The Way We Were Sydney Pollack, 1973
Barbra Streisand’s communist sees Robert Redford’s conservative across the
street. As they hold each other, the pain of separation is etched indelibly
on their faces.
Dirty Dancing Emile Adorlino, 1987
Bad boy Johnny Castle (Patrick Swayze) gets romantic. He turns on the music,
lights a few candles and introduces uptight Baby Houseman (Jennifer Grey) to
the secret world of dry humping. Phwoor!
Gone With the Wind Victor Fleming, 1939
Among many options, what about Clark Gable’s Rhett Butler roughly kissing
Vivien Leigh’s Scarlett O’Hara? “I want you to faint,” he says over her
protests. “This is what you were meant for.”
Pillow Talk Michael Gordon, 1959
Scandalous at the time, the wonders of split-screen technology enable Rock
Hudson and Doris Day to be shown naked in the bath (with an appropriate
sudsy cover-up), separated only by a thin black line.
Now, Voyager Irving Rapper, 1942
Bette Davis is the middle-aged spinster on the balcony, gazing lovingly into
the eyes of Italian smoothy Paul Henreid. He wants to marry her, but she
says: “Don’t let’s ask for the moon. We have the stars.”
Brokeback Mountain Ang Lee, 2005
The perfect example of romantic longing, Lee’s film concludes as Heath
Ledger’s ranch hand Ennis opens his trailer wardrobe to reveal two shirts
belonging to his late lover Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal). It’s almost impossible
to hold back the tears at the thought of their tragic affair.
Together Lukas Moodysson, 2000
A relationship that has been on the verge of breakdown throughout the film is
reignited with a kiss right at the end. Later, Moodysson dropped uplifting
endings – but this one made you want to hug a stranger.
Chasing Amy Kevin Smith, 1997 On a rainy New Jersey night Holden
McNeil (Ben Affleck) makes a play for lesbian best friend Alyssa Jones (Joey
Lauren Adams) with one of the most impassioned speeches in all of screen
romance.
In the Mood for Love Wong Kar Wai, 2000
Sheltering from a Hong Kong downpour, Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung’s
unconsummated love finally gets physical for one electrifying moment. With
his hand clasping her arm before they part company for ever, it’s arguably
the most sensual embrace cinema has seen.
Before Sunset Richard Linklater, 2004
Although his 1995 original Before Sunrise probably has the edge on
all-over sweetness, it’s hard to beat the moment from Linklater’s sequel
when the hipster American author Jesse (Ethan Hawke) is given an impromptu
musical performance by the kooky French environmentalist Celine (Julie
Delpy). They’ve been flirting playfully and guardedly all morning, and then
she hits him with an acoustic version of Delpy’s own song A Waltz
For a Night. She stares into his eyes while she sings: “My heart will
stay yours until I die.” He gets the message. And so do we. Sigh.
Ghost Jerry Zucker, 1990
Starring Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore, then at the height of their Hollywod
powers. When he reappears at the end, standing on a pathway made of clouds
to say his final goodbye, she realises that true love does indeed last for
ever. A film that summed up the feelgood Nineties.
Sideways Alexander Payne, 2004
Paul Giamatti and Virginia Madsen are sipping a couple of glasses of red late
at night, sharing intimacies about their mutual passion for wine. Giamatti,
ever the wine snob, gives an impassioned speech about the pinot grape, and
it becomes clear that he’s talking about himself. “It’s a hard grape to
grow. It’s thin-skinned, temperamental,” he says. “Pinot needs constant care
and attention.” He soon realises that Virginia Madsen is falling for him.
She lays her hand on his and smiles. He panics and blows the moment, but for
a brief moment it’s absolutely perfect.
Four Weddings and a Funeral Mike Newell, 1994
They feel it in their fingers, we feel it in our toes. Love is all around as
Andie MacDowell arrives, soaked through, on Hugh Grant’s doorstep. Their
final kiss seals their love and sparks a generation of Richard
Curtis-scripted romantic comedies.
Brief Encounter David Lean, 1945
In love but married to others, Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson end their
affair in the café where they first met. He places a hand on her shoulder
before walking out of her life. Her expression is heartbreaking.
West Side Story Robert Wise, 1961
Reformed Jet Tony (Richard Beymer) and virginal Latina love Maria (Natalie
Wood) share an embrace moments before his violent death. “There’s a place
for us,” sings Tony.
Love Story Arthur Hiller, 1970
What can be more romantic, in movie terms, than holding your dying lover? Such
is the fate of Ryan O’Neal’s “preppy millionaire” as he cradles his
cancer-stricken wife (Ali MacGraw) in hospital.
The King and I Walter Lang, 1956
Yul Brynner's King of Siam and Deborah Kerr’s English teacher finally fall
into each others’ arms, dancing to the sound of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Shall
we Dance? Their charisma sweeps you off your feet.
Monsoon Wedding Mira Nair, 2001
Wedding planner P. K. Dubey falls for Alice the maid. I particularly like the
scene where Dubey watches Alice as she tries on the bride’s wedding
jewellery. The simplicity of that moment is a potent contrast to the
extravagance of the wedding surrounding them.
An Officer and a Gentleman Taylor Hackford, 1982
Pure Hollywood hokum, but all the more affecting for it, the finale is a
glorious guilty pleasure: fresh from American Gigolo (1980), Richard
Gere turns Romeo as he crosses the factory floor in his sparkling white
naval uniform to claim his girl. Picking up Debra Winger's blue-collar lass
he marches out to the sound of her cheering peers, as Jennifer Warnes and
Joe Cocker's ballad reminds us that love lifts us up where we belong – just
in case we hadn't already got that complex piece of symbolism.
Casablanca Michael Curtiz, 1942
On a rain-drenched airport tarmac, Humphrey Bogart's cynical Rick makes the
ultimate sacrifice: providing safe passage for the Resistance hero Victor
Laszlo (Paul Henreid) and his wife Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman). Risking his own
life, he gives up the woman he loved, while leaving generations of lovers
with the phrase: ‘We'll always have Paris.’ Steven Soderbergh's failed
attempt to emulate the scene in The Good German (2006) just goes to
show they don't make 'em like they used to.
