Subgenre Sampler

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Memory (2023): Dir. Michel Franco
Feat. Jessica Chastain, Peter Sarsgaard, Josh Charles…; A complex and intimate drama for adults that explores the relationship between a New Yorker with early onset dementia and a social worker and solo…
Priscilla (2023): Dir. Sofia Coppola
Feat. Cailee Spaeny, Jacob Elordi, Ari Cohen…; Sofia Coppola's delicate and understated adaptation of Priscilla Presley's 1985 memoir about the stifling reality of being Mrs. Elvis Presley. Aussie…
Bones And All (2022): Dir. Luca Guadagnino
Feat. Taylor Russell, Timothée Chalamet, Mark Rylance…; A captivating, sincere horror–romance from the director of CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, based on the novel by Camille DeAngelis. Set in the late…
Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022): Dir. Paul Aaron, Simon Curtis
Feat. Hugh Bonneville, Maggie Smith, Tuppence Middleton…; A celebrated cinematic return of Julian Fellowes' beloved creation that reunites the cast to embark on a grand journey to the South of France in 1928…
One Fine Morning (Un Beau Matin) (2022): Dir. Mia Hansen-Love
Feat. Léa Seydoux, Pascal Greggory, Melvil Poupaud…; Lea Seydoux is French movie star royalty but she keeps it real in this sublime film from Mia Hansen–Løve (Bergman Island), one of Europe’s…
Licorice Pizza (2021): Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
Feat. Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn…; Celebrated auteur Paul Thomas Anderson amusingly runs through the fads of the 1970s while loosely following the relationship between a precocious…
Mothering Sunday (2021): Dir. Eva Husson
Feat. Odessa Young, Josh O’Connor, Olivia Colman…; On a warm spring day in 1924, house maid and foundling Jane Fairchild (Odessa Young) finds herself alone on Mother’s Day. Her employers, Mr. and…
Poppy (2021): Dir. Linda Niccol
Feat. Libby Hunsdale, Ari Boyland, Seb Hunter…; Endearing Kiwi drama about an ambitious teenager who aspires to be a car mechanic despite the hurdles – which include her protective brother…
West Side Story (2021): Dir. Steven Spielberg
Feat. Rachel Zegler, Ansel Elgort, Ariana DeBose…; Steven Spielberg's dazzling adaptation of the 1957 musical, an American fairy tale of doomed love and the rivalry between Puerto Rican and white…
Worst Person in the World, The (2021): Dir. Joachim Trier
Feat. Renate Reinsve, Anders Danielsen Lie, Herbert Nordrum; Gloriously provocative and richly perceptive comedy drama from talented Norwegian director Joachim Trier (THELMA), which follows an unpredictable,…
Ammonite (2020): Dir. Francis Lee
Feat. Kate Winslet, Saoirse Ronan, Gemma Jones…; A speculative lesbian period drama from the director of the acclaimed gay male romance, GOD'S OWN COUNTRY. Kate Winslet plays British palaeontologist…
Freshman Year (S#!%house) (2020): Dir. Cooper Raiff
Feat. Cooper Raiff, Amy Landecker, Dylan Gelula; An intimate microbudget indie depicting the experience of an awkward, lonely college freshman who unexpectedly makes a connection with a girl at a…
High Note, The (Covers) (2020): Dir. Nisha Ganatra
Feat. Dakota Johnson, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Bill Pullman…; Rom–com set in the music industry, with Dakota Johnson playing an overworked personal assistant who longs for fame and recognition, and Tracee…
Love Sarah (2020): Dir. Eliza Schroeder
Feat. Rupert Penry-Jones, Celia Imrie, Shelley Conn; Charming multi–generational rom–com set in Notting Hill, where a 19 year–old woman enlists the help of her mother's best friend and…
Supernova (2020): Dir. Harry Macqueen
Feat. Colin Firth, Stanley Tucci, Pippa Haywood…; A poignant modern love story with Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci playing a couple who have been in love for 20 years. After a wrenching diagnosis…
Wild Mountain Thyme (2020): Dir. John Patrick Shanley
Feat. Emily Blunt, Jamie Dornan, Jon Hamm…; John Patrick Shanley, who created MOONSTRUCK, brings his sweeping romantic vision to Ireland with Wild Mountain Thyme. The headstrong farmer Rosemary…
A Hidden Life (2019): Dir. Terrence Malick
Feat. August Diehl, Matthias Schoenaerts, Valerie Pachner…; Historical drama of distinction from writer director Terrence Malick (THE THIN RED LINE), depicting the life of Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian…
A Rainy Day in New York (2019): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Timothée Chalamet, Elle Fanning, Selena Gomez…; Whimsical rom–com set in New York and following a young college student (Timothée Chalamet) and his romantic exploits with his film student…
After Midnight (2019): Dir. Jeremy Gardner
Feat. Jeremy Gardner, Brea Grant; After his long–term girlfriend unexpectedly leaves him. a small town bar owner finds himself threatened by a mysterious unseen evil. A curious…
Aftermath, The (2019): Dir. James Kent
Feat. Keira Knightley, Jason Clarke, Alexander Skarsgard; Period melodrama of some distinction due to its strong cast, set in postwar Germany in 1945, where a British colonel and his wife move into a…
Babyteeth (2019): Dir. Shannon Murphy
Feat. Eliza Scanlen, Toby Wallace, Michelle Lotters…; Australian coming–of–age drama marking the feature debut for director Shannon Murphy (KILLING EVE), from a screenplay by Rita Kalnejais,…
Berlin, I Love You (2019): Dir. Peter Chelsom, Fernando Eimbcke, Claus Clausen
Feat. Helen Mirren, Keira Knightley, Mickey Rourke…; Anthology film continuing the "Cities of Love" franchise (PARIS, JE T'AIME, NEW YORK, I LOVE YOU) set in the German capital where ten sugary stories…
Five Feet Apart (2019): Dir. Justin Baldoni
Feat. Haley Lu Richardson, Cole Sprouse, Moises Arias; Teen romance with two cystic fibrosis patients whose undeniable attraction threatens the rules and boundaries put in place to protect their health,…
Gloria Bell (2019): Dir. Sebastián Lelio
Feat. Julianne Moore, John Turturro, Caren Pistorius…; Another winner from Chilean director Sebastian Lelio, who remakes his superb Spanish–language mid–life romance with absolute assurance…
Hope Gap (2019): Dir. William Nicholson
Feat. Annette Bening, Bill Nighy, Josh O’Connor…; Adapted from the director's own play The Retreat from Moscow, this British drama stars Annette Bening and Bill Nighy as a couple who are facing a…
In the Name Of The Land (2019): Dir. Edouard Bergeon
Feat. Guillaume Canet, Veerle Baetens, Anthony Bajon…; Following the life of a stoic farmer across four decades, this bittersweet and deeply moving drama marks the directorial debut of French…
Marriage Story (2019): Dir. Noah Baumbach
Feat. Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Laura Dern…; A brutal, funny and at times almost unbearably insightful depiction of the divorce of an upper class stage director and actress (played brilliantly…
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019): Dir. Céline Sciamma
Feat. Noémie Merlant, Adele Haenel; Céline Sciamma (GIRLHOOD) directs this devastatingly good, exquisitely executed lesbian period drama. Set in France in the 18th century, where a…
Room 212 (Chambre 212, On a Magical Night) (2019): Dir. Christophe Honore
Feat. Chiara Mastroianni, Vincent Lacoste, Camille Cottin…; Playful French rom–com from acclaimed writer–director Christophe Honore (MA MERE, DAN PARIS). Set over the course of one night, where…
Summerland (2019): Dir. Jessica Swale
Feat. Gemma Arterton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Lucas Bond…; A love–story set in the timeless and enchanting world of Summerland; sun–dappled days by the sea over one achingly beautiful summer.…
Weathering with You (2019): Dir. Makoto Shinkai; Touching Japanese animated romance doubling as an eco–fable, about a high school boy who befriends a girl who can manipulate the weather. From…
A Discovery of Witches (TV Series) (2018): Dir. Juan Carlos Medina
Feat. Teresa Palmer, Matthew Goode, Malin Buska…; A romantic thriller series adapted from Deborah Harkness' trilogy of novels that uncovers a secret underworld of vampires, witches and daemons hiding…
A Faithful Man (L'homme fidèle) (2018): Dir. Louis Garrel
Feat. Louis Garrel, Laetitia Casta, Lily-Rose Depp; Romantic farce with a whimsical, French new–wave sensibility directed by and starring Louis Garrel. A dashing journalist finds his life…
A Star is Born (2018): Feat. Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper, Sam Elliott…; Bradley Cooper debuts impressively as director while sparking the right chemistry in front of the camera with real–life pop…
Cold War (2018): Dir. Pawel Pawlikowski
Feat. Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot; The director of 'Ida' (2013) follows up with a deeply romantic, immaculately composed tale of a Polish concert pianist and a charismatic singer who…
Destination Wedding (2018): Dir. Victor Levin
Feat. Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Dj Dallenbach; Two hopelessly mismatched wedding guests develop a mutual affection while contending with their own spiteful feelings about the wedding, the guests,…
Every Day (2018): Dir. Michael Sucsy
Feat. Angourie Rice, Justice Smith, Debby Ryan…; Romantic drama based on the New York Times bestseller by David Levithan. A 16 year old girl called Rhiannon falls in love with a mysterious traveling…
Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The (2018): Dir. Mike Newell
Feat. Lily James, Michiel Huisman, Glenn Powell; Warm and picturesque romantic comedy from the director of FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL. Set in 1946, the charismatic and free–spirited writer…
In The Aisles (In den Gängen) (2018): Dir. Thomas Stuber
Feat. Franz Rogowski, Sandra Huller; A German wholesale supermarket is the setting for this gentle romantic drama following a reclusive blue–collar shelf stacker (Andreas Leupold,…
Love, Simon (2018): Dir. Greg Berlanti
Feat. Nick Robinson, Josh Duhamel, Jennifer Garner; A high school love story taking the best of the genre cliches (yes, John Hughes) and translating them into a gay context – an unprecedented…
Mary Shelley (2018): Dir. Haifaa Al-Mansour
Feat. Elle Fanning, Maisie Williams, Bel Powley…; A startling Elle Fanning enlivens this period melodrama about Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin's romantic relationship with the poet Percy Shelley, which…
Photograph (2018): Dir. Ritesh Batra
Feat. Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra; A charming romance from the director of THE LUNCHBOX set in Mumbai, where a struggling street photographer convinces a shy stranger to pose as his…
Sorry Angel (2018): Dir. Christophe Honore
Feat. Pierre Deladonchamps, Vincent Lacoste, Denis Podalydes; Articulate and powerful love story set in Paris in the 90's, where a worldly writer falls for a younger, carefree university student.
Tell It To The Bees (2018): Dir. Annabel Jankel
Feat. Anna Paquin, Holliday Grainger, Emun Elliott…; Romantic drama set in 1950's rural Scotland, where a burgeoning romance between a female doctor and the mother of one of her patients provokes social…
Vita and Virginia (2018): Dir. Chanya Button
Feat. Gemma Arterton, Elizabeth Debicki, Rupert Penry-Jones…; British biopic about the unconventional romance between wickedly brilliant writer Virginia Woolf and the beguiling Vita Sackville–West –…
Zoe (2018): Dir. Drake Doremus
Feat. Ewan McGregor, Léa Seydoux, Theo James…; An engineer and a robot fall in love at a research lab for perfecting romantic relationships. An open minded but scientifically undemanding romantic…
Aurore (I Got Life!) (2017): Dir. Blandine Lenoir
Feat. Agnes Jaoui, Thibault de Montalembert, Pascale Arbillot; Actress and co–writer Jaoui is the heart and soul of this witty if overly–familiar rom–com as the eponymous 50–year–old…
Bitter Harvest (2017): Dir. George Mendeluk
Feat. Max Irons, Samantha Barks, Terence Stamp; A modest epic with a romantic centre set against the backdrop of the Holdomor, a death–by–starvation program that ultimately killed…
Breathe (2017): Dir. Andy Serkis
Feat. Andrew Garfield, Claire Foy, Tom Hollander…; Actor Andy Serkis marks his directorial debut with this inspirational love story based on the true story of adventurer Robin Cavendish, who became…
Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool (2017): Dir. Paul McGuigan
Feat. Annette Bening, Jamie Bell, Vanessa Redgrave…; Romantic drama based on the 1986 memoir of Peter Turner, the lover of actress Gloria Grahame, who was 28 years his senior. Explores the…
Hampstead (2017): Dir. Joel Hopkins
Feat. Diane Keaton, Brendan Gleeson, Lesley Manville…; Cosy Brit rom–com in the Richard Curtis tradition, following a mis–matched love affair between Diane Keaton (a wealthy widow) and Brendan…
How to Talk to Girls at Parties (2017): Dir. John Cameron Mitchell
Feat. Elle Fanning, Alex Sharp, Nicole Kidman…; An energetic, endearingly campy film blending aliens with punk culture, from John Cameron Mitchell (HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH). Set in 1970's London…
Lovers, The (2017): Dir. Azazel Jacobs
Feat. Debra Winger, Tracy Letts, Aidan Gillen…; Authentic sombre comedy with Debra Winger and Tracy Letts well matched as a long–married, dispassionate couple whose romantic spark suddenly…
Marjorie Prime (2017): Dir. Michael Almereyda
Feat. Jon Hamm, Geena Davis, Lois Smith…; An entirely thought–provoking chamber–piece set in the not–too–distant future where an elderly woman with encroaching…
Permission (2017): Dir. Brian Crano
Feat. Rebecca Hall, Dan Stevens, Morgan Spector…; A rom–com that explores thought–provoking themes in a charming package, with Rebecca Hall and Dan Stevens as a committed and loving…
Phantom Thread (2017): Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
Feat. Daniel Day-Lewis, Vicky Krieps, Lesley Manville; Deliciously gothic period drama by acclaimed director Paul Thomas Anderson. Set in 1950's London, a charismatic and obsessive couturier meets a…
Return to Montauk (2017): Dir. Volker Schlondorff
Feat. Stellan Skarsgard, Nina Hoss, Niels Arestrup; A famous novelist reunites with a lover he met 17 years prior in this elegant and literate romantic drama from director Volker Schlöndorff (THE TIN…
Shape of Water, The (2017): Dir. Guillermo Del Toro
Feat. Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins…; At a top secret research facility in the 1950s, a lonely janitor forms a unique relationship with an amphibious creature that is being held in…
Space Between Us, The (2017): Dir. Peter Chelsom
Feat. Asa Butterfield, Gary Oldman, Carla Gugino…; Sci–fi romance where a teenage boy who has grown up on Mars visits earth for the first time. Enlisting the help of a misfit girl from Colorado,…
Their Finest (2017): Dir. Lone Scherfig
Feat. Gemma Arterton, Sam Claflin, Bill Nighy…; Charming, rousing WWII romance starring Gemma Arterton as a greenhorn screenwriter who joins a makeshift cast and crew to make a film to lift British…
Tulip Fever (2017): Dir. Justin Chadwick
Feat. Alicia Vikander, Dane DeHaan, Zach Galifianakis…; Elegant romantic drama where an artist falls for a young married woman (Alicia Vikander) while he's commissioned to paint her portrait during the…
A Date for Mad Mary (2016): Dir. Darren Thornton
Feat. Seána Kerslake, Tara Lee; Smart, soulful Irish rom–com following "Mad" Mary McArdle (Seana Kerslake) as she struggles to find a date to her best friends wedding after…
A Silent Voice (Koe no katachi) (2016): Dir. Naoko Yamada
Feat. Miyu Irino; Unique Japanese anime following a deaf girl called Shoko, who is bullied at school by a boy who grows up to be tormented by his past behavior, and…
Allied (2016): Dir. Robert Zemeckis
Feat. Brad Pitt, Marion Cotillard, Lizzy Caplan…; Old–fashioned wartime romance between an intelligence officer and a French resistance fighter in 1942, which develops into a satisfying…
Cafe Society (2016): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Jeannie Berlin…; Diverting valentine to the 1930s from Woody Allen, in his 49th film, following Bronx–born Jesse Eisenberg through romantic, familial and…
Choice, The (2016): Dir. Ross Katz
Feat. Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer, Maggie Grace…; Romantic drama from the Nicholas Sparks playbook, and novel, about a couple who meet as neighbors in a small coastal town and wind up in a…
Chronesthesia (2016): Dir. Hayden J. Weal
Feat. Hayden J. Weal, Michelle Ny, Cohen Holloway…; Indie rom–com with a curious time–shifting twist in which a socially isolated young man's burgeoning romance with a science student is…
Exception, The (2016): Dir. David Leveaux
Feat. Lily James, Jai Courtney, Janet McTeer…; Romantic war drama fictionalizing the last few days in the life of exiled Kaiser Wilhelm II, played by Christopher Plummer. A German soldier tries to…
Frank and Lola (2016): Dir. Matthew Ross
Feat. Michael Shannon, Imogen Poots, Michael Nyqvist…; Haunting neo–noir romance which delves deep into the male psyche to offer a portrait of desire, obsession and suspicion, bathed in a…
La La Land (2016): Dir. Damien Chazelle
Feat. Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling, Rosemarie DeWitt…; The wunderkind director of WHIPLASH fashions another bold, contemporary love letter to the Jazz age, this time as a widescreen, technicolor romantic…
Lazy Eye (2016): Dir. Tim Kirkman
Feat. Lucas Near-Verbruggh, Aaron Costa Ganis, Michaela Watkins; A graphic designer in his 40's reconnects with a lost love over a weekend away in the Californian desert in this gay–themed romantic drama.…
Light Between Oceans, The (2016): Dir. Derek Cianfrance
Feat. Michael Fassbender, Alicia Vikander, Rachel Weisz…; An elegant sweeping melodrama set in post–WWI Western Australia about a lighthouse keeper and his wife who raise a baby they rescue from an…
Maudie (2016): Dir. Aisling Walsh
Feat. Ethan Hawke, Sally Hawkins, Kari Matchett…; An arthritic Nova Scotia woman works as a housekeeper while she hones her skills as an artist and eventually becomes a beloved figure in the…
Paterson (2016): Dir. Jim Jarmusch
Feat. Adam Driver, Golshifteh Farahani; A profound ode to small–town life and the beauty found within everyday simplicity, director Jim Jarmusch here creates a masterful, carefully…
Shared Rooms (2016): Dir. Rob Williams
Feat. Daniel Lipshutz, Alex Neil Miller, Enzo Nova; Queer rom–com telling three interconnected stories of gay men seeking love during the holiday season. A married couple take in a teenage…
United Kingdom, A (2016): Dir. Amma Asante
Feat. Rosamund Pike, David Oyelowo, Jack Davenport…; Assured historical drama which deftly covers a decade–long fight for acceptance when the King of Botswana falls in love with a British clerk…
Your Name (Kimi no na wa) (2016): Dir. Makoto Shinkai; Another exquisite animated drama from Makoto Shinkai, an increasingly beloved and notable voice in the world of Japanese anime. The story is based on…
5 Flights Up (Five Flights Up) (2015): Dir. Richard Loncraine
Feat. Diane Keaton, Morgan Freeman, Cynthia Nixon…; Morgan Freeman and Diane Keaton headline this amiable drama as a long–married couple endure a hectic weekend as they ponder the sale of the…
Age Of Adaline (2015): Dir. Lee Toland Krieger
Feat. Blake Lively, Michiel Huisman, Harrison Ford…; Blake Lively headlines this appealing fantasy about a young woman, born at the turn of the 20th century, rendered ageless after an accident.
Aloha (2015): Dir. Cameron Crowe
Feat. Bradley Cooper, Rachel McAdams, Emma Stone…; Hawaiian set romantic comedy with Bradley Cooper as a defense worker who teams up with a pilot to stop a satellite launch.
Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong (2015): Dir. Emily Ting
Feat. Jamie Chung, Bryan Greenberg; A charming romance unfolds in Hong Kong between a Chinese–American toy designer and an American ex–pat. Based on the director's own…
Far from the Madding Crowd (2015): Dir. Thomas Vinterberg
Feat. Carey Mulligan, Matthias Schoenaerts, Michael Sheen…; Stirring adaptation of the Thomas Hardy novel boasts a very fine performance from Carey Mulligan as Bathsheba Everdene a young farmer who attracts…
I'll See You In My Dreams (2015): Dir. Brett Haley
Feat. Blythe Danner, Sam Elliott, Martin Starr…; Blythe Danner is exceptional in this heartfelt drama about a widow and former songstress who discovers that life can begin anew at any age.
In the Shadow of Women (L'ombre des femmes) (2015): Dir. Philippe Garrel
Feat. Clotilde Courau, Stanislas Merhar, Lena Paugam; Romantic drama from Philippe Garrel, a prolific French auteur whose work is rarely available outside of France and often deal with the subject of…
La Belle Saison (Summertime) (2015): Dir. Catherine Corsini
Feat. Cecile De France, Izia Higelin, Noemie Lvovsky; Two women strike up a passionate affair against a backdrop of the feminist movement in early–1970's France, but struggle to reconcile of…
Soft Lad (2015): Dir. Leon Lopez
Feat. Jonny Labey, Laura Ainsworth, Daniel Brocklebank; Melodrama set in Liverpool about a married man who has been having an affair with his wife's brother, a young dance student. A love triangle with a…
Tanna (2015): Dir. Martin Butler, Bentley Dean
Feat. Mungau Dain, Marie Wawa; A fact–based "Romeo and Juliet" tale that took place on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu in 1987, this is a splendidly realized and moving…
Tumbledown (2015): Dir. Sean Mewshaw
Feat. Rebecca Hall, Jason Sudeikis, Blythe Danner…; Earnest romantic drama with the widow of a acclaimed folk–singer tentatively exploring romance with his biographer.
Wasp (2015): Dir. Philippe Audi-Dor
Feat. Hugo Bolton, Elly Condron, Simon Haycock; Romantic drama about two gay men whose vacation in the South of France is interrupted when one of their female friends show up, leading to sexual…
3 Hearts (2014): Dir. Benoît Jacquot
Feat. Benoit Poelvoorde, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Chiara Mastroianni…; Tense romantic drama centered around a complicated love triangle that develops between a married couple and the wife's sister.
A Chance Encounter (Quantum Love) (2014): Dir. Lisa Azuelos
Feat. Sophie Marceau, Francois Cluzet, Lisa Azuelos…; High–concept romantic comedy which blends fantasy with reality as a a married man's encounter with another woman develops into a mutual…
A Little Chaos (2014): Dir. Alan Rickman
Feat. Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman, Stanley Tucci…; Alan Rickman directs and stars with Kate Winslet in this lavish study of two landscape artists who become romantically entangled while building a…
Barefoot (2014): Dir. Andrew Fleming
Feat. Evan Rachel Wood, Scott Speedman, Treat Williams…; Evan Rachel Wood plays a severely sheltered psychiatric patient who's invited to a wedding in this light romance. Leans heavily on the pixie dream…
Before We Go (2014): Dir. Chris Evans
Feat. Chris Evans, Alice Eve, Emma Fitzpatrick…; Schmaltzy rom–com with Chris Evans and Alice Eve as two strangers stuck in Manhattan for the night where they grow into each other's trusted…
Best of Me, The (2014): Dir. Michael Hoffman
Feat. Michelle Monaghan, James Marsden, Luke Bracey…; Nicholas Sparks adaptation with a pair of former high school sweethearts reuniting after many years when they return to visit their small hometown.
Comet (2014): Dir. Sam Esmail
Feat. Justin Long, Emmy Rossum, Kayla Servi…; Visually distinctive romantic drama set in a parallel universe that bounces back and forth over the course of an unlikely but perfectly paired…
Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby, The (2014): Dir. Ned Benson
Feat. James McAvoy, Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis…; An ambitious and elegant New York love story from first time director Benson follows a couple as they try to reclaim the life and love they once…
Elsa & Fred (Elsa and Fred) (2014): Dir. Michael Radford
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Christopher Plummer, Marcia Gay Harden…; Shirley Maclaine and Christopher Plummer take the leads in this remake of the Argentinian romance in which a feisty retiree and her new neighbor, an…
Endless Love (2014): Dir. Shana Feste
Feat. Alex Pettyfer, Gabriella Wilde, Bruce Greenwood…; Petty–ful remake of the Brooke Shields weepie about young love suppressed by disapproving parents.
Fault in Our Stars, The (2014): Dir. Josh Boone
Feat. Shailene Woodley, Ansel Elgort, Nat Wolff…; A pair of offbeat teengers – one terminally ill – embrace the journey of life in this sweeping teen romance based on John Green's popular…
Hidden Away (A escondidas) (2014): Dir. Mikel Rueda
Feat. German Alcarazu, Adil Koukouh, Joseba Ugalde; Spanish romantic drama filmed in neighbourhoods throughout Bilbao, exploring themes of sexual awakening, racism and deportation through the story of…
I Am Happiness on Earth (2014): Dir. Julien Hernandez
Feat. Hugo Catalan, Gabino Rodriguez, Andrea Portal; Gay–themed Mexican film about the infatuation a commitment–phobic film director has for a talented dancer. Director Julian Hernandez…
If I Stay (2014): Dir. R.J. Cutler
Feat. Chloe Grace Moretz, Mireille Enos, Jamie Blackley…; Soapy teen drama with Chloe Moretz as a young woman in a coma who must decide whether to wake up, and live a life far different than she had…
Spring (2014): Dir. Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead
Feat. Lou Taylor Pucci, Nadia Hilker, Vanessa Bednar; A captivating hybrid of "tourist romance" and "body horror" (yes, Linklater meets Cronenberg) in which a recently orphaned young man flees the US for…
Winter's Tale (2014): Dir. Akiva Goldsman
Feat. Colin Farrell, Jessica Brown Findlay, Russell Crowe…; This mythic New York romance centres on an Irish burglar (Farrell) who falls for an aristocrat's dying daughter, and seeks a miracle to save her life.
A Promise (2013): Dir. Patrice Leconte
Feat. Rebecca Hall, Alan Rickman, Richard Madden; Rebecca Hall falls in love with her husband's protégé in this weepy wartime romance, a rare English–language film from veteran French…
Admission (2013): Dir. Paul Weitz
Feat. Tina Fey, Paul Rudd, Wallace Shawn…; A sweet, serio–comic romance with Tiny Fey as a Princeton admission officer whose straight–laced existence is invigorated by a…
Ain't Them Bodies Saints (2013): Dir. David Lowery
Feat. Rooney Mara, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster…; In this poetic tale of love and desperation, a Texan outlaw on the run attempts to reunite with his wife and daughter.
Beautiful Creatures (2013): Dir. Richard LaGravenese
Feat. Alden Ehrenreich, Alice Englert, Jeremy Irons…; A young man is drawn to a mysterious new arrival whose family possess secret supernatural powers in this vivid adaptation of Kami Garcia and Margaret…
Before Midnight (2013): Dir. Richard Linklater
Feat. Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Ariane Labed…; In sunny Greece, long–time lovers Jesse and Céline reunite almost two decades after their first meeting in this wistful sequel to BEFORE…
Best Offer, The (2013): Dir. Giuseppe Tornatore
Feat. Geoffrey Rush, Jim Sturgess, Donald Sutherland…; An obsessive antiques dealer becomes entangled with an heiress who asks him appraise a series of family art works in this baroque mystery from CINEMA…
Breathe In (2013): Dir. Drake Doremus
Feat. Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Amy Ryan; The dir. of LIKE CRAZY explores another English–American relationship in this melancholic romance between a British exchange student and the…
Broken Circle Breakdown, The (2013): Dir. Felix Van Groeningen
Feat. Veerle Baetens, Johan Heldenbergh, Nell Cattrysse; Dynamic and sexy musical romance set in the Flemish region of Belgium over seven years of poignant love and loss, and featuring a magnificent…
C.O.G. (2013): Dir. Kyle Patrick Alvarez
Feat. Jonathan Groff, Denis O'Hare, Casey Wilson…; Coming–of–age dramedy based on the story of the same name by David Sedaris. A young man (Jonathan Groff) travels to Oregon to work on…
Don Jon (2013): Dir. Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Feat. Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Scarlett Johansson, Julianne Moore…; Joseph Gordon–Levitt wrote, directs and stars in this distinctly masculine rom–com as a New Jersey 'player' who must confront his nagging…
Drinking Buddies (2013): Dir. Joe Swanberg
Feat. Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick…; Dir. Joe Swanberg instills a mumblecore ethos into this lively and naturalistic comedy of two friendly couples fighting an attraction to opposite…
Enough Said (2013): Dir. Nicole Holofcener
Feat. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, James Gandolfini, Catherine Keener…; Writer/director Nicole Holofcener moves into the first division with her fifth feature film, a savvy divorcee rom–com in perfect accord with…
Face of Love, The (2013): Dir. Arie Posin
Feat. Annette Bening, Ed Harris, Robin Williams…; Annette Bening is superb in this otherwise carelessly melodramatic romance centred on a woman who falls in love with a man (Ed Harris) who's the…
Garden of Words, The (2013): Dir. Makoto Shinkai
Feat. Miyu Irino, Kana Hanazawa; Another gorgeous animated romance from the director of 5 CENTIMETRES PER SECOND, centred on the poignant relationship between a sensitive teenager…
Half of a Yellow Sun (2013): Dir. Biyi Bandele
Feat. Thandiwe Newton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, John Boyega…; A moving, if overly melodramatic rendering of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel about the Nigerian Civil War as experienced by two…
Her (2013): Dir. Spike Jonze
Feat. Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Rooney Mara…; Joaquin Phoenix plays a lonely divorcee who finds himself falling in love with 'Samantha', the artificial intelligence behind a new computer…
Invisible Woman, The (2013): Dir. Ralph Fiennes
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Felicity Jones, Kristin Scott Thomas; Ralph Fiennes plays Charles Dickens in this rich dramatisation of his relationship with his 'secret lover', Ellen Ternan.
Just a Sigh (2013): Dir. Jérôme Bonnell
Feat. Emmanuelle Devos, Gabriel Byrne; Emmanuelle Devos and Gabriel Byrne experience a brief encounter as an actress and a professor who trade glances on a Paris–bound train. A…
Labor Day (2013): Dir. Jason Reitman
Feat. Kate Winslet, Josh Brolin, Gattlin Griffith…; A lonely and depressed single mother harbours an escaped convict in this moving dramatic romance from dir. Jason Reitman (UP IN THE AIR).
Lucky Them (2013): Dir. Megan Griffiths
Feat. Toni Collette, Thomas Haden Church, Oliver Platt…; Toni Collette stars as rock journalist Ellie Klug, who is assigned to write a piece on her former boyfriend, a musician who had disappeared ten years…
Lunchbox, The (2013): Dir. Ritesh Batra
Feat. Irrfan Khan, Nimrat Kaur, Nawazuddin Siddiqui; A sweet and richly aromatic romantic comedy in which a mistaken delivery in Mumbai's famously efficient lunch delivery system connects a young…
Mood Indigo (2013): Dir. Michel Gondry
Feat. Romain Duris, Audrey Tautou, Gad Elmaleh…; Audrey Tautou and Romain Duris star in this wild interpretation of Boris Vian’s cult novel 'Froth on the Daydream' from dir. Michel Gondry.
Mr. Morgan's Last Love (Last Love) (2013): Dir. Sandra Nettelbeck
Feat. Michael Caine, Clemence Poesy, Gillian Anderson…; Grieving for his beloved wife, a professor who planned to spend their twilight years in Paris rekindles a passion for life after a chance meeting…
Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman, The (2013): Dir. Fredrik Bond
Feat. Shia LaBeouf, Evan Rachel Wood, Mads Mikkelsen…; This chaotic, wildly expressive love story follows an American adrift in Bucharest and his affair with a beautiful cellist with ties to the…
Only Lovers Left Alive (2013): Dir. Jim Jarmusch
Feat. Tilda Swinton, Tom Hiddleston, Anton Yelchin…; Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston are sublimely cast as sophisticated vampire lovers who reunite after centuries in this stylish and imaginative new…
Perfect Wedding, The (2013): Dir. Scott Gabriel
Feat. James Rebhorn, Eric Aragon, Kristine Sutherland; Nobody's going for the Best Actor Oscar in this Hallmark–but–gay Xmas movie from New York Times Bestselling Author Suzanne Brockmann.…
Pretty One, The (2013): Dir. Jenée LaMarque
Feat. Zoe Kazan, Jake Johnson, Ron Livingston…; An insecure young woman assumes the identity of her dead twin sister in this whimsical romantic comedy.
Romeo and Juliet (2013): Dir. Carlo Carlei
Feat. Hailee Steinfeld, Douglas Booth, Damian Lewis…; A richly imagined, though largely unreliable version of Shakespeare's most quoted play. Set in the authentic setting of Renaissance Verona, this only…
Safe Haven (2013): Dir. Lasse Hallstrom
Feat. Julianne Hough, Josh Duhamel, David Lyons…; The Nicholas Sparks juggernaut rolls on, here delivering the calculated slow–reveal of an airport novel in its story of a mysterious woman who…
Some Girl(s) (2013): Feat. Adam Brody, Kristen Bell, Zoe Kazan…; Adam Brody (THE OC) stars in this comedy about a man who decides to travel around the USA visiting his ex–girlfriends, who he mistreated,…
Spectacular Now, The (2013): Dir. James Ponsoldt
Feat. Miles Teller, Shailene Woodley, Brie Larson…; This wistful teen romance, scripted and performed with a bracing naturalism, centres on a glibly charming high school senior whose casual dating of a…
Summer in February (2013): Feat. Dominic Cooper, Dan Stevens, Emily Browning; The famous Cornish Artists Colony is the setting for this beautiful looking but ultimately uninspiring Edwardian tragiromance.
Third Person (2013): Dir. Paul Haggis
Feat. Liam Neeson, Maria Bello, Mila Kunis…; Paul Haggis attempts to renew the winning formula of his Oscar–winning CRASH with this trio of interlocking love stories set in Rome, Paris,…
Turtle Hill, Brooklyn (2013): Dir. Ryan Gielen
Feat. Brian W. Seibert, Ricardo Valdez, Joie Bauer; Micro–budget indie dramedy about a gay couple who invite their friends over for a 30th birthday party, with all kinds of drama ensuing. A well…
Very Good Girls (2013): Dir. Naomi Foner
Feat. Dakota Fanning, Elizabeth Olsen, Ellen Barkin…; Dakota Fanning and Elizabeth Olsen play best friends determined to lose their virginity over one long hot summer. A pseudo–serious treatment of…
What If (2013): Dir. Michael Dowse
Feat. Daniel Radcliffe, Zoe Kazan, Megan Park…; A medical–school dropout tries to hide his attraction to his new friend, a bubbly artist who already has a boyfriend.
Words and Pictures (2013): Dir. Fred Schepisi
Feat. Clive Owen, Juliette Binoche, Bruce Davison…; Clive Owen and Juliette Binoche play passionate arts teachers with opposing worldviews in this romantic comedy of the mind.
2 Days in New York (2012): Dir. Julie Delpy
Feat. Julie Delpy, Chris Rock; The sequel to 2 DAYS IN PARIS, written, directed and starring Julie Delpy, who is Marian, a Parisian woman now living in New York and exploring a new…
A Perfect Ending (2012): Dir. Nicole Conn
Feat. Barbara Niven, Jessica Clark, John Heard…; Romantic drama about a terminally ill women in a loveless marriage who turns to an escort service seeking seeking sexual fulfillment, and meets a sex…
And While We Were Here (2012): Dir. Kat Coiro
Feat. Kate Bosworth, Jamie Blackley; Kate Bosworth shines in this hushed, understated romance between a married woman and a younger man on an island off the coast of Naples.
Anna Karenina (2012): Dir. Joe Wright
Feat. Keira Knightley, Matthew MacFadyen, Kelly MacDonald…; Costume drama artisan Joe Wright boldly directs this Tom Stoppard scripted adaptation of Tolstoy’s classic tale of Russian aristocracy.
Birdsong (TV Mini-Series) (2012): Dir. Philip Martin
Feat. Eddie Redmayne, Clemence Poesy, Matthew Goode; The horrific experiences of an English soldier fighting in northern France are juxtaposed against his fond, but haunted memories of a forbidden love…
Hello I Must Be Going (2012): Dir. Todd Louiso
Feat. Melanie Lynskey, Blythe Danner, John Rubinstein…; Melanie Lynskey is excellent as a wounded young divorcee forced to move back in with her parents, in this serio–comic character…
Jack & Diane (Jack and Diane) (2012): Dir. Bradley Rust Gray
Feat. Riley Keough, Juno Temple, Kylie Minogue…; Juno Temple and Riley Keough star in this romance between two teenage girls that quickly manifests as terrifying, violent and inexplicable.
Last Tango in Halifax (TV Series) (2012): Feat. Derek Jacobi, Anne Reid, Sarah Lancashire…; Derek Jacobi and Anne Reid play childhood sweethearts reunited via Facebook in their seventies in this thoughtful and engaging depiction of…
Liberal Arts (2012): Dir. Josh Radnor
Feat. Josh Radnor, Elizabeth Olsen, Richard Jenkins…; Josh Radnor, star of top–draw sitcom HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER directs his second self–penned romantic comedy, himself playing a…
LOL (2012): Dir. Lisa Azuelos
Feat. Miley Cyrus, Demi Moore, Jean-Luc Bilodeau…; Perfunctory remake of the hit French teen comedy casts Demi Moore and Miley Cyrus as lovelorn mother and daughter in the social media age.
Love is All You Need (2012): Dir. Susanne Bier
Feat. Pierce Brosnan, Trine Dyrholm, Molly Blixt Egelind; Susanne Bier (AFTER THE WEDDING) directs this tender drama of mid–life romance, about an Englishman and a Danish woman who forge an unexpected…
Lucky One, The (2012): Dir. Scott Hicks
Feat. Zac Efron, Taylor Schilling, Blythe Danner…; Man–candy Zac Efron stretches the truth as a hardened Iraq war veteran who falls in love with a woman whose photo he credits with keeping him…
Most Fun You Can Have Dying, The (2012): Dir. Kirstin Marcon
Feat. Matt Whelan, Roxane Mesquida, Pana Hema Taylor…; Sultry youth drama from first–time feature dir. Kirstin Marcon about a terminally ill young man who absconds overseas with the money raised for…
Much Ado About Nothing (2012): Dir. Joss Whedon
Feat. Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Nathan Fillion…; Thank heaven for Joss Whedon and for a tiny little project he threw together in his spare time whole he was in the editing room for THE AVENGERS.…
Now is Good (2012): Dir. Ol Parker
Feat. Dakota Fanning, Jeremy Irvine, Paddy Considine…; Dakota Fanning plays a terminally ill teen determined to, among other bucket list necessities, lose her virginity before dying. A big, damp weepie…
Perks of Being a Wallflower, The (2012): Dir. Stephen Chbosky
Feat. Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller…; An introverted teen with a troubled past is embraced by an eccentric clique of friends in this deeply–felt coming–of–age drama,…
Red House, The (2012): Dir. Alyx Duncan; A breakthrough for New Zealand's fledgling art cinema, this impressive first feature finds a beguiling middle ground between fiction and documentary…
Renoir (2012): Dir. Gilles Bourdos
Feat. Michel Bouquet, Christa Theret, Vincent Rottiers…; Sumptuous, sun–kissed art biopic based on the last years of impressionist painter Auguste Renoir (Bouquet) during World War I, and the…
Silent Youth (2012): Dir. Diemo Kemmesies
Feat. Martin Bruchmann, Josef Mattes, Linda Schule; Low key German indie drama offering a story of gay first love, replete with palpable sexual tension and interesting, honest performances. Like so…
Silver Linings Playbook (2012): Dir. David O. Russell
Feat. Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro…; An institutionalized man attempts to readjust to life and love in this full–bodied comedy–drama that pairs two of the hottest stars of…
Teddy Bear (10 Timer til Paradis) (2012): Dir. Mads Matthiesen
Feat. Kim Kold; Real life body–builder Kim Kold stars as a shy and awkward 38 year–old Danish bodybuilder who still lives with his mum, but decides to…
Tiger Eyes (2012): Dir. Lawrence Blume
Feat. Willa Holland, Cynthia Stevenson, Tatanka Means…; This sensitively observed teen drama – the first ever screen adaptation of a Judy Blume novel – centres on a 17–year–old girl…
To the Wonder (2012): Dir. Terrence Malick
Feat. Ben Affleck, Olga Kurylenko, Rachel McAdams…; Terrence Malick's latest rapturous odyssey is centred on the strained love between an American and a Ukrainian struggling to build a life together in…
Tortoise in Love (2012): Dir. Guy Browning
Feat. Tom Mitchelson, Alice Zawadzki, Tom Yates…; Cheap and cheerful rom–com concerning a socially awkward gardener who attempts to overcome his chronic shyness after falling in love with a…
Twice Born (2012): Dir. Sergio Castellitto
Feat. Penelope Cruz, Emile Hirsch; The memory of a passionate love affair with an American photographer and its harrowing aftermath is rekindled when a woman returns to Sarajevo with…
Upside Down (2012): Dir. Juan Solanas
Feat. Kirsten Dunst, Jim Sturgess, Timothy Spall; Two star–crossed lovers separated by opposite worlds attempt to overcome interplanetary boundaries in this head–turning sci–fi…
Vow, The (2012): Dir. Michael Sucsy
Feat. Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum, Jessica Lange…; More fodder for helpless romantics, with beefcake romeo Channing Tatum losing his new bride (Rachel McAdams, naturally) to amnesia via a car…
10 Years (2011): Dir. Jamie Linden
Feat. Channing Tatum, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, Rosario Dawson…; A group of friends take the opportunity to reassess their lives on the occasion of their ten–year high school reunion in this…
Another Earth (2011): Dir. Mike Cahill
Feat. Brit Marling, William Mapother; The appearance of a parallel Earth hidden behind the Sun poses deep personal and philosophical questions for a troubled student in this superlative…
Art of Getting By, The (2011): Dir. Gavin Wiesen
Feat. Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano…; A sensitive and even–handed coming–of–age tale about a teenage fatalist and his blooming friendship with the popular…
Beginners (2011): Dir. Mike Mills
Feat. Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Mélanie Laurent…; Semi–autobiographical tale from the dir. of THUMBSUCKER reconciles two relationships in the life of a 38–year–old graphic artist…
Café de Flore (2011): Dir. Jean-Marc Vallée
Feat. Vanessa Paradis, Kevin Parent; Two parallel stories of love and hope transcend their time difference in this fantastical juggling act from French–Canadian filmmaker…
Celeste and Jesse Forever (2011): Dir. Lee Toland Krieger
Feat. Rashida Jones, Andy Samberg, Ari Graynor…; Two best friends struggle to reconcile lingering feelings despite being divorced from one another in this smart, unexpected romantic comedy.
Deep Blue Sea, The (2011): Dir. Terence Davies
Feat. Rachel Weisz, Tom Hiddleston, Simon Russell-Beale…; Post–war romantic drama in which Rachel Weisz plays the wife of a British Judge caught in a self–destructive love affair with a Royal Air…
Falling Overnight (2011): Dir. Conrad Jackson
Feat. Parker Croft, Emilia Zoryan; A shy young man spends his last night before brain surgery with a spontaneous, free–spirited artist in this modest miniature romance, a fine…
Goodbye, First Love (2011): Dir. Mia Hansen-Love
Feat. Lola Créton, Sebastian Urzendowsky; The director of FATHER OF MY CHILDREN turns her nuanced lens on the passionate but slow–maturing romance between a couple who break up in their…
Here (2011): Dir. Braden King
Feat. Ben Foster, Lubna Azabal, Peter Coyote; A cartographer strikes up a bond with a beautiful Armenian woman while surveying the country in this striking wanderlust romance.
Hysteria (2011): Dir. Tanya Wexler
Feat. Maggie Gyllenhaal, Hugh Dancy, Jonathan Pryce…; A buoyant, light–to–touch period romance about the 19th Century invention of the vibrator, devised as cure for the female ailment know as…
Kiss Me (Kyss mig, aka With Every Heartbeat) (2011): Dir. Alexandra-Therese Keining
Feat. Ruth Vega Fernandez, Liv Mjönes, Krister Henriksson; Heartfelt romantic drama about a woman who is engaged to be married when she finds herself falling for her soon–to–be stepmother's…
Late Bloomers (2011): Dir. Julie Gavras
Feat. William Hurt, Isabella Rossellini, Joanna Lumley…; A breezy depiction of the late–life crisis, with old married couple William Hurt and Isabella Rossellini scrambling in opposite directions when…
Like Crazy (2011): Dir. Drake Doremus
Feat. Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones, Jennifer Lawrence; Not to be mistaken for another Nicholas Sparks spin–off, this poignant, intelligently crafted indie romance intimately examines the young love…
My Piece of the Pie (2011): Dir. Cedric Klapisch
Feat. Karin Viard, Gilles Lellouche; A Capra–esque satire shot in the mode of a French romantic comedy, replete with clunky political statements and glossy Euro visuals. Karin…
My Wedding and Other Secrets (2011): Dir. Roseanne Liang
Feat. Michelle Ang, Matt Whelan, Kenneth Tsang…; Dir. Roseanne Liang adapts her winning documentary (BANANA IN A NUTSHELL) on the struggle to get her traditional Chinese parents to accept her Kiwi…
Nothing Trivial (TV Series) (2011): Feat. Shane Cortese, Tandi Wright, Blair Strang…; An agreeable and endearingly performed 'singles' comedy by way of modern day Auckland, centred on the romantic hang ups of five friends who compete…
Off Hours, The (2011): Dir. Megan Griffiths
Feat. Amy Seimetz, Ross Partridge, Scoot McNairy; Downbeat, deliberately–paced indie about a directionless waitress working the night shift at a roadside diner in a small, industrial town who…
One Day (2011): Dir. Lone Scherfig
Feat. Anne Hathaway, Jim Sturgess, Patricia Clarkson…; Tear–duct bursting romance based on the best–selling novel follows a couple's relationship as it flits between friendship and romance.
Pan Am (TV Series) (2011-2012): Feat. Margot Robbie, Christina Ricci, Karine Vanasse…; Named for the iconic Pan American World Airways, this fictionalised period drama series revolves around the stories of the pilots and stewardesses of…
Red Riding Hood (2011): Dir. Catherine Hardwicke
Feat. Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Billy Burke…; Amanda Seyfried plays the eponymous fairytale heroine lusted after by a sinister werewolf in this deliriously overheated horror–fantasy pitched…
Remembrance (Die Verlorene Zeit) (2011): Dir. Anna Justice; A powerful, decades long Holocaust tale of two lovers who endure the horrors of concentration camps, only to be separated by the chaos of the war.
Restless (2011): Dir. Gus Van Sant
Feat. Mia Wasikowska, Henry Hopper, Ryo Kase…; Languid tween romance from dir. Gus Van Sant, about a terminally ill girl (Wasikowska) who falls in love with an eccentric boy with a compulsion for…
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (2011): Dir. Lasse Hallstrom
Feat. Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt, Kristin Scott Thomas; Lasse Hallstrom directs this light–headed romantic comedy about a British businesswoman and a doctor recruited to project manage a Sheikh's…
Take This Waltz (2011): Dir. Sarah Polley
Feat. Michelle Williams, Seth Rogen, Luke Kirby…; Sarah Polley (AWAY FROM HER) directs Michelle Williams in this soft–spoken indie about a happily married woman who falls for her next door…
Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 1 (2011): Dir. Bill Condon
Feat. Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner…; Penultimate installment of the Gothic fantasy phenomenon teases out the conclusion to the romantic saga in lucrative and popular fashion with Bella…
Water for Elephants (2011): Dir. Francis Lawrence
Feat. Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz…; Polished romantic drama set in The Great Depression with Pattinson finding love and tragedy after joining the circus. Handsomely mounted weepie…
Weekend (2011): Dir. Andrew Haigh
Feat. Tom Cullen, Chris New, Kieran Hardcastle; A thematically rich, dramatically articulate gay romance between a semi–closeted man and a free–spirited cynic who casually hook up over…
Your Sister's Sister (2011): Dir. Lynn Shelton
Feat. Emily Blunt, Rosemarie DeWitt, Mark Duplass; A note–perfect indie drama from the dir. of HUMPDAY, this 'chick flick' may well appeal as much to male audiences with its engaging cast and…
3 (Three) (2010): Dir. Tom Tykwer
Feat. Sophie Rois, Sebastian Schipper, Devid Striesow; Dir. Tom Tykwer energises this simple love story of a forty–something couple who fall for the same man with the frenetic visual and narrative…
After the Break Up (Break Ke Baad) (2010): Dir. Danish Aslam
Feat. Imran Khan, Deepika Padukone, Sharmila Tagore…; Two of India's most popular young stars feature in this coming–of–age story about an independent–minded woman who takes a small…
Angele and Tony (2010): Dir. Alix Delaporte
Feat. Clotilde Hesme, Gregory Gadebois, Evelyne Didi; This quality, character–driven courtship between a prostitute with a past and a plainspoken fisherman successfully plays down obvious emotion…
Charlie St. Cloud (2010): Dir. Burr Steers
Feat. Zac Efron, Amanda Crew, Charlie Tahan…; Mawkish Zac Efron vehicle finds the former teen heartthrob overreaching for emotion and pathos in this story of a young man’s devastation after his…
Dear John (2010): Dir. Lasse Hallstrom
Feat. Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Richard Jenkins…; Another two–hankie tearjerker from the pages of Nicholas Sparks tells of the everlasting romance between an Iraq–bound solider (Tatum)…
Eat Pray Love (2010): Dir. Ryan Murphy
Feat. Julia Roberts, Javier Bardem, Billy Crudup…; Julia Roberts plays the divorced globetrotter of Elizabeth Gilbert's best–selling memoir in this gastro tiki tour of Italy, India, and Bali.…
Elena Undone (2010): Dir. Nicole Conn
Feat. Necar Zadegan, Traci Dinwiddie, Gary Weeks; Lesbian drama about a pastor's wife who falls in love with a well–known writer. The ensuing secret relationship upends her marriage just as she…
Every Day (2010): Dir. Richard Levine
Feat. Liev Schreiber, Helen Hunt, Carla Gugino…; Domestic comedy about a television writer whose life goes haywire when his wife's estranged father comes to stay.
Home By Christmas (2010): Dir. Gaylene Preston
Feat. Tony Barry, Martin Henderson, Chelsie Preston-Crayford; The director of WAR STORIES returns to the subject for this deeply personal yet affecting docu–drama focusing this time on a single story…
How Do You Know (2010): Dir. James L. Brooks
Feat. Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson…; A softball star (Witherspoon) past her prime contemplates the future while flittering romantically between a major league baseballer (Wilson) and a…
Jack Goes Boating (2010): Dir. Philip Seymour Hoffman
Feat. Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Ryan, John Ortiz…; Philip Seymour Hoffman makes his directorial debut with this simple, affecting drama of a lonely limo driver’s quest for love and…
Kiss Me Again (Baciami ancora) (2010): Dir. Gabriel Muccino
Feat. Stefano Accorsi, Vittoria Puccini, Pierfrancesco Favino…; The lives of young Italians struggling with issues of marriage, parenthood, and relationships are revisited in this pleasant sequel to THE LAST KISS.…
Last Night (2010): Dir. Massy Tadjedin
Feat. Keira Knightley, Sam Worthington, Eva Mendes…; Glossy examination of fidelity with a married couple apart for the night finding themselves straying into temptation. Hamstrung by overt metaphor…
Last Song, The (2010): Dir. Julie Anne Robinson
Feat. Miley Cyrus, Greg Kinnear, Bobby Coleman; Sappy dramatic vehicle for Miley Cyrus sees the teenybopper upended from the big city and forced to stay with her estranged father in a small beach…
Letters to Juliet (2010): Dir. Gary Winick
Feat. Amanda Seyfried, Vanessa Redgrave, Gael Garcia Bernal…; Picturesque romance set in Verona, the city of Romeo and Juliet, where a young American tourist discovers a love letter that will change her life.
Love and Other Drugs (2010): Dir. Edward Zwick
Feat. Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, Judy Greer…; Winning romance with a charismatic pharmaceutical salesman falling for a free–spirited woman with a tragic secret.
Love Story (2010): Dir. Florian Habicht
Feat. Florian Habicht; Ebullient Kiwi filmmaker Florian Habicht creates his own 'New York Story' by turning his camera to a beautiful Russian model and his own creative…
Lullaby (Lullaby for Pi) (2010): Dir. Benoît Philippon
Feat. Rupert Friend, Clemence Poesy, Forest Whitaker; A jazz–playing, Some Like it Hot–idolizing drifter mourning the death of his soul mate strikes love with an idiosyncratic woman with a…
My Name is Khan (2010): Dir. Karan Johar
Feat. Shahrukh Khan, Kajol , Christopher B. Duncan; Well–meaning plea for racial tolerance with an Aspergers–afflicted Muslim detained in the U.S. as a terrorist and undertaking a journey…
Norwegian Wood (2010): Dir. Tran Anh Hung
Feat. Rinko Kikuchi, Ken'ichi Matsuyama, Kiko Mizuhara; Yearning, visually rapturous adaptation of Haruki Murakami’s widely read novel, about a devoted college student in the 60s whose relationships are…
Remember Me (2010): Dir. Allen Coulter
Feat. Robert Pattinson, Emilie de Ravin, Chris Cooper…; Two tissue weepy with Robert Pattinson giving great brood as a troubled youth who tentatively finds love with a girl with a tragic past. Standard…
Romantics, The (2010): Dir. Galt Niederhoffer
Feat. Anna Paquin, Katie Holmes, Josh Duhamel…; Low–key ensemble drama has seven close friends re–unite for a wedding, but long simmering romantic tensions threaten to tear their…
Room in Rome (Habitación en Roma) (2010): Dir. Julio Medem
Feat. Elena Anaya, Natasha Yarovenko, Enrico Lo Verso…; Erotic chronicle of a brief encounter between two women set almost entirely within the confines of a hotel room. More porno–profundity from…
Sasha (2010): Dir. Dennis Todorovic
Feat. Sasa Kekez, Predrag Bjelac, Ljubisa Gruicic; Compassionate gay drama about a Yugoslav–German piano prodigy who is trying to gain admittance to a prestigious music school but who becomes…
Step Up 3 (Step Up 3-D) (2010): Dir. Jon Chu
Feat. Rick Malambri, Adam G. Sevani, Sharni Vinson…; Hormonal third entry in the back–popping dance series has a tight–knit group of street dancers pitted against the world's best…
Summer Coda (2010): Dir. Richard Gray
Feat. Rachael Taylor, Alex Dimitriades, Jackie Weaver…; Rewarding Aussie romance, set along the banks of the Murray River, centres on an itinerant young woman (Taylor) who seeks solace with an orchardist…
Twilight: Eclipse (2010): Dir. David Slade
Feat. Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner…; Torrid third installment in the saga has Bella forced to choose between Edward and Jacob as a series of mysterious killings grip Seattle.
Amelia (2009): Dir. Mira Nair
Feat. Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor…; A conventional retelling of the Amelia Earhart legend, examining the ground–breaking aviator’s turbulent love life during the years between…
An Education (2009): Dir. Lone Scherfig
Feat. Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina…; An assured and alluring coming–of–age drama set in swinging sixties London (1961 in fact), with teenage ingenue Carey Mulligan falling in…
Breaking Upwards (2009): Dir. Daryl Wein
Feat. Daryl Wein, Zoe Lister Jones, Julie White…; Skittish romantic comedy in which a couple attempt to end their moribund relationship gradually, beginning with three days off each week. Drawing…
Bright Star (2009): Dir. Jane Campion
Feat. Ben Whishaw, Abbie Cornish, Paul Schneider…; A resounding return–to–form for dir. Jane Campion, who is in full flourish with this delicate and deeply romantic tale of the doomed love…
Cairo Time (2009): Dir. Ruba Nadda
Feat. Patricia Clarkson, Alexander Siddig; A sturdy, old–fashioned picaresque romance set in the heat of modern day Cairo, with Patricia Clarkson as an American wife who falls under the…
Cheri (2009): Dir. Stephen Frears
Feat. Michelle Pfeiffer, Rupert Friend, Kathy Bates…; Gorgeously–appointed period drama set in the "Belle Époque" of 1900s Paris, focused on a love affair between a retired courtesan (Pfeiffer)…
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky (Coco & Igor) (2009): Dir. Jan Kounen
Feat. Anna Mouglalis, Mads Mikkelsen; Fashion icon Coco Chanel and composer Igor Stravinsky share a passionate, illicit love affair in this lavish period romance, which more or less takes…
From Beginning to End (Do Começo ao Fim) (2009): Dir. Aluizio Abranches
Feat. João Gabriel Vasconcellos, Rafael Cardoso, Júlia Lemmertz; Controversial Brazilian ode to incestuous half–brothers that's evocatively shot and titillatingly steamy but strangely coy on the consequences.
Giulia Doesn't Go Out at Night (2009): Dir. Giuseppe Piccioni
Feat. Valerio Mastandrea, Valeria Golino, Sonia Bergamasco; Understated romantic drama with an enigmatic Golina as the titular character, a swimming instructor with a dark secret who embarks on a romance with…
Good Guy, The (2009): Dir. Julio DePietro
Feat. Alexis Bledel, Scott Porter, Bryan Greenberg…; Unusually stringent romantic comedy set against the back drop of Wall Street where an offbeat love triangle develops. Dir. De Pietro – a former…
Greta (According to Greta) (2009): Dir. Nancy Bardawil
Feat. Hilary Duff, Ellen Burstyn, Melissa Leo…; Hilary Duff, in a serious turn, delivers a commendable performance as a suicidal teen sent to her grandparents house for the summer. Ellen Burstyn…
Leaving (Partir) (2009): Dir. Catherine Corsini
Feat. Kristin Scott Thomas, Sergi Lopez, Yvan Attal; Doctor's wife and mother–of–two Kristin Scott Thomas falls unrelentingly for a blue–collar ex–con in this steamy, captivating…
Love Happens (2009): Dir. Brandon Camp
Feat. Jennifer Aniston, Aaron Eckhart, Martin Sheen…; Chintzy romance with Eckhart as a self help author struggling to cope with the death of his wife and a burgeoning romance with a floral designer.…
Many Kisses Later (Ex) (2009): Dir. Fausto Brizzi
Feat. Claudia Gerini, Flavio Insinna, Silvio Orlando; Breezy rom–com –a smash hit in Italy– follows six couples from Chistmas to Valetine's Day and their various entanglements.…
New York, I Love You (2009): Dir. Fatih Akin, Yvan Attal, Allen Hughes
Feat. Bradley Cooper, Andy Garcia, Hayden Christensen…; Not to be mistaken as a cynical American remake of PARIS, JE'TAIME, this – on the contrary – naturally extends the short–story…
Personal Effects (2009): Dir. David Hollander
Feat. Michelle Pfeiffer, Ashton Kutcher, Kathy Bates; Perfunctory dramatic vehicle for Ashton Kutcher and Michelle Pfeiffer who star as two disparate characters unexpectedly united while attending the…
Sea Purple, The (2009): Dir. Donatella Maiorca
Feat. Valeria Solarino, Isabella Ragonese, Ennio Fantastichini; Solid lesbian bodice–ripper centres on the eternal romance between two 19th century Sicilian women, destined to suffer for their forbidden…
Separation City (2009): Dir. Paul Middleditch
Feat. Joel Edgerton, Rhona Mitra, Danielle Cormack…; Kiwi comedy penned by satirical cartoonist Tom Scott , musing on the struggle of long–term relationships among a group of…
Someone I Loved (2009): Dir. Zabou Breitman
Feat. Daniel Auteuil, Marie-Josee Croze, Florence Loiret Caille…; Nuanced romantic drama with Auteuil reflecting on his great lost love while attempting to console his jilted daughter–in–law.
Time Traveler's Wife, The (2009): Dir. Robert Schwentke
Feat. Eric Bana, Rachel McAdams, Arliss Howard…; Eric Bana’s rare genetic disorder sees him thrown intermittently backwards in time, much to the despair of his frustrated wife (Rachel McAdams), in…
Twilight: New Moon (2009): Dir. Chris Weitz
Feat. Kristen Stewart, Taylor Lautner, Robert Pattinson…; Succulent second helping of the Stephanie Meyer vampire saga finds pasty Edward no longer able to protect his beloved Bella, fleeing the country and…
Unmade Beds (2009): Dir. Alexis Dos Santos
Feat. Fernando Tielve, Deborah Francois, Michiel Huisman…; In parallel stories, a Spanish boy and a French girl try to find meaningful connection while squatting in a London hipster neighbourhood in this…
Vintner's Luck, The (2009): Dir. Niki Caro
Feat. Keisha Castle-Hughes, Jeremie Renier, Gaspard Ulliel…; Contentious, opulent NZ–made adaptation of the much–loved Elizabeth Knox novel, ostensibly about the relationship between a guardian…
Young Victoria, The (2009): Dir. Jean-Marc Vallée
Feat. Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany…; Emily Blunt radiates in this elegant if corseted biopic of Queen Victoria's early years as she deals with royal power struggles while being wooed by…
5 Centimetres Per Second (Five Centimetres Per Second) (2008): Dir. Makoto Shinkai; Sublimely romantic animated feature divided into three separate episodes tracing the emotional journey of a teenage boy through to manhood, and the…
Australia (2008): Dir. Baz Luhrmann
Feat. Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, David Wenham…; Aussie golden boy Baz Luhrmann's larger–than–life epic sees an English aristocrat and cattle driver attempt to save an inherited outback…
Bride Flight (2008): Dir. Ben Sombogaart
Feat. Karina Smulders, Waldemar Torenstra, Anna Drijver…; New Zealand in the 1950's from a Dutch perspective makes this melodrama an intriguing, unique experience for Kiwi audiences, which also has the…
Brideshead Revisited (2008): Dir. Julian Jarrold
Feat. Matthew Goode, Ben Whishaw, Hayley Atwell…; Sound adaptation of Evelyn Waugh’s classic novel of illicit love in the realms of High Society, set against the backdrop of pre–WWII Britain.…
Butterfly Lovers (2008): Dir. Jingle Ma
Feat. Charlene Choi, Chun Wu, Ge Hu…; Martial arts 'M Butterfly' charts the afflictions that befall two lovers destined to always be parted. Gaudy, gender–bending romance from Hong…
Cloud 9 (Wolke 9) (2008): Dir. Andreas Dresen
Feat. Ursula Werner, Horst Rehberg, Horst Westphal; A frank yet sensitive depiction of a passionate love affair between a man and a married woman in their autumn years. Using a methodology similar…
Consuming Passion: 100 Years Of Mills And Boon (TV Mini-series) (2008): Feat. Jodie Whittaker, Daniel Mays, Patrick Kennedy; One–off 'docudrama' made to celebrate the centenary of romance publishing house Mills & Boon focuses on interweaving stories of three women…
Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, The (2008): Dir. David Fincher
Feat. Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Tilda Swinton…; The screenwriter of FORREST GUMP expands upon F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story to tell the curious case of a man born on Armistice day as decrepit…
Duchess, The (2008): Dir. Saul Dibb
Feat. Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Charlotte Rampling…; Costume connoisseurs will rejoice in the splendour of Keira Knightley’s dazzling dresses and eye–catching cranial plumage in this depiction…
Edge of Love, The (2008): Dir. John Maybury
Feat. Keira Knightley, Sienna Miller, Cillian Murphy…; Atmospheric wartime romance based on the life of Welsh poet Dylan Thomas (Rhys) and his love for two free–spirited women who become firm…
Elegy (2008): Dir. Isabel Coixet
Feat. Penelope Cruz, Ben Kingsley, Dennis Hopper…; Following THE HUMAN STAIN comes another effort to translate revered American writer Phillip Roth to the screen. This time it's his novel "The Dying…
French Film (2008): Dir. Jackie Oudney
Feat. Hugh Bonneville, Victoria Hamilton, Douglas Henshall…; Affable British rom–com about a jaded journalist who is forced to reassess his views on romance after interviewing a French…
Gigantic (2008): Dir. Matt Aselton
Feat. Paul Dano, Zooey Deschanel, Edward Asner…; Whimsical, self–conscious indie comedy about a mattress salesman (Paul Dano) whose plan to adopt a baby from China is interrupted when a women…
Good Dick (2008): Dir. Marianna Palka
Feat. Marianna Palka, Jason Ritter, Martin Starr…; A romantic–comedy fraught with emotional damage, this unique American indie follows the strange yet touching relationship between a troubled,…
He's Just Not That Into You (2008): Dir. Ken Kwapis
Feat. Jennifer Aniston, Ben Affleck, Drew Barrymore…; Convoluted ensemble piece based on a self–help book focusing on a group of 20–somethings trying to navigate their way through love's…
Keith (2008): Dir. Todd Kessler
Feat. Jesse McCartney, Elisabeth Harnois, Margo Harshman…; Efficient teen weepie with pop star McCartney as a rebel with a tragic secret and Harnois as the prim preppy who falls for his broody charms.
Last Chance Harvey (2008): Dir. Joel Hopkins
Feat. Dustin Hoffman, Emma Thompson, Eileen Atkins…; Simple romance stars Dustin Hoffman as a down–and–out divorcee whose life seems to be going nowhere until he meets the equally…
Lost in Austen (TV Mini-Series) (2008): Feat. Jemima Rooper, Alex Kingston, Hugh Bonneville…; Fizzy twist on PRIDE AND PREJUDICE has an ardent Jane Austen fan, living in present day London, swapping places with Austen's fictional creation…
Love in the Time of Cholera (2008): Dir. Mike Newell
Feat. Javier Bardem, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Benjamin Bratt…; Javier Bardem's outstanding performance cannot shore up this florid, largely faithful adaptation of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's universally adored novel…
Lovely, Still (2008): Dir. Nicholas Fackler
Feat. Martin Landau, Ellen Burstyn, Adam Scott…; As good as they are here, acting legends Martin Landau and Ellen Burstyn probably deserve better as the late–life love birds of this…
Mistresses (TV Series) (2008): Feat. Sarah Parish, Sharon Small, Orla Brady…; Provocative Brit series featuring four 30 something friends – a doctor, 9/11 widow, party gal and married mistress that get themselves into all…
Nick And Nora's Infinite Playlist (2008): Dir. Peter Sollett
Feat. Michael Cera, Kat Dennings, Aaron Yoo; "Geeky Dreamboat" Michael Cera is typecast again in this pleasing but trifle indie flick centred around two high school seniors who bond over music…
Nights in Rodanthe (2008): Dir. George C. Wolfe
Feat. Diane Lane, Richard Gere, Viola Davis; Tears–and–tissues adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks novel of two souls at a crossroads in their muddled lives who end up finding solace…
Only (2008): Dir. Ingrid Veninger
Feat. Jacob Switzer, Elena Hudgins Lyle; Delicate Canadian coming–of–age drama focused around the relationship between two 12–year–olds who get to know one another…
Other Boleyn Girl, The (2008): Dir. Justin Chadwick
Feat. Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana…; Blue–ribbon adaptation of the best–selling novel by Philippa Gregory, which tells the compulsive true story of sisters Anne and Mary…
Our Beloved Month of August (Aquele Querido Mês de Agosto) (2008): Dir. Miguel Gomes
Feat. Sonia Bandeira, Fabio Oliveira; Beautifully idiosyncratic film blending documentary with drama, from distinctive Portuguese director Miguel Gomes (TABU). A summery and romantic…
Palermo Shooting (2008): Dir. Wim Wenders
Feat. Campino , Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Dennis Hopper; A wild–living, world renowned German photographer travels to Sicily seeking a break from his past and encounters a beautiful woman and Dennis…
Paris (2008): Dir. Cedric Klapisch
Feat. Juliette Binoche, Romain Duris, Mélanie Laurent…; A sweet–natured, if rather slight romantic dramedy, weaving in and out of the lives of a diverse set of heart–worn and heart–won…
Passchendaele (2008): Dir. Paul Gross
Feat. Paul Gross, Caroline Dhavernas; Paul Gross (DUE SOUTH) directs and stars in this impressive wartime drama based on the exploits of the 1st Canadian Division during WWI.
Reader, The (2008): Dir. Stephen Daldry
Feat. Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, David Kross; Kate Winslet won an Oscar for her performance here as a German house–frau in this drama of post–war trauma, with Ralph Fiennes recalling…
Red Baron, The (Der rote Baron) (2008): Dir. Nikolai Müllerschön
Feat. Maxim Mehmet, Til Schweiger, Joseph Fiennes…; Biographical melodrama focused around Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the celebrated showboating WW1 pilot. Thrilling airborne set–pieces make up…
Salvation (2008): Dir. Paul Cox
Feat. Wendy Hughes, Bruce Myles, Natasha Novak…; Dir. Paul Cox delivers the right amount of tenderness and wickedness in this wry Australian comedy, about a downtrodden husband who cannot connect…
Second-Hand Wedding (Secondhand Wedding) (2008): Dir. Paul Murphy
Feat. Holly Shanahan, Geraldine Brophy, Patrick Wilson…; Sweet–natured Kiwi suburban rom–com that was a surprise hit at the local box office, with large audiences responding to a highly…
Sense and Sensibility (TV Mini-series) (2008): Dir. John Alexander
Feat. David Morrissey, Janet McTeer, Hattie Morahan…; Another BBC adaptation of the Jane Austen novel centered around the Dashwood sisters and their search for love. Adapted by Andrew Davies of BLEAK…
Seven Pounds (2008): Dir. Gabriel Muccino
Feat. Will Smith, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson…; Will Smith pairs up again with dir. Muccino (THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS) to play a man who attempts to save the lives of seven strangers in order to…
Show of Hands (2008): Dir. Anthony McCarten
Feat. Melanie Lynskey, Craig Hall, Stephen Lovatt; Quaint but contrived Kiwi rom–dram set in New Plymouth in which a grab–bag of townsfolk compete for new 4–wheel drive by keeping…
Smart People (2008): Dir. Noam Murro
Feat. Dennis Quaid, Sarah Jessica Parker, Elliot Page…; Dunderheaded dramedy focused on a widowed, misanthropic professor (Quaid) who awakens to life again after a hit to the head, only to discover that…
Step Up 2: The Streets (2008): Dir. Jon Chu
Feat. Briana Evigan, Robert Hoffman, Adam G. Sevani…; Sequel to the hip–hop dance hit flick following a group of young street dancers battling for supremacy. Well–orchestrated…
Tess Of The D'Urbervilles (TV Mini-series) (2008): Feat. Gemma Arterton, Eddie Redmayne, Ruth Jones; Sound adaptation of Thomas Hardy's classic tragedy following Tess, the poor peasant girl who becomes an outcast after falling pregnant to her rich…
Tru Loved (2008): Dir. Stewart Wade
Feat. Najarra Townsend, Jane Lynch, Alexandra Paul; Recently relocated from San Francisco to conservative suburbia by her lesbian mothers, Tru struggles like all teens to fit in and find love, but her…
Twilight (2008): Dir. Catherine Hardwicke
Feat. Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Billy Burke…; The first installment of the uber–popular book franchise (by Stephanie Meyer) sees lonely teenage girl Bella fall in love with Edward, a…
Two Lovers (2008): Dir. James Gray
Feat. Joaquin Phoenix, Gwyneth Paltrow, Vinessa Shaw…; Joaquin Phoenix (in reputedly his final film) re–teams with dir. James Gray for this acutely observed ‘anti–romance’, about a bipolar…
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (Vicky Christina Barcelona) (2008): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Scarlett Johansson, Rebecca Hall, Javier Bardem…; Woody Allen proves he hasn't lost his touch with this refreshing and vital rom–com that follows two American gal–pals who fall for the…
Across the Universe (2007): Dir. Julie Taymor
Feat. Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, Joe Anderson…; Thirty–three tunes from the Beatles songbook are excitably re–constituted for this lavish 'jukebox' musical that threads together a story…
Adrift in Manhattan (2007): Dir. Alfredo De Villa
Feat. Heather Graham, Victor Rasuk, William Baldwin…; Character drama set in New York where three lonely urban–types – grieving optometrist, elderly painter and obsessive photographer…
An Old Mistress (Une vieille maîtresse/The Last Mistress) (2007): Dir. Catherine Breillat
Feat. Asia Argento, Fu’ad Ait Aattou, Caroline Ducey…; Fervent, visually opulent costume drama finds feminist firebrand Catherine Breillat tempering her sexually explicit tendencies to present a…
Angel (2007): Dir. Francois Ozon
Feat. Charlotte Rampling, Sam Neill, Lucy Russell…; Pretty costume drama follows the fortunes of an aspiring lady writer in Edwardian England. Based on the novel by Elizabeth Taylor (MRS PALFREY AT…
Away From Her (2007): Dir. Sarah Polley
Feat. Julie Christie, Gordon Pinsent, Olympia Dukakis; Julie Christie stars in this carefully observed drama about a woman with Alzheimer's, her husband, and the tragedy of the disease's 'long goodbye',…
Becoming Jane (2007): Dir. Julian Jarrold
Feat. Anne Hathaway, James McAvoy, Julie Walters…; The early chapters of Jane Austen’s literary life are dramatised in this rose–tinted biopic of her formative romantic…
Before the Rains (2007): Dir. Santosh Sivan
Feat. Linus Roache, Rahul Bose, Nandita Das; Steamy tropical melodrama made under the "Merchant Ivory" banner, set in southern India against the backdrop of a growing nationalist movement. A…
Black Snake Moan (2007): Dir. Craig Brewer
Feat. Christina Ricci, Samuel L. Jackson, Justin Timberlake; Christina Ricci stars as a scrawny, Southern–fried nympho whose demons get her deep into trouble in the deep, deep South the minute her doting…
Blue State (2007): Dir. Marshall Lewy
Feat. Anna Paquin, Breckin Meyer, Nick Ouellette; Politically skewed road movie following an ardent liberal who makes good on a drunken promise to move to Canada if George Bush wins the…
Broken English (2007): Dir. Zoe Cassavetes
Feat. Parker Posey, Drea De Matteo, Melvil Poupaud…; The usually zany Parker Posey searches for love in this supple, melancholic romantic comedy, here playing a Manhattan thirty–something as yet…
Caramel (Sukkar banat) (2007): Dir. Nadine Labaki
Feat. Nadine Labaki; Charming Lebanese soap opera with a social conscience, the latest in an emerging wave of dissenting Middle Eastern dramas divulges the stifled lives…
Chaos Theory (2007): Dir. Marcos Siega
Feat. Ryan Reynolds, Emily Mortimer, Stuart Townsend…; Ryan Reynolds is an obsessive perfectionist whose precise index–carded existence is turned inside out, with fairly predictable 'chaotic'…
Closing the Ring (2007): Dir. Richard Attenborough
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Christopher Plummer, Mischa Barton…; Richard Attenborough–directed romance set both in the '40s and present–day, following the wartime history of a ring and an unbreakable…
Death Defying Acts (2007): Dir. Gillian Armstrong
Feat. Guy Pearce, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Saoirse Ronan…; Handsomely mounted period romp from Aussie director Gillian Armstrong in which the illustrious escape–artist Harry Houdini (Pearce) becomes…
Elvis And Annabelle (2007): Dir. Will Geiger
Feat. Max Minghella, Blake Lively, Joe Mantegna…; Oddball indie romance sees a beauty queen (Lively) die in an accident, only to share an unlikely romance with a young man when she is unexpectedly…
Evening (2007): Dir. Lajos Koltai
Feat. Claire Danes, Toni Collette, Vanessa Redgrave…; All–star, womanly melodrama unveils the secret life of an ailing matriarch (Redgrave), whose remembrance of an intense, tragic love fifty years…
Far North (2007): Dir. Asif Kapadia
Feat. Michelle Yeoh, Michelle Krusiec, Sean Bean…; On the Arctic tundra a starving stranger is thrown upon the charity of two Inuit women, driven to isolation by fear of prophecy and a violent past,…
Feast of Love (2007): Dir. Robert Benton
Feat. Morgan Freeman, Greg Kinnear, Radha Mitchell…; Sage old bean Morgan Freeman dishes out romantic advice to unlucky–in–love Greg Kinnear and others in this feelgood drama about hopeless…
Georgia Rule (2007): Dir. Garry Marshall
Feat. Jane Fonda, Lindsay Lohan, Felicity Huffman…; Jane Fonda leads three generations of strong–minded females in this uneasy mix of comedy and drama. Georgia (Fonda), the…
Good Night, The (2007): Dir. Jake Paltrow
Feat. Penelope Cruz, Martin Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow…; Warped amorous comedy focused on a fed–up fella in the midst of a mid–life breakdown (played by Martin Freeman of THE OFFICE fame) who…
Gossip Girl (TV Series) (2007): Feat. Blake Lively, Taylor Momsen, Leighton Meester; Flashy teen series centred on a group of well–heeled New York prep school kids whose main focus in life is a blog written by 'Gossip Girl'…
Guru (2007): Dir. Mani Ratnam
Feat. Aishwarya Rai, Mithun Chakraborty, Abhishek Bachchan; Rewarding rags–to–riches drama relates the story of an entrepreneurial young boy from a village in Gujarat who became the biggest…
Hallam Foe (Mister Foe) (2007): Dir. David Mackenzie
Feat. Jamie Bell, Sophia Myles, Ciaran Hinds…; Jamie Bell plays the film's titular voyeur, a compulsive rooftop snoop in pursuit of justice and love, in this breezy, twisted romance. Fleeing…
Hunting and Gathering (2007): Dir. Claude Berri
Feat. Audrey Tautou, Guillaume Canet, Laurent Stocker…; A waif–thin artist/cleaner (Tautou) gains a new lease on life after a chance encounter with a dignified stutterer in this heartwarming lost…
In Search Of A Midnight Kiss (2007): Dir. Alex Holdridge
Feat. Scoot McNairy, Sara Simmonds, Brian McGuire; Restoring our faith in the unreliable indie rom–com genre, this terrific example takes place on New Years Eve in Los Angeles, where two…
In the Land of Women (2007): Dir. Jon Kasdan
Feat. Olympia Dukakis, Meg Ryan, Kristen Stewart…; Relationship drama centering on struggling writer Adam Brody (THE OC) and the neighbouring family of women he encounters when he moves in with his…
Jane Austen Book Club, The (2007): Dir. Robin Swicord
Feat. Kathy Baker, Maria Bello, Emily Blunt…; A refreshing 'click flick' in which six Californians convene to discuss the literary works of Jane Austen and discover their own lives are starting…
Kaidan (2007): Dir. Hideo Nakata
Feat. Kumiko Aso; Period J–horror from the director of THE RING relays the ghostly tale of a samurai’s son attempting to escape an ancient curse laid on his…
Last Magic Show, The (2007): Dir. Andy Conlan
Feat. Andy Conlan, Jade Collins, Michael Hurst; Gothic New Zealand drama with a hint of romance follows a disturbed magician searching for his next great career move and a replacement assistant…
Love Comes Lately (2007): Dir. Jan Schutte
Feat. Otto Tausig, Caroline Aaron, Olivia Thirlby…; This well–spun octogenarian yarn dwells on the boundless sexual pursuits of an elderly cad (Tausig), whose lust for life jeopardises the…
Manual of Love 2 (Capitoli successivi) (2007): Dir. Giovanni Veronesi
Feat. Carlo Verdone, Monica Bellucci, Riccardo Scamarcio; Monica Bellucci climbs abroad in this wry sequel. Director Giovanni Veronesi delves once again into the mysterious recesses of the human heart and…
My Blueberry Nights (2007): Dir. Wong Kar-Wai
Feat. Norah Jones, Jude Law, David Strathairn…; Urban romantic Wong Kar–wai transposes the style and erstwhile longing of his Hong Kong mood pieces to the United States, with songbird Norah…
No Reservations (2007): Dir. Scott Hicks
Feat. Catherine Zeta-Jones, Aaron Eckhart, Abigail Breslin; US remake of German foodie rom–com MOSTLY MARTHA that’s inferior to its predecessor, yet appetizing enough in garnish (attractive…
P.S. I Love You (2007): Dir. Richard LaGravenese
Feat. Hilary Swank, Gerard Butler, Lisa Kudrow…; Teary afterlife romance from the dir. of LIVING OUT LOUD, about a series of love notes left for a grieving widow (Swank) by her deceased…
Partition (2007): Dir. Vic Sarin
Feat. Jimi Mistry, Kristin Kreuk, Neve Campbell…; Epic cross–cultural romantic drama set during the partition of India and Pakistan, told through the touching relationship between an ex British…
Persuasion (2007): Dir. Adrian Shergold
Feat. Sally Hawkins, Rupert Penry-Jones, Alice Krige…; Brisk, sombre–toned ITV production of the Austen romance about the attempt to re–kindle a romance, previously doomed by class division…
Romance Of Astrea and Ceadon, The (2007): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Stéphanie Crayencour, Andy Gillet, Cécile Cassel…; Eric Rohmer, master of the seasonal romantic tryst, steps out with this playful adaptation of a 17th century French novel, in which a handsome…
Room with a View, A (2007): Dir. Nicholas Renton
Feat. Elaine Cassidy, Rafe Spall, Timothy Spall…; Sumptuous remake of the 1985 film, based on the E.M. Forster novel, of a daring young woman made to choose between two desirable suitors after moving…
Saawariya (Beloved) (2007): Dir. Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Feat. Ranbir Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor; Notable for being the first mainstream Hindi movie to be funded by a U.S. studio, this stylistically decadent romance of unrequited love and desire…
Silk (2007): Dir. Francois Girard
Feat. Michael Pitt, Keira Knightley, Koji Yakusho…; Sensuous period drama based on the popular Alessandro Baricco novel about a married silkworm smuggler who becomes infatuated with a local woman…
Starting Out in the Evening (2007): Dir. Andrew Wagner
Feat. Frank Langella, Lauren Ambrose, Lili Taylor…; An aging, all–but–forgotten author (Langella) finds himself the object of an eager grad student’s attention when she decides to make…
Stomp the Yard (2007): Dir. Sylvain White
Feat. Columbus Short; A stomping ghetto melodrama that follows a gangbanger's transformation into a champion hip–hop krump dancer, set in a fictional all–black…
This Kiss (2007): Dir. Kylie Eddy
Feat. Melanie Lockman, Tamsin Gatewood; Drama about the relationship between two women, best friends since childhood but torn apart by a heartbreaking incident. One has become a successful…
Unfinished Sky (2007): Dir. Peter Duncan
Feat. William McInnes, Monic Hendrickx; Cross–cultural Australian romantic drama, in which a widowed farmer discovers a distressed Afghani refugee on his property, who he lets into…
Visitor, The (2007): Dir. Tom McCarthy
Feat. Richard Jenkins, Hiam Abbass, Marian Seldes; Compassionate, beautifully–measured tale of a widowed college professor whose banal mid–life finds renewed joy (and heartbreak) after he…
Waiting Room, The (2007): Dir. Roger Goldby
Feat. Anne-Marie Duff, Ralf Little, Rupert Graves…; Brit romantic drama follows two strangers whose accidental meeting causes them to believe in love at first sight, however first they must face the…
World Unseen, The (2007): Dir. Shamim Sarif
Feat. Sheetal Sheth, Lisa Ray; Actors Lisa Rayand and Sheetal Sheth team up again for director Shamim Sarif (I CAN'T THINK STRAIGHT) in this beautiful depiction of a lesbian love…
Year of the Dog (2007): Dir. Mike White
Feat. Laura Dern, Peter Sarsgaard, Regina King…; This sensitive comedy–drama about a woman whose life falls to pieces when her pet beagle dies, is the directorial debut of Mike White, writer…
Youth Without Youth (2007): Dir. Francis Ford Coppola
Feat. Tim Roth, Alexandra Maria Lara, Bruno Ganz; Joining a recent glut of Dorian Gray–like fantasies, this Francis Ford Coppola comeback (following a 10 year sabbatical) centres on a Romanian…
A Good Year (2006): Dir. Ridley Scott
Feat. Russell Crowe, Marion Cotillard, Albert Finney…; Russell Crowe plays workaholic bonds–dealer who inherits a vineyard in Provence and discovers the easy life in this lightweight tale of…
Bella (2006): Dir. Alejandro Gomez Monteverde
Feat. Eduardo Verastegui, Tammy Blanchard; Sweet–natured, unconventional romantic drama which follows one day in life of a Hispanic chef in New York City, and his relationship with a…
Coeurs (Private Fears in Public Places) (2006): Dir. Alain Resnais
Feat. Sabine Azema, Laura Morante, Pierre Arditi…; Romantic French drama with a vulnerable edge explores the modern dilemmas of loneliness and adoration through the lives of six alienated Parisians…
Crown Prince, The (TV Mini-series) (Kronprinz Rudolf) (2006): Dir. Robert Dornhelm
Feat. Max von Thun, Vittoria Puccini, Klaus Maria Brandauer…; Sumptuous historical Austrian mini–series based on the Crown Prince's doomed love affair with a baroness, that eventually requires the pair to…
Don't Worry, I'm Fine (Je Vais Bien, Ne T'en Fais Pas) (2006): Dir. Philippe Lioret
Feat. Mélanie Laurent; Understated French drama centres on a distraught young woman's search for her twin brother after being told he has run away from the family…
Eden (2006): Dir. Michael Hofmann
Feat. Josef Ostendorf, Charlotte Roche; Charming romance revolves around an eccentric chef, and a random encounter with a mother trapped in a monotonous relationship. Fans of…
Golden Door, The (Nuovomondo) (2006): Dir. Emanuele Crialese
Feat. Charlotte Gainsbourg, Vincenzo Amato; Award–winning Italian drama from the dir. of RESPIRO follows the fortunes of a family of dirt–poor Sicilian peasants, from their homeland…
Hottest State, The (2006): Dir. Ethan Hawke
Feat. Ethan Hawke, Mark Webber, Laura Linney…; A young Texan actor on the make in NYC obsesses about his ex, post their heady trip to Mexico, in this drama of youthful narcissism and lurve.…
Illusionist, The (2006): Dir. Neil Burger
Feat. Edward Norton, Jessica Biel, Paul Giamatti…; Edward Norton plays an enigmatic magician who courts a Viennese Dutchness (Biel) with the art of illusion in this lush and mystical period…
Jane Eyre (TV Mini-Series) (2006): Dir. Susanna White
Feat. Toby Stephens, Ruth Wilson; Commendable mini–series version of the classic Charlotte Bronte tale of a headstrong governess who falls madly in love with her employer.…
Lady Chatterley (2006): Dir. Pascale Ferran
Feat. Hippolyte Girardot, Marina Hands, Jean-Louise Coulloc'h; Sensuous, heartrendingly tender French/Belgian adaptation of an alternate version of D.H. Lawrence's once notorious novel 'Lady Chatterley's Lover'…
Lake House, The (2006): Dir. Alejandro Agresti
Feat. Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock; Languid, high–concept romance teaming SPEED–buddies Sandra Bullock and Keaua Reeves as would–be soul mates exchanging love letters…
Last Kiss, The (2006): Dir. Tony Goldwyn
Feat. Zach Braff, Casey Affleck, Rachel Bilson…; Well–intentioned remake of Gabriel Muccino’s award–winning Italian melodrama, with Zach Braff as an architect lodged between…
Little Children (2006): Dir. Todd Field
Feat. Kate Winslet, Patrick Wilson, Jennifer Connelly; Kate Winslet goes all–American as a mildly desperate housewife, whose suburban idyll becomes unsettled when a convicted sex offender moves back…
LOL (2006): Dir. Joe Swanberg
Feat. Joe Swanberg, Kevin Bewersdorf, C. Mason Wells…; Humble "mumblecore" rom–com about relationships and technology, written, directed, produced and starring Joe Swanberg, the artist who is…
Miss Potter (2006): Dir. Chris Noonan
Feat. Renee Zellweger, Ewan McGregor, Emily Watson; Charming biopic tells the tale of Beatrix Potter – specifically the story of the woman behind the drawings – and her fixation from a…
Once (2006): Dir. John Carney
Feat. Glen Hansard, Marketa Irglova, Hugh Walsh; A gorgeous, understated paean to the transformative power of music, this unique, Irish independent follows the burgeoning relationship between a…
Painted Veil, The (2006): Dir. John Curran
Feat. Naomi Watts, Edward Norton, Toby Jones…; Haunting tragi–romance unveils the lives of a young English couple whose relocation to Shanghai and history of infidelity force them to…
Paris, Je T'aime (Paris, I Love You) (2006): Dir. Olivier Assayas, Gurinder Chadha, Sylvain Chomet
Feat. Fanny Ardant, Juliette Binoche, Steve Buscemi…; A prestige line–up of actors and filmmakers converge in this grand anthology of love letters to the city of romance. With each vignette…
Robin Hood (TV Series) (2006): Feat. Jonas Armstrong, Lucy Griffiths, Richard Armitage…; The latest reincarnation of Robin Hood is a lavish, broadly appealing small screen BBC revival of the Sherwood legend. All of Robin’s friends and…
Save The Last Dance 2 (2006): Dir. David Petrarca
Feat. Izabella Miko, Jacqueline Bisset; Not the last dance, but a sequel reprising the aspirations of Sarah (now played by Izabella Miko), here on the verge of attending prestigious…
Science of Sleep, The (2006): Dir. Michel Gondry
Feat. Gael Garcia Bernal, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Emma de Caunes…; A delightfully self–conscious, self–indulged fantasy for cine–wizard Michel Gondry, the director's follow–up to ETERNAL…
Singer, The (Quand j'étais chanteur) (2006): Dir. Xavier Giannoli
Feat. Gerard Depardieu, Cecile De France, Mathieu Amalric; Gerard Depardieu works his rotund charm as a journeyman lounge singer, crooning his way through half–empty nightclubs while forging an unlikely…
Situation, The (2006): Dir. Philip Haas
Feat. Damian Lewis, Connie Nielsen, Mido Hadama; A noted fictional dramatisation of the Iraq conflict and its many complex participants and victims, this film interweaves a love triangle with…
Venus (2006): Dir. Roger Michell
Feat. Peter O'Toole, Jodie Whittaker, Leslie Phillips…; The writer and dir. of THE MOTHER reteam for a companion piece to that film, this time inverting its premise to detail a relationship between a…
Allegro (2005): Dir. Christoffer Boe
Feat. Ulrich Thomsen, Helena Christensen; Conceptually intriguing Danish sci–fi drama concerns a gifted concert pianist whose lack of intimacy leads to amnesia, forcing him to enter…
Angel-A (2005): Dir. Luc Besson
Feat. Jamel Debbouze, Rie Rasmussen; This sleek, stylized departure for dir. Luc Besson dabbles in an unlikely romance between a statuesque blonde (Rassmusen), and a nebbish, diminutive…
Bigger than the Sky (2005): Dir. Al Corley
Feat. John Corbett, Amy Smart, Sean Astin…; An innocuous if fitfully insightful drama about a sad–sack graphic designer (Thomas) who finds solace when he snags the lead role in a…
Brokeback Mountain (2005): Dir. Ang Lee
Feat. Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams…; A 'cause celebre' of recent cinema, this epic romantic drama is set around the terse and smouldering long–term love affair between two cowboys…
Conversations with Other Women (2005): Dir. Hans Canosa
Feat. Aaron Eckhart, Helena Bonham Carter; An innovative, bittersweet romantic two–hander that uses split screen for its entire running time to explore the contrasting…
DL Chronicles, The (TV Series) (2005): Feat. Damian T. Raven, Sheilynn Wactor, T. Ashanti Mozelle; Pioneering TV series about a group of gay African–American males who choose to lead double lives and attempt to keep their homosexual…
Down in the Valley (2005): Dir. David Jacobson
Feat. Edward Norton, Evan Rachel Wood, David Morse…; Slow–burn yet layered and intense drama has Edward Norton in fine form as a delusional 'cowboy' who charms his way into trouble via the heart…
Elizabethtown (2005): Dir. Cameron Crowe
Feat. Orlando Bloom, Kirsten Dunst, Susan Sarandon…; A fatefully 'personal film' from dir. Cameron Crowe, who is plainly given too much rope to tell this semi–autobiographical story. Orlando…
Elsa and Fred (2005): Dir. Marcos Carnevale
Feat. Manuel Alexandre, China Zorrilla; Exquisitely acted romance between a pair of senior citizens expresses enough tenderness and fragility to overcome its rather prosaic storyline.…
Gabrielle (2005): Dir. Patrice Chereau
Feat. Isabelle Huppert, Pascal Greggory; Absorbing adaptation of a Joseph Conrad short story coolly dissects the disintegrating marriage of a bourgeois French couple. Gorgeously framed…
Girl in the Cafe, The (2005): Dir. David Yates
Feat. Bill Nighy, Kelly MacDonald; Richard Curtis (LOVE ACTUALLY) penned this second–chances romance with a mild political streak, where an aging civil servant strikes up an…
Heartbreak Hotel (2005): Dir. Colin Nutley
Feat. Helena Bergstrom, Maria Lundqvist; Two recently–divorced Swedish women form an unlikely bond and navigate their way through the perils of singledom in this fresh–faced…
Ladies in Lavender (2005): Dir. Charles Dance
Feat. Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Natascha McElhone…; During the pre–WW2 period, a handsome Polish stranger (Bruhl) is washed up on a beach in Cornwall and taken into care by two aging spinster…
Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing and Charm School (2005): Dir. Randall Miller
Feat. Robert Carlyle, Marisa Tomei, John Goodman…; Old–fashioned melodrama, shading into elegaic whimsy, in which a widowed baker (Carlyle) helps and learns the story of a car crash victim…
Mistress of Spices (2005): Dir. Paul Mayeda Berges
Feat. Aishwarya Rai, Dylan McDermott, Ayesha Dharkar…; A beautiful Indian 'spice mistress' (Rai) emigrates to San Francisco, where she opens a dispensary, having to obey three special edicts –…
Mozart And The Whale (2005): Dir. Petter Naess
Feat. Josh Hartnett, Radha Mitchell, Gary Cole; An earnestly–conceived dramatic romance in which two Asperger's Syndrome (a form of autism) sufferers – a preoccupied taxi–driver…
Must Love Dogs (2005): Dir. Gary David Goldberg
Feat. Diane Lane, John Cusack, Elizabeth Perkins…; Candyfloss romcom sees a forty–something teacher (Lane) recover from a broken marriage with the help of her large Irish–American family,…
One Stays, One Leaves (L' un reste, l'autre part) (2005): Dir. Claude Berri
Feat. Daniel Auteuil, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Nathalie Baye…; Witty French comedy with an undercurrent of angst in which two philandering middle–aged husbands do their utmost to juggle fresh–faced…
Puppy (2005): Dir. Kieran Galvin
Feat. Bernard Curry, Nadia Townsend; A self–funded meditation on obsession and love, set in Victoria's pretty Yarra Valley, in which a free spirit is rescued by a delusional…
Shadows in the Sun (The Shadow Dancer) (2005): Dir. Brad Mirman
Feat. Harvey Keitel, Claire Forlani, Joshua Jackson…; A youthful literary editor from London (Jackson) is sent to Italy to track down a legendary reclusive writer (Keitel), esconced somewhere in the…
Shopgirl (2005): Dir. Anand Tucker
Feat. Claire Danes, Steve Martin, Jason Schwartzman; Generally thoughtful and subtle adaptation of Steve Martin's novella, set around the heartfelt search for life satisfaction by the lonely Danes, who…
Sueño (Dream) (2005): Dir. Renee Chabria
Feat. John Leguizamo, Elizabeth Pena; Light but good–hearted drama about an aspiring Mexican singer (Leguizamo) who transplants with difficulty to Los Angeles, finding success…
Sweet Land (2005): Dir. Ali Selim
Feat. Elizabeth Reaser, Tim Guinee, Lois Smith…; Beautifully framed romantic saga about a German mail–order bride and her would–be husband's struggle to overcome the propaganda–led…
Three Times (2005): Dir. Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Feat. Chen Chang, Shu Qi; Taiwanese great Hou Hsiao–Hsien rekindles the memory of three of his finest films, linking a trio of elegant, erstwhile love stories (across…
Valley of Flowers (2005): Dir. Pan Nalin
Feat. Milind Soman, Mylène Jampanoï, Naseeruddin Shah; Visually gorgeous, sprawling love story from the director of SAMSARA revises an epic Himalayan legend of a mischievous couple whose immortal love…
Wedding Date, The (2005): Dir. Claire Kilner
Feat. Dermot Mulroney, Debra Messing, Jack Davenport…; Lightweight romcom sees a successful single woman (Messing, from TV's "Will and Grace") travel to her sister's wedding in London with a paid male…
Wendell Baker Story, The (2005): Dir. Luke Wilson, Andrew Wilson
Feat. Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Eva Mendes…; Typical Wilson brother comedy fare about a scheming ex con who finds work at a retirement hotel and helps the residents get revenge on their nasty…
White Countess, The (2005): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Natasha Richardson, Vanessa Redgrave…; Set in the tumult of 1930s Shanghai, when China was threatened with Japanese invasion, this final Merchant–Ivory production (producer Ismail…
3-Iron (Bin-jip) (2004): Dir. Kim Ki-Duk
Feat. Seung-yeon Lee, Hee Song Jae; Odd, elliptical love story from the dir. SPRING, SUMMER concerns the blossoming romance between a domestic abuse victim and her savior, a…
Ae Fond Kiss (A Fond Kiss) (2004): Dir. Ken Loach
Feat. Eva Birthistle, Atta Taqub; This cross–cultural Glaswegian drama finds dir. Ken Loach in a more romantic mood than usual, portraying a Scots–Asian man and Catholic…
Alfie (2004): Dir. Charles Shyer
Feat. Jude Law, Marisa Tomei, Omar Epps…; Slicked back remake of the Michael Caine original, here translated to contemporary Manhattan, with Jude Law playing the Cockney skirt–chaser on…
Before Sunset (2004): Dir. Richard Linklater
Feat. Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy; Taking up some nine years after their characters met in BEFORE SUNRISE, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, now in their mid–thirties, reacquaint…
Brides (Nyfes) (2004): Dir. Pantelis Voulgaris
Feat. Damian Lewis, Victoria Haralabidou, Steven Berkoff; Through the passages of unrequited love, this bittersweet tale set on board a ship en route to the United States evokes a universal story of…
Dear Frankie (2004): Dir. Shona Auerbach
Feat. Emily Mortimer, Gerard Butler; An effectively written drama about the consequences of a mother's desire to protect her deaf son from the truth about his violent absent…
Fida (2004): Dir. Ken Ghosh
Feat. Kareena Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, Fardeen Khan; Typically likeable Bollywood item that intercrosses two love stories with the tale of an online bank heist. Treading lightly through the genre…
Garden State (2004): Dir. Zach Braff
Feat. Zach Braff, Natalie Portman, Ian Holm…; Sitcom actor Zach Braff compliments his career in "Scrubs" as the ambitious writer, director and star of this personal, melancholy comedy that became…
Head in the Clouds (2004): Dir. John Duigan
Feat. Charlize Theron, Penelope Cruz, Stuart Townsend; Set in the turmoil of 1930s Europe, this cloudy melodrama involves an irresponsible French–American socialite (Theron) who becomes a…
Head-On (Gegen die Wand) (2004): Dir. Fatih Akin
Feat. Birol Unel, Sibel Kekilli; Set in scungy working–class Hamburg, this constructs an unusual love story around two Turkish immigrants – a drunken janitor (Unel) and a…
In Good Company (2004): Dir. Paul Weitz
Feat. Dennis Quaid, Topher Grace, Scarlett Johansson…; Grappling with the personal dynamics and conflicts of corporate culture in a marketing department, this has a youthful upstart (Grace) promoted over…
Jersey Girl (2004): Dir. Kevin Smith
Feat. Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Jason Biggs…; Surprising schmaltz from the dir. of CLERKS and CHASING AMY, who supresses (almost) the dick and movie jokes that are his stock–in–trade…
Life I Want, The (Vita che vorrei, La) (2004): Dir. Giuseppe Piccioni
Feat. Luigi Lo Cascio, Sandra Ceccarelli; Intriguing Italian romantic drama about two avid actors cast as lovers who begin to cross over the boundaries of stage–life and reality with an…
Me and You and Everyone We Know (2004): Dir. Miranda July
Feat. Miranda July, John Hawkes, Brad William Henke; An intriguing, fine–quality drama from the boundary of art and indie filmmaking, in which two struggling characters – a performance…
Notebook, The (2004): Dir. Nick Cassavetes
Feat. Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams, James Garner…; An old–fashioned weepie set in a coastal town in 1940's North Carolina, this nostalgic "woman's picture" finds a sure–footed romantic…
P.S. (2004): Dir. Dylan Kidd
Feat. Laura Linney, Topher Grace, Gabriel Byrne…; Nervy and refined sophomore effort from RODGER DODGER dir. Dylan Kidd, here unbuttoning the thirty–something dilemmas of a university…
Producing Adults (2004): Dir. Aleksi Salmenpera
Feat. Minna Haapkyla, Kari-Pekka Toivonen, Minttu Mustakallio…; Finnish comedy–drama about a woman who develops an unlikely relationship with the female doctor she meets at the fertility clinic, while she is…
Raincoat (2004): Dir. Rituparno Ghosh
Feat. Ajay Devgan, Aishwarya Rai; Dramatically–ambitious dir. Ghosh here creates an understated chamber piece from the usual Bollywood melodramatics, staging a rainy–day…
Shadows Of Time (Scatten der Zeit) (2004): Dir. Florian Gallenberger
Feat. Prushant Narayanan, Tanishta Chaterjee; Sumptuous romantic melodrama of a high order, following the bittersweet relations between two abandoned children, who graduate from working in a…
Spanglish (2004): Dir. James L. Brooks
Feat. Adam Sandler, Paz Vega, Tea Leoni…; A Mexican maid (Vega) is inducted into the Bel Air household of a celebrity chef (Sandler) and his dysfunctional family, in this cheerfully sour…
Three Dancing Slaves (2004): Dir. Gaël Morel
Feat. Nicolas Cazalé, Stephane Rideau, Thomas Dumerchez…; French romantic drama set in a working class Annecy neighbourhood where three brothers are in and out of the criminal world after their mother dies,…
Twenty Thirty Forty (20 30 40) (2004): Dir. Sylvia Chang
Feat. Sylvia Chang, Rene Liu, Lee Sinji; The destinies of three women in contemporary urban Taiwan – aged 20, 30 and 40 – evolve in parallel as each feels their way through the…
Upside of Anger, The (2004): Dir. Mike Binder
Feat. Kevin Costner, Joan Allen, Erika Christensen…; After being deserted by her husband, a resentful suburban Mom (Allen) turns to the bottle and the arms of her neighbour (Costner), an…
Very Long Engagement, A (Long dimanche de fiançailles, Un) (2004): Dir. Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Feat. Audrey Tautou, Gaspard Ulliel, Clovis Cornillac…; Another crowd–pleasing favourite from the dir. of AMELIE, which uses the Great War as setting for the fairytale search by Audrey Tatou for her…
Yes (2004): Dir. Sally Potter
Feat. Joan Allen, Simon Abkarian, Sam Neill…; Love and politics are brilliantly and inextricably entwined in this daringly original drama that sees a middle–aged American woman fall out of…
A Foreign Affair (2 Brothers and a Bride) (2003): Dir. Helmut Schleppi
Feat. David Arquette, Tim Blake Nelson, Emily Mortimer; An underrated dramatic satire in which two American farmboys enrol in a 'romance tour' of Russia when their mother dies. As they tour the clubs…
A Heart Elsewhere (Il Cuore Altrove) (2003): Dir. Pupi Avati
Feat. Giancarlo Giannini, Neri Marcore, Vanessa Incontrada; Seemingly a soft–centred drama set in 1930s Italy, this curious tale of blind love carries its own insinuating mood of melancholy. Marcore…
All the Real Girls (2003): Dir. David Gordon Green
Feat. Patricia Clarkson, Zooey Deschanel, Paul Schneider; Wistful, nuanced tale set in a tiny North Carolina town, where the town stud must prove himself in a romance with his best friend's…
Armaan (2003): Dir. Honey Irani
Feat. Amitabh Bachchan, Preity Zinta, Gracey Singh; A hospital soap–opera, Bollywood–style, centering around a doctor and his neurosurgeon son who dream of turning a private hospital into a…
Beyond Borders (2003): Dir. Martin Campbell
Feat. Clive Owen, Angelina Jolie, Teri Polo…; An underrated romantic drama in which a bored American woman (Jolie) falls in with a compassionate aid–worker who works in war ravaged…
Carolina (2003): Dir. Marleen Gorris
Feat. Julia Stiles, Shirley Maclaine, Randy Quaid…; Slightly off–kilter romantic comedy, with the dir. of MRS DALLOWAY injecting a little originality into the normal recipe. Stiles, projecting…
Dot The I (El Punto sobre la I) (2003): Dir. Matthew Parkhill
Feat. Gael Garcia Bernal, James D'Arcy, Natalia Verbeke; A skillfully moody London romance, in which the relationship of an engaged couple is disturbed by a pre–wedding ritual in which Verbeke must…
Easy (2003): Dir. Jane Weinstock
Feat. Marguerite Moreau, Brian F O'Byrne, Naveen Andrews…; A nicely–judged indie riff on some of the perennial dilemmas of modern romance, as experienced by two sisters on the quest to find their…
Human Stain, The (2003): Dir. Robert Benton
Feat. Anthony Hopkins, Nicole Kidman, Gary Sinise…; An astute adaptation of a modern American classic, with a distinguished Anthony Hopkins and a blazing Nicole Kidman striking a surprising…
I Capture the Castle (2003): Dir. Tim Fywell
Feat. Rose Byrne, Henry Thomas, Tara Fitzgerald…; Sleepy and amiable drama set in the 1930s England where a family living in genteel poverty in a dilapidated castle are 'beseiged' by visiting…
It's All About Love (2003): Dir. Thomas Vinterberg
Feat. Joaquin Phoenix, Claire Danes, Sean Penn…; A wacky, overambitious, though not unendearing flop for dir. Vinterberg (FESTEN), in which young couple Danes and Phoenix attempt to resolve the…
Kal Ho Naa Ho (Tomorrow May Never Come) (2003): Dir. Nikhil Advani
Feat. Shahrukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Preity Zinta; Sporting a string of hit songs and featuring a troika of India's most popular stars, this giddy swirl of romantic comedy, musical, family melodrama…
Kiss Me First (Prima dammi un bacio) (2003): Dir. Ambrogio Lo Giudice
Feat. Stefania Rocca, Marco Cocci; Endearing Italian comedy following the fate of two separated lovers whose lives cannot help but intersect. The events of WW2 inevitably drive these…
Latter Days (2003): Dir. C. Jay Cox
Feat. Steve Sandvoss, Wes Ramsey, Jacqueline Bisset; Putting a slight twist on the conventions of romantic gay comedy, a Los Angeles party animal falls for and becomes involved with a young Mormon…
Le Divorce (2003): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Kate Hudson, Naomi Watts, Leslie Caron…; Neither romantic escapism nor French farce American–style, this comedy from ‘prestige’ partnership Merchant–Ivory can’t find shape…
Lost in Translation (2003): Dir. Sofia Coppola
Feat. Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi; A coolly romantic and engaging tale of a “brief encounter” between two Americans stranded in Tokyo – a movie–star in midlife crisis…
Love Me If You Dare (Jeux d'enfants) (2003): Dir. Yann Samuell
Feat. Marion Cotillard, Guillaume Canet; Two French kids develop an intense relationship through escalating games of "dare" that bond and haunt them through a turbulent teenage and…
Something's Gotta Give (2003): Dir. Nancy Meyers
Feat. Jack Nicholson, Diane Keaton, Keanu Reeves…; Smoothly fashioned comic drama in which aging music–industry womaniser Nicholson suffers a heart attack and falls for grey–haired…
Story of Marie and Julien, The (Histoire de Marie et Julien) (2003): Dir. Jacques Rivette
Feat. Emmanuelle Beart, Jerzy Radziwilowicz; Meandering and hypnotic tale of the supernatural from French master Jacques Rivette, which begins in the apparently nondescript world of a Parisian…
Under the Tuscan Sun (2003): Dir. Audrey Wells
Feat. Diane Lane, Sandra Oh, Lindsay Duncan; Likeable tale of Mediterranean healing, with Diane Lane exuding considerable charm in her role as a divorcee who rebuilds her life by restoring a…
Watching You (2003): Feat. Diane Flacks, Ann-Marie MacDonald, Cara Pifko…; A collection of award–winning international lesbian short films, which will be a treat for the target audience. There's a huge variety of…
Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself (2003): Dir. Lone Scherfig
Feat. Adrian Rawlins, Shirley Henderson; 'Dogme' film by way of Scotland, that surveys the doings of four childlike adults, achieving a curious dual tone of whimsical drama and gallows…
And Now Ladies and Gentlemen (2002): Dir. Claude Lelouch
Feat. Jeremy Irons, Patricia Kaas, Thierry Lhermitte…; A smooth exercise in self–satire from dir. Lelouch, with Jeremy Irons playing a shifty jewel–thief who hooks up with lounge–singer…
Australian Rules (2002): Dir. Paul Goldman
Feat. Nathan Phillips, Luke Carroll, Lisa Flanagan…; A powerful, ultimately compassionate story of white and aboriginal youngsters in remote South Australia, who bond both on and off the football field.…
Book Of Eve, The (2002): Dir. Claude Fournier
Feat. Claire Bloom, Susannah York, Daniel Lavoie; Canadian romantic drama with Claire Bloom playing a reclusive married woman who falls in love with a Romanian immigrant.
Charlotte Gray (2002): Dir. Gillian Armstrong
Feat. Cate Blanchett, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon; WWII France is the backdrop for a love–triangle in this well–made, though sappy war–romance, Cate Blanchett providing a compelling…
Heart of Me, The (2002): Dir. Thaddeus O'Sullivan
Feat. Helena Bonham Carter, Paul Bettany, Olivia Williams; A moody, though slightly outmoded period drama set in London between the wars in which two sisters become involved with the same man, as wife and…
Hope Springs (2002): Dir. Mark Herman
Feat. Colin Firth, Minnie Driver, Heather Graham…; Smoothly enjoyable though indistinguishable romance that sees a British illustrator (Firth) 'start again' in a small New England town after being…
L'Idole (2002): Dir. Samantha Lang
Feat. Leelee Sobieski, James Hong; Playing a troubled Australian actress, Sobieski arrives in Paris and befriends her elderly Chinese neighbour in this melancholy…
Marie-Jo and her Two Loves (2002): Dir. Robert Guediguian
Feat. Ariane Ascaride, Jean-Pierre Darroussin, Gerard Meylan; A dreamy, perceptive romance gently steered under the Mediterranean sun by dir. Guédiguian, who again uses the vibrant setting of his native…
Oasis (2002): Dir. Chang-Dong Lee
Feat. Kyung-gu Sol, So-ri Moon; Tough and emotionally powerful drama, highlighted by fearless performances, which charts the romance between a recent parolee and a cerebral…
Raising Victor Vargas (2002): Dir. Peter Sollett
Feat. Victor Rasuk, Judy Marte; A sensitive, appealing urban coming of age story set in a Hispanic New York subculture that rewardingly favours low–key incident over…
Secretary (2002): Dir. Steven Shainberg
Feat. James Spader, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeremy Davies…; A spanking good black comedy detailing the bizarre relationship between a peculiar, ill–tempered lawyer and the meek secretary he…
Summer Things (Embrassez qui vous voudrez) (2002): Dir. Michel Blanc
Feat. Charlotte Rampling, Jacques Dutronc, Carole Bouquet…; Rom–com with an ensemble cast led by Charlotte Rampling as an unhappily married woman who is off to stay at a seaside resort, where she…
Walk to Remember, A (2002): Dir. Adam Shankman
Feat. Mandy Moore, Peter Coyote, Daryl Hannah…; Based on the Nicholas Sparks novel (who also wrote THE NOTEBOOK) this romantic drama tells the classic story of two teens from different worlds who…
Affair of the Necklace, The (2001): Dir. Charles Shyer
Feat. Hilary Swank, Jonathan Pryce, Joely Richardson…; Hilary Swank (BOYS DON’T CRY) wigs up as a penniless French aristocrat in pre–revolution times who conspires to defraud Cardinal Jonathon…
Bob and Rose (TV Series) (2001): Dir. Julian Farino, Joe Wright
Feat. Alan Davies, Lesley Sharp; Smart, open–minded relationship drama contemplates the possibility of a gay man and a straight woman falling in love. Devoid of stereotypes,…
Captain Corelli's Mandolin (2001): Dir. John Madden
Feat. Penelope Cruz, Christian Bale, Nicolas Cage…; A melodiously played costume–drama, that unfolds on the Greek island of Cephalonia during WWII. Occupation by Italian and later German…
Crush (2001): Dir. John McKay
Feat. Andie MacDowell, Imelda Staunton, Anna Chancellor; Uninhibited, yet ultimately wishful, this drama concerns the sex–starved lives of three middle–aged women, mainly teacher Andie…
Festival in Cannes (2001): Dir. Henry Jaglom
Feat. Anouk Aimee, Greta Scacchi, Maximilian Schell…; Not a documentary, but just as ‘real’ in the hands of veteran independent director Henry Jaglom, who fashions a delightfully candid…
House of Mirth (2001): Dir. Terence Davies
Feat. Gillian Anderson, Eric Stoltz, Laura Linney…; With its icy view of human affairs, Edith Wharton’s novel proves a good marriage for the discrete, subtle instincts of dir. Davies (DISTANT VOICES,…
In Praise of Love (Eloge de L'amour) (2001): Dir. Jean-Luc Godard
Feat. Bruno Putzulu, Cecile Camp, Jean Davy…; Dir. Godard’s first major film in over a decade presents intellect and filmmaking in full–flight, while stubbornly refusing to provide a…
Italian For Beginners (2001): Dir. Lone Scherfig
Feat. Anders W Berthelsen; A likeable ensemble comedy in which six vulnerable characters orbit a drab Copenhagen suburb, each seeking some form of solace, romance or…
Last Kiss, The (L'Ultimo Bacio) (2001): Dir. Gabriel Muccino
Feat. Stefano Accorsi, Giovanna Mezzogiorno, Stefania Sandrelli; Award–winning Italian melodrama investigates the anxieties of a young unmarried couple on the verge of parenthood. Stefano Accorsi is torn…
Lawless Heart (2001): Dir. Tom Hunsinger, Neil Hunter
Feat. Douglas Henshall, Tom Hollander, Bill Nighy; A triptych of inter–related stories set in a coastal village in Essex, from the points–of–view of three different men who convene…
Lorna Doone (TV Series) (2001): Dir. Mike Barker
Feat. Rebecca Callard, Martin Clunes, Richard Coyle; R.D. Blackmore’s classic romantic swashbuckler, set amid the dynastic squabbles of a murderous Scottish clan – the Doones. Made by the BBC.
Love in a Cold Climate (TV Mini-Series) (2001): Dir. Tom Hooper
Feat. Rosamund Pike, Megan Dodds, Alan Bates…; This witty romantic comedy of manners revolves around three upper–class girls who are launched into society with the goal of landing suitable…
Secret Life of Us, The (TV Series) (2001): Feat. Claudia Karvan, Deborah Mailman; Surprisingly consistent dramedy set in funky, downtown Melbourne amongst a group of romantically ambitious young people. Maintains a quirky lightness…
Station Jim (2001): Feat. George Cole, Charlie Creed-Miles, Laura Fraser; Old–fashioned family frolic set in Victorian England that especially entertains through the wily antics of a Jack Russell terrier, and its…
Sweet November (2001): Dir. Pat O'Connor
Feat. Charlize Theron, Keanu Reeves; Charlize Theron takes on a new ‘man–project’ each month to see if romantic sparks will be struck, eventually coming across a…
The Way We Live Now (2001): Dir. David Yates
Feat. David Suchet, Matthew MacFadyen, Shirley Henderson…; The rise and fall of a Jewish financer is laid bare by the masterful pen of Anthony Trollope. David Suchet broadly, if unlikeably encompasses the…
All the Pretty Horses (2000): Dir. Billy Bob Thornton
Feat. Penelope Cruz, Matt Damon, Henry Thomas…; Serious–minded adaptation of Cormac McCarthey’s neo–western novel, the epic journey of 1950s cowboy Matt Damon across the Texan border…
Autumn in New York (2000): Dir. Joan Chen
Feat. Richard Gere, Winona Ryder, Anthony LaPaglia; Silver–maned Richard Gere may be an accomplished womaniser, but amid the golden–hued atmosphere of the Big Apple he can't help falling…
Beware of Greeks Bearing Guns (Fovou tous Ellines) (2000): Dir. John Tatoulis
Feat. Lakis Lazopoulos, Zoe Carides; A warm Greek–Australian rom–com following the exploits of a school teacher from Crete who is sent to Australia to avenge the family name…
Big Eden (2000): Dir. Thomas Bezucha
Feat. Arye Gross, Louise Fletcher, George Coe; Benignly wishful drama set in the small Montana hometown of a slightly stressed gay NYC painter (Gross), who has returned to nurse his ailing…
Bread and Tulips (2000): Dir. Silvio Soldini
Feat. Licia Maglietta, Bruno Ganz, Marina Massironi…; When 40–something housewife Licia Maglietta is deserted by her family during vacation, she seizes on a chance to roll the romantic dice once…
Chocolat (2000): Dir. Lasse Hallstrom
Feat. Juliette Binoche, Alfred Molina, Lena Olin…; Light and fluffy ‘food–comedy’ of international mien in which, after a shaky start, Juliette Binoche gets into the heart of an crusty…
Family Man, The (2000): Dir. Brett Ratner
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Tea Leoni; One Christmas Eve, a Wall Street bachelor (Nicolas Cage) is given a chance to see how different it might have been if he'd married his sweetheart and…
Golden Bowl, The (2000): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Nick Nolte, Uma Thurman, Kate Beckinsale…; Ambitious adaptation of Henry James’ most complex novel, Merchant–Ivory recruiting Nick Nolte, Uma Thurman, Kate Beckinsale and Jeremy…
In the Mood for Love (2000): Dir. Wong Kar-Wai
Feat. Tony Leung (Chiu-wai), Maggie Cheung; As in DAYS OF BEING WILD, dir. Wong Kar–Wai portrays the languor of a 1960s Hong Kong in which two neighbours discover their respective spouses…
Innocence (2000): Dir. Paul Cox
Feat. Julia Blake, Charles Tingwell; Touching and acclaimed tale of renewed love between two old–flames Julia Blake and Charles Tingwell. Rare in its wise, un–judgemental…
Last Resort (2000): Dir. Pawel Pawlikowski
Feat. Paddy Considine, Dina Korzun, Artiom Strelnikov; A Russian woman and her 12–year–old son arrive in London where her English ‘fiancé’ has failed to show and she finds herself…
Love and Basketball (2000): Dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood
Feat. Sanaa Lathan, Omar Epps, Debbi Morgan…; Engaging romantic drama about two next–door neighbours in Los Angeles who each pursue their basketball careers before eventually falling for…
Luzhin Defence, The (2000): Dir. Marleen Gorris
Feat. John Turturro, Emily Watson; Combining the intricacies of the chessboard with manoeuvres of the heart, this Nabakov adaptation opens its game at a chess tournament in 1920s…
Me You Them (Eu Tu Eles) (2000): Dir. Andrucha Waddington
Feat. Regina Case, Lima Duarte, Stenio Garcia; Set in the arid hinterlands of Brazil, this serio–comic study of rural polyandry has Regina Case (Brazil’s Oprah Winfrey) hitch up three…
Sally Hemings - An American Scandal (Mini Series) (2000): Dir. Charles Haid
Feat. Sam Neill, Carmen Ejogo; Provocative mini–series telling the allegedly true story of U.S. President Thomas Jefferson's thirty–eight year affair with…
Save the Last Dance (2000): Dir. Thomas Carter
Feat. Julia Stiles, Sean Patrick Thomas; Unhappy with her move from mid–west to a black area of Chicago, Julia Stiles seeks dance–stage salvation. Her saviour arrives in the form…
Songcatcher (2000): Dir. Maggie Greenwald
Feat. Janet McTeer, Aidan Quinn, Taj Mahal; In the dappled, secluded backwoods of 1900s Appalachia, music scholar Janet McTeer makes the exciting discovery of a set of unknown Scots–Irish…
Anna and the King (1999): Dir. Andy Tennant
Feat. Jodie Foster, Chow Yun-Fat; English governess Jodie Foster governs the King of Siam's (Chow–Yun Fat) children in another version of the true–story that formed the…
At First Sight (1999): Dir. Irwin Winkler
Feat. Val Kilmer, Mira Sorvino; Blind massage–therapist Val Kilmer regains his sight and discovers himself paired with Mira Sorvino, in this above–average yarn that…
Bumblebee Flies Anyway, The (1999): Dir. Martin Duffy
Feat. Elijah Wood, Janeane Garofalo, Rachael Leigh Cook; Romantic coming–of–age drama of a teen suffering from amnesia attempting to piece his life back together with the help of his fellow…
Cool Dry Place, A (1999): Dir. John N. Smith
Feat. Vince Vaughn, Monica Potter, Joey Lauren Adams; Hot–shot lawyer Vince Vaughn is dumped by wife Monica Potter, and moves with his young son to a small town to restart his life. So begins a…
Earthly Possessions (1999): Dir. James Lapine
Feat. Susan Sarandon, Stephen Dorff; Bored housewife Susan Sarandon, who is planning to leave her husband, gets mixed up in a bank robbery instigated by Stephen Dorff and becomes his…
End of the Affair, The (1999): Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Julianne Moore, Stephen Rea; Graham Greene's most personal novel is a supremely cynical, thorny affirmation of religious faith, a quality that Ralph Fiennes embodies in a…
Girl on the Bridge, The (1999): Dir. Patrice Leconte
Feat. Daniel Auteuil, Vanessa Paradis; This glossy slice of modern 'poetic realism' has an attractive visual component but its arch–Romanticism won't be everyone's glass of Chablis.…
Gloomy Sunday (Ein Lied Von Liebe Und Tod) (1999): Dir. Rolf Schubel
Feat. Joachim Krol, Erika Marozsan, Ben Becker…; Captivating drama which pivots around the apocryphal origins of the classic melancholy song 'Gloomy Sunday' in pre–WW2 Budapest. An amiably…
Great Gatsby, The (1999): Dir. Robert Markowitz
Feat. Mira Sorvino, Paul Rudd, Toby Stephens…; Competent adaptation that stays close to Fitzgerald's "Great American Novel" about a mysterious millionaire who determines to win back his flighty…
Harmonium in my Memory, The (1999): Dir. Young-jae Lee
Feat. Do-yeon Chun, Min-hie Kim, Byung-hun Lee; Sweet, soft–spoken melodrama of jittery first love, recalling the innocent love triangle that forms between a handsome, fresh–faced…
Limbo (1999): Dir. John Sayles
Feat. David Strathairn, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio; John Sayles, the doyen of American independents, succeeds all Johnny–Come–Lately's with an arresting, multi–layered fable that…
Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married (TV Series) (1999): Dir. Brian Grant
Feat. Gerard Butler; Romantic drama based on the top selling chick lit novel by Marian Keyes following the life and loves of a twenty–something living in London.…
Message in a Bottle (1999): Dir. Luis Mandoki
Feat. Robin Wright, Kevin Costner; Troubled divorcee Robin Wright Penn discovers a bottled letter from a bereaved widower (Kevin Costner) to his late wife, and is moved enough to seek…
Onegin (1999): Dir. Martha Fiennes
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Liv Tyler; The classic, passionate Russian poem by Pushkin is lavished with whole–hearted sympathy in this adaptation, the dir.'s brother Ralph Fiennes…
Playing by Heart (1999): Dir. Willard Carroll
Feat. Sean Connery, Gena Rowlands, Gillian Anderson…; Ambitious multi–character film along the lines of SHORT CUTS, likewise set in the varying social strata of Los Angeles, but infused with…
Pornographic Affair, A (An Affair Of Love) (1999): Dir. Frederic Fonteyne
Feat. Nathalie Baye, Sergi Lopez; A decidedly unpornographic meditation upon the mutability of human desires and emotions, with Nathalie Baye and Sergi Lopez as a nameless couple who…
Random Hearts (1999): Dir. Sydney Pollack
Feat. Kristin Scott Thomas, Harrison Ford; Both widowed by the same plane–crash, Kristen Scott Thomas and Harrison Ford put the pieces together and discover their respective spouses were…
This Year's Love (1999): Dir. David Kane
Feat. Kathy Burke, Jennifer Ehle, Ian Hart…; Set amongst the romantic roundelays of 6 thirty–somethings who reside in London's bohemian Camden Town, this comedy has a quirky streak, some…
Afterglow (1998): Dir. Alan Rudolph
Feat. Nick Nolte, Julie Christie, Lara Flynn Boyle…; At times precious but ultimately wise drama of multiple adulteries sees disjointed couple Nick Nolte (plumber) and Julie Christie (ex–horror…
Alice Et Martin (1998): Dir. Andre Techine
Feat. Juliette Binoche, Carmen Maura, Mathieu Amalric; A maladjusted young drifter (Alexis Loret) has success as a Paris fashion model and a torrid love affair with his half–brother's…
Among Giants (1998): Dir. Sam Miller
Feat. Pete Postlethwaite, Rachel Griffiths; Quirky, lowkey romance from the writer of FULL MONTY, follows the travails of a group of daredevil labourers who paint high–voltage…
An Autumn Tale (1998): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Marie Riviere, Beatrice Romand, Alain Libolt; Completing his suite of films based on the four seasons, dir. Rohmer provides another mellow, seemingly unplotted comedy, in which Rhone valley…
Basil (1998): Dir. Radha Bharadwaj
Feat. Jared Leto, Christian Slater, Derek Jacobi…; Novel–based Victorian–era romance starring a veritable feast of eye candy in the form of Leto, Slater and Forlani as the beautiful young…
Besieged (1998): Dir. Bernardo Bertolucci
Feat. Thandiwe Newton, David Thewlis; Returning to a 'chamber–piece' setting reminiscent of LAST TANGO IN PARIS, dir. Bertolucci unfolds an enigmatic relationship in a Rome…
Chinese Box (1998): Dir. Wayne Wang
Feat. Jeremy Irons, Gong Li, Maggie Cheung; Set in Hong Kong just prior to the British handover to China, this follows the last dissatisfied days of dying journalist Jeremy Irons as he pads the…
City of Angels (1998): Dir. Brad Silberling
Feat. Meg Ryan, Nicolas Cage; Hollywood resurrects Wim Wenders' classic WINGS OF DESIRE as a syrupy romantic vehicle for eligible everywoman Meg Ryan. A leaden, fatally miscast…
Destiny of Her Own, A (Dangerous Beauty) (1998): Dir. Marshall Herskovitz
Feat. Catherine McCormack, Rufus Sewell; Historical romance that profits from a sensuous 16th century Venetian setting, as the low–prospect Catherine McCormack opts for the tradeoffs…
Dreaming of Joseph Lees (1998): Dir. Eric Styles
Feat. Samantha Morton, Rupert Graves, Lee Ross; Moderately adventurous psycho–drama set in late 1950s Somerset has the young Samantha Morton (UNDER THE SKIN) leading a vivid fantasy life with…
Far from the Madding Crowd (1998): Dir. Nicholas Renton
Feat. Paloma Baeza, Nigel Terry, Nathaniel Parker; Handsome production of Thomas Hardy's moody classic, which follows the life an impulsive, independent woman who ensnares – and almost destroys…
Frenchman's Creek (1998): Dir. Ferninand Fairfax
Feat. Tara Fitzgerald, Anthony Delon, Tim Dutton; Rollicking, handsome adaptation that deviates somewhat from Daphne Du Maurier's classic tale of the love affair between an impulsive English lady and…
Governess, The (1998): Dir. Sandra Goldbacher
Feat. Minnie Driver, Tom Wilkinson, Jonathan Rhys Meyers; In possibly her most challenging role to date, Minnie Driver dons Victorian costume as a subversively intelligent Jewess who goes into service for a…
Great Expectations (1998): Dir. Alfonso Cuaron
Feat. Ethan Hawke, Gwyneth Paltrow, Anne Bancroft…; Bold revamp of the Charles Dickens classic traces the inter–twining fortunes of Ethan Hawke and Gwyneth Paltrow, orphans linked via a murky…
Hope Floats (1998): Dir. Forest Whittaker
Feat. Sandra Bullock, Harry Connick Jnr., Gena Rowlands; It's back to the hometown for former prom–queen Sandra Bullock, jilted by her husband and best friend on a live TV talkshow. Here she heals the…
Horse Whisperer, The (1998): Dir. Robert Redford
Feat. Robert Redford, Kristin Scott Thomas, Scarlett Johansson…; A modern–day 'horse opera' saddles up with Robert Redford both directing and starring in the title role of an appropriately handsome version of…
Legend of 1900, The (1998): Dir. Giuseppe Tornatore
Feat. Tim Roth, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Bill Nunn…; A beautiful and completely impossible tale about a musician (Tim Roth) whose life is defined by the luxury ocean liner on which he has grown up –…
Life Is Beautiful (La vita e bella) (1998): Dir. Roberto Benigni
Feat. Roberto Benigni; Winner of both Best Foreign Film and Best Actor Oscars (a first for an actor speaking a foreign tongue) as well as the top prize at Cannes, Roberto…
Love And Rage (1998): Dir. Cathal Black
Feat. Greta Scacchi, Daniel Craig, Stephen Dillane; Tantalising Irish melodrama starring Greta Scacchi as an English aristocrat who hires Daniel Craig as manager for her sumptuous estate and ends up…
Love Etc. (1998): Dir. Marion Vernoux
Feat. Charlotte Gainsbourg, Charles Berling, Yvan Attal; Depicts an infernal love–triangle between three friends – taken from the novel ‘Talking It Over’ by Julian Barnes. Charming comedy…
Lovers of the Arctic Circle (1998): Dir. Julio Medem
Feat. Najwa Nimri, Fele Martinez, Nancho Novo; Artful but humourless slice of 'magic realism' that follows the near–metaphysical long–term relationship between two childhood…
My Name Is Joe (1998): Dir. Ken Loach
Feat. Peter Mullan, Louise Goodall; Dir. Ken Loach revisits his mainstay – the not–working–class of urban Britain, this time extending further north to the slums of…
Never Ever (Circle of Passion) (1998): Dir. Charles Finch
Feat. Sandrine Bonnaire, Jane March, Charles Finch…; Mediocre, if elegantly framed, this drama has an American couple (Finch and March) move to Paris and diverging into romance (with Sandrine Bonnaire)…
No Looking Back (1998): Dir. Edward Burns
Feat. Lauren Holly, Jon Bon Jovi, Edward Burns; Dir. Ed Burns (BROTHERS MCMULLEN) again provides a mellow, if lukewarm comedy of romance and muted expectations set among a group of…
Oscar and Lucinda (1998): Dir. Gillian Armstrong
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Cate Blanchett, Ciaran Hinds…; The Booker Prize–winning novel, by Australian literary wunderkind Peter Carey, is spun out into a sunlit daydream of unlikely personages and…
Shakespeare in Love (1998): Dir. John Madden
Feat. Joseph Fiennes, Gwyneth Paltrow, Judi Dench…; Shakespeare's art imitates life according to this gloriously fanciful, Oscar–winning tragicomedy, as the Bard himself (Joseph Fiennes), stuck…
Those Who Love Me Can Take the Train (1998): Dir. Patrice Chereau
Feat. Pascal Greggory, Valeria Bruni Tedeschi, Charles Berling…; Friends and associates of a deceased painter make a procession, via train, to the artist’s burial in this superb French drama. A highly nuanced…
Waking the Dead (1998): Dir. Keith Gordon
Feat. Billy Crudup, Jennifer Connelly; A curious, intriguing drama in which congressional candidate Billy Crudup is haunted by a woman (Jennifer Connelly) from his past, who he thought had…
What Dreams May Come (1998): Dir. Vincent Ward
Feat. Robin Williams, Annabella Sciorra, Cuba Jr. Gooding; Visually extravagant dive into the afterlife, courtesy of New Zealander Vincent Ward, applying his classically–educated eye to a…
Wuthering Heights (1998): Dir. David Skynner
Feat. Robert Cavanah, Orla Brady, Peter Davison; Faithful adaptation of Emily Bronte's classic Gothic romance of the Yorkshire moors, flavoured by the Irish casting of Robert Cavanah and Orla Brady.
Gadjo Dilo (1997): Dir. Tony Gatlif
Feat. Romain Duris, Rona Harther, Izidor Serban; Re–casting a spotlight onto the poor and downtrodden yet spiritually rich gypsy culture, film–maker/musician Toni Gatlif grafts a…
Jane Eyre (1997): Dir. Robert Young
Feat. Samantha Morton, Ciaran Hinds, Deborah Findlay…; Suitably gothic retelling of Charlotte Brontë's classic tale of a Yorkshire orphan who becomes a governess and falls for the brooding lord of the…
Kitchen (1997): Dir. Yim Ho
Feat. Jordan Chan, Yasuko Tomita; Treading the same grungy Hong Kong streets as the films of Wong Kar–Wai, this adaptation of a novel by Banana Yoshimoto concerns a love affair…
Marius et Jeannette (1997): Dir. Robert Guediguian
Feat. Ariane Ascaride, Gerard Meylan; A laidback yet buoyant slice–of–ordinary–life set on the low–rent side of Marseille, where two wounded fortysomethings strike…
Merry War, A (Keep the Aspidistra Flying) (1997): Dir. Robert Bierman
Feat. Richard E. Grant, Helena Bonham Carter; A literate, aware version of George Orwell's early comic novel set in a stagnating 1930s Britain. Richard E Grant plays Orwell's self–parody of…
Mill On the Floss (1997): Dir. Graham Theakston
Feat. Emily Watson, Bernard Hill; The incandescent Emily Watson justifies this Masterpiece Theatre version of George Eliot's Victorian novel (considerably simplified), bringing some…
Mrs. Dalloway (1997): Dir. Marleen Gorris
Feat. Vanessa Redgrave, Natascha McElhone, Rupert Graves; Light adaptation of Virginia Woolf's 20s novel about a serene society lady in late–life crisis, reflecting on her choices some thirty years…
Rebecca (1997): Dir. Jim O'Brien
Feat. Charles Dance, Diana Rigg, Emilia Fox…; Late–90s British televisation of the classic Daphne Du Maurier gothic romance, with Charles Dance as the widowed aristocrat whose remarriage to…
Traveller (1997): Dir. Jack N. Green
Feat. Bill Paxton, Mark Wahlberg, Julianne Margulies…; 'One–last–score' movie in which a young man, desperate to be accepted by a clan of Irish grifters teams up with a veteran con who wants…
Wings of the Dove, The (1997): Dir. Iain Softley
Feat. Helena Bonham Carter, Linus Roache, Charlotte Rampling…; Helena Bonham–Carter, back in costume, shines in this adaptation of the Henry James novel, playing a 19th century gentlewoman on the…
A Summer's Tale (1996): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Melvil Poupaud, Amanda Langlet; Once more exploring the fickleness of love, dir. Rohmer involves holidaying student Melvil Poupard in a love–quadrangle of romantic options. In…
Anna Karenina (1996): Dir. Bernard Rose
Feat. Sophie Marceau, James Fox, Sean Bean…; Glitzy version of Tolstoy's novel has a great cast mingling and canoodling in the corridors of the 19th century Russian aristocracy. Lavish period…
Autumn Sun (Sol de otoño) (1996): Dir. Eduardo Mignogna
Feat. Frederico Luppi, Norma Aleandro; Argentine drama following a Jewish woman who pretends to be in a relationship with a Jewish man from Uruguay (Frederico Luppi, CRONOS) to appease her…
Emma (Jane Austen's Emma) (1996): Dir. Diarmuid Lawrence
Feat. Kate Beckinsale, Dominic Rowan, Mark Strong…; Released the same year as the fanfared Gwyneth Paltrow version, this modest made–for–TV version of Jane Austen's matchmaker rom–com…
English Patient, The (1996): Dir. Anthony Minghella
Feat. Ralph Fiennes, Kristin Scott Thomas, Juliette Binoche; The unsurprising Oscar sweeper of '97 – a shoe–in considering they left out no ingredient – epic length, exotic locales, period…
Entertaining Angels (1996): Dir. Michael Ray Rhodes
Feat. Moira Kelly, Martin Sheen; Stirring biopic of American champion of the poor Dorothy Day (played with passion by Moira Kelly), who rose from obscurity in 1920s New York to…
Fever Pitch (1996): Dir. David Evans
Feat. Colin Firth; That most evergreen of English obsessions, footy, is here given a long, loving and belated tribute from a lifetime fan, adapting Nick Hornby's…
Fire (1996): Dir. Deepa Mehta
Feat. Shabana Azmi, Nandita Das; Blazing melodrama defiantly targets Indian sexual hypocrisy and tradition, not to mention trangressing 'Bollywood' taboo, in portraying two women…
Garden of Redemption (1996): Dir. Thomas Donnelly
Feat. Anthony LaPaglia, Embeth Davidtz; A saga of challenged faith and endurance set in Nazi–occupied Italy, where the village priest assists with the local resistance while besotted…
How to Make an American Quilt (1996): Dir. Jocelyn Moorhouse
Feat. Winona Ryder, Anne Bancroft, Ellen Burstyn…; Pleasurable, star–domed female–stitching movie has Winona Ryder sorting out her personal foibles with an ear for the mixed–fortuned…
Jane Austen Collection, The (1996-2007): Feat. Kate Beckinsale, Billie Piper, Samantha Morton…; Collection of three of Austen's greatest stories; Emma, Northanger Abbey and Mansfield Park, brought to life by prestigious British casts. Emma…
Jane Eyre (1996): Dir. Franco Zeffirelli
Feat. Charlotte Gainsbourg, Anna Paquin, William Hurt…; Zeffirelli's version of Charlotte Bronte's gothic romance, filmed in appropriately murky hues, preserves the sombre integrity of the novel. Charlotte…
Jude (1996): Dir. Michael Winterbottom
Feat. Christopher Eccleston, Kate Winslet, Liam Cunningham…; Christopher Eccleston excels in the title role of a common man in relentless pursuit of a higher education and the forbidden love of his cousin (Kate…
Kissed (1996): Dir. Lynne Stopkewich
Feat. Molly Parker, Peter Outerbridge; A woman develops an unusual fascination with dead rodents that becomes a desire for embalming humans and blossoms into full–blown, ahem,…
Marvin's Room (1996): Dir. Jerry Zaks
Feat. Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro…; The cast contribute their customary greatness to this poignant drama about family ties, responsibilities, transpiring over the slow passing of the…
Month by the Lake, A (1996): Dir. John Irvin
Feat. Vanessa Redgrave, Edward Fox, Uma Thurman; The second H.E. Bates adaptation of 1996 (after FEAST OF JULY) is a lush autumnal romance set on the shores of Italy's Lake Como. Vanessa Redgrave…
Nelly and Mr. Anaud (1996): Dir. Claude Sautet
Feat. Emmanuelle Beart, Michel Serrault; Emmanuelle Beart gets caught up in a May–to–December romance with Michel Serrault in another elegant and subtle drama from the director…
Portrait of a Lady (1996): Dir. Jane Campion
Feat. Nicole Kidman, John Malkovich; Unfairly roasted by many critics, our Jane's adaptation of Henry James' novel dares to offer more than romance in fancy dress, but instead a complex,…
Reef, The (Passion's Way) (1996): Dir. Robert Allan Ackerman
Feat. Timothy Dalton, Sela Ward, Leslie Caron; Unrequited love is the theme of this adaptation from Edith Wharton, as young lovers Timothy Dalton and Sela Ward are repeatedly separated by…
Temptress Moon (1996): Dir. Chen Kaige
Feat. Gong Li, Leslie Cheung; Chen Kaige elevates the sumptuous Chinese epoch of FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE with this visually rapturous, though far less coherent saga of epic…
Tierra (Earth) (1996): Dir. Julio Medem
Feat. Carmelo Gómez, Emma Suarez, Karra Elejalde; Intimate portrait of Angel (Gomez), an exterminator who travels to a remote wine–making town to rid them of a plague of woodlice, and gradually…
To Have and to Hold (1996): Dir. John Hillcoat
Feat. Tcheky Karyo, Rachel Griffiths, Steve Jacobs; The director of GHOSTS OF THE CIVIL DEAD takes an unexpected turn into full blown romantic melodrama. The plot's twists and turns take place in the…
Up Close and Personal (1996): Dir. Jon Avnet
Feat. Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert Redford; Small–town weather girl Michelle Pfeiffer ascends to ambitious journalist and finally star TV reporter under the auspice of boss and lover…
When the Cat's Away (1996): Dir. Cedric Klapisch
Feat. Garance Clavel, Zinedine Soualem; A movie for cat lovers and young romantics alike, this Latino–tinged, funky, yet alluringly modest French film follows the dowdy–cute…
Whole Wide World, The (1996): Dir. Dan Ireland
Feat. Vincent D'Onofrio, Renee Zellweger; Biopic based on a romantic memoir of pulp fantasy writer Robert E. Howard, creator of CONAN THE BARBARIAN and RED SONJA. A beefed–up Vincent…
All Things Fair (1995): Dir. Bo Widerberg
Feat. Johan Widerberg, Marika Lagercrantz; The late Bo Widerberg's swansong records a bittersweet memoir of his love affair with a teacher 22 years his senior. The casting of his young son in…
Angels and Insects (1995): Dir. Philip Haas
Feat. Mark Rylance, Kristin Scott Thomas, Patsy Kensit; A splendid dissection of class mores in pre–Victorian England, thematically reminiscent of Greenaway, but minus his cold cynicism. Rich in…
Before Sunrise (1995): Dir. Richard Linklater
Feat. Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy; Young tourists American Ethan Hawke and French Julie Delpy, meet by chance on a train in Europe and spend the following twelve hours…
Beyond the Clouds (Al di là delle nuvole) (1995): Dir. Michelangelo Antonioni
Feat. Fanny Ardant, Chiara Caselli, Irene Jacob…; Michelangelo Antonioni's final film weaves together four stories of discontented love in his characteristic cinematic style. Featuring a huge…
Bridges of Madison County (1995): Dir. Clint Eastwood
Feat. Meryl Streep, Clint Eastwood; Meryl Streep's exceptional talent finds a worthy vessel in a repressed housewife whose passions become enflamed by a nomadic photographer (Clint…
Brothers Mcmullen, The (1995): Dir. Edward Burns
Feat. Edward Burns; Filmed on weekends over two years at his family home, Ed Burns' DIY romantic comedy went on to win the Grand Prize at the 1995 Sundance Festival.…
Catherine Cookson Collection (TV Mini-series) (1995-2000): Feat. Nigel Havers, Clare Higgins, Emily Mortimer…; Various collections of the prolific Catherine Cookson's mini–series adapted from her widely read novels. Vol. 1 contains: The Cinder Path,…
Circle of Friends (1995): Dir. Pat O'Connor
Feat. Minnie Driver, Chris O'Donnell; Catholicism and blossoming sexuality come into conflict when ugly–duckling Minnie Driver goes gooey over preppie Chris O'Donnell and chooses to…
Dazzle (1995): Dir. Richard A. Colla
Feat. Lisa Hartman, Cliff Robertson, James Farentino…; Following her father's death, a beautiful photographer must battle evil half–sisters and evil developers to keep the family ranch intact…
Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain, The (1995): Dir. Christopher Monger
Feat. Hugh Grant, Tara Fitzgerald, Colm Meaney…; In 1917, much ado ensues at a Welsh village. When the local hill falls just short of qualifying for the official map, the locals set about building…
French Woman, A (Une Femme Francaise) (1995): Dir. Regis Wargnier
Feat. Emmanuelle Beart, Daniel Auteuil; Emmanuelle Beart stars in this period tale of idyllic romance compromised by the reality of war. The director of INDOCHINE again embraces the…
Jefferson in Paris (1995): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Nick Nolte, Greta Scacchi, Thandiwe Newton; Thomas Jefferson's sabbatical in revolutionary Paris with Nick Nolte in the central role. Merchant Ivory's period detail is of course faultless, but…
Mad Love (1995): Dir. Antonia Bird
Feat. Chris O'Donnell, Drew Barrymore; An apple–pie American boy (Chris O'Donnell) hightails it with free–spirit wild child Drew Barrymore, an ex–hospital patient who is…
Moonlight and Valentino (1995): Dir. David Anspaugh
Feat. Whoopi Goldberg, Kathleen Turner, Gwyneth Paltrow…; Whoopi Goldberg, Kathleen Turner and Gwyneth Paltrow gather to console Elizabeth Perkins on the tragic death of her hubby. Enter house–painting…
Nina Takes a Lover (1995): Dir. Alan Jacobs
Feat. Laura San Giancomo, Paul Rhys, Michael O'Keefe…; Married sales girl Laura San Giancomo makes illicit park–side rendezvous with a British photographer (Paul Rhys). Naturalistic take on the…
Persuasion (1995): Dir. Roger Michell
Feat. Amanda Root, Ciaran Hinds, Susan Fleetwood…; This spirited run–through of Jane Austen's final novel boasts an impressive theatrical pedigree. Distinguished out of the recent crop with…
Pride and Prejudice (TV Series) (1995): Dir. Simon Langton
Feat. Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle; Jane Austen connoisseurs shan't be disappointed with this terrifically popular BBC version of her consummate novel about romantic intrigues between…
Run of the Country, The (1995): Dir. Peter Yates
Feat. Albert Finney, Matt Keeslar, Victoria Smurfit; Stirring Irish drama in the tradition of 'My Left Foot', aided by the magnetic presence of Albert Finney. Finney's son breaks out of the confines of…
Sense and Sensibility (1995): Dir. Ang Lee
Feat. Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet, Alan Rickman…; It all started here – The Jane Austen Revival, in a witty and engaging take on this classic tale of two sisters, one practical (Emma Thompson),…
Stealing Beauty (1995): Dir. Bernardo Bertolucci
Feat. Liv Tyler, Jeremy Irons; Bertolucci is at home on the range of rural Tuscany for his most accessible and fanciful outing. Much like every character in the film, its hard…
Sugartime (1995): Dir. John N. Smith
Feat. John Turturro, Mary-Louise Parker, Elias Koteas…; Charts the infamous, real–life romance between Chicago mobster Sam Giancana (John Turturro) and whitebread songstress Phyllis McGuire…
Angie (1994): Dir. Martha Coolidge
Feat. Geena Davis, Stephen Rea; Geena Davis brings real authenticity to her role as an expectant mother who, after meeting flamboyant Irishman Stephen Rea, discovers there's is more…
F.T.W. (Last Ride, The) (1994): Dir. Michael Karbelnikoff
Feat. Mickey Rourke, Lori Singer; Ex–con rodeo rider Mickey Rourke takes wounded bird Lori Singer under his wing in this brooding ballad of the mid–west. Evocative score…
Il Postino (Postman, The) (1994): Dir. Michael Radford
Feat. Massimo Troisi, Philippe Noiret; The biggest international foreign language hit since LIKE WATER FOR CHOCOLATE stars the late Massimo Troisi as a simple postie who learns the value…
Love Affair (1994): Dir. Glenn Gordon Caron
Feat. Warren Beatty, Annette Bening; A remake of AN AFFAIR TO REMEMBER that retains its sense of old fashioned slush. Warren Beatty and real wife Annette Bening play the smitten…
Rector's Wife, The (Mini-Series) (1994): Dir. Giles Foster
Feat. Lindsay Duncan, Miles Anderson, Pam Ferris…; The wife of a kind but dull preacher is scorned by her conservative community when she takes a job at the grocery store one town over. Based on…
Tom and Viv (1994): Dir. Brian Gilbert
Feat. Willem Dafoe, Miranda Richardson; A moving exploration of the intense yet painful relationship between Nobel prize–winning poet T.S. Eliot (Willem Dafoe) and his lovably…
Age of Innocence, The (1993): Dir. Martin Scorsese
Feat. Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, Winona Ryder; Scorsese's adaptation of the novel by Edith Wharton is a extravagant period costumer that makes Merchant–Ivory look downright paltry. Stellar…
Bodies Rest and Motion (1993): Dir. Michael Steinberg
Feat. Tim Roth, Bridget Fonda, Phoebe Cates…; Suburban aimlessness underlies this entertaining, stylish 'gen–X' romancer with an appealing twentysomething quartet.
Especially On a Sunday (1993): Dir. Giuseppe Tornatore, Giuseppe Bertolucci, Marco Tul
Feat. Jean-Hugues Anglade, Patricia Arquette, Nicoletta Braschi…; Three stories of love and loss from the pen of Tonino Guerra brought to screen life by three directing talents. Sublime fare in the finest European…
Ethan Frome (1993): Dir. John Madden
Feat. Liam Neeson, Patricia Arquette; Liam Neeson and Patricia Arquette are master and housekeeper who fall in love after he suffers years of emotional estrangement from his wife.…
Like Water for Chocolate (1993): Dir. Alfonso Arau
Feat. Marco Leonardi, Lumi Cavazos, Regina Torne; Certifiable foreign–language block–buster blends the irresisistible ingrediants of primal female desire with old–fashioned…
Mr. Jones (1993): Dir. Mike Figgis
Feat. Richard Gere, Lena Olin; Richard Gere earnestly acts the method as an impulsive–depressive who gets keen on spunky therapist Lena Olin. Its whimsical flourishes work…
Much Ado About Nothing (1993): Dir. Kenneth Branagh
Feat. Kenneth Branagh, Denzel Washington, Keanu Reeves…; Kenneth Branagh plunders the Bard again and pulls off a rare breed of romantic escapism. Here he somehow modifies the traditional text for an…
Ocean Waves (1993): Dir. Tomomi Mochizuki; A sweet, sentimental tale of unrequited teen romance as seen in flashback through the eyes of a man attending his high school reunion forms the basis…
Piano, The (1993): Dir. Jane Campion
Feat. Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Anna Paquin…; A romantic masterpiece set in pioneering New Zealand worthy of its reputation and phenomenal success. Worth a second glance for the cast's impeccable…
Salt On Our Skin (1993): Dir. Andrew Birkin
Feat. Greta Scacchi, Vincent D'Onofrio; Greta Scacchi and Vincent D'Onofrio duet in this lush, erotically charged (Eu)romance as lovers who are wrong for each other, but happen to sizzle in…
Thing Called Love, The (1993): Dir. Peter Bogdanovich
Feat. River Phoenix, Samantha Mathis, Dermot Mulroney…; River Phoenix's final film in which, sadly, his fatal affliction is plainly evident. Set in Nashville, he aspires to country–rock stardom but…
Traps (1993): Dir. Pauline Chan
Feat. Saskia Reeves, Jacqueline McKenzie; An English journalistic couple travel to pre–war South Vietnam to rejuvenate their floundering marriage, but falter on the shifting ground of a…
Wide Sargasso Sea (1993): Dir. John Duigan
Feat. Karina Lombard, Rachel Ward, Michael York; Polished screen adaptation of Jean Rhys' novel of erotic obsession between a English aristocrat and a Island beauty in 19th Century Jamaica.
Absent Without Leave (1992): Dir. John Laing
Feat. Craig McLauchlan; Craig McLauchlan from Neighbours stars as a love–struck newly–wed on the run from the army during WW2. Slight nostalgia with lots of…
Adam Bede (1992): Dir. Giles Foster
Feat. Iain Glen, Patsy Kensit, James Wilby; BBC adaptation of George Eliot's passionate tale of love and betrayal, set in 1799 rural England. Tells the story of a pretty dairy maid seduced from…
Bodyguard, The (1992): Dir. Mick Jackson
Feat. Whitney Houston, Kevin Costner; A perfect exercise in Hollywood cliche that rises above the ordinary thanks to Whitney Houston in a commendable acting debut and Kevin Costner as the…
Conte D'hiver (A Winter's Tale) (1992): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Charlotte Very, Frederic Van Den Driessche; A whirlwind romance ends abruptly for a young woman when she accidentally gives her lover a wrong address. Four years pass and she remains possessed…
Crazy in Love (1992): Dir. Martha Coolidge
Feat. Holly Hunter, Gena Rowlands; Romantic complications ensue for three generations of women – especially Holly Hunter – whose worries about her 'perfect' husband's…
Howards End (1992): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, Helena Bonham Carter; Merchant/Ivory's E.M. Forster adaptation is so exquisite it pales their previous efforts. Forster's usual themes of class injustice and emotional…
Last Days of Chez Nous, The (1992): Dir. Gillian Armstrong
Feat. Kerry Fox; Kerry Fox seduces the French husband of her sister who's away trying to resolve her relationship with her father. Like SWEETIE, it's beautifully…
Lover, The (1992): Dir. Jean-Jacques Annaud
Feat. Jane March, Tony Leung (Kar-fai); Exotic adaptation of Marguerite Duras' autobiographical novel charting an illicit affair between a 15–year–old French school–girl…
Mississippi Masala (1992): Dir. Mira Nair
Feat. Denzel Washington, Roshan Seth, Sarita Choudhury; A poignant gem about a tabooed romance between a beautiful Indian girl and a black carpet cleaner (Denzel Washington) in the deep South.
Playboys, The (1992): Dir. Gillies MacKinnon
Feat. Robin Wright, Aidan Quinn, Albert Finney; Robin Wright and travelling player Aidan Quinn attempt to consummate their passions in the face of religion, geography and Albert Finney's drunkard…
Stan and George's New Life (1992): Dir. Brian McKenzie
Feat. Paul Chubb; Life begins at 40 forty for under–achiever Stan who finally cuts the apron strings, gets a new job and finds a soul mate. A poignant story of…
Station, The (1992): Dir. Sergio Rubini
Feat. Sergio Rubini, Margherita Buy, Ennio Fantastichini; Beguiling film about a disillusioned society woman who becomes drawn to a humble station–master while waiting for the first available train.
Untamed Heart (1992): Dir. Tony Bill
Feat. Christian Slater, Marisa Tomei; A fairy–tale romance kindles between a perky waitress and a kitchen–hand with a special condition. Does wonders for Christian Slater's…
A Heart in Winter (Un Coeur en Hiver) (1991): Dir. Claude Sautet
Feat. Emmanuelle Beart, Andre Dussollier; Impeccable romantic tragedy examines a love triangle between a virtuoso violinist, her violin–making boyfriend and his emotionally crippled…
Amants Du Pont Neuf, Les (1991): Dir. Leos Carax
Feat. Juliette Binoche, Denis Lavant; Extravagant production breathes fire into this unusual epic love story of two young Paris street punks. Through the ebbs and the flows, Carax adjusts…
American Friends (1991): Dir. Tristram Powell
Feat. Michael Palin, Connie Booth, Trini Alvarado; Subdued yet engaging period drama with Ex–Monty Pythoner Michael Palin, but expect few laughs from him as a scrupulous Oxford tutor whose vow…
Bridge, The (1991): Dir. Sydney MacCartney
Feat. Saskia Reeves, David O'Hara, Joss Ackland…; A moving–canvas period drama about a romantic liaison between a married mother (Saskia Reeves) and a impressionist painter. Over–familiar…
Days of Being Wild (1991): Dir. Wong Kar-Wai
Feat. Leslie Cheung; An excellent example of the other side of Hong Kong movie–making. Set in 1960, Leslie Cheung plays a disillusioned, spoiled youth who…
Dogfight (1991): Dir. Nancy Savoca
Feat. River Phoenix, Lili Taylor; Satisfying romantic comedy about a U.S. marine who surrenders his machismo for one night to have an unlikely and sensitive affair with an 'ugly…
Dying Young (1991): Dir. Joel Schumacher
Feat. Julia Roberts, Campbell Scott, Vincent D'Onofrio…; Chuckle as stilettoed ignoramus Julia Roberts nurtures a rich and handsome cancer patient with whom she falls in lurve.
Mediterraneo (1991): Dir. Gabriele Salvatores
Feat. Claudio Bigagli, Diego Abatanthono, Giuseppe Cederna; Oscar–winning tale of eight Italian soldiers who find themselves stranded on a remote Greek isle during WW2. An affecting and surprising…
Prince of Tides, The (1991): Dir. Barbra Streisand
Feat. Barbra Streisand, Nick Nolte; Babs directs herself in self–adoring but skillful fashion as the genteel psychiatrist of Pat Conroy's classy novel. Nick Nolte plays her…
Close My Eyes (1990): Dir. Stephen Poliakoff
Feat. Saskia Reeves, Clive Owen, Alan Rickman; This admirably probes the notion of a love affair between a long–separated brother and sister. Saskia Reeves and Clive Owen entwine in the…
Come See the Paradise (1990): Dir. Alan Parker
Feat. Dennis Quaid; An epic romance about a hot–headed unionist whose love affair with a Japanese American is torn apart when the state interns 100,000 Japanese…
Cyrano De Bergerac (1990): Dir. Jean-Paul Rappeneau
Feat. Gerard Depardieu, Anne Brochet, Vincent Perez…; Rostand's classic play filmed in its native tongue, with the man born to play the poet with the outsized hooter, Gerard Depardieu. Little expense has…
Ghost (1990): Dir. Jerry Zucker
Feat. Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze, Whoopi Goldberg; Technically brilliant amalgam of fantasy, thriller, comedy and love story is entertainment Hollywood wish they could make more often.
Golden Braid (1990): Dir. Paul Cox
Feat. Chris Haywood, Gosia Dobrowolska; Off–beat tale of a clock–maker who finds he can't commit to a relationship because he's in love with a girl from the past whose sole…
Havana (1990): Dir. Sydney Pollack
Feat. Robert Redford, Lena Olin; A gracefully ageing Robert Redford seeks his fortune on the verge of the Cuban revolution, while romantic entanglement with Lena Olin has political…
Julia Has Two Lovers (1990): Dir. Bashar Shbib
Feat. Daphna Kastner, David Duchovny; A simple wrong number turns into a marathon phone conversation and 'relationship' between a doubtful bride–to–be (Daphna Kastner) and a…
King's Whore, The (1990): Dir. Axel Corti
Feat. Timothy Dalton, Valeria Golino; Easy–on–the–eye historical drama has Italian King Timothy Dalton becoming obsessed by Valeria Golino, the off–limits object…
Miracle, The (1990): Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Beverly D'Angelo, Donal McCann, Lorraine Pilkington; Pre–CRYING GAME labour of love for Neil Jordan is a romantic Irish yarn about a teenager who unwittingly falls in love with his estranged…
Mo' Better Blues (1990): Dir. Spike Lee
Feat. Denzel Washington; This male flipside to Lee's SHE'S GOTTA HAVE IT sees talented musician caught between two women and his passion for jazz. A cinematic feast for the…
Stanley and Iris (1990): Dir. Martin Ritt
Feat. Jane Fonda, Robert De Niro, Swoosie Kurtz…; Adapted from the novel 'Union Street' by Pat Barker, and transposed to the USA, this concerns a grieving widow (Fonda) who teaches a…
Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990): Dir. Anthony Minghella
Feat. Juliet Stevenson, Alan Rickman, Bill Paterson; Charming story of a grief–stricken widow who discovers the ghost of old luvvy resurrected in her living room. Many have fallen truly, madly and…
White Palace (1990): Dir. Luis Mandoki
Feat. James Spader, Susan Sarandon; An uptight yuppie unwittingly falls in love with a 43–year–old hamburger waitress. James Spader and Susan Sarandon are perfectly…
Always (1989): Dir. Steven Spielberg
Feat. Richard Dreyfuss, John Goodman, Holly Hunter; Heartwarming fantasy about a deceased pilot whose spirit returns to help his best friend pursue the same career and lady.
Delinquents, The (1989): Dir. Chris Thomson
Feat. Kylie Minogue, Charlie Schlatter, Bruno Lawrence…; Minogue graduated from her TV soap–opera days with this attempt at a serious period drama, with her and Schlatter playing lovestruck teen…
Eversmile, New Jersey (1989): Dir. Carlos Sorin
Feat. Daniel Day-Lewis, Mirjana Jokovic; Oddball dramedy with Daniel Day–Lewis taking on the role of a dentist travelling by motorbike through South America to provide locals with free…
Metropolitan (1989): Dir. Whit Stillman
Feat. Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Chris Eigeman; Sundance–winning arthouse hit focuses on the disappearing Manhattan debutante scene. An unknown ensemble play upper–class adolescents who…
Valmont (1989): Dir. Milos Forman
Feat. Colin Firth, Annette Bening, Meg Tilly…; Baroque Milos Forman variation on the classic tale of ‘Dangerous Liaisons’, with Annette Bening and Colin Firth tangling tonsils, and more, as…
Crossing Delancey (1988): Dir. Joan Micklin Silver
Feat. Amy Irving, Peter Riegert; Liberal New Yorker Amy Irving juggles her passion for literature around two (in)eligible bachelors – a handsome academic and a humble pickle…
Echoes (TV Mini-series) (1988): Dir. Barbara Rennie
Feat. Siobhan Garahy, Robert Hines, Geraldine James…; Set in Ireland in the 1950's, this picturesque romance traces the life of a small town girl whose dreams of escape come true when she wins a…
Fresh Horses (1988): Dir. David Anspaugh
Feat. Andrew McCarthy, Molly Ringwald; Blue–blood collegian Andrew McCarthy falls for the wrong–side–of–the–tracks and underage Molly Ringwald. Earnest love…
Stealing Home (1988): Dir. Steven Kampmann
Feat. Mark Harmon, Blair Brown, Jonathan Silverman…; Coming–of–age romantic drama about a washed up baseball player (Mark Harmon) who finds out his childhood love (Jodie Foster) has…
Unbearable Lightness of Being, The (1988): Dir. Philip Kaufman
Feat. Daniel Day-Lewis, Juliette Binoche, Stellan Skarsgard; In war–torn Czechoslovakia 1968, a young doctor is caught between two lovers and the political struggle of his homeland. Daniel Day–Lewis…
84 Charing Cross Road (1987): Dir. David Jones
Feat. Anne Bancroft, Anthony Hopkins; Book–loving New Yorker Anne Bancroft corresponds with London bookseller Anthony Hopkins in the decades following WWII, leading to some platonic…
Dark Eyes (1987): Dir. Nikita Mikhalkov
Feat. Marcello Mastroianni; The Soviet director ventures to Italy for this exquisite Chekhovian romantic tragedy in which Marcello Mastroianni abandons rationale for the allure…
Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1987): Dir. Jack Clayton
Feat. Maggie Smith, Bob Hoskins; An anguished spinster pins romantic hopes on a sweet–talking business man who has other intentions. Melancholy fare, remarkably acted by Maggie…
Room Upstairs, The (1987): Dir. Stuart Margolin
Feat. Stockard Channing, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sam Waterston…; The life of a lonely and isolated woman is transformed when she turns her childhood home into a boarding house filled with eclectic characters.
Someone to Love (1987): Dir. Henry Jaglom
Feat. Orson Welles; Typically loose and naturalistic drama from independent stalwart Henry Jaglom, who pretty much plays himself – a jaded divorcee filmmaker in search…
About Last Night (1986): Dir. Edward Zwick
Feat. Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, James Belushi…; Hollywood adaptation of David Mamet's play "Sexual Perversity in Chicago".
Arriving Tuesday (1986): Dir. Richard Riddiford
Feat. Judy McIntosh, Peter Hayden; An estranged couple try to rekindle their romance by taking a holiday which only seems to make matters worse. A poignant love story.
Betty Blue (1986): Dir. Jean-Jacques Beineix
Feat. Beatrice Dalle, Jean-Hugues Anglade; Beatrice Dalle stars as the ultra crazy and ultra sexy Betty in this lusty, over–the–top drama as only the French aspire to create.…
Children of a Lesser God (1986): Dir. Randa Haines
Feat. William Hurt, Marlee Matlin, Piper Laurie; Powerful drama in which teacher–for–the–deaf William Hurt falls in love with Marlee Matlin.
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Michael Caine, Dianne Wiest…; Spot–on romantic comedy from Woody Allen, aligning another witty and perceptive script with a stellar cast.
Man and A Woman: 20 Years Later, A (1986): Dir. Claude Lelouch
Feat. Anouk Aimee, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Richard Berry; Worthy follow–up to Lelouch's seminal 60's romantic drama benefits from appealing performances by it's two leads.
Mauvais Sang (The Night Is Young) (1986): Dir. Leos Carax
Feat. Michel Piccoli, Denis Lavant, Juliette Binoche; A street–punk joins a gang of hoods intent on stealing a top–secret serum, but complications prevail. Romantic thriller contains…
Melo (1986): Dir. Alain Resnais
Feat. Sabine Azema, Fanny Ardant, Pierre Arditi…; New Wave dir. Resnais explores unusually restrained, linear territory in this bittersweet melodrama centered around a love triangle between longtime…
Travelling North (1986): Dir. Carl Schultz
Feat. Leo McKern, Julia Blake; Screen adaptation of David Williamson's play about a cantankerous retiree who finds love at last, but then discovers his imminent mortality.
Windrider (1986): Dir. Vincent Monton
Feat. Nicole Kidman, Tom Burlinson; A fresh–faced Nicole Kidman ditches her BMX Bandits for a buff windsurfer in this breezy teen romance.
Coming Through (1985): Dir. Peter Barber-Fleming
Feat. Kenneth Branagh, Helen Mirren, Alison Steadman; D.H. Lawrence's love affair with the married Frieda Von Richthofen is entwined with the life of a man in the present day who is obsessed with the…
Crazy for You (Vision Quest) (1985): Dir. Harold Becker
Feat. Matthew Modine, Linda Fiorentino; A high school wrestler in Spokane, Washington has trouble focusing on his training regimen when a worldly drifter takes up temporary residence at his…
Me and the Girls / Bon Voyage / Mr. and Mrs. Edgehill (The Noel Coward Collection - Disc 6) (1985): Dir. Jack Gold, Gavin Millar
Feat. Tom Courtenay, Robert Glenister, Nigel Havers…; – Me and the Girls (85') Touching drama centred on a terminally ill gay man reminiscing on his past life performing and managing a dance…
Room with a View, A (1985): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Helena Bonham Carter, Daniel Day-Lewis, Denholm Elliott; One of the better Merchant–Ivorys, this light–toned adaptation of E. M. Forster's novel sets an array of well–to–do English…
Summer Lovers (1985): Dir. Randal Kleiser
Feat. Peter Gallagher, Daryl Hannah, Valerie Quennessen…; Daffy drama set on a Greek isle with Gallagher and Hannah as a holidaying couple, trouble ensues when Gallagher meets a sexy archaeologist.
Trouble in Mind (1985): Dir. Alan Rudolph
Feat. Kris Kristofferson, Keith Caradine, Lori Singer; Fans of the obscure should enjoy this rollicking film noir. Set in the near future, an ex–convict returns to his favourite cafe to rekindle a…
A Year of the Quiet Sun (1984): Dir. Krzysztof Zanussi
Feat. Maja Komorowska, Scott Wilson; Realistic and poignant drama that depicts the tentative yet soulful romance that blooms between a Polish woman and an American soldier who is…
Among the Cinders (1984): Dir. Rolf Haedrich
Feat. Paul O'Shea, Derek Hardwick, Yvonne Lawley; A tender chronicle of a 16–year–old's rite–of–passage who finds first love with an older woman embittered by her experience…
Choose Me (1984): Dir. Alan Rudolph
Feat. Genevieve Bujold, Keith Carradine, Lesley-Anne Down; A sultry, out–of–the–ordinary comedy/drama centred around a luminous late–night L.A. bar, this cemented Robert Altman protege…
Falling in Love (1984): Dir. Ulu Grosbard
Feat. Robert De Niro, Meryl Streep; Star–combination of Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep, as train–commuters having an affair which puts a wee glow back into their fairly…
Far Pavilions, The (TV Mini-series) (1984): Dir. Peter Duffell
Feat. Ben Cross, Amy Irving, Christopher Lee…; Lavish period drama based on the epic book by novelist M.M. Kaye, centered around the romance between a young English officer and a beautiful Indian…
Full Moon in Paris (1984): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Pascale Ogier, Fabrice Luchini, Christian Vadim…; From Rohmer's 'Comedies and Proverbs' series, wit and subtlety is derived from the simplest of plots. This time a headstrong woman's plans backfire…
Purple Hearts (1984): Dir. Sidney J Furie
Feat. Ken Wahl, Cheryl Ladd, R. Lee Ermey…; Vietnam War set romance with Wahl and Ladd as love struck medics.
Starman (1984): Dir. John Carpenter
Feat. Jeff Bridges, Karen Allen, Charles Martin Smith…; Jeff Bridges plays an alien trying to recover his spaceship on Earth with the help of young widow Karen Allen. Entertaining fantasy–drama.
Baby, It's You (1983): Dir. John Sayles
Feat. Rosanna Arquette, Vincent Spano; High–school sweethearts Rosanna Arquette and Vincent Spano undergo the trials of the late 60s counter–culture America. Characters and…
First Name: Carmen (Prenom Carmen) (1983): Dir. Jean-Luc Godard
Feat. Maruschka Detmers, Jacques Bonnaffe; Late Godard standout is a markedly nostalgic throwback to his New Wavy years, combining an ad hoc terrorist, ill–fated romance, a…
Hong Kong 1941 (Dang doi lai ming) (1983): Dir. Po-Chi Leong
Feat. Chow Yun-Fat, Alex Man, Kien Shih…; One of Chow Yun–Fat's early classics, this portrays the disturbing invasion of Hong Kong by the Japanese in 1941, which disrupts the dreams and…
Independence Day (1983): Dir. Robert Mandel
Feat. Kathleen Quinlan; Kathleen Quinlan yearns to leave her hometown and fulfil her dreams as a photographer, but is unable to come unstuck from her boyfriend.
Jamaica Inn (Mini Series) (1983): Dir. Lawrence Gordon Clark
Feat. Jane Seymour, Patrick McGoohan, Trevor Eve
Life Is A Bed Of Roses (1983): Dir. Alain Resnais
Feat. Ruggero Raimondi, Fanny Ardant, Geraldine Chaplin; Ambitious fantastical oddity from dir. Resnais was made as a tribute to era–defining French directors Melies, L'Herbier and Rohmer, weaving…
Princess Daisy (1983): Dir. Waris Hussein
Feat. Lindsay Wagner, Paul Michael Glaser, Robert Urich…; The orphan of a Russian prince and an American movie star rises to the top of the modeling profession, but her happiness is threatened when her…
A Good Marriage (Le Beau Marriage) (1982): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Beatrice Romand, Andre Dussollier, Féodor Atkine; An art history student is growing tired of being the mistress of a married painter, then meets a handsome and wealthy younger man whom she vows to…
An Officer and a Gentleman (1982): Dir. Taylor Hackford
Feat. Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Jr. Gossett; Irresistible formula romance between prospective army officer Richard Gere and Debra Winger.
Heat and Dust (1982): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Julie Christie, Greta Scacchi; Sophisticated soap opera follows the escapades of two Englishwomen, two generations apart, who both succumb to the seductive mysticism of India.
P'Tang Yang Kipperbang (1982): Dir. Michael Apted
Feat. John Albasiny, Abigail Cruttenden; A cricket–obsessed 14–year–old courts the girl of his dreams, only for painful shyness and the terror of playing opposite her in…
All's Well That Ends Well (1981): Dir. Elijah Moshinsky
Feat. Ian Charleson, Angela Down, Sir Michael Hordern…; Adaptation of the Shakespeare play about a low–born daughter of a doctor who falls in love with the son of a countess, and attempts to cure the…
Atlantic City, USA (1981): Dir. Louis Malle
Feat. Burt Lancaster, Susan Sarandon; An ageing petty crook finds a new self–respect with a struggling casino worker. Subtly drawn yet satisfying character study, expertly played by…
Aviator's Wife, The (La femme de l'aviateur) (1981): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Philippe Marlaud, Marie Riviere; A young student is devastated when he finds that his girlfriend is cheating on him. In order to find out why she did it, he decides to spy on her and…
Endless Love (1981): Dir. Franco Zeffirelli
Feat. Brooke Shields; Brooke Shields is the saving grace of this fiasco made of Scott Spencer's acclaimed novel about an obsessive teenage romance.
French Lieutenant's Woman, The (1981): Dir. Karel Reisz
Feat. Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons; Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons star in an elegant portrayal of secretive affairs and social strictures. Screenplay by Harold Pinter.
Lonely Hearts (1981): Dir. Paul Cox
Feat. Wendy Hughes, Norman Kaye, Jon Finlayson; An off–beat gem about an awkward agency–linked romance between a middle–aged piano tuner and a shy office clerk.
Sense and Sensibility (1981): Dir. Rodney Bennett
Feat. Irene Richards, Tracey Childs, Diana Fairfax…; Two sisters search for love, happiness and a way out of financial strife. From Jane Austen's novel, this was filmed by the BBC on location in Dorset…
Woman Next Door, The (1981): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Gerard Depardieu, Fanny Ardant; Emotional chaos ensues for a happily married man when his old flame, now also married, becomes his immediate neighbour. Taut, intimate melodrama…
Last Metro, The (1980): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Catherine Deneuve, Gerard Depardieu; Elegant war story in occupied France, Catherine Deneuve struggles to keep her Jewish husband's theatre operating while concealing his whereabouts.
Somewhere in Time (1980): Dir. Jeannot Szwarc
Feat. Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, Christopher Plummer…; Fantastical love story stars Reeve as a successful playwright who becomes obsessed with a woman he believes he is destined to be with, even if it…
Chapter Two (1979): Dir. Robert Moore
Feat. James Caan, Marsha Mason, Valerie Harper; Neil SImon's hit play is competently adapted for the big screen. James Caan in a rare romantic role plays a man recently widowed who falls for a…
Chilly Scenes of Winter (Head Over Heels) (1979): Dir. Joan Micklin Silver
Feat. John Heard, Mary Beth Hurt, Peter Riegert…; A celebrated early rom–com from writer–director Joan Micklin Silver (CROSSING DELANCEY) with a likable John Heard playing a hopeless…
Days of Heaven (1979): Dir. Terrence Malick
Feat. Sam Shepard, Richard Gere, Brooke Adams…; The mid–western wheat–fields provide a magnificent backdrop for this poignant tale of two disparate bachelors who vie for the same woman.…
Junoon (1979): Dir. Shyam Benegal
Feat. Shashi Kapoor, Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah…; Indian drama set during the 1857 War of Independence, where a feudal chieftain falls for an Anglo–Indian woman and encounters bitter opposition…
Lady Oscar (1979): Dir. Jacques Demy
Feat. Catriona MacColl, Barry Stokes; Jacques Demy's English–language romantic period drama based on the Japanese manga 'The Rose of Versailles' that tells the story of Lady Oscar,…
Little Romance, A (1979): Dir. George Roy Hill
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Anna Massey, Arthur Hill…; Sweet minor comedy in which aged charmer Olivier persuades two teenage lovers – American boy, French girl – to run off together.…
Manhattan (1979): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway; This classy introspective comedy from Woody Allen tributes his beloved city while his neurotic alter–ego searches for romantic and intellectual…
Perfect Couple, A (1979): Dir. Robert Altman
Feat. Paul Dooley, Marta Heflin; A low–key romantic comedy for Robert Altman that revels in its delightfully mismatched pair: Helfin, a wannabe rock star, and Dooley, a…
Two Worlds of Jennie Logan, The (1979): Dir. Frank De Felitta
Feat. Lindsay Wagner, Marc Singer, Linda Gray…; An enchanting made–for–television drama starring Lindsay Wagner as Jennie Logan, a woman finds an antique dress in her attic that…
Classic Bronte Collection, The (TV Series) (1978-1996): Dir. Julian Amyes, Mike Barker
Feat. Timothy Dalton, Zelah Clarke, Tara Fitzgerald…; Five–disc box–set containing three BBC television drama productions from the pen of the Bronte sisters. – Jane Eyre (83')…
Four Feathers, The (1978): Dir. Don Sharp
Feat. Jane Seymour, Beau Bridges, Robert Powell; Fine costume drama, based on A E W Mason's classic tale of a British officer charged with cowardice, who regains his honour and his love, during an…
Langrishe, Go Down (1978): Dir. David Jones
Feat. Judi Dench, Jeremy Irons, Harold Pinter; Teledrama about a steamy affair in 1930s Dublin between a lonely spinster (Dench) and a parasitic intellectual (Irons), on her family's…
Lillie (TV Mini-Series) (1978): Dir. Tony Wharmby, Christopher Hodson, John Gorrie
Feat. Francesca Annis, Catherine Feller, Anton Rodgers…; Fascinating costume drama about the life and loves of scandalous British actress Lillie Langtry, who's numerous admirers included the Prince Of Wales…
Mill on the Floss, The (1978): Dir. Ronald Wilson
Feat. Pippa Guard, Christopher Blake, Anton Lessor; Loosely based on George Eliot's own childhood, this bleak tale of fueding families and thwarted love is adequately told in this eight part BBC…
Oliver's Story (1978): Dir. John Korty
Feat. Ryan O'Neal, Candice Bergen, Nicola Pagett…; Ryan O'Neal returns as Oliver Barrett IV in this tender sequel to LOVE STORY.
Same Time Next Year (1978): Dir. Robert Mulligan
Feat. Alan Alda, Ellen Burstyn; Genteel yet immensely likeable two–hander based on Bernard Slade's Broadway play with Alda and Burstyn as an adulterous couple who share one…
Annie Hall (1977): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Diane Keaton; The 'hall'mark of Woody Allen's career – it won him an Oscar for Best Picture and made him a household name. It's a hilarious send–up of…
Bobby Deerfield (1977): Dir. Sydney Pollack
Feat. Al Pacino, Marthe Keller, Anny Duperey…; Solid, if overlong and overly sincere, drama about an American racing car driver (Pacino) who falls in love with a dying heiress. Not exactly…
Love For Lydia (TV Series) (1977): Dir. Tony Wharmby, Christopher Hodson
Feat. Mel Martin, Jeremy Irons, Christopher Blake…; Adapted from the H.E. Bates' book, this scrumptious Masterpiece Theatre series details the exploits of the beautiful but vapid Lydia and the four men…
Man Who Loved Women, The (1977): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Charles Denner, Leslie Caron, Brigitte Fossey…; Charles Denner plays a dedicated skirt–chaser, who falls in love with women so constantly he is brought to the point of…
New York, New York (1977): Dir. Martin Scorsese
Feat. Robert De Niro, Liza Minnelli; This imaginative yet famously abrasive tribute to the Hollywood musicals of the 1940s focuses on the tumultuous relationship between a saxophonist…
Roseland (1977): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Teresa Wright, Lou Jacobi, Geraldine Chaplin…; Three separate but interlocking stories set in New York's famed dance palace, about people trying to essentially, 'find the right dance partner'.…
Break Of Day (1976): Dir. Ken Hannam
Feat. Andrew MacFarlane; Quiet Australian drama focused on a young soldier's struggle to adjust to his previous life after returning home post–WW1, and his pursuit of…
Robin and Marian (1976): Dir. Richard Lester
Feat. Sean Connery, Audrey Hepburn, Robert Shaw…; Hearty adventurism envisions Robin Hood as an aging 40–something, who upon returning from the Crusades, rekindles his rivalry with the Sheriff…
Romantic Englishwoman, The (1975): Dir. Joseph Losey
Feat. Glenda Jackson, Michael Caine; The marriage of Glenda Jackson and Michael Caine becomes threatened by the presence of another man. Low–key cocktail of satire, intrigue and…
Story Of Adele H.,The (1975): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Isabelle Adjani, Bruce Robinson, Sylvia Marriott; A towering performance by Isabelle Adjani anchors this moody, but somewhat turgid romance. Based on the diaries of Victor Hugo's daughter that…
Brief Encounter (1974): Dir. Alan Bridges
Feat. Richard Burton, Sophia Loren, Jack Hedley…; The BBC revisit David Lean's classic unrequited romance, with Richard Burton and Sophia Loren excellent as would–be lovers who meet on a train…
Love in the Rain (Un amour de pluie) (1974): Dir. Jean-Claude Brialy
Feat. Romy Schneider, Nino Castelnuovo, Suzanne Flon; More pomp and circumstance from Romy Schneider, here playing a well–to–do French woman indulging in various love affairs while holidaying…
Breezy (1973): Dir. Clint Eastwood
Feat. William Holden, Kay Lenz; Early, overlooked love affair from screen hard man Clint Eastwood, directing elder statesman William Holden as an aging recent divorcee who strikes…
Fear Eats the Soul (1973): Dir. Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Feat. Brigitte Mira, El Hedi ben Salem; A sort of remake of Douglas Sirk's older woman–younger man melodrama "All That Heaven Allows", with added plot weirds countered by typical…
Way We Were, The (1973): Dir. Sydney Pollack
Feat. Robert Redford, Barbra Streisand; A rich–kid aspiring novelist and a political activist go through the pleasure and pain of courtship and marriage through three decades.…
Cesar & Rosalie (1972): Dir. Claude Sautet
Feat. Yves Montand, Romy Schneider, Sami Frey…; French romantic drama with Yves Montand and Sami Frey playing contrasting romantic rivals to divorced single mum Romy Schneider. Montand is a coarse…
Touch of Class, A (1972): Dir. Melvin Frank
Feat. George Segal, Glenda Jackson, Paul Sorvino; George Segal and Glenda Jackson (in an Oscar–winning performance) strike up the right chemistry in this British romantic comedy in which their…
We Won't Grow Old Together (Nous Ne Vieillirons Pas Ensemble) (1972): Dir. Maurice Pialat
Feat. Marlène Jobert, Jean Yanne, Christine Fabréga…; A uniquely disquieting film covering the dissolution of an affair between an aged filmmaker and a much younger secretary, based on French director…
Casanova (1971): Dir. Mark Cullingham, John Glenister
Feat. Frank Finlay, Norman Rossington; Adventurous Dennis Potter biopic of libertine Casanova, concerned chiefly with his imprisonment and escape from Venice, though not forgetting to shed…
Death in Venice (1971): Dir. Luchino Visconti
Feat. Dirk Bogarde; Dirk Bogarde plays a gay composer whose unspoken obssesion with a young boy detains him in Venice during a cholera epidemic. This soft–focus,…
Friends (1971): Dir. Lewis Gilbert
Feat. Sean Bury, Anicee Alvina; Sentimental, page–turning romance blossoms an enternal love between two idealistic French teens head over heels. Hit soundtrack by Elton John…
Love Story (1971): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Ali MacGraw, Ryan O'Neal, Ray Milland; Romance on a New England campus between Ali MacGraw and Ryan O'Neal. A huge hit. Oscar–winning theme–tune by Francis Lai.
Persuasion (1971): Dir. Howard Baker
Feat. Ann Firbank, Richard Vernon, Bryan Marshall; Circumspect heroine Anne Elliot has the opportunity to rekindle a long–abandoned love–affair, in this BBC adaption of Jane Austen's final…
Private Road (1971): Dir. Barney Platts-Mills
Feat. Susan Penhaligon, Bruce Robinson, Michael Feast…; The other lost gem from British independent film–maker Barney Platts–Mills, who follows up “Bronco Bullfrog” (1970) with a…
Two English Girls (Anne and Muriel) (1971): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Jean-Pierre Leaud, Kika Markham, Stacey Tendeter; A French writer encounters the delicate dilemma of falling in love with both English sisters at a Welsh coastal cottage. Tantalising romance is…
A Swedish Love Story (1970): Dir. Roy Andersson
Feat. Ann-Sofie Kylin, Rolf Sohlman; The debut feature film from director Roy Andersson (YOU, THE LIVING) is an unforgettably beautiful coming–of–age tale inspired by the…
Jane Eyre (1970): Dir. Delbert Mann
Feat. George C. Scott, Susannah York, Ian Bannen…; Susannah York and George C. Scott headline this fine adaptation of the Bronte classic.
Ryan's Daughter (1970): Dir. David Lean
Feat. Robert Mitchum, Sarah Miles; The love triangle is given a sweeping, old–fashioned spin by David Lean, set on the rugged Irish coast during WW1.
Model Shop (1969): Dir. Jacques Demy
Feat. Anouk Aimee, Gary Lockwood, Alexandra Hay; A mesmerizing, shamefully neglected stateside film from French New Wave director Jacques Demy that follows an aimless, unemployed architect who ends…
Winning (1969): Dir. James Goldstone
Feat. Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Robert Wagner…; Paul Newman challenges for Joanne Woodward on and off the track in this high–speed racing melodrama, shot spectacularly amongst the competitive…
La Chamade (Heartbeat) (1968): Dir. Alain Cavalier
Feat. Catherine Deneuve, Michel Piccoli; Catherine Deneuve flitters between youthful passion and the comfort of an older, wealthy lover in this elegant menage a trios, lessened only by an…
Elvira Madigan (1967): Dir. Bo Widerberg
Feat. Pia Degermark, Thommy Berggren, Lennart Malmer…; Ultra–romantic story of an army officer and a tightrope dancer who sacrifice everything for each other. Filmed like a shampoo commercial, it…
Far from the Madding Crowd (1967): Dir. John Schlesinger
Feat. Julie Christie, Peter Finch, Terence Stamp…; Pastoral, moody epic set in 18th Century England follows the romantic intrigues of an independent woman farmer with three men. Photography by Nic…
Wuthering Heights (1967): Dir. Peter Sasdy
Feat. Ian McShane, Angela Scoular; This BBC adaptation of Emily Bronte's gothic romance was one of only a handful that were able to cover the entire novel by virtue of the miniseries…
Young Girls of Rochefort, The (Les Demoiselles de Rochefort) (1967): Dir. Jacques Demy
Feat. Catherine Deneuve, Francois Dorleac, Gene Kelly; The carrot of love is dangled in Jacques Demy's positively radiant follow–up to UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG: an unbridled, colour–saturated…
Man and a Woman, A (1966): Dir. Claude Lelouch
Feat. Anouk Aimee, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Pierre Barouh; Classic love story is one of the most popular foreign films of all time. Intelligent, sensitive script is ignited with exotic locations and Francis…
Rage to Live, A (1965): Dir. Walter Grauman
Feat. Suzanne Pleshette, Ben Gazzara; Soapy melodrama starring Suzanne Pleshette as a young heiress who has a series of steamy relationships, undermining her wealthy family's reputation.…
Rapture (1965): Dir. John Guillermin
Feat. Melvyn Douglas, Patricia Gozzi, Dean Stockwell…; Drama based on the 1954 novel "Rapture in My Rags" about a lonely teenage girl living with her widower father, who develops an attraction to an…
Le Bonheur (Happiness) (1964): Dir. Agnes Varda
Feat. Jean-Claude Drouot, Claire Drouot, Marie-France Boyer; Agnes Varda's sly subversion of romantic norms courted controversy with its frank depiction of the infidelity of a happily married man and the…
Householder, The (1963): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Shashi Kapoor, Leela Naidu, Durga Khote…; A young Indian newlywed is ill–prepared for marriage to his charming but independent wife and seeks advice from his tyrannical mother, a…
Two For The Seesaw (1962): Dir. Robert Wise
Feat. Robert Mitchum, Shirley Maclaine, Edmon Ryan…; 'Odd couple' comedy set in NYC, where a Nebraskan lawyer (Mitchum) moves to start life anew and hits the romantic playground in the company of kooky…
By Love Possessed (1961): Dir. John Sturges
Feat. Lana Turner, Efrem Zimbalist Jr., Jason Robards Jr.…; Junky drama set in picture perfect New England town centres on the insipid lives and loves of its inhabitants. Sub–Sirkian melodrama has its…
Fanny (1961): Dir. Joshua Logan
Feat. Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Charles Boyer…; Adored melodrama set in Marseilles, starring Leslie Caron as the titular character who falls in love with a young sailor (Buchholz) but must grapple…
Goodbye Again (Aimez-Vous Brahms) (1961): Dir. Anatole Litvak
Feat. Ingrid Bergman, Yves Montand, Anthony Perkins…; Elegant love triangle has Bergman falling in love with dashing young Anthony Perkins much to her philandering husband's chagrin. Overly familiar…
Jules and Jim (Jules et Jim) (1961): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Jeanne Moreau, Oskar Werner, Henri Serre…; Jeanne Moreau stars in this famous New Wave melodrama caught up in the spirit of its swinging times. A twenty–year love triangle, lightening…
Last Sunset, The (1961): Dir. Robert Aldrich
Feat. Kirk Douglas, Rock Hudson, Dorothy Malone…; Melodramatic Western set against the backdrop of the Texas/Mexico border stars Kirk Douglas as a fugitive hounded by Rock Hudson's sheriff, only to…
Paris Blues (1961): Dir. Martin Ritt
Feat. Paul Newman, Sidney Poitier, Joanne Woodward…; Undernourished romantic drama has Newman and Poitier as Jazz musicians on holiday in Paris forced to decide whether to stay or return to the U.S. for…
Sins of Rachel Cade, The (1961): Dir. Gordon Douglas
Feat. Angie Dickinson, Peter Finch, Roger Moore; A colonel falls in love with a Protestant medical missionary in the Belgian Congo during WWII, but an American injured pilot interrupts proceedings.
Splendour in the Grass (1961): Dir. Elia Kazan
Feat. Natalie Wood, Warren Beatty, Pat Hingle…; Smitten teens work up considerable sexual frenzy when their respective families won't let them be together. Appropriately, it's the lurid scenes…
Bells are Ringing (1960): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Judy Holliday, Dean Martin, Fred Clark…; Winning musical rom–com from Vincente Minnelli (MEET ME IN ST LOUIS), with Judy Holliday playing a fictionalised version of real–life…
It Started in Naples (1960): Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Clark Gable, Sophia Loren, Vittorio De Sica; Winning combination of Gable and Loren guided by director Shavelson (HOUSEBOAT) team up again for this romantic comedy drama set in Naples following…
Les Bonnes Femmes (1960): Dir. Claude Chabrol
Feat. Bernadette Lafont, Clotilde Joano, Stephane Audran; An early comedy from French new wave director Claude Chabrol (LE BOUCHER), following four single Parisian women as they encounter the romantic…
Lola (1960): Dir. Jacques Demy
Feat. Anouk Aimee, Marc Michel; Irresistible 'New Wave' confection breezily spins its romantic tale around the alluring presence of Anouk Aimee, here a cheery cabaret–dancer…
Sons and Lovers (1960): Dir. Jack Cardiff
Feat. Dean Stockwell, Trevor Howard, Dame Wendy Hiller…; Richly photographed rendition of D.H. Lawrence's classic novel, in which the son of a coal–miner (Stockwell) struggles to find his path in the…
Strangers When We Meet (1960): Dir. Richard Quine
Feat. Kirk Douglas, Kim Novak, Ernie Kovacs…; Romantic drama adapted by Evan Hunter from his novel of the same name, about two married neighbours who have an affair. Kirk Douglas plays the…
Wild River (1960): Dir. Elia Kazan
Feat. Montgomery Clift, Lee Remick, Jo Van Fleet; Romantic drama focused around an Authority agent (played with controlled complexity by Montgomery Clift) who meets with resistance and a fair share…
Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959): Dir. Alain Resnais
Feat. Emmanuelle Riva, Eiji Okada; Romance between a French actress and a Japanese architect rekindles their traumatic wartime experiences. The twin threads of despair and sensual love…
A Time to Love and a Time to Die (1958): Dir. Douglas Sirk
Feat. John Gavin, Jock Mahoney, Don DeFore…; Bittersweet WWII melodrama finds Douglas Sirk at his gravest; John Gavin plays a returning German solider who falls in love under the shadow of war.…
Christine (1958): Dir. Pierre Gaspard-Huit
Feat. Romy Schneider, Alain Delon, Micheline Presle; Vienna set classic love triangle between an unfaithful man, his current love interest (played by darling French actress Romy Schneider) and an…
Key, The (1958): Dir. Carol Reed
Feat. William Holden, Sophia Loren, Trevor Howard; Captivating WW2 drama set around a Londonite lady (played with restrained elegance by Sophia Loren) whose liaisons with war sea captains over the…
Cranes are Flying, The (Letyat Zhuravli) (1957): Dir. Mikhail Kalatozov
Feat. Tatyana Samojlova, Aleksei Batalov, Vasili Merkuryev; A Russian classic which conveys homefront anxieties during WW2 for a young bride whose original fiance has gone to the front. Pursued by his…
Interlude (1957): Dir. Douglas Sirk
Feat. June Allyson, Rossano Brazzi, Marianne Koch…; June Allyson falls for the charms of a married European conductor while being courted by a Munich doctor. One of Sirk's weaker melodramas, this was…
Love in the Afternoon (1957): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Gary Cooper, Audrey Hepburn, Maurice Chevalier; Dark horse Audrey Hepburn classic sees dir. Billy Wilder riff Ernst Lubitsch by way of Gary Cooper and Maurice Chevalier (a wall fixture of…
Raintree County (1957): Dir. Edward Dmytryk
Feat. Elizabeth Taylor, Montgomery Clift, Eva Marie Saint…; Civil War set romance has Montgomery Clift as a schoolteacher whojoins the Union Army as they march into Georgia in the hope of finding his estranged…
Sayonara (1957): Dir. Joshua Logan, Marlon Brando
Feat. Patricia Owens, Ricardo Montalban, Martha Scott…; An effective, well–acted version of James Michener's novel set during the Korean War, in which ace pilot Brando inconveniently falls in love…
Sissi - The Fateful Years of an Empress (1957): Dir. Ernst Marischka
Feat. Romy Schneider; Concluding film in the Sissi trilogy ends on a somber note with Romy Schneider struggling with Viennese court life as she moves towards a tragic end.
Until They Sail (1957): Dir. Robert Wise
Feat. Jean Simmons, Joan Fontaine, Paul Newman…; 1950s Christchurch is the novelty star of this MGM prestige picture set entirely in Canterbury, New Zealand, with landmarks such as the Christchurch…
Wide Blue Road, The (La grande strada azzurra) (1957): Dir. Gillo Pontecorvo
Feat. Yves Montand, Alida Valli, Francisco Rabal…; Italian neorealist melodrama drama which marks the feature debut of Gillo Pontecorvo (THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS). Set on a small rugged island off the…
Backlash (1956): Dir. John Sturges
Feat. Richard Widmark, Donna Reed, William Campbell…; Richard Widmark and Donna Reed play the tough–talkin', rootin–tootin leads in this gritty horse opera, as they both seek vengeance for…
Sissi - The Young Empress (1956): Dir. Ernst Marischka
Feat. Romy Schneider; Royal life is not quite the bed of roses for Princess Sissi, now married to her beloved Franz but under the constant gaze of her meddling…
All That Heaven Allows (1955): Dir. Douglas Sirk
Feat. Jane Wyman, Rock Hudson, Agnes Moorehead…; Middle–aged widow Jane Wyman fights for the respect of her family and upscale community when she conducts an affair with her ‘gardener’…
One Desire (1955): Dir. Jerry Hopper
Feat. Anne Baxter, Rock Hudson, Julie Adams; Old–fashioned romantic melodrama set in the early 1900's, following the fate of a star–crosses Oklahoma gambler–casino dealer and a…
Sissi (1955): Dir. Ernst Marischka
Feat. Romy Schneider; Regal saga finds 16–year–old princess Sissi fall in love with husband–to–be Franz Josef in the first of an ongoing series of…
Summertime (Summer Madness) (1955): Dir. David Lean
Feat. Katharine Hepburn, Rossano Brazzi, Isa Miranda; Katharine Hepburn, middle–aged spinster, flees to Venice on vacation, only for the romance of the city – and a dark, handsome Italian catch…
Beachcomber, The (1954): Dir. Muriel Box
Feat. Glynis Johns, Robert Newton, Donald Sinden…; Entertaining and deeply silly romantic yarn with prim missionary Johns falling for slovenly Newton as they team up to fight a cholera outbreak on a…
Elephant Walk (1954): Dir. William Dieterle
Feat. Elizabeth Taylor, Dana Andrews, Peter Finch…; Love–triangle melodrama set on Ceylon tea plantation is a tad overblown, with thunder stolen from the good cast by a climactic elephant…
End of the Affair, The (1954): Dir. Edward Dmytryk
Feat. Deborah Kerr, Van Johnson, John Mills; Original screen adaptation of Graham Greene’s tale of unrequited wartime love, with Deborah Kerr and Van Johnson entangled in a brief but illicit…
Senso (1954): Dir. Luchino Visconti
Feat. Alida Valli, Farley Granger, Christian Marquand; A period love story set in the tumultuous 1860's in Italy, when it was occupied by invading Austrians. Dir. Visconti turns his eye on a love…
Victoria in Dover (The Story of Vickie) (1954): Dir. Ernst Marischka
Feat. Romy Schneider, Adrian Hoven; A prequel of sorts to the SISSI trilogy lovingly details the formative romance between Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Romy Schneider features…
Gate of Hell (Jigokumon) (1953): Dir. Teinosuke Kinugasa
Feat. Machiko Kyo, Kazuo Hasegawa, Isao Yamagata; Tragic story of unrequited love set during the Heiji Rebellion in 1159, where a samurai warrior falls in love with a married…
Madame De... (Earrings Of Madame De..., The) (1953): Dir. Max Ophuls
Feat. Danielle Darrieux, Vittorio De Sica, Charles Boyer; Widely considered one of the dir.'s peak achievements, this gracefully and ironically traces a doomed menage–a–trois in 18th century…
Story of Three Loves, The (1953): Dir. Vincente Minnelli, Gottfried Reinhardt
Feat. Pier Angeli, Ethel Barrymore, Leslie Caron…; Romantic anthology film telling three separate stories in flashbacks experienced by three characters on board the same ocean liner. "The Jealous…
Casque d'Or (Golden Marie) (1952): Dir. Jacques Becker
Feat. Simone Signoret, Serge Reggiani, Claude Dauphin; A gangster’s moll falls in love with a reformed criminal, igniting underworld violence, in this lush, overwhelming tragi–romance set in Paris…
Astonished Heart, The (1950): Dir. Terence Fisher, Antony Damborough
Feat. Sir Noel Coward, Celia Johnson, Margaret Leighton…; Noel Coward stars in this adaptation of his play; a drawing–room melodrama about a married psychiatrist who unhappily succumbs to the wiles of…
La Ronde (1950): Dir. Max Ophuls
Feat. Anton Walbrook, Simone Signoret, Serge Reggiani…; A witty chronicle of circular love–affairs and seductions in 19th century Vienna. Lavish sets and extravagent spiralling camerawork complement…
Orpheus (Orphee) (1949): Dir. Jean Cocteau
Feat. Jean Marais, Maria Casares, Marie Dea…; Cocteau's surrealist retelling of the classical tragedy stars Jean Marais as Orphee, the writer who retrieves his wife Eurydice from the dead. A…
Passionate Friends, The (1949): Dir. David Lean
Feat. Ann Todd, Trevor Howard, Claude Rains; A wistful Ann Todd divides her loyalty between a secure, older husband (Rains) and a free–spirited toff (Howard) in this rich, unrequited…
We Were Strangers (1949): Dir. John Huston
Feat. Jennifer Jones, John Garfield, Pedro Armendariz…; Adventure drama with Jennifer Jones playing a woman who joins the Cuban Underground and helps devise a plot to bring down the country's corrupt…
Daisy Kenyon (1947): Dir. Otto Preminger
Feat. Joan Crawford, Dana Andrews, Henry Fonda…; Joan Crawford gives one of her greatest performances in this surprisingly compelling soap opera, finding herself torn between Fonda and Andrews.…
Anna and the King of Siam (1946): Dir. John Cromwell
Feat. Irene Dunne, Rex Harrison, Linda Darnell…; The first version of the true story of an English governess (Dunne) who in the 1860s journeyed to South East Asia to look after the King of Siam's 62…
It Rains On Our Love (1946): Dir. Ingmar Bergman
Feat. Barbro Kollberg, Birger Malmsten; Bergman experiments with this awkward combination of romance and misery, in which a couple's happiness is dogged by their criminal and vagrant past.…
Man I Love, The (1946): Dir. Raoul Walsh
Feat. Ida Lupino, Robert Alda, Bruce Bennett…; Romantic drama about a New York lounge singer who becomes homesick and decides to visit her siblings on the West Coast, where she unexpectedly falls…
Clock, The (1945): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Judy Garland, Robert Walker, James Gleason…; Judy Garland's first dramatic role (in which she did not sing) reunites her with director (and future husband) Vincente Minnelli from MEET ME IN ST.…
Love Story (A Lady Surrenders) (1944): Dir. Leslie Arliss
Feat. Margaret Lockwood, Stewart Granger, Patricia Roc…; Classy tearjerker with dying pianist Lockwood falling in love with blind pilot Granger. Treacly but satisfying with the two leads performances…
To Have and Have Not (1944): Dir. Howard Hawks
Feat. Lauren Bacall, Humphrey Bogart; In the upper–bracket of Bogart films, this first time match–up with Lauren Bacall still sets the screen alight. Adapted from the…
Flemish Farm, The (1943): Dir. Jeffrey Dell
Feat. Clive Brook, Clifford Evans, Jane Baxter; Low budget WW2 aviation drama focused on a regiment of Belgian pilots who use a Flemish farm as an airstrip with one of the injured men becoming…
Casablanca (1942): Dir. Michael Curtiz
Feat. Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman; The role that immortalised Bogart is that of Rick, the laconic cafe–owner who assists old flame Ingrid Bergman to escape the Nazis with her…
Eternel Retour, L' (1942): Dir. Jean Delannoy
Feat. Jean Marais, Madeleine Sologney, Yvonne de Bray…; (Love Eternal) A contemporary take on the legend of Tristan and Isolde, lovers united after death. Jean Cocteau's script is realised with the…
Lydia (Illusions) (1941): Dir. Julien Duvivier
Feat. Merle Oberon, Joseph Cotton, Alan Marshall…; Dreamy, melancholic melodrama follows the life and numerous loves of a society gal (Oberron) in New England over thirty odd years. Dir. Duvivier…
Rebecca (1940): Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Joan Fontaine, George Sanders; A masterful gothic romance about a nobleman's second wife who becomes haunted by the image of his beloved first. Hitchcock's first American film was…
Remember the Night (1940): Dir. Mitchell Leisen
Feat. Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi…; Preston Sturges scripted this forgotten yuletide gem, about an assistant D.A. (MacMurray) who, feeling sorry for a glamorous jewel thief (Stanwyck),…
Jour Se Leve, Le (Daybreak) (1939): Dir. Marcel Carne
Feat. Jean Gabin, Arletty; A renowned example of 'poetic realism', Jean Gabin gives another consummate performance as a doomed anti–hero. His tragic story is told in…
Alexander's Ragtime Band (1938): Dir. Henry King
Feat. Tyrone Power, Alice Faye, Don Ameche…; Irving Berlin contributes over two dozen songs as well as the screenplay for this rousing story of the history of (white) jazz music from ragtime to…
Algiers (1938): Dir. John Cromwell
Feat. Hedy Lamarr, Charles Boyer, Sigrid Gurie…; Remake of a PEPE LE MOKO, in which a dashing jewel thief who has been hiding out for two years in the mysterious, murky Casbah, falls madly in love…
Bank Holiday (Three on a Weekend) (1938): Dir. Carol Reed
Feat. Margaret Lockwood, John Lodge, Hugh Williams…; Minor drama with nurse Lockwood heading to the seaside for an illicit weekend only to have her enjoyment tempered by her job.
Beachcomber, The (Vessel of Wrath) (1938): Dir. Erich Pommer
Feat. Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester; Drama based on the short story by Somerset Maughamet, set in a remote tropical Dutch colony, where the sister of a missionary attempts to reform a…
Angel (1937): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Marlene Dietrich, Herbert Marshall, Melvyn Douglas; Love triangle between a distracted husband, a neglected wife and an ardent suitor set amid the rigid social norms of the…
Camille (1937): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Greta Garbo, Robert Taylor, Lionel Barrymore…; One of Greta Garbo’s finest roles, playing the courtesan heroine of Alexandre Dumas’ potboiler, navigating the treacheries of the French…
Trail of the Lonesome Pine, The (1936): Dir. Henry Hathaway
Feat. Fred MacMurray, Sylvia Sidney, Henry Fonda; This pioneering colour film is an engaging old–fashioned Western tale of loyalty, family and romance set against an age–old feud between…
Devil Is A Woman, The (1935): Dir. Josef von Sternberg
Feat. Marlene Dietrich, Lionel Atwill, Cesar Romero; Set during Carnival in turn on the century Seville where a temptress comes between a young revolutionary and his old friend.
L'Atalante (1934): Dir. Jean Vigo
Feat. Michel Simon, Jean Daste; A recently restored master work from the French film archive combines lyrical romance with inspired touches of fantasy.
Of Human Bondage (1934): Dir. John Cromwell
Feat. Bette Davis, Leslie Howard; The film which propelled Bette Davis to stardom, with her vivid personification of a coy, but slutty Cockney waitress who becomes the object of…
Liebelei (1933): Dir. Max Ophuls
Feat. Arthur Schnitzler; An early work from the German maestro of the tracking shot, whose tale of doomed romance between a young soldier and fraulein (taken from a play by…
Bird of Paradise (1932): Dir. King Vidor
Feat. Dolores Del Rio, Joel McCrea, John Halliday…; Erotic adventure drama about a sailor who falls in love with a woman from an unnamed Pacific island where the film is set. Plenty of colonialist…
Red Headed Woman / Waterloo Bridge (1931-1932): Dir. Jack Conway, James Whale
Feat. Jean Harlow, Chester Morris, Lewis Stone…; RED HEADED WOMAN: A snappy comedy from the pre–code Hollywood era with Jean Harlow playing a woman from Ohio who manipulates men in order to…
Eternal Love (1929): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. John Barrymore, Camilla Horn; Made during the last days of the silent era, the legendary Ernst Lubitsch directs John Barrymore and Camilla Horn as two lovers living in the Swiss…
Late Mathias Pascal, The (Feu Mathias Pascal) (1925): Dir. Marcel L'Herbier
Feat. Ivan Mosjoukine, Michel Simon; A French silent film, based on the novel by Luigi Pirandello. Russian actor Ivan Mosjoukine stars as Mathias, an assistant librarian from a…
Variety (1925): Dir. E.A. Dupont
Feat. Emil Jannings, Lya de Putti; A cautionary fable of romantic treachery set in the since–vanished vaudeville world, lent depth through its sophisticated visual style. Emil…
Kean (1924): Dir. Alexandre Volkoff
Feat. Ivan Mosjoukine; A French silent film depicting the life of Shakespearean actor Edmund Kean, played by Ivan Mosjoukine, focusing on his romance with countess Elena de…
Beyond the Rocks (1922): Dir. Sam Wood
Feat. Rudolph Valentino, Gloria Swanson, Edythe Chapman…; Silent–era romantic drama that was considered a lost film until a nitrate print was discovered in the Netherlands in 2003 and restored to…
True Heart Susie (1919): Dir. D.W. Griffith
Feat. Lillian Gish, Robert Harron, Clarine Seymour…; Lillian Gish plays an innocent and big–hearted country girl who sacrifices everything for the clueless minister that breaks her heart. A…

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