Yeah, it’s Valentine’s Day! Don’t worry, that doesn’t mean you’ve got to give in and watch some terrible romantic comedy where Hugh Grant blinks a lot because he’s nervous — we’ve got ten romantic (sorta) flicks that won’t make you roll your eyes!
10. Pontypool (2008)
Okay, so there’s nothing particularly romantic about Bruce McDonald’s great thriller about a radio station in the midst of contagion, but it takes place during Valentine’s Day, and what’s a better way to get cozy than a horror flick?
9. Vibrations (1995)
A rock star (James Marshall) gets into a car accident and loses his hands, so he becomes a cybernetic DJ and the toast of the rave scene thanks to a computer artist played by Christina Applegate. SERIOUSLY, IT IS A ROMANCE BETWEEN A CYBORG DJ NAMED “CYBERSTORM” AND CHRISTINA APPLEGATE SET AGAINST THE BACKDROP OF THE ’90S RAVE SCENE. And it is as amazing as it sounds.
8. Happy Together (1997)
There’s a number of Wong Kar-wai films available on streaming, but his film about a doomed romance between two Hong Kong men who travel to Argentina is one of my favorites, a moody, melancholy gem with great performances from Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu-Wai.
7. That Kind of Girl (1963)
The first film of Gerry O’Hara (THE BITCH), THAT KIND OF GIRL is a nifty piece of sleaze, profiling the perils of STDs while wallowing in seedy exploitation. Share it with someone you love.
6. Chico and Rita (2010)
Nominated for a Best Animated Feature Academy Award, this Spanish-language flick about a romance that spans from Havana to New York City to Las Vegas is at times charming, dramatic and beautiful, and features some great Latin music.
5. The Lovers on the Bridge (1991)
Leos Carax’s flick about a street performer and a painter (Denis Lavant and Juliette Binoche) living on a bridge that’s been closed for repairs took 7 years to his the U.S., but it was worth the wait.
4. Tromeo and Juliet (1995)
Probably the best film Troma has produced in-house, with the usual level of actors giving it their all despite how ridiculous the whole thing is. Jane Jenson and Will Keenan star, with Sean Gunn, Debbie Rochon and Lemmy. Co-written by James Gunn.
3. Blue Valentine (2010)
A sweet, tender romance about a young couple (Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams) working out the problems. Oh, wait, no, it’s about a relationship that’s clearly going to hell. A date movie that will make you either feel so close to one another that you wouldn’t dare leave or make things so awkward that you won’t speak to one another for days.
2. Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (1990)
Get kinky with Pedro Almodovar’s gleefully funny comedy about the Stockholm Syndrome caused by a twisted fan (Antonio Banderas) kidnapping a porn starlet (Victoria Abril) is twisted, sexy fun and one of the director’s best.
1. Amelie (2001)
If you don’t like AMELIE, you clearly don’t have a soul.
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I love this freakin’ column. I find so much great stuff here that was not on my radar. I can’t wait to get into this list.