Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Arash Marandi, Charleen Deetz, Cora Trube, Denise M'Baye, Jakob Schreier, Jerry Hoffmann, Laurence Rupp, Margarethe Tiesel, Maria Hofstätter, Özgür Karadeniz, Paula Schramm, Rosalie Thomass
Director: Shirel Peleg
Is love in the air? It sure is on streaming platforms, where there’s no shortage of romance to cuddle up to. From intimate dramas to love-fuelled adventures, here are the best romance movies and shows to stream now.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Arash Marandi, Charleen Deetz, Cora Trube, Denise M'Baye, Jakob Schreier, Jerry Hoffmann, Laurence Rupp, Margarethe Tiesel, Maria Hofstätter, Özgür Karadeniz, Paula Schramm, Rosalie Thomass
Director: Shirel Peleg
Set in the quaint city of Burlington, Vermont, Paint is a cute and folksy comedy that has a Wes Anderson-esque charm to it. The characters are dressed in blocked pastels and wooly sweaters, while the protagonist Carl seems stuck in the ‘70s, and not just sartorially, too. He drives a “Vantastic” custom van, swears off cell phones, and manages to incorporate phrases like “far out” in his daily lingo. It all makes for whimsical viewing, but underneath the flair, there’s very little substance holding this picture up. It tells the tale of an aging narcissist who learns the error of his ways when a younger version of himself is hired to aid and eventually replace him. Narratively, it’s familiar and forgettable, and it becomes immediately clear that style is a crutch that the film leans on. It’s funny, at times, thanks to a very likable Wilson and a strong supporting cast (there are occasional laugh-out-loud moments too, like when Carl does the big reveal about his portrait). But ultimately, it’s just too flat to be as special as the art it admires.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Aidan T.K. Baker, Brit McAdams, Ciara Renée, Colin J. Sweeney, Crystal Tweed, Denny Dillon, Elisabeth Henry-Macari, Elizabeth Loyacano, Evander Duck Jr., Jen Smedley, Joel Leffert, Kristin Hensley, Lucy Freyer, Lusia Strus, Lynda Suarez, Michael Pemberton, Michaela Watkins, Noa Graham, Owen Wilson, Paul Kosopod, Rob Figueroa, Ryan Czerwonko, Ryan Gaul, Sarah Baker, Scott Beehner, Stephen Root, Vin Craig, Wendi McLendon-Covey
Director: Brit McAdams
Genre: Comedy, Romance, TV Movie
Actor: Benjamin Ayres, Carolyn Scott, David Pinard, David Rosser, Jinny Wong, Lillian Doucet-Roche, Mallory Jansen, Steven Vlahos, Will Kemp
Director: Peter Wellington
Nuovo Olimpo is stunning, atmospheric, and the very concept of the film – where lost love intersects with Italian cinema – is an interesting one. Starting the film’s relationship at a specific movie theater feels reminiscent of Cinema Paradiso, especially as Enea’s path mirrors Salvatore becoming a famous director. However, the film doesn’t really dive deep into this concept, nor does it add much to say with its gay romance. There’s something here about the relationship between the creator and the viewer that is undeniably interlinked, and there’s a hope that they can meet in the middle. But when the film doesn’t care about the couple’s individual paths, there are times it feels like it’s just going through the motions.
Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: Aglaia Mora, Alvise Rigo, Andrea Di Luigi, Aurora Giovinazzo, Damiano Gavino, Eugenio di Fraia, Federico Mancini, Giacomo Colavito, Giacomo Stallone, Giancarlo Commare, Greta Scarano, Loredana Cannata, Luisa Ranieri, Priscilla Drag
Director: Ferzan Özpetek
Sanitized, predictable, and utterly cheesy, Happiness for Beginners feels like one of those TV movies made to fill the time in between the stuff people actually watch. It’s baffling how wasted Kemper is here; the actress’ signature pep, which was fully utilized in shows like The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, is nowhere to be found. She plays a grump who, by the sheer power of love and friendship, transforms into a happier person, but even then we see no trace of Kemper’s infectious energy. It was hinted that Kemper’s character, Helen, struggles with depression, but the film is either unwilling or incapable of digging further and offering Helen actual solutions, like therapy or medicine. The movie’s saving grace is the ensemble behind Kemp, who thankfully are able to exercise their comic chops. Nico Santos, Ben Cook, and Gus Birney deserve a special mention for their full-bodied and entertaining performances.
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Romance
Actor: Ben Cook, Ellie Kemper, Esteban Benito, Gus Birney, Luke Grimes
Director: Vicky Wight
Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: De Ly Luu, Kaity Nguyễn, Ngọc Diệp, Quốc Huy, Thuan Nguyen
Director: Victor Vũ
Genre: Drama, Music, Romance
Actor: Andie Ju, Austin Crute, David Corenswet, Evan Shafran, Jackson Kelly, Jenne Kang, Justin H. Min, Lucy Boynton, Mary Eileen O'Donnell, Retta, Rory Keane, Thomas Ochoa, Tom Yi
Director: Ned Benson
With plenty of films disavowing romance, sometimes, at the end of the day, you just want to curl up in bed to a cheesy romcom that earnestly believes in the power of true love. Wedding Games is one such romcom coming from Brazil, where the two lovers try to make their destination beach wedding perfect, despite multiple logistical mishaps along the way. It’s a totally generic wedding day story. It’s lighthearted fluff that doesn’t dive deep and contains all the familiar plot twists and comedic shenanigans, but it looks good and it’s done well. Wedding Games might not be particularly groundbreaking, but it’s not bad.
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Actor: Ana Carbatti, Andre Mattos, Antônio Pitanga, Bruno Jablonski, Cristina Pereira, Dan Ferreira, Dandara Mariana, Estevam Nabote, Evaldo Macarrão, Gabriela Dias, Grace Gianoukas, Jean Pedro, Katiuscia Canoro, Leandro Léo, Lellê, Luellem de Castro, Marcello Melo, Maureen Miranda, Negra Li, Paulo Miklos, Raissa Chaddad, Roney Villela, Serjão Loroza, Stepan Nercessian, Tatiana Tiburcio, Thelmo Fernandes, Vilma Melo, Yuri Marçal, Zeze Motta
Director: Sílvio Guindane
Centered on a unique marriage, Satyaprem Ki Katha could have reinvented the romance genre with its depiction of women’s trauma. The film does care about the issue, as it sides with the victim in this regard, and there’s a certain sweetness in the relationship being portrayed. Kiara Advani’s performance feels believable and she clearly makes the best of her existing scenes. However, the film is too afraid to be critical of the men in this film, especially as it’s too concerned with Sattu as a savior. On top of this, it relies too much on the standard Indian song-and-dance, which, while spectacular, takes away too much time from the issue at hand. Because of this, Satyaprem Ki Katha feels like a missed opportunity.
Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: Anuradha Patel, Gajraj Rao, Kartik Aaryan, Kiara Advani, Nirmiti Sawant, Rajpal Yadav, Shikha Talsania, Siddharth Randeria, Supriya Pathak
Director: Sameer Vidwans
The best thing about a Cinderella story is knowing she'll get a Prince Charming™ by the end (with or without the rats and pumpkins). The first episode of My Happy Marriage sets up the fairytale expectations to a T. Mistreated by her step-mother and step-sister - and a tragic mom-is-dead backstory - this anime hits expected beats which means it'll either be a comfortable watch or a predictable skip. The silver lining comes when Miyo's step-sister marries her long-time crush while she is sent away to marry a difficult man known to repel his suitors. A swoon-worthy, slow-burn romance is surely on the horizon, enveloped in a strikingly beautiful, dreamy animation.
Genre: Animation, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Akira Ishida, Ayane Sakura, Hiro Shimono, Houko Kuwashima, Kaito Ishikawa, Koutaro Nishiyama, Reina Ueda, Ryohei Kimura
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Actor: Angela Robinson, Connor Weil, Kelly Rowland, Kerry O'Malley, Nick Sagar, RonReaco Lee, Sean Sagar, Shannon Thornton, Trevante Rhodes
Director: Tyler Perry
Beat for beat, word for word, Love is in the Air moves just like any other romantic comedy. Within that genre, it slots easily into the category of romcoms that follow a city guy who falls in love with a country girl, eventually learning and preferring the ways of small-town living. But Love in Air is even more improbable than usual because of how eerily perfect the two leads are. Goodrem, in particular, is always manicured to perfection, which makes her role as a down-to-earth no-nonsense go-getter very hard to believe. Still, the movie isn’t entirely unwatchable. There are pockets of humor to be found, and the stunning visuals almost make it worth the watch. Almost.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Craig Walker, Delta Goodrem, Hugh Parker, Joshua Sasse, Mia Grunwald, Roy Billing, Simon McLachlan, Steph Tisdell
Director: Adrian Powers
In Love and Deep Water is torn between multiple concepts. There’s a murder, sure, and a butler trying to figure out who’s the killer, but there also happens to be a romance plot where the same butler falls in love with the passenger that informs him of their partners’ infidelity. The film also tries to squeeze in comedy with the way the killers try to hide the dead body, the ridiculousness of some passengers, and cheeky but contextless commentary. While the romance is lovely, In Love and Deep Water isn’t the fun and chaotic murder mystery promised, as it drowns itself with interesting ideas that never really fully pans out.
Genre: Comedy, Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Actor: Airi Matsui, Aju Makita, Amane Okayama, Aoi Miyazaki, Hatsunori Hasegawa, Hidekazu Mashima, Ken Mitsuishi, Ken Yasuda, Kento Nagayama, Michiko Tomura, Miyu Hayashida, Nahana, Rinko Kikuchi, Ryo Yoshizawa, Saki Takaoka, Takashi Okabe, Tomu Miyazaki, Yasuomi Sano, Yoh Yoshida, Yoshimasa Kondô, Yuki Izumisawa
Director: Yusuke Taki
With political intrigue, deceit, and romance, Captivating the King has all the elements we’re familiar with in Korean sageuk romances. It’s easy to appreciate the impeccable production design and every time Jo Jung-suk pulls at the heartstrings through the Grand Prince Jinhan’s tears, but the series starts incredibly slowly. Apparently, before Hee-soo can captivate said king, the first few episodes must delve into every single detail that made the prince into a king. This does help set up the political landscape Yi In has to operate in, but it keeps its viewers waiting too long for the undercover love story implied by the premise.
Genre: Drama, War & Politics
Actor: Cho Jung-seok, Cho Seong-ha, Lee Sin-young, Park Ye-yeong, Shin Se-kyung
Director: Cho Nam-guk
There are some things to like in this romantic comedy. It’s simple and cute, with Reilly delivering an endearing performance that recalls some of the genre’s best proponents (in many scenes, she seems like she could be the spiritual successor of Zooey Deschanel or Rachel Bloom, adorkable leading ladies with hidden depths). But too many parts of the film are simply outdated and offputting. The central conflict lies in the fact that Kip is “not like other girls” and too nerdy to be attractive, despite the fact that she is conventionally pretty and actually cool. She has a lot of friends, many of whom are POCs, but they have zero interiority and all revolve around her boy problems. If this film were cut and corrected, I could see it becoming a lighthearted filler episode in a romantic sitcom. As it stands, it just seems like a bland and forgettable entry in the genre.
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Actor: Brian George, Charlie Clark, Georgina Reilly, Veronica Wylie, Wilson Bethel
Director: Marian Yeager