40 Best Date Night Movies for When You're Tired of the Same Old Options
Does anyone really wanna watch The Notebook again? (Don’t answer that.)
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The date night movie can be surprisingly tricky if you think about it. Depending on what phase of the relationship you're in with your partner, the perfect vibe can vary. Maybe you're in it for the Netflix and chill of it all (in which case, bring on all the spicy movies!). Maybe you have v different movie tastes and can't agree on a genre that'll work for you both (raises hand sheepishly). Maybe you wanna reconnect after an exhausting week (universally relatable, TBH). But, no matter your tastes or whether you're on a first date or 500th, I'm here to help set the mood.
You already know about the classic rom-coms you could bust out for such an occasion. Obviously, you could go with the stereotypical romantic movies—hey, I'm not one to judge here! But you've already watched The Notebook a whole bunch, and maybe, just maybe, your partner doesn't want to want to watch The Last Song again. Don't get me wrong, nothing's wrong with that vibe, and there are def some rom-com options on this list, but we've also got some flicks to shake things up for date night. Some of these are romance-adjacent (or have sneaky lil side romances that you prob missed when you watched it the first time), and some are more about love in the abstract, non-romantic sense. But all of them are just great, popcorn-watching films in their own right so that no matter how the night goes, you've watched something fabulous.
Titanic
If it's romance you want, then romance you'll get with this timeless classic starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Plus, if you want to know if your boo really cares about you, ask them if they're willing to float in the freezing ocean while there's literally plenty of room for both of y'all on a floating door. IYKYK.
Bones and All
Love blossoms between a young woman and a disenfranchised drifter when they discover they have something very peculiar in common. When they embark on a 3,000-mile odyssey, despite their best efforts, all roads lead them back to their terrifying pasts and a final stand that will determine whether their love can survive.
50 First Dates
Henry Roth is a man afraid of commitment up until he meets Lucy. Just when he thinks he's finally found the girl of his dreams (I mean, who wouldn't fall for Drew Barrymore, right?), he discovers she has short-term memory loss and forgets him the next day.
Past Lives
This one goes well with a side of tissues. Nora and Hae Sung are two deeply connected childhood friends who are forced to go their separate ways when Nora's family emigrates from South Korea. Decades later, the two are reunited for one fateful week as they confront destiny, love, and choices.
Call Me By Your Name
Plz name something more romantic than the Italian countryside and Sufjan Stevens. When 17-year-old Elio meets Oliver, a handsome doctoral student working as an intern for his father, in their Italian villa, he discovers the beauty of awakening desire over the course of the summer.
Love & Basketball
If you've watched this classic film, honestly just go watch it again. But if you haven't, you are missing out so so much. This epic movie covers almost 20 years of two childhood sweethearts who love basketball—and each other—with the same wild intensity.
Forrest Gump
Tom Hanks gives one of his best performances in this movie, and you can't say otherwise. Perfect for quite literally any movie night, watch history unfold through the perspective of an Alabama man with the most interesting stories to be told.
Crazy Rich Asians
Rachel is happy to accompany her longtime (and extremely attractive) boyfriend, Nick, to his best friend's wedding in Singapore. She's surprised to learn that his family is insanely wealthy and is thrust into the spotlight where she must contend with jealous socialites, quirky relatives, and something far worse—Nick's disapproving mother.
La La Land
Starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, Sebastian and Mia are drawn together by their common desire to do what they love. But as they step into success, they are faced with decisions that begin to fray their love affair and rip apart the dreams they worked so hard to maintain.
The Great Gatsby
The classic Fitzgerald story takes a modern spin when the elusive millionaire, Jay Gatsby, lives a life of illusions and deceits all in for the sake of a tale of impossible love. Who doesn't love a romantic tragedy on date night, right?
If Beale Street Could Talk
I won't lie to you: This film is pretty devastating—which, tbh, is part of the reason you should watch. But it's also just a beautiful love story between two people up against excruciating circumstances. And it's just gorge.
The Photograph
Oh wow, this movie is great, and not just because LaKeith Stanfield and Issa Rae are stunning (separately and together). It's actually about intergenerational love stories, all the more gorgeous for what isn't said as the couples quietly fall for each other. IYKYK.
Emma.
Who knew that old-timey romantic shenanigans could be so hot?? (If you like Pride and Prejudice, stream this right the heck now.) This newer adaptation of the classic Jane Austen film really dials up how horny the characters are for each other. I've said it before, but worth mentioning again: You see Johnny Flynn's butt!!
Mulholland Dr.
This surreal, twisty movie is about an actor coming across a woman with amnesia—a woman who might be on the run from some powerful people. Or is it?? You have to watch, I'm not gonna spoil it for you.
The 40 Year Old Virgin
Of all the Judd Apatow movies you could put on this list, this movie really nails the innocence of feeling, like, wow is this whole romance thing just never going to happen for me? And then it does, and it's amazing—perfect for the date night where you're both falling in love.
The Handmaiden
This very hot erotic thriller is about sex and sadism, but it's also a kind of sweet love story between two women?? It's a super twisty film that'll have you questioning what's true and what an illusion, which is half the fun.
Palm Springs
Groundhog Day + romance = this movie! Two strangers who meet (and hook up, naturally) at a wedding get stuck reliving the same day over and over. They have very different ways of handling the situation, but they also have really off-the-charts chemistry. If you liked About Time, you'll like this.
Long Shot
A journalist (Seth Rogan) realizes his former babysitter Charlotte (Charlize Theron) is now a politician running for president. Fred can be (a bit problematically) crass, but the extremely profesh Charlotte hires him anyways. So, it's kind of a flip-flopped rom-com, which—refreshing!
Sylvie's Love
If you don't absolutely love Tessa Thompson, first of all, why, but second of all, watch this movie, and you will be convinced. Also, this is just a good old-fashioned love story that spans years to follow two people destined to be together.
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