Sometimes, the movies can seem unrealistic, but here are five romantic comedies that gave remained true to reality.
Ever since the rise of the rom-com in the early 2000s, relationship-centric movies have gained a certain reputation. It’s become quite easy to label them as mere chick flicks with unbelievable storylines and little to no artistic value.
However, while there certainly are a lot of flops you have to slog your way through, like in every genre, there’s also many hidden gems you can stumble upon if you know where to look.
As said in the iconic show Fleabag: “Being a romantic takes a hell of a lot of hope.“ Here are 5 movie recommendations that will, thus, hopefully bring you a step closer to finding the authentic romance of your dreams that genuinely captures what being in love feels like in real life.
Like Crazy (2011)
Have you ever been in a long distance relationship? Drake Dormeus’ movie seems to capture that feeling down to its bones. Starring Felicity Jones and the late Anton Yelchin, this 90-minute motion picture follows the story of Anna and Jacob, whose whirlwind romance is forced to a halt once she’s banned from the US after overstaying her visa.
This contemporary drama will pull on your heartstrings – but not because of over top cheesiness or forced tragedy.
It’s a realistic piece dealing with everyday troubles, sincerely asking you to think about whether real connection to another human can stand the test of unforeseen circumstances.
Malcolm & Marie (2021)
Blowing up Netflix at the beginning of February, Sam Levinson, director of the cult young adult TV show Euphoria, presented us with his quarantine project – the romantic drama Malcolm & Marie. Filmed entirely in black and white and set in only one location, this movie takes place during a crucial night in the relationship of a filmmaker and his girlfriend.
The movie shines in its minimalism, attention to characters and their emotional baggage.
Zendaya and John David Washington deliver a breathtaking performance, involving you so much in this couple’s internal conflicts that at times it’s easy to forget that you’re watching the interactions of two fictional people.
Both the pain and the reconciliation these characters go through feel raw and entirely unedited, leaving you in the end with a well needed catharsis that might quite easily mirror something you have once or twice gone through yourself.
Enough Said (2013)
Unlike most of the movies on this list, Enough Said follows a couple in a different and more mature stage of their lives than we’re normally used to seeing on screen.
We follow Eva, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Albert, played by James Gandolfini, as they shyly start a new relationship, burdened by personal failures and insecurities you don’t just magically grow out of once you’re an adult.
What’s so refreshing about this movie isn’t only the age of the characters and the lack of representation such couples have as protagonists in mainstream media, but also the authenticity of the problems they’re facing.
Whether we’re in our twenties or in our fifties, the struggles Eva and Albert have to face are purely human and realistic, making us both relate with the characters, but also with the love story unfolding in front of our eyes.
Summertime (2015)
Summertime, or La Belle Saison in the original French, is a film about two women finding love in 1970s Paris. Framed through the beautiful lense of director Catherine Corsini, it’s an intimate and honest portrayla of female-female relationships in a time that made it especially hard for same sex couples.
While this movie is deeply feminist in its themes, it also pays special attention to the problems LGBTQ people had (and maybe even still have) to face today.
Even though it portrays a period from over 50 years ago, it’s as fresh and modern as they get – from the most hopeful to the most depressing aspects of the story.
The Way We Were (1973)
The Way We Were is not only the movie Carrie Bradshaw from Sex and the City recommends you watch after a break up, it’s also one of the most sincere and authentic portrayals of a relationship you will get to see on screen.
Starring Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand, this 20th century drama gives you a two hour snapshot into the highs and the lows of what sharing ’the best time of your life’ with someone might look like in reality.
Not only is this one of the most successfully done ’opposites attract’ and ’enemies to lovers’ tropes you can find on the market, it’s also filled with unexpected moments of humour and the slightly off the rails vibes only movies filmed in the 70s seem to possess. It’s a classic of the genre you can’t allow yourself to miss.
Perfect Sense (2011)
Not every great romance movie needs to be strictly contemporary. Some hidden gems can be found in its many sub-genres – Perfect Sense being one of them.
As Ewan McGregor and Eva Green try to find their way in a too familiar feeling pre-apocalyptic future, the audience gets to join them both on their quest to navigate extremely challenging times, but also on trying to preserve a true connection with each other.
In its most harrowing scenes, this light piece of science fiction examines what it really means to be human and care for another person.
What shines through are the most basic needs and emotions we have as people, as well as the attachments we form in order to make our existence less painful.
Combining all of these elements, we’re left with a movie that’s so much more than the sum of its parts, with a romantic story as its centre.
Photo: TonelsonProductions / Shutterstock.com
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