My 10 (no, 11) Favorite Movie Love Stories

Yes, this was supposed to be a book blog, but I love romantic movies just as much as I love romance novels (lists of favorite historical and contemporaries, however, coming soon!). I was so disappointed in Vertigo (and its rank at #18 on the AFI’s list of greatest love stories—gag) that I compiled my own list of favorite movie love stories. (The fact that there are 11 of them them is an homage to A Kiss for Midwinter. Because I'm a fangirl.) You may have seen many of them—in fact, I hope you have! You’ll note that most of them are screwball comedies, and almost all of them have delicious banter. I have a type, what can I say?

I tried to be brief, in case I ever want to review them in more detail. Leave a comment if you want to offer another recommendation or if you want to see a longer review of anything!

And I couldn’t decide how to rank them so I put them in alphabetical order. Yep.

Amélie

Premiered April 25, 2001

Starring Audrey Tatou as Amélie Poulain and Mathieu Kassovitz as Nino Quincampoix

Quirky, painfully shy girl decides to go about courting quirky, shy guy in her own carefully controlled, distant way. Can she let down her barriers and actually pursue a relationship with him? Oui, ce film est en français, but it’s so adorable you shouldn’t care. The cuteness mixes a little weirdly with lots of sexual elements, because French comedy? But it makes the movie a (quite) grown-up fairy tale.

(English-language films after the jump!)

Anastasia

Premiered November 14, 1997

Featuring the voices of Meg Ryan as Anastasia and John Cusack as Dimitri

Unbelievably-hot-despite-being-a-cartoon con man bickers and banters with the girl he thinks he’s training to act like Anastasia, even as they fall for each other. But what happens when he realizes that she really is the lost Russian duchess? I love Disney movies as much as any child of the '90s, but this is my favorite animated film.

Bridget Jones’s Diary

Premiered April 4, 2001

Starring Renée Zellwegger as Bridget Jones, Hugh Grant as Daniel Cleaver, and Colin Firth as Mark Darcy

Ever so slightly less put-together than Elizabeth Bennet, Bridget Jones makes a fantastic Everywoman (or maybe I just think that because I identify with her a little too well and a little too often) in this loose update of Pride and Prejudice. You’ll be surprised how romantic the line, “I realize that when I met you at the turkey curry buffet, I was unforgivably rude, and wearing a reindeer jumper” can be. And how hilarious a nasty fight can be when set to “It’s Raining Men.”

Bringing Up Baby

Released February 18, 1938

Starring Katharine Hepburn as Susan Vance and Cary Grant as David Huxley

Force-of-nature woman who manages to cause trouble wherever she goes decides to pursue dorky paleontologist. Makes his life much more interesting, and difficult. Wonderful to see Grant and Hepburn play against type, as a dork and a ditz, respectively. One of my favorite scenes: Susan is on the phone with David, trying to get him to visit, and pretends to be attacked by the tame leopard (the titular Baby) in the bathroom by knocking over the phone and scraping it against a chair.

Casablanca

Premiered November 26, 1942

Starring Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine and Ingrid Bergman as Ilsa Lund

“You must remember this: A kiss is still a kiss…” World-weary bar owner must decide whether to help his lost love and her husband escape the Nazis, or to claim her and rekindle their flame. Yes, it has a well-deserved reputation for being one of the most romantic films ever, and there are so many classic moments, and it’s quoted incessantly. But it’s surprisingly fresh and funny, too.

Hercules

Released June 27, 1997

Featuring the voices of Tate Donovan as Hercules and Susan Egan as Megara

Adorably awkward demigod falls for the tough-gal coquette who secretly works for Hades. She works through her feelings in “I Won’t Say (I’m in Love),” which is possibly one of the best songs ever.

His Girl Friday

Released January 11, 1940

Starring Cary Grant as Walter Burns and Rosalind Russell as Hildegard “Hildy” Johnson

Journalist tells her editor—who happens to be her ex-husband— she’s getting remarried and quitting newspapers. He proceeds to do everything he can to stop her, including getting her fiancé arrested, and convince her that she belongs with him and in the newspaper business. Perhaps the pinnacle of the screwball comedy, with banter so rapid you can barely keep up and lines that sizzle. “Want my fingerprints?” Walter asks; Hildy purrs, “No thanks, I’ve still got those.”

Much Ado About Nothing

Released May 7, 1993

Starring Emma Thompson as Beatrice and Kenneth Branagh as Benedick

OR

Premiered September 8, 2012

Starring Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof

The original screwball comedy? Benedick and Beatrice hide their feelings behind razor-sharp wit in a “merry war.” The messed-up happenings between Claudio and Hero, unfortunately, provide a good portion of the plot (with, ahem, much ado about nothing—a dirty pun), but Benedick and Beatrice are so delightful you’re just happy whenever they’re on screen. You now have your pick of the colorful, over-the-top Kenneth Branagh version, or the sleeker, sexier Joss Whedon version, filmed in black and white with a contemporary setting (in Whedon’s house, actually). I love both, but I highly recommend the Whedon version, which is in limited release at the moment.

Pride & Prejudice

Originally aired September 24, 1995-October 29, 1995

Starring Jennifer Ehle as Elizabeth Bennet and Colin Firth as Fitzwilliam Darcy

OR

Premiered September 11, 2005

Starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfayden

Miss Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy overcome the titular characteristics and fall in love after various missteps and misfortunes and misunderstandings. You know how this goes. Austen’s story is not a swoony romance but a screwball comedy (as Robert Rodi is happy to tell you) (mild language in link). The Keira Knightley film abbreviates the narrative, but is still satisfying and is absolutely gorgeous—every shot is a work of art, and the music by Dario Marianelli is simply beautiful. If you have more free time on your hands, the 1995 miniseries is closer to the book, and rewards patient viewers with departures from Austen’s narrative like Darcy in the bath, Darcy fencing, and Darcy going for maybe the most famous impromptu swim ever.

Bonus video: Bridget Jones interviews Colin Firth, determined to get him to talk about being Mr. Darcy

Sabrina

Premiered September 9, 1954

Starring Aubrey Hepburn as Sabrina Fairchild, William Holden as David Larrabee, and Humphrey Bogart as Linus Larrabee

A charming fairy tale, if you make sure to watch the black-and-white version and not the update, which is surprisingly awful for a movie with Harrison Ford in it. Sabrina, the gawky chauffeur’s daughter, has a crush on David, the playboy younger son of her employers. When she comes back from Paris more mature and sophisticated, the elder son Linus is determined to keep her away from David for reasons relating to a business deal, but does so by getting close to her instead.

What’s Up, Doc?

Released March 10, 1972

Starring Barbra Streisand as Judy Maxwell and Ryan O’Neal as Howard Bannister

Force-of-nature woman who manages to cause trouble wherever she goes decides to pursue dorky musicologist. Makes his life much more interesting, and difficult. Sound familiar? This is an homage to screwball comedies of the ‘30s and ‘40s…like Bringing Up Baby. Pretty much my favorite movie ever—I almost never stop laughing. From the elaborate, hilarious car chase: “I can’t see!” “There’s nothing to see, really; we’re inside a Chinese dragon.”

Also recommended:

The African Queen and It Happened One Night for classics, Love Actually for modern. The love story in Bridesmaids is also really, really adorable, even if it’s not quite the focus of the narrative.