Love is forever. Love stories, on the other hand, change all of the time. So best romance movies are truly timeless.
The 21st century is a strange and unusual place, historically speaking, loaded with new expectations and unexpected revolutions and technological wonders. The era of lily white romantic comedies about affluent yuppies finding each other is, largely, gone. In its place are a wide variety of new and exploratory romance films – comedies, dramas and beyond – that seek to repackage old storytelling tropes or invent entirely new ones.
Also: The Top 25 Best Horror Sequels
It’s an exciting time to fall in love and an incredible time to make movies about it, and that’s why this Valentine’s Day we’re taking a good, long look at all the wonderful, sappy, thrilling, tragic, feel good and erotic films so far this decade. The best romance movies since 2010 are an impressively varied bunch, with action movies, horror movies, musicals, dramas, thrillers and films that are nearly impossible to quantify other than that they are, at their heart, about love.
Make no mistake, lots of movies have love stories but to qualify for this list the movie needed to be fundamentally about love, and could – depending on one’s predilections or mood – theoretically make for a great date movie. (We’re allowing for the fact that some people have old-fashioned tastes in date movies, and that some people have wonderfully weird tastes.)
And we apologize for not putting Fifty Shades of Grey on this list. (Wait, no we don’t…)
The 50 Best Romance Movies of the Decade (So Far):
Update: Richard Linklater’s Before Midnight was accidentally left off of our original list. It is now included in its proper place, at #9, which knocks Joss Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing out of its #50 spot, and off of the list.
Top Photo: Lionsgate
William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and Canceled Too Soon, and watch him on the weekly YouTube series Most Craved, Rapid Reviews and What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
The Top 50 Romance Movies of the Decade (So Far)
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50. Jumping the Broom (2011)
There's a lightness and a charm to Salim Akil's wedding comedy that cannot be denied, even though it's a pretty familiar tale about a working class family and a rich family sniping at and eventually coming to love one another at the wedding of their impossibly attractive children.
Photo: TriStar Pictures
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49. What If (2014)
Daniel Radcliffe and Zoe Kazan have oodles of twee chemistry together in this sweet little rom-com, about a guy who gets "friend zoned" and struggles with the ramifications of being close, but not close enough to the woman he loves.
Photo: Entertainment One
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48. Knight and Day (2010)
Knight and Day may have been too clever for its own good, taking a macho superspy tale and focusing only on the normal woman who, through no fault of her own, gets swept up in the ridiculous action. James Mangold's direction is funny, Tom Cruise sends up his Mission: Impossible persona with a knowing wink, and Cameron Diaz keeps it all grounded in some sort of reality.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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47. Going the Distance (2010)
Drew Barrymore and Justin Long find each other, then lose each other due to the sort of long distance, "living in the real world" bullcrap we all have to deal with eventually. The actors have great chemistry together, even though they spend most of the movie apart, and Nanette Burstein's direction finds a good balance between plausible drama and old school rom-com humor.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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46. The Longest Ride (2015)
It's a Nicholas Sparks adaptation, so you know what you're getting into with The Longest Ride. This one is a love story about a cowboy (Scott Eastwood) and a college student (Britt Robertson), and the unexpected way their romance intersects with the romance of a young couple back in World War II. Like many Sparks adaptations it's sappy and unrealistic, but this time it works.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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45. American Ultra (2015)
A helpless introvert and his implausibly understanding girlfriend find themselves at the center of an ultraviolent spy plot in American Ultra, a film that makes little sense but boasts great lead performances by Jesse Eisenberg and Kristen Stewart, and lots of bonkers ideas to boot.
Photo: Lionsgate
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44. Jane Eyre (2011)
Cary Fukunaga's handsome adaptation of Charlotte Brontë's classic, gothic romance features a great performance by Michael Fassbender as the mysterious Mr. Rochester, but as the title character, Mia Wasikowska can't quite keep up with her co-star. There are better Jane Eyre adaptations out there, but the story is still as incredible as ever.
Photo: Focus Features
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43. Think Like a Man (2012)
A spectacular ensemble cast makes up for the self-aggrandizing nature of Think Like a Man, which is based on the self-help book by Steve Harvey, and is all about how Steve Harvey's book makes everybody's life better. Shameless marketing aside, Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy, Taraji P. Henson, Meagan Good, Gabrielle Union et al are just wonderful.
Photo: Screen Gems
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42. The Great Gatsby (2013)
Baz Luhrmann turned F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic romantic tragedy about the perils of excess into a completely excessive movie, for better or worse. Leonardo DiCaprio is magnetic as Gatsby, but the greatest love affair here is clearly between Luhrmann and the intoxicating, colorful, over the top production design.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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41. Cuban Fury (2014)
If Nick Frost wants to win the heart of his co-worker, Rashida Jones, he'll first have to come to terms with his tragic past as a salsa dancer. Cuban Fury is an odd and lively rom-com about the power of self-improvement and the love of dance, the sort of "feel good" film that leaves you feeling really, really good.
Photo: StudioCanal
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40. Wuthering Heights (2011)
Andrea Arnold's revisionist, gloomy adaptation of Emily Brontë's bitter gothic romance is physically dirty, romantically moist, and morally quagmirous. It's a doomed love affair with extra doom, but a passionate and riveting experience regardless.
Photo: Curzon Artificial Eye
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39. Focus (2015)
Will Smith and Margot Robbie play sexy con artists who take turns teaming up with and dueling against each other in a vibrant, witty heist film. Focus has so much sexual tension you can practically bounce on it.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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38. Like Crazy (2011)
Felicity Jones and the late Anton Yelchin play young lovers torn apart by arcane immigration laws in Like Crazy, a melancholy romance with no easy answers. Indeed, the conclusions you come to about their relationship might just speak volumes about your personality.
Photo: Paramount Vintage
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37. Trainwreck (2015)
Amy Schumer is a hard-drinking, hard-loving single woman who eschews commitment, but when she meets the ideal guy she's forced to take a serious look at her life. Trainwreck is a little lopsided, since her love interest doesn't have to do any of the growing up, but Schumer is incredibly endearing and the film she wrote is howl-out-loud funny.
Photo: Universal Pictures
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36. To the Wonder (2012)
Terrence Malick's overlooked, poetic love story stars Ben Affleck and Olga Kurylenko as lovers whose journey is a sad one, but filled with moments of unmistakable, perhaps even universal beauty. Like The Tree of Life before it, To the Wonder seems to have been patched together from memories, big and small, and it carries with it all that significance.
Photo: Magnolia
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35. Sing Street (2016)
A boy starts a band to impress a girl, but discovers - to everyone's surprise - that he's started a genuinely impressive band. John Carney's lovely film is light on serious drama, big on sentiment, and jam-packed with catchy original songs.
Photo: The Weinstein Company
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34. Damsels in Distress (2012)
Whit Stillman's breeziest comedy (and that's saying something) stars Greta Gerwig as the leader of a college clique with big ideas on how to help their fellow students. Big ideas, but not necessarily good ones. As the lovable cast weaves in and out of relationships we realize that the relationship they are building with us, the audience, is one of unadulterated affection. (Damsels in Distress earns bonus points for inventing "The Sambola.")
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics
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33. Deadpool (2016)
Deadpool is a foul-mouthed, ultraviolent, satirical action comedy, but it's got a fully functioning heart. Ryan Reynolds and Morena Baccarin play sex-crazed soulmates ripped apart by tragedy and vanity. There's also a lot of superhero stuff, but none of the crazy action would matter if we didn't believe in Deadpool's love story... and we do.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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32. Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Don't let Silver Linings Playbook's pedigree fool you: underneath the critical acclaim, incredible cast and dozens of respectable awards it's an old-fashioned romantic comedy about mismatched lovers (Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence) who enter a dance competition. David O. Russell's film sticks to the formula, but the formula works, because all of the ingredients are top notch.
Photo: The Weinstein Company
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31. Tangled (2010)
It's hard to believe it took over 70 years for Disney to make a feature film out of Rapunzel, but it was worth the wait. This spirited caper sends the fairy tale princess on an escapade with a scoundrel, and their snarky chemistry turns what could have been a formulaic romance into a wonderfully spry "will they/won't they" adventure.
Photo: Walt Disney
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30. Kiss of the Damned (2013)
If you see only one contemporary film about a human falling in love with a vampire, see the kinky one. Milo Ventimiglia plays a writer who falls for a sensuous vampire, but despite their feverish attempts to control themselves, their respective appetites - spurred on by the sudden appearance of a sexy sister - conspire to destroy them. Xan Cassavetes drenches Kiss of the Damned in a Eurosleaze aesthetic, and it's intoxicating.
Photo: Magnolia
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29. Beyond the Lights (2014)
A cop saves the life of a pop star, and they gradually fall in love. Beyond the Lights could easily have been a formulaic romance but writer/director Gina Prince-Bythewood has more important things on her mind, and uses this charismatic love affair to explore the myriad ways in which people censor their personal lives for fear of a public reaction. Alluring, smart filmmaking.
Photo: Relativity Media
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28. Cinderella (2015)
Disney's original Cinderella was gorgeously animated but dramatically thin, and it could easily be argued that Kenneth Branagh's live-action reinterpretation is an improvement. Cate Blanchett plays a wicked stepmother with more depth of feeling than we're used to, and Cinderella and her prince have a real personal connection to fight for instead of just a night of making goo-goo eyes at each other. Sumptuously designed and totally satisfying.
Photo: Walt Disney
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27. Drinking Buddies (2013)
Lots of stories are about best friends who suddenly realize they're perfect for each other. Joe Swanberg's Drinking Buddies is all about what happens when they come to that realization at the wrong time. Olivia Wilde and Jake Johnson are perfectly cast as platonic besties who both want more, but fate never gives them a chance to explore the possibilities without making everyone's lives worse. Sad and sweet and genuine.
Photo: Magnolia Pictures
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26. Far from the Madding Crowd (2015)
Carey Mulligan plays an heiress whose independence leads her to run her own farm, in an age when such a thing was unheard of, but also to overlook the love of the only man who really cares for her. Thomas Vinterberg's adaptation of Thomas Hardy's classic novel is rich and thrilling and gorgeous.
Photo: Fox Searchlight Pictures
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25. Warm Bodies (2013)
A zombie version of Romeo & Juliet is an unlikely candidate for one of the best romances of the decade but this clever retelling is funny, sweet and satisfying. Nicholas Hoult plays a ghoul who meets the right girl, resists the urge to swallow her brains, and finds instead a cure for what really ails him. Most zombie movies are about the inevitability of apocalypse. By placing a lovely love story against that backdrop, Jonathan Levine's rom-zom-com becomes profoundly hopeful.
Photo: Summit Entertainment
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24. They Came Together (2014)
Old school romantic comedies have been on the decline this decade, and David Wain's merciless send-up of every trite rom-com cliché explains why. Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler burn through every tired and cheesy plot point and detail as they fall in love over mutual interests like "fiction books." If you don't love romantic comedies, They Came Together will play to that mindset. But you'll have to LOVE romantic comedies to get all of the most amazingly funny jokes.
Photo: Lionsgate
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23. Your Name (2016)
Makoto Shinkai's imaginative anime blockbuster is the story of two teenagers from different cities who, for no reason that they can think of, swap bodies every other day. As they adjust to their bizarre new status quo they find themselves fixing each other's lives and forming a strange connection that... well, let's just say it doesn't go where you'd expect. Beautiful animation and big ideas make Your Name worth remembering.
Photo: Toho
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22. Beautiful Creatures (2013)
The best YA fantasy romance is also, ironically, one of the least financially successful. Beautiful Creatures is the soulful and thoughtful tale of a boy who falls in love with a witch, and it's full of unique characters, honest performances and weird ideas, anchored by a wholly believable romance between Alden Ehrenreich and Alice Englert as the young lovers.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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21. The Artist (2011)
The novelty of The Artist is that it's a contemporary silent picture, but that's just packaging. Get past the gimmick and The Artist is a fabulous romance between a fading movie star and a rising movie star, as their lives intersect at what appears to be the wrong moment. Lively and lovely.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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20. Loving (2016)
In an era when mixed race marriages were illegal, Richard and Mildred Loving took their case to the Supreme Court and changed America. In Jeff Nichols' Loving, the writer/director eschews dramatic contrivance in favor of an understated look at just how normal their marriage was, making the argument that nobody in their right mind could oppose such a sweet and unremarkable relationship. Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga are beautiful together, and the film is beautiful too.
Photo: Focus Features
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19. Sleeping With Other People (2015)
Jason Sudeikis and Alison Brie are borderline sex addicts who agree not to sleep with each other in Leslye Headland's smart and seductive romantic comedy, one of the best of its kind. Sudeikis and Brie have incredible chemistry but it's the endlessly clever screenplay that shines brightest, giving the film one great, funny, sexy scene after another.
Photo: IFC
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18. Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)
The impending divorce of a middle-aged couple has unpredictable consequences on their family, friends and even complete strangers in the slick and enticing Crazy, Stupid, Love. Ryan Gosling steals the film as a handsome but superficial lothario, but everyone in this amazing cast gets to shine, including Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Emma Stone and Marisa Tomei.
Photo: Warner Bros.
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17. About Last Night (2014)
Leslye Headland also wrote the impressive screenplay to About Last Night, a contemporary adaptation of the David Mamet play Sexual Perversity in Chicago that explores the relationships between two very different couples. Michael Ealy and Joy Bryant have the soulful drama, but Kevin Hart and Regina Hall are the real highlights here, as they embark on a bickering, kinky love affair for the ages.
Photo: Screen Gems
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16. The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
The history of great romance is - at least in part - a history of epic schmaltz. By that token The Fault in Our Stars has become something of a contemporary classic, a weepy and hopeful story of two teenaged cancer patients in love. This film doesn't so much press all your emotional buttons as it does mercilessly pummel them. But thanks to an inspired cast and earnest direction, you're grateful for the opportunity to feel each and every one of these enormous feels.
Photo: 20th Century Fox
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15. La La Land (2016)
Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone bring their crazy,
stupid, lovely chemistry back in spectacular fashion in La La Land, a nostalgic musical about two young artists on the verge of abandoning their dreams. Chazelle's obsession with the artist's journey comes alive in fabulous cinematography and some memorable musical numbers, and the ending will blow you away.Photo: Lionsgate
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14. About Time (2013)
Domhnall Gleason's father takes him aside and reveals the secrets of time travel, and our hero uses these powers to woo the girl of his dreams, played by a never-better Rachel McAdams. About Time sounds like a weird concept but in the hands of sentimentality-maestro Richard Curtis it becomes an absolutely beautiful story about making the most out of every day you've got, and the importance of spending time for your family.
Photo: Universal Pictures
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13. The Duke of Burgundy (2014)
It's a tale as old as time: two lesbian butterfly collectors are engaged in a 24/7 BDSM relationship, but the stresses of constant kink begin to take their toll. Peter Strickland's impressive and fetishistic romance veers into darkness but never loses its way, and ultimately reveals itself to be a haunting and insightful story about love and compromise.
Photo: Artificial Eye
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12. The Last Five Years (2014)
Jamie and Cathy are getting divorced. Jamie and Cathy meet and fall in love. This bold and innovative musical plays her side of the story backwards, his side of the story forwards, and they meet in the middle. It's an incredible way of encapsulating all the good and bad in a relationship at once, supported by catchy and deeply personal songs, sung perfectly by the cast. The Last Five Years is the best live-action musical of the decade (well, so far).
Photo: Radius-TWC
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11. The Spectacular Now (2013)
James Ponsoldt's nuanced and natural adaptation of Tim Tharp's novel stars Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley as teenagers whose romantic chemistry is so organic, you'd almost swear it was real. The Spectacular Now is a drama about goodness born from pain, and unhealthy behavior masked by charm, and it's so beautiful that it hurts.
Photo: A24
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10. Southside With You (2016)
A law student and a lawyer, politically minded and fiercely intelligent, have their first date in 1989. Their names just happen to be Barack Obama and Michelle Robinson. Writer/director Richard Tanne's mature and tantalizing drama would have been incredible no matter who the protagonists turned out to be, but watching the world change because of these early, awkward conversations adds profound significance. Maybe your love will make a difference too.
Photo: Miramax
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9. Before Midnight (2013)
Richard Linklater’s third film in the Before series is the least “romantic” of them all, no longer telling a story of how Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) fell in love but of how their storybook romance has fallen into familiarity and, often, disappointment. It’s a profound portrayal of an important part of romance that other films neglect, played perfectly - as always - by the two magnetic stars.
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics
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8. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Two young lovebirds go on the lam, and an isolated island society of unhappy people, rigidly adhering to their own obsessive-compulsions, chases after them. Wes Anderson's films are always lovely to look at but in Moonrise Kingdom those spectacular details have purpose, and the precocious young soulmates are so damned cute together that you never question whether their love will last forever.
Photo: Focus Features
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7. The Handmaiden (2016)
A feminist erotic thriller, heavy on eroticism, and full of disturbing ideas. Park Chan-wook's The Handmaiden is not a typical romance but its story - about a Japanese heiress and her Korean handmaiden, falling in love and (hopefully) rebelling against their abusers - is one of the most inspiring love affairs on record. It's as sumptuous and sexy and surprising as movies get.
Photo: CJ Entertainment
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6. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010)
To date the girl of his dreams, Scott Pilgrim will have to fight (and defeat!) her seven evil exes. Edgar Wright's inspired and visually stunning adaptation of Bryan Lee O'Malley's comic book is hilarious and exciting and full of epic brawls inspired by films and video games. Scott Pilgrim vs. The World perfectly illustrates the way we filter our ideas about life and love through contemporary popular culture, and it's an amazing romance to boot.
Photo: Universal Pictures
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5. Carol (2015)
Todd Haynes' impeccably styled, impressively acted story of a department store clerk who falls in love with another woman in the 1950s is practically shouting with understatement. The passion in Carol, from characters who cannot freely express their passions, makes the film an absolute powder keg, and Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara are undeniably phenomenal.
Photo: The Weinstein Company
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4. Upstream Color (2013)
Finding a person whose baggage matches your own is hard enough for most people, but when your baggage contains parasitic psychic worms it's nearly impossible. Shane Carruth writes, directs and stars in Upstream Color, a highly unusual film that unlocks romance like a puzzle box, and finds some of the oddest things imaginable inside. It's as strange and powerful as romance movies get.
Photo: ERBP
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3. Only Lovers Left Alive (2014)
The great supernatural romance of our time isn't Twilight, it's Only Lovers Left Alive, a film about two ageless bloodsuckers who spend eternity mulling life's big questions, playing chess and enjoying the sort of mature love most of us could only dream about. Jim Jarmusch's hip and witty horror movie dares to argue that lifelong commitment is more interesting than the early melodrama that most filmmakers are obsessed with, and damn if it doesn't prove its point. Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston are at their ethereal best (and that's really saying something).
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics
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2. Blue is the Warmest Colour (2013)
Abdellatif Kechiche's sprawling adaptation of Julie Maroh's comic book tells the story of a young girl as she comes to terms with her homosexuality, loses her virginity, and falls prey to her own flaws. Blue is the Warmest Colour slows the drama down enough that you don't just see the story unfold, you feel it, and you are rocketed back to your own first romantic fumblings. The film is so specific and detailed that it becomes universal and allegorical, and emerges as one of the most incredible dramas in many years.
Photo: IFC
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1. Her (2013)
Love, as we have seen over and over again on this list, takes many forms. Spike Jonze's Oscar-winning sci-fi romance understands that times change, that the way we interact with the world and each other are evolving, and argues that someday we may simply fall in love with our own operating systems. Joaquin Phoenix plays a quiet man who essentially falls in love with his phone, played by Scarlett Johansson, and it's real, it's beautiful, and it comes with a new and seemingly unique variety of problems. Her is a romance for a new century, a tale that could technically have been told before but would never have seemed important or plausible until this most recent generation. It is important and it is lovely, and it may just be the ultimate modern romance.
Photo: Warner Bros.
