In the last couple of decades, the romantic comedy has slowly morphed into one of the most maligned genres in all of filmdom, and there are plenty of movies that have helped earn that reputation for sappy, condescending rubbish. However, there are also BRILLIANT works that fall under the RomCom umbrella to feed the audience that wants to curl up with popcorn, a pint of ice cream and a good love story.
Netflix actually has a very strong collection of amour-centric films ranging from classic to the very recent. In choosing The 10 Best Romantic Comedies on Netflix, we went for the ones that neither guys nor girls should feel embarrassed to admit they like. Prepare for lots of longing glances, witty repartee and, oh yes, GORGEOUS people trying to mack on each other.
Check out our list of the best romantic comedies on Netflix in the gallery below, and let us know if we missed any good ones on Netflix in the comments section!
10 Best Romantic Comedies on Netflix
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Man Up (2015)
You will not be able to tell that Lake Bell is only playing a Brit in this film as she carries herself with the most convincing accent possibly any American has ever pulled off. The film itself is a fun deconstruction of RomCom tropes, following a perpetually single working girl who accidentally commandeers another woman's blind date, as played affably by Simon Pegg. Almost immediately after they hit it off they have to begin working through the fact that she lied to him.
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Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Jennifer Lawrence won an Oscar for her portrayal of a recently-widowed woman who agrees to help a man with bipolar disorder (Bradley Cooper) win back his estranged wife by entering a dance competition. Of course, a connection develops between the two strong personalities and sparks fly.
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Greenberg (2010)
Ben Stiller plays a misanthropic New Yorker who's recently suffered a nervous breakdown. He flies to LA to build a dog house for his family man brother, and winds up striking up an unlikely relationship with the family dog walker (Greta Gerwig). This was filmmaker Noah Baumbach's first film in an upswing of more hopeful movies after his darker comedies.
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Something's Gotta Give (2003)
Here's one for our readers of a certain age. Jack Nicholson plays a womanizing older man who suffers a heart attack while with his young girlfriend, forcing him to stay in the care of her middle-aged mother (Diane Keaton). The two come to loggerheads only to, of course, find a connection as single people looking for happiness later in life. Directed by rom-com queen Nancy Meyers (The Holiday, It's Complicated).
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Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
Adam Sandler stars in Paul Thomas Anderson's wacky comedy about a borderline autistic businessman named Barry who meets a gorgeous dream woman (Emily Watson) who inexplicably falls hard for him. Complications ensue, including a money extorting phone sex peddler (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and a pudding scam. Half the fun of this movie lies in characters simply recounting the events of its ultra-absurd plot.
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Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001)
A woman in her late-twenties (Maribel Verdú) with a secret decides to take a road trip with two horny teens (Gael García Bernal, Diego Luna) to a beach that doesn't actually exist. Pretty soon they're pairing off and having drunken fun before a final, sobering reveal. A brilliantly-directed, small-scale Spanish-language film from Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity).
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Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)
Helen Fielding's popular literary heroine comes to life via a vivacious performance by Renée Zellweger as the overweight title single lady who finds herself in a love triangle between two men, her boss (Hugh Grant) and a childhood friend (Colin Firth). Loosely inspired by Jane Austin's "Pride and Prejudice."
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Amelie (2001)
Jean-Pierre Jeunet's episodic French masterpiece centers on a shy waitress named Amélie Poulain (Audrey Tautou) who copes with her own loneliness by performing random acts of kindness for people. Over the course of two very quirky hours, she finds the will to connect with her own guy, played by Mathieu Kassovitz.
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Muriel's Wedding (1994)
Toni Collette turned in a star-making performance in this Australian indie about an ugly duckling woman obsessed with the music of ABBA who longs for a dream wedding despite never having been on a date. After meeting an old high school friend (Rachel Griffiths), she assumes a new identity as "Muriel" that shapes her life in a new direction.
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Sixteen Candles (1984)
John Hughes' directorial debut helped define what being a teenager meant for a generation. Molly Ringwald plays an invisible sophomore whose sixteenth birthday has been overshadowed by her sister's wedding, leading to a series of wild events (some involving a geeky freshman played by Anthony Michael Hall) all in one crazy night that changes everything for her.
