Desire (1936)

Not particularly known for comedies, director Frank Borzage made a sparking gem of one with Desire, which reunited Marlene Dietrich and Gary Cooper after their star turns in Josef von Sternberg's Morocco (1930). Cooper plays Tom Bradley, an engineer for the Bronson 8 car company, located in Paris. He's granted a long-awaited vacation and heads off to Spain. Meanwhile, Madeleine de Beaupre (Marlene Dietrich) pulls off an elaborate — and amazing — con, walking away with a string of pearls worth 2.2 million francs. Of course, she interrupts Tom's vacation, splashing mud on him. Then, to get the pearls past customs, she slips them in his coat pocket. From there, it's a balancing act as Madeleine and her cohort, Carlos Margoli (John Halliday) — who poses as her uncle — try to get it back while Tom falls in love with her. The stars are a perfect match, both clever, but Cooper in a peppy, optimistic way and Dietrich in an icy, calculating way. The movie has a delightful, light touch that feels simultaneously sophisticated and silly. (Producer Ernst Lubitsch might have had some influence on things.) Kino Lorber's excellent Blu-ray release comes with two film historian commentary tracks, one by David Del Valle and Nathaniel Bell, and one by Samm Deighan, plus more trailers than you can shake a stick at. read more...

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The Wedding Singer (1998)

Adam Sandler reveals his first touches of sweetness as a former high school musician that now sings cover songs at weddings. When his own fiancée stands him up, he has a breakdown and a waitress (Drew Barrymore) lends him a hand. Of course, her undeserving fiancé still stands in the way of their budding romance. Barrymore and Sandler are lovely together, and the movie, set in 1985, was also among the first to tap into 1980s nostalgia. To that end, Billy Idol appears as himself in a funny cameo. read more...

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Boomerang (1992)

Boomerang is arguably more interesting in theory than it is in execution. It was part of a boom of African-American movies in the early 1990s, and star Eddie Murphy clearly went out of his way to get in on this trend; he acquired an African-American director, Reginald Hudlin, who had made House Party (1990), and cast the movie almost entirely with African-Americans. It even features a cameo by pioneer filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles. Moreover, it was an attempt at a more sophisticated, grown-up comedy for Murphy, focusing on adults in a workplace, and on adult, sexual relationships. read more...

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The Break-Up (2006)

What looks like a raucous frat-boy comedy is really a surprisingly canny depiction of a stagnant relationship. Brooke (Jennifer Aniston) won't say what she wants, while Gary (Vince Vaughn) does exactly as he pleases, and together they own a valuable Chicago condo. The clever director Peyton Reed (Down with Love) sustains a string of remarkable conversations, arguments and desperate ploys, while upsetting the expected rom-com formula. The humor instead seeps from the many crafty character roles; Judy Davis, Vincent D'Onofrio and Jon Favreau really shine, but Aniston and Vaughn break into entirely new territory. The movie could have used more build up and a stronger female presence, but it's a brave, subversive look at the ugly, needy side of Hollywood romance. Vaughn co-wrote the story and produced. read more...

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Married to the Mob (1988)

After Something Wild and before The Silence of the Lambs, director Jonathan Demme made this fun, romantic crime comedy that still feels fresh today. Michelle Pfieffer stars, quite beautiful, but not relying on her blonde locks, as Angela de Marco. She's the miserable wife of a mafia hitman (Alec Baldwin); when he's killed (for cheating on his wife with the boss's mistress), Angela uses the opportunity to make a fresh start for herself and her son, hopefully in a non-mafia life. read more...

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