Affairs of the Heart (Top Ten Romance Movies)

Member Name: QuinnElaine

Product:	Top Ten Romance Movies
Date:	03/07/08 (164 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Love is a many splendored thing...

Disadvantages: Love is a stranger in an open car...

"Doubt thou the stars are fire, Doubt that the sun doth move, Doubt truth to be a liar, But never doubt I love..." Shakespeare continues to be the most profound philosopher to ever capture human nature with mere words and phrases. He certainly didn't fall short when it comes to the topic of Love either!

Many writers have come along over the years who have dazzled and delighted, yet Shakespeare still strikes me as one of the most enduring illuminators of Truth. It amazes me how relevant his works still are so many generations later. Whether looking at the joys, hurts, laughter, jealousy, or misunderstandings that this highly volatile emotion can engender, Love and Romance can be found at the drop of a hat in most any form of entertainment.

I look outside my window and see a world locked in a season of death, hidden beneath a stark blanket of snow. I wonder why the holiday devoted to one of the most passionate emotions we are capable of should be nestled into such a frigid time of the year. Yet in ways unnoticed, Winter is slipping away and will soon be overthrown by the whims of Spring. Perhaps it is this very unpredictable, dramatic change of the seasons that makes it perfectly suited to thoughts of Love. With that in mind, I thought I would share my list of Top Ten Romances with you.

Well, compiling this list wasn't nearly as easy as it had sounded! Much as it cut me to do so, I began by excluding "Bed of Roses", "Much Ado About Nothing", and "An Ideal Husband" as they already have a place in my Top Ten movies ever, it only seemed fair. Likewise, I also cut Sabrina and Moonstruck as I have already done reviews on them separately. Imagine my chagrin when I realized that this meant doing a Top Ten list without Five of my all time favorite romantic movies! That was half my list! So, in the face of this adversity and in no particular order...

MANSFIELD PARK:

CAST: Francis O'Connor, Jonny Lee Miller, Alessandro Nivola, & Embeth Davidtz

STORY: Fanny Price's mother married for love and it brought her life of poverty and hardship. Fanny is sent to live with her wealthier family members in the hopes that she will attain a better life, instead she finds that the milk of kindness runs thin in her family. Her only solaces are the letters that she sends home to her sister over the years, and her abiding love for her cousin Edmund. When she refuses to wed the suitor her uncle has chosen for her, she is sent home to consider her priorities. Which will hold the greater power, fear of poverty or true love?

MY THOUGHTS: This is a wonderful re-working of Jane Austen's novel, and has actually replaced Sense and Sensibility as my favorite movie inspired by Austen's works. Mansfield Park is simply beautiful! While it may not be an acurate rendition of the origional tale, it is Highly appropriate for this modern era while still retaining the feel and charm of Jane Austen's skill. Intelligent, visually appealing, thought-provoking, witty, and even infuriating or tragic at times, it is on the long list of films to own.

FAVORITE LINE: "Run mad as often as you please, but do not faint!"

VICTOR/VICTORIA:

CAST: Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren & Alex Karras

STORY: Victoria is a starving, unemployed opera singer in Paris when she meets Toddy, a gay performer and idea man. He is the one who talks her into passing herself off as a female impersonator, but neither one of them dreamed the act would be so successful! Victoria catches the fancy of a Chicago mob boss during a performance, and he is mortified when Victoria 'reveals' herself as Victor at the end of the act. He becomes determined to vindicate himself, vows to uncover the truth about 'Victor".

MY THOUGHTS: This 'woman pretending to be a man, pretending to be a woman' role has got to be Julie Andrews' most hilarious ever! Aside from the somewhat risqué subject matter that runs through the film, this one really reminds me of the classic mad-cap comedies of the black and white era. Fast paced, thought-provoking, and loaded with humor, you also get the added bonus of Julie Andrews voice! The issues raised between King and Victoria are certainly unique, after all how many heterosexual men are dating women who are passing themselves off as a female impersonator?! However, it is also interesting to see how they explore masculinity, feminity, and society's views on it all.

FAVORITE LINE: When asked how they could possibly be planning to play golf since it is still snowing, King replies, "We'll use Red golf balls!"


PRACTICAL MAGIC:

CAST: Aidan Quinn, Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Goran Visnjic, Diane Wiest, & Stockard Channing

STORY: The Owens sisters, Gilly and Sally, have inherited many things from their family. Most notable of all is their natural aptitude for magic, but only slightly less well known is the local legend about the curse once placed upon the women of their family. One of the earlier Owens witches was cruelly betrayed by the man she loved, thus she decreed that all men who dared to capture the heart of an Owens woman would die! Sally has never wanted anything more than "to be normal" (whatever that is!) and accepted by the neighborhood. Gilly hides her hopes and fears behind her wild-child behavior. Jimmy Angelov is Gilly's obsessive, abusive boyfriend...at least until he becomes one of the undead! Gary Hallet is an investigator searching for Jimmy and determined to uncover the truth. He may also be the answer to an impossible spell that Sally cast as young girl!

MY THOUGHTS: This is such an odd little film and sure to be one of the most unpopular in my list. However, it just struck the right note with me. It manages to blend black humor And hopeless romance! How could I not love this? It was fun and silly, didn't take itself too seriously, but made a lovely little tale anyway. This is for the hopeless romantics who manage to remain optimists and continue to believe in magic, miracles, and love! Sally's simple wish made as a child, which she believes will protect her from the Owens' curse, instead sets in motion a chain of events that touch the lives of everyone she cares about... removing every obstacle so two people can come together and love each other.

FAVORITE LINE: "You know that feeling you get when you spin in a circle? And you just spin and spin and spin? Well, that's what love feels like...but if you aren't careful, if you don't keep your eyes on something...you can fall and get hurt."


AS GOOD AS IT GETS:

CAST: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt & Greg Kinear

STORY: Melvin Udal is a novelist and suffers from Obsessive/Compulsive disorder. Rude, pushy, out-spoken, offensive, set in his ways and utterly alone, he comes off as, well, "an absolute horror of a human being!" When his artist neighbor is robbed and brutally beaten, Melvin comes to the rescue hoping to somehow impress the girl of his dreams, Carol, and we begin to see the real person beneath all his behavior.

MY THOUGHTS: This is a simply marvelous film! A wonderful interweaving of personal lives, an honest look at O/C disorder, and one of the most unlikely of romantic stories. Thought provoking, touching, funny and endlessly entertaining, this is a must see movie!

FAVORITE LINE: "You make me want to be a better man." How can you Not love a line like that?! Surely the best compliment any woman could receive.


GHOST

CAST: Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, & Whoopi Goldberg

STORY: Sam and Molly are building their lives together despite the fact that Sam can't even say the words, "I love you." He unwittingly gets in the way of an embezzler, but is unable to leave his love and life behind when he is murdered. Sam enlists the aid of a local con-artist who has been scamming folks with her 'psychic' powers to bring justice to his killers and protect Molly.

MY THOUGHTS: A classic romance! Funny, tragic, romantic, suspenseful with just a touch of the supernatural, this film has it all!

FAVORITE LINE: "The love inside...you take it with you!"


SAY ANYTHING

CAST: John Cusak, Ione Skye, Lilli Taylor

STORY: After graduating high school nice guy, Lloyd Dobler, has only one goal in his life...To spend as much time as he can with the object of his desire, Diane Court, before she leaves for Europe. The fact that she doesn't yet know who he is hardly slows him down at all! Diane's father doesn't really approve of Lloyd, feeling that his perfect daughter can do much better, but Mr. Court is kept busy juggling his troubles with the IRS.

MY THOUGHTS: A teen film with depth? I love some of the endearing gestures of love and words on the importance of honesty that abound in this film. Long before Titanic, Lloyd was shivering with emotion in the back seat of a car, and the scene where he consults the losers who hang out at the convenience store shouldn't be missed!

"If you guys know so much about women, then how come you're hanging outside a Gas n' Sip at like ten o'clock on a Saturday night with like, no women anywhere?" Good question! This film obviously had a lasting effect on Mr. Cusak...this is where he learned about kick boxing and it's been one of his main hobbies ever since! Remember that fight scene in Gross Pointe Blank? That's really John!

FAVORITE LINE: "She made me believe in myself, man! I was walking around feeling Satisfied! Can you imagine that?"


SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE

CAST: Joesph Fiennes, Gwyneth Paltrow, Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, Simon Callow, Judi Dench and Ben Affleck. Honestly, a fabulous cast!

STORY: Simply said, this is a predominantly fictional tale that asks the question, "Who was Shakespeare's Muse?" Filled with colorful characters, wit, prose, beautiful sets and costuming, this is a love story of what might have been. Will juggles theatre owners, scripts, his own melancholy, actors, writer's block, and lady loves masterfully until he looses his heart to a bold young noblewoman, Viola.

MY THOUGHTS: Lovely, lush, with words of such romantic value it left me feeling giddy! There was actually a point in this film where a roomful of ten people from ages 8 to 32 held their breath waiting for the next line! I was delighted with Judi Dench as Queen Elizabeth, and love the scene where she pauses before her carriage, surrounded by noblemen. She glances down at this enormous puddle and then looks around at all the men who just stare blankly back at her before scrambling to be gallant. "Too late!" Humorous, touching, romantic, where words are offered like a bouquet of exquisite flowers and in the end, even true love isn't enough to bring a happy ending.

FAVORITE LINE: 'I see it as I predicted. He has indeed lost his wife to the theatre."


DON JUAN DEMARCO

CAST: Johnny Depp, Marlon Brando, & Faye Dunaway

STORY: A retiring psychiatrist gains a new lease on life when he attempts to help one last patient. A young man who believes that he is the legendary lover, Don Juan DeMarco, feels that he has betrayed and lost his one true love and therefore has nothing left to live for.

MY THOUGHTS: A complete fantasy world of such beauty and improbability unfolds that it makes you Want to believe this young man really is Don Juan. Funny and thought provoking, this lovely little film has some great things to say on the topic love. This is actually the story of a true, incurable "hopeless romantic". Depp becomes the very Spirit of Love in this enticing film.

FAVORITE LINE: "It is only in My world that you can breathe again!"


'TIL THERE WAS YOU

CAST: Dylan MacDermot, Jeanne Triplehorn, & Sarah Jessica Parker

STORY: We follow the lives of two people from their childhood to present day. Gwen is a dreamer who has grown up on the romantic tales of how her parents met and has been waiting impatiently for her chance at happiness ever since. Nicholas grew up watching his father's dreams eat away all the best in his family's life. She knows love will find her some day, even if she has gotten a lot less sure and more cynical as the years pass. He is afraid that love might still find him even though he has managed to out run it for all this time. Their paths finally meet when the architectural firm Nicholas works for is hired to raze the lovely historical apartment complex that Gwen lives in.

MY THOUGHTS: Oh, so funny, uplifting, thought provoking, tender, and a most unusual romantic comedy. The main characters don't even meet until nearly the end of the film even though we, the viewers, are able to see how their paths cross from time to time.

FAVORITE LINE:
"Come in, I've been expecting you.
There's a knock on the door and love walks through,
And lights a fire and smiles a smile...
As if love were going to stay a while,
And the fire breathes and weaves its spell
But then love runs out of lies to tell
For love is restless, love's a flirt
Love has places to go and people to hurt
So here's the shovel to smother the flame
Tomorrow you'll barely remember my name
And I'll try to forget you, my dearest one
As a prisoner tries to forget the sun
For life holds no purpose, and love holds no charms
Since I beheld you in another's arms.


SLIDING DOORS

CAST: John Hannah, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeanne Triplehorn, and John Lynch

STORY: Have you ever said, "If only I had..." or "If only I hadn't..."? Surely we have all thought this at some point, but maybe what seems like a very bad thing at the time may be what makes the difference for the better in the rest of your life. Helen is living with commitment-phobe, Gerry, when a seemingly insignificant, yet crucial moment, arrives in her life on day to end all Bad Days. She misses the subway. From that point on we follow two separate stories, what would have happened if she had caught the bus and what happened when she didn't.

MY THOUGHTS: Neither storyline is especially loaded with happy options, yet the film leaves you pondering which would be the better fate. Very thought provoking and somewhat difficult to follow film, although they did do a superb job weaving both threads into this tapestry of Fate. Wonderful dialogue and a great cast, this has become one of my all time favorite romantic movies. I laughed, I cried, I thought. What more could you want?

FAVORITE LINE: "Everyone is born knowing every single Beatles lyric. It's ingested into the fetus along with all that amniotic stuff. In fact, they should have been called The Fetals!"


There you have it. Go giddy, wear your heart on your sleeve, dive into public fountains, and dance with strangers on the street! My advice? "Run mad as often as you please, but Do Not Faint!" If all else fails, I would suggest any of these fine films to inspire you next St. Valentine's Day. I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes pertaining to Love, "I were but little happy 'an I could Say how much!"


HONORABLE MENTIONS: Don't like these romances, or you've already watched them to death? Try...

Joe vs. the Volcano, Bridget Jones' Diary, Circle of Friends, Moulin Rouge, Bringing Up Baby, Peggy Sue Got Married, Sense and Sensibility, Bachelor and the Bobby-soxer, What Women Want, Outside Providence, Message in a Bottle (tear jerker alert!), Addicted to Love (Black romantic comedy!), Working Girl, America's Sweethearts, Someone Like You, Marty, This Property is Condemned, Hope Floats, Runaway Bride, Roman Holiday, When Harry Met Sally, The Princess Bride, Electric Dreams, While You Were Sleeping, One Fine Day, Cutting Edge, Wedding Singer, French Kiss, Dirty Dancing, Some Kind of Wonderful, Only You, Prelude to a Kiss, Music From Another Room.

Summary: What a shame that Romance is an escape from Reality rather than a compliment to it!