Hollywood, circa 1920-50: The Golden Age of cinema. These were the moments in film when cliches were created. These were the classics that defined movies - Casablanca, It's a Wonderful Life - this was the reign of the kings of cinema - Orson Welles, Alfred Hitchcock, Frank Capra. These movies crafted in beautiful black and white (and sometimes technicolor) the romances that movies for generations to come would attempt at recreating, failing, and giving rise to some of the greatest romantic cliches of all time.

That was the beginning of the romantic genre. Ever since the fall of silent films, actors and actresses have been whispering sweet words of love into each others' ears. Sickening, isn't it? The whole genre has decayed into formulaic chick flicks with attractive guys and sexy girls awkwardly flirting with each other, misunderstanding each other reaching the climax where they break up and never want to see each other again, and then they realize they really do love each other (awwww) and cue romantic embrace, overly generic soft rock, and fade to black. Isn't that just awesome?

Maybe for the chick. Guys need something too. I'm sorry but sexy girls can only keep our attention for so long before we realize how absolutely mindless, possibly eye-gougingly pointless, the movie actually is. Remedy: Hott-with-two-t's girls - and not just "hott" girls standing there being "hott" but fighting, kicking ass, and just plain being bitchy. Like hey, who could complain if Mila Kunis is mind-bitch-slapping Kristen Bell with her energy-arms (Forgetting Sarah Marshall), and even watching Brittany Snow, Ashanti, and Sophia Bush at each other's throat is almost enough to make you forget the premise of the movie is to actually punish the fraternizing Jesse Metcalfe (John Tucker Must Die). Unfortunately this tactic just isn't enough sometimes. And with a movie like G.I. Joe Rise of the Cobra or Transformers (with the "hottttttt" Megan Fox) where the entire movie is a well-choreographed fist-fight between two hot girls, what hopes does the romantic genre have?

Hollywood, circa 2005 - present: Age of Bromance. "A bromance is a close but non-sexual relationship between two men, a form of homosocial intimacy" (Wikipedia). So bromances aren't entirely new - they date back to the 1950's with Joker Jackson and Noah Cullen in The Defiant Ones (not only are they bromantic, but they cross race barriers) and have sort of just been there in most of cinematic history (Han and Chewie, Riggs and Martaugh, Kirk and Spock). If we don't limit ourselves to cinema, bromances have been around since the age of Aristotle: "It is those who desire the good of their friends for the friends' sake that are most truly friends, because each loves the other for what he is, and not for any incidental quality." The idea of bromances was catching wind with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck "pioneering bromance in showbiz history" (dailypress.com). And who could ignore the radiating bromance between Brad Pitt and George Clooney? But the whole idea didn't quite catch on until 2007 with Michael Cera and Jonah Hill. The Judd Apatow film featuring the bromantic relationship of Seth and Evan in Superbad is what set this wonderful age in motion. Y'know... the guys... just bein' guys... nothin' gay between them... though a lot of homosexual jokes are made we're just friends. That type of relationship. Although not exactly the central plot of the film, the chemistry between the two main actors is what makes Superbad a generational favorite (that, and the incredibly large number of lewd sex jokes, of course). It's an interesting twist of the romantic genre - it's a chemistry between two guys in a nonromantic fashion, it's purely bromantic. The entirely platonic relationship between two men is, of course, something absolutely incredible and undescribable. Something that women could just never understand (exception: NPH as Barney Stinson, of course, says so eloquently in The Bro Code "Chicks can be Bros"). With the discovery of bromance, the genre of bromantic comedy came to be - the focus isn't necessarily on the girl the guy's chasing, but rather the friends and guys that support them - as seen in many of Apatow's other films. Of course, the actual epitome of the bromantic genre is the combination of I Love You Man and The Hangover. The former a flipped romantic comedy where the guy is actually trying to find a platonic bromance in a well-written LOL fashion, plus the electric on-screen chemistry between Paul Rudd and Jason Segel. And the latter is a WTF "Did that just happen?" comedy that is entirely about friendship... between guys... friendship so close it's almost romantic but it's not. It's bromantic.

This cinematic shift is a very welcome change. Finally, after 50 years, a spin on the old Golden Age films that is at once refreshingly new and oddly familiar. Finally, after so very long, the special and unique relationship between two guys will finally be appreciated. So take some time to think, to reflect, on all the beautiful bromances you have had and fully appreciate them as that special relationship.

---  Abrodite - God of Bromance  ---