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That's the conversation that sets the stage on this iconic "romcom" from Rob Reiner. The film, which covers the span of 10+ years, follows the relationship between the titular couple (Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan) as they go from bickering carpoolers to inseparable confidants, from unfriendly to friendly and eventually, well, something more.
Harry and Sally are essentially opposites; as far apart from each other as East is from West, at least on the surface. She's too structured and uptight, he's too carefree and laid-back. She's a jolly, unfettered optimistic, he's a cynical pessimistic that always reads the last page of a book first in case he dies before finishing it. And those differences are perfectly portrayed by Crystal and Ryan.
But despite those differences, Harry and Sally do end up becoming friends — an "amendment to the earlier rule", he calls it — perhaps answering the above question, or perhaps not, considering where their relationship leads them. Will they remain friends? will they end up together? will they stray apart from each other? Regardless of the answers, this film always helps put in perspective that a film's "happy ending" is entirely dependent of when you end the film.
The undeniable strength of the film is in Crystal and Ryan's chemistry, which is excellent. But a lot of the credit also goes to Nora Ephron's witty script, which was partly inspired by Reiner's own ventures into single life after a divorce. Reiner's direction itself is simple, but effective. He recognizes that Crystal and Ryan are the stars and he lets them shine all the way.
But if there's one thing that the film encapsulates, be it through Harry and Sally's relationship, or that of their best friends Jess and Marie (Bruno Kirby and Carrie Fisher), or the many interspersed interviews with "fake" older couples is that relationships are not standard; that you can't define your current relationship by your past ones, compare it with those beside you, or encase them in rigid boxes and classifications, but rather to let it flow, grow, and become what it wills.
Grade:
WHEN HARRY MET SALLY...
(1989, Reiner)
A film featuring the name of a couple in its title
(1989, Reiner)
A film featuring the name of a couple in its title
"No man can be friends with a woman that he finds attractive. He always wants to have sex with her."
"So, you're saying that a man can be friends with a woman he finds unattractive?"
"No. You pretty much want to nail 'em too."
"So, you're saying that a man can be friends with a woman he finds unattractive?"
"No. You pretty much want to nail 'em too."
That's the conversation that sets the stage on this iconic "romcom" from Rob Reiner. The film, which covers the span of 10+ years, follows the relationship between the titular couple (Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan) as they go from bickering carpoolers to inseparable confidants, from unfriendly to friendly and eventually, well, something more.
Harry and Sally are essentially opposites; as far apart from each other as East is from West, at least on the surface. She's too structured and uptight, he's too carefree and laid-back. She's a jolly, unfettered optimistic, he's a cynical pessimistic that always reads the last page of a book first in case he dies before finishing it. And those differences are perfectly portrayed by Crystal and Ryan.
But despite those differences, Harry and Sally do end up becoming friends — an "amendment to the earlier rule", he calls it — perhaps answering the above question, or perhaps not, considering where their relationship leads them. Will they remain friends? will they end up together? will they stray apart from each other? Regardless of the answers, this film always helps put in perspective that a film's "happy ending" is entirely dependent of when you end the film.
The undeniable strength of the film is in Crystal and Ryan's chemistry, which is excellent. But a lot of the credit also goes to Nora Ephron's witty script, which was partly inspired by Reiner's own ventures into single life after a divorce. Reiner's direction itself is simple, but effective. He recognizes that Crystal and Ryan are the stars and he lets them shine all the way.
But if there's one thing that the film encapsulates, be it through Harry and Sally's relationship, or that of their best friends Jess and Marie (Bruno Kirby and Carrie Fisher), or the many interspersed interviews with "fake" older couples is that relationships are not standard; that you can't define your current relationship by your past ones, compare it with those beside you, or encase them in rigid boxes and classifications, but rather to let it flow, grow, and become what it wills.
Grade: