The Chemistry of Love Triangles

Mary loves Steve, who also loves her but is engaged to marry Fran, who loves Steve and highly respects her wedding planner Mary, who feels a similar loyalty to Fran. This plot from The Wedding Planner reveals a tangled relationship that is typical in a romantic comedy.

Two people falling in love with no obstacles lacks the essential drama and sexual tension needed to fully engage an audience. By including a third person in a love triangle, romantic dramas and comedies increase the excitement without overly complicating the plot.

On the other hand, adding four or more characters may work great in screwball comedies that play for laughs rather than romance, but complicate situations to the point of taking away from the romantic elements. Did you find it “romantic” or “comic” when Mary had four would-be suitors in There’s Something About Mary? For me, three’s the limit for romantic tension and four is the inevitable introduction of comedy.

Countless romantic movies from recent years have employed the love triangle: Made of Honor, Across the Universe, Blades of Glory, Dan in Real Life, Juno, License to Wed, The Ex, and The Princess Bride to name a few.

Unless one romantic lead has an obstacle to overcome (such as commitment phobia, different socioeconomic status, bad reputation, etc.) and the other has an ardent admirer (a fiancé, ex-lover, close friend, or other threatening love interest), the romantic relationship becomes too easy to achieve and too easy for audiences to dismiss.

Next week: The Chemistry of Comedy Triangles