Our Favorite Romantic Film Tropes
With love stories come love tropes—themes that give us expectations of how two characters (or sometimes more) will execute their scripted prophecy. Here are some of our favorites films that embrace these tried-and-true themes to watch for Valentine's Day, like Enemies-to-Lovers, Forbidden Love, Fake Relationships, Friends-to-Lovers, the Love Triangle, and the "Bet" trope.
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- DirectorRob ReinerStarsBilly CrystalMeg RyanCarrie FisherHarry and Sally have known each other for years, and are very good friends, but they fear sex would ruin the friendship.Trope: Enemies-to-Lovers
- DirectorMax BarbakowStarsAndy SambergCristin MiliotiJ.K. SimmonsNyles and Sarah find themselves stuck in a time loop and living the same day over and over again. They are drawn to each other, but certain revelations threaten their budding romance.Trope: Enemies-to-Lovers
- DirectorEmile ArdolinoStarsPatrick SwayzeJennifer GreyJerry OrbachSpending the summer at a Catskills resort with her family, Frances "Baby" Houseman falls in love with the camp's dance instructor, Johnny Castle.Trope: Forbidden Love
- DirectorCéline SciammaStarsNoémie MerlantAdèle HaenelLuàna BajramiOn an isolated island in Brittany at the end of the eighteenth century, a female painter is obliged to paint a wedding portrait of a young woman.Trope: Forbidden Love
- DirectorAlfonso ArauStarsKeanu ReevesAitana Sánchez-GijónAnthony QuinnPaul Sutton, a young married soldier, befriends a pregnant young woman who is terrified her father will disown her, and agrees to pose as her husband. As time passes, they began growing fond of each other.Trope: Fake Relationships
- DirectorRawson Marshall ThurberStarsJason SudeikisJennifer AnistonEmma RobertsA veteran pot dealer creates a fake family as part of his plan to move a huge shipment of weed into the U.S. from Mexico.Trope: Fake Relationships
- DirectorHoward DeutchStarsEric StoltzMary Stuart MastersonLea ThompsonWhen Keith goes out with Amanda, the girl of his dreams, Amanda's ex-boyfriend plans to get back at Keith. Meanwhile, Keith's best friend, tomboy Watts, realizes she has feelings for Keith.Trope: Friends-to-Lovers
- DirectorNahnatchka KhanStarsAli WongRandall ParkJames SaitoEveryone assumed that Sasha and Marcus would wind up together, except for Sasha and Marcus. Reconnecting after 15 years, the two start to wonder--maybe?Trope: Friends-to-Lovers
- DirectorJennifer WestfeldtStarsJennifer WestfeldtAdam ScottMaya RudolphTwo best friends decide to have a child together while keeping their relationship platonic, so they can avoid the toll kids can take on romantic relationships.Trope: Friends-to-Lovers
- DirectorNick CassavetesStarsGena RowlandsJames GarnerRachel McAdamsAn elderly man reads to a woman with dementia the story of two young lovers whose romance is threatened by the difference in their respective social classes.Trope: The Love Triangle
- DirectorEugene AsheStarsTessa ThompsonNnamdi AsomughaEva LongoriaWhen a young woman meets an aspiring saxophonist in her father's record shop in 1950s Harlem, their love ignites a sweeping romance that transcends changing times, geography, and professional success.Trope: The Love Triangle
- DirectorJohn CrowleyStarsSaoirse RonanEmory CohenDomhnall GleesonAn Irish immigrant lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a romance with a local. When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within.Trope: The Love Triangle
- DirectorGeorge CukorStarsAudrey HepburnRex HarrisonStanley HollowayIn 1910s London, snobbish phonetics professor Henry Higgins agrees to a wager that he can make a crude flower girl, Eliza Doolittle, presentable in high society.Trope: The "Bet"
- DirectorDonald PetrieStarsKate HudsonMatthew McConaugheyAdam GoldbergAn advertising executive and ladies' man, to win a big campaign, bets that he can make a woman fall in love with him in 10 days.Trope: The "Bet"
