Gone Girl and My Best Friend’s Wedding, both good movies, but that’s where the similarities end. One of them is a Rom-Com, and one of them is not. Which one is which?
Well, how do most Rom-Com’s start? Often there is a meet-cute, aka an amusing or charming first encounter between two characters that leads to a romantic relationship. My Best Friend’s Wedding, MBFW, for short, does not have one of these, as the romantic leads of the movie already knew each other prior to the start of the movie. Gone Girl…check!
Another frequent occurrence in these movies is that the romantic leads go through a period where they don’t like each other at all. Sometimes this is right when they meet, sometimes it is shortly after their meet-cute. In MBFW, the two of them like each other for 95% of the movie, and the only time one of them does not like the other, is when Julia Roberts confesses her romantic feelings. So, the negative feelings weren’t mutual, like they usually would be. The following is the opening scene of Gone Girl…
…seems like there’s some animosity!
Of course, it is a Rom-Com because despite some disagreeable feelings earlier in the movie, the two main characters ultimately end up together. SPOILER, this does not happen in MBFW. Her best friend gets married…to someone else. In Gone Girl, on the other hand, they end up together. Check!
What about how amazingly attractive and cool the female lead is? Rom-Com’s often feature an impossibly cool woman who is beautiful, smart and strong, but can hang with the guys. Julia Roberts’ character in MBFW is not like that. She is a bad person who does bad things. We don’t think she’s cool. Amy from Gone Girl can be playfully sarcastic, improvisational, and she’ll laugh at your cheesy statements.
See, Gone Girl is more of a Rom-Com. Is there romance? They end the movie married and expecting a baby. Check.
Is it a comedy? Tyler Perry is in it. Check.
Are there romantic scenes outside in the elements? Yes, they kiss in the snow.
So it’s settled, not only is Gone Girl a Rom-Com, it is more of a Rom-Com than My Best Friend’s Wedding.
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