Movie Magic🍿

Many of the couples we know have a favorite movie. It’s usually one you enjoyed together and will pull off the shelf or out of the streaming catalogue once a year or so and revisit. Watching your movie together usually reconnects you to the good feelings and simplicity of the earlier time as well.

His

Nick: For us, our favorite couple movie is French Kiss. Though we first saw it as a rental when we were newlyweds, it originally came out the same year we were married. It was the height of Meg Ryan’s America’s Sweetheart charm, and Kevin Kline’s lovable rogue chemistry was the perfect complement. Without giving away too much, it is a fun variation on a sort of Beauty and the Beast theme. On first viewing, I delighted in seeing Jen laughing and enjoying the film. On later revisits, it has grown on me even more.

We will often refer to the ways in which Luc and Kate from the movie teased each other relentlessly. So many lines from the film are part of our coded language, allowing us to be romantic in front of our kids in a way that is like getting away with a secret. Little things like this are the spice when we’re mostly busy with our day-to-day activities. All I have to do is throw on a weak French accent, quote a well-timed line, and I can usually get at least a little smile out of Jen. And if we need to reconnect and we haven’t seen the movie in a while, our odds are better breaking the ice with this old favorite.

And Hers

Jen: Romantic comedies are my favorite genre of movie to watch, and we have watched many of them in the years we have been married. But something about French Kiss resonates with me. Perhaps it’s the idea of a couple falling in love without realizing it – not love at first sight but love along the way as you get to know each other, which was similar to our own love story. Regardless, as I think back on when we first watched the movie it strikes me as funny that more than 25 years later we can still watch it and enjoy it just as much as we did then. Even if it’s been a while since we watched it last, this movie can always inspire us to be playful and spontaneous. It has an effect on us that can even mitigate stressful conversations.

I can remember having a disagreement with Nick one time and I harkened back to the line Kate says in a scene of the movie where she is describing herself as down-to-earth and straightforward. She says, “Happy : smile; Sad : frown – use the corresponding face for the corresponding emotion.” In that moment, this line alone was enough to make us both crack a smile. Better still, it put me in a more receptive mood as we continued working through our disagreement.

And Ours

Movies have a little bit of magic, and it’s a part of our relationship that we have a connection through movie magic. Whether it’s your favorite movie or song or show, do you and your love have such a common treasure? We encourage you to find it, pop some popcorn, and enjoy the time together revisiting.