Love is in the air this valentine’s season and while some might prefer to mark the occasion with candlelit dinners, roses or a Galentines night out on the town, a romantic screenplay or two might somewhat elevate the seasonal mood, and below are some recommendations for your watchlist. The options presented fuse classics with new screenplays and those that have had overnight success, undeniably portraying their durability and appeal.
The Perfect Find
Starring Keith Powers, Gabrielle Union, Lala Anthony and Gina Torres, The Perfect Find first premiered in June 2023. Based on a book by Tia Williams adopted for film by Numa Perrier, the movie is a romantic comedy situated around 40-year-old Jenna Jones (played by Gabrielle Union) at the precipice of rebuilding her life after taking time off to deal with a breakup. Jenna ventures into the world of beauty journalism and seeks employment from her frenemy Darcy, who just so happens to be not only the head of a multimedia enterprise but also the mother of Jenna’s current love interest Eric. (Played by Keith Powers) Jenna and Eric’s 15-year age gap is one of the rather interesting things to watch, especially when their banter-filled conversations are in play. The Perfect Find has a compelling plot and dialogue, and the Emmy awarded actors that bring it to life make for a good incentive to watch.
Players
While Players doesn’t actually premiere until February 14, there is high anticipation and demand for it merely because of the cast list and mildly because of the plot, and here’s some of the reasons you should be on the lookout for it. The lead characters of this love story are portrayed by Gina Rodriguez and Tom Ellis and if those names don’t sound familiar, surely Jane the virgin and Lucifer Morningstar ought to ring a bell for you. Rodriguez and Ellis have each acquired a huge fanbase from tenures as leads on their respective TV shows and the urge to watch them in something different is enough to boost the movie ratings alone, and their supporting characters only add fire to that smoke. Instagram sensation, dancer and actress Liza Koshy is one of the supporting characters alongside Damon Wayans Jr and Joel Courtney, who will without a doubt accentuate the comedic potion of the movie. The plot centers around a New York sports writer who sets up a hookup techniques with her friends and unexpectedly falls for one of her conquests.
Red White and Royal Blue
If you’re a romcom fanatic and haven’t watched Red White and Royal Blue, you’re either living under a rock or you should absolutely reconsider your current friend group. Based on a book with the same title, Red White and Royal Blue has been winning hearts over since its premiere in July 2023 and one of the most captivating things about it is the compelling plot and dialogue. Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicolas Galitzine seamlessly take over the leading roles and carry the plot alongside Sarah Shahi as one of the more outstanding supporting characters. The plot is situated around the first son of the US, Alex Claremont Diaz attending a royal wedding in the UK and creating a mild scandal with British monarch Prince Henry, thereby positioning them in need for some PR damage control. The two developed a hate love connection through their numerous press runs and public appearances and eventually fell in love with another but had to keep it secret. This is one of the few movies with all the feels, and the where the dialogue will have you laughing, the plot and sequence might give your waterworks a little push. Sarah Shahi’s humor will undoubtedly have you laughing through the tears but should that not be reason enough to watch, Taylor Zakhar Perez should hook you right into it.
Work it
Starring Liza Koshy, Sabrina Carpenter and Jordan Fisher, Work it is as feel good as it gets with movies. The plot brings out the story of a super smart kinda awkward highschool senior who spent most of her time perfecting a 4.0 GPA to actually have a life or some fun. Played by Carpenter, she lies to a guidance counselor of her prospective university that she in a dance group. After the interview she alongside Koshy’s character create a dance group and hire Jordan Fisher’s character to train them. Carpenter and Fisher’s characters have quite a number of slow burn moments throughout the movie and eventually fall for one another and while that is captivating, the dance and music of the movie comes in as a close second. Work it is a Netflix watch.
Perfect Date
If Noah Centineo has never been your internet boyfriend skip over to the next, you’re probably too mature for 'Perfect Date' to intrigue you. The plot situates around a Yale hopeful high school senior who invented an app where he gets hired and paid to date certain people to afford Yale. He meets a ‘fake date’ he ends up catching feelings for, which is quite literally the skin and bones of rom coms, but the banter and dialogue in this one sets it apart. Noah Centineo is reason enough to watch and warrant a rewatch, but in case anyone needs another reason, the plotline should be enough to fill that quota.
Someone Great
Someone Great is the perfect watch for a Galentines night in. It can be paired alongside Gilmore Girls, Ginny and Georgia, sex and the city and not miss a beat. The movie’s plot centers around Jenny Young recouping from the end of a relationship she’s been in for nearly ten years and trying to rediscover her singleness alongside her two best friends who also have quite a bit going on. The lead is played by Gina Rodriguez and her humor and ability to evoke strong emotions sips through all the characters she plays, including this.
Love guaranteed
If watching movies with endless wit is one of your favorite past times, love guaranteed was tailor made for your viewing pleasure. Starring Damon Wayans Jr and Laura Marano, the plot follows a lawyer who is prompted to take over a case representing a single man suing an app for not providing the love they guaranteed after going on several unsuccessful dates. Wayans’ character gradually catches feelings for his lawyer and the feeling becomes mutual for Marano’s character overtime. The movie is a good watch for group and solo settings, and the dialogue and plot twists are definitely selling points.
Dirty Dancing
Most Gen z’s might be unfamiliar with the one liner "Nobody puts baby in the corner” and that’s probably because they are yet to watch Dirty Dancing. Starring the infamous Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, the 1987 classic centers around France's ‘Baby’ Houseman’s vacation with family on which she meets and falls for Johnny, a notorious dance instructor. The musicality within the screenplay is one of its more captivating aspects, and the compelling plot and scene direction is one of the reasons it has inadvertently become a timeless classic.
Magic Mike’s Last Dance
Arguably the last Magic Mike movie ever made, Salma Hayek and the incomparable Channing Tatum make it a hard one to forget, for all the right and wrong reasons. The musicality in the movie contributes significantly to its appeal, but it is the scene direction and the sequence of events that will have one at the edge of their seats, according to this viewer at least. The intensity in every scene sips through the cracks and the eloquent way in which Hayek and Tatum bring out the story is very hook, line and sinker. Magic Mike’s last dance is very transcendent, rated R and you should probably watch it and experience it from the source, because feeble retelling from a middle man (or woman) can only do so much.
Upgraded
Upgraded was released this February 9, and while everything we know about it lies within the confines of a 5 minute trailer, that alone warrants a watch. Starring Camila Mendes who might most likely recognize as Veronica from Riverdale, the dramedy follows her character Ana finally getting a job in an art gallery she admires, being assigned to accompany her boss on a work trip to London then getting her flight upgraded to first class and being mistaken for her boss by a handsome guy, which starts a spiral of lies that won’t benefit her in the long run.