I’ll See You In My Dreams, the narrative feature that was near the close of the 2015 Sarasota Film Festival for example, falls into the category of the romantic dromedy. Yes you are reading correctly, the romantic dromedy, a close cousin of the romantic comedy, has become a warm and relished genre of film. With more heart and less fatuous content, what I like to refer to as rom-droms, have found their way into a copious amount of reputable film festivals. I would love to talk about a few of the narrative films that fall into this genre and were being featured during the last few days of the Sarasota Film Festival this year, an event that I covered while it was running. Whether reading this during, or after the festival, I remain confident that they are quality films that deserve your attention.
I’ll See You In My Dreams, unlike many romantic comedies targets a more mature audience with a sense of humor that differs from the variety of unfledged movies steered toward high school and college aged viewers. Though humor and love are themes commonly blended in film, I’ll See You In My Dreams explores romance through the lens of a retired schoolteacher played by Blythe Danner, rather than from the standpoint of an inexperienced-in-life adolescent. It is a refreshing and original experience to see Danner’s character, Carol Peterson, thrown into a new perspective on romance and how she adapts to the way life changes as a widow and a retiree. This unconventional point of view makes this film a winner.
Belgian director David Lambert's second feature All Yours (Je Suis A Toi), also premiering on the Sarasota Film Festival’s second to last day is another film I would categorize as a romantic dromedy. The offbeat and eccentric storyline strays from the Americanized version of how we perceive love. With themes of homosexuality, polysexuality and prostitution, this atypical and foreign romantic dromedy is very unique. Conventionality is not in the description of All Yours and for a new and different take on relationships and feelings around the world, this would be a great film to explore further.
Not all romantic comedies or romantic dromedies follow the same template. Films under these labels may maintain an essence of comedy, drama, and romance but these themes are all intertwined into an incredible amount of distinctive and fascinating pieces of original art. There were a plethora of other “romantic dromedies” that were featured in the Sarasota Film Festival this year and are still worth seeking out independently. Just a few examples are listed but are by no means the only ones-- The Road Within, Uncertain Terms, Funny Bunny, Felix And Meira (Félix et Meira), Adult Beginners, Across The Sea (Deniz Seviyesi).