Charmingly New York

The Movie: When Harry Met Sally, directed by Rob Reiner
Recommendation: H
Reason: "the best romantic comedy ever made, with pretty woman as a close second"

When Harry Met Sally is probably not the movie to embark upon right before Lost resumes it's third season. You want to see high maintenance? Try little miss runaway Kate. But it's this movie that brought the concept of 'high' versus 'low' maintenance to prominence, as well as blowing the lid (pretty literally) off of the whole 'faking it' thing. Rob Reiner does have a bit of a thing for directing romantic comedies, and this may be one of his best. Nothing will ever, ever top The Princess Bride, but this charming piece comes pretty close.

So, can two best friends sleep together and still be likeable in the morning? Originally I thought this movie starred Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, which pretty much explains everything about why I hadn't seen it until today. Foolish me, had it mixed up with You've Got Mail or Sleepless in Seattle. Billy Crystal, the actual male lead, is a lot funnier than Tommy boy ever has been. The relationship (sleeping with aside) he and Meg Ryan play out is crisp and interesting, particularily in the dialogue section. I suppose that's owed to the writer, but it's the actors who really carry it off. I've always enjoyed Meg Ryan, and having a quick glimpse at her filmography, I'm forced to conclude this is one of her breakout roles. She was sweet and fresh in this film, her dialogue a neat patter that was entertaining to listen to.

It looks like Nora Ephron is the one responsible for that flowing New York wordgame that was the script, and it was a decent one. There have been better, there have been worse but at least she managed to remember that she was writing a story that was both romantic and a comedy, something a lot of writers seem to forget. This was a smart movie, engaging, and as I said before, charming. I might not seek it out again, but I'm not going to turn it down. Still doesn't beat the best rom-com I've seen this year, Love Actually, but hey...there's only so far I can go with Hollywood.

-35/365 down, 330/365 to go