Written by: Diana Matthews

The following is a list of some the most cherished duos that have graced the silver screen. It’s easy enough to cast two leading actors in a romance movie, but the fire created by the some of the most influential players holds a special place in our minds and our hearts. From Clark Gable to Ryan Gosling and Vivien Leigh to Rachel McAdams, we love to watch the magical chemistry that Hollywood creates.

Hollywood casting directors work hard in conjunction with the actors they cast in order to create an idealized romance that we all love to buy into. It’s a fantasy that perhaps one day, we too can be one half of a dynamic duo. With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, let’s explore the guilty pleasure of Hollywood’s hot onscreen couples.

Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling

This steamy Canadian couple first made waves in the timeless and instant classic The Notebook, an adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks love story. Their onscreen chemistry was undeniable and the movie had all of the ingredients that make the perfect love story (kissing in the rain, still in old age together, and following your heart).

The Notebook, along with the two talented leads, had audiences swooning and gave men a reason to give the romance genre another chance. It didn’t hurt that Gosling and McAdams were a real-life couple, too. The combination of Gosling’s boyish charm and McAdams’ classic beauty gave women and men eye candy and heart candy.These two young actors easy hold their own against Bogart, Gable, Bergman, and Leigh, a distinction that actors work for their whole career to achieve.

Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey

Dirty dancing away from the arms of daddy and into the arms of a sexy and mysterious dance teacher, this 80s classic was a great coming of age story. Dirty Dancing embodies the fantasy of summer romance and a meaningful first love. Combine these aspects with a great soundtrack and you have one of the most compelling and heartwarming couples in romance history.

The sincerity and dedication of Swayze’s teaching balances well with Grey’s determination and self-discovery. The movie gave women something to look at with Swayze’s bad boy ambiance and his well sculpted body, while giving them a sense that challenges and risks are essential to falling in love, and discovering purpose in life. Although the movie was made over thirty years ago, it’s as timeless as the dance moves and summer romance. “Nobody puts baby in the corner”.

Ali McGraw and Ryan O’Neil

Love Story has it all: a famous soundtrack and a famous line. The handsome Harvard boy from the right side of the tracks and the intellectual beauty from the wrong side of the tracks coincide in star-crossed love ending in death. “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.” Need I say more?

Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder

In Edward Scissorhands, forbidden love is the name of the game and Depp and Ryder are the players in a bizarre and ambiguous landscape filled with struggle and teenage angst. The story is heartbreaking on several different levels but when it all boils down, this kooky Tim Burton film is a love story for the eclectic and arty kid in all of us.

With the beautiful iconography in every frame and the meaningful and deep development of the story and characters, Edward Scissorhands is a story of purpose, intent, and above all else, love. Although there are no steamy sex scenes or passionate kissing in the rain, the sensitive and pure love between Edward and Kim is beautifully portrayed. A combination of an insightful director and talented actors makes this movie a favourite for anyone interested in the basics of love.

Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal

The rustic wilderness and mountainous landscape made the perfect setting for this story of unconditional love and loyalty. Ledger and Gyllenhaal are breathtaking as a couple who are forced to subdue their feelings and experience the constraints of conformity and social pressure. This movie was ahead of its time in terms of content and cinematography, honoring the picture high honors by film critics and lovers alike. It’s a beautiful and stunning depiction of forbidden romance that displays the endurance of love.

Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman

1942 was the year of Casablanca, a movie that won Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Screenplay at the Academy Awards. Bogart and Bergman have amazing chemistry. Their exchanges and the film's dialogue contain some of the best known lines of cinema history. Whether you have or haven’t seen the movie or even heard of the two romantic leads, “Here’s lookin’ at you, kid” and “We’ll always have Paris” have transcended generations of film lovers and students.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet

A list of the top ten onscreen couples would be nothing without this charismatic couple. Titanic was a visually stunning movie and a feat of cinematic genius. The movie took viewers on an emotional rollercoaster filled with laughter, anger, frustration, and above all else, love. DiCaprio and Winslet were at the beginning of this career, much like the leads out of The Notebook, and the two enjoyed the spoils of fame instantly upon completion of the film.

Titanic held the title of Highest Grossing Movie Ever at a whopping $600 million, only to lose the title to this year’s visual treat Avatar, another movie by the same director. Although both actors have remained prominent in Hollywood and have graced the silver screen many times and in many different roles since Titanic, I think that they were always been seen as Rose and Jack, the couple that swept audiences away.

Hugh Grant, Renee Zellweger, and Colin Firth

Although threesomes are a fantasy of many men and women, this trio defines the term “three’s a crowd.” In the hilarious and feel-good romantic comedy, the three leading actors have audiences on the floor with their clever and quick dialogue. The combination of ever-so-charming Grant and the underdog favourite Firth split audiences down the middle for who are unconventional heroine should end up with.

The movie stays true to real life as Bridget, as played by Zellweger, experiences low self-esteem, frustration family drama, and endless lies coming from both men in her life. But the plot is lightened up with fantastic comedic acting, hilarious situations, and hope that Bridget will finally find “the one”. The writers, directors, and Zellweger depicted a character in Bridget that was easily to relate to, creating identification between the audience and the movie which allowed for the perfect romantic comedy. Although this onscreen relationship is unconventional, it provided more than enough humor and passion to earn itself a place on this list.

Vivenne Leigh and Clark Gable

This classic couple is the epitome of onscreen chemistry. Vivienne Leigh as Scarlett O’Hara gets a run for her money when faced up against Rhett Butler as played by Clark Gable in the 1939 epic Gone with the Wind. The movie takes place during the American civil war, a time when money was all-important and the nation was divided. Scarlett and Rhett have a problematic love affair and through her own selfishness and stubborn outlook on her relationship with Rhett, Scarlett eventually loses the man she has fallen in love with.

Gone with the Wind was years ahead of its time, and for 1939, the relationship between the main couple was risky and modern. Vivienne Leigh and Clark Gable are the reigning king and queen of Hollywood romance and will forever symbolize the grace and class of old Hollywood.

Michael Cera and Ellen Page

Juno was not only a box office hit and an award winning success, but there was a certain charm and beauty to this eclectic story about a teenage pregnancy. The movie took critics and filmgoers by surprise when a 16-year old girl named Juno, as played by Page, stole the hearts of audiences and made us all burst into laughter. Her quick humor and fearless presence made Juno an instant hit amongst men and women. Juno’s boyfriend, and father of her baby, Bleeker, as played by Cera, is a little less confident than his girlfriend, but holds strong where it counts, as he continuously supports Juno through her trying and emotional circumstance.

The movie also features Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman as the adoptive parents of Juno’s unborn child, but the true stars of this movie are the offbeat and unconventional couple of Juno and Bleeker. Much like Edward Scissorhands, Michael Cera and Ellen Page gave eccentric voice and different spin on the conventional love story, earning them a distinct role in the romance genre. In 2007, Juno was the cheese to every filmlover’s macaroni.

The best way to celebrate Valentine’s Day is to snuggle up close to your sweetheart and enjoy one (or more!) of these ten fantastic movies. I encourage viewers to try some of the older movies I have listed such as Gone with the Wind, Love Story, and Casablanca. I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Written by :

dmatt

 

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written by Kindah, February 14, 2010

I just watched "Edward Scissorhands" the other day and have to agree it is such a romantic couple! The commentary by Tim Burton says that the premise of the film was about someone who could never "touch". I thought that was so tragic and such a beautifully melancholy subject for a love story.

I also saw "It Happened One Night" with Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable and thought the two of them had amazing chemistry, but the film is nowhere as well known as Gone With The Wind.

Also, love the Firth-Renee-Grant love triangle! It is as much fun watching the boys fight as it is to see Renee fall in love with either of them!

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