… NOT necessarily romantic comedies, and especially not modern romantic comedies. blech. But, hetero love stories that don’t involve infidelity or serious angst. Lighthearted is OK, as is more serious/dramatic. Steamy preferred but not required. Also prefer protagonists that are over, say, 25. Any era, any genre.
Go!
How about a romantic adventure?
Love, Actually would fit the bill.
I’d recommend Once. It’s probably the most refreshing romantic movie I’ve seen in a long time.
Seconding Once. See it, then come back and thank us.
mmm
I definitely agree with Once.
I’d also recommend Amelie, a French film starring Audrey Tautou.
Children of a Lesser God, starring William Hurt and Marlee Matlin, was also phenomenal.
“A Room with a View,” with Helena Bonham-Carter and Julian Sands.
“Charade,” with Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant.
Actually most things with Audrey Hepburn ping my romance-o-meter.
“Holiday” with Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant.
“Desk Set” with Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy.
I see a theme.
“Laura” with Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews.
The Brothers Bloom - quirky, romance and more. Mostly fun, a little sad.
Persuasion, with Ciaran Hinds and Amanda Root – an adaptation of the Jane Austen novel. There is some angst, but it’s a very gentle, sweet love story and my go-to movie when I need cheering up.
Murphy’s Romance with Sally Field and James Garner (and a young Corey Haim). A romance blossoms between a young single mom (well, 30-ish) and an older guy in a new town that she moves to to open a boarding ranch for horses. It’s just a nice, friendly romance, with two veterans who show you how this “acting” thing is done.
Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994, U.K., dir. Mike Newell)
When Harry Met Sally (1989, U.S., dir. Rob Reiner)
The following one violates your restricton to movies where the protagonists are 25 or over, but then several movies already mentioned violate that restriction:
A Little Romance (1979, U.S., dir. George Roy Hill)
Then there are the following ones. In each, there is a romance, but the two protagonists don’t end up together at the end of the film. There is some serious angst in the last of these:
Shakespeare in Love (1998, U.S./U.K., dir. John Madden)
Play it Again, Sam (1972, U.S., dir. Herbert Ross)
Annie Hall (1977, U.S., dir. Woody Allen)
Camille (1937, U.S., dir. George Cukor)
Then there is the following pair of films. They should be seen together, even though there was no sequel planned when the first was released and the second came as a surprise nine years later. You have to see the second to discover whether the couple from the first end up together:
Before Sunrise (1995, U.S./Austria/Switzerland, dir. Richard Linklater)
Before Sunset (2004, U.S., dir. Richard Linklater)
I almost didn’t post this one because of the “no angst” clause, but I decided it squeaks in under “serious drama” instead. Although there’s lots of funny in it, too. And while the main character is a young 'un, there’s plenty of her beautiful, sexy mother in it, too.
Dangerous Beauty
Please, ignore the soft core porn cover art. It’s actually a gorgeous, wonderfully acted, mostly brilliantly written (it gets a mite heavy-handed, but by that point I love the characters so much I don’t care), post-feminist historical fiction that’s based on an actual woman who was a courtesan in Venice when the Inquisition came calling… (I hear no one expected it.)
Catherine McCormack is, IMHO, the most beautiful woman ever. Rufus Sewell is at his broody, smoldering best. Naomi Watts was in it before anyone knew who she was. And scenes are stolen by the delightful, mature, sexy, Jacqueline Bisset, as our heroine’s mother, and a former courtesan herself.
Seconded. Also Sense and Sensibility, which is, IMO, a perfect film.
I’ll second this. Great movie.
And the Rufus Sewell connection reminds me of another I really like: Tristan + Isolde.
Can I come back and smack you in the head, since I think it was a giant snore with a great song?
A big, gorgeous, sexy, smart movie about real human beings (both literally and in terms of performance) that turned out to be way better than I expected and is high on my all-time list, since I will always stop and watch it when I run across it and delivers everything: thrills, romance, beauty, humor, heat and tears: Out of Africa.
L.A. Story
Steve Martin is an eccentric TV weatherman trying to win over a visiting journalist, played by his then wife, Victoria Tennant. They’re perfect for each other, in the way that they’re the only people who even notice that everything around them is funny.
A really quirky little film called The Trotsky. It’s really more about a kid filled with romantic dreams than about a romance between two people, though that’s in there too.
And speaking of Africa (upthread) – The African Queen.
And one of those really understated British costume dramas where hardly anyone ever says what they think – The Winslow Boy.
One of my favorite movies is the 1946 “Brief Encounter.” I admit you have to watch it with a mid-40s state of mind regarding infidelity, and there might be more “angst” than you’re looking for.
Secretary. It’s a bit weird but I think the love story is cute.
Stardust is on the fanciful side - more of a Princess Bride-type romance - but if you like adventure/romance stories this is a good one.
Ladyhawke
North by Northwest