that are dealt with in the Firefly episode Jaynestown, and I'm stunned by how much more deftly. Sisko's platitudes, which went on forever, didn't come anywhere close to Mal telling Jayne
quote:It's my estimation that every man ever got a statue made of him was one kind of sommbitch or another. Ain't about you Jayne. 'Bout what they need
[ March 21, 2005, 11:22 AM: Message edited by: Noemon ]
Posted by WntrMute (Member # 7556) on :
Firefly was too intelligent to last on Fox. The closest Fox got to intelligence was the X-Files, but since the lead male's name was 'Fox' they very well couldn't cancel it.
Posted by sarcasticmuppet (Member # 5035) on :
This was a very smooth transition from Romantic Comedy to Sci Fi. I approve.
Firefly is my #1 sci fi, #2 being Stargate SG-1. I've seen ads for BSG but it just doesn't interest me much. I have a soft spot in my heart of Stargate Atlantis even though I consider most spinoffs to be morally reprehensible.
Posted by SailorNaboo (Member # 7604) on :
Just a tip on Firefly:
After you've seen the last episode in the set, watch it again with the commentary even if you aren't usually into that kind of thing. You can also turn on the closed captioning if you want to make sure to follow the dialogue better. Joss is on his own and really does a great job of talking about what the whole show meant to him as well as the episode itself.
It's not like all of the commentary isn't worth listening to, this episode's is just something special.
Oh, and since I was also raving about the new Battlestar Galactia, and now speaking of commentary tracks, this show has commentary available (Podcasts) for each episode that can be downloaded (starting with episode 9) on the Sci Fi Channel's web page. They are MP3 files that can be downloaded in one chunk or in pieces so you don't have to pause it during commercial breaks. Also, all the episodes have deleted scenes for download. It has more interactive material now than what is available on many DVD collections.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I've listened to the Firefly commentaries, of course, but if I hadn't I would now.
Thanks for the tip on BSG. I'll have to check out SciFi's site.
I also need to find out when they're reairing last Friday's episode. I can't believe I missed it.
Posted by AntiCool (Member # 7386) on :
No, I was just surprised that you don't appreciate B5.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
quote: This was a very smooth transition from Romantic Comedy to Sci Fi. I approve.
. . . and thus we should be discussing shows that have both, like SG-1 (yay!) and Lois&Clark (due out on DVD in June! WAHOO!) Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Oh. It's not that I don't appreciate it, it's just that I'm not familiar with it. I've heard of it, but by the time I was aware of it it was well into the show's story arc. I decided not to try to pick it up in the middle. I'll probably get the series through Netflix.
Posted by alluvion (Member # 7462) on :
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At least, I hope he's joking.
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Pretty Woman ![[Taunt]](graemlins/taunt.gif)
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D'oh! Yes, Leo has it exactly right.![[Sleep]](graemlins/sleep.gif)
(Mango has had a really bad asthma flare-up, in case you're wondering. I posted about it elsewhere, but I'm not sure where.)