Whether your Valentines is Netflix-and-chilling or Amazon and alone, we’ve got your special day covered. Check out our staff rom-com pics.
Joan: But I’m A Cheerleader (1999)
Funny, clever, campy, romantic – this movie just has all the ingredients for a perfect rom-com. It follows the life of Megan (a very young Natasha Lyonne) as she struggles to come to terms with her identity in a very judgmental world. After getting word of their daughter’s lesbian tendencies, Megan’s parents decide to send her to “True Directions,” a conversion therapy camp for teenagers – or, as Megan’s mother calls it, “homosexuals anonymous.” Once there, Megan meets Graham (an edgy Clea Duvall) and although they don’t seem to like each other at first, they soon become close friends, maybe even more than just friends. While the story itself is clichéd and predictable, the film has so many redeeming qualities that its flaws are easy to overlook. Its satirical approach to heteronormativity, its pastel color scheme and 50’s aesthetics, and RuPaul’s deadpan delivery when he says, “I was once a gay,” are some of the many details that give But I’m A Cheerleader a well-deserved spot in cult cinema history.
Laura: When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Set in NYC, When Harry Met Sally follows the evolution of the title characters’ relationship over the years. At first, they agree not to be friends, because Harry (Billy Crystal) makes it clear, guys and girls can never be friends. After years pass by and Sally (Meg Ryan) helps Harry deal with his divorce they become best friends, and you guess it, they fall in love. I won’t give any more spoilers, but this movie is not only the best ever rom com, because of the NYC fall and storyline, but it also has the best speech ever given in a film just as the clock hit 12:00 am. This movie will take you on a journey of not only Sallys’ and Harrys’ relationship over the years but also attempt to answer the question: Can guys and girls really be friends?
Marcos: Entergalactic (2022)
As art mimics life, creative types wistfully pine to create a life based around their artistic preferences and, in the middle of that, make space for love. Loosely based on the life of executive producer and songwriter Scott Mescudi (AKA Kid Cudi), the film uses hand-drawn visual styles and cell-shaded CGI with a 3D-modeled rendition of NYC to create a dreamscape. Jabari, a rising star who just found a new lifestyle as a celebrated graffiti artist, needs to balance the pursuit of success with remaining true to his old edgy persona. In the cold distant concrete planet of New York City he must rise above the superficial nature of dehumanizing business demands to find solace with his new love interest and neighbor, a suave photographer, Meadow (Jessica Williams). Will he be able to rebelliously ingrain this new light in his life and use it as a catalyst for change or is he another hopeless romantic artist?
Dr. Love: Moonstruck (1987)
This 1987 picture stands not only among the best rom-coms, but shoulder to shoulder with screwball comedies like It Happened One Night (1934) and His Girl Friday (1940) as among the great films in American cinema history. The film follows Italian-American widow Loretta Cantorini (Cher) as she is torn between her cold, mama’s boy fiance Johnny Cammareri (Danny Aiello) and his passionate wooden-handed brother Ronny (Nicolas Cage). The flawless performances from its leads and supporting cast (reflected in Oscars for both Cher and Olympia Dukakis as her long-suffering mother) and John Patrick Shanley’s electric Oscar-winning screenplay will leave even the most cynical rolling in laughter and shedding a tear. Guarda che luna!