16. Message in a Bottle (1999)
Theresa (Robin Wright) finds a letter in a bottle, addressed to a mysterious Catherine, and is moved by its beauty and longing. A former reporter and now researcher for the Chicago Tribune, she sets out to track down the writer of this letter. She eventually finds him in North Carolina. His name is Garret Blake (Kevin Costner), and he writes letters to his dead wife Catherine. He loves her still, always will. But sparks of attraction ignite between Theresa and Garret. Can he move on, allowing himself to heal and to love again? Can Theresa and Garret bridge the very literal distance between them? Or does life have other plans?
Based on a Nicholas Sparks bestseller, Message in a Bottle is a cryfest, so be prepared. And just enjoy Paul Newman, who plays Garret’s dad Dodge. He steals every scene he’s in.
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for a scene of sexuality.
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17. Midnight in Paris (2011)
Woody Allen’s fantasy rom-com, Midnight in Paris, won him an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. The film is a magical cocktail of time travel and nostalgia.
Gil Pender (Owen Wilson) is a vacationing in Paris with his fiancée Inez (Rachel McAdams). Their relationship is increasingly rocky. He’s a successful screenwriter in Hollywood but is unfulfilled and dissatisfied with the course his life is taking. Inez loves California and loves shopping, loves the money that Gil’s success has secured them.
One night, inexplicably, Gil finds himself transported back to the Paris of the roaring 20s – the Années Folles – and ends up in the hotbed for artistic and intellectual collaborations. He meets and has discussions with Jon Cocteau, Cole Porter, Scott Fitzgerald, Josephine Baker, Gertrude Stein, Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway and on it goes. He falls in love with Adriana (Marion Cotillard), who longs for the glory of the Belle Époque. But is love to be found in the past? Is glory only in hindsight? Or is there something to be said for embracing your own here and now, creating the life you want to live?
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for some sexual references and smoking.
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18. P.S. I Love You (2007)
A deceased husband sends his wife on something of a post-death treasure hunt in this romantic drama of letting go and rediscovery.
Gerry (Gerald Butler) dies of a brain tumor, leaving his beloved wife Holly (Hilary Swank) in the depths of despair. He is gone, and Holly is not coping well, until quite unexpectedly, on her 30th birthday, a cake is delivered with a message from Gerry. Prior to his death, Gerry devised a number of messages and adventures for his grieving wife, hoping to push her into starting to live life again.
On one of the adventures, she is sent to Gerry’s homeland of Ireland, where she meets her in-laws, and even has a romantic dalliance with a local musician (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), much to her later panic. Can Holly stop wallowing in the past and begin to embrace the here and now and the future? Can she let Gerry go? Will she choose to allow herself to live and love again? Is happiness to be found with an Irish musician?
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for sexual references and brief nudity.
19. Phenomenon (1996)
A swirling orb of light knocks George Malley (John Travolta) unconscious outside of the local bar. When he comes to, he is different. Formerly a simple small-town mechanic, George suddenly finds himself with inexplicable powers of the mind, including an ever-expanding understanding and intelligence, as well telekinesis. He tries to use his newfound gifts for good, but the townsfolk become increasingly wary. The Feds get interested in him.
And despite his genius, matters of the heart seem to remain ever-elusive to the shy George, who loves the single mom, Lace (Kyra Sedgwick), but cannot seem to form the words or find the courage to tell her. As his mental powers increase, his physical ones wane. Can he survive this transformation? Can he finally freely express his love for Lace? Will she reciprocate?
There’s a scene in Phenomenon where a shave and a haircut have never been more sensual or romantic.
Content Note: Rated PG for language and mild sensuality.
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20. Portrait of Jennie (1948)
A struggling New York artist, Eben Adams (Joseph Cotten), begins having sudden and inexplicable encounters with a mysterious young woman, Jennie Appleton (Jennifer Jones). Jennie intrigues him and inspires him; his art improves. With each subsequent encounter, Jennie has grown, rapidly maturing from a young girl to a young woman to an entrancing woman. “I’m hurrying,” she tells Eben again and again. She speaks of the past as if it’s the present and dresses from long ago.
Love is blossoming, but is Jennie even real? Can Eben track down Jennie’s past in hopes of plotting a future course? Can the past and the future meet? Will this temporal divide be bridged?
The critics didn’t enjoy Portrait of Jennie back in the day, but today it is often considered a classic of the fantasy romance genre.
Content Note: Rated G.
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21. Rebecca (1940)
Alfred Hitchcock’s first American film project, Rebecca is a gripping psychological drama based on Daphne du Maurier’s bestseller. The film won two Academy Awards – Best Picture and Cinematography – and is now considered a classic of the psychological thriller genre.
After a whirlwind romance with the charming aristocratic widower Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier), an unnamed young woman (Joan Fontaine) finds herself the new Mrs. de Winter, living in the lap of luxury in the country estate of Manderley. But the presence of Maxim’s first wife, Rebecca, pervades the place. The servants remain loyal to their first lady. And the new Mrs. de Winter finds herself increasingly unsure of herself and her husband and her marriage, always ending up the insignificant second fiddle to the omnipresent remnants of the exquisite Rebecca. There are mind games and mysteries aplenty. Just how did Rebecca meet her end? And is Maxim not the man he appears to be?
Rebecca is dark, gothic romance at its finest.
Content Note: Rated PG for thematic material and sensuality.
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22. Safe Haven (2013)
Katie (Julianne Hough) is on the run, fleeing from a dark and bloody past. She arrives on the bus in Southport, North Carolina, and what was to be a quick pit stop at the local store turns into a longer sojourn. Katie decides to stay and start making a life for herself in this sleepy, little, seaside town. Her appearance is duly noticed by the kindly young widower, Alex (Josh Duhamel), who owns and operates said local store. Alex’s two kids take a shine to Katie and he to her and she to him. But can the secretive, skittish Katie learn to trust? And is she herself worthy of trust? And what happens when a dark past comes barreling into the idyllic present?
Safe Haven is an adaptation of a best-selling Nicholas Sparks’ novel. There’s mystery, romance, danger, high-stakes drama, and don’t exclude the possibility of the supernatural.
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for violence and sexuality.
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23. Sliding Doors (1998)
What if life is just a series of happenstances, coincidences, choices, accidents, divergences, convergences – a myriad of infinitesimal variations of what might have been, if you had just looked up or not, if you had just turned right instead of left, if you had just reached the train on time or just missed it by a hair? What if, what if, what if?
Sliding Doors is a fantasy romantic dramedy following the parallel lives of Helen Quilley (Gwyneth Paltrow): the Helen who made the train, and the Helen who missed the train. There are divergent and life-altering repercussions for Helen for catching that train and for missing that train. Consistent with both dimensions is the deadbeat, cheating boyfriend, Gerry (John Lynch), who needs to get the boot. In the reality where Helen drops Gerry sooner rather than later, a gentle love affair develops with the witty, affable, delightful James (John Hannah). Can true love make its mark across both realities?
You’ll be crying, sighing, laughing and just loving and rooting for John Hannah in this transdimensional romance.
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for sexuality, minor swearing, and scenes of heavy drinking.
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24. Somewhere in Time (1980)
Richard Collier (Christopher Reeve) finds himself inexplicably drawn to an old portrait of a former actress, Elise McKenna (Jane Seymour), hanging in the hotel where he is staying. Digging into Elise’s life, Richard realizes that she – as an old, dying woman – once contacted him, some eight years prior, with the mysterious message, “Come back to me.” So, Richard seeks to finally do just that, come back to her, hypnotizing himself and traveling to the past to do so. He is successful in his quest, meets and falls in love with the lovely Elise, and she with him. But can a future man transported into the past have a future? What are the temporal repercussions of displacing time? And can true love transcend such temporal bonds?
Initially panned by the critics, Somewhere in Time is now considered a classic of the sci-fi/fantasy romance genre. Just remember to have your tissues handy when you watch it.
Content Note: Rated PG for a moment of language and brief sexuality.
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25. Sommersby (1993)
A Confederate soldier, Jack Sommersby (Richard Gere), returns miraculously from the Civil War. He’s been missing for six long years, presumed dead, and suddenly he stands before his wife Laurel (Jodie Foster) once again. This throws a spanner into the plans of Laurel’s would-be suitor Orrin Meecham (Bill Pullman), who quickly turns resentful and suspicious. Because the war has apparently changed Jack markedly. His memories are hit and miss. His previous brutality has mellowed, his hate subsided and his shoes smaller. He is a transformed man – for the better. But has he changed too much? Is he even the real Jack Sommersby, or is he an imposter? And does it even matter when love has blossomed between a man and a woman?
Sommersby is an American adaptation of the French play and later film The Return of Martin Guerre. Romance, drama, mystery, two charismatic leads with great chemistry, Sommersby does indeed tell a haunting tale of love, loss, and redemption.
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for minor swearing and violence, as well as scenes of sensuality.
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26. Stairway to Heaven (A Matter of Life and Death) (1946)
R.A.F. Squadron Leader Peter Carter (David Niven) should be dead. He was supposed to die on an ill-fated mission on the 2nd of May 1945, but his angelic escort to the other world, Conductor 71 (Marius Goring), missed him the fog. So, Peter lives and washes ashore in England near to the base, where he last had radio contact with a radio operator, June (Kim Hunter), before bailing into the brink of the Channel. He then puts a face to a name, meeting June, and it is love at first sight.
But Conductor 71 is out to fix his mistake, to take Peter to the afterlife. Peter demands an appeal, arguing that he is duty-bound to his love for June to remain. The other world grants an appeal, and a celestial trial is held to determine Peter’s fate. Is this otherworldly stuff even real, or just a figment of Peter’s head injury? Will he die? Will he live? Is his choice to live and love defensible? What will the court decide? Will love trump fated death?
A Matter of Life and Death is a British classic, considered by many as one of the best British movies ever made.
Content Note: Rated PG for thematic elements.
27. Starman (1984)
What happens when an alien life force clones itself into the humanoid form of your dead husband? Well, Jenny Hayden (Karen Allen) learns – much to her horror – that life gets pretty darn complicated. The “Starman” (Jeff Bridges) has crashed in Wisconsin, stolen Scott Hayden’s physical form and needs to get to Arizona for a rendezvous with another ship in three days’ time.
Thus, begins a road trip and a journey of discovery for both Jenny and the Starman. The Starman learns about the limitations of his humanoid form, what it is to be human, what it is to love. Jenny – initially terrified and defiant – begins finally to make peace with her husband’s passing and to live and love again. Government agents are after them. The Starman’s miraculous silver spheres are running low. Can they make it to the rendezvous in time and intact? And then what? How do you reconcile an intergalactic, interspecies love?
Jeff Bridges was nominated for an Academy Award for his role in this intense sci-fi romance, which says something about the caliber of this film, despite the slightly cheesy 80s’ special effects.
Content Note: Rated PG for minor profanity, brief nudity (Jeff Bridges’ backside), smoking.
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28. Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990)
An oft-overlooked gem of a fantasy romantic dramedy by Anthony Minghella, Truly, Madly, Deeply follows the relationship between the grieving Nina (Juliet Stevenson) and the dearly departed love of her life, Jamie (Alan Rickman).
Nina is sinking into despair in her grief, so Jamie returns to her in his bodiless form to alleviate her pain. Nina is initially elated with Jamie’s presence, but the perfect Jamie of her memories begins to collide with the rather irritatingly obtuse ghostly Jamie of the present. This Jamie fiddles with the furniture, plays with the radiators, watches loud movies with his spirit friends, and on it goes.
A film about letting go and moving on, Truly, Madly, Deeply ends with a tear-and-smile-inducing bittersweet romantic revelation, which I won’t spoil here. See it. Alan Rickman is lovely.
Content Note: Rated PG for mild language.
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29. Twilight (2008)
What happens when a predator falls in love with its prey?
Based on the bestselling series by Stephenie Meyer, Twilight and its sequels chronicle the unlikely romance between the undead vampire Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) and the very much alive and very much human Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart). It is an interspecies attraction and love that has life-altering repercussions for our couple. With alluring blood coursing through her veins, Bella is always an attraction to the damned, vampiric undead, a potential meal. Can Edward control his own blood thirst? Can he protect her from others, himself and herself? Do the damned have a soul? And do you damn another to a soulless, bloodthirsty existence for love? Yes, how can our star-crossed lovers ever mediate this great divide?!
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for some violence and a scene of sensuality.
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30. Warm Bodies (2013)
A post-apocalyptic take on Shakespeare’s classic Romeo and Juliet, Warm Bodies follows the unnatural relationship between the zombie R (Nicholas Hoult) and the human zombie-slayer Julie Grigio (Teresa Palmer).
Upon seeing Julie and subsequently consuming Julie’s boyfriend’s brains, something in R begins to wake up and thaw. Memories, thoughts, desires, cognizance begin to form in that undead brain. A heart begins to pump. R saves Julie from the other zombies, and the more time they spend together, the more he remembers the human words to communicate, the more the emotions awake. Challenging everything that she heretofore understood about the undead, Julie finds herself increasingly drawn to and protective of this zombie lad. Other zombies also begin to show signs of awakening. But there is a war between zombies and humans. How is the bloodshed to stop? How do they heal and forgive? Is it even possible?
Warm Bodies is a delightfully dark, fantasy/sci-fi romantic comedy, well worth a watch.
Content Note: Rated PG-13 for zombie violence and some language.
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31. Your Name (2016)
The recent, record-breaking, international anime hit by Makoto Shinkai, Your Name is a paranormal romance involving body swapping.
Two teenagers, a girl, Mitsuha, from rural Japan, and a boy, Taki, from Tokyo, inexplicably begin switching bodies. Through the switching, they begin to irritate one another, sabotage one another, know one another, understand one another, appreciate one another, even love one another. But can they ever meet in person? Or is there more separating our couple than just physical space? A comet is on an intercept course with the earth, Mitsuha’s life is in jeopardy. Can Taki save her despite the spatial and temporal distance?
Content Note: Rated PG for thematic elements, suggestive content, brief language, and smoking.
What are some of your favorite haunting love stories? Share in the comments.
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Great list. I love so many of these, including Somewhere in Time and Meet Joe Black. I was NOT a fan of Stairway to Heaven at all. And I do enjoy David Niven. That film seemed to meander too much and the fantasy scenes in Heaven I just found very odd.
Thanks, Brittaney. I saw “Stairway to Heaven” only once as a late show on TV one night last year. I remember finding it rather surrealistically interesting. And yes, it does meander, but I didn’t hate it. I did fall in love with Roger Livesey, who stole the film for me! He’s also great in “I Know Where I’m Going” with Wendy Hiller, which I also saw as a late show and definitely need to see again sometime. That, I really enjoyed.
Sliding doors is such an underrated romance. I adore the film. Great list!
Thanks, Naazneen. I love Sliding Doors! But then I do have a thing for John Hannah — that accent and that dry wit gets me every time…
I saw the original of Sommersby in college many years ago. And Starman, I used to watch the TV series that came from that. Also, I remember a TV-movie I once saw as a kid, with a woman time-traveling using a portrait of herself, I believe it was, then she gets shot in the past….I remember she was in love with someone in the past but I think he was married and that’s how she ended up shot. For years I’ve wondered what that movie was.
Okay, now I’m really trying to think what that movie could be. Sounds intriguing. And I totally forgot about the Starman TV series — I have some very vague memories of seeing it back in the day. As for Sommersby — I had a dear friend who LOVED this movie, so it was seen many times during my own college days (-:
Actually, I think she time-traveled using a dress from the turn of the century, but her lover painted a portrait of her in it….It’s been 30-some years since I saw it. 🙂
Can’t believe you didn’t list my favorite romantic holiday Xmas movie supernatural like City of Angels Theme…..
THE BISHOP’S WIFE with CARY GRANT!! & Larry Niven.
I’ve actually never seen The Bishop’s Wife, but it definitely sounds like it could be on this list. I will have to check it out sometime. Thanks for the recommendation.