My Favorite Romantic Movies

"I believe if there's any kind of God it wouldn't be in any of us, not you or me but just this little space in between. If there's any kind of magic in this world it must be in the attempt of understanding someone sharing something. I know, it's almost impossible to succeed but who cares really? The answer must be in the attempt."

       ー Celine (Julie Delpy in Before Sunrise, 1995) 

My favorite romantic movies may be sentimental, even cliché at times, but, at least, no one dies or is separated by war or catastrophes though circumstances may pull them apart and the 'lovebirds' might not even end up together.

Mostly, it's about two people who, by chance, meet or are thrown together and find a deeper connection and attraction. I guess that's the basic premise for every good romantic movie.

Though I could include several classic love stories, such as Pride & Prejudice, Jane Eyre, Persuasion,  and Far From the Madding Crowd, I simply cannot choose between their respective adaptations - on TV and film - since they all bring something new and different to their literary canons. Moreover, I have several favorite romantic relationships in an array of other genres, from the adventurous (The Mummy, 1999) to the mysterious (Rear Window, 1954) to the purely historical (The Young Victoria, 2009), or where the narrative simply focuses somewhere else than the potential romance. But I've chosen to forego those, mostly because of the latter.

Here's my list:

• Before Sunrise (Richard Linklater, 1995)
• The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
• You've Got Mail (Nora Ephron, 1998)
• Now, Voyager (Irving Rapper, 1942)
• Brief Encounter (David Lean, 1945)
• One Fine Day (Michael Hoffman, 1996)
• A Patch of Blue (Guy Green, 1965)
• Beginners (Mike Mills, 2010)
• The Clock (Vincente Minnelli, 1945)
• Obvious Child (Gillian Robespierre, 2014)
• Far from Heaven (Todd Haynes, 2002)
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004)
• French Kiss (Lawrence Kasdan, 1995)
• It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934)
• Marty (Delbert Mann, 1955)
• Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (Bharat Nalluri, 2008)
• Roman Holiday (William Wyler, 1953)
• Until They Sail (Robert Wise, 1957)
• While You Were Sleeping (John Turteltaub, 1995)
• Smilin' Through (Sidney Franklin, 1932)
• Summertime (David Lean, 1955)
• Ever After (Andy Tennant, 1998)
• Dirty Dancing (Emile Ardolino, 1987)
• Shadowlands (Richard Attenborough, 1993)
• Ever After: A Cinderella Story (Andy Tennant, 1998)
• What Rats Won't Do (Alastair Reid, 1998)