Regardless of your plans this Valentine’s Day, whether it’s a fancy date with your significant other or buying boxes of chocolate to share with your best friends, the holiday is never complete without watching as many rom-coms, both corny and heartfelt, that you possibly can in a span of twenty-four hours. Here are ten romantic comedies that never fail to make everyone laugh, swoon, and ugly cry to your heart’s content:
Valentine’s Day
While this 2010 film is not the greatest rom-com of all time, the all-star cast and string of connected love stories makes it worth your while. From Patrick Dempsey as a cheating husband to Jennifer Garner as a teacher looking for true love and even Taylor Swift and Taylor Lautner as high school sweethearts, these endearing tales show the struggles of living up to Valentine’s Day expectations at all ages.
The Notebook
This Nicholas Sparks classic never fails to make viewers laugh and cry with the twists and turns of Allie and Noah’s unlikely romance. Ryan Gosling’s swoon-worthy performance still elicits loving sighs every time he tells Allie that if she’s a bird, he’s a bird too.
Clueless
As if this wouldn’t be one of the movies on your must-see rom-com watch list. Spoiled valley girl Cher can argue her way out of almost any situation, but once a makeover she gives to her friend knocks her off the top of the food chain at her high school, she has to turn to something (or someone) other than her dad’s credit card to fix it. And if that’s not enough reason to watch this hilarious comedy, a young Paul Rudd steals the show as Cher’s dorky yet lovable ex-step brother.
500 Days of Summer
While not all love stories have a perfectly happy ending, this movie proves that they are all meaningful and heartfelt nonetheless. Zooey Deschanel stars as a cynical young woman who doesn’t believe in finding true love, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt is the man who is determined to change her mind.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
In arguably one of her most well-known roles, Audrey Hepburn stuns as a socialite who falls for her new neighbor. They couldn’t be more different: she throws the hottest parties among the rich society of New York and makes her money as an escort, and he’s an unknown writer struggling to finish a novel, but the pairing has been melting hearts since 1961. And as if the romance wasn’t enough, watch for Hepburn’s timeless style that never fails to make fashionistas fall in love.
The Princess Bride
This ‘80s film tells the classic story of love that can only be found in fairytales. As a young boy falls ill, his grandfather reads him a story about a farmhand that has to travel to save his unlikely true love: a princess. Everyone loves a good fairytale, and this film has been noted as being one of the funniest movies of all time and for having one of the greatest love stories of all time.
Sleepless in Seattle
This 1993 tale follows a widowed woman who crosses paths with a recently divorced man after his son calls a radio station in an attempt to find him a new partner. This film still captivates viewers over two decades after its release because of the destined lovers that are simply meant to be together.
Bridget Jones’s Diary
As a young woman ready to give her life a fresh start, Bridget Jones starts to keep a diary about everything in her life-but especially about her quest for love. This cult-classic movie was based off of a novel of the same name and inspired a trilogy that continues to follow Bridget on her adventures in life, love, and so much more.
50 First Dates
Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler light up the screen in this 2004 film. Sandler stars as a womanizer who falls for Barrymore, only to find out that she suffers from short term memory loss after an accident leaves her unable to remember that she relives the same day, over and over again. While he could take advantage of this, he falls in love with her and makes it his mission to force her to remember the love they share.
When Harry Met Sally
After its successful 1989 release, When Harry Met Sally is arguably the most popular romantic comedy, with Vogue calling it “the yardstick by which all other rom-coms are measured.” Harry and Sally are two college friends who spend a car ride from Chicago to New York bickering about the idea that men and women can never be friends. When they unintentionally reunite years later, they try to remain friends without letting romance in the way.