Nancy Meyers

by MovieMaker Staff | Published December 3, 2006

Director/writer/producer Nancy Meyers on the set of Columbia Pictures’ The Holiday - 2006

It would be too easy to label Nancy Meyers as a writer of chick flicks. True, her movies are often light comedies and, yes, they typically feature and are geared toward women.Â But if Meyers belongs to the chick flick camp at all, she should be recognized as a writer who breathed life into the genre with complex female characters and often sparkling wit. Meyers first gained attention with the Goldie Hawn comedy Private Benjamin, co-written with Harvey Miller and her then-husband Charles Shyer. The trio picked up an Oscar nomination as well as a WGA Award for the screenplay, and Meyers continued to collaborate with her husband on the scripts for such hit comedies as Shyerâ€™s I Love Trouble and Father of the Bride (I and II). After a brief lag, Meyer reenergized her career by taking on the role of director as well, starting with the 1998 remake of The Parent Trap, but earning commercial and critical acclaim with 2003â€™s Somethingâ€™s Gotta Give, which earned Diane Keaton her fourth Best Actress Oscar nomination and her second Golden Globe statue. Now, Meyers returns with The Holiday, which stars Jack Black, Cameron Diaz, Jude Law and Kate Winslet as a quartet of lonely singletons who meet cute during a cross-continental house swap.With an as-yet untitled project in the works for 2007, it seems that Meyerâ€™s 20-plus year career shows no signs of slowing downâ€”and why should it? Meyers has a knack for writing crowd-pleasing films that are fun without being vapidâ€”and thatâ€™s a talent thatâ€™s all too rare nowadays.

Sound Off: What, in your opinion, is the last great romantic comedy? Is it possible to make a quality film in this genre without taking the quirky route (Ã la You and Me and Everyone We Know or Punch Drunk Love)? Let us know your stance in the comments section of the blog!

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COMMENTS | POST A COMMENT

Comment by Vernetia Couty Smith on 5/24/08 at 7:52 am

Vernetia Couty Smith
43, Avenue Gabriel Peri
Vincennes, France 94300
011-33-1-41-74-99-14

May 24, 2008

Dear Ms. Myers:

I am an Afro American woman living in Paris. I have completed a 56,440 word autobiographical novel written in English entitled “Une Baguette de Pain; Une Bouteille de Vin” (A Stick of Bread; A bottle of Wine) and would be pleased if you consider reading it with my greatest wish of having it turned it into a motion picture film.

“Une Baguette de Pain; Une Bouteille de Vin” is a love story replete with a range of emotions. An eternal optimist, I quit my job in corporate America with high stress deadlines, performance related bonuses and business power suits to follow my dream. Upon arriving on French soil, I struggled with learning a new language, courting the mysterious François, applying for residence, marriage license, and much more. It is a first person account of unpredictable adventures in “The City of Lights,” which has made an imprint on my heart and changed my life forever.

The novel is an inspirational saga with snappy dialogue and blunt talk about taking risks, directed to women and men who are unmotivated and afraid to make changes in their lives, preferring to play it safe while time is fleeting by. I realized a world of difference from making things happen despite my fear rather than doing nothing because of it. The result was astonishing.

I believe you will find that my story has a positive spin and a fresh look into the French culture compared to books written with a negative insight. For example: “A Year in the Merde” by Stephen Clarke.

Please notify me if you would be interested in receiving a few sample chapters or the entire manuscript which I have given to David di Nota, a French author, for his critique.

I am currently collaborating with an associate on a second book entitled “To Hell and Back: Surviving a Volcanic Relationship.”

Thank you for your consideration, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Vernetia Couty Smith

P.S. I invited my French husband to the “Grand Colbert” for his birthday because “Something’s Gotta Give” is our favorite film.