The mistake most marathons make is consistency - same tone, same energy, film after film. Vary the weight. Follow something heavy with something lighter. Let the list breathe.
Despite everything, the 2020s have produced some genuinely remarkable cinema. Films made under pressure that somehow carry none of it.
The best romantic films work because they're fundamentally about two people trying to understand each other. Love is just the context.
18-year-old Noah moves from America to London, with her mother who's recently fallen in love with William, a wealthy British businessman. Noah meets William's son, bad-boy Nick, and soon discovers there is an attraction between them neither can avoid. As Noah spends the summer adjusting to her new life, her devastating past will catch up with her while falling in love for the first time.
Jenna and Lion's wedding brings about the long-awaited reunion between Noah and Nick after their breakup. Nick's inability to forgive Noah stands as an insurmountable barrier. He, heir to his grandfather's businesses, and she, starting her professional life, resist fueling a flame that's still alive. But now that their paths have crossed again, will love be stronger than resentment?
Raquel's longtime crush on her next-door neighbor turns into something more when he starts developing feelings for her, despite his family's objections.
When carefree Nyles and reluctant maid of honor Sarah have a chance encounter at a Palm Springs wedding, things get complicated when they find themselves unable to escape the venue, themselves, or each other.
A young journalist in London becomes obsessed with a series of letters she discovers that recounts an intense star-crossed love affair from the 1960s.
What makes romantic cinema great is the gap between what characters want to say and what they actually say. These films live in that gap.
After surviving a car accident that took the life of her boyfriend, a teenage girl believes he's attempting to reconnect with her from the after world.
From a mountain peak in South Korea, a man plummets to his death. Did he jump, or was he pushed? When detective Hae-joon arrives on the scene, he begins to suspect the dead man's wife Seo-rae. But as he digs deeper into the investigation, he finds himself trapped in a web of deception and desire.
When a hopelessly romantic high school senior falls for a mysterious new classmate, it sets them both on an unexpected journey that teaches them about love, loss, and most importantly themselves.
40-year-old single mom Solène begins an unexpected romance with 24-year-old Hayes Campbell, the lead singer of August Moon, the hottest boy band on the planet. As they begin a whirlwind romance, it isn't long before Hayes' superstar status poses unavoidable challenges to their relationship, and Solène soon discovers that life in the glare of his spotlight might be more than she bargained for.
A widow with three children hires a handyman to fix her house during a major storm. When not doing home repairs, he shares his philosophy of believing in the power of the universe to deliver what we want.
The twist endings that hold up aren't tricks - they're revelations. Everything was there. You just didn't see it yet.
Great romance cinema earns its place in memory by being honest about love â not flattering it, not sentimentalising it, but showing it clearly enough that it resonates.