Top Ten Romantic Movies for Valentines Day

It's time to get your movies for the weekend. Don't wait any longer or the one you want will be gone and you'll be stuck with Chris Farley. Not that there's anything wrong with Chris Farley, you understand, he's just not romantic. I've already picked up "On Golden Pond", so if you live in SW Michigan, you may have to pick something else. Watching a classic romance on Sunday evening might fit both your budget and your plans for the rest of the evening in these hard times. Take your sweetie out to dinner after church (or cook up something romantic with candles and wine), then settle down to a classic romance and whatever comes next. Here's a list to get you started if you draw a blank.

10. Moonstruck, 1987. Directed by Norman Jewison

Cage and Nicholas make just about as complementary a couple as we'll ever see on screen. Love is unpredictable and uncontrollable, and these two will prove it. You can't always sit down and plan out how things are going to turn out. Cher and Olympia both won Oscars for their roles.

9. An Officer and a Gentleman, 1982. Directed by Taylor Hackford.

Richard Gere and Debra Winger, along with Louis Gosset Jr. A feel good love story for the ages. All about a kid who goes to officer school and finds a new life including a career and a girl. You'll love the whole movie. it captures your attention and holds it all the way through. Great ending. Lou Gosset won an Oscar for his supporting role.

8. Titantic, 1997. Directed by James Cameron.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet show that love can conquer anything. Or can it? We know the ship goes down, we know a lot of people die. Will our couple stay togther forever, and what must they go through first. This is a wonderful story, with wonderful costumes, sets filming, and music. The acting will not ruin the movie for anyone, it is perfectly servicable, but it is not the acting that makes this movie great. it is everything else. There are any number of actors and actresses who could do as well, and more than a few that cold do better. Having said that, the movie is definitely a top romantic movie, and one you should watch. Titantic received eleven Oscars (none for acting): Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Cinematography, Best Costume
Design, Best Director, Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing, Best Effects, Visual Effects, Best Film
Editing, Best Music, Original Dramatic Score, Best Music, Original Song, Best Picture, Best Sound.

7. Gone with the Wind, 1939. Directed by Victor Fleming

Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable, along with Hattie McDaniel star in this classic. The romantic scenes between Clark Gable and Vivien in this epic Civil War film are, well, epic. When Rhett tells Scarlett that she needs to be kissed, and often by somebody who knows how, and then he does it, it's unforgettable. This is a film that should be in everyone's collection of favorites if for no other reason than the thirteen Oscar nominations, eight of which were awarded to GWTW. For comparison, another blockbuster from 1939, The Wizard of Oz, received only two Oscars, both for music. If Scarlett would have just sang one song, like happy birthday (no, not Marilyn Monroe style), GWTW would have probably won those Oscars also. The soaring music, the scenary, the story, it all lives up to the demands of the subject matter and that's no small thing.

6. Ghost, 1990. Directed by Jerry Zucker

Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore play the lead roles, along with Whoopi Goldberg in a supporting role. Two of our favorite stars in a story about the power and endurance of of love, even from beyond the grave. The scene with "Unchained Melody" in the soundtrack is one of the best scenes ever (It's a good time to smooch). Whoopi won an Oscar for her supporting role.

5.Out of Africa, 1985. Directed by Sydney Pollack.

Meryl Streep and Robert Redford are two of the very best. If you can't beleive their performances, maybe movies just aren't your thing. Some of you might think that you couldn't go wrong with Redford and Streep co-staring as lovers, and you'd be right, but it's not just the acting that drives this unforgettable if somewhat long movie. Out of Africa won seven Oscars, none of them for acting. What a beautiful and touching story.

4. Somewhere in Time. 1980, Directed by Jeannot Szwarc

Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour play in this one that a lot of folks haven't seen, but ought to. Most of the filming was done on Mackinaw Island in Michigan, a beautiful scenic and historical site. It is a memorable film that you will watch more than once.

3. On Golden Pond, 1981. Directed by Mark Rydell

Katherine Hepburn and Henry Fonda star, along with Jane Fonda (Henry's daughter). Both Leading Actress and Actor got Oscars in this one. That alone ought to tell you something, as it doesn't happen very often. One final great performance by two legends who have given so much over the years, this is all about Norman and Ethel Thayer and their lifetime of love for each other as it is winding down toward the inevitable end. He turns eigthy and she is sixty nine. He is failing in memory and health, and she comforts him beautifully and gently by taking him into her arms and whispering loving words. There are times when love seems wasted on the young, and this is one of those times. How can the young possibly understand what it means to love the same person for your whole life. Perhaps all of us can learn about love in this beaustiful story.

2. The Bridges Over Madison County. 1995, Directed by Clint Eastwood

Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep star in the only "self directed" movie on the list. Word is that Meryl Streep nearly got nominated for an Oscar when she made a guest appearnace on Sesame Street. There's a reason. She's just that good, and as much as I like Clint Eastwood (and I do), it is Streep that makes this film my choice for second best romantic film ever. She is like a third Hepburn, and that is saying a lot. The setting is divine, the acting superb, the story is raw, gritty and believable. Exactly what you expect from top quality stars. It will not
disappoint.

1. Casa Blanca, 1942. Directed by Michael Curtiz.

Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman combine in the best romantic film ever, one of the best films of any genre, certainly if you take quality of acting into account. Bogart and Bergman both provide arguably the best performance of their careers. There are so many memorable scenes and quotes, from "play it again Sam", to "out of all the gin joints in all the world", and "Here's lookin at you kid". But nothing compares to perhaps the best scene, near the end at the airport in the rain. I won't spoil it, but I'll tell you I've never forgotton it. If you can only see one Valentines Day Movie, see this one. Make it a tradition and watch it every year.

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