Everybody's got a list of romantic movies for Valentine's Day. But come on
, Ghost as the most romantic movie? Some people obviously need to watch more movies, or at least have a better definition of romance.
Gone With The Wind is NOT a good romance. Why would ANY man want Scarlett? Frankly, it always made me like Rhett Butler
less because he was weak enough to marry such a selfish shrew. She lies and cheats ... all for her own personal gain. Yeah, that sounds like true love to me. Same thing with
Breakfast at Tiffany's. Have you ever met a more self-involved person than Miss Golightly?
You will also NOT find
An Affair To Remember on this list - the most over rated romance of all time.
So, here is my list ...
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Just Like Heaven
Dr. Elizabeth Masterson (Witherspoon) is on her way to a blind date when she has a car accident. She reappears three months
later in her apartment — but only David Abbott (Ruffalo), who moved into
her old apartment, can see her. Elizabeth is not
dead, but in a coma, and her special relationship with David occurs because he
was the blind date she was going to see.
MOOD: Sweet and charming.
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Return To Me
A heartwarming tale of love and fate. Bob Rueland (David
Duchovny) is suddenly widowed when his wife is tragically killed in an auto accident. Grace Briggs (Minnie Driver) has a life-threatening heart-problem who receives Bob's wife's heart as a transplant.
Duchovny
mourns his wife and tries to pick up the pieces of his shattered life. Grace recovers from her heart transplant and begins to live a normal life for the first time in years. Her friends and family run an Italian restaurant
called O’Reilly’s and they are overjoyed with her recovery and set about fixing her up
with Bob.
The
movie follows the sweet romantic pursuit as Duchovny and Driver, two
emotionally damaged individuals, tentatively and gently become a couple with
the support and encouragement of all their friends. When Grace discovers that she has Bob's wife's heart, it is too much of an emotional burden for both of
them to bear and their fragile romance collapses. However … This is one film
that leaves you with a smile on your face, and feeling all warm and fuzzy. A
romantic movie which is heavy on romance and less on funny, yet has plenty of
humor.
MOOD: Gently humorous. Very sweet and tender.
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Pride and Prejudice
When Elizabeth Bennett ( Keira Knightley) meets the handsome
Mr. Darcy (Matthew MacFadyen), she believes he is the last man on earth she
could ever marry. But as their lives become intertwined in an unexpected
adventure, she finds herself captivated by the very person she swore to loathe
for all eternity.This is one of the greatest love stories every written, and this is the best filmed version. It sparkles with romance, wit and
emotional force. The cast is perfect, with Knightly as a v-e-r-y spirited and determined Elizabeth and MacFadyen as a sublimely brilliant Darcy - brooding, aloof and arrogant, but ultimately a decent man.
MOOD: Light, witty and romantic.
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Crossing Delancy
Isabelle Grossman (Amy Irving) is enamored with the intellectual world that
is very different from her traditional Jewish upbringing. She works in a elite New
York bookstore. When a famous author comes to the bookstore, he shows an interest in
Isabelle, who jumps at the chance for romance with the brilliant artist.
Isabelle also pays frequent visits to her
Bubbie, (grandmother) Ida who
lives on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Bubbie, who is anxious for her granddaughter
to settle down, has hired a local marriage broker. Although shocked and annoyed,
Isabelle allows the matchmaker to introduce her to Sam Posner (Peter Reigert) who owns the pickle shop on Essex, below Delancey Street. Isabelle is NOT interested in Sam, since he is waaay too working-class for
her. However ...
MOOD: Funny and sweet.
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The Shop Around The
Corner
The story of two clerks, Klara (Sullivan) and Alfred (Stewart), who work in the
same store, both trying to find love and who can't stand one another. Klara
posts an ad looking for a pen-pal, and a young man answers her request. Klara
and the young man agree not to disclose their identity and soon the two fall in
love. What happens when the two, Alfred and Klara find out that they have been
writing and are in love with each other? A heartfelt romantic comedy, with
clever, witty banter between Klara and Alfred.
MOOD: Combative and witty.
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While You Were
Sleeping
Lucy (Bullock) is a painfully lonely toll-taker in a subway booth, who
falls in “love” with a man she sees everyday. She doesn’t even know his name
(it’s Peter, played by Peter Gallagher — who has very thick eyebrows), but when
a gang of men beat him and throw him onto the train tracks, she saves his life
and follows him to the hospital. She can’t see him, but as he’s wheeled away,
she makes the mistake of murmuring that she was going to marry him, convincing
the nurse that she is his fiance — which comes as a surprise to his friendly,
open family, with whom lonely Lucy becomes close. Peter awakens and remembers
everyone except Lucy — which is just as well, since she finds herself really
falling for his brother Jack (Bill Pullman).
MOOD: Sweet and romantic.
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Love Actually
With over a dozen protagonists, the plot of this film
should be convoluted, but everything is perfectly clear. It explore various facets of love: the relationship between Juliet (Keira Knightly) and
her new husband Peter (Chiwetel Ejiofor), the love triangle between Karen (Emma
Thompson), Harry (Alan Rickman), and his colleague; has-been rocker, Billy Mack, and his manager; the new Prime Minister and a member of his office staff. But best of all, is the fledgling relationship between writer Jamie (Colin Firth) and his Portuguese housekeeper Aurélia. Jamie's proposal is an unabashedly romantic scene while also being tearfully hilarious.You can pretend the tears come from laughing so hard, when actually, the tears come from how purely romantic it is.This movie is deceptively brilliant.
MOOD: Funny, sweet, sad, heartbreaking and ultimately uplifting.
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Singing In The Rain
My favorite movie of all time, and one of the most celebrated and well-loved movie
musicals from MGM. It is a wonderful satire of Hollywood during the transition from silent movies to talkies, filled with brilliant song-and-dance numbers and a charming love story to top
it off. Kelly's famous dance sequence in the pouring rain is one of the greatest cinematic displays of love's exuberance. If you've never seen it, shame on you.
MOOD: Energetic, hilarious and sweet.
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THE MEG RYAN TRILOGY:
Sleepless in Seattle
The brilliant thing about this movie is that the two romantic leads do not meet until the final scene. The movie follows the life of Sam (Tom Hanks) and his son Jonah as they move to Seattle in an attempt to get over
the sudden, tragic death of Sam's wife. Jonah believes his dad is depressed and
sad, so he calls a talk radio show, which leads to Sam revealing the love story
between himself and his wife to an national radio audience. Millions of women respond to Sam's story, through
letters and calls to the radio station. Annie (Meg Ryan) hears Sam on the radio and is moved by his story. She writes a letter to Sam but meanwhile her world is turning upside down, causing her to behave strangely with her
fiance Walter (Bill Pullman) and to do uncharacteristic things — like flying
across the country to Seattle to watch Sam and Jonah.
MOOD: Very funny, and sweet.
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You’ve Got Mail
A brilliant re-make of The Shop Around The Corner, updated for the electronic age. Kathleen
(Ryan) owns a quaint bookstore on the Upper East Side, where Joe Fox (Hanks) is
opening a super book store sure to put The Shop Around the Corner out of business.
The two run into each other often and clash just as much, never knowing that
they are each other's secret pen pals over the internet. Hanks is, as always, brilliant.
MOOD: Light and funny.
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When Harry Met Sally
Harry and Sally meet when they take a car trip
together, heading to New York. During its long course, they talk about lots of
things, but mainly focus on their belief that men and women can never just be
friends. They separate when they reach their destination, but continue meeting
every few years, finally forming a solid friendship. Their two best friends
meet one another and fall in love — and finally Harry and Sally get on board
with each other as well.
The justly famous fake orgasm scene is still hilarious, but the best scenes are toward the end when Sally is angry at Harry, and we get to watch her agonize about trying NOT to be in love.
MOOD: Very funny.
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Ever After
Drew Barrymore can make 1000 bad movies, but her career will always be redeemed by this film. It is the story of the cinder girl Danielle (Barrymore). At eight years old, her father has a
heart attack soon after remarrying. Her stepmother Rodmilla (Anjelica Huston)
has two daughters, and all three hate the poor orphaned girl. Still, she is
relatively happy and wonderfully sharp, a fact that captures the attention of
Prince Henry (Dougray Scott) when they meet by chance years later. Henry is trying
to avoid an arranged marriage. Some time later, Danielle pretends to be a
proper Lady of the court, further capturing Henry’s attention — although he
doesn’t realize who she is. Leonardo da Vinci (Patrick Godfrey) is also
interested in the girl, and provides Henry with the advice that ultimately
leads to a happily-ever-after ending between himself and the cinder girl.
MOOD: Unabashly, old-fashioned romantic.
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Definitely, Maybe
Somehow I missed this movie until recently. A political consultant (Ryan Reynolds) tries to explain his impending divorce and past relationships to his 11-year-old daughter. While doing so, the daughter helps her Dad sort out who he actually wants to be with.
MOOD: Very tender and hopeful.
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ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
The oddest movie on this list and the only true sci-fi romantic movie ever made. WARNING: It is NOT for everyone. You either get it or you don't.
Jim Carrey discovers his wife (Kate Winslet) has had him erased from her memory. He does the same. But .. it's not that easy. His struggle to remember what he has forgotten is at times confusing, sad, hilarious and ultimately, poignant.
A very challenging movie.
MOOD: Frantic, paranoid and romantic.
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A brilliantly fractured fairy tale from the mind of William Goldman. If you've never read the 1973 novel this movie is based on, do yourself a favor and pick it up. You can thank me later. A princess (Robin
Wright Penn) and her true love (Cary Elwes) struggle to unit, amidst a cast colorful characters who help and hinder them along the way. For all Pythonesque tongue-in-cheek humor and hijinks, this movie at its center is a sweet mushy
romance.
MOOD: Funny, irreverent and sweet.
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CASABLANCA
Not just THE romantic movie, but quite possibly Hollywood's greatest movie, period. If you haven't seen it, shame on you. When Humphrey Bogart tells Ingrid Bergman she has to leave him or regret it
"maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But soon, and for the rest of your
life," I defy any human not to have a lump in his/her throat. A true classic, and once you see it, the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
MOOD: Bittersweet, and longing.
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Phantom of the Opera
Although you have to endure some of Andrew Lloyd Webber's most tortured songs, this movie adaptation of the widely popular stage musical
of the same name, is sheer spectacle, with huge elaborate
sets and very dramatic lighting and camera work, however the love story is
still the main heart of this musical. And it is soooo romantic.
MOOD: Longing, tortured and dark.
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The Ghost and Mrs.
Muir
I love this movie. When young Mrs. Muir's (Gene Teirney) husband dies, she decides
its better to try and live on her own with her young daughter, then with her
overbearing in-laws. Because of her limited budget, she chooses a beautiful
cottage by the sea that is rumored to be haunted. As it turns out, the house is
haunted! The ghost of a blustery sea captain (Rex Harrison) doesn't scare the
strong willed Mrs. Muir and in fact they begin to fall in love. Harrison is fabulous!
MOOD: Funny and romantic.
2. “Burke” by Andrew Vachss. 18 books. Vachss (rhymes with “tax”) is a lawyer who only represents children and youths and writes the darkest, most unrelenting series of books about crime and revenge. Main character Burke is one of the “children of the secret” - abused children who were victimized without ever experiencing justice, much less love and protection. To say the least, the adult Burke is a deeply conflicted character. Must be read in order.
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