5 surprisingly good chick flicks... and 5 to miss
Chick flicks. Such a crap shoot isn't it? Imdb scores can't help us, here. The public is not to be trusted, Cynical types like to tar all with the same brush, but the very fact that some are just SO DARN GOOD does suggest there's a real art to this. Formula prevails, but a good chick flick, like a good muffin, cannot be made from formula alone...
5 to see
1. 50 First Dates. All the ingredients are wrong. Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler? Are you having a laugh? Turns out we were. And a cry. What an unexpectedly watchable film this turned out to be.
2. In Her Shoes. Despite the fact Cameron Diaz is in it, this film is actually really watchable. I think it's rescued by a star turn from always-good Toni Colette. Touching and fun.
3. Legally Blonde is an oldie but SUCH a goodie. You may be sceptical, and I can understand that. But it bears repeat watching. Bend and snap, girls! Bend... and... snap!
4. Clueless was the film that launched a thousand spin-offs, and a thousand catch-phrases. And rightly so. It's a fine piece of cinema and a landmark in the cultural evolution of the Teenaged Girl.
5. The Break-up. Vaughn-Aniston vehicle, really not as bad as you thought it would be. Jen inevitably out-funnies Vince in the acting stakes, but you've got to pity the foo' who goes up against Aniston in a rom-com. Worth renting.
5 to miss
1. The Holiday. This is the joint worst film I've ever seen. Stars Cameron Diaz's annoying skin and Jude Law's ageing burns-victim face. Even a Winslet/Jack Black romance can't save this sub-Richard Curtis rubbish.
2. PS I love you. Joint worst with the above. Hilary Swank is not a charming leading lady, and it's all OIRISH and everyone's a big dreamy OIRISHMAN. I really can't convey how bad this film is in three sentences.
3. Half Light is another quite remarkably bad film. Really bad. Demi Moore plays a windswept bereaved mother who falls in love with a ghost who lives in a lighthouse or something. Don't put yourself through it.
4. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0410297/">The Lake House. Long-awaited reunion of Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock turns out to be instantly-forgettable disappointment. Don't look surprised.
5.Music and Lyrics. Drew Barrymore (again) and Hugh Grant do their usual thing around a nice piano, but there's nothing worth getting genuinely misty-eyed about in this soulless extended Fry and Laurie sketch.
Disagree? Well, don't let me get away with it. What are your worst and best romcom/chick flicks? Do share.
More CHICK FLICKS:
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Top 10 Fabulous Female Filmmakers
Top 10 fabulous and feisty females from film and TV
Sex and the City 2: Let's take bets on which one gets killed off!
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