Valentine’s Day might be over, but February is still the season of love. While some movies are specific to certain holidays, others are acceptable for any season. Here are some of the best rom-coms for any time of year.
In "Pretty in Pink," the quirky girl at school, Andie Walsh (Molly Ringwald), finds herself in a relationship with the popular boy, Blane McDonough (Andrew McCarthy). Walsh and McDonough come from completely different social circles and socioeconomic backgrounds, which causes some unpredicted conflicts. Navigating insecurities, jealousy and judgment, Walsh struggles to feel secure in her relationship with McDonough, due to disapproving and jealous friends.
This movie is filled with likable characters like Duckie Dale (Jon Cryer), who portrays a goofy sidekick. While mostly focused on the light topics of prom dates and music clubs, the movie also deals with some heavy topics like difficulties in relationships based on socioeconomic status.
"When Harry Met Sally" tends to be considered one of the greatest rom-coms of all time. This movie tells the story of Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) falling in love with Sally Albright (Meg Ryan). Burns does not believe men and women can just be friends, but Albright disagrees. They find themselves learning more about each other while simultaneously seeing other people. When Albright’s heart is broken by another man, Burns and Albright find it increasingly hard to deny their feelings for one another.
"When Harry Met Sally" is a surprisingly fast paced movie that takes place over more than a year featuring a long "Will they? Won't they?" theme that leaves the viewer excitedly anticipating the final declaration of love, followed by their eventual relationship.
"Sweet Home Alabama" follows a Hallmark-movie-like plot line where Melanie Smooter (Reese Witherspoon) returns to her small hometown to finalize her divorce and marry her fiancée from the big city. However, her ex-husband, Jake Perry (Josh Lucas), has no desire to go through with the divorce. At one point, it is revealed that Smooter has been lying to her fiancée about her past to appear as though she grew up with more money than she did. During her visit, Smooter rekindles the love she has for her home and for Perry.
This movie holds the Hallmark-movie spirit while still maintaining strong video production and a unique plot line. The viewer meets many sweet and silly hometown characters and will slowly find love for characters they were originally intended to hate.
Toula Portokalos (Nia Vardalos) belongs to a large and very close-knit Greek family. Though already 30 years old, she still lives with and works for her family, who encourages her to find a Greek man to marry. The catch is, she finds herself falling for an American. Her family struggles to accept it at first, but eventually he becomes a part of the family.
The over exaggerated quirks of the Portokalos family can remind any viewer of the silly things they might find a bit embarrassing about their own family. The movie explains that families and significant others learn to understand each other and appreciate each other's oddities.
"27 Dresses" tells the classic story of 'always a bridesmaid, never a bride.' Jane Nichols (Katherine Heigl) has been a bridesmaid 27 times, and love-bitter wedding reporter Kevin Doyle (James Marsden) is fascinated by her story. Their relationship goes through highs and lows as the viewer watches them slowly but surely fall in love.
The enemies-to-lovers trope is wonderfully blended with the friends-to-lovers trope in "27 Dresses." The characters have an enticing love-hate relationship filled with witty banter that means the viewer cannot help but be thoroughly invested in the relationship between Nichols and Doyle.
"He’s Just Not That Into You" is an incredibly unique rom-com that follows several interconnected stories and will leave the viewer with secondhand embarrassment for the characters, who do not know how to maintain healthy relationships. Many of the characters struggle to find love, while some actively destroy their relationships. But the plot mainly revolves around the relationship between Gigi Phillips (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Alex (Justin Long). Phillips just cannot seem to make her boyfriends stay, and Alex tries to give her advice on men that just seems to leave her lonely, leading them to start having romantic feelings towards each other.
This mixture of likable and relatable characters with terrible and irredeemable characters allows viewers to enjoy rooting for the good guys and praying on the downfall of the bad guys. The movie shows a wide range of problems in relationships from fear of commitment to infidelity. Viewers are sure to find one character to relate with or to identify with others they have encountered in the dating scene.
"Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" stars Matthew McConaughey as a playboy photographer who is currently serving as best man in his younger brother’s wedding. As he plots to spoil the wedding because he does not believe in marriage, he is visited by his girlfriends of past, present and future in "A Christmas Carol" fashion.
McConaughey's hate-able character Connor Mead is made understandable through a series of interesting female characters that Mead has been with. They range from a goofy young girl that Mead had his first kiss with to a more serious, but lovable young woman who has always been Mead's true love. This slow build to a redeemed character and a long-awaited relationship makes the movie a great option.
This movie shows many couples' experiences on Valentine's Day. It follows the story of a couple that is newly engaged and dealing with doubts, a couple reuniting as one returns from being stationed overseas, a young couple experiencing their first Valentine's day, a young man struggling to come out as gay so that he may publicly be with his boyfriend and so many more fascinating plot lines.
"Valentine’s Day" has a cast filled with big names. From Taylor Swift to George Lopez, this movie has almost everyone’s favorite star. This movie tells many connected stories about relationships on Valentine’s Day. Some of the stories contain intriguing sparks of young love, while others involve long-lasting commitment.
"Mr. Right" is the hilarious story of a girl falling in love with a hitman who teaches her his trade. Anna Kendrick plays the quirky but loveable Martha Mckay, who is going through a rough time in life. She finds love with a hitman, who Mckay assumes is joking about his career. They fall in love quickly, and the hitman slowly proves to Mckay that she has what it takes to be with someone as talented as him.
This movie is great for couples. The romantic aspect will appeal to calm movie lover, the action aspect to the thrill seeker, and the comedy aspect to anyone. The witty jokes and fast paced action will keep any viewer entertained, even the rom-com-hating significant other.
"Home Again" stars Reese Witherspoon as Alice Kinney, a recently divorced mother moving back into her childhood home where she lived with her actress mother and now-late director father. She meets a group of three men who have always been inspired by her parents and are working on producing a movie of their own. She lets the men crash at her guest house, and they grow to be a found family as Kinney begins to fall for one of them.
The theme of found family in this movie is wonderfully executed. The movie provides a display of community that shows the value of every character and emphasizes that everyone has something to bring to the table. This, intercut with a romantic story, creates a very heartwarming film, despite the movie's odd premise.