10 Best Romance Movies Of 2024

Summary

  • Romance movies in 2024 impress with genre-bending plots and diverse relationships, offering more than traditional rom-coms.
  • New filmmakers are sharing unique stories that resonate universally, emphasizing the importance of atmosphere and tone in romance.
  • From classic rom-coms to unique love stories like a musical drama and a sports thriller, 2024 offers a variety of romantic films.

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Romance movies are back and better than ever in 2024, and the best projects of the year come from a variety of up-and-coming directors, as well as veterans of the genre. While romance is sometimes pigeonholed for having formulaic plots and predictable endings, this is a reductive take and disregards the many genre-bending romance films that have only become more popular in recent years. However, there’s still plenty of fun to be had in watching a good old-fashioned rom-com, formulaic or not. A mix of arthouse, blockbuster, and up-and-coming films round out the year’s new movies.

When making a romance movie, filmmakers must remember the importance not only of the story but of the atmosphere and tone.

In recent years, romance movies have been looking at a more diverse range of relationships and have started shining a light on voices that had been overlooked for much of movie history. New filmmakers have been using their platforms to share their individual stories as well as universal ones that any audience member can relate to. When making a romance movie, filmmakers must remember the importance not only of the story but of the atmosphere and tone. These elements are just as vital in creating a romantic ambiance.

Collage of Moulin Rouge, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and The Notebook
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10 Mother Of The Bride

Directed by Mark Waters

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Brooke Shields’ best movies and TV shows are all part of her long and well-known career, and Mother of the Bride allowed her to return to the rom-com genre. Mother of the Bride is a fun film that delves into the topic of finding love later in life and reconnecting with an old flame. This rediscovery happens to Shields’ character, Lana, in the unexpected setting of her daughter’s wedding. It turns out that Lana’s daughter, Emma (Miranda Cosgrove), is marrying the son of Lana’s ex, Will (Benjamin Bratt).

Of course, it doesn’t take long for Will and Lana to reconnect and start feeling the sparks that brought them together many years ago. Mother of the Bride doesn’t break boundaries in its storytelling, but it’s a classic rom-com that hits all the right beats and provides a satisfying ending. It’s obvious that the actors are having fun throughout the film, encouraging the audience to kick back and enjoy the beautiful setting and hilarious miscommunications of the narrative.

Mother of the Bride Movie Poster Showing Brook Shields, Miranda Cosgrove and Benjamin Bratt Standing on a Beach

Mother of the Bride
Comedy
Drama
Romance

Lana’s daughter Emma returns from abroad and drops a bombshell: she’s getting married. In Thailand. In a month! Things only get worse when Lana learns that the man who captured Emma’s heart is the son of the man who broke hers years ago.

Director Mark Waters Release Date May 9, 2024 Cast Brooke Shields , Benjamin Bratt , Miranda Cosgrove , Rachael Harris , Sean Teale , Chad Michael Murray , Michael McDonald , Wilson Cruz Runtime 88 Minutes

9 This is Me… Now: A Love Story

Directed by Dave Meyers

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Jennifer Lopez’s conceptual love story to herself and her career, This is Me… Now: A Love Story, made a splash and circulated the internet when the first trailer was dropped. An ambitious project that dramatizes a fantastical version of Lopez’s life, the movie also revolves around the star’s real-life relationship with Ben Affleck and her other romantic relationships in the past few decades. The high-intensity choreography and musical numbers received praise from critics, and though the story’s throughline is loose, this isn’t the most important part of the movie.

When watching This is Me… Now: A Love Story, it’s important for the audience to sit back and suspend their disbelief to enjoy the full scope of the project. The film never intended to fall into the familiar narrative boxes that most blockbusters capitulate to, and this can be polarizing. However, once viewers let go of their expectations, the story is moving and demonstrates how much work Lopez put into it. By the end, she had created a cohesive product, visually and thematically, and this was no easy feat.

This is Me Now A Love Story Prime Movie Poster

This is Me…Now: A Love Story
PG-13
Biography
Drama
Musical

This is Me… Now: A Love Story, a musical drama film that explores a journey of self-love through the eyes of writer and performer Jennifer Lopez. Following the release of her album of the same name, Lopez takes a grandiose, dramatized look at her journey on screen to explore where she came from and where she is now.

Director Dave Meyers Release Date February 16, 2024 Cast Jennifer Lopez Runtime 105 Minutes

8 Five Blind Dates

Directed by Shawn Seet

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It’s a charming premise that evolves into a heart-warming movie full of every pitfall and trope of dating the audience can think of.

This new Australian rom-com stars Shuang Hu as Lia, a young woman who’s told that the person she’ll spend the rest of her life with will be one of the next five people she goes on a date with. It’s a charming premise that evolves into a heart-warming movie full of every pitfall and trope of dating the audience can think of. Hu anchors the film well, boldly harrowing the best and worst dates anyone has ever gone on. However, by the end of the movie, her laborious search for love might just pay off.

Part of the reason that Lia feels so much pressure to find her one true love is because her younger sister is getting married, and she doesn’t want to let down her family’s high expectations. Her desire to be a good daughter, combined with her failing business venture, pushes Lia to try things she never expected and put herself out there. However, in a romantic twist, the person that she’s been waiting for might be someone she already knows.

Five Blind Dates Prime Video Movie Poster

Five Blind Dates
Not Yet Rated
Romantic Comedy

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Five Blind Dates is a romantic comedy movie directed by Shawn Seet and released on Amazon Prime Video in 2024. A young woman named Lia returns home for her sister’s engagement party, where, during a family lunch, she meets a fortune teller. Her future is laid bare when the teller informs her that one of the men she’ll meet during her following five dates will be her soulmate, leading her family to set her up with potential suitors.

Director Shawn Seet Release Date February 13, 2024 Cast Philip Lynch , Shuang Hu , Ilai Swindells

7 Upgraded

Directed by Carlson Young

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Camila Mendes’ Ana has a chance encounter on a flight after being upgraded to first-class and meets the man of her dreams, William (Archie Renaux) in Upgraded. Though the movie has been described as a modern Cinderella tale, it makes strides to show that Ana isn’t a helpless damsel in distress and has a full life and career outside her relationship with William. However, that doesn’t stop Upgraded from including plenty of swoon-worthy moments between the couple and putting Mendes in dresses worthy of a princess.

Upgraded might see the central couple get together in the end, but it has many other positive messages throughout the story. One of the main themes is honesty, shown when Ana pretends to be the rich director of an auction house. William is impressed by this, but he cares more about her as a person than any high-profile job. Instead of being rewarded for her deception, Ana ends up finding success when she decides to own up to her lies and show people the real her.

Upgraded temp logo movie poster

Upgraded
R
Romantic Comedy

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Upgraded is a romantic comedy film by director Carlson Young. Camila Mendes stars as Ana, a young artist brought to London during her internship along with her handsome and wealthy boss, William.

Director Carlson Young Release Date February 9, 2024 Cast Camila Mendes , Archie Renaux , Marisa Tomei , Lena Olin , Anthony Head , Saoirse-Monica Jackson Where To Stream Prime Video

6 Turtles All the Way Down

Directed by Hannah Marks

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Green’s stories are almost always about the harrowing experience of living through adolescence and how it’s an impossible period for every young person, made more challenging by people’s struggles.

Of all the movies and TV shows based on John Green’s books, Turtles All The Way Down is one of the best. Green’s stories are almost always about the harrowing experience of living through adolescence and how it’s an impossible period for every young person, made more challenging by people’s struggles. Aza (Isabela Merced) is the protagonist of the film who must navigate her growing feelings of maturity and confusion while dealing with her obsessive-compulsive disorder.

One of Aza’s biggest worries is her ability to build romantic relationships like other people her age. This comes into play when Davis (Felix Mallard) enters the picture, and Aza attempts to express her feelings for him. However, the most important person in her life is Daisy (Cree), Aza’s best friend and support system as she engages with the world. Turtles All The Way Down is an honest and empathetic look at how romance unfolds when people are struggling with their mental health and reminds the viewer that young people’s first forays into love aren’t always successful, but they’re important.

turtles all the way down poster

Turtles All The Way Down
PG-13

It’s not easy being Aza, but she’s trying… trying to be a good daughter, a good friend, and a good student, all while navigating an endless barrage of invasive, obsessive thoughts that she cannot control. When she reconnects with Davis, her childhood crush, Aza is confronted with fundamental questions about her potential for love, happiness, friendship, and hope.

Director Hannah Marks Release Date May 2, 2024 Where To Stream HBO Max

5 Música

Directed by Rudy Mancuso

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Mendes has been all over the romantic comedy genre, pivoting from her teen TV drama roots in Riverdale and being taken more seriously as a leading lady in cinema. In Música, she plays Isabella, the love interest of Rudy, played by the director and co-writer of the movie, Rudy Mancuso. In his directorial debut, Mancuso takes on a lot with his many roles in the production, but he balances them well, and the outcome is a personal and joyous product. As the title suggests, Música is in conversation with music, sounds, and everyday moments that become beautiful compositions.

Rudy is a lost young man who’s simultaneously aggravated and enamored with his desire to make music and hear it everywhere he goes. When he meets Isabella, she’s one of the few people who understands what he’s going through and supports his dreams. Embracing magical realism and utilizing allusions to great movie musicals, Música isn’t alone in tackling its themes and stylization, but it’s still an original work. In the landscape of romance films coming out in the 2020s, it’s different enough to be instantly memorable.

Musica 2024 Movie Poster

Música (2024)
PG-13
Comedy
Romance

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Based on writer, director, and star Rudy Mancuso, Música is a coming-of-age love story that follows an aspiring creator with synesthesia who must come to terms with an uncertain future while navigating the pressures of love, family, and his Brazilian culture.

Director Rudy Mancuso Release Date April 4, 2024 Cast Rudy Mancuso , Camila Mendes , Francesca Reale , Maria Mancuso , J.B. Smoove Runtime 91 Minutes

4 Lisa Frankenstein

Directed by Zelda Williams

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As the years go by, the film will likely be reevaluated the same way Cody’s other work has, receiving a resurgence in popularity.

Unfortunately, Lisa Frankenstein suffered a similar fate at the box office as Diablo Cody’s cult classic, Jennifer’s Body. Cody wrote Lisa Frankenstein and stated that the movies take place in the same off-beat universe. However, even though Jennifer’s Body has come to be known as a masterpiece despite its critical and commercial failure, Lisa Frankenstein still went under the radar in 2024. As the years go by, the film will likely be reevaluated the same way Cody’s other work has, receiving a resurgence in popularity.

The love between Lisa (Kathryn Newton) and The Creature (Cole Sprouse) is an unlikely one, as The Creature is a reanimated corpse, but Lisa takes it upon herself to help him assimilate into the living world. With campy aesthetics and plenty of referential humor to slasher flicks of the 1980s, Lisa Frankenstein never falls into sappy territory, preferring instead to keep the story moving with fast-paced dialogue and tongue-in-cheek humor. Appealing to viewers looking for a morbid take on burgeoning teenage love, Lisa Frankenstein is the perfect movie for romance like no other.

Lisa Frankenstein Poster With Kathryn Newton and Cole Sprouse Sitting Atop an Electrified Tanning Bed

Lisa Frankenstein (2024)
PG-13
Comedy
Fantasy
Horror

Lisa Frankenstein is a comedic fantasy-horror film by first-time director Zelda Williams and is a twist on the classic Frankenstein formula. Set in 1989, a high school outcast named Lisa accidentally revives a handsome corpse from the Victorian era and resolves to rebuild him into the perfect man. 

Director Zelda Williams Release Date February 9, 2024 Cast Kathryn Newton , Cole Sprouse , Liza Soberano , Henry Eikenberry , Joe Chrest , Carla Gugino Runtime 101 Minutes

3 The Idea of You

Directed by Michael Showalter

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The Idea of You is the latest in a long line of movies based on books with roots in fan fiction. Robinne Lee penned the novel of the same name, and The Idea of You movie makes changes to the book. However, these alterations make the plot align with traditional romance narratives. In Lee’s work, Solène and Hayes don’t end up together, as the story’s purpose is to explore how Solène finds joy again and rediscovers her desires as she enters middle age. While this happens in the movie, the plot sticks to the classic “HEA,” or “happily ever after.”

Most audience members who seek out movies like The Idea of You want to be uplifted by a sweet conclusion, but that’s not the only reason the project has made such a splash. Anne Hathaway and Nicholas Galitzine star as the main couple, and though the sex scenes aren’t graphic, they do show enough for the viewer to draw comparisons to the novel’s intimate scenes. As blockbuster films have been leaning away from explorations of sexuality in their stories, it’s refreshing to see it celebrated in The Idea of You.

The Idea of You (2024)
R
Drama

Based on the acclaimed, contemporary love story of the same name, The Idea of You centers on Solène (Anne Hathaway), a 40-year-old single mom who begins an unexpected romance with 24-year-old Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine), the lead singer of August Moon, the hottest boy band on the planet. When Solène must step in to chaperone her teenage daughter’s trip to the Coachella Music Festival after her ex bails at the last minute, she has a chance encounter with Hayes and there is an instant, undeniable spark. 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. 

Director Michael Showalter Release Date May 2, 2024 Cast Anne Hathaway Nicholas Galitzine , Ella Rubin , Annie Mumolo , Reid Scott , Perry Mattfeld , Jordan Aaron Hall , Mathilda Gianopoulos Runtime 115 Minutes

2 Hit Man

Directed by Richard Linklater

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In the same vein as classics like Bonnie and Clyde, Hit Man sees its central couple get in too deep with a life of crime and start living out their fantasies together.

Richard Linklater has directed some of the most romantic movies of all time, the Before Trilogy, but his latest movie, Hit Man, is unlike his other projects. Starring Adria Arjona and Glen Powell, who’s been having a high-profile year at the box office, the story unfolds as Gary (Powell) falls in love with Madison (Arjona) while working on a police sting. In the same vein as classics like Bonnie and Clyde, Hit Man sees its central couple get in too deep with a life of crime and start living out their fantasies together.

Watching Hit Man is fun until the very end, and it has its fair share of steamy moments as Powell and Arjona have amazing chemistry. Watching Gary transform himself to be the man he thinks Madison wants, only to love her so much that he must reveal the real him, is a surprisingly touching moment for a movie that sticks to its comedic and action-based roots. However, the film succeeds because of its dedication to its central relationship and the sincerity with which each actor plays their character.

Hit Man 2023

Hit Man
R
Action
Comedy

From director Richard Linklater comes Hit Man, a 2023 action comedy film based on a Texas Monthly article of the same name. Undercover and trying to catch a group of criminals, a Houston police officer poses as a hitman until he falls for a woman on assignment. Finding himself diving deeper into the world of crime, the Houston officer finds it increasingly difficult to escape his new undercover persona.

Director Richard Linklater Release Date September 5, 2023 Cast Glen Powell , Adria Arjona , Austin Amelio , Retta , Molly Bernard Runtime 113 Minutes

1 Challengers

Directed by Luca Guadagnino

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Challengers is a sports thriller, a psychological drama, and a love story between three people with conflicting personalities. All three genre types are apt descriptors. There’s little that Challengers isn’t, but as Zendaya’s Tashi says in the movie, it’s all about relationships. While tennis might take center stage and serve as the playing field for the characters to work out their anger and pent-up aggression, the audience cares about the interpersonal relationships driving the story forward. When Tashi, Art (Mike Faist), and Patrick (Josh O’Connor) become intertwined at a young age, they’re lives are never the same.

Not only is the film well-made, flawlessly paced, and heart-pounding, with a score that could be played at a nightclub, but it also takes on groundbreaking subject matter for a high-profile romance film. The central love triangle in the movie leans more toward polyamory and explores the underlying feelings of attraction between Art and Patrick as much as it does their mutual desire for Tashi. Each angle of the intersecting relationship gets ample time to be fleshed out and challenges the limitations of what a typical romance movie is usually characterized by.

Challengers Poster

Challengers
R
Comedy
Drama
Romance
Sports

Challengers is a romantic sports comedy film by director Luca Guadagnino. The film stars Zendaya as a retired Tennis legend who, while trying to coach her husband and lead him to victory in an upcoming Tennis match, discovers his coming opponent is her ex-lover.

Director Luca Guadagnino Release Date April 26, 2024 Writers Justin Kuritzkes Cast Zendaya , Josh O’Connor , Mike Faist

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