Here are the 17 most romantic movies on HBO Max right now.
Best romantic movies on HBO Max right now
1. Casablanca (1942)
As time goes by, Casablanca remains one of the most unanimously adored and celebrated movies ever. Not least among the reasons why is the adapted screenplay by Julius J. Epstein, Philip G. Epstein and Howard Koch, frequently touted as the smartest, most quotable script ever written. And there’s the romantic chemistry between Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart. A big reason we all love this movie so much is how proud we are of the characters in the end. Rick and Ilsa prioritize the greater good, and put a human face on the sacrifices made during wartime, even those made off the battlefield. The Greatest Generation, indeed. Casablanca‘s messages about seeing things bigger than yourself and doing what’s right will always resonate with audiences. Never pass up an opportunity to re-watch one of the highest highs of Hollywood history.
2. When Harry Met Sally… (1989)
We’ll have what she’s having. Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan star in this modern classic about friends who test their theory that friends can’t have sex with each other, over several years. Written by Nora Ephron and directed by Rob Reiner, When Harry Met Sally… was named the 23rd best American comedy ever, and the 25th best romantic film, by the American Film Institute. It all ends with an oft-quoted declaration of love moments before the clock strikes twelve.
3. You’ve Got Mail (1998)
Nora Ephron’s modernized ’90s remake of Ernst Lubitsch’s classic Shop Around the Corner stars Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as business rivals who detest each other in person…unaware they’re falling in love with each other online. The original, starring James Stewart and Margaret Sullavan, was a masterpiece. This one is a breezy diversion.
4. In the Mood For Love (2000)
Heart-stoppingly sumptuous and sensitively performed, Wong Kar-wai‘s Hong Kong drama about adultery and unexpected feelings is already regarded by many as one of the greatest films of all time. In the Mood For Love was restored by the Criterion Collection in 2016.
5. The Notebook (2004)
Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks, this epic melodrama centers on a love between a poor country boy (Ryan Gosling) and a rich city girl (Rachel McAdams) that spans decades and endures endless adversity. James Garner, Gena Rowlands, Joan Allen and James Garner costar in the massively successful picture that started an entire sub-genre of big-screen Sparks adaptations.
6. A Room With a View (1985)
Along with Howards End, this is perhaps the high point of the extraordinary, decadeslong romantic and professional partnership of filmmakers Ismail Merchant and James Ivory. Helena Bonham Carter stars in the period piece, as an Englishwoman torn between two beaus. Like the E.M. Forster book, the film succeeds as both a touching romance and a biting critique of English society at the dawn of the 20th century.
7. Brief Encounter (1945)
David Lean’s romantic drama stars Celia Johnson as a bored housewife who fatefully crosses paths with a married stranger in pre-war England. Based on Noël Coward’s play Still Life—adapted by the author himself—Brief Encounter is regarded as one of the finest British films ever made. Nominated for three Oscars.
8. Crazy Rich Asians (2018)
Jon M. Chu‘s film version of Kevin Kwan‘s novel, about an economics professor who discovers her boyfriend is practically royalty in Singapore, is a watershed moment for representation in Hollywood. Beyond that, the deliciously glossy, hilarious and downright moving picture is one of the best studio-released romantic comedies of the past decade or so. Crazy Rich Asians was hugely profitable, only the third 2018 release to top the box office for three straight weekends after Black Panther and Infinity War.
9. City Lights (1931)
This is the magnum opus of Charlie Chaplin, cinema’s greatest clown. The story of a Little Tramp (Chaplin) who falls for a blind flower girl (Virginia Cherrill) and endures a turbulent relationship with a drunken millionaire (Harry Meyers) and countless other obstacles so that the apple of his eye may see. A silent made four years after the talkie revolution, City Lights was a special film for Chaplin, too. Ultimately his personal favorite of his many masterworks, it was his baby and he took an unusually long time to piece it together. This is also the first time he composed a movie’s score, adding that to his other credits: actor, writer, director, producer, editor and to quote W.C. Fields “the greatest ballet dancer who ever lived.”
10. Moonstruck (1987)
Snap out of it and revisit one of the best rom-coms in history. Cher and Nicolas Cage star in this award-winning classic about an Italian-American woman who falls for her fiancé’s hot-tempered but totally hunky brother. Moonstruck was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, and it won three: Best Actress, Supporting Actress (Olympia Dukakis) and Best Original Screenplay. Roger Ebert included Moonstruck among his “Great Movies” list of cinema’s all-time finest. The characters so fully inhabit their characters; it’s bittersweet and the laughs are often huge.
11. Gone With the Wind (1939)
Gone With the Wind swept the Oscars of what is considered the finest year of Hollywood film, and remains the highest-grossing movie ever if adjusting for inflation. Based on Margaret Mitchell‘s massive novel, Victor Fleming‘s historical romantic epic stars an iconic Vivien Leigh as the strong-willed daughter of a plantation owner struggling to survive in the Civil War and Reconstruction-era South. Clark Gable embodies Old Hollywood sex appeal as cynical philanderer Rhett Butler. Their love story is the stuff of film legend, and the sheer scope of Fleming and producer David O. Selznick‘s vision is still breathtaking. Unfortunately, the whitewashed, sanitized depiction of slavery can make the whole enterprise hard to stomach these days.
12. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
Stanley Donen‘s MGM musical spectacular is often cited as the best musical ever made. Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor, Debbie Reynolds and Jean Hagen star in a showbiz rom-com set at the industry-shaking dawn of the talkies. The final moments (“Stop that girl!”) are so swoon-worthy it’ll still make your heart leap.
13. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn star in Howard Hawks‘ zany classic, about a straight-laced paleontologist who falls for a potential benefactress’ high-spirited niece. This is quintessential screwball: there’s a pet leopard, a missing dinosaur bone, Grant in a frilly bathrobe, myriad pratfalls and comic disasters. Bringing Up Baby has been preserved in the National Film Registry since 1990.
14. Crazy Stupid Love (2011)
Funny, mature performances from Steve Carell and Julianne Moore as a married couple on the skids mostly overcome a familiar script about reigniting spark, rediscovering manhood and that kind of stuff. All is upstaged, however, by the eminent chemistry of costars Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling—harnessed to perfection in musical drama La La Land half a decade later.
15. West Side Story (1961)
Robert Wise’s electrifying musical of star-crossed love between rival street gangs is the most awarded musical in Oscars history (10 wins including Best Picture). If there is a flaw here, it’s that the supporting stars Rita Moreno and George Chakiris steal all the thunder whenever they’re on screen. Steven Spielberg’s 2021 remake is arguably an improvement, one of the year’s best films and surely an Oscar contender.
16. Wonder Woman (2017)
We were all hoping this would be fun and entertaining, and then director Patty Jenkins gave us one of the most stirring and dramatically satisfying adventure films of the past decade, a film that puts story and character first at every turn. Gal Gadot‘s Diana Prince is a winsome, unapologetically idealistic screen presence for the ages. Chris Pine is also invaluable here, the chemistry perfect. By remaining one gracious half-step behind Gadot in delivering a touching and full-bodied performance, it’s one of the most appealing onscreen depictions of masculinity in recent memory.
17. Maid in Manhattan (2002)
This hit Jennifer Lopez rom-com sticks to formula, but mostly works thanks to the charms and commitment of its cast. Lopez plays a New York maid who falls in love with a politician (Ralph Fiennes). John Hughes wrote the story. Looking for more romantic movies? Check out the best romantic movies on Netflix right now.
