20 chick flicks that make me feel like a man.

[lovejuice]

haven't been a while since i start a list. (i know i fail the Astaire & Roger, but that one's still going on ever slowly.) since i always consider myself a connoisseur of this overlooked and underrated genre, i will take a stab and present match-cutters, 20 chick flicks that make lovejuice feel like a man. unlike porn or super-hero, chick flick is an ill-defined genre. basically i'm talking rom com with ladies as targeted audiences. some negative-defying rules:

* no musicals. since i am even a bigger fan of that genre. always a fine line between chick flick and musical, and a number of entries will walk that line.

* no oldies. weird rule, but i am not that well versed in old rom com. back then those movies weren't made specifically for ladies anyway. also we don't want to see audrey hepburn populating most of the list, do we?

* no girl empowerment actioner.

you may ask why chick flick? desson thomson says it best:

"At its best, a romantic comedy celebrates one of humanity's greatest yearnings: to give and to find the love of a lifetime."

can't promise this'll be entertaining, but i'll try my best.

[lovejuice]

20. Marie Antoinette (2006)

not by any standard will i consider it a good movie -- on a second thought, this phrase probably will be used a lot -- it's just irresistible. an ultimate female fantasy, both of the director and its main star. who doesn't want to live in an 18th century french palace before the nastiness of guillotine and the revolution? a movie so proud of its gender it doesn't shy away from...sucking a little bit (or a lot, depend).



19. Amelie (2001)

it's here on a merit of being good than being liked. most people have an easier time that i do finding its "heart." still jeunet's my favorite director, and eventually its whim wins me over. a rare chick flick that has an appeal to both genders. personally i prefer a very long engagement with its insufferable weakness. amelie is however a safer choice, and even i can't deny its charm.

[Grouchy]

I deny the charms of both these movies. In fact, I can't decide which one I dislike the most.

[Philosophe_rouge]

I LOVE yoru first two choices, and I'm satisfied that this will be an interesting list.

[Raiders]

I don't know how they make you "feel like a man," but for chick flicks, two of the best for me are While You Were Sleeping and The Lake House.

[lovejuice]

I don't know how they make you "feel like a man," but for chick flicks, two of the best for me are While You Were Sleeping and The Lake House.

i like WYWS and have a fond memory of Il mare, though never checked out The Lake House.

[Sycophant]

I don't know how they make you "feel like a man," but for chick flicks, two of the best for me are While You Were Sleeping and The Lake House.

As a big fan of While You Were Sleeping, this just convinced me to finally check out The Lake House.

[Pop Trash]

Interesting! This is probably the most maligned genre of them all by the mostly male oriented critics and interweb poters. My GF was trying to get me to admit to liking some romantic comedies from recent years and I told her I liked these:

-Say Anything
-When Harry Met Sally
-The Princess Bride
-Joe Vs. The Volcano
-Singles
-Chasing Amy
-The Wedding Singer
-High Fidelity
-Lost in Translation
-Most things Judd Apatow related (but these are sort of rom-coms for dudes)

[megladon8]

I don't know how they make you "feel like a man," but for chick flicks, two of the best for me are While You Were Sleeping and The Lake House.

Which version of the latter?

[lovejuice]

18. 10 Things I Hate about You (1999)

*look at the above picture. :cry:* back in the days stiles made movie with integrity. let's hope her involvement with borne's franchise put the girl on the right track. i have never been a fan of high-school rom com except weirdly enough shakespeare adaptations (including byrne's the twelfth night). Still this early ledger's vehicle is the best. i would like to say RIP, but you are due to appear on this list one more time.



17. Ever After (1998)

more girl empowerment than romantic comedy. Its mix and match of fairy tale and costume drama is right on spot. i like how they change the character of one stepsister, putting her on the same side as cinderella. i confess to not having watched it for so long, but back then -- almost ten years! time flies -- it's among DVDs i pop in most often.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Ever After? Really? Man, I hated that movie.

[lovejuice]

Ever After? Really? Man, I hated that movie.

you are not manly enough. :P

[Scar]

you are not manly enough. :P

I, uh, sorta liked that one.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I'm on board with all of your other choices, though you failed to list #18, so I must be fairly manly. But boy, I'm not with you on Ever After. Not at all.

[DavidSeven]

I don't know how they make you "feel like a man," but for chick flicks, two of the best for me are While You Were Sleeping and The Lake House.

Too much Sandra Bullock love for a single sentence.

[number8]

Steel Magnolias, man.

The movie doesn't make anyone feel like a man, but listen to that title. STEEL MAGNOLIAS. That's like a cyborg PTA. That's manly.

[balmakboor]

I hope Return to Me is on here somewhere. That's a perfect chick flick -- by your definition -- if there ever was one.

[Ezee E]

This will be the only time I ever see Ever After considered better than Amelie.

But do continue.

[SpaceOddity]

* no oldies. weird rule, but i am not that well versed in old rom com. back then those movies weren't made specifically for ladies anyway. also we don't want to see audrey hepburn populating most of the list, do we?

Yay for the Audrey deficit.

*approves*

[Ezee E]

Marie Antoinette is such a chick flick. It can blab on and on and on, and gets pretty annoying, but yet, I like it because of how lovely it looks.

[lovejuice]

I hope Return to Me is on here somewhere. That's a perfect chick flick -- by your definition -- if there ever was one.

it's not, but i remember watching and loving it back then. haven't had a chance to revisit it since though.

[lovejuice]

16. Shopgirl (2005)

i was in love with claire danes, but that's not the only reason. many critics unjustly bashes the movie for encouraging licentious behavior between old rich guys and young girls. i say, they either lack brain, heart, or simply didn't see the movie. it might not be a paragon of romantic drama; the whole affair is flawed, but all are forgiven once steve martin's soliloquy rolls in before the credit:

[

Show Spoiler

"As Ray Porter watched his Mirabelle walk away he feels a loss. How is it possible - he thinks - to miss a woman whom he kept at a distance so that when she was gone he would not miss her. Only then did he realise how wanting part of her and not all of her had hurt them both, and how he cannot justify his actions except that...well...it was life."

]

One of or even the most soul-searching quotations i have heard in movies.



16. Enchanted (2007)

aaahhh....amy adams.

this movie crosses the no-musical rule, but the songs kinda suck anyway. in fact the whole film's rather weak. except for the female lead. i don't usually grant movies merit based on a single performance, but this girl sparks, fizzles, and whatever weird verb in every single frame. i agree with what one reviewer says, it's like seeing audrey hepburn for the first time in roman holiday. i heart adams so much i start to worry about her career. hope the girl has a good enough agent.

[NickGlass]

::crosses fingers for Bridget Jones' Diary being in the Top 3::

[Benny Profane]

Liked Shopgirl. That scene between Schwartzmann and Pete Sampras' wife had me rolling.

I'd rather kill myself than see Enchanted.

[lovejuice]

::crosses fingers for Bridget Jones' Diary being in the Top 3::

damn! thank, now i have to put it as a tie somewhere.