Why Do You Watch Rom-Coms?

By Wambui Ngunjiri

Known as cinematic comfort food, the romantic comedy is the combination of everything that makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside: love, laughs, and an extremely hot cast The genre takes many forms, but at the same time, it’s so familiar to all of us The tropes, the characters, and even the setting (but for the record: fancy New York apartment that is well above a journalist’s means >>> John Hughes-type High School) As Valentine’s Day comes closer, you have so many options, but which will you choose? Well, that all depends on why you watch romantic comedies Do you want to feel butterflies or fall over with laughter? Do you like the adorable pining or the chemistry-filled banter? Do you want your main character to be an absolute boss or a hot mess? Look deep inside yourself, find your reason, and let me tell you exactly which rom-com you should watch for the romantic season

To Feel the Warmth

You’re probably sensitive or lonely or both No shame in any of it You like the feeling of being loved and appreciated You may adore deep pining one is in love with the other, but they’re separated by things like insecurity, circumstances, hatred, or the socially accepted cafeteria seating chart You believe a movie can never go wrong with a solid and supportive friendship Sometimes it’s the quirky best friend, but sometimes the movie may be about the friendship with romance on the side You’re here for the love It can be cheesy, it can be heartfelt, it can be romantic, it can be platonic, but it’s all love You’re looking for a rom-com that tugs at the heartstrings Where the main characters are platonic/romantic soulmates, and, from the second you meet them, you are ready to die for them You prefer your rom-coms to be quirky and predictable They have the familiar character types, they follow the tropes, and there better be a ridiculous misunderstanding resolved by a gentle love confession at the end or SO HELP ME! I’d recommend:

Notting Hill- Julia Roberts dates peasant Hugh Grant and it’s cute

To All the Boys I Loved Before- HEAR ME OUT, the first one is cute and it has the fake dating trope, so I see it as a win

The Half of It- bring tissues, either for the jock-nerd friendship or for doomed love

Romeo + Juliet (1996)- ROMEO AND FREAKING JULIET

13 Going on 30- Jennifer Garner falls in love with her best friend, and if that’s not

enough, there's time travel

To Feel the Tension

You might be a die-hard enemies-to-lovers fan who has sarcasm infused with their soul, or maybe you’re someone who just wants to feel something Either way, the feeling of being short of breath is something you crave from your rom-com You enjoy the way two actors can simply look at each other across the room onscreen and suddenly even your heart is racing and you’re not even relevant to them You cannot get enough of the comedic banter, the random deep talks, the heavy breathing, and the passionate kiss scenes Let’s face it: THEY’RE LIVING OUR DREAM! There’s a thin line between love and hate, and these guys are doing their gymnastics routine on it These movies are definitely ones that play with your heart, but they’re also ones that feel the most real There’s anger, added layers of complexity, and an exploration of human emotion as the characters go from hate to love You’re looking for a story with all these things and more to keep you glued to your seat while screaming: “KISS KISS KISS!” I’d recommend 10 Things I Hate About You- if you’ve seen it, watch it again, I’m doing you a favor

Catch and Release- Jennifer Garner falls for her dead fiance’s best friend (it’s not as bad as it sounds, come back to me after the cabin kiss scene)

The Wedding Season- Set in the JerseyIndian-Wedding scene, this movie had me STRESSED for our lovers

The DUFF- You can pry this movie from my cold dead hands

To Judge and Eye-Roll

You and I are on the same wavelength We also probably have some deep-seated issues that contribute to our cynicism and apathy, but that’s neither here nor there You’re a cynic who can only extend your imagination so far Characters will sit there, make the most annoying decisions, and make their lives even harder, leaving you sitting there wondering if they’re rooting for their own relationship Because when you love someone, doing your utmost to push them away and wreck their life is clearly a top priority There are only so many times one can watch a main character go through hell and high water just to NOT be honest with their feelings, and then have the movie basically tell you that it is a completely normal course of action I have fallen in love with my best that’s something that I can appreciate about it The film doesn’t try to be anything that it’s not However, it does try (and succeed) to be one of the best romantic comedies of our time

First off, the fashion is incredible Having been produced in 1999, the movie is chock full of all those perfectly iconic nineties trends Yes, I’m talking about platform flip flops and cargo pants Then, it’s clear that this movie has some talented actors Just looking at the cast list, it has Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger starring as the main characters Now, both of them are great on their own, but together? They truly make the film what it is. Next, the movie in general doesn’t have a crazy exciting plot Boy wants to take the girl out on a date, but can’t However, the movie is executed extremely well 10 Things I Hate About You made me laugh, made me cry It made me wish that I was Kat Stratford. Also, it should be noted that Heath Ledger’s rendition of “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”, complete with a marching band, has to be one of the best things I have ever witnessed.

Anyways, there isn’t much else I can put into words about the film It’s just plain good, especially for a rom-com Sure, it’s cheesy But that’s exactly what this type of movie is supposed to be all about So, if you’re looking for a perfect balance between laughing and heartache this Valentine’s Day, 10 Things I Hate About You is the movie for you!

The Classic Review

By Jiwoo Lee

It is the time of year when romantic vibes tickle people’s noses like a whiff of sweet chocolate Movies such as Bridget Jones's Diary and 10 Things I Hate About You are at their prime There is a film that might not have international fame but portrays a beautiful tale of love, The Classic As the name gives away, The Classic is one of the iconic South Korean romance movies that has been around since 2003

This film portrays a parallel love story of Jihye and her mom, Joohee, each taking place in the 2000s and 1970s It starts with the daughter, Jihye, falling for a senior in college, Sangmin Her friend, Sookyung, was also in love with Sangmin and asked Jihye to write love letters for her Jihye confessed her love through the letters, but they made Sookyung and Sangmin grow closer Meanwhile, she finds a diary her mother wrote in the attic The journal illustrates her unrequited love for a boy named Junha, and the film shifts to Joohee’s perspective Junha had been writing love letters to Joohee on behalf of his friend, Teasoo, secretly expressing his love for Joohee The two lovers do not recognize each other's feelings. When the two reunite after a long time, Joohee is engaged to Teasoo because of a family promise Their relationship is intertwined, and Junha’s past unfolds

Many of our parents' generation from South Korea hold fuzzy memories of this film related to their romantic experiences

The charm of this movie emotionally engages the audience to this day, and more than nostalgia is working to its advantage Its plot integrates the tragic historical background of South Korea in the 1970s with Joohee’s romantic journey

If you are looking for a heartbreaking love story and a history lesson, The Classic is the movie for you!

Down with Love Has Me Down with Love for Feminist Rom-Coms

By Ovi Davis

Look, I love a 90’s or 2000’s romantic comedy despite the casual sexism. Many of my favorites fall victim to the insidious idea that feminism was “over” by the 90’s In these films, true happiness for women lies in domestic bliss, not in the workplace While I do love to watch these movies anyway, sometimes that’s not good enough to satisfy all my feminist romantic movie needs That’s where Down With Love comes in

The year is 1962, and Barbara Novak (Renée Zellweger) has just successfully written her first book, Down With Love, in which she argues that women should free themselves from love and find fulfillment in the workforce It’s wildly successful, and women around the world begin to rebel against the men in their lives much to the dismay of famous journalist and notorious ladies’ man Catcher Block (Ewan McGregor) Now that no woman wants to date him, Catcher develops a scheme to prove that Barbara truly wants love and domesticity in her life

Most films with this type of secret identity, enemies-to-lovers plot end with much to be desired; after a satisfactory amount of time spent hating each other, our heroine friend! Obviously, I must wait until the night before he gets married to someone else to tell him, and until then, I must do everything I can to sabotage the wedding Oh look, a cute girl, but she’s probably a little too upper east side Clearly, the only course of action is to assume a false identity of someone who is just as posh! A normal conversation? Pfft! Be for real Despite the annoyance, it’s this level of stupidity and the movie’s lack of selfawareness that makes it so enjoyable It’s the combination of the sick pleasure you get from being able to harshly judge someone with no consequences, and the simple hilarity of being able to laugh at your own jokes at the main character’s expense (because we critics are also comedic geniuses) You need a rom-com that when you sit down to watch, alone or with friends, the entire time you are yelling and eye-rolling at your screen like the main character is a white girl in a horror movie I’d recommend: Made of Honor- A guy discovers he’s in love with his best friend when she gets engaged just because she’s the only woman he didn’t objectify for more than a minute

Never Been Kissed- Adult Drew

Barrymore goes undercover at a high school for a news story and the teacher, who thinks she’s a STUDENT, flirts with her saying, “yOU’re So mAtuRE fOr yOuR aGe ”

While You Were Sleeping- woman fakes being engaged to a man to his entire family and ends up with his brother (I wish I was joking, but, then again, this is the funniest movie to watch as a judgmental person)

The Wedding Planner- How do you plan the wedding of a man who kissed you THE NIGHT BEFORE? This movie should’ve been a sapphic revenge story, and I’ll die on this hill

To Enjoy the Purely Unhinged

The words “stan”, “they can do no wrong”, and “free they did nothing wrong” are frequently used when you talk about your favorite fictional characters Yeah MAYBE they did stab the main character 20+ times, but when you think about it they were just going through it Your logic is heavily flawed and I’m kind of scared of you but your loyalty is unmatched, and this logic hasn’t failed to make its way to your taste in rom-coms You are the complete opposite of our last watcher in that you aren’t deeply annoyed by a character’s stupid actions, you are out there breaking your back to defend them In fact, you need more unhinged content from your main characters because that is 10x more entertaining to you than the romance I mean, who wants to watch two people fall in love if they’re both mentally and emotionally stable? Chaos and antics are a must in your unhinged rom-com You love a good domino effect, one character’s decisions resulting in another character losing a job, their house is on fire, and the dog is wearing Gam-Gam’s teeth bonus points if the character was aware all of this could’ve happened and still went for it Your rom-coms are a bit more complex than others They’ll typically center a problematic character who makes God-awful decisions, but they’re framed with comedy, decent writing, and a fully realized backstory thatmakes you end up rooting for them

Unlike our “eye-roller” movies, your movies need to be self-aware about their character’s problems, sending the message that we’re not rooting for their bad decisions but for their ultimate improvement This way you can unapologetically enjoy the main character’s B S as they live out your most intrusive and impulsive thoughts while you intermittently shout, “That’s SO me ” I’d recommend:

Never Have I Ever- but seriously guys she was going through it (translation: Devi is MY girl, so step to ME)

You Again- A secret high school bully grew up, got engaged to her victim’s older brother, and they’re the only two that know it- not a sane decision in sight

Bride Wars- Two brides, one venue, let the games begin

The Parent Trap- Personally, I’m partial to the Lindsey Lohan one, but at the end of the day, it’s a messed-up tale and those two little girls are LEGENDS suddenly submits to the leading man before the film can manage to resolve any of their issues However, Down With Love is not like most films Without spoiling the absolutely scrumptious ending, the film manages to satisfactorily develop its main characters until they reach a mutual understanding of what their future looks like: one where Barbara still gets to thrive in the workplace With wacky characters, a zany plot, beautiful costumes, a hilarious date montage, and even a silly musical number, the film feels like it came right out of the 1960s But with an anachronistic ending that will put any other supposedly “feminist” romance from this decade to shame, Down With Love is the perfect film to satisfy all your Valentine’s Day romcom needs in a fourth-wave feminist world

Chocolate Poll

By Hannah Ternes and Joey Kotkin

Chocolate What is it? Why are there so many different kinds of chocolate? Well, while we may not be able to answer these questions fully, what we are able to answer is: what is the most popular chocolate to give to your significant other for Valentine’s Day?

We made a large questionnaire and sent it out to all Upper School students, and in this article, we will analyze the results that have been provided The Wichita Collegiate students’ favorite type of chocolate is milk chocolate with a majority of over 60% of the students’ votes, and not so close behind was semisweet chocolate at 35% So if you plan on getting that special someone a box of chocolate, choose milk chocolate The best candy bar containing chocolate is the Twix* candy bar The combined power of left and right Twix gave it a 39%, winning first place with a close second of Kit-Kats at 38% Next on the list is the most interesting What additions to chocolate are the best? Like nuts or fruit Turns out that over a third of the students do not like adding nuts into their chocolate, but conversely, over two thirds of the students would pair chocolate with strawberries So what is the consensus? The best kind of chocolate to give is milk chocolate covered strawberries or Twix

*Editor's Note: 39% of you are wrong! Reese's is obviously the best- J.Longsworth