7 Puke-Worthy Romantic Comedies

By Clare Fuller, Movie Critic -

Of all the wonderful genres that the cinematic world has to offer, the realm of romantic comedies is perhaps the easiest to pick on. It’s so incredibly hard to find a movie that manages to marry a captivating romantic plot line with the right amount of humor, but when executed correctly, a rom-com can become an instant classic. Think John Cusack holding a boom box over his head outside of Ione Sky’s window in Say Anything. Think of Woody Allen’s neurotic quest for Diane Keaton’s affection in Annie Hall. Hell, think of the sheer nauseating sweetness of The Notebook. When romantic comedies are good, they can be really, really good.

But we’re not here to compliment anything or anyone here today. We’re here to dissect the other side of the rom-com spectrum– the increasingly ubiquitous demographic of cheesy, predictable, cringe-inducing, and, well, puke-worthy romantic comedies. These are the sorts of movies that you reluctantly shuffle into when you find out at the box office that the film you actually wanted to see is sold out. Or the kind you end up buying on Pay-Per-View when all your friends are out doing far more exciting things and you feel like drowning your sorrows in the Ben & Jerry’s flavor of your choosing.

So here are the seven most disgustingly corny, sentimental romantic comedies this cynical cinema critic could dig up for you. Brace yourself, and be sure to have a bucket nearby if you feel the urge to vomit.

7) The Proposal

What could possibly be more romantic than a forced relationship? Is there really anything more endearing than the concept of a boss blackmailing her employee into marrying her so that she doesn’t get deported back to her icy home back in Canada? Doesn’t the concept of watching Sandra Bullock be a domineering, corporate bitch devoid of any redeeming qualities just make you swoon?

Me neither, friend.

The Proposal chronicles the eventual romance between a pushy, intolerable boss (Bullock) and her wallflower of an employee (a sheepish and frustratingly bland Ryan Reynolds) after she forces him into a green card marriage. Like most modern romantic comedies cut from the same cloth of predictable plot structure and cheap laughs, it starts off completely reliant on raunchy humor and one-liners and then, without warning, tries to be a genuinely emotional and heart-wrenching quest for true romance about halfway through. And I don’t care. I came to see this movie because I wanted to be simultaneously humored and wooed, and I ended up leaving the theater without feeling either.