What is a Romantic Comedy?

As Romantic Comedies is a sub genre of Romance and Comedy films, I thought i'd look into these first.

Comedy

There are many different types of comedy depending on the source of the humour, method of delivery and the context in which it is delivered.

Black Comedy or Dark Comedy
This deals with disturbing subjects such as death, drugs, terrorism, rape and war. Some dark comedy is similar to that of the Horror genre.

Blue Comedy
Comedy involving sexual jokes and racist and homophobic views.

Character Comedy
Character comedy derives humor from a persona invented by a performer. Most comes from stereotypes.

Improvisational Comedy
Mainly used in television shows. Comics won't plan out their routines.

Observational Comedy
Focuses on everyday life. Observing the silliness of something that society accepts as normal.

Alternative Comedy
Differing from traditional punchline jokes which features many other forms of comedy such as Observation, Satire, Surrealism, Slapstick and Improvisation.

Physical Comedy
Uses physical movement and gestures. Physical comedy is often influenced by clowning.

Prop Comedy
Comedy that relies on ridiculous props, or everyday objects used in humorous ways.

Romance

Also known as a "Chick Flick" as most are targeted towards a female audience.

Whilst most films have an aspect of romance within them, Romance films are defined as any film in which the central plot revolves around the romantic involvement of the main actor.

The most successful romance film in the 1997 blockbuster, Titanic, which grossed over $1.8 billion worldwide.

Romantic Comedy

Romantic comedy films are movies with light-hearted, humorous plotlines, centered on romantic ideals such as a true love able to surmount most obstacles.

References: www.wikipedia.org, www.imdb.com