Tuesday, January 10, 2006

The big, big question

"Can men and women really be friends, or does sex always get in the way?"

The reason When Harry Met Sally is one of my favorite movies is first, because it poses this question, and second, because it answers the question. Sally thinks she can be "just friends" with Harry, but then sex gets in the way.

In the end, the answer is: Sex with your closest friend is the best.

In the middle, Harry reveals to Sally the truth - men are just hard-wired to consider sex with just about every woman we encounter. It's not that we actually intend to try seducing every woman we meet, and it's not that we can't be friends - you just have to accept that from time to time, no matter how hard we try not to think about it, we will wonder what you're like in the sack.

"You mean men can only be friends with unattractive women?" Sally asks incredulously.

"No, we pretty much want to nail them, too," Harry replies matter-of-factly. And he's right.

How screenwriter Nora Ephron figured us out, I don't know, but that's one of the most honest (and funny!) scenes in film history.

Blessed are the mates who are also best friends. That's as healthy a life as you can have, methinks.

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Blessed are the mates who are also best friends. That's as healthy a life as you can have, methinks."

From someone who had to try the marriage thing three times before getting it right....this is such an accurate statement!

5:53 PM  
Blogger Wally Conger said...

After first seeing Harry in a theater when it was originally released, we wore out two VHS copies of the movie (from our own regular viewings and from loaning it out to others), then finally purchased a DVD copy. This movie is a treasure we've watched over and over. Too bad it's one of the last truly great things Ephron wrote. (Her old Esquire columns, compiled in two book collections, were also priceless, by the way.)

6:45 PM  

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