Love is Love is Love: All About Classic Romcoms

Georgiana Forder & Ashley Rata

4 days ago5 min read

Happy (late) Valentine’s Day! Whether you’re celebrating with a lover, friends, family, or flying solo with a cozy blanket and snacks, there’s one thing we can all enjoy: a good romantic comedy. Romcoms give us comfort, laughter, and just enough drama to make the romance worth rooting for. If you’re on the hunt for the perfect movie to watch this Valentine’s Day, we’ve got you covered. Here’s a breakdown of what makes romcoms so irresistible, where they sometimes fall short, and our ranked list of some of the most popular or must-watch films of the golden age of romcoms!

What exactly is a romantic comedy? Romcoms, as they’re colloquially known, blend romance and humor (with some drama on the side, not too much) into a lovably predictable feel-good genre of movies. Featuring many classic tropes, such as a meet-cute, grand gestures of love, the quirky best friend, and dreamy confessions, at the core of each film is the idea of a perfect (or close to it) version of love. While plots usually center on two people falling in love (with mishaps and misunderstandings thrown in their direction), the ending is almost always a happily ever after.

Fans of romcoms love them for a wide variety of reasons. They’re usually comforting and predictable, and the knowledge of a positive outcome reassures us and calms us down with the moral being that love will always win. Escapism at its finest, any viewer can sink into a bubble of the perfect story, and if one sees themself in a character, almost live in the movie. Despite the exaggeration of real life obstacles and scenarios, romcoms are relatable to almost anyone. They reflect our hopes, fears, and awkward moments while falling in love, creating a sense of connection (As a bonus, this also makes them fun to watch with anyone, your crush, friends, even your mom). As humans, we’re all wired for love. Chemicals like oxytocin and dopamine activate the reward circuit in the brain, and when the adrenaline and stress of a new relationship has faded away, love acts as a buffer for stress. While good for increasing positive feelings, research shows that love also deactivates the neural pathways responsible for negative emotions. Love gives us a purpose. It’s a universal experience that can bring meaning to our lives, and lets us feel like we belong. Seeing a human connection developing from start to finish makes us happy, and movies compact that journey into an hour or two of contagious joy and laughter.

Those who scoff at the idea of the genre do have some good points. Many romcoms can feel dated or problematic, with outdated gender roles, lack of diversity, and unrealistic or problematic tropes. Out of the 25 romcoms we watched, several featured misogynistic views, racism, and just plain old boring plots filled with tedious interactions and the worst decisions humanly possible. Pre-2010s Hollywood romcoms rarely focused on anyone besides white, heterosexual, cisgender, wealthy couples. The very framework structure that boosted the modern romcom to popularity became its downfall, with the same movies being slightly remade over and over again, without introducing any new elements. They can present a fixed perspective of love. Not all relationships are a montage set to a love song, and refusing to take no for an answer will likely get you a restraining order, not a date. Toxic tropes and expectations set up an unrealistic standard of love, putting pressure on those in the real world to “do better”. Female characters are expected to give up careers and opportunities for men who somehow did less than the bare minimum. Actively hating someone is not a good way to show that you’re actually in love with them. Despite all of these flaws, many of these films are still beloved for their charm and nostalgia. It’s okay to love them while recognizing their issues! If you just cannot stand the most popular classic romcoms out there - look deeper. There are a decent number of great romcoms with representation for just about anything. As we move into a new era of cinema, it becomes easier and easier to not have to search for a movie where the girl gets the girl, one where a relationship isn’t picture-perfect, and more.

1989 - 2009 is considered to be the golden age of romantic comedies, beginning with the release of the Nora Ephron classic, “When Harry Met Sally”. My co-writer and I would argue that this era started two years earlier, with 1987 and 1988 churning out some of the best or most famous movies in the genre, such as “The Princess Bride” and “Moonstruck”. These late 80s classics set the precedent for the modern romcom, and provided the blueprints for many, many plots to follow. This era defined what a romcom could be: heartfelt, funny, and repetitively quotable in a way like no others. Moving from basic comedy to films with emotional depth, wit, and character-driven plots, 1987-1989 laid the groundwork. The golden age within the golden age, romantic comedies dominated the charts and the genre saw an explosion of creativity. Actors and actresses like Meg Ryan, Julia Roberts, and Hugh Grant became icons thanks to memorable performances in romcoms. Romcoms continued to evolve and expand throughout the early 2000s, incorporating ensemble storytelling, more mature themes, and self-discovery. By 2009, romcoms began to decline in prominence, audiences preferring blockbusters and extended franchises. While several movies made it out of the quagmire and into theaters, most shunned the rest in favor of less predictable and contrived films. Romcoms will never truly disappear, and have been making a comeback recently with fresh takes and more inclusive stories. Streaming platforms are leading the way with movies such as the “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” trilogy, “Set It Up”, “Crazy Rich Asians”, “The Idea of You” and “Crush”. Newer romcoms feature more diverse casts, different relationship dynamics, and stories that feel more relevant to today. However, there’s something timeless about the simplicity and yearning of classic romcoms that still resonates, reminding us why we can’t help but return to their charm, even in today’s modern world.

With that, on to the ranking (if that’s what you came for)! In total, we watched 25 romantic comedies from a list of over 50, and ranked them best to worst. We didn’t finish the list, but in our defense, watching that many happy movies in a month can really make one feel single around Valentine’s Day. Our list was purely based on our personal opinions, and vibes, so don’t take it too personally if your favorite didn’t make the cut! We considered several factors: rewatchability (will it hold up on the tenth viewing?), chemistry (are the leads actually believable as a couple?), and laugh factor (It’s a comedy, after all!). While every film we watched had its good points, any of the top ten will make an excellent choice for a showing. We couldn’t choose between our top two, so we strongly suggest watching both of them as a double feature!