Dark Love Stories: From Sweet Dreams to Nightmares | The Rise of Anti-Romcoms, Explained

Join us as we dive into the world of dark "love" stories, where romcom fantasies quickly turn into full on nightmares! Let's unpack the rise of these twisted tales, how they help us cope with the scary side of love and relationships, and what it all means.

While we all love a good romcom, in recent years we’ve also seen the resurgence of a genre on the other side of the coin: the romantic horror. These films take a look at love from a much less whimsical, much more terrifyingly realistic angle. From unrequited love to doomed relationships, anti-romcoms of the horror variety blend the two genres for the ultimate look at the dark side of love. So, let’s take a look at the rise of this hybrid genre, how it speaks to our very real fears of romance, how even our favorite non-horror romcoms can sometimes be pretty scary in hindsight, and why we’re so attracted to stories about love gone wrong.

Movies & shows mentioned/shown in this video:
Fresh, You, Fear, Pearl, The Loved Ones, Valentine, Companion, Get Out, Ready or Not, You're Next, Midsommar, The Invisible Man, Nosferatu, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Crimson Peak, Rebecca, Lisa Frankenstein, The Haunting of Hill House, The Haunting of Bly Manor, Warm Bodies, Heart Eyes, Drop, The Notebook, Love Actually, 50 First Dates

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CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro
00:53 The subgenre's creepy gothic origins
02:57 The horrors of dating...
03:40 Stalking
04:44 Flipping romcom tropes
06:00 Rejections
08:28 Being betrayed by the one you love
10:22 Breakups
11:15 Just trying to survive
12:18 The new anti-romcoms we're most excited for!

The Take was created by Debra Minoff & Susannah McCullough
This video was written by Cassondra Feltus, narrated by Charly Bivona, & edited by Jessica Babineaux

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