Nora Ephron, queen of romcoms: a new book recalls the magic of her films

South China Morning Post

20-02-2025

Some time around the turn of the millennium, Ilana Kaplan stumbled across a romantic comedy marathon on TV. Watching in her New Jersey home, she found herself mesmerised by You've Got Mail (1998), the Tom Hanks -Meg Ryan vehicle that is considered one of best romcoms of all time.
'I was completely enamoured by their chemistry. It made me feel like I wanted to live in a romcom and have that meet-cute experience,' says Kaplan. Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in the classic 1998 romcom You've Got Mail. Photo: Courtesy of the Everett Collection
It was also Kaplan's first encounter with Nora Ephron, who directed and co-wrote the iconic film. Eventually, this led to another – and very different – kind of love story: the one between a fan and a filmmaker. After that first viewing of You've Got Mail , Kaplan says she's watched the film dozens of times, alongside other Ephron staples, chiefly Sleepless in Seattle (1993) and When Harry Met Sally (1989).
And in one of those serendipitous turns of event usually found only in romantic comedies, Kaplan – a long-time writer and editor (New York Times, Rolling Stone) – was approached by Abrams Books a few years ago, and asked to write a book on Nora Ephron. The result, Nora Ephron at the Movies , was published last year. Nora Ephron at the Movies by Ilana Kaplan. Photo: Handout
'We wanted the films and her directorial work to be the central focus of the book,' says Kaplan, who now lives in Brooklyn, New York. 'We segmented her films by theme, and looked at themes that resonated in her work.'
The book is more than just a comprehensive history of Ephron's life and work. It is also unabashedly a love letter to the writer – to her spirit and creativity, and the subtle optimism that ran through her work – even though her own life was marred by disappointments in love. It is written in a chatty, conversational tone – and with a very clear affection for the subject. Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks with child actor Ross Malinger in Sleepless in Seattle (1993). Photo: Courtesy of the Everett Collection
'Nora was her words,' Kaplan writes. 'Copy was her currency – whether consumed on the page or on the screen. Every sharp, witty line is delivered with the brutal honesty of a best friend. It's what made her writing so relatable, so human. Even if you didn't know Nora, she knew you.'
Considering Ephron's lineage, there was almost no way she could have not entered the entertainment industry. Her parents were Henry and Phoebe Ephron, both playwrights, screenwriters and directors. Her sisters Amy and Hallie are novelists, while another sister, Delia – who co-scripted You've Got Mail with Nora – also wrote films such as The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005) and Hanging Up (2000).