Making a romantic comedy is a bit like baking a cake: even though the ingredients are fairly simple, the results go up or down depending on how you combine and cook them. And it seems that Netflix has prepared a very good film with Love at first sightwhich is currently the most watched movie on the top streaming service in the United States.
The plot is rather familiar – a man and a woman meet, fall in love, break up and begin to wonder if they will ever see each other again – but it’s brilliantly directed and left the fans of the film sobbed in their social networks.
If that’s your kind of thing, then Netflix has plenty of other romantic movies where that came from – just take a look at our roundup of the best Netflix romantic movies to find out more. Otherwise, here are three currently available to stream in the United States.
1. Jerry Maguire
If you haven’t seen this genre classic, you need to. And if you’ve seen it, you need to watch it again. Tom Cruise and Renée Zellweger shine in Cameron Crowe’s story about a sports agent and the single mother he falls in love with. These are absolutely charming, made-up phrases that have become part of popular culture.
Without Jerry, we wouldn’t have “show me the money!” “, “you complete me” or “you had me at ‘hello'”. The familiarity may have dampened its appeal a bit, but it’s a fantastic romantic comedy with elements of screwball comedies, stellar supporting performances, and a storyline that never quite does what you think it’s going to do.
2. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before
Based on the novel of the same name by Jenny Han, To all the boys I’ve loved before is a delightful high school romantic comedy centered on Lara Jean (Lana Condor), whose deliberately unpublished love letters to her crushes end up being delivered to the boys she wrote about.
It currently sits at an impressive 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising its mixed cast, “heartwarming” sweetness, and excellent performances. It’s perhaps a bit stereotypical – there are obvious echoes Ten things I hate about you – but Condor in particular will seduce you.
3. She must have it
Most romantic comedies focus on the love between two people. Spike Lee’s series, based on his exceptional 80s film of the same name and directed once again by the maverick filmmaker, has four. Over two seasons, She must have it follows polyamorous artist Nola Darling as she attempts to juggle life, art, and not one but three lovers.
DeWanda Wise is magnetic as Nola, and while the show is often very funny, it’s a Spike Lee joint, so of course there’s plenty of drama and social commentary as well. Lee collaborated with four female writers to get Nola’s characterization perfect and the result is a well-drawn character who is much more interesting and complex than the often one-note women in many romantic comedies.