Romantic comedy is a subgenre of comedy and romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typical romantic comedy, the two lovers tend to be young, likeable, and seemingly meant for each other, yet they are kept apart by some complicating circumstance until, surmounting all obstacles, they are finally united. A fairy-tale-style happy ending is a typical feature.
Colin James Farrell is an Irish actor. A leading man in blockbusters and independent films since the 2000s, he has received various awards and nominations, including two Golden Globe Awards and a nomination for an Academy Award. The Irish Times named him Ireland's fifth-greatest film actor in 2020, and Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2023.
Mystic Pizza is a 1988 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Donald Petrie in his feature directorial debut, and starring Annabeth Gish, Julia Roberts and Lili Taylor. It follows the coming-of-age of three young Portuguese-American friends who work at a pizza parlor in a seaside Connecticut town. The film received positive reviews, with Roger Ebert declaring at the time, "I have a feeling that Mystic Pizza may someday become known for the movie stars it showcased back before they became stars. All of the young actors in this movie have genuine gifts." It marked Matt Damon's film debut.
Urban Legend is a 1998 slasher film directed by Jamie Blanks, written by Silvio Horta, and starring Jared Leto, Alicia Witt, Rebecca Gayheart, Tara Reid, and Michael Rosenbaum, and is the first installment in the Urban Legend film series. Its plot focuses on a series of murders on the campus of a private New England university, all of which appear to be modeled after popular urban legends. In addition to its younger cast, the film features supporting performances from Robert Englund, Loretta Devine, John Neville, and Brad Dourif.
Zooey Claire Deschanel is an American actress and musician. She made her film debut in Mumford (1999) and had a supporting role in Cameron Crowe's film Almost Famous (2000). Deschanel is known for her deadpan roles in comedy films such as The Good Girl (2002), The New Guy (2002), Elf (2003), The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005), Failure to Launch (2006), Yes Man (2008), The Happening (2008), 500 Days of Summer (2009) and Our Idiot Brother (2011). She has also ventured into dramatic film territory with Manic (2001), All the Real Girls (2003), Winter Passing (2005), Bridge to Terabithia (2007) and The Driftless Area (2015). From 2011 to 2018, she starred as Jess Day on the Fox sitcom New Girl, for which she received nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award and three Golden Globe Awards.
Christopher Robert Evans is an American actor. He began his career with roles in television series such as Opposite Sex in 2000. Following appearances in several teen films, including 2001's Not Another Teen Movie, he gained attention for his portrayal of Marvel Comics character the Human Torch in Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007). Evans made further appearances in film adaptations of comic books and graphic novels: TMNT (2007), Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010), and Snowpiercer (2013).
All the Pretty Horses is a 2000 American Western film produced and directed by Billy Bob Thornton, based on Cormac McCarthy's novel of the same name, and starring Matt Damon and Penélope Cruz. It premiered on December 25, 2000 to mostly negative reviews. It grossed $18 million worldwide on a $57 million budget.
Friends is a 1971 British-French teen-romance film directed and produced by Lewis Gilbert and written by Gilbert, Vernon Harris and Jack Russell. The soundtrack, with music composed by Elton John and Paul Buckmaster and lyrics written by Bernie Taupin, was released as John's Friends album, and John's recording of the title selection charted when released as a single in the United States.
The Ugly Truth is a 2009 American romantic comedy film directed by Robert Luketic, written by Nicole Eastman, Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, and starring Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler. The film was released in North America on July 24, 2009 by Columbia Pictures.
Three Colours: Red is a 1994 romantic mystery film co-written, produced and directed by Polish filmmaker Krzysztof Kieślowski. It is the final installment of the Three Colours trilogy, which examines the French Revolutionary ideals; it is preceded by Blue and White. Kieślowski had announced that this would be his final film, which proved true with the director's sudden death in 1996. Red is about fraternity, which it examines by showing characters whose lives gradually become closely interconnected, with bonds forming between two characters who appear to have little in common.
Scarlett Johansson is an American actress who has appeared in films, television series, video games and stage plays. Johansson made her debut in the 1994 comedy-drama North. Her first lead role was as the 11-year-old sister of a pregnant teenager in Manny & Lo (1996), for which she received a nomination for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead. Johansson starred in Robert Redford's drama The Horse Whisperer (1998), and appeared with Thora Birch and Steve Buscemi in the black comedy Ghost World (2001). Two years later, Johansson played a woman in her 20s stuck in a listless marriage who befriends an aging American actor in Japan in the Sofia Coppola-directed Lost in Translation, and also played a servant in Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer's household in Girl with a Pearl Earring with Colin Firth. She was nominated at the 61st Golden Globe Awards for both films, and received the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for the former.
Columbus is a 2017 American drama film written, directed, and edited by Kogonada in his feature directorial debut. The film follows the son of a renowned architecture scholar who gets stranded in Columbus, Indiana and strikes up a friendship with a young architecture enthusiast who works at the local library. Michelle Forbes, Rory Culkin, and Parker Posey appear in supporting roles. The film premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival and was released in the United States on August 4, 2017, by the Sundance Institute, receiving acclaim from critics.
Michelle Buteau is an American stand-up comedian, actress, television host, producer, and podcast host.
Vanquish is a 2021 American action thriller film directed by George Gallo. The film stars Morgan Freeman and Ruby Rose.
Dear David is a 2023 American supernatural horror film directed by John McPhail, based on Adam Ellis' Twitter thread of the same name. It stars Augustus Prew as Ellis with Andrea Bang, René Escobar Jr., Cameron Nicoll, and Justin Long in supporting roles. The film is the third project between BuzzFeed Studios and Lionsgate Films. In the film, Ellis (Prew) retaliates against trolls; this results in a haunting from a demon-possessed spirit of a boy.
Crush is a 2022 American coming-of-age romantic comedy film directed by Sammi Cohen and written by Kirsten King and Casey Rackham. The film stars Rowan Blanchard and Auliʻi Cravalho in a story about a teenage girl joining her high-school track team to get closer to her crush, only to discover she is getting closer to another teammate. Crush was released digitally on April 29, 2022, on Hulu.
Survival of the Thickest is a comedy-drama television series co-created by Michelle Buteau and Danielle Sanchez Witzel for Netflix, based on a memoir of the same name. The series stars Buteau as a plus-sized woman attempting to rebuild her life after a breakup. The series was released on July 13, 2023.
