February 14th. Valentine’s Day. Commercialization at its finest oh no what if my wife reads this It’s one of my favorite holidays, as couples can display their love for each other out in the open. Just don’t display it too much publicly. Certain things aren’t legal in public places.
Not everyone has found a significant other, and that’s fine. I don’t want to exclude single people from a movie list, so when putting together a list of 14 movies to watch on Valentine’s Day, I made sure to include movies that both couples and singles can enjoy. Whether you’re male, female, transgender, straight, gay, married, dating, friends with benefits, single, whatever… these are some great movies to watch on Valentine’s Day.
1. While You Were Sleeping
A cute, little romantic comedy from 1995, While You Were Sleeping stars Sandra Bullock, Bill Pullman and Peter Gallagher. A lonely transit worker, Eleanor, saves the life of a guy she has a crush on, Peter, but he goes into a coma. A misplaced comment causes a nurse to assume she is Peter’s fiance. The family assumes she is the fiance too, and Eleanor doesn’t correct them. They take her into their home, love her, and spend holidays with her, but she falls for Peter’s brother, Jack.
2. Romeo and Juliet
Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet from 1996 is stylish, unique and has an amazing soundtrack. Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes shine in their roles as hip, modern (for 1996) Romeo and Juliet — two young adults in love while their feuding families want to keep them apart. When I was in middle school you could watch this with the girl you liked and it would guarantee some hand holding and a kiss or two.
3. As Good As It Gets
Drama, comedy and romance. As Good As It Gets has all three. While you probably wouldn’t associate it with a romantic holiday like Valentine’s Day, it is a movie that tells a story about a relationship between an obsessive-compulsive romantic fiction writer (Jack Nicholson) and a waitress (Helen Hunt) that he is trying to help, while coming off like an a**hole. It’s also a story of friendship, as the rude writer cares for his gay neighbor (Greg Kinnear). It’s an amazing film that saw Nicholson and Hunt win Best Actor and Best Actress at the Academy Awards.
4. Lost in Translation
Sofia Coppola’s 2003 film Lost in Translation stars Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson as a faded movie star and a conflicted newlywed woman, both American, who form an unlikely bond while living in Japan. They are strangers in a foreign country who find escape, adventure, distraction and understanding in their friendship. It’s a heartfelt, warming movie.
5. Blue is the Warmest Color
Blue is the Warmest Color is a romantic drama film that won the Palme d’Or (the highest award) at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. It has an amazing score of 91% on Rotten Tomatoes and has received overwhelming critical acclaim. It’s a raw and powerful lesbian coming-of-age film about a French teenage girl that discovers desire and freedom when she meets a blue-haired female painter. It’s a pretty great love story with a lot of heartache in there. The film is also known for its very graphic and long sex scenes, so yea… adults only.
6. Sleepless in Seattle
C’mon… it’s a classic. Tom Hanks is a widower and his son calls a talk-radio show to find him a new wife and blah blah blah Meg Ryan and the Empire State Building ON VALENTINE’S DAY. You know the movie, now go watch it.
7. Don Jon
Don Jon was not what I expected it to be, and that’s fine. It was surprising and had some seriously funny moments. It’s a movie that explore the love between a man and his porn. And it has some unconventional twists and turns. The cast is also phenomenal, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore and Tony Danza.
8. Jerry Maguire
Ladies, if you’re trying to get your man to watch a romantic movie and he’s a sports fan, pop in Jerry Maguire. You get your romance, comedy, drama and sports. It’s the total package and has some truly memorable moments. Did I mention Tom Cruise? No? Okay then, Tom Cruise.
9. When Harry Met Sally
Men and Women can never truly be platonic friends. This movie proves it. Sex always becomes an issue. Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan are awesome, and this is an amazingly funny movie. Watch it just for the fake orgasm scene alone.
10. Notting Hill
I’m a sucker for British romantic comedies, and a sucker for Hugh Grant as well. Notting Hill is a charming film about a simple bloke that owns a bookshop (Grant) and how his world changes when he meets the most family movie star in the world (Julia Roberts). “After all… I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.”
11. Love Actually
If you think this is just a Christmas movie, f*ck you. It’s an all the time movie. It tells nine intertwined stories about relationships and the complexities of them, and the one thing that connects us all: love. It couldn’t be more appropriate for Valentine’s Day. Oh, and it stars Hugh Grant (and a million other people) and takes place in Britain. Of course I love it.
12. Crazy Stupid Love
Steve Carell. Julianne Moore. Emma Stone. Ryan Gosling. Kevin Bacon. This movie involves marriage, divorce, hook-ups, and looking for love. Gosling is a ladies man that beds a different woman every night, and he helps recent divorcee Carell sharpen up and improve his game so he can build confidence and meet women. It’s a really fun film with some hilarious moments and some nice twists. “My Schvantz is in your face for 20 minutes. If it’s not bothering you we got a bigger problem.”
13. Silver Linings Playbook
Silver Linings Playbook is one of the best films I have seen in the past five years. Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence are both amazing as two people with problems who help each other get through the challenges in their lives. The relationships and character development in this film is super impressive, and it’s hard to find anyone that won’t enjoy this film.
14. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Unlikely pick, right? Forgetting Sarah Marshall stars Jason Segel and his penis as Peter, a struggling musician, who gets broken up with by his longtime girlfriend and TV star Sarah Marshall, played by Kristen Bell. She’s banging her new rockstar boyfriend, played by Russell Brand. Peter goes to Hawaii to get over the breakup, which is exactly where Sarah is staying with her boyfriend. So Mila Kunis is there to help him through his breakup. It’s one of my all-time favorite comedies. It’s raunchy and hilarious and super totes adorbs.
