Best Romance Movies of 2004

1.

The Notebook

6.5

7.9/10

An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's. From a faded notebook, the old man's words bring to life the story about a couple who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately reunited, seven years later, after they have taken different paths.

2.

Before Sunset

6.5

8.1/10

Nine years ago two strangers met by chance and spent a night in Vienna that ended before sunrise. They are about to meet for the first time since. Now they have one afternoon to find out if they belong together.

3.

Closer

5.8

7.3/10

A witty, romantic, and very dangerous love story about chance meetings, instant attractions, and casual betrayals. Two couples disintegrate when they begin destructive adulterous affairs with each other.

4.

50 First Dates

5.7

6.8/10

Henry is a player skilled at seducing women. But when this veterinarian meets Lucy, a girl with a quirky problem when it comes to total recall, he realizes it's possible to fall in love all over again…and again, and again. That's because the delightful Lucy has no short-term memory, so Henry must woo her day after day until he finally sweeps her off her feet.

5.

The Phantom of the Opera

5.4

7.3/10

Deformed since birth, a bitter man known only as the Phantom lives in the sewers underneath the Paris Opera House. He falls in love with the obscure chorus singer Christine, and privately tutors her while terrorizing the rest of the opera house and demanding Christine be given lead roles. Things get worse when Christine meets back up with her childhood acquaintance Raoul and the two fall in love

6.

Garden State

5.4

7.5/10

Andrew returns to his hometown for the funeral of his mother, a journey that reconnects him with past friends. The trip coincides with his decision to stop taking his powerful antidepressants. A chance meeting with Sam - a girl also suffering from various maladies - opens up the possibility of rekindling emotional attachments, confronting his psychologist father, and perhaps beginning a new life.

7.

The Girl Next Door

5.3

6.7/10

Exceptionally ambitious high schooler Matthew has aspirations for a career in politics when he falls in love with his gorgeous 19-year-old neighbor, Danielle. But Matthew's bright future is jeopardized when he finds Danielle was once a porn star. As Danielle's past catches up with her, Matthew's love for her forces him to re-evaluate his goals.

8.

Meet the Fockers

5.3

6.3/10

Hard-to-crack ex-CIA man, Jack Byrnes and his wife, Dina head for the warmer climes of Florida to meet son-in-law-to-be, Greg Focker's parents. Unlike their happily matched offspring, the future in-laws find themselves in a situation of opposites that definitely do not attract.

9.

Sideways

5.3

7.5/10

Two middle-aged men embark on a spiritual journey through Californian wine country. One is an unpublished novelist suffering from depression, and the other is only days away from walking down the aisle.

10.

13 Going on 30

5.2

6.2/10

After total humiliation at her thirteenth birthday party, Jenna Rink wants to just hide until she's thirty. With a little magic, her wish is granted, but it turns out that being thirty isn't as always as awesome as she thought it would be!

11.

Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason

5.1

6.0/10

Bridget Jones is becoming uncomfortable in her relationship with Mark Darcy. Apart from discovering that he's a conservative voter, she has to deal with a new boss, a strange contractor and the worst vacation of her life.

12.

Wicker Park

5.0

7.0/10

Matthew, a young advertising executive in Chicago, puts his life and a business trip to China on hold when he thinks he sees Lisa, the love of his life who left him without a word two years earlier, walking out of a restaurant one day.

13.

The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement

5.0

5.8/10

Mia Thermopolis is now a college graduate and on her way to Genovia to take up her duties as princess. Her best friend Lilly also joins her for the summer. Mia continues her 'princess lessons'- riding horses side-saddle, archery, and other royal. But her complicated life is turned upside down once again when she not only learns that she is to take the crown as queen earlier than expected...

14.

If Only

5.0

7.2/10

After his impetuous musician girlfriend, Samantha, dies in an accident shortly after they had a fight (and nearly broke up), a grief-stricken British businessman, Ian Wyndham, living in London gets a chance to relive the day all over again, in the hope of changing the events that led up to her getting killed.

15.

The Merchant of Venice

5.0

7.1/10

Venice, 1596. Bassanio begs his friend Antonio, a prosperous merchant, to lend him a large sum of money so that he can woo Portia, a very wealthy heiress; but Antonio has invested his fortune abroad, so they turn to Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, and ask him for a loan.

17.

Along Came Polly

4.9

5.9/10

Reuben Feffer is a guy who's spent his entire life playing it safe. Polly Prince is irresistible as a free-spirit who lives for the thrill of the moment. When these two comically mismatched souls collide, Reuben's world is turned upside down, as he makes an uproarious attempt to change his life from middle-of-the-road to totally-out-there.

18.

Alexander

4.8

5.6/10

Alexander, the King of Macedonia, leads his legions against the giant Persian Empire. After defeating the Persians, he leads his army across the then known world, venturing farther than any westerner had ever gone, all the way to India.

19.

Melinda and Melinda

4.7

6.5/10

While dining out with friends, Sy suggests the difficulty of separating comedy from tragedy. To illustrate his point, he tells his guests two parallel stories about Melinda ; both versions have the same basic elements, but one take on her state of affairs leans toward levity, while the other is full of anguish. Each story involves Melinda coping with a recent divorce through substance abuse while beginning a romantic relationship with a close friend's husband.

20.

Shall We Dance?

4.6

6.1/10

Upon first sight of a beautiful instructor, a bored and overworked estate lawyer signs up for ballroom dancing lessons.