Romance: 132

Chocolat (2000) tells the story of a young woman named Vianne and her daughter Anouk, as they travel through Europe, guided by the same north wind that led Vianne’s mother years before. In 1959, they settle in a tranquil French village where the strict mayor, Comte de Reynaud, is gearing up for Lent. Despite not being accepted by the villagers, Vianne opens a chocolate shop and slowly starts to win over some of the locals. However, Reynaud, who is still in denial about his wife leaving him, publicly denounces Vianne for tempting people during Lent. One of her early supporters is her elderly landlady Armande, whose daughter Caroline refuses to let her see her ...

Autumn in New York (2000), the American romantic drama directed by Joan Chen and written by Allison Burnett, tells the story of a successful and charming restaurant owner named Will Keane. At 48 years old, he is known for his womanizing ways. One night, while celebrating her 22nd birthday at his upscale Manhattan restaurant, Will meets free-spirited Charlotte Fielding. Their introduction comes from Charlotte’s grandmother, who reveals that Charlotte is the daughter of Will’s ex-girlfriend Katy. Unfortunately, Katy passed away in a car accident shortly after ...

Keeping the Faith (2000) is an American romantic comedy film written by Stuart Blumberg. In a New York City bar, a drunken Catholic priest named Brian Finn fills the bartender in on the ongoing love triangle involving himself, his best friend Jake Schram (a Jewish rabbi), and their childhood friend Anna Reilly. While Brian has been devoted to his calling as a priest since childhood, he shares his duties at the parish with an elderly priest named Father Havel. Jake, who has been inseparable from Brian since they were kids, is now the youngest rabbi at his synagogue and focuses heavily on his work to the disappointment of ...

The film adaptation of John Irving’s 1985 novel, The Cider House Rules (1999), was directed by Lasse Hallström and follows the life of Homer Wells at St. Cloud’s orphanage in Maine. Under the guidance of Dr. Wilbur Larch, a kindly father figure, Homer grows up surrounded by love and respect. Despite being returned to St. Cloud’s twice by foster parents, who either found him too quiet or mistreated him, Homer finds solace in his extended family at the orphanage. With older children like Buster looking after the younger ones, including Fuzzy Stone who was ...

The film Runaway Bride (1999) directed by Garry Marshall tells the story of Maggie Carpenter, a lively and attractive woman who has endured numerous unsuccessful relationships. She gained local notoriety and the nickname ‘The Runaway Bride’ for leaving three fiancés at the altar on their wedding day. When a man in a bar tells cynical New York columnist Ike Graham about Maggie’s reputation, he writes an unflattering article about her without fact-checking. However, this man turns out to be one of Maggie’s jilted exes and his account is filled with inaccuracies. After Maggie sends a fiery response ...

Notting Hill (1999), a romantic comedy directed by Roger Michell, features a screenplay by Richard Curtis. It follows the story of William Thacker, owner of a travel book store in the vibrant Notting Hill district of London. Following his divorce from his wife, who had left him for another man, he shares an apartment with Spike – his carefree and rather messy Welsh roommate. One day, fate brings famous Hollywood actress Anna Scott into William’s shop, where she purchases a book. As she leaves, however, a mishap causes her to cross paths with William again ...

Forces of Nature (1999) is an American romantic comedy film directed by Bronwen Hughes. Ben Holmes, a talented ‘blurb’ writer, is on his way from New York City to Savannah, Georgia for his wedding to Bridget. However, the flight is causing him some anxiety due to his fear of flying. His nerves become even more frayed when he meets Sarah, a carefree wanderer who strikes up a conversation with him immediately. Unfortunately, their flight is met with a scary incident as a bird collides with one of the engines, resulting in an emergency landing. Like many others on the plane, Ben is now apprehensive to fly again ...

Message in a Bottle (1999), a romantic drama directed by Luis Mandoki, is based on Nicholas Sparks’s novel of the same title. Theresa Osborne, a former reporter for the Chicago Tribune, discovers a compelling love letter in a bottle while vacationing in Cape Cod. Entranced by its contents, she shares it with her coworkers and without her knowledge, they publish the letter in their newspaper. The response is overwhelming and among the many letters received is one with an attached note addressed to Catherine on the same notepad and written in the same style as the ...

She’s All That (1999), an American teen romantic comedy film directed by Robert Iscove, follows the story of Zack Siler, the popular guy at his Southern California high school. He is heartbroken after finding out his girlfriend, Taylor, has cheated on him with reality TV star Brock during spring break. Zack finds comfort in the idea that Taylor can easily be replaced by any girl at their school. His friend Dean disagrees and challenges him to turn any random girl into the prom queen in six weeks. Dean chooses Laney Boggs, an unpopular art student, for this bet. ...

Playing by Heart (1998) is a comedic-drama film that follows the lives of various characters in Los Angeles. These include an older couple renewing their wedding vows, a theatre director and architect starting anew, a young woman seeking excitement, a gay man with AIDS and his distant mother, an unfaithful couple trying to reignite their marriage, and the husband exploring ways to overcome its dullness. As the plot unfolds, the audience discovers the interconnectedness between these seemingly unrelated individuals. Unhappily wedded Hugh frequently pursues women using a variety of falsehoods: claiming he caused the death of his wife and child in a car accident; stating ...

The romantic comedy-drama film, You’ve Got Mail (1998), was directed by Nora Ephron. Set on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, the story follows Kathleen Kelly who manages The Shop Around the Corner, a children’s bookstore passed down from her mother. Currently dating Frank Navasky, a liberal columnist for The New York Observer, Kathleen uses her laptop and AOL email account (screen name ‘Shopgirl’) to communicate with ‘NY152’, someone she first met in a chatroom. Despite their agreement to keep personal details private, she learns only the name of his dog, Brinkley. As it turns out, ...

The Wings of the Dove (1997), directed by Iain Softley, is a romantic drama film set in 1910 London. Kate Croy finds herself under the watchful eye of her aunt, Maud, who has taken her in as a ward. Maud’s plan is to find Kate a wealthy husband and protect her from the same fate that befell her mother when she married Kate’s father, Lionel. Enter Lord Mark, an elegant aristocrat with a large estate who begins to court Kate with Maud’s approval. However, Kate’s heart belongs to a young journalist named Merton Densher, which her aunt strictly forbids due to his modest background.

The American comedy drama film, Hugo Pool (1997), helmed by Robert Downey Sr., follows a day in the life of Hugo Dugay. As the owner of a small company, also named Hugo Pool, she is responsible for maintaining swimming pools in drought-stricken Los Angeles. Juggling her usual pool cleaning duties with managing eccentric clients like mobster Chick Chicalini and filmmaker Franz Mazur, Hugo also has to tend to her dependent parents Minerva and Henry. To add to her plate, there may be a romantic spark between Hugo and Floyd Gaylen, one of her ALS-stricken customers.

Going All the Way (1997) is an American comedy-drama film directed by Mark Pellington, in his feature film debut. Set in 1954, it follows the story of two soldiers who meet on a train to Indianapolis after serving in the Korean War. One is GI Sonny Burns, while the other is popular athlete Gunner Casselman. Despite their differences, they quickly form a strong bond of friendship. Sonny’s mother Alma and his father Elwood are very strict, while Gunner’s mother Nina is more alluring. Sonny has a girlfriend, Buddy Porte, while Gunner dates Deedee. Sonny also teaches photography to Gunner and they become ...

Mr. Jealousy (1997), an American romantic comedy written and directed by Noah Baumbach, follows aspiring writer Lester Grimm’s relationship with Ramona Ray. Introduced by mutual friends Vince and Lucretia, the couple immediately hit it off. However, Ramona reveals that her ex-boyfriend is famous writer Dashiell Frank, causing Lester to feel envious. Spotting Dashiell on the street one day, Lester follows him to a group therapy session. Impersonating his friend Vince, Lester joins the group and after several sessions with Dr. Poke, overhears Dashiell confessing about his infidelity. Unable to hold back, Lester ...

James Cameron directed, wrote, produced, and co-edited Titanic (1997), a powerful American film blending historical facts with fictionalized elements. The story revolves around the tragic sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912. A year earlier, Brock Lovett and his team embarked on a dive to the wreck of RMS Titanic aboard the research vessel Akademik Mstislav Keldysh. Their primary objective was to retrieve a safe believed to hold the iconic Heart of the Ocean diamond. To their surprise, they instead discovered a drawing of a young nude woman wearing the necklace on April 14, 1912 – the same day Titanic struck an iceberg ...

One Fine Day (1996), directed by Michael Hoffman, is an American romantic comedy-drama film. It follows the story of Melanie Parker, an architect who experiences a rough start to her day when she is running late to drop off her son Sammy at school. This delay is caused by fellow divorced father Jack Taylor, a New York Daily News reporter, who forgets to bring his daughter Maggie to school and is left with no choice but to take care of her for the morning. The children miss out on a Circle Line boat cruise that was part of their school field trip due to their tardiness. Realizing they both have hectic schedules, the ...

Romeo + Juliet (1996) was directed, produced, and co-written by Baz Luhrmann. Set in Verona Beach, the story follows two rival business empires: the Capulets and Montagues. The younger generation of these families feel the animosity held by their elders, Fulgencio and Gloria Capulet and Ted and Caroline Montague. Things escalate when a shootout breaks out between Benvolio, Romeo’s cousin from the Montague family, and Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin from the Capulet family, causing chaos in the city. The Chief of Police, Captain Prince intervenes by arresting both Benvolio and Tybalt and reprimanding their ...

Something to Talk About (1995), a comedy-drama film directed by Lasse Hallström, follows Grace King Bichon, who spends her days helping out at her parent’s horse farm. Her daughter Caroline shares her love for horses, while their stable manager Hank has his sights set on riding Ransom in an upcoming equestrian championship. However, Grace’s father Wyly plans to purchase a stud named Ford instead and ride it himself in the event, causing tension within the family. Adding to Grace’s stress, she discovers her husband Eddie is having an affair. In a dramatic confrontation with Eddie and his mistress, Grace ...

The film adaptation of The Bridges of Madison County (1995) follows the story of the 1992 best-selling novel written by Robert James Waller. In the present time, Michael and Carolyn Johnson, adult siblings, travel to their mother’s farmhouse in Iowa after her passing to handle her affairs. To their surprise, Francesca had requested to be cremated and have her ashes scattered from Roseman Covered Bridge instead of being buried next to her late husband, Richard. Despite Michael’s initial refusal, a discovery is made while going through Francesca’s safe deposit box. Inside is an envelope containing ...