Making a rom-com is a bit like baking a cake: while the ingredients are pretty simple, the results rise or fall based on how well you combine and cook them. And it looks like Netflix has baked a pretty good movie with Love at First Sight, which is currently the number one most watched film on the best streaming service in the US.
The plot is all rather familiar – a man and a woman meet, fall for one another, get separated and start to wonder if they’ll ever meet again – but it’s done brilliantly and has left fans of the film sobbing into their socials.
If that’s your kind of thing, then Netflix has plenty more rom-com movies where that came from – just take a look at our roundup of the best Netflix romantic movies to find more. Otherwise, here are three that are currently available to stream in the US.
1. Jerry Maguire
If you haven’t seen this stone-cold classic of the genre, you need to. And if you have seen it, you need to see it again. Tom Cruise and Renée Zellweger sparkle in Cameron Crowe’s tale of a sports agent and the single mom he falls in love with. It’s absolutely charming and coined phrases that went on to be part of popular culture.
If it weren’t for Jerry we wouldn’t have “show me the money!”, “you complete me” or “you had me at ‘hello'”. Familiarity may have dulled its appeal a little bit but it’s a fantastic rom-com with elements of screwball comedies, some stellar supporting performances and a script that never quite does what you think it’s going to do.
2. To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
Based on Jenny Han’s novel of the same name, To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before is a delightful high school rom-com centring on Lara Jean (Lana Condor), whose deliberately unpublished love letters to her crushes end up being delivered to the boys she’s written about.
It’s currently sitting at an impressive 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising its mixed cast, its “heartwarming” sweetness and its excellent performances. It’s maybe a little formulaic – there are definite echoes of Ten Things I Hate About You –but Condor in particular will win you over.
3. She’s Gotta 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 film-maker, has four. Over two seasons, She’s Gotta Have It follows polyamorous artist Nola Darling as she tries to juggle life, art and not one but three lovers.
DeWanda Wise is magnetic as Nola, and while the show is often very funny this is a Spike Lee joint so of course there’s plenty of drama and social commentary too. Lee collaborated with four women writers to get Nola’s characterisation just right and the result is a well-drawn character who’s much more interesting and complex than the often one-note women in many romantic comedies.
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