Moonstruck

Let’s start off with one of those all-time classics, 1987’s “Moonstruck”. A pushing 40 Italian-American widow, unlucky in love, accepts the proposal of her boyfriend Johnny, despite not being in love with him. When she meets his estranged brother, she finds herself drawn to him and they have an affair.

What I love about “Moonstruck” is it never takes itself too seriously, yet it so poignantly captures the complicated feelings of loneliness, aging, and romance. There are like six absolutely wonderful performances in this and Cher’s face was just meant to be on film. She has that old Hollywood “the camera loves her” radiance in this. Moonstruck also asks a daring question…is Nicholas Cage hot?

Moonstruck has enough laughs for anyone and a perhaps flippant view of infidelity, but when you see Loretta and Ronny find each other’s faces in the crowd at the opera ,you WILL believe in romance and love. “Moonstruck” is currently streaming in a lot of places, including Prime Video, Tubi, the Roku Channel, and the Criterion Channel. It also has a beautiful Blu-ray release from the Criterion Collection.

Somewhere in Time

We’re sticking with the 80s for our next movie—the timeless sci-fi romance “Somewhere in Time.” A young playwright is visited by an old women who gives him a pocket watch and mysteriously begs him to “come back to me”. Years later as a succesful playwright, with writers block and restless energy, he impulsively drives to a the grand hotel on Mackinac Island and sees an old picture of a beautiful woman he becomes obsessed with. When he finds out she is the woman who gave him the pocket watch, a famous stage actress from the early 1900s, he finds a way to travel back to 1912 to meet her.

Its a movie that you either buy into the premise or you don’t. The film was written by famed science fiction author Richard Matheson who proves himself to be quite the romantic too. The beautiful setting of the island, the bloom lighting, Jane Seymour’s radiant face, and a young charming Christopher Reeve really just make this a lovely little film to get caught up in. A failure upon release, the movie has gained a cult following over the years, with the Grand Hotel hosting a “Somewhere in Time” weekend every year. “Somewhere in Time” can be streamed on Tubi, rented on most digital platforms, or picked up on Blu-ray. A 4K release is also coming soon.

The Young Girls of Rochefort
Up next, who knows romance better than the French? Chevalier, Belmondo, Gendron. “The Young Girls of Rochefort” is a 1960s French colorful escapist fantasy by legendary French director and namesake of my dog, Jacques Demy. It tells the story of two sisters, their mother, an artist, and some new-to-town carnival workers pining for romance.

The colors are a confectionary delight, the songs and dances leave a giant smile on your face, and the cast is an all-timer for any era– featuring with in real life sisters in Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorléac , another French legend Danielle Dareieux as their mother, the dancing fiend that is George Chakiris and the one and only Hollywood legend—Gene Kelly.

If foreign films aren’t your thing, still give this a try because the music and energy will lift you away and the colorful romances blooming in Rochefort will put you in the mood for love. “Young Girls” is currently streaming on Max, The Criterion Channel, and, for that real color pop, you can pick it up on Blu-ray.

Miami Vice

Finally, this one is probably the hardest sell in the bunch, but believe me when I say is one of the most romantic movie of all time—Michael Mann’s 2006 film version of “Miami Vice.” How is a gritty 2000s digital remake of the classic 80s show the most romantic movie of all time? Well you’ll understand once you pour a mojito and let your guard down like Colin Ferrell’s Detective Sonny Crocket and Gong Li’ Isabella as they set out on speedboat to Cuba. The passion cuts like a knife hidden within the action. This is a theme with Michael Mann, one of my favorite directors. There are beautifully romantic scenes with achingly poignant conversations in movies like “Thief”, “Heat”, or the “Last of the Mohicans” that sometimes become the most memorable aspects movies. If you want to feel some romance this Valentines Day with some truly palpable attraction, Michael Mann’s “Miami Vice” more than ticks the box for passion.