Meg Ryan became the queen of romantic comedy by faking a very public orgasm in the memorable restaurant scene of When Harry Met Sally (1989). Later, Sleepless in Seattle (1993) strengthened her status as America's favorite girl-next-door. Since then Ryan has held her throne against the competition of younger comedy stars Julia Roberts and Sandra Bullock. Her uneven filmography reveals, however, a clear underlying tension between the audience's preference for her romantic roles and her own wish to explore her talent for drama. The revengeful Maggie of Addicted to Love (1997) should be seen, thus, as her last unsuccessful attempt to leave her sunny persona behind. The failure of her brave performances as a Gulf War heroine in Courage under Fire (1996) and as an alcoholic wife in When a Man Loves a Woman (1994) to impress the audience seems to have oriented her career definitively towards romantic comedy.

Further Reading:

Abramovitz, R. "Private Meg." Premiere. May 1996, 52-56.

Collins, A.F. "Faces of Meg." Harper's Bazaar. December1994, 120-123.

Sassums, K. "Maximum Meg." Vanity Fair. May 1995, 104-111.