My Top Ten Romantic Movies

10. East of Eden--1955 film about a wayward young man who, while seeking his own identity, vies for the affection of his Bible-toting father against his favored brother. It is a retelling of the biblical story of Cain and Abel. The film stars Julie Harris, James Dean (in his first major screen role), and Raymond Massey. Of the three films in which James Dean played the male lead, this is the only one released during his lifetime. ***Romance is not the focus of the movie, but Dean’s and Harris’s characters share a deep connection. Very emotional and touching movie.***

9. An Affair to Remember is a 1957 film starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr. It is considered to be the most romantic film of all time. Contributing to the success of the 1957 film is its theme song "An Affair to Remember” (Our Love Affair). ***I liked this one a lot—it leaves the viewer a little melancholy, though.***

8. Titanic is a 1997 American epic/disaster/romantic/drama film directed, written, co-produced, and co-edited by James Cameron about the sinking of the RMS Titanic. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jack Dawson and Kate Winslet as Rose DeWitt Bukater, two members of different social classes who fall in love aboard the ill-fated maiden voyage of the ship. ***I’ve watched this movie three times. I especially love the song “My Heart will Go On” sung by Celine Dion.***

7. The Last Time I Saw Paris—a 1954 romantic drama. The film starred Elizabeth Taylor and Van Johnson, with Walter Pidgeon, Donna Reed, Eva Gabor, Kurt Kasznar, George Dolenz, Sandy Descher and Roger Moore. This epic romance is a captivating blend of Parisian expatriate high society and the struggles in post-WWII Europe. When war writer and veteran Charles Wills (Van Johnson) meets the lovely and restless Helen Ellswirth (Elizabeth Taylor) in Paris after the war, the two strangers instantly fall in love, basking in the glory of a free Paris. Charles and Helen get married and have a family, but life becomes more difficult as they continue on with their free-spirited and reckless adventure. ***Like so many romantic movies of the 50’s, there’s a touch of sadness about this movie. The ending? Take a hankie.***

6. Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing is an American 1955 drama-romance film. Set in 1949-50 Hong Kong, it tells the story of a married, but separated, American reporter (played by William Holden), who falls in love with a Eurasian doctor (played by Jennifer Jones), only to encounter prejudice from her family and from Hong Kong society.***I love this one because my husband took me to see it on our very first date. We were very young!***

5. Splendor in the Grass, an American movie from 1961, tells a story of sexual repression, young love, and heartbreak. Starring the very young and beautiful Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty. ***I loved this movie, but much of the movie is heartbreaking, until she finally finds love with another man.***

4. An Officer and a Gentleman is a 1982 American drama film that tells the story of a U.S. Navy aviation officer candidate who comes into conflict with the Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant who trains him. It starred Richard Gere, Debra Winger and Louis Gossett, Jr. Richard Gere plays an enrollee at a Naval officers candidate school, Debra Winger is the woman who loves him, and the secondary characters are great. ***Of course, I loved this one. A very young Richard Gere and a story with a HEA.***

3. OPEN RANGE is a powerfully gripping story, and stars Robert Duvall, Kevin Costner, and Annette Bening . A group of free grazers, four men trying to escape their past, are driving cattle and living off the land on the open range. When a ruthless, evil rancher tries to run them out of town, the men's peaceful existence takes a tumultuous turn and ends in the grittiest, most explosive gunfight on film as two men battle a town for honor, justice, and a way of life that's quickly disappearing. ***The tender love story between Charlie (Costner) and Sue (Bening) is so touching in its simplicity, I remember exact scenes.***

2. Doctor Zhivago-1965--a sweeping movie about a doctor-poet in revolutionary Russia, starring Omar Sharif and Julie Christie. The screen is crammed with spectacle, and the theme song “Lara’s Theme” has been played countless times. ***One of my all-time favorite movies. Yes, it maudlin and soap-operish, and some characters seemed to be mis-cast, but still, the movie is wonderful. ***

1. MY NUMBER ONE MOVIE: PICNIC--An odd choice, maybe, but this is one movie that has stuck in my head all these years. I’ve watched it too many times to count, and if it appeared on AMC or TCM, I’d drop everything and watch it again. Picnic is a 1955 film which tells the story of an ex-college football star turned drifter who arrives in a small Kansas town on Labor Day and is drawn to a girl who is already spoken for. With a cast headed by William Holden, Kim Novak, Susan Strasberg, Cliff Robertson, Arthur O'Connell, Nick Adams, Betty Field, Rosalind Russell and Verna Felton, the film is sometimes cited as a richly detailed snapshot of life in the American Midwest during the 1950s. ***I give it first place because every time I’ve watched it, I noticed something different. Very poignant and fulfilling in the end.***

Celia Yeary

Romance…and a little bit o' Texas

http://www.celiayeary.com/

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