“Isn’t it Romantic” is not simply a romantic comedy that fills a few hours of your time, but a lovable, lighthearted, hour and a half, step in the right direction for that pokes fun at romantic comedy. Featuring a inclusive cast and clever storyline, “Isn’t it Romantic” appeals to a wider audience than the traditional rom-com.

The main character, Natalie, was once fascinated with the likes of Julia Roberts and the glamorized nature of life represented in romantic comedies, but has since chosen to work hard and live life in a brutally honest and realistic way.  In doing so, the viewer can see she’s missing out on the enjoyable facets of life, even if the cost is the simplest of distractions that are rom-coms. Metaphorically, this choice can be seen her ultra realism approach to life, which overshadows her wonder and is in opposition to the “anything can happen” mentality often present in romantic comedies.

In a high ranking position as a Lead Architect of a hotel chain, Natalie isn’t overly positive or commanding in her work efforts, even being mistaken for being in charge of coffee orders. This lack of purpose takes away from her quality of life, despite her co-worker Josh pushing her to work her hardest and impress her superiors with her work (even going so far as to quite literally pushing her desk chair).. Josh acts as a foil to Natalie in his positive outlook.

Ironically, Natalie’s assistant Whitney spends all of her time fawning over romantic comedies, using them as an escape from her day job. Already opposite on outlooks, Natalie and Whitney participate in a humorous debate. Natalie pointing out all the flaws of these unrealistic love stories, and Whitney fights for the merits of her adored escape. Natalie, a plus sized, hard working woman, complains that the world of the romantic comedy just doesn’t happen for people like her, but she soon gets a rude -and comedic- awakening.

After finding herself in a brawl at the hands of flirtatious admirer, she awakens to her worst fear: her life has turned into one big, messy, outrageous romantic comedy. With parallels to the Wizard of Oz, she meets bizarrely-stereotyped counterparts in her newly glamorized and perfect world as she works to find the perfect ending to her own romantic comedy.

I would give “Isn’t it Romantic” a four and a half out of five stars: it is a refreshing and exciting new step for the genre, and it is enjoyable for all audiences. Escaping many of the criticisms that plague rom-coms, this film is sure to become a Valentine’s Day staple.