Ten Love Films

First of all let me explain, this is not a definitive list of the ten best romantic movies, it is my list; this is not a guide to what you should do for your better half on Valentine’s night, it is my guide; this most certainly is not the greatest movies of all time nor my favourite movies of all time; it is a list of what I see are the most romantic movies.

Nothing says ‘I love you’ more than a movie, well, apart from actually saying ‘I love you’, or buying flowers, or reading poetry in a park, or chocolates, or seductive underwear…ok, there are many things that say ‘I love you’.

Movies do have their place though in the great movement of romance and what we want are stories that make us feel; we want to laugh, cry, feel our hearts beat with emotion. For that you need good stories, good characters and good settings. The following movies all have the necessary ingredients.

1. Before Sunrise (1995) Starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy; directed by Richard Linklater. This, for me, is a perfect movie, it has everything you could want; it has pace, a beautiful backdrop, really nice characters and chemistry. If you have not seen this movie, then I highly recommend it. Follow Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy getting to know one another during one night in Vienna.

2. Titanic (1997) Starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet; directed by James Cameron. Yes, Leo and Kate; yes I can hear your groans but be honest, this is actually not a bad movie. Let me remind you, it is the second highest grossing movie ever and it won a ton of awards, those two facts do not add up to a bad movie. Tissues at the ready for this one as you are drawn into a forbidden love affair on the doomed ocean liner. (And you can’t escape it, it is being re-released in the cinemas in 3D later this year.)

3. Moulin Rouge (2001) Starring Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman; director Baz Lurhmann. This is such a feast for the eyes and a real puller of those heart-strings. This movie contains dazzling costumes; brilliantly worked songs and unbelievable heartbreak. It is loud, it is unashamedly camp and it features Kylie Minogue as the Absinthe Fairy. What’s not to like?

4. Brief Encounter (1945) Starring Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson; directed by David Lean. This is one movie guaranteed to pull at your heart-strings. Written by Lean with Noel Coward, it is wonderful middle-class cinema. The two leads embark on a doomed love affair that will leave you reaching for a box of tissues.

5. City Lights (1931) Starring Charlie Chaplin and Virginia Cherrill; directed by Charles Chaplin. If watching ‘The Artist’ has left you with a taste for silent movies, then this Chaplin comedy is really rather moving. The Tramp falls in love with a blind girl who thinks that he is a millionaire after she thinks she hears him shut the door of his car. He then takes her on a series of wonderful adventures. Very touching and beautifully put together.

6. Phantom of the Opera (2004) Starring Gerard Butler and Emmy Rossum; director Joel Schumacher. The lavish stage show, still showing in the West End, was turned into an equally stunning movie and nothing says ‘I love you’ more than a singing psycho wearing a mask! (Ok, done that one!)

7. Secretary (2002) Starring James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhall; director Steven Shainberg. This is a wonderfully hip and eccentric tale, full of odd laughs and extremely sexy. The two leads are perfectly cast as a couple of lonely hearts finally finding their dreams. Odd, sexy and very good fun, about as far away from Brief Encounter as you could get!

8. Annie Hall (1977) Starring Woody Allen and Diane Keaton; directed by Woody Allen. Subtitled, A Nervous Romance, Annie Hall sees Woody Allen at his neurotic best and Diane Keaton wonderfully, beautifully bohemian; a true romance story with some very funny sequences.

9. West Side Story (1961) Starring Richard Beymar and Natalie Wood; directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins. A brilliant update (well 50’s) of Romeo and Juliet with some really beautiful songs and excellent dancing, this is one of the best musicals ever made and still holds well. It may not be a tear-jerker, but is has emotion and the ride is very enjoyable.

10. As Good As It Gets (1997) Starring Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt; director James L. Brooks. Jack Nicholson is perfect as a grumpy writer with compulsive obsessive disorder who learns to love again when he meets a waitress; one of those movies that you can’t help but like, even if the comedy can be sour, it works.

So there we have my list; I know you will disagree and I know there are plenty of other movies all worthy. That’s the trouble with a list, they are just never long enough.

Love and Romance to you all.