Confessions of a Closet Romantic

Poppy
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  • UPDATED SEMIMONTHLY

Welcome to Confessions of a Closet Romantic, a sweet and sexy show highlighting the smartest, most engaging romantic stories on the big and small screen — sometimes books— that share a common takeaway. I'm a writer, former film student and book reviewer who has loved romance forever — those hopeful, heartwarming and dramatic stories about sex, romance, connection and love. I've always felt shamed for loving this genre, but not anymore! Every two weeks, I'll be your ridiculously enthusiastic, gushing, affectionate companion as we explore a diverse range of sexy, compelling love stories. Romance lovers, never feel shame, and never watch alone! Join me!

  1. NOV 15

    Outer Limits Love: Love Me

    Send us a text I don't often read or watch sci-fi stories, but add in a romance and I'm there. I have a specific kink for stories about human-robot love, android love, any kind of machinery that takes on human characteristics and can hug. Forbidden Planet is my jam, I, Robot and RoboCop freak me out a bit, but movies that ask questions about our essential humanity by transferring our ideal characteristics – and our flaws and romantic blunders – onto machines are some of my favorite types of romances. https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com "In here, we can create a world just for us." Plus, there's a beautiful house, a dog and lots of ice cream. My episode about Love in Unexpected Places. If you haven't seen the movie Her, it's well worth adding to your watchlist. Forbidden Planet and other sci-fi movies from the 1950s are always good for robot action, though there's no hanky-panky with faithful servant Robby the Robot. Now Klaatu is one of the sexiest robots ever. A Barnes & Noble round up of stories about Love and Robots. Reddit to the rescue: recs for romances about AI or robots that serve humans and learn to love. Smut and kinky robot sex optional. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    22 min

  2. OCT 25

    Quick Take: Nobody Wants This S2

    Send us a text (Life continues to kick my behind, so I'll be releasing episodes every few weeks or so through the rest of the year. Follow me on your favorite podcast app so you don't miss a thing. As always, thanks for listening!) Season 2 of Nobody Wants This was just released on Netflix, and it's different show runners, but equally heartwarming, sexy, touching and hilarious – if not more so. I'm only a third of the way through the latest season, but had to pop in and say: it's 100% fresh, so don't miss it.  https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com First comes love, then comes life. Episode descriptions, in case you need to catch up. "I didn't know I wrote a romcom...I thought I wrote Fleabag." Fascinating interview with Nobody Wants This creator/screenwriter Erin Foster at the American Film Institute. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    20 min

  3. OCT 11

    Gold-Plated Romance: Gold Diggers of 1933/Pretty Woman/Materialists

    Send us a text (Had a great time on my road trip, got back – and I've been sick ever since. This year has been one endless struggle bus ride, and there's room for more, so hop on :) Materialists seems to be a polarizing movie that isn't quite a romcom, isn't quite a straight up romantic drama, while ending happily, making it one of the most interesting hybrid stories I've seen in a while. Dakota Johnson is incredible as Lucy, a smart but cynical matchmaker who treats her clients as commodities – and threatens to do the same with her ex-boyfriend until she realizes his love for her survived their terrible break up, and her honest admission that she's somewhat shallow when it comes to choosing romantic partners. When she finally decides to make a romantic choice that isn't based on statistics, shrewd calculations or dating math but what's in her heart, that's when her life turns around. And that's what makes this movie deeply romantic to me. https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com I change my mind about this trailer – it captures the smart stylish vibe but not nearly all of the ups and downs in mood that make this such a fascinating film. Celine Song talked about her inspiration for writing and directing Materialists in a fascinating interview on BBC World Service. Gold Diggers of 1933 (full movie) is currently on YouTube! Oh and I forgot to mention – it stars a young Ginger Rogers too! The best hour and a half you will spend this week. The trailer for Gentlemen Prefer Blondes doesn't tell you much, but what's clear is this Technicolor 1950s movie about two show-stopping showgirls, one in it for love and the other mostly for the diamonds, is such a treat. How to Marry a Millionaire stars Lauren Bacall, Betty Grable and Marilyn Monroe as a stunning trio of broke but gorgeous roommates who we're supposed to believe have trouble landing super solvent guys who will love and dote on them. I love going down the rabbit hole of the related and gendered variations on the gold digger trope. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    37 min

  4. AUG 29

    Romance Replay: Love + Taylor Swift

    Send us a text (I'm going on another road trip with my sweetie, traveling parts of historic Route 66, so I'll see you towards the end of the month!) Taylor Swift just announced her fairytale engagement (which was obvious after they appeared on that recent New Heights podcast episode — have two people ever looked more in love?!) so it seemed like the perfect time to replay the episode I recorded a while back with one of my favorite guests and fellow fangirl Mariah, examining our parasocial bestie relationship with Taylor Swift. We squeal, we gush, we analyze, and we had a blast doing it. Taylor Swift's poetry, set to the catchiest melodies, is music made just for me. And I'm sure many of you as well. So the English teacher and the gym teacher are getting hitched, and I couldn't be happier for them. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    34 min

  5. AUG 16

    Goodbye Love: And Just Like That/Bridget Jones Mad About the Boy

    Send us a text This is the year that we're saying goodbye (for now?) to some beloved big and small screen friends. Call it parasocial, call it learning through art, but tuning into these characters and their fictional ups and downs made me feel like I belonged to their charmed worlds in New York City and London, and lives full of fabulous fashion, awesome apartments, cool jobs, chosen family, hot romances — and plenty of drama. I truly feel sad saying goodbye, and I think these flawed yet fitting endings still honor these characters and the relationships we had with them. https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com Well this is awfully… upbeat. I don't want to say that there's a sad undercurrent to the third season that the trailer doesn't quite capture, but... Now I feel wistful for AJLT S1, so here's where we started, after taking up where they left off. It seems years and years ago. A lengthy take down of all of the "cringe" moments in AJLT. I would say cringe is in the eye of the beholder, but I agree with a lot of these. The scene at work is just… unlikely but hilarious. It's the new Bridget, and she's nearly as daffy and delightful as the old one. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    24 min

  6. AUG 2

    Hearts Revealed: The Last Showgirl/Things You Can Tell Just By Looking At Her

    Send us a text I found these poignant movies on a search for something else, and couldn't take my eyes off either one — they are stunners. Lyrical direction and pacing, spare soundtracks and understated, nuanced performances float gentle light layers of meaning into every scene in each of these stories. They're soulful, profound at times, revealing the struggles and authentic moments of connection in these women's lives. https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com Pamela Anderson is a revelation as The Last Showgirl. The Lido de Paris that Shelly mentions as the inspiration for Le Razzle Dazzle revue. The modern showgirl wasn’t born in Las Vegas, but she was perfected there.  As usual, the dated trailer is trash, so here's one of my favorite scenes from Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her. Director Rodrigo García has quite the interesting lineage and résumé. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    27 min

  7. JUL 19

    How Much Is Too Much

    Send us a text I've been thinking for a long time about the gendered sociocultural accusation of "too much" that's often directed towards women's behavior, especially how they love and connect to others, and how often this theme appears in romantic stories. This episode is the first in a little series I have planned, talking about female characters in romances who are shamed for being "too much," especially in costume dramas and 19th century romantic novel adaptations. Lena Dunham's fantastic new romantic comedy series is the perfect jumping off point to examine the power this accusation still has today. (I say fluffy about 29 times in this episode, but I won't apologize for being too much.) https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com Now this is a good trailer. I'm not one of those Love Actually girls, but I am one of those Notting Hill girls. Lena Dunham on creating the show Too Much. A breakdown of one of my favorite scenes in the series.  And the truly jaw-dropping Megan Stalter interview on Stephen Colbert. Or maybe charmingly chaotic? That wig could have its own talk show. Oh how those corsets, and gender roles, still bind us today. Some of us are born A Bit Much. Delightful interview with Lyndsay Rush on NPR's Book of the Day. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    38 min

  8. JUN 13

    Secret Desire: Babygirl/The Duke of Burgundy

    Send us a text (I'm taking a short break in the next couple of weeks for a road trip with my sweetie. I'll be back soon!) My journey from a strict religious upbringing to discovering I'm mildly kinky in the right settings, and with the right partner, was quite the revelation. These fascinating, complex stories explore women also discovering their secret desires, vulnerabilities and sexual thrills through consensual BDSM kink. The movies are sometimes titillating, sometimes romantic but always thought-provoking in a way that you don't often see on the big screen. CW: sexually explicit scenes, and lots of spoilers. https://www.confessionsofaclosetromantic.com Whewwww. Hotttt. Even if you weren't interested in kink before, aren't you now?! "This is all I ever dreamed about—to be used by you." "While safe kinky play is an excellent forum for navigating and even healing trauma, it’s a harmful stereotype to assume that only “broken” people are drawn to kink." Excellent article by a sex educator about what Babygirl gets right—and wrong—about kink. "I think the sadomasochistic relationship is a theatrical platform for exploring power dynamics in a relationship, but also you can explore power dynamics with directors and actors...and the fear of performing and putting on a persona which is not you, and being watched." Fascinating glimpse into the creative mind of The Duke of Burgundy writer/director Peter Strickland. "Exploring kink, even if you’re unsure if you yourself are kinky, can broaden your horizons, enrich your sexual repertoire, and increase tolerance of others..." If you're interested in joining the Erotic Minority, this Vice round up of kinks is a fun primer. "There is no shame in healing in whatever way feels authentic and cathartic. You are the curator of your sexual script, and it gets to play out in whatever way you find most empowering." "...if you're not 100% sure monogamy is right for you...I've found a great deal of happiness and freedom so far in taking a more liberal approach to relationships, and am interested to see where it leads." Lovely BDSM model Ariel Anderson talks about being "Not strictly monogamous." Fascinating discussion with Ariel Anderson and Dr. Kate Lister, who hosts the amazing podcast Betwixt the Sheets: the History of Sex, Scandal & Society. Support the show If you enjoyed this episode, please click share in your podcast app and tell your friends! Thanks for listening!

    38 min
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About

Welcome to Confessions of a Closet Romantic, a sweet and sexy show highlighting the smartest, most engaging romantic stories on the big and small screen — sometimes books— that share a common takeaway. I'm a writer, former film student and book reviewer who has loved romance forever — those hopeful, heartwarming and dramatic stories about sex, romance, connection and love. I've always felt shamed for loving this genre, but not anymore! Every two weeks, I'll be your ridiculously enthusiastic, gushing, affectionate companion as we explore a diverse range of sexy, compelling love stories. Romance lovers, never feel shame, and never watch alone! Join me!

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