The Rom Complex

Did you miss us? Because we missed you! We're back to discuss The First Wives Club (1996) and the late, great Diane Keaton. If you know romcoms, you know Diane Keaton. Join us to chat about The First Wives Club, the plot of which Shelby kept getting confused with the new Kim Kardashian show All's Fair.

Sam has overcome her distaste for a certain actor and decided we should watch Pitch Perfect (2012). We chat about the peak of a cappella, having girl friends, and the black cat/golden retriever dynamic.

You can't stop the beat, and you can't stop us talking about Hairspray (2007). We also discuss airport altercations, Zefron in a suit, and what type of men we are.

Help, Sam is cursed and the only way to relieve it is to talk about Across the Universe (2007)! Luckily, there is plenty to say. We talk puppets, plot threads, and protests, all with a beautiful Beatles soundtrack.

Ahem, mi mi mi mi miiiii. Sorry, just had to warm up my voice for Sing-along September! Our first musical masterpiece is Bye Bye Birdie (1963). We also discuss young love, less-young love, mama's boys, and what wars happened in what years.

McDreamy and McCreamy collide in 2008's Made of Honor, a movie that proves that a rich man can have "broke boy energy." We also discuss Scotland, friends versus best friends, and comic relief grandmas.

The Wedding Singer (1998) is our next wedding-themed selection, and we don't even mention the musical stage adaptation. We discuss the Adam Sandler method of movie production, character-based comedy, and the allure of dating a musician.

We've returned to 2005, Sam's favorite year for movies, for The Wedding Date. Join us as we chat about complicated families, dancing away the anger, and how more men should be named Dermot.

Grab your Bowen Yang Lego minifigs because we're starting Wedding month with this year's The Wedding Banquet (2025). We discuss the surprising plot, tropes we hate the most, and lying to Grandma. Join us for the celebration!

We're finishing up Summertime Sadness with The Fault in Our Stars (2014), based on the book that kicked off an entire trend of "sick lit." Find out which one of us knows more about the Green brothers!

Don't put away those tissues yet because we are still powering through Summertime Sadness despite our sniffles and puffy eyes. This week we're discussing Me Before You (2016), a light little romantic drama (just kidding). Triggers include assisted suicide and discussion of suicidal ideation.

For our next bout of Summertime Sadness, we're joined by Anne Hathaway. Not physically, but spiritually, through her role in the movie One Day (2011). We also discuss character growth, diverging paths in life, and reality television.

This month we are celebrating Summertime Sadness, and we're off to an extremely tragic start with 2010's Remember Me. Trigger warning for the September 11th terrorist attacks. If you know, you know!

Writer, rapper, and filmmaker Nicholas Foster joins us to discuss 1999's Gorgeous, an extremely silly Jackie Chan romcom that veers off into unexpected side stories involving gangsters, business, and boxing. Lots of boxing. Check out more of Nick's work at https://justnickperiod.com/

Summer Catch (2001) teaches us a lot, mostly about toxic masculinity and collegiate summer baseball leagues. We also discuss cool girls, summer love, and an abundance of subplots.

Falling Inn Love (2019) has a city girl moving to a small town, but this time it's in New Zealand. Take us with you! We also discuss Sam's dream life, on-screen chemistry, and creepy dolls.

Our friends over at Femmes Reading Filth invited us on their podcast to chat about The Idea of You (2024) and the book from which it was adapted. If you like what you hear, please go check out more Femmes Reading Filth wherever you listen to podcasts!

Divas take the stage in 2010's Burlesque, an ultimately silly movie that happens to meet the theme of the month: small town/big city. We also discuss Labubu, drinking on the job, and the Wagon Wheel Watusi.

Love science month concludes with Love Me (2024), in which two pieces of technology (science) fall in love (that's the love part). See, it fits the theme!

Love science and time science come together in Timer (2009). Sam and Shelby get to say whatever they want about this movie and not feel bad because the creator went on to make Wandavision.

We're going "sad" this week with 2004's Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. We discuss poorly-treated actors, wigs vs. dye, and the nature of memory.

Our friend Rob of Vanderpump Robs joins us to chat about 1992's Love Potion No. 9. We also discuss little mustaches, the fear of rejection, and, of course, kissing cops.

Something about Duck Butter (2018) makes us hungry because not only do we discuss shortcuts to falling in love, we also list ingredients to spear on a kabob and reveal the best way to reheat leftover Taco Bell.

We're still not asleep for 2022's Stay the Night, a movie NOT based off a hockey romance novel. We also discuss character growth, Canadian careers, and what in life is worth chasing after.

We're joined in our late night discussion of Sleepless in Seattle (1993) by Jenn Scott. We compliment Meg Ryan, forgive some light stalking, and wonder how airports could ever have been so easy to get around.