Romantic Comedy

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Romantic Comedy

2019

1h 18m

Documentary

Comedy

Romance

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Popcornmeter

94%

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17 Reviews

43%

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Fewer than 50 Ratings

Assisted by critics, actors and other directors, filmmaker Elizabeth Sankey investigates the past, present and future of romantic comedies.

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Mark Kermode

Kermode & Mayo's Film Review

I actually wanted more enthusiasm here...more of a celebration at times...

Jun 16, 2020

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Danny Leigh

Financial Times

Over a rolling collage of scenes and snippets, Sankey narrates a wry deconstruction of the films that were once the stuff of her suburban dreams.

Rated: 4/5

May 13, 2020

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Peter Bradshaw

Guardian

With affection and brio, Elizabeth Sankey reclaims the genre of romantic comedy in this watchable documentary...

Rated: 4/5

May 7, 2020

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

…while Romantic Comedy is easy to consume, it’s less-than-impressive as a supposedly cohesive argument…

Rated: 3/5

Mar 13, 2024

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Dallas King

Flick Feast

At times it can come across on the academic side but with an engaging soundtrack provided by Summer Camp and strong arguments delivered by [Director] Sankey, it doesn’t outstay its welcome and shines a fresh light on the genre.

Rated: 3/5

Nov 11, 2022

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Tom Beasley

VultureHound

An affectionate skewering of a genre that is too often portrayed as purely harmless escapism.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 17, 2020

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carol y

I think it is a very great movie. It brings me smile on my face. I will recommend it to my friend also. If u don't believe it, just watch it!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/09/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Released on MUBI, Elizabeth Sankey's 2019 documentary plays like a continuous compilation of romantic comedy clips, stretching from 1938's Bringing Up Baby to more recent additions such as The Big Sick or even La La Land, as she vocalizes a deconstructive essay on the evolution and shortcomings of the genre and how it affected her growing up watching these films. Sporadically, unnamed and unseen voices from critics, actors and filmmakers pop up with a quip or a brief commentary, while three superfluous but original songs are featured seemingly for no other reason than to break the flow of the dissertation. Whilst I agree her analysis and observations are generally insightful and well-considered, I'd argue that she has not quite found the correct presentation for it. There is a serious case of incongruity here, in a film that falls between two stools, neither working as a celebratory clipshow that can cater for fans of the genre (while providing an opportunity to introduce them to something different and fresh that they may not have seen or be aware of) nor a more serious academic investigation of a genre that audience often takes for granted. The resulting film ends up feeling too dry for the former and a bit random and spread too thin for the latter. For a film that's barely 80 mins long, I just couldn't understand why no love for the milestone making Love, Simon from 2018 and why, after alluding to the ways the genre has evolved to stay relevant by embracing subject matters that are not white, middle-class and heterosexual, did the film decides to stop just as things are getting interesting?

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

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Elizabeth Sankey

Director

Jessica Barden

Actor

Charlie Lyne

Actor

Anne T. Donahue

Actor

Elizabeth Sankey

Writer

Oskar Pimlott

Producer

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Synopsis

Assisted by critics, actors and other directors, filmmaker Elizabeth Sankey investigates the past, present and future of romantic comedies.

Director: Elizabeth Sankey
Producer: Oskar Pimlott, Chiara Ventura, Jeremy Warmsley
Screenwriter: Elizabeth Sankey
Genre: Documentary, Comedy, Romance
Original Language: British English
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 10, 2020
Runtime: 1h 18m

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