Friday, February 25, 2011

How romantic comedies work


I love romantic comedies! They are by far my favorite genre of films. Books too, for that matter.

They are like the chocolate of the food pyramid. Sweet, indulgent and always satisfying.

There are so many great romcoms out there it would be hard to pinpoint a favorite. His Girl Friday, The Philadelphia Story, While You Were Sleeping, and Sleepless in Seattle are among my old time and new time faves, but one that has always stuck in my head since I saw it back in 2005 when it came out was Fever Pitch. Partly because it stars Drew Barrymore, whom I adore (she would be my choice to play Kitty if they ever made a movie version of Bunco Babes Tell All) and partly because there is a huge baseball theme (and I adore baseball) but mostly because it hits the ball out of the park in every way (pun intended).

Another thing I love about the film is that it stars Jimmy Fallon as the romantic male lead and I would have never guessed that he could have pulled it off so beautifully. But he does! And that's why I chose Fever Pitch to use as the film in my deconstruction workshop over at Savvy Authors. The workshop starts Monday, Feb 28 and lasts all week. Here's the link if you're interested. I promise it will be both fun and enlightening!


Fever Pitch Workshop, Savvy Authors
Feb 28-March 6
Fever Pitch, the 2005 romantic comedy about the game of love starring Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon. Hold on… Jimmy Fallon? Not exactly most women’s idea of a romantic leading man. Find out how funny can be sexy, and what makes this romantic comedy work on so many different levels. This workshop will focus on plot and characterization and how you can use the techniques from the film to make your own stories stronger and more appealing to the mass audience.

2 comments:

Marilyn Brant said...

Maria, good luck on your workshop! I know you'll do a fabulous job ;). And, ohhhh, I love the romantic comedies you chose. The Philadelphia Story. While You Were Sleeping. Those are both on my faves list. I haven't yet seen Fever Pitch (I know, I know! I'll rent it soon!), but Drew was so funny in Music and Lyrics with Hugh Grant and, also, Never Been Kissed with Michael Vartan that I know I'd love this film, too.

Tonya Kappes said...

Very neat you are doing a workshop based around Fever Pitch. I too love romantic comedies and no matter how hard I try to "write" to NYC, I always fall back on rom coms:)

 

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