If you are currently -- or ever have been -- part of a "couple" you may have experienced the treachery involved in a ritual Saturday night date. The dinner part is easy, reservations simple. It's after dessert that separates men from boys -- movie time1x Like it or not men are going to be forced, pressured, coaxed, or otherwise tortured by wives, fiancées, girlfriends or whoever, into seeing a . . . chick flick.
Guys can score big points with their women by taking them to, or renting the movie she picks, but they can also enjoy it themselves as well.
Now this doesn't go for all chick flicks, obviously, that would be too perfect for us girls. But there are certain romantic, sappy love stories that do have a historical, pseudo-documentary filmmaking style. Take for instance, "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Juliette Binoche and Lena Olin. It's a love triangle set amidst the 1968 "Prague Spring" shortly before Czechoslovakia succumbed to a Soviet invasion.
While chicks may swoon over Daniel in some fantastic love scene with his wife and mistress, some guys (particularly those hooked-on-the-History-Channel-types) may enjoy the historical, dramatized depiction of the beautiful city's fall under Russian repression.
Some guys really get turned on by "pretty woman" Julia Roberts -- some can't stand her. Some might want to find out if she's worth her $20 million price tag. And some want to know what it is about her latest film, "Erin Brockavich," that's been able to rake in gazillions at the box office in recent weeks. A screening of this movie, no matter how painful it sounds, will satisfy these curiosities. This based-on-fact-flick, about a small-town girl with some seriously big cleavage who takes on a huge water company after it has been linked to causing several deaths and severe illnesses in neighboring communities, is the quintessential Julia Roberts vehicle. She's all that. . . big mouth, big teeth, big ---s.
Both guys and chicks should enjoy the uphill legal battle peppered with plenty of human suffering as well as the interesting romance that plays out between Erin and her biker buddy, "George," played by Aaron Eckhardt. And most guys will simply enjoy the view of Erin.
"Return to Me," the romantic comedy starring David Duchovny and Minnie Driver will pull at those of us with feminine heartstrings, because "Grace" received "Bob's" late wife's heart in a transplant. But many guys may enjoy this romantic comedy, for the latter. . . the comedy. There are some pretty funny bits and banter between Bonnie Hunt's character and her husband played by Jim Belushi, as well as a coral of old fogies led by Carroll O'Connor and Robert Loggia.
We can even go a tad Holly Go-Lightly with the ABC telepic, "The Audrey Hepburn Story." Yes, it was over-dramatized and Jennifer Love Hewitt, in the title role, may have over-acted a bit. But when this movie reruns or makes its way to video, and the chicks who missed it want to take a look, guys should make a compromise. They might get a kick out of watching some young gun actors, with names seldom heard before, take a stab at playing the classic characters, Bogey, William Holden, Billy Wilder and Truman Capote.
Finally, the one foolproof factor for the guys who seem to find no redeeming qualities whatsoever in a classic chick flick -- they can always rely on humor. While your chick may shed a tear over the sadness or sweetness of that love story, or laugh at the physical comedy of a romantic burlesque, guys can just plain laugh at the "stupidity" of it all.
Just think of this as your comic relief for the week. Laugh at the silliness of the story, at the actors going through the predictable motions. Enjoy watching the strain on Duchovny's face as he tries to convey the euphoria of new love, and the wonders of when Grace will tell Bob about her transplant, and what will happen to their romance when they discover her heart-kept secret.
If all other reasoning fails, just go with her to the theater or the video store because. . . you love her. . . or you want her to love you.
