17 Black Rom-Coms You Need To See

I could go on and on about how Darius Lovehall and Nina Mosley's love affair impacted my life, but I'll keep it short and sweet. Love Jones showed me that safe and loving relationships can exist for Black folks, too.

The odds seemed to be stacked against Kenya McQueen (Sanaa Lathan) in her quest to find a "good brotha." But learning to "let go and let flow" worked in her favor, and the successful woman who once thought she'd die alone found love in unfamiliar territory.

I can't get enough of fairy tale endings, and Brown Sugar certainly delivers. We spend our time testing the ropes with Tinder and going on blind dates, when sometimes love could be staring you right in the face.

Love is safe and warm, but it can also be a dangerous game if you take advantage of it. And thanks to ladies' man Darnell Wright (Martin Lawrence), we get a front-row seat into just how savage it can get.

Just like Brown Sugar, Love & Basketball sets love right next-door for a pair of childhood friends, and it doesn't get much cuter or fairy tale-esque than that.

There's a sweet side to every scorned woman, if you dig deep enough. And, if you're brave enough to give love a try after heartbreak, you'll be in for quite a treat. Deliver Us From Eva showed this.

Age ain't nothin' but a number, and this Terry McMillan adaptation brought this idea to life. The beautiful love story was based on the author's life, and didn't quite have the IRL fairy tale ending we were all hoping for. But the film and book ended on an inspirational note.

Speaking of McMillan adaptations, Waiting to Exhale is a toast to all of those women looking to start over. As hard as new beginnings may be, Savannah (Whitney Houston), Bernadine (Angela Bassett), Robin (Lela Rochon), and Gloria (Loretta Devine) fearlessly gave it a try together.

They say that you don't really get to know someone until you see them under pressure. And for Woo (Jada Pinkett Smith) and Tim (Tommy Davidson), their first date proved this to be true.

Some will say that this 2001 flick falls in the anti-romance movie category, but it taught me a valuable lesson about the importance of "saying what you mean, and meaning what you say."

What happens in the dark will always come to the light — especially when you have a large group of loud-mouth friends.

Sporting a noncommittal air starts to stink after a while, even for the biggest of players. Marcus (Eddie Murphy) learns this the hard way, but ends up with a sweet deal after being true to himself.

If I learned anything from this film, it's how to spot a player from a mile away. The signs are always there.

Never write off a high school sweetheart as being juvenile or just "puppy love." The love of your life could strike at any age.

Losing love abruptly turned Justice (Janet Jackson) cold... That was until she crossed paths with a loud-mouth postal worker named Lucky (Tupac Shakur). Needless to say, your forever love could be lurking in the most uncanny places. You just have to be open to it.

"Never judge a book by its cover," "opposites attract," and "hard work pays off" are just a few of the lessons bundled up in this 1991 rom-com.

Sometimes your "type" isn't always what's best for you. And pro-baller Scott McKnight (Common) learns this through a bit of trial and error.

LaKeith Stanfield's eyes were made to gaze swoonily in a romantic film, and The Photograph offers plenty of opportunities as he falls for Mae (Issa Rae) while researching her mother's history.

Monty (Idris Elba) is a mechanic raising his three daughters solo. After his ex-wife wins full custody of the girls in court, he hires a lawyer named Julia (Gabrielle Union) to win them back. Unsurprisingly, the two fall in love on the way.