A Nora Ephron tribute at the Aero

Any movie becomes sad after enough time has passed. Case in point: those of Nora Ephron, the romantic-comedy expert whose six-film American Cinematheque retrospective at the Aero starts Friday.

Ephron, one of the few filmmakers whose rom-coms were actually (and consistently) funny and romantic rather than lazy and clichéd, was noted throughout her career for a style characterized by wit and charm. Watching the writer-director's work through the lens of her recent death, however, is likely to be as bittersweet as it is joyous.

As if in active defiance of the fact that Ephron is best remembered for When Harry Met Sally… and Sleepless in Seattle, the American Cinematheque decided not to screen them together. The former will be paired with My Blue Heaven on Friday, the latter with You've Got Mail on Saturday. (The weekend-long series ends Sunday with Silkwood and Heartburn, both of which were penned by Ephron and directed by Mike Nichols.)

Go watch Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal and Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep, be sad and happy all at once, and walk out of the theater into the cool evening air. You're alive; try to forget you won't always be. —Michael Nordine

WHEN HOLLYWOOD MET NORA: A TRIBUTE TO NORA EPHRON | Aero Theatre, 1328 Montana Ave., Santa Monica | Sept. 14-16 | americancinemathequecalendar.com/aero_theatre_events

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