Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in Crazy, Stupid, Love, a funny off-kilter romance that will heat up your Valentine's Day. Photo / supplied
Love may or may not be in the air for you this Valentine's Day, but you can guarantee yourself a night of fun and romance with these tales of more.
If you like your romance deep, complex and with a desperate need for tissues, these are for you.
Me Before You (Rent via Neon, iTunes, or Google Play)
Starring Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) and Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games), Me Before You, directed by Thea Sharrock, is a love story that blossoms in spite of societal difference and physical limitations. Claflin plays Will Traynor, a dashing English aristocrat with a taste for adventure who finds himself rendered a quadriplegic after an accident. In walks Louisa "Lou" Clark, played by Clarke, a small-town waitress who accepts a job as Will's companion, essentially being paid to cheer him up. The love story that blossoms between the two leads is tender, sweet and doomed to failure. Keep the tissues on hand and prepare to snuggle down.
Portrait Of a Lady On Fire (Rent via Academy On Demand, iTunes, or Google Play)
Writer-director Céline Sciamma has created a unique, yet familiar love story in Portrait of a Lady on Fire. The French film tells the story of two women, Marianne, played by Noémie Merlant (Le Ciel Attendra) and Héloïse, played by Adèle Haenel (Water Lilies). Marianne, an artist, is hired to paint a portrait of Héloïse, without her knowledge. Set in the 18th century this passionate and evocative romance is a tightly wound story of passion and power, with a script that won the Cannes prize for best screenplay. For a movie that will get under your skin, in a good way, Portrait of a Lady on Fire is available to rent through Academy Cinemas on Demand.
Some of the best love stories have some shimmy shakes along the way, which makes us swoon just a little bit more.
Silver Linings Playbook (Netflix)
"When life reaches out at a moment like this it's a sin if you don't reach back," pleads Robert De Niro in Silver Linings Playbook. Directed by David O Russell (The Fighter), Playbook is not your average love story, playfully delving into dark subjects like mental illness, grief and obsession. The main character here is Pat Positano, played by Bradley Cooper (A Star is Born), a history teacher emerging from a spell in court-ordered psychiatric care. Things change when Pat meets Tiffany Maxwell, played by Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games), a widow with a psychiatric history of her own. The legendary De Niro stars as Pat's oddball dad, who is determined to offer plentiful unsolicited advice to his troubled son. Nominated for oodles of Oscars, Playbook resonated with audiences as it turned your traditional dance movie on its head, with horribly flawed characters who use dance as both distraction and balm. Playbook is a definite crowd-pleaser but it is not so light that you feel like you ate too many marshmallows at the end.
Burlesque (Netflix)
There is nothing deep about Burlesque and Christina Aguilera's performance is not entirely convincing, except when she takes to the stage, where both she and the movie, come to life. Anchored by the legendary Cher, Burlesque focuses on an LA nightclub where they perform, well, burlesque. Written and directed by Steven Antin the film tells the story of Ali, played by Aguilera, a wannabe dancer who stumbles upon the burlesque club and does everything she can to get on stage. There is a romantic sub-plot with cute as a button bartender Jack, played by Cam Gigandet (Easy A), which is nice and everything but the dance scenes in Burlesque are what will really get your pulse racing.
Grease (Netflix)
There is comfort in a movie that you know so well it feels like a second skin. Grease, released in 1978, is iconic. With sing-along songs to which you know every word and dance scenes you like to reenact in your living room, Grease is a guilty pleasure that has lasted the test of time. Directed by Randal Kleiser, the characters of Sandy, played by Olivia Newton-John (Xanadu) and Danny, played by John Travolta (Pulp Fiction), feel like old friends. We all feel "Stranded at the Drive-in" sometimes and have heard the rising notes of "Hopelessly Devoted to You" in our hearts when we meet that special someone, but most of all there is hardly a woman out there who hasn't been Stockard Channing's Rizzo belting out "There are worse things I could do" with a broken heart. Have a little fun with a trip down memory lane, Grease is currently streaming on Netflix.
Love doesn't have to be serious business with these laugh out loud rom-coms.
Bridget Jones's Diary (Netflix)
If you are looking for reassurance that even those of us who are far from perfect can find love then you need Bridget. Directed by Sharon Maguire and based on the book of the same name by Helen Fielding, Bridget Jones's Diary gets more delightful with every indulgent re-watching. Bridget, played brilliantly by Renée Zellweger - in spite of the fact that she is American, not British - is a thirty-something "singleton" who starts a diary to try to gain more control over her dishevelled life. Enter Mark Darcy (Colin Firth) and Daniel Cleaver (Hugh Grant). Both men turn Bridget's live upside down, albeit for very different reasons. Bridget, with the help of three equally dysfunctional friends, tries to navigate the murky waters of dating in your 30s, while trying to hold down a job, lose weight and not drink too much. Bridget is real, she is all of us and she is hilarious. Watch this alone, with friends or with your special someone, the result will be the same – smiles and good times.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (Netflix)
Based on a screenplay written by the film's star Jason Segel, Forgetting Sarah Marshall is self-deprecating and charming, much like Segel himself. Directed by Nicholas Stoller, Segel plays Peter Bretter, an average guy who is dumped by his TV star girlfriend Sarah Marshall, played by Kristen Bell (The Good Place). In an effort to escape the media hype around Sarah and her new celebrity boyfriend Aldous Snow, played by Russell Brand as a virtual parody of himself, Peter takes a trip to Hawaii. On arrival Peter finds Sarah and Aldous staying at the same hotel. Well-meaning hotel employee Rachel, played by Mila Kunis (Black Swan), takes pity on Peter and helps him navigate his heartbreak. The ending is a given from the minute Peter arrives at the resort, but the ride along the way is a nice one, with lots of laughs and genuine warmth.
Crazy, Stupid, Love (Netflix)
Only two words are needed to sum up why you should watch Crazy, Stupid, Love – Ryan Gosling. Odds are you have already seen this off-kilter story of heartbreak and love, both shared and painfully unrequited. Julianne Moore is her usual amazing self as Emily, a middle-class wife who separates from her husband after having an affair. The husband in question, Cal, played by Steve Carell, is devastated and meets successful womaniser Jacob (Gosling) who offers to help him. A stream of successful seductions by Cal ensue, including a particularly wonderful encounter with slightly unhinged teacher Kate, played brilliantly by Marissa Tomei. Emma Stone is also part of the delightful ensemble cast, playing Hannah, who catches Jacob's eye, resulting in a wonderful scene where Hannah claims Jacob's chest looks "like it's been photoshopped" and he claims to be able to reenact the lift scene from Dirty Dancing. There are multiple love stories here, and they don't all have happy endings, but things end just as they should, which is reassuring sometimes.
Some delightfully off-beat gems for the quirky at heart.
Results (Netflix)
A chance encounter united me with this comedy gem, hiding in the depths of the Netflix catalogue. Starring Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother) and Guy Pearce (Jack Irish) as health-obsessed personal trainers, this is a love story that celebrates dysfunctional relationships and the beauty of finding love, in spite of our flaws. Written and directed by Andrew Bujalski this indie rom-com draws a bizarre love triangle between Trevor (Pearce), Kat (Smulders) and Danny, played by Kevin Corrigan, a recent divorcee who embarks on a half-arsed fitness regime. A hard to pin down attraction between Kat and Danny is further complicated by Danny's burgeoning friendship with Trevor, not to mention the messy sexual history between Kat and Trevor. This is love at its messy, imperfect, hilarious best. As a film Results is not perfect, but it is so honest and human, it is hard not to be wooed, plus the cast is stand-out.
Palm Springs (Amazon Prime Video)
Starring the charismatic Andy Samberg (Brooklyn Nine-Nine), and Cristin Milioti (Wolf of Wall Street), Palm Springs was involved in a bidding war when it premiered at Sundance in 2020. Neon and Hulu reportedly paid up to US$22 million for distribution rights, breaking a previous record for highest sale of a film at the festival. There's also award buzz for the flick: It received two Golden Globe nominations. Watching the bizarre, Groundhog Day-inspired jaunt, it's easy to see why it was a crowd-pleaser. Without giving too much away, there's a wedding, a time loop, plus JK Simmons playing an archer hell-bent on getting revenge. Watch it with the significant other who made it clear they definitely aren't tuning in to the same rom-com for the fifth year in a row.
The Climb (Netflix)
French film The Climb is one of the most delightful ways to spend an evening. Directed by Ludovic Bernard, The Climb is based on the real life story of Nadir Dendoune who climbed to the top of Mount Everest to prove his love for a woman. In the film version the protagonist, Samy, played by Ahmed Sylla, is living in a poor area of Paris with no real plan for his future. Samy tries to declare his love to Nadia, who he has loved since they were kids, but she doesn't take him seriously. In a moment of desperation Samy declares he will climb Everest to prove to her that he is sincere. Samy's journey from the village of Kathmandu to his climbing attempt is hilarious, brave, funny and addictive. If you want a movie that will have you grinning from ear to ear, check out The Climb.
Ebony Lamb performs Successful Feelings. Made with funding from NZ On Air. Video / Locals Only