Posted on 02/14/2021 1:55:08 PM PST by Kaslin
Whether you're cozied up with your sweetheart or enjoying a girls' night, grab some popcorn (and chocolate) and treat yourself to the classics.
Picking a movie is always a daunting task in my family. My mom and I have had to sit through our fair share of war movies with no discernible plot, while my dad and brother have patiently suffered through “Gone With The Wind.” The beauty of a good rom-com is having enough “rom” to satisfy more sentimental audiences and enough “com” to keep less romantic viewers interested.
As a connoisseur of the “rom,” I can’t guarantee all the movies on this list will please the most macho of audiences, but I can promise they’re quality classics everyone should see at least once.
There is nothing like watching Steve Martin and a hilariously flamboyant Martin Short argue about a front yard full of swans. In this 1991 classic (a remake of the 1950 Elizabeth Taylor movie), Martin plays a practical but loving father who has a hard time coming to terms with his daughter’s marriage—and the fact that he has to pay for it. Short plays the wedding planner brilliantly with an indeterminate but comical accent.
The comedy in this movie—and in its 1995 sequel—is superb. But the film is also a heartwarming reminder of the gifts of family and memory. Especially in a year when pandemic restrictions have forced many to downsize their weddings and other celebrations, “Father of the Bride” reminds us that everyday moments with loved ones are more important than a picture-perfect ceremony. I never watch it without tearing up at the end, and I never watch it without belly laughing.
Father of the Bride trailer 1991
This 2005 classic stars Will Smith as a “date doctor,” who helps men learn to pursue women intentionally and creatively. He successfully pairs wealthy, beautiful celebrity Allegra Cole with his kindhearted but stereotypically average client Albert. In his own romantic pursuits, however, he finds his tactics less successful.
Albert and Allegra’s relationship is adorable and heartwarming, but the movie also brings a profound message to an audience steeped in hookup culture.
The art of dating is neither a means to an inevitable one-night stand nor a drab ritual of “hanging out.” Dating shouldn’t be a passive excursion—as Hitch shows us, dating is an opportunity to be authentic but also to put thought and effort into making another person feel interesting.
This musical rom-com is definitely on the effervescent side, but a cast that includes Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Louis Armstrong, and Grace Kelly makes up for any deep intrigue the film might lack. Kelly plays Tracy Lord, a spoiled heiress and the divorced wife of jazz musician C. K. Dexter Haven (played by Crosby), who happens to live next door.
While Lord prepares to marry another man, her ex-husband tries to win her attention, as does a journalist sent to cover the wedding, played by Sinatra. Armstrong and his band grace the whole drama with toe-tapping musical numbers.
Fun fact: this was Kelly’s last film before she left Hollywood to marry real-life Prince Rainier of Monaco, so the whopping 10-carat ring she wears in the movie is her real engagement ring.
The film is a remake of the 1940 movie “The Philadelphia Story,” which has no less impressive of a cast, featuring Katherine Hepburn, James Stewart, and Cary Grant.
I put her politics aside & just melt into this movie. But I do understand your POV. Happy Valentine’s day JT!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
I just can’t put it aside; so many actors and musicians whom I’ve loved in the past have ruined it for me by roaming out of their lane.
(It used to be that a certain level of mystery was understood as an essential component of the ‘celebrity mystique’. Now they all think they’re experts on political philosophy and that everyone wants to hear their opinions - even though many of them never even finished High School.)
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