Romantic comedies are easy targets for parody. They tend to
be cloyingly sincere, trafficking in a specific brand of wish-fulfillment
fantasy that sets unrealistic expectations and employs cliché, often in the
service of some hopelessly retrograde gender politics.
The makers of the charming comedy “Isn’t It Romantic” know
this, and come fully prepared for a bit of audience skepticism. The film pokes
a bit of gentle fun at rom-coms while also functioning as an entirely earnest
example of the genre it’s sending up. Which makes it perfect for viewers who
have a love-hate relationship with those type of movies.
Rebel Wilson stars as Natalie, a junior architect at a New
York City firm. She’s talented, but her lack self-esteem has her career
stagnating and has left her little time for a personal life. Then she
accidentally bonks her head during a subway mugging and wakes up in a glossy
alternate-reality New York straight out of the romance movies she’s long rolled
her eyes at.
Production designer Sharon Seymour has a lot of fun with the
transformation of Natalie’s world, where the city streets consist of nothing
but wedding dress shops, cupcake bakeries, and indie bookstores, with colorful
bouquets of flowers lining the streets at random. Characters live in spacious,
impeccably decorated apartments and work in wide-open, marble-floored office
buildings.
Natalie suddenly finds herself romancing a hunky Australian
businessman (Liam Hemsworth) and her next door
neighbor (a very funny Brandon Scott Jones) has become her fabulous gay best
friend, dedicating himself solely to supporting Natalie in her pursuit of
happiness. Meanwhile, her work friend Whitney (Betty Gilpin is suddenly a
glowering, stiletto-sporting rival (because it’s an unspoken rule of romantic
comedies that women in professional settings have to be in competition with one
another). Then there’s her fellow co-worker Josh (Adam DeVine),
who Natalie’s always thought of as just an office buddy, but might be her
perfect match.
The traditional romantic comedy has fallen out of fashion in
recent years (though Netflix has been doing
its part to bring it back), meaning that director Todd Strauss-Schulson is left to poke fun at a number of tropes and
references that sometimes feel dated. Just about every reference — the film
pulls in everything from “When Harry Met Sally” to “She’s All That” — is from the 80’s and 90’s. The script could have
been sharper, but writers Erin Cardillo, Dana Fox
(“How to Be Single”), and Katie Silberman (“Set It Up”) have a clear affection
for the genre.
Walking that tightrope is already in Strauss-Schulson’s wheelhouse. His last film, the meta horror-comedy “The Final Girls,” took aim at 80’s
slasher films to great effect. He seems to be working his way through the
genres, and based on the results thus far, I’m more than happy to see him
continue.
Rebel Wilson’s characteristic blend of sweetness and cynicism
makes her the ideal comedic presence to anchor the film. Led by her charming performance,
“Isn’t It Romantic” both mocks and embraces its romantic comedy trappings,
which admittedly feels a bit like the film having its cake and eating it too.
But in this case, that just means there’s more sweet confections for everyone
to enjoy.
This article appears in Feb 27 – Mar 5, 2019.
