It comes as a massive surprise to a lot of people when they discover I’m a little bit of a romantic. I love romantic films, I love flowers, I LOVE love songs and just love love.
When Jack found this out, he kind of just stared at me and said “You? But you hate romance! You won’t even celebrate Valentine’s Day”. It’s true. I don’t like Valentine’s Day. Personally, I think it’s more romantic to treat your partner to flowers and treats on any other day of the year than on a day businesses and society tells you to. So when Jack surprised me with a bouquet of beautiful flowers a couple of weeks ago because I was having a blue day, that meant so much more to me than any bouquet on February 14th ever could. But no judgement to those that love it, that’s just me!
So rather than do a Valentine’s Day post and alienate the people that feel a little like me, I thought I would share my Top Five Favourite Romantic Films.
This post was harder to write than I originally imagined. Compiling my list and I had forgotten just how many iconic romantic movies there are. Films that I had devoured in my formative years and shaped my perception on adult relationships.
Whether it is Valentine’s Day or a random day of the week, these are my top five favourite romantic films.
It had to be you…Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) share a car ride from Chicago to New York, she finds him disgusting and he finds her uptight. They part ways, planning never to see each other again. When they meet again ten years later, they strike up a close friendship and eventually a relationship. Everything about it is iconic. Cinematography? Iconic. Meg Ryan’s style? Iconic. I’ll have what she’s having? ICONIC.
This Rob Reiner and Nora Ephron classic is truly one of my all-time favourite films. And it asks the age-old question, can men and women truly be friends?
A single yellow cab driving down an empty Fifth Avenue. A beautiful woman gets out of the taxi and gazes at the display at Tiffany’s and Co. with a takeaway cup of coffee and a pastry. Moon River is playing, the music starts to swell and I burst into tears. Every single time. This is the most beautiful and emotive opening scene from any film.
Notably one of Audrey Hepburn’s most recognised roles, she plays Holly Golightly, a young cafe socialite looking to marry rich. Broke writer Paul Varjack moves into her apartment building and the two instantly bond.
This film is so dreamy and aesthetically pleasing that it is an absolute joy to watch.
When I first saw Notting Hill, DVDs were a relatively new thing. My mum, dad and I sat around our chunky family computer connected to the dial-up and ordered a bunch of classic films that were on sale on Amazon.
An unlikely romance between a nerdy Travel Bookshop owner (Hugh Grant) and American starlet Anna Scott (Julia Roberts), with a wholly loveable ensemble cast, what’s not to love?? This film introduced me to the babe that is Julia Roberts, a floppy-haired Hugh Grant and a love for Ronan Keating that has only grown with time.
“I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.”
F.O.X.
Are you sensing a pattern? Another Nora Ephron/Meg Ryan collaboration makes my list of favourite romantic films.
When the internet was still in its infancy, rom-com King and Queen, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan meet in an anonymous ‘Over 30s’ online chat room, oblivious to the fact that in real life they are business rivals ready to take each other “to the mattresses”.
In recent years, this film seems to have gotten a lot of flack as Kathleen and Joe are emotionally cheating on their partners. This is sadly true but I can blissfully overlook this slight detail in favour of the overall film. The ending as Joe enters the park with Brinkley makes me melt every time.
“I wanted it to be you. I wanted it to be you so badly.”
One Fine Day is a lesser known, and vastly underrated, romantic comedy starring Michelle Pfeiffer and George Clooney as two single working parents trying to keep on top of things.
There is no denying that Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman was her supreme style moment of the 90s, if not her entire career. But my favourite fashion moments of hers is her running through New York in a sleek suit skirt, sheer black tights and a child’s t-shirt covered in dinosaurs. This is how I wanted to look like as a grown up when I watched as a little girl.
I would rent this video repeatedly from Blockbuster (remember Blockbuster?) and sneak downstairs to watch it on a Sunday morning before my parents woke up. There was one occasion when my mum came downstairs to me halfway through the film and a tray of tablet she had made the night before. Though this is a romantic comedy, just watching it fills me with such warm memories of my childhood.
It was harder to compile this list than I thought it would be. There have been some amazing romantic films, which I will be re-visiting this weekend definitely!
What are your favourite romantic films? Any that you think I should watch? Let me know!
Ashleigh x
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Such fabulous picks! I loved When Harry met Sally more than I thought I would. I haven’t heard of One Fine Day so I think that will be my next to watch.
Sarah x
http://saraheliza.co.uk
Thank you! When Harry Met Sally is one of my all time favourites! I love the aesthetics and whole feel of the film.
I only came across One Fine Day after picking it up in Blockbuster one day as a child and I became obsessed with it. I hope you enjoy! Xx
I actually love watching romantic movies but I haven’t watched any of these! Time to add them to my waitlist . Thank you for sharing
I really hope you enjoy them!