The 18 Finest Rom-Coms on Netflix Proper Now – IndieWire

18. “The 5-Yr Engagement” (2012)

At two hours, “The 5-Yr Engagement” is famously approach too lengthy, though that’s much less of a difficulty on Netflix than it’s in a theater. It’s a disgrace, as a result of some good enhancing of Nicholas Stoller’s 2012 movie may make it one of many greats. Jason Segal, who co-wrote the script, stars alongside Emily Blunt star as Tom and Violet: a cheerful couple wanting ahead to marriage, just for their nuptials to get repeatedly delayed by work and life occasions. Segal and Blunt have incredible chemistry, and the movie’s good portrayal of the mundane obstacles that may affect a relationship units it aside as a barely extra reasonable and grounded entry into the style. —WC 

17. “Heat Our bodies” (2013)

Along with his fairly boy seems and knack for comedy, Nicholas Hoult may have been the Hugh Grant of his era — had massive funds rom-coms stayed alive within the fashionable state of the business. Sadly he by no means acquired the hit car within the style he deserved, and his finest forray into the rom-com house stays Jonathan Levine’s 2013 zombie flick “Heat Our bodies.” Hoult performs “R,” a zombie who doesn’t keep in mind his title and instantly begins to behave extra human when he encounters and grows drawn to a human survivor of the apocalypse, named Julie (Teresa Palmer). It may very well be a skinny movie, however Hoult’s dedicated efficiency as an undead ghoul regaining his soul lifts it up right into a satisfying watch. —WC

Word: “Heat Our bodies” is leaving Netflix on September 30

16. “The Half of It” (2020)

The story of Cyrano de Bergerac has been straight tailored greater than a dozen instances, most just lately with Peter Dinklage as its star in 2021. Edmond Rostand’s 1897 play has impressed as many romantic comedies, from 1987’s “Roxanne” to 2009’s “The Ugly Fact.” Nonetheless, Netflix unique “The Half of It” stands out as a successful coming-of-age story anchored by its endearing however grounded queer lead and a narrative that pushes boundaries, albeit gently. Leah Lewis performs Ellie Chu: an artsy, straight-A scholar whose homework-for-hire enterprise lands her in the course of a blossoming romance between jock Paul (Daniel Diemer) and the passionate Aster (Alexxis Lemire). Author/director Alice Wu spins an infectious LGBTQ love story along with her trio of leads and, although it isn’t wholly revolutionary, what “The Half of It” lacks in bombast it makes up in pleasure. —AF

15. “Duck Butter” (2018)

Co-written with star Alia Shawkat, director Miguel Arteta’s “Duck Butter” is decidedly uneven however spectacular at moments. The breezy then claustrophobic dramedy (maybe essentially the most critical fare on this record) accompanies two girls on a quest to “fast-forward ten years” of their would-be romance by spending 24 uninterrupted hours collectively. Shawkat’s not sure and cynical Nima begins the marginally meta movie as a struggling actress in a Duplass brothers manufacturing (with Jay and Mark enjoying themselves!) However when confronted with the bubbling tumultuousness of Laia Costa’s Sergio — a Latin-American singer and painter with an intimidating magnetism — Nima is compelled to confront what she actually needs. —AF

14. “Eurovision Track Contest: The Story of Hearth Saga” (2020)

Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams ship a rom-com and a lot extra in director David Dobkin’s ferociously foolish (if severely uneven) “Eurovision Track Contest: The Story of Hearth Saga.” Lars Erickssong and Sigrit Ericksdóttir are finest pals and small-time musicians from Iceland with goals of constructing it massive. Profitable the famed worldwide songwriting competitors would put the pair — ill-received at residence and woefully unprepared for the highlight — on the worldwide map. However the couple’s difficult will-they-won’t-they threatens to undo Lars’ over-the-top ambition as Sigrit’s unrequited love cuts deeper. The Netflix unique earned a nod for Finest Authentic Track with the epic ballad “Husavik” on the 93rd Academy Awards. —AF

13. “Set It Up” (2018)

Arguably the breakthrough title in Netflix’s burgeoning library of unique romantic comedies, Claire Scanlon’s charming throwback depends on some previous staples of the style: cute leads with massive chemistry and a barely convoluted plot designed to throw them collectively as regularly as potential.

Harper (Zoey Deutch) and Charlie (Glen Powell) are a pair of overworked assistants whose lives are dominated by their demanding bosses, however when the pair meet-cute within the foyer of their workplace constructing, they hatch a plan to arrange their superiors (performed by Lucy Liu and Taye Diggs), all in hopes {that a} romance will distract them from additional ruining their lives. Inevitably, it’s Harper and Charlie who fall for one another, however Katie Silberman’s script has a whole lot of enjoyable getting them to that time, and rattling if it isn’t a pleasure to see a brand new pair of rom-com superstars emerge in Deutch and Powell. —KE

12. “The Unbelievable Jessica James” (2017)

Jessica Williams dazzles because the titular “Unbelievable Jessica James” in author/director James C. Strouse’s hidden gem from 2017. Having just lately damaged up her with ex-boyfriend Damon (LaKeith Stanfield), the newly single playwright seeks out totally different experiences in New York Metropolis, assembly blind date Boone (Chris O’Dowd) alongside the way in which. Each are struggling to recover from their previous relationships, and rapidly bond via their parallel heartbreak. By means of imaginative flashbacks and dream sequences, audiences watch as Jessica grapples with emotions previous and new for a recent feminist perspective on a well-known romantic formulation. —AF

11. “The Lovebirds” (2020)

“The Lovebirds” introduces its starring couple 4 years right into a crumbling relationship. Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani are immediately recognizable as charismatic counterparts doomed for mutual destruction: sniping over all the things from dinner plans to “The Wonderful Race.” When the would-be exes collide with a felony group within the midst of a breakup, nonetheless, they’re compelled to problem-solve in a form of a hyper-high stakes session of {couples} remedy caught someplace between “Eyes Huge Shut” and “The Large Lebowski.” Although “The Lovebirds” script generally falters, Michael Showalter brings the identical assured course that made “The Large Sick” a smash. —AF

10. “Mates with Advantages” (2011)

The “simply intercourse” set-up just about by no means works out for {couples} in romantic comedies, however 2011 marked a very spicy yr for so-called “informal” hookups on display screen. Eventual real-life spouses Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis went face to face within the competing movies “No Strings Connected” and “Mates with Advantages,” with Natalie Portman and Justin Timberlake as their respective co-leads.

Reader, the battle wasn’t even shut. Sure, Ivan Reitman is without doubt one of the nice administrators. And certain, seeing 5′ 3″ Portman cuddling as much as 6′ 2″ Kutcher in a button-up shirt was inarguably… cute. However Will Gluck’s bicoastal rom-com starring Kunis and Timberlake not solely has a fuller story, sharper writing, and homosexual Woody Harrelson (“I ain’t taking no ferry…except it’s out to dinner and a present!”), nevertheless it additionally boasts a sparky, gently teasing, cynical chemistry that makes even the drained New York-versus-Los Angeles debate really feel enjoyable. On this fizzy delight — additionally that includes Patricia Clarkson, Richard Jenkins, and Shaun White as himself in a bit half that has aged very poorly for the pro-athlete! — head hunter Jamie is tasked with discovering a brand new advert man for GQ. Of corse, artistic director Dylan is ideal for the job… wink! —AF

9. “Greenberg” (2010)

“Greenberg,” for the gossip obsessed, is finest remembered because the film that director Noah Baumbach co-wrote together with his then-wife Jennifer Jason Leigh, which starred his present romantic companion Greta Gerwig. Placing that actual world drama apart, the movie is without doubt one of the director’s finest, a acerbic however tender movie about rising previous and getting weak. Ben Stiller performs the title character, a misanthropic and arduous to love loner staying at his brother’s home whereas his household is away. There, he sparks a connection together with his brother’s private assistant Florence (Gerwig), at the same time as his horrible angle threatens to push her away. —WC

8. “All the time Be My Possibly” (2019)

By the point Nahnatchka Khan’s breezy characteristic directorial debut “All the time Be My Possibly” affords up a hearty wink at “Fairly Girl,” the Netflix unique characteristic has already earned its stripes as the net streamer’s subsequent nice rom-com. Khan’s movie pulls liberally from the style playbook — stars and co-writers Ali Wong and Randall Park haven’t been shy concerning the movie’s early inspirations, particularly classics like “When Harry Met Sally” — nevertheless it additionally affords its personal charms due to Wong and Park, who delight each on-screen and on the web page.

And whereas “All the time Be My Possibly” doesn’t reinvent its style, it’s a welcome addition that contributes cultural range to a sometimes white-dominated display screen house, and leans into tropes which have at all times made rom-coms (effectively, good rom-coms) such a pleasure to observe. —KE

7. “Pleasure and Prejudice” (2005)

Jane Austen’s “Pleasure and Prejudice” is without doubt one of the unique romantic comedies, however Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation decidedly prioritizes the “romantic” half of the equation. Wright made a whole lot of modifications to the story of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy’s courtship, setting it in an earlier period and emphasizing sweeping romance over comedy of manners. The modifications made it divisive amongst Austen purists, however the movie additionally has a loyal fanbase, and it’s arduous to disclaim the attraction of its lush and swoony tone. It helps that the film has ringers as its leads, with Keira Knightley as a grounded Elizabeth and Matthew McFayden breaking out as an awkard, shy (however nonetheless very popular) Darcy. —WC

6. “Kicking and Screaming” (1995)

Earlier than he was getting Oscar nominations for scenes the place Scarlett Johannson and Adam Driver yell at one another — or, extra just lately, co-writing the script to the “Barbie” film — Noah Baumbach made his characteristic directorial debut with “Kicking and Screaming.” To not be confused with the raunchy 2005 comedy about Will Ferrell teaching a youngsters’s soccer workforce, Baumbach’s low-key however sharp debut focuses on a gaggle of faculty graduates who stick round their college’s city out of concern of going through the actual world. Josh Hamilton, years earlier than he turned one in all cinema’s finest dads in “Eighth Grade,” leads the forged because the slacking author Grover, whose blasé strategy to rising up is thrown out of order when his girlfriend Jane (Olivia d’Abo) accepts a fellowship in Prague, leaving him with solely reminiscences of her. 

Though the movie — so drenched within the ennui of its forged of adults in arrested growth — by no means fairly turns into the traditional studio romantic comedy that it flirts with, Grover’s struggles to develop up for the sake of his relationship present the ambling character examine its spine; the movie even climaxs with Hamilton giving an impassioned speech on the airport, determined to reunite together with his beau. Plus, like all good rom-coms, they acquired an absolute ringer to play the lead’s father or mother: Elliot Gould ought to actually be the dad in every romantic comedy. —WC 

5. “Misplaced in Translation” (2003)

It’s debatable if “Misplaced in Translation” is a rom-com for a number of causes. Primary: is it a comedy? Total, sure; regardless of the movie’s intense melancholy, there are many witty moments and comedy of errors in Sofia Coppola’s story of two lonely souls in Tokyo. Extra importantly, quantity two, is it a romance? That’s extra ambigious, notably contemplating the age distinction, and (on the time) expertise hole between its two stars. Primary characters Bob Harris (Invoice Murray), a gruff actor, and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a bored school grad on trip along with her husband, by no means put a reputation to the blossoming connection they share, and it’s ostensibly only a friendship. However the movie always hints at one thing extra, at the same time as the 2 in the end should half methods to return to their seperate lives. “Misplaced in Translation” has some bitter factors — its portrayal of Japanese tradition via the eyes of two white People persistently suggestions over into insensitivity — however the heat delicate bond between Bob and Charlotte, who perceive one another at a stage others can not, is heartbreakingly romantic. —WC  

4. “La La Land” (2016)

Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling soft-shoed their approach right into a Finest Actress win, a Finest Actor nod, and (a regrettably infamous) Finest Image nomination with Damien Chazelle’s “La La Land.” The 2016 rom-com musical has been described as an ode to dreamers, and chronicles the love of an aspiring actress and struggling jazz pianist within the Metropolis of Angels. Impressed by Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire, and far of Hollywood historical past, Chazelle goals up a fascinating, if melancholy, story of getting all of it with a very eager eye for the heartbreaks distinctive to artists corresponding to himself. —AF

3. “To All of the Boys I’ve Liked Earlier than” (2018)

Netflix’s vise grip on the brand new wave rom-com market is tight, however the streaming big has additionally discovered time to zero in on a previoulsy underserved subgenre: teen-centric rom-coms. Hit charmer “To All of the Boys I’ve Liked Earlier than” cracks what needs to be an apparent code: discover a candy protagonist, and even essentially the most outlandish of storylines can work.

That includes a knockout efficiency from Lana Condor, the Susan Johnson story takes Jenny Han’s best-selling YA novels and turns them into a really cute characteristic. The movie follows Condor’s Lara Jean after her (secret!) love letters are launched into the world, a wild concept that enables different, extra grounded emotion to take to the air.

Principally, although, “To All of the Boys” retains a good maintain on the formulation of each rom-com and adapts it for the youthful set. Each beat of the movie is perhaps apparent, however that doesn’t detract from the enjoyability of watching an indelible younger heroine like Lara Jean work out her personal life and simply possibly fall in love within the course of. —KE

2. “Groundhog Day” (1993)

Probably the most iconic comedies of all time, “Groundhog Day’s” story of a day-long time loop has been endlessly parodied and copied by a whole lot of TV exhibits and movies of its ilk. However none have executed it in addition to “Groundhog Day,” an absolute banger of a movie that hasn’t aged a day. Invoice Murray provides one in all his finest performances as Phil Connors, a immodest TV weatherman caught relieving the identical Groundhog Day in small city Punxsutawney, whose townspeople he has deep contempt for, again and again. Ultimately, Phil discovers that to interrupt the cycle, he must develop as an individual, each in the direction of the folks he’s harmed, and his romantic curiosity, producer Rita (Andie MacDowell). It’s a traditional story about self development and second probabilities, that includes pitch good performances from the ensemble forged and a superb script from Ramis. 

You may watch “Groundhog Day” as many days as Phil is caught in his time loop, and it’ll by no means get previous. —WC

1. “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai” (1998)

“Love is friendship.” That easy however maddening sentiment kicks off a love triangle for the ages in author/director Karan Johar’s 1998 Bollywood traditional “Kuch Kuch Hota Hai”: a bittersweet and bubbly story of younger love, missed alternative, and feminine friendship starring style icons Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, and Rani Mukerji. When Rahul — a charismatic flirt virtually hooked up on the hip together with his tomboyish finest good friend Anjali — falls for brand new lady Tina, he clumsily mangles what was as soon as an unbreakable friendship. Years sooner or later, with some assist from his cute daughter additionally named Anjali (Sana Saeed), Rahul will get a second an opportunity together with his would-be school sweetheart. Come for the promise of foolish however nonetheless flashy ’90s hip hop choreography and costuming mixed with gorgeous Indian dance. Keep for what’s fairly presumably essentially the most romantic gazebo scene of all time. —AF