If you’ll have what SHE’s having, THEN…

If you liked “When Harry Met Sally,” you’ll LOVE “Glengarry Glen Ross.”

This recommendation is not sarcastic or facetious. These two films have qualities that make them completely compatible for your friends and loved ones even though the films may seem totally incongruent at first glance. In fact, there are four ingredients to the formula that you can reuse to make excellent recommendations like this in the future.

First: Establish that you’re on the same wavelength with your audience.

The best recommendations come from people we trust. We trust people because we believe they’re on the same wavelength as we are. For example, my friend Mike texted me:

“I don’t know what to do…”

I immediately retorted:

“You can ACT LIKE A MAN (smack)!”

To which he replied: LOL

See? He GOT my reference, and hence the joke, so I demonstrated that we’re on the same wavelength.

This part of the formula is also backed by SCIENCE! In a 2014 article in Psychology Today, Michael Friedman, Ph.D. wrote in an article titled “The Secret Language of Movie Quotes:

“There’s no quicker way to link up with someone than to take a shot at a movie quote they may know. Who knows how long it would take me to connect with someone through regular conversation? But if I’m talking numbers with someone and they inform me, “These go to eleven” from “Spinal Tap,” or tell me “Serrano’s got the disks” from “Midnight Run” when they receive something from me, then I’m pretty sure we’re on the same wavelength.”

Second: Demonstrate your knowledge of source material.

As a recommendation source (and a good movie quoter), you have to be able to inject favorite dialog into otherwise meaningless exchanges to remind your audience that you know what you’re talking about. Or more simply put:

A.Always. B. Be. C. Quoting

Say Mike were to text me right now and ask what the name of a good movie to watch might be (see note 1. below) and I’d reply,

“Fuck YOU – THAT’s its Name”

...then segue into the title of a movie that people like US, on our wavelength, might like, say WHMS -

“Oh, really? When I buy a new book, I read the last page first. That way, in case I die before I finish, I know how it ends. That, my friend, is a dark side.”

(This might also work for that small but steady population of people who’ve not yet seen Episode IV, but I digress).

And this doesn’t only work with high-school buddies. If my wife were looking for a recommendation, I’d start asking if she’s thinking “baby fish mouth” or something more serious say, in line with that voicemail scene where Billy Crystal leaves the message “The fact that you're not answering leads me to believe you're either (a) not at home, (b) home but don't want to talk to me, or (c) home, desperately want to talk to me, but trapped under something heavy. If it's either (a) or (c), please call me back” (Extra points for quotes with ABC lists, I guess). But BOOM! – connective tissue that can get you to Glengarry.

Three: There is no third thing (see note 2, below).

Four: Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!

For that matter, people who LIKE Glengarry Glen Ross would NEVER expect you suggest When Harry Met Sally (and vice versa)! That’s the beauty of this formula. By demonstrating that you are on the same wavelength as your audience, by consistently demonstrating your subject matter mastery, and then by juxtaposing seemingly incompatible movie genres that may, in fact, share multiple contextual and structural components, you are giving a top-notch recommendation.

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1. In fact, Mike recently informed me that his recommendation list is full, setting off a chain of references to two excellent companion pieces from the Onion:Man Not Accepting Any More Television Recommendations At This Time and Area Girlfriend Still Hasn't Seen Apocalypse Now.

2. See what I did there?