Dr_Mayus' Top 10 List of Romantic Movies...You May Not Have Seen

[Dr_Mayus]

 

Chie ...you make me so hap... ... ... ...I didn't see you come in...let me restart

 

 

    WELCOME TO DR_MAYUS' TOP 10 ROMANTIC FILMS YOU MAY NOT HAVE SEEN    

 

It has been a long time since I have done a top 10 list but I feel since Valentine's day is upon us (and I completely forgot to do a Halloween and Christmas list) I should help out those who want a great romantic film to watch, but are sick of all the bullshit that Hollywood is putting out.

 

Now this list will probably contain films you have never even heard of...but then again I am a pretentious film snob so please bare with me. All of these films are worth watching and all of them contain elements of a romantic nature...just sometimes done in a hard to watch narrative, with depressing overtones...and death...

 

 

#10 The Princess Bride

 

Mayus, you sexual beast. How dare you put one of the greatest romantic comedies as a mere #10 OK, calm down and let me explain. I said this was a list of films you probably haven't seen...and I am guessing 95% of the people on this site have seen this movie. That being said I simply couldn't leave it off as it is a classic of cinematic brilliance.

 

For those of you who are too young or too cool to have seen this movie you are really missing out on one of the most fun experiences you will ever have. It has great characters, fun action scenes, wonderful one-liners and although it has a cliched story it is alright because it is supposed to be a cliched story. It is about a man overcoming all odds to rescue and marry his one true love and not even being tortured to near-death can stop him from accomplishing this feat.

 

Seriously if you haven't checked this film out do so immediately and see what the hype is all about.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPH3Wr9Xnp8

#9 Autumn Spring

 

I hope I am like Fanda when I grow up.

 

This is a movie that can give you hope for the future when you realize that you can either let life get you down or do something about it. Fanda is someone who doesn't let age get in his way. He is going to live life to the fullest, because dammit he can. This is in strict opposition to his wife who ends up wanting to divorce Fanda because he pulled one trick too many (and to be fair it was a big one).

 

I love this movie because so often we don't concentrate on the "old" couple. Love is about new beginnings and rarely do we think "well 50 years down the road will I still find him/her cute and charming" I think we all need to see this film to realize that when you say you love someone, do you really mean it?

 

#8 Broken Flowers

 

Now let us go to the other end of the spectrum. This is a movie about a man whose life choices have caught up with him. Bill Murray gives the performance of his life here in what can be a tough film to get through.

 

Don has been a Don Juan lover his whole life (see what they did there with the name) One day he receives a pink letter saying he is a father but has no idea who it is from. He and his neighbour (who is obsessed with crime novels) narrow it down to 5 women and Don goes on a road trip to figure out who it could be.

 

Over the course of the movie you get glimpses into the lives of these women he used to be with and you can start to piece together what his life could have been if he had stayed with any one of them.

 

The movie can be a little slow paced for some people but it adds to the atmosphere of the film. You are on this journey with Don and you discover things as he discovers them. In the end you are left to make up your own conclusions just as he has to and you realize "you can always wait for something better to come along...or you can just be happy with what you have"

 

#7 Palm Beach Story

 

Let me introduce you to Preston Sturges. The director/writer that inspired many filmmakers of today, especially the Coen Brothers (you can see tons of references of his movies in their films).

 

He was the master of the screwball comedy and loved writing Non-Romantic Comedies. What is a Non-Rom-Com...well it is just what it sounds like. You take a romantic premise, then stamp on it, turn it upside down, re-write the whole thing and get Palm Beach Story.

 

Palm Beach Story is a film about a man who has a great idea to stop Airplane crashes by putting a giant net over the city (just go with it ) but he can't afford to get his invention off the ground. His wife's idea is to divorce him, marry a rich guy and then use that new found fortune to fund her ex-husband's inventions (just go with it).

 

So that is what happens, she flies to Palm Beach and tries to find a rich guy and then mayhem ensues. I don't want to spoil anything as it is really something you need to take in. In the end you begin to see Sturge's view on how interchangeable love can really be (evident by his 4 marriages in real life)

 

#6 Lars and the Real Girl

 

And now we get into hard to watch movies

 

This is one of the saddest and sweetest romantic films of all time. Ryan Gosling deserved an Oscar for this role and this film deserved a lot more praise than it got.

 

Lars manifests a relationship with a sex doll and that relationship to him is very real. Now there are a lot of filmmakers out there that would take this premise, slap Seth Rogen in the lead role and make a mockery out of it...but here we go the other route.

 

This film is built around not only Lars' delusions but the bonding that happens with his family. Throughout the film you know Bianca isn't real, but you secretly wish she was.

 

I was very skeptical when I heard about this movie but I am so glad I decided to give it a chance. if you need a good laugh and cry, check out this film soon.

 

#5 Once

 

I have talked about Once before but I will bring it up again.

 

Once is a movie about an Irish busker who meets a Czech pianist and the two of them start a relationship and decide to put out an album of some of their songs...that is pretty much it.

 

While the plot may be simple the strength lies in the characters and scenarios that play out. It is something Hollywood tends to forget. You can have all the budget in the world but if your Lead Actors are wooden and your characters are one dimensional then it will be boring and vacuous.

 

This is another film where the relationship just seems real. The chemistry between the two leads is sincere (as they were boyfriend/girlfriend at the time) and you want to believe in their happiness. What I love about this film is that while we just get to see just a small snippet of their life you feel like you have known them for years.

 

On top of that the music is fantastic (as it is written and performed by the actors in the band) and they deserved their Oscar for best original song.

 

#4 His Girl Friday

Alright enough sad depressing Romantic films...time to get to more screwball comedies .

 

His Girl Friday is a classic in all senses of the word. The chemistry of Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell is off the wall and despite them being divorced throughout the movie you can feel the sparks fly whenever they are on screen together (even when they are supposed to hate each other).

 

The movie is about Hildy Johnson (Rosalind Russell) wanting to quit the newspaper game and marry another guy and Walter Burns (Cary Grant) deciding he all of a sudden "loves" her again. Really he just doesn't want her to marry someone else but he ends up tricking her to work on one last story and that begins their back and forth fighting to an eventual reconciliation...sort of.

 

It isn't meant to be taken seriously but what I love about it is these 2 are so clearly not right for each other, but in the same vein they are perfect for each other. The snappy dialog and break neck pace makes this movie a joy to watch and I cannot say enough good things about it.

 

#3 Paris, Je T'Aime

 

Can't pick 1 romantic movie...how about 18?

 

Paris, Je T'aime is a unique experience as you get 18 short films by some of the greatest directors from around the world (Coen Brothers, Alexander Payne, Wes Craven, Alfonso Curaron, Sylvain Chomet, Isabel Coixet etc.) all dealing with Love in Paris.

 

Each director was given a different segment of the city and they were allowed to tell what ever sort of love film they wanted. It could be love between a man and a woman, a man and his daughter, a woman and her baby, a man and his deceased wife, a vampire and his prey, a woman and the city or simply whatever else they can think of.

 

You get to experience so many different lives and you begin to think "this is all happening around me and I don't even notice it" "maybe that woman who is angry at work is actually angry because her daughter just died" "maybe that couple sitting staring at each other are contemplating divorce" or "maybe that man whistling to himself is on his way to propose to his girlfriend"

 

These stories are all around us...it is just up to us to look for them

 

#2 The Fountain

 

How far does your love travel?

 

I hated this movie when I first started watching it. The trailer makes it seem like a time travel plot and throughout the beginning I kept thinking that was what it was.

 

There isn't any time travel in this movie...I don't know why that is in the trailer.

 

I don't want to say too much about this movie as I don't want to spoil it and I want you to come to your own conclusions upon watching it, but I will say I love discussing this movie with anyone after they have seen it and sharing ideas on what you think happened.

 

A quick plot synopsis and then I will leave it at that. Rachel Weisz is dying of  a brain tumour and Hugh Jackman is a doctor who is trying to find a cure to save his wife.

 

This plot is mirrored in a story of a Conquistador (played by Jackman) trying to find the Tree of Life to bring back to his queen (played by Weisz).

 

In a third story Jackman is travelling with the Tree of Life in a giant bubble to merge it with a dying star.

 

So I will ask again. How far does your love travel? What would you sacrifice to save the one you love?

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnSgSe2GzDc

#1 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

 

Oh how I hummed and hawed as to put this or Fountain as #1. In the end I had to settle on ESotSM as it speaks the most to me.

 

While most Romantic Movies are about finding love, this one is about getting rid of it and then once it is gone trying to move on with your life.

 

The premise of the film is Clementine (Kate Winslet) used a procedure to erase all memories of her relationship with Joel (Jim Carrey). When Joel finds out he decides to erase her as well and that is how we find out about their relationship. We work backwards through their memories starting where they hate each other and getting to the part where they were once happy.

 

There are so many great scenes in this movie but the one that sticks with me is when Joel begs to keep one memory...just one, and when that is taken away from him he realizes what he has done.

 

Shitty things will happen in our lives. Sometimes we focus so much on that moment we forget about all the incredible things we have going for us. That is why this movie is #1 on this list. It forces us to think about our choices and how we got there. Relationships are hard, life is hard, work is hard...but there is good in there as well...we just have to remember

 

 

 

I hope in these 10 movies you can find something you enjoy. Also if you are going to watch them, please don't torrent them. I know some of them are probably pretty hard to find now but I am sure most are on Netflix at the very least.

 

Also if you have any other great Romantic Movies to recommend please post in the comments below.

Edited February 14, 2015 by Dr_Mayus

[Death]

It wasn't a huge part of the movie, but I liked the little romantic scenes in Edward Scissorhands.

[Wolvie_181]

Glad to see The Princess Bride on your list.

[TwilightSpira]

A complete prescription indeed.

[Boooda]

Can't wait to watch these by myself. 

Edited February 14, 2015 by Boooda

[Dr_Mayus]

was hoping for more responses, but hopefully for those who checked it out can enjoy some of these films (trust me they are all great )

[LukeWarm115]

The only one I've seen here is your number one, and I must agree completely.

[freddie1989]

Yes indeed you are a film snob haha as I have not seen a single one of these movies but on the flip side I hate romantic films as the majority tend to involve cheese and poor acting!! I will presume you chose your list well though!

 

Nice thread by the way!!

[Dragon-Archon]

LOL, I like the Persona 4 Golden vid . It's the only one I've seen from your list. Though I think the Rise version and Nanako's surprise are funnier: "you get a sense of your impending doom" and "Your instincts, honed after a year of fighting, are ringing alarm bells in your mind". Love the irony that most of the main female characters can't cook . It's amazing the main character is even alive after eating Rise's and Nanako's chocolate.

Edited February 15, 2015 by Dragon-Archon

[Bucknerd]

You have good movie tastes, Dr. Mayus.

 

[le7Samurai]

Great list i haven't seen Once, and also

 

[RenegadeAngel-]

Seconding Lars & the Real Girl. It was fascinating. What makes it even sadder is that there are plenty of real people out there who are in "relationships" with inanimate objects like that.

 

I didn't care for Princess Bride, and haven't seen the rest listed since I've seen very little romance movies in general. The Fountain looks pretty interesting though.

 

It wasn't a huge part of the movie, but I liked the little romantic scenes in Edward Scissorhands.

 

The romance subplot in Edward Scissorhands will always be one of the cutest things ever. IDW recently released a comic sequel to the movie, 20 years after the ending, and it's really heartbreaking to see how Edward continued loving Kim all that time.