The Friday Five: Sweetest Chick Flick Endings

After my previous, less romantic post, I thought it would be nice to give this week a fairy-tale ending. Although I generally like to tear down those romantic comedy films because of the effects they have on (mostly female) audiences, I admit that they have always been a guilty pleasure. Maybe they aren’t realistic, but we are allowed to have hope from time to time, and so this week, I would like to present some of the more aww-worthy romantic comedy endings. (Feel free to call me a sap!)

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The Friday Five: Sweetest Chick Flick Endings

1. Never Been Kissed (1999)
A copy editor in her mid-twenties, the dorky Josie Geller longs for love, and – as the title of the movie suggests – has never even been kissed. Naturally, she ends up going undercover as a high school student in order to write an expose on the popular students’ lives, and falls in love with her English teacher. A little crazy and unethical, yes, but it takes place in the 90’s — a decade of really bad but still insanely adorable teen movies — so it’s all sort of forgivable. When she is revealed as an undercover reporter and declares her love for her teacher at a big baseball game, the following ensues. Even if you aren’t particularly moved by the illegalities of it all, you have to love the Beach Boys music playing in the background. “Don’t worry, baby…” 🙂

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2. You’ve Got Mail (1998)
In this remake of The Shop Around The Corner, Meg Ryan plays the owner of a small bookshop, who falls for a man with whom she has only corresponded by email. Meanwhile, Tom Hanks plans to build a huge chain bookstore across the street, which will be sure to put Ryan’s shop out of business, and so they develop an adversarial relationship. As fate would have it (of course!), Tom Hanks happens to be the mystery man she has been emailing. In the end, they manage to put their differences aside and admit their feelings for each other in real life.

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3. He’s Just Not That Into You (2009)
This is one of those ensemble cast movies that features several love stories, but smack dab in the middle of all of them is the story of Gigi, a sweet girl who overanalyzes potential relationships too often, and Alex, the uncommitted but friendly guy who helps her recognize all the lies she’s been telling herself about the world of dating. Although I don’t totally buy Alex’s profound realization in this end scene, I am a sucker for this ending. Maybe again this has something to do with the music in the background (Somewhere Only We Know happens to be one of my favorite songs) but I do think it was a clever — and sweet! — way to wrap up the characters’ story.

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4. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
What kind of list would this be if it didn’t feature multiple Meg Ryan films? (Trust me, there are plenty of other good ones that didn’t make the list but still deserve to be there.) Disregarding the big hair, it is one of my favorite movies of all time. It begs the question “Can a man and a woman be friends without sex getting in the way?” Harry and Sally grow close over a period of 11 years, but eventually their feelings do get in the way and we end the movie with this gem. Possibly the sweetest “grand gesture speech” I have ever heard in a movie. Although it may not be the most realistic at times, I think When Harry Met Sally is the kind of love story most people want to find in their own lives. Wouldn’t it be great if the perfect person for us was right under our nose all along?

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5. Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)
Okay, so this one isn’t exactly a “romantic comedy” or “chick flick,” but it does have those romantic elements and definitely the perfect ending, in spite of the fact that it differs from the novel. All iconic aspects of the movie aside, it has such a lovely Old Hollywood ending that current films just can’t duplicate, with great speeches from the characters and gorgeous visuals.

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What are your favorite movie endings?