Why When Harry Met Sally Is Still The Greatest Romantic Comedy Ever

30 years later, Nora Ephron's masterpiece is still relatable AF. *This is for the Editorial Fellowship*

I am a hardcore When Harry Met Sally fan, so when it was announced that it was coming back to theaters on select days for the 30th anniversary this year, I didn't hesitate to snag some tickets. To me, it never gets old and is better than any modern day romantic comedy I have seen. Sure there are some cliches, but it isn't full of fluff and unrealistic plot lines. So even in this era of swiping and getting ghosted, the film can restore your belief in love.

The dialogue is timeless

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The movie keeps you laughing the whole way through. Even though it was written three decades ago, all of the jokes are still hilarious.

The women aren't catty or pitted against each other

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A common complaint about romantic comedies is that the women in them always hate each other for no reason. Luckily, that trend has been going away lately, but When Harry Met Sally was ahead of its time. There are no fights between Sally and her girlfriends. Not over men, or anything. They are simply supportive of each other, as friends should be, and give tough love when necessary.

There's no weird magic or schemes

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Spoiler alert: Harry and Sally end up together organically. No one plotted any tricks, lied about their identity or used magic dust to go back in time. Their love story is simple and realistic, and beautiful because of that.

Sally gets a Master's degree

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At the start of the movie, Harry and Sally are moving to New York together (because where else would a rom-com take place?). Sally is becoming a journalist but she hasn't already landed glamorous magazine job-- she's pursuing her Master's. And as they say today, a Master's is the new Bachelor's, so we can totally relate to taking a little longer to launch our careers.

There are no grand, ridiculous romantic gestures

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The most romantic scene in the movie with Harry's big gesture is literally just him communicating his feelings--no frills attached. (We love us some good communication in a relationship). In a generation that isn't keen on getting married at a $30,000 wedding, we need more romantic comedies that are down-to-earth like this.

Harry and Sally's silly antics aren't cheesy

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Harry's silly voices in the museum, the Oklahoma! karaoke in the middle of a Sharper Image store, and even the infamous deli scene (we all have that one friend who isn't afraid to embarrass themselves) are hilarious, believable, and so not cheesy in any way.

Their apartments aren't unbelievably extravagant

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Maybe it's just the nature of the eighties, but Harry and Sally have modest apartments that don't seem super unattainable for the average viewer, unlike most eye-roll inducing apartments in rom-coms (looking at you and your walk-in closet, Jenna Rink).

Harry has the perfect nihilistic sense of humor

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In the movie, he is dubbed a "pessimist," but nowadays we're all Harry. Depressing humor is our way of coping with the existential dread that comes with growing up in an era where we are facing impending doom from climate change. It's a millennial and Gen Z thing, and Harry totally gets it.

There's no problematic friendzone bullshit

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Given the premise, this is technically the biggest friendzone movie ever made. But the relationship between Harry and Sally before they fall in love isn't depicted as lesser than a romantic one or lacking in any way. Harry's friend Jess is baffled by their friendship, but Harry never laments over the fact that he can't get in Sally's pants.

This is further proven by the fact that things are ruined when they do sleep together. Harry clearly values Sally as a friend. She is a confidant to laugh and cry with and someone he enjoys being around, regardless of what they are doing. The two of them love each other platonically and their friendship isn't a place of misery for Harry as he waits for her to finally realize it has always been him, because he hasn't yet realized it has always been her.

It's easier to picture yourself getting a romantic comedy-style happy ending to your love life when the characters are relatable and the story is believable. That's why When Harry Met Sally will never fail to give me the warm fuzzies.