gartal fifteenth haryell
Cori Lenon
This movie is the clearest case I've seen in a long time of the war between movie stars and the scripts they are given. The movie is a love story. The stars are Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep -- arguably the two most distinguished American movie actors under fifty. They have a genuine chemistry together on the screen and undeniable charisma. And that's it in this movie, which gives them not one memorable line of dialogue, not one inventive situation, not one moment when we don't groan at the startling array of clichs they have to march through.
"Falling in Love" is nothing if not upfront about its intentions. It wants to be a 1940s romance, and it makes that bountifully clear by making the first encounter between the characters a "Meet Cute." "Meet Cutes" are what Hollywood calls those clichd scenes where Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant are both leaving Macy's at the same time; they run into each other, drop their packages, and bump heads as they awkwardly bend over to pick them up. Would you believe that is exactly how the "Meet Cute" works in this movie? De Niro and Streep are at a bookstore, not a department store, but as their packages drop, the movie almost could use a subtitle with the cross-reference to other films.
I'm sure there was some sort of story conference about how it would be fun to reprise a classic Meet Cute. I'm sure they had a lot of story conferences on this movie, giving one another pep talks about how the movie's total lack of substance was really a style decision. But it's just a cop-out. How can you put Streep and De Niro in a movie and not give them characters to play or interesting things to say? It's a waste of resources.
The movie's story involves two people who commute to New York on the same train. After their "Meet Cute," they are attracted to each other by instant chemistry. They meet again. There is a little awkward conversational jostling, and before long they're embarked on a chaste year-long affair in which they have lunch, go to Chinatown, visit tall buildings and trendy art galleries, and find mutual support while Streep's father dies. Art galleries and Chinatown are almost obligatory in movies like this. All true love affairs must begin with a mutual return to the infantile, as the lovestruck new partners buy hot dogs from vendors and watch the ice skating in Rockefeller Center and in other ways symbolically reenact the necessity of reliving their entire lives, from childhood on, in the company of this treasured new person.
Fine. Except that in all romances worthy of the name, there sooner or later comes a meeting of the minds: There are those rushed, excited conversations in which the two lovers realize that they are both brilliant, both insightful, both witty, and both sharing a viewpoint so unique that the rest of the world will never quite understand it.
"Falling in Love" has no such passages. The dialogue is unremittingly, perhaps deliberately, banal. The funniest line in the movie ("How much do you weigh?") is inspired by the characters' inability to think of anything to say. We learn nothing of substance about them. They are provided with spouses who are ciphers, with personalities that are shallow and narcissistic, with crises that depend upon a manipulative script.
And as if all of that were not bad enough, the movie also resorts to Idiot Plot techniques to squeeze out an infuriating ending. A final farewell between the lovers is prevented because of faulty communications. A later reunion takes place when there is only one fact that each lover needs to know -- that the other is separated or divorced. Incredibly, neither character makes this revelation, because to supply that single essential fact would spoil "Falling in Love"'s manipulative and shameless ending.
Incredibly, there are passages when this movie works. They are entirely due to the chemistry, the genuine human qualities of Streep and De Niro. They carry the plot and the dimwit dialogue because of the goodwill they've built up with us, and because of their own magnetism, their ability to invest worthless dialogue with a certain personal charm. "Falling in Love" will serve as a definitive example of good performances in a bad movie.
Yeah, those. When it comes to sad romance movies that make you cry, honestly, we can't get enough. In the back of our minds, we totally know that most of the characters are made up (or, at the very least, are fictionalized adaptations of real people). But the emotions and heartbreaks, the wins and losses of being in love, still feel totally real. And isn't that what matters? We thought so.
If Nick Robinson as Simon doesn't have you smiling at all of his prospective romances while he searches for the elusive "Blue" throughout the film, then you are probably a monster. But the moment that will have you sobbing (and exhaling along) is when Simon's mom (played by Jennifer Garner) sits down and confronts Simon about him being gay.
Where to watch: Amazon and Disney+
The doomed-before-it-began story of Ennis del Mar (Heath Ledger) and Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal), based on the short story by Annie Proulx, is guaranteed to make you cry. It's as poignant and as relevant as ever, even though we live nearly 60 years after Ennis and Jack first met.
They say it's better to have loved and lost, than to never have loved at all. Well, in Irreplaceable You, Abbie (played by Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is diagnosed with terminal cancer (yes, the tissues will be coming out early in this one) and tries to find someone to love and care for the fianc she's leaving behind. Trying to find the love of your life's next partner because you don't have long to live? Now THAT's love.
If watching Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams learn how to fall in love again after she suffers a terrible car accident doesn't make you feel things, consider this: It was based on a true story. Crying now? We thought so.
Why watch a movie with one romance when you could watch a movie with basically an infinite number of them? Well, sorta. In Every Day the entity "A" wakes up in a different body and starts to fall in love with Rhiannon (Angourie Rice). Part-coming of age, part-romance, this movie will have you crying from start to finish.
Based on the novel of the same name, this 2019 film is the epitome of tragic teen romance. In the film, two teens with cystic fibrosis, Stella (Haley Lu Richadson) and Will (Cole Sprouse), begin a flirty romance. Even though their illnesses require them to maintain a strict distance between them, they might risk it all for a few moments of pure bliss.
After her husband dies, Holly Kennedy (Hilary Swank) begins to receive a series of letters written by her husband (Gerard Butler) to help ease her grief. Equal parts heartbreaking and hopeful, this film will encourage you to love hard and never waste a second enjoying life.
Where to watch: Amazon
This award-winning film asks: what happens when two childhood friends reconnect after decades apart? Facing love, destiny, and endless possibilities, Nora Moon (Greta Lee) and Hae Sung (Teo Yoo) grapple with their messy and complex feelings for each other.
A slow-burn film that will have you aching for true love, this 2001 film was co-produced between Hong Kong and France. It follows the story of two friends who realize their spouses have been cheating on them. Slowly, the duo begin to fall in love, but neither wants to break their marital vows.
Looking for a good love story? We've put together the best romance movies streaming on Netflix right now, from rom-coms to tear-jerking dramas to something a little sexier. Netflix has been leaning into their own original romantic content in recent years, so there are plenty of new releases to check out, but there are also some bonafide classics, award-winners, and box office hits in the mix. So without any further ado, settle in for meet-cutes, public professions of love, mind games, romantic gestures, slow dances, seductions, and all the classic romance movie beats.
You might not expect Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga to be one of the most touching and romantic movies of 2020, but one should never underestimate the power of Rachel McAdams. The Mean Girls and Game Night star proves once again that she's one of the most underrated comedic actors of her generation. The movie is sometimes laugh-out-loud funny, but the big surprises here are the fabulously catchy original songs and the unexpected tenderness between the laughs that might just leave you with a tear in your eye and warmth in your heart. That's not just because of the love story, but that's sure a big part of it.
A classic romantic comedy to the core, Holidate brilliantly balances hilarity with heartwarming moments, proving itself an adorable movie that charmingly exposes the familial and societal pressures that come with being single. Through a delightful journey of finding love, Holidate builds on the iconic and often cringe-worthy holiday movie tropes, allowing the two single strangers at the heart of the movie to find unexpected attraction and genuine chemistry.
A bit of a Love Actually for the teen set, Let It Snow is a sweet film from top to tail, as interested in the dramas of teen friendship and domestic struggles as it is the blossoming romances. Even more, it's filled with delightful performances from a knockout cast of young up-and-comers. A lot of the Netflix Christmas romances follow in the Hallmark Channel vein, and absolutely no judgment if that's your preferred thing, but for those who want an old-fashioned feel-good holiday romance, Let It Snow is just the ticket.
Written and directed by Craig Johnson, Alex Strangelove is a romantic coming-of-age comedy film. Daniel Doheny stars as Alex Truelove, a high school senior and class president who is in a relationship with his best friend, Claire (Madeline Weinstein). The couple sets a date to have sex for the first time. As you can imagine, something happens to derail those plans, and that something is the charming, openly gay teenager Elliot (Antonio Marziale). After meeting him at a party, Alex starts to get closer to Elliot, which leads him to begin questioning his sexuality.
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