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When Harry Met Sally... Customer Reviews (43 - 45 of 61 Reviews)

When Harry Met Sally: Very funny. I love it.
This is the romantic comedy by which all other romantic comedies are now judged. Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan have undeniable chemistry and top notch timing. And surprisingly so do Bruno Kirby and Carrie Fisher who really have great moments that add fun to the film. This movie knows no one knows how to present Manhattan better than Woody Allen and heavily borrows from his traditions. Including the choice of pop romantic standards. As in Annie Hall, "It Had to be You" is the musical centerpiece for an inevitable coupling. The dialog is snappy and rhythmic with an ear for New York sensibility. And also knows how to show off New Yorks favorite trendy hangouts at their very best. Even Billy Crystal is a little nebbish. Still this film is an original and its style has been mimicked countless times by other films in hopes of capturing a little of its magic. Still none quite tops this. The cherry on the cake was the wonderful choice to interupt passing seasons of Harry and Sally's relationship with old couple telling stories of their first meeting. The way they talk over and take over each others stories is charming and authentic and forces smiles of recognition. When Harry Met Sally is a lighthearted and very very funny film that never gets tiresome no matter how many times it is viewed. It is a classic.

The DVD contains some 7 minutes of additional deleted footage. In this case it is pretty apparent why it was deleted. Watch at your own risk. Rob Reiner's audio commentary seems to have been delivered at gunpoint. Don't look for a lot of joyful anecdotes or insights into where he came up with all these great ideas. The commentary track is pretty slow paced and dry. The "Making of" documentary is quite a bit more fun and insightful so the extras are not a total wash. The sound and image quality are both bright and lush so the most important part of the disc, the film, is as enjoyable as it can possibly be. When Harry Met Sally has a lot of fun with men and women trying to figure each other out and makes us laugh a lot and even cry just a little in the process.

Romance at it's best
Rob Reiner, coming off of a divorce, was inspired to create, with screenwriter Nora Ephron, a story of love in adulthood. From that idea, and working with Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan, comes this delightful and whimsical work. Simply a comedy on the surface, there are hidden themes of love and friendship throughout, as well as the essential question: can romantic love come out of friendship? Well, having experienced a similar situation in real life, I can attest that this movie answers the question perfectly. Not a "love at first sight" movie, we see the 13-year progression of Harry and Sally's relationship, and how it is affected by such things as their attempting to set each other up with their best friends (Bruno Kirby and Carrie Fisher, in scene stealing performances). The DVD edition of this movie is a beauty to behold. New York has never looked lovelier (particularly the Central Park in fall scenes, which are gorgeous). Fabulous sound, which showcases the lovely score and Harry Conick songs. Includes a Rob Reiner commentary track, which has great anecdotes and stories about the genesis of the film.

Pleasant But Not Memorable, Except For One Scene
Story: Billy Crystal is Harry, Meg Ryan is Sally, Bruno Kirby and Carrie Fisher are their friends. Harry meets Sally right after college, as they car-pool to New York. They become good friends, and often talk about their erratic and generally unsuccessful attempts to find The Right Person. Their friends, meanwhile, marry each other and try to convince Harry and Sally that they belong together. Almost two hours (12 years to them) later, they figure out they belong together.

I like these nice people, and they generally tell a nice story, but "pleasant" is the strongest adjective I would apply to this story. The vignettes of couples telling how they met are nice, and the Sally-faking-an-orgasm-in-the-restaurant scene is memorable (although I've seen the clip, and imitations thereof, so much that it's become boring), but the rest of the film is like sitting on a bench in a park: pleasant and somewhat refreshing, but not inspiring or thought-provoking in any way. The movie is nice, innocuous escapism, but nothing more.

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