Valentine’s Day is upon us this Saturday, and you’ll find some people who appreciate it as a day to celebrate love, while others think it’s an overblown, commercialized non-holiday unworthy of anyone’s time. We’re not here to tell you which way to lean, but we do want to help by suggesting some movies that celebrate the highs and lows of the holiday, for those looking for something sugary sweet or a less-than-hopeful alternative about love.
Honorable Mention: Blue Valentine (2011)
Should you want an example to show all your friends why relationships and love might scare you, look no further than 2011’s Blue Valentine. Directed by Derek Cianfrance from a screenplay he co-wrote with Cami Delavigne and Joey Curtis, Blue Valentine follows a married couple named Dean Pereira (Ryan Gosling) and Cynthia (Michelle Williams) as the audience watches, through flashbacks, the joyous time of their courtship as their relationship painfully unravels in the present day. Blue Valentine is unflinching in its portrayal of a relationship that we get to see rise and fall before our very eyes. It’s not a pleasant affair by any means but if you want a depiction of unwavering heartbreak on Valentine’s Day, Blue Valentine might be right up your alley.
In all seriousness, there is a gritty authenticity to how Cianfrance approaches the story as he utilizes a more documentary film style to make the audience truly feel the dissolution of this union. Gosling and Williams go to some painful places here, with each giving some of the best performances of their career and showing they were both unafraid to show the ugliness that sometimes emerges in long-term relationships. It might not be pretty, but it’s profoundly realistic.
5. Valentine (2001)
Horror movies have always been a fun date night option, so why not choose one that utilizes the big day for its setting? Directed by Jamie Blanks from a screenplay by Gretchen J. Berg, Aaron Harberts, Donna Powers, and Wayne Powers, Valentine is loosely based on the 1997 novel of the same name by Tom Savage and follows a group of female childhood friends who find themselves stalked by a killer wearing a Cupid mask as Valentine’s Day approaches.
The killer is more than likely linked to a kid they knew in middle school named Jeremy Melton, who was bullied by some of the girls during a Valentine’s Day dance. Valentine premiered near the end of the slasher movie revival that was reignited by Scream in 1996, so it didn’t get that much love in 2001, but, as the movie recently celebrated its 25th anniversary, it has become a cult favorite with slasher fans who respect the film for knowing exactly what it is. It has the same sensibilities as the 80s slasher movies we all know and love, and even though it is a product of Scream, it doesn’t go for the self-referential humor that many of the copycats embraced in that film’s wake.
With a fun cast that includes Denise Richards, Marley Shelton, Jessica Capshaw, and David Boreanaz, Valentine is a solid 96-minute diversion and a necessary cautionary tale to be nice to those outcasts at school because, come Valentine’s Day, you might not remember him, but he certainly remembers you.
4. 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
The teenagers need their love expressed, too, and 10 Things I Hate About You is timeless enough to be enjoyed by the teens of today or by those of us who want to take a little trip down nostalgia lane. Directed by Gil Junger in his film directorial debut and written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, 10 Things I Hate About You is a modern-day update of William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew and follows a new student named Cameron James (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who is instantly taken by the popular girl in school, Bianca Stratford (Larisa Oleynik).
The only catch is that Bianca can’t date until her older sister Kat (Julia Stiles) does, and Kat is not one for dating, conforming, or doing anything fun. To help his chances, Cameron and his buddy Michael (David Krumholtz) enlist bad boy Patrick Verona (Heath Ledger) to try to swoon Kat into dating while also facing competition from the self-absorbed Joey Donner (Andrew Keegan), who is also in pursuit of Bianca. Despite the Hate in the title, 10 Things I Hate About You ends up on a pretty sincere and romantic note for the primary characters, and along the way, it cements itself as one of the best teen romantic comedies to emerge during the late 90s.
The chemistry between the ensemble is immpecable but speaking specifically about the romantic pairing, Ledger and Stiles enjoy a fun push and pull with each other that goes from disdain to genuine affection, while the spark between Oleynik and Gordon-Levitt is suitably cute and engaging along the way. Perhaps because of the Shakespeare influence, 10 Things I Hate About You is smarter than the average teen romance, which makes it stand out amongst the bunch. Lastly, I dare you not to tear up just a little bit when Stiles recites her sonnet at the end of the film that inspires the film’s title. Couples that watch might be a bit misty-eyed at the end, but it ends on a note that will make you happy you gave it a shot.
3. My Best Friend’s Wedding (1997)
My Best Friend’s Wedding is a typical rom-com in the sense that it stars America’s Sweetheart Julia Roberts, who was a staple in these movies at the time, but it breaks the mode a bit by having her portray a character that goes to great lengths to ensure her best friend won’t marry his new lady love because she has realized she now has feelings for him. Directed by P.J. Hogan from a screenplay by Ronald Bass, My Best Friend’s Wedding follows Julianne Potter, a 27-year-old food critic who made a pact with her best friend Michael (Dermot Mulroney) that if they both weren’t married by the time they were 28, they’d marry each other. When she receives a call from her best friend just three weeks before her 28th birthday, she believes this could be the case, but she’s floored when he reveals that in four days, he will be marrying Kimmy Wallace (Cameron Diaz), someone eight years her junior.
Does Julianne suddenly realize she’s in love with Michael? Or does she simply not want someone else to have him? My Best Friend’s Wedding dives into that feeling of sometimes we want things we can’t have, and really want them when someone else has them. The brilliance of the film is that Michael invites Julianne to the wedding, and Kimmy quickly makes her a maid of honor, likely as a way to keep her close, but it can also be viewed as a move to show she’s cool with Michael and Julianne being friends. The intelligence of the screenplay is that the movie makes you question everyone’s intentions, and there aren’t any real villains. Sure, it’s wrong that Julianne is trying to sabotage the wedding, but as the movie moves along, it could be viewed that she has real feelings for Michael and simply realized too late.
Michael also walks a fine line of doing what some might say is leading her on, while also maintaining that he loves Kimmy. In the midst of all these character-related questions is a truly funny film with everyone from top to bottom being on top of their comedic game. Even when you think the movie has its fair share of fun characters, Julianne’s gay friend George (Rupert Everett) shows up to add even more hijinks and a sing-along to “I Say a Little Prayer” for good measure. My Best Friend’s Wedding doesn’t really end the way you might expect, given that Roberts is in the lead, but it’s a satisfying conclusion that doesn’t insult the intelligence of the audience.
2. Fatal Attraction (1987)
If you’re looking for a cautionary tale to not step out on your Valentine’s Day one and only, look no further than 1987’s Fatal Attraction. Directed by Adrian Lyne from a screenplay by James Dearden, Fatal Attraction is based on Dearden’s 1980 short film Diversion and follows an attorneynamed Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas) who cheats on wife, Beth (Anne Archer), with a colleague named Alex Forrest (Glenn Close). However, when Dan ends the affair, Alex will have none of it and begins stalking him and his family until it all ends up in a climax of slasher movie rage.
Before the film’s ending, which reportedly was changed because audiences wanted something a bit more exciting, Fatal Attraction is actually a fascinating character study. What makes Dan cheat? Is it the inherent smugness that many men seemed to have in the late 80s? Was he bored and seeking something more? In terms of Alex, Close essentially had to do her own deep diving into the character, reportedly consulting with psychologists to get into Alex’s mind and determine her motivations. Close’s work, which earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, is phenomenal here as she manages, at least until the film’s conclusion, to make the audience at least understand how Alex could snap due to Dan’s rejection of her. I keep referencing the film’s ending because, while entertaining, it goes down a more conventional route when compared to the early psychological thriller leanings that came before it.
The film’s original ending would’ve been more in sync with the movie’s natural progression, which would’ve seen Alex slashing her throat with a knife Dan left on the counter, so it would appear that Dan murdered her. After Dan is taken away, Beth would’ve found a tape where Alex threatens to kill herself, which ultimately would’ve exonerated her husband. Perhaps too dark or too poetic, test audiences hated it, and instead we got crazy Alex trying to get knife happy on Dan and Beth, which all ends with the latter shooting her dead. Perhaps it is poetic that the wife gets to deliver the fatal shot, considering what they both put her through, but either way it would’ve ended, the big moral of the story is DON’T CHEAT ON YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER! It just might turn deadly.
1. Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)
While Ryan Gosling is featured in one downer of a film found in the honorable mentions portion of this list, he gets to make up for that with something a little lighter as a part of the ensemble of Crazy, Stupid Love. Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa and written by Dan Fogelman, Crazy, Stupid, Love follows interconnected love stories that are centered around Cal Weaver (Steve Carell), a recently separted man who learns how to charm women and be more romantic with the help of playboy Jacob Palmer (Ryan Gosling), who finds he has met someone that might break his womanizing ways when he encounters Hannah (Emma Stone), who has a found connection to the person Jacob has been training to be better with women.
First and foremost, Fogelman’s screenplay hits all the right notes. It’s smart, witty, and features sharp dialogue that the film’s ensemble cast delivers with just the right amount of charm. There is an honesty in how Fogelman writes, and he gives each character proper motivations for what they do. Given the fact that there are several primary characters, it’s easy for the audience to find someone to relate to. Maybe Cal’s plight of being recently single and not knowing how to navigate the dating scene with women is something that hits close to home, or maybe it’s Jacob, a womanizer on the surface, who has deeper reasons as to why he has come to be that way with women. Or maybe it’s law school graduate Hannah, someone who wouldn’t normally look in Jacob’s direction but can see beneath the persona he’s clearly using as a shield.
Crazy, Stupid, Love covers it all with a balanced tone of light drama and robust comedy, from having a midlife crisis to romance to heartbreak to the unwavering need to fight for what love stands for; it’s all present and accounted for. Perhaps its best attribute is that while it’s a rom-com, it manages to avoid the pratfalls of the genre. It’s never too cheesy or sentimental, and it even pokes fun at genre conventions on occasion. It all leads to a fun third act “twist” that is hilarious in its chaos and sitcom sensibilities, but, despite the silliness of all that, Crazy, Stupid, Love ends in a real place that makes it one of the most sincere romantic comedies out there.
Whether you’re for it or against it, Happy Valentine’s Day Everyone! Spend it with someone you love. Romantic or otherwise.
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