Romantic comedies, AKA rom-coms, have been around almost as long as movies have, and they’ve long been a mainstay for date nights. Their popularity has allowed moviemakers to get lazy, though, and a lot of romantic comedies aren’t that romantic or funny or both.
Many of them are tiredly predictable, too, following a familiar format that essentially comes down to boy meets girl, boy, and girl start dating, boy messes up and loses girl, and boy wins girl back. Despite all that, some romantic comedies are very good movies. This list includes several of them.
When Harry Met Sally
If you haven’t seen this movie, you definitely should even if romantic comedies aren’t your thing. Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) are stellar as two friends struggling with the growing feelings they have for each other. The movie also has one of the best cameos of all time, by the director’s mother.
Long Shot
Charlize Theron is a U.S. Secretary of State who on impulse hires a journalist (Seth Rogen) as her speechwriter. Her advisers are against the movie, but that doesn;t stop a relationship from developing.
The Lovebirds
How do you save a troubled relationship? Why, you get involved in a murder mystery! While they deal with that, the couple goes from being on the verge of breaking up to realizing they want to find a way to make things work.
Crazy, Stupid, Love
Ryan Gosling is a middle-aged man who’s suddenly alone after his unfaithful wife wants a divorce. He meets a “player” who schools him on picking up women in bars, and along the way, he finds love again.
Monster-In-Law
All is perfect for Jennifer Lopez as she settles down with the man of her dreams. Then his mother (Jane Fonda) shows up, and she’s determined to wreck the relationship.
You’ve Got Mail
Here’s another rom-com classic with Meg Ryan. In this one, she’s an independent bookstore owner, and Tom Hanks is the owner of a huge bookstore chain. They fall in love via email, not realizing that professionally, they’re foes.
Intolerable Cruelty
George Clooney and Catherine Zeta-Jones play, respectively, a divorce attorney and his wealthy client’s vengeful ex-wife. Somehow, they fall in love as they try to one-up each other. Or do they?
Notting Hill
Julia Roberts plays the world’s biggest movie star. Hugh Grant owns an independent bookstore. Somehow, they meet and develop an unlikely romance. Can it survive all the media attention that comes with it?
Love Actually
Universal Pictures.
This one is now a Christmas classic, and it follows nine different threads, each based on a relationship. The outstanding cast includes Hugh Grant, Keira Knightley, Liam Neeson, Alan Rickman, Laura Linney, and several other top stars.
Sleepless in Seattle
Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan showed their great chemistry in this one as well. Hanks is a recently widowed man. To help his father find a new partner in love and life, his son calls a radio talk show. The “meeting scene” atop the Empire State Building is iconic.
Bridget Jones’s Diary
Renee Zellweger charmed audiences in this tale of a woman dealing with two competing love interests. The final scene is pretty unforgettable, but you’ll have to watch it. No spoilers here!
Groundhog Day
Bill Murray is a decidedly unromantic weatherman stuck with covering the annual Punxsutawney Phil event in Pennsylvania. His boredom leads to being trapped in a time loop where he has to keep reliving the past 24 hours.
This means getting rejected over and over again by the woman (Andie MacDowell) he wants to seduce. As he repeats his day, again and again, he begins to change and grow.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
How about a little science fiction with your romantic comedy? Jim Carrey plays a man who wants to erase all his memories of his ex (Kate Winslet). That turns out to be problematic because as those memories vanish, he realizes his feelings for her aren’t.
Moonstruck
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).
Cher plays a widowed Italian American woman who’s engaged to be married again. Things get complicated after she meets her fiance’s gruff brother (Nicolas Cage). He comes across as difficult to like, yet there’s a strange chemistry between the two.
While You Were Sleeping
Hollywood Pictures.
Here’s an interesting storyline for you: Sandra Bullock plays a woman pretending to be the fiancee of a comatose man. While she does this, she gets to know his brother (Bill Pullman), and a “love at second sight” story develops.
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There are some pretty awesome movies out there so it’s hard to narrow down the absolute best ones. Of course, movies are also subjective – which means the “best” movies on lists from critics don’t always line up with fans. So that’s what we have here: 12 movie fans share the greatest movie they’ve ever watched.