Rye Lane director Raine Allen-Miller: 'It's time for a new style of romcom'

As Rye Lane bursts onto cinema screens this week, its director Raine Allen-Miller has issued a challenge to other filmmakers. Rye Lane is released in cinemas on 17 March, 2023.

Video transcript

FREDA COOPER: It is still the one-and-only film that I've ever seen where the meet cute takes place in the loo.

[LAUGHTER]

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: Great.

FREDA COOPER: So how did that scene come about?

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: Well, I actually can't remember why, but I know that I think it was me that did it. I really liked the idea of having lots and lots of toilets around the world in the beginning, and then it felt really funny to have them in the toilet as well. The other thing is, right, is I've been talking quite a lot about this. Rom-coms often are quite cheesy. And I think if the meet cute is in a loo, nobody can really say that's cheesy. It's never really going to be cheesy. When-- can you imagine anything cheesy happening in the loo, apart from a selfie actually in the mirror? But, you know, I think-- yeah.

FREDA COOPER: Yeah.

[LAUGHTER]

So do you think then that, perhaps, it's about time that we had a new style of rom-com anyway, and perhaps that "Rye Lane" is the start of that?

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: Maybe, yeah. I mean, I don't know. It's a hard one because when you think back to films like "10 Things I Hate About You," or-- I'm trying to think of another one. Actually, that's probably the only one, but there are some really great ones out there. I think there's like an era of, like, really cheesy. You know when the posters are like someone back-to-back? Why are they always back-to-back? You know, that kind of like-- and then a dog. And then Jennifer Aniston, who is great, by the way. But--

FREDA COOPER: And we've also of grown out of Richard Curtis now, haven't we?

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: Who's that? Oh yeah, that guy. No, I'm joking. Yeah. I think so. Yeah.

[LAUGHTER]

Uh-oh.

FREDA COOPER: Oh, we're in trouble. Are you a rom-com fan?

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: No, not really. I'm a film fan.

FREDA COOPER: So what would be your favorite type of film then if you don't like rom-coms?

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: Probably comedy. I think comedy with genre. So, like, if it's like a horror comedy.

FREDA COOPER: I think it's great that you made a film that is so not your genre.

RAINE ALLEN-MILLER: Yeah. rom-coms are not my genre.

[LAUGHTER]

But I'm not only going to do rom-coms.

FREDA COOPER: Well, this is true.