It’s January, so thus starts the barrage of romantic comedies that attempt to get us through the dark winter months with a little bit of manufactured happiness and hope. It’s a necessary evil in the face of bleak winter days, but it only works when the movies that we have to choose from are actually good. Thank you, gods of Rom-com, because you’ve provided us with two exact opposites in the form of brand new trailers: one that shows us how it’s done and one that’s a perfect example of how to drive the formula into the ground, pick it back up, smash into smithereens and then grind those smithereens into dust with your heel.
First, the bad news. Kate Hudson is starring in another romantic comedy and they’re daring to call it A Little Bit of Heaven. Surprise, surprise. On its own, it isn’t really the worst news, but wait until you find out that her costar is a terminal illness. Hudson plays a woman whose fast-paced career made her forget love, carry a ton of condoms, and have lots of lots of meaningless sex until her cute doctor (the always charming Gael Garcia Bernal) tells her she has cancer. Of course she starts falling for him, and their chemistry-free love montage begins. I love Gael, but even he can’t save this cliché-ridden train wreck. Did I mention that Whoopie Goldberg plays God in the movie? I have no more words.
Now for the refreshing part. Though Ted Mosby is my least favorite character on How I Met Your Mother, the man behind the Mosby, Josh Radnor, apparently knows his way around an indie RomCom – at least from what I can see from the trailer. An audience favorite at Sundance, Happythankyoumoreplease is a story that ties a random sampling of New Yorkers together as they navigate the very confusing world that is the modern romantic relationship. Radnor wrote the script and takes on both the starring role and the directing duties. There aren’t a whole lot of details out there but the response thus far has been positive. Take a look and decide for yourself (besides it’s the best antidote for that Kate Hudson trailer you just suffered through).
