Monday, October 16, 2006

When Harry Met Sally 1989




As far as romantic comedies go, I really enjoyed the movie. It might be my tendency to cry in cheesy movies, and the fact that I’m a naturally emotional person, but it really tugged on my heart-strings. Aside from the fact that the plot is completely unfeasible and unrealistic, it is charming none the less. It is hard to believe that they would continue to meet in such a large city under such circumstances, but that is part of the appeal of the story.
When Harry Met Sally is a classic romantic comedy. It follows the general romantic comedy formula: Boy meets girl, boy likes girl, girl rejects boy, boy tries to get girl, girl likes boy, boy rejects girl, and they get together in the end. Much like a Shakespearian comedy, everybody ends up with somebody in the end, even if it is an unexpected relationship. Her best friend gets together with his best friend, thus further facilitating their inevitable relationship. The film plays on the idea that men and women can never engage in a friendship without sex being an issue. Sex is what drives a friendship, whether they realize it or not. The idea that sex is a possibility is what makes their friendship work, and at the same time what makes their friendship so hard. The point at which their friendship is the most functional, is when neither of them are looking for a relationship. They have both been damaged by their past relationships, and they are not consciously looking for a relationship, but they find their connection comforting. Even when they try to start dating other people, they always end up back together.

An aspect of the film that I found very interesting is the use of Meg’s hair styles to show the passage of time and her stage in life. In the beginning, she has the classic young, college hairstyle



The next style she has is the young adult businesswoman style that was so popular at that point in the 80’s. She is involved in a very professional relationship, and has a more adult lifestyle



The last style is more wild and relaxed. It reflects the slightly disorganized and frantic stage in her life, and also shows the ever-popular “bad perm” style.

1 comment:

Vladigogo said...

i think there are some hyperlink issues here