Welcome to the rom-com Revival era. Romantic comedies have never gone away, but perhaps our need for them did. For the last few years, rom-coms were released on the periphery, but with the pandemic over and people ready to feel happy again, rom-coms are receiving a whole new wave of attention. As they should!
It’s been a tough time for cinema and for viewers. In the midst of a pandemic, recession, and inflation, it’s no wonder viewers are ready for a dose of magic and romance. And on Netflix, the latest rom-com to drop will be Your Place or Mine. The film stars two rom-com veterans, Ashton Kutcher and Reese Witherspoon, in a film directed by Aline Brash McKenna, who wrote The Devil Wears Prada, Laws of Attraction, and 27 Dresses. The rom-com alum will unite in Your Place or Mine coming to Netflix on February 10.
“I have never stopped loving rom-coms,” said Ashton Kutcher during a media roundtable to promote the film.
Reese Witherspoon also chimed in, calling the revival era a “rebirth” for rom-coms: “I think this is a great time that people are looking for community—they're looking for love.”
After two years fraught with more bad news after another, we’re ready for unbelievable storylines, wacky twists, and absurd hilarity. Add in some romance and steamy chemistry, and rom-coms might just heal us from the trauma of the last few years. Lucky for us, there’s a whole archive of rom-coms to pick from, but Esquire Philippines asked the rom-com gods, Kutcher and Witherspoon, to recommend the best movies for a rom-com initiation. These are what they recommended.
Here are 7 rom-coms to binge before Your Place or Mine drops on Netflix:
1. Overboard
Recommended by: Reese Witherspoon
Overboard set the standard with absurd but lovable rom-com plots. Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn star in this amnesia-centered movie, and the on-screen couple have been off-screen partners to this day. Talk about a happy ending!
2. Sleepless in Seattle
Recommended by: Ashton Kutcher
Now here’s a classic for you. Starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, Sleepless in Seattle is a must-watch on every rom-com list. It might be lighthearted at times, but Sleepless in Seattle might teach you a thing or two about love, grief, and fate.
3. When Harry Met Sally
Recommended by: Reese Witherspoon
Our rom-com queen Meg Ryan stars opposite Billy Crystal in this ’80s classic, which challenges the notion of whether men and women can be platonic friends. We’re sure everyone and their mother has, by now, watched that stimulatingly iconic diner scene, but it might be time for a rewatch.
4. Pretty Woman
Recommended by: Ashton Kutcher
Richard Gere and Julia Roberts were a match made in heaven in Pretty Woman, a modern Cinderella story about a girl who swapped a glass slipper for some hooker heels. Equal parts steamy and sweet, Pretty Woman still has us blushing all these years later.
5. You’ve Got Mail
Recommended by: Reese Witherspoon
Meg Ryan makes her nth appearance on our list with You’ve Got Mail, which she starred in with Tom Hanks. The two play strangers who fall in love with each other over the internet without knowing that they might be closer to each other than they think. If you ever dreamed of having your own online love story, You’ve Got Mail is to blame.
6. Philadelphia Story
Recommended by: Ashton Kutcher
Before Meg Ryan, there was Katharine Hepburn. In Philadelphia Story, the Hollywood icon juggles the love and adoration of three dashing gentlemen played by Cary Grant, James Stewart, and John Howard—every girl’s dream.
7. The Apartment
Recommended by: Ashton Kutcher
Pretty Woman might have been scandalous for featuring a hooker as Cinderella, but early rom-coms were downright shameless in their plots. The Apartment stars Shirley MacLaine, Jack Lemmon, and Fred MacMurray caught in a love triangle based on extramarital affairs and secret mistresses. The '60s were great at making drama.
* This story originally appeared on Esquiremag.ph. Minor edits have been made by the Preview.ph editors.
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