My favorite romantic movies by Amie Denman


As a romance writer, I also read dozens and dozens of romance novels every year. I love reading the wide variety within the romance genre itself, and I never get tired of a happy ending. When I'm not reading or writing romance novels, I'm watching romance movies. Here are my top three romance movies:


Somewhere in Time (1980). Time travel romance! One of my earliest movie introductions to how much a person will sacrifice for love. And the cast...who could resist Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour in the same movie? They are delightful. The costumes, setting, and musical score by John Barry make this one of the best movies ever. I have a movie poster hanging right next to my desk where I write. Because I love the setting so much, visiting The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Michigan, was one of my life's goals. I've been back four times now and I never get tired of walking the porch and dressing up for dinner.


Romancing the Stone (1984). Not only hilariously funny and clever, it features a romance writer as the heroine. Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner) writes romances in her lonely apartment while dreaming of her own hero. When she ends up running for her life to save her sister in the jungles of Colombia, she has her own romance with Jack Colton (Michael Douglas). My favorite moment is when the Colombian drug smugglers recognize her name and gush about how they read all her books. I also adore the scene at the very beginning. Joan Wilder has just written The End on a novel, and she's neglected everything else in her apartment except the cat. She doesn't have a tissue left and hasn't ventured from her apartment in weeks...but she has a bestseller ready to deliver to her editor. An added bonus of this movie is that the novelization of the movie was written by Heartwarming author Catherine Lanigan!

Under the Tuscan Sun (2003). I know it's not a romance in the same way the other two are. When her husband unexpectedly asks for a divorce, literature professor and author Frances Mayes (Diane Lane) picks up her pieces and takes a trip to Italy where she buys a villa and reinvents herself. She toys with love along the way, but it's when she finally accepts herself and is happy with her own life that love walks in when she's least expecting it. I think that's what happens in every great romance--people have to be happy with who they are before they can give their heart to someone else. Wonderful music, scenery, and a great cast--I watch this one over and over.

Does anyone else love these movies as much as I do? There are so many great romance movies I didn't include here--please leave a comment with your favorite romance movie.

Comments

  1. SHALL WE DANCE, the one with Richard Gere & Susan Sarandon (who's really me--can you tell?) and SINCE YOU WENT AWAY, a World War II era movie with Joseph Cotten and Claudette Colbert that turns me into a sniffling heap.

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  2. Hello Aimie!!! I have never heard of Somewhere in Time. I'm going to go on a hunt for that asap! I love movies, although it's rare that I get to watch a good romance since my husband controls the remote 90% of the time. Still, when he's not home I admit to binge watching them. Currently I'm obsessed with Breakfast at Tiffany's. I think I've watched it three times in the last month. My top 3 would be Breakfast at Tiffany's, 10 things I Hate About You and PS I Love you. That movie kills me every time!

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  3. Love your top three, Amie. My favorite line in Romancing the Stone comes from Jack who asks Joan if she got up that morning to ruin a man's life. Those two are so funny! For an all-time favorite, I have to go with Gone With the Wind for its sheer scope and spectacle--and , of course, Clark Gable.

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  4. LOL, I'm with Leann. My time with the telly is limited. If we had more romances set in Alaska, I might get more tellly time. That being said, I've seen all three :) You gotta put My Big Fat Greek Wedding there. Oh, and While You Were Sleeping. And, oh,... there are some truly great movies out there.

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  5. I never saw Somewhere in Time but love the other two. Also You've Got Mail. I want to go to the garden in NYC where they meet at the end.

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  6. I have a lot of favorites, but two of my top star Keanu Reeves - A Walk in the Clouds and The Lake House :)

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    1. Oh my gosh!!! I forgot about the Lake House. LOVE THAT MOVIE!!!

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  7. I'm not a big movie goer or watcher. Now my kids call and say...this is a mom movie, which means they want me to buy a copy so they can take it home when they visit. There haven't been a lot lately. I like the two Pam mentioned.

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  8. While You Were Sleeping was a good one. I'm going to have to watch Romancing the Stone againe one of these days, and I'll look for Somewhere in Time. Thanks for the recommendation, Amie.

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  9. Pride and Prejudice. Notting Hill. The Princess Bride. Hitch. The Big Sick.

    Is there a limit?

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  10. AWWW, Amie, what an honor to be included in your choices. And Leigh, I love that line, too. My husband, for those who know, he was a film producer, he had 1000 favorite movies and then there was the top 100 because Jed could not narrow them down. I LOVE movies. I have a DVD collection that is embarrassing, but hands down, my favorite is STILL "Casablanca". I'm one of those die-hard movie fans, doesn't matter if I've seen the movie a hundred times and I do confess to doing that...I cry over and over. My such a romantic SLOB. Sniff. My list is too long but, "SOMEWHERE IN TIME" is right up at the top 10.

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  11. I've never heard of SOMEWHERE IN TIME, either. I love PS, I LOVE YOU, too. ROMANCING THE STONE, yes, and CASABLANCA and I have to see THE BIG SICK and oh, what was that one where the father relates to his daughter how he got together with her mother and we're kept guessing all the way through who it is???

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  12. I haven't seen Somewhere in Time in SO long! Need to watch that again. Love the other two, also. Great selection, Amie. I'm not normally a romance movie kinda girl (odd for a romance author, I know), but You've Got Mail and Robin Hood (Errol Flynn version) are two of my go tos. :) Thanks for sharing!

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  13. This is one of the movies I like the most, I watched it on play tv geh apk, the world's leading online movie watch app today.

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