If the plot of Ghosts of Girlfriends Past reminds you of Charles Dickens‘ A Christmas Carol, that’s not a coincidence. The former is not a Christmas story, although it was clearly influenced by the latter.
Matthew McConaughey plays Connor “Dutch” Mead, a man whose fear of love has led him to become someone who runs from commitment. On the day of his brother’s wedding, Connor reunites with his former flame, Jenny Perotti (Jennifer Garner), and bungles any attempted reconciliation. That leads Connor to receive visions of his girlfriends’ past, present and future, as well as a warning about his eventual fate if he doesn’t try to change his ways.
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past is streaming on HBO Max.
Without Love is a rom-com that was written, filmed and released during World War II, which also factors into the plot. Real-life couple and Hollywood legends Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn star in the film as an unlikely pair who give marriage a shot without romance or delusions of love.
Patrick Jamieson (Tracy) is a military scientist who has never been successful in love, while Jamie Rowan (Hepburn) is a widow who isn’t entirely over her late husband. She and Patrick share a connection, and they believe they can make their marriage work as a platonic union. But the more time they spend together, the more love they feel for each other. Lucille Ball costars as their friend Kitty Trimble, just a few years before she went on to create and star in I Love Lucy.
Without Love is streaming on HBO Max.
Womanizer Jamie Randall (Jake Gyllenhaal) experiences something like love at first sight when he sees Maggie Murdock (Anne Hathaway) in Love & Other Drugs. Jamie is a pharmaceutical drug rep who is about to have a boom period. But he sweeps Maggie off her feet, and she does the same for him.
However, their story may not have a happy ending as she suffers from Parkinson’s disease, and her prognosis is getting worse. Others warned Jamie to break up with Maggie before things got too serious, and all he can think about is how to help her.
Love & Other Drugs is streaming on HBO Max.
Singing’ in the Rain wasn’t an immediate sensation in 1952, but it’s now widely regarded as one of the greatest movies ever made. The story takes place nearly a century ago in Hollywood, as silent pictures are about to go the way of the dodo. Movie star Don Lockwood (Gene Kelly) is afraid his career will go with it.
Although Don is romantically linked by the press to his costar, Lina Lamont (Jean Hagen), he falls heads over heels for a novice actress, Kathy Selden (Debbie Reynolds). It’s the kind of love that just makes you want to sing in the rain, apparently. But if Lina has her way, she’ll keep Don and Kathy apart. The music is incredibly catchy, and that’s a big reason why this film feels timeless.
Singin’ in the Rain is streaming on HBO Max.
An action rom-com starring Michael Cera? Grab your bass guitar and let’s play along. In this quirky movie, Cera plays slacker musician Scott Pilgrim, whose life is turned upside down when he meets the effortlessly cool Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). He’s instantly taken with her, but there are a couple of problems. First, Scott is already dating Knives Chau (Ellen Wong) and is too chicken to break up with her. Second — and slightly more pressing — Ramona has seven evil exes who Scott must fight in increasingly ridiculous battles if he wants to date her. Each ex presents a unique challenge, mixing elements of video game aesthetics and comic book-style action.
This highly stylized and out-of-this-world movie was recently revived in an animated Netflix series that featured the super-talented cast, including Kieran Culkin, Brie Larson, Aubrey Plaza and many more.
Even if you’ve never seen Notting Hill, you’ve probably heard its most famous line (or heard it paraphrased in other rom-coms). “I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.” If Notting Hill is asking you to love it, rest assured — Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant make it easy.
William Thacker (Grant) is a quiet British bookseller who owns a bookstore in the London neighborhood of Notting Hill. Anna Scott (Roberts) is a world-famous actress eager to escape the pressures of stardom. When she walks off the street and into the shop, an instantly engaging romance ensues.
But being an ordinary guy while dating a leading lady is no easy task. Constant media scrutiny puts their burgeoning relationship under a microscope, leading them to wonder if they can beat the odds. Its themes of taking risks for love and the unlikely blending of disparate worlds resonate universally, creating a feel-good romantic fantasy that continues to charm audiences worldwide.
This Broadway adaptation of the Keri Russell romantic dramedy has even more delicious heart than the original. When diner waitress and master pie baker Jenna (Sara Bareilles, who also wrote the music for the show) finds herself pregnant, she decides to save up and enter a pie contest to escape her abusive husband Earl (Joe Tippett). Her best friends Dawn (Caitlin Houlahan) and Becky (Charity Angél Dawson) encourage her along the way. But things get a little more complicated when, much to her surprise, she ends up having an affair with her kind and understanding OB/GYN, Dr. Pomatter (Drew Gehling).
Jenna’s pregnancy helps her discover strength she never imagined she had. The songs are irresistibly funny and catchy in one moment and heartbreakingly beautiful in the next. Waitress: The Musical will leave you hungry for more — and for a slice of pie.
He’s Just Not That Into You is based on a book, which is itself based on a line of dialogue from an episode of Sex and the City. The movie’s sprawling origin story feels relevant to its plot, which features a large ensemble cast of interconnected characters. Each couple (or trio or quartet) includes one person who is much more invested in the relationship than the other — an imbalance that almost any viewer can relate to.
The connective thread is Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin), a hopeless romantic who is constantly pursuing disinterested men. When she meets Alex (Justin Long), an aloof bartender, he begins giving her advice about how to interpret signals from guys. Meanwhile, their friends and coworkers are stuck in their own romantic entanglements. The impressive cast includes Scarlett Johansson, Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Connelly, Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore and Kevin Connolly.
A charming examination of love amid mental health issues, Silver Linings Playbook is a must-see romantic comedy that’s both heart-wrenching and heartwarming. Pat (Bradley Cooper) has recently completed a stint in a psychiatric facility after a violent episode when he caught his ex-wife Nikki (Brea Bee) cheating on him. Desperate to reconcile, Pat moves in with his parents, Patrizio Sr. and Dolores (Robert De Niro and Jacki Weaver).
He meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a widow who is also dealing with mental health problems. She encourages Pat to compete with her in a ballroom dance contest to prove to Nikki that he’s changed. Unfortunately, Patrizio Sr.’s gambling problem and obsession with the Eagles cause him to pressure his son and drive a wedge between him and Tiffany. (Patrizio superstitiously believes Pat’s attention to Eagles games is necessary for the team to win.)
The tension is near constant in this pressure cooker of a movie, yet it still manages to deliver laughs. Lawrence, De Niro and Cooper make deeply flawed characters extremely likable, while the family dynamics are complex and relatable. If you’ve ever felt like your family is about to drive you off the deep end, this movie is for you.
Toula (Nia Vardalos) is a shy, awkward woman who has always felt like an outsider in her loud, effusive Greek American family. When she falls in love with WASP-y teacher Ian (John Corbett), she struggles to get her family to accept him. Throughout the movie, she learns to stand up for herself and the man she loves, but she also learns to appreciate the rich culture that makes her family unique. It’s a heartwarming, hilarious story.
Despite being over twenty years old, My Big Fat Greek Wedding remains the highest-grossing rom-com of all time — and rightfully so. The script, written by lead actress Vardalos, is instantly quotable and emotionally resonant. More importantly, Toula and Ian’s romance is endlessly endearing. The movie spawned two sequels in 2016 and 2023, but the original remains the best of the bunch.