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The 70 Most Romantic

Movies Of All Time
In the mood for love? We are.

BY DEANNA JANES / JAN 31, 2020

COURTESY

Romance on the big screen has morphed and

shifted over the decades. The love stories we’re
watching now hardly resemble the affection
permitted in Old Hollywood. But no matter if it’s
Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman who
perfected the glamorous iconography of the
perfect kiss or John Cusack and Ione Skye who
embodied a modern-day Romeo and Juliet with
that legendary boom box serenade; we are
smitten. Scroll through for the most romantic
movies of all time. (Boo not included.)

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COURTESY

Gone with the Wind (1939)

A sweeping epic about Scarlett O’Hara and her Rhett
Butler set against the backdrop of the Civil War—we’ll
admit that in today’s climate romanticizing the
antebellum south would and should never fly, but the
electrifying chemistry between the two leads, Clark
Gable and Vivien Leigh, is undeniable. It’s a romance
based on a text that shreds all romance novels.

WATCH NOW

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SHUTTERSTOCK

Romeo + Juliet (1996)

If violent delights have violent ends, then romantic
delights so too have romantic ends. And only Baz
Luhrmann can take the two ends of that spectrum and
connect them in the middle to form a bloody heart.
That’s exactly what the visionary director does with his
swoon-worthy 1996 adaptation of the Shakespeare
essential, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire

Danes. WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

Love Jones (1997)

Nia Long and Larenz Tate get hot and bothered in this
classic from writer and director Theodore Witcher. They
play a couple whose happenstance meeting in
Chicago blooms into a relationship the two can’t seem
to define. Though it was a box office dud back in the
‘90s, this is one you’ll want to rekindle.

WATCH NOW

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DISNEY

Up (2009)
In signature Pixar form, audiences were weeping before
the events really took off in Up. In the opening
sequence of the movie, we’re treated to an expedited
journey through the storybook romance shared
between Carl and Ellie. And though Ellie exits the
storyline abruptly, her presence is felt throughout the
heartwarming adventure—all the way to Paradise Falls,

where she always wanted to go. WATCH NOW

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GETTY IMAGES

Desire (1936)
Old Hollywood icons Marlene Dietrich and Gary
Cooper lock lips for the better part of this 1936 Frank
Borzage rom-com set in Spain. It follows a French jewel
thief and the American holding onto her pearls, and,
we have to say, it doesn't get much more romantic than

those long, golden-age kisses. WATCH NOW

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MGM

A Star Is Born (2018)

Rarely does a modern reboot outdo anything Judy
Garland or Barbra Streisand did previously, but such is
the case with 2018’s A Star Is Born. The Bradley
Cooper-directed masterwork reinvigorated the
enduring musical with a dazzling romance story
bolstered by thrilling performances from its helmer and
costar Lady Gaga. And the magic between these two?

Lightning in a bottle. WATCH NOW

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7 of 70

SHUTTERSTOCK

Splash (1984)
Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah star in Ron Howard’s
fish-out-of-water story about a mermaid who reunites
with the man she saved when he was a boy. Together
on dry land, the two fall in love under the city lights of
Manhattan, but are eventually are forced to make a
decision: Choose love for the ocean or love for each
other? The answer may surprise you.

WATCH NOW

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SHUTTERSTOCK

About Time (2013)

If you’re bored with formulaic tales of romance, look to
this time-hopping British delight starring Rachel
McAdams and Domhnall Gleeson, from Love Actually
director Richard Curtis. Gleeson stars as a bloke who
learns his armoire has time-machine powers, so he
spends the film jumping back and forth through the
years trying to perfect his life. It all makes for a
profound and truly romantic watch.

WATCH NOW

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SHUTTERSTOCK

Cold War (2018)

Love is never black and white, but Pawel Pawlikowki’s
tale of impossible love is. An achingly romantic tale of
star-crossed lovers that just may leave a scar, it’s set
against the backdrop of the Cold War in 1950s Poland
and unfolds through its two leads, Joanna Kulig and
Tomasz Kot. If Casablanca had never walked into our
bar, we’d be leaving with Cold War.

WATCH NOW

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GETTY IMAGES

To Catch a Thief (1955)

Beautiful people, far-flung locales, jewel thieving: Could
this be a pattern? Here, Grace Kelly and Cary Grant
star in this Alfred Hitchcock film that toys with identity,
copycats, and of course, romance in the Riviera. The
suspense, however, takes a backseat to the chemistry

firing between the two leads. WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

Sliding Doors (1998)

Gwyneth Paltrow stars in Peter Howitt's double-
scenario story about a London woman who explores
two very different paths to love, both hinging on
whether she catches or misses a train. Though
technical-sounding, this is all just to say that love will

find a way. WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

Circle of Friends (1995)

As much as we enjoy a great cuppa with the crew at
Central Perk, we're always up for an Irish whiskey at a
bar in Dublin. Minnie Driver is Benny Hogan, a student
attending university with her two best friends, falling
madly in love with a hunky rugby player (Chris
O'Donnell), and steamrolling her way straight into

heartbreak. BUY THE DVD

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EVERETT

The Best Man (1999)

Grab a plus-one for Malcolm D. Lee's wedding drama
starring Taye Diggs, Sanaa Lathan, and Morris
Chestnut. Precluding the walk down the aisle, the film
works between timelines to reveal the secrets, hookups
and friendship fractures plaguing Harper (Diggs) and
his pals. But, oh, the chemistry between Lathan and

Diggs. WATCH NOW

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COURTESY

Il Mare (2000)
The previous and current tenants of a house by the sea
are somehow pen-palling across time and space via a
magic postbox. Sound familiar? That's because this
South Korean's love story is the magical realism that
inspired its underwhelming American remake, The Lake
House. (This is the only version worth seeing.)
WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

Monsoon Wedding (2001)

This vibrant New Dehli affair from Mira Nair challenges
the stereotype of a loveless arranged marriage,
following the festivities as dozens of wedding guests fly
in (emotional baggage and all) to witness the marital
union of a groom and his handpicked bride.

WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

Moulin Rouge! (2001)

Lights, camera, swoon over the final installment in Baz
Luhrmann’s Red Curtain trilogy. A highly stylized
musical set in Paris that we can only imagine had an
unlimited budget when it came to rhinestones, the film
stars Nicole Kidman as a glittery courtesan alongside
Ewan McGregor, the poet who loves her.

WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

All the Real Girls (2003)

Get a peek at David Gordon Green's softer side with
this early work: A delicate exploration of young love
starring Zooey Deschanel and Paul Schrader as small-
town North Carolina couple Noel and Paul. She's a
virgin, he's definitely not—together, they're doomed.

WATCH NOW

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COURTESY

Pride & Prejudice (2005)

Love is never simple in a Jane Austen narrative. In Pride
& Prejudice, Mr. Darcy is a man in love with Elizabeth
Bennet—but has a hard time making that known. Keira
Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen do their duty as lady
and gentleman, and the dialogue in Joe Wright’s
romance might make you weak in the knees.

WATCH NOW

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EVERETT

I Am Love (2009)
Character chameleon Tilda Swinton gives bored
housewife a go in Luca Guadagnino’s Oscar-
nominated visual feast. She's Emma, a woman whose
muted desire is awakened when she meets a young
chef in Italy. No judgements from us if you want to go

back for seconds. WATCH NOW

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