Happy Valentine's Day!

So,

I haven't had a legit girlfriend on Valentine's Day since I was eighteen, so February 14 usually breezes by unnoticed. Doesn't help that on this year it's on a rainy, windy Monday. But chances are I'll end up watching TV with Spencer, I'll try to get a bunch of homework done, then go to bed early.

Anyways, I thought I'd post this list of my favorite romantic movies. Just so you know, 27 Dresses, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and basically anything starring Kathryn Heigl, Matthew McConaughey or Kate Hudson will definitely NOT be on this list.

#1. Notting Hill

Someone was making fun of this movie the other night, and I felt like I had to stand up for its honor. SURE, it's a Hugh Grant movie. I know, I know. But it's actually decently scripted, has a great ensemble cast of neurotic characters, and features a great Alec Baldwin cameo.

Rhys Ifans is hilarious as Hugh Grant's "masturbating Welshman" of a roommate, and he has most of the best lines.

"This yogurt tastes funny," he says to Hugh Grant as he ladles a white substance into his mouth with a spoon.

"That's because it's mayonnaise," answers Hugh Grant.

"Right," Rhys Ifans says, and continues to EAT IT.

There's some pretty epically corny lines towards the end, including the "I'm just a girl, standing in front of a bar, asking him to love her," which, in her defense, is delivered as believably as possible by Julia Roberts.

And yeah, it makes people cry. So check it out.

#2. A Life Less Ordinary

Before Danny Boyle hit it big with Slumdog Millionaire, 28 Days Later and 127 Hours, he made this strange little movie.

Boyle was coming from Scotland after making Shallow Grave and Trainspotting, and this was his attempt at crossing over his distinctly grotesque Scottish style with a fairly typical American crime/romance movie. The result? Most critics HATED the shit out of it.

(It has 40% on Rotten Tomatoes.)

This movie has murderous angels, an extended kidnapping plot, weird sex, excessive drinking, bizarre dream sequences and a hilarious script. When I was about 16 I watched this movie repeatedly, over and over, until I had memorized every inflection in Ewan Mcgregor's lines.

If you put in the time, you get to see Cameron Diaz and Ewan McGregor morph into clay-mation to the song "Round Our Way" by Oasis. AWESOME.


#3. Playing By Heart

 I recently bought this DVD over the internet, because I'd lost my VHS copy of it. This is my reigning, official, favorite romantic comedy of all time.

And not just because Ryan Philippe made me wish I had blue hair for about a decade.

Listen to this cast: Dennis Quaid, Madeline Stowe, Sean Connery, Jon Stewart (yeah, The Daily Show Jon Stewart) Ryan Philippe, Angelina Jolie, Gillian Anderson, Gena Rowlands...craziness, right?

This is probably the only movie you'll ever see with Sean Connery proudly bald. (He wore a hairpiece for the last twenty years of his career.)

If you watch it, look out for the word "angerball". It's a clue.

#4. True Romance

 Speaking of awesome casts, check this out: Brad Pitt, Val Kilmer, Patricia Arquette, Samuel L. Jackson, Gary Oldman, Dennis Hopper, Christopher Walken, Christian Slater, James Gandolfini...there's practically no one in this movie you WON'T recognize.

We watched this the other night, and man. You can't get away with this shit anymore. The extreme violence, the crazy sex, the strange racism and epic amount of swearing. This is a movie, the way movies were SUPPOSED to be made.

Not to mention that Patricia Arquette plays the PERFECT woman. I am so in love with Alabama, I can't even tell you.

Interesting tidbit of information: James Gandolfini was cast as Tony Soprano off the strength of his performance in this movie. Fuck yeah!

The soundtrack is a little bit cheesy and 90s, but what're you gonna do?

I wish Quentin Tarantino still wrote movies like this.

#5. Blue Valentine

Okay, so this movie isn't exactly going to get you into the mood. But it will make you wish you had Ryan Gosling's jacket.

If you're not feeling very romantic, and feel like seeing a true depiction of a human relationship performed by two actors at the top of their game, then check this out. If I had successfully seen this in 2010, it would have been in my Top 3. So far, it's the best movie I've seen this year.

Sure, it's graphic and sad and horrible. But it's also funny and beautiful and heart-breaking.

I fucking love this movie.

Well, that's all I've got. I'm going to finish some homework in the library here, then head over to McKinnon to swim some laps. Tomorrow is the OCW party, and I'm heading over to the Mainland with Cat!

Whoo!

Will!!