Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler mock the romantic comedy genre in They Came Together

When asked how she and Paul Rudd got together in the new trailer for They Came Together, Amy Poehler says, "it's a kind of a corny, romantic comedy kind of story." That line, in itself, is a bit of a cliché, but it's rarely been used so accurately. What follows is an impressively comprehensive list of pretty much every other rom-com cliché, from a meet-cute in a book store to a scene in which Rudd's friends debate the nature of love during a pickup basketball game.

Of course, the entire point of They Came Together is the lusty embrace of those clichés. It's a characteristically self-aware approach to the genre from writer-director David Wain, whose previous films include Wet Hot American Summer, in which Rudd and Poehler also starred. In an era where spoof movies tend to be of the Date Movie or Meet the Spartans variety, it's a relief to see one that looks so promising. Hopefully, audiences respond to this hilariously tweaked riff on the shopworn rom-com genre, which arrives in theaters and on video-on-demand on June 27. --Scott Meslow

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