The Mushiest, Most Romantic Movies Ever

Dirty Dancing is like two hours of foreplay, with the added bonus of full-on "do anything for you" young love. This movie gets bonus points for being socially conscious, but it's the unexpected and undeniable attraction between Baby and Johnny that brings you back again and again.

OK, the guy learns he has the power to go back in time and the first and only thing he thinks to use it for is his number one goal, "the big one": love. And thus one of the most charming contemporary love stories ever told begins. About Time is so British, so lovely, so optimistic, and the soundtrack alone will make you cry.

Sure, Christmas just happened, but there's never a wrong time to revisit Love, Actually, perhaps cinema's most efficient and effective conveyor belt of swelling romantic climaxes.

Buy extra tissues, oh my god. This perfectly '70s movie about two co-eds in love, despite one's devastating illness, will make you cry ugly tears.

A lot of teen movies from the eighties had heart, but none were as unabashedly romantic as Say Anything. The infamous boom box scene isn't even the most emotionally affecting moment in the movie, and it definitely makes you feel a lot of things.

He learns so much from her. Their bond is so pure. His gaze is so piercing. Hers, so wise. If only they had more time together. You'll definitely be tearing up for this one.

A classic I-hate-you-I-love-you story, all about that intense buildup to the romantic release. Many versions exist, but I go for the smoldering chemistry between Matthew Mcfadyen and Keira Knightley in the 2005 film.

Is there anything more mushy and romantic that watching America's favorite political love story blossom in this movie about Barack and Michelle Obama's first date?

Peak Hugh Grant, peak Julia Roberts. This movie has a hugely romantic heart, but it also makes its characters work for their love, throwing plenty in their way to try to complicate their lives.

This film has an air of coldness to it, in part because of its 1950s setting, but that just makes the warmth between co-stars Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett all the more powerful. Their characters' love cannot be denied, no matter how hard society may try.

Leo and Kate and the steamiest window. There's a reason that lovesick little boy's stepdad in Love, Actually puts on Titanic for them to watch. You know what happens, you know it will break your heart, but you can't help but fall head over heels for this doomed love. (As a child I chose to only watch the first tape in the two-tape VHS box, because it had all the sexy scenes and I never had to watch Leo die.)

This one never climbed into the cultural pantheon of iconic romance movies, but trust me, it is beyond effective at bringing the feels. Plus Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess are actually a really, really good romantic combination. So much emotion in those eyes.

This movie will destroy you. It is fantastically made in every way and the story it tells, of two lovers in pre-WWII England forced apart by a terrible lie, is brutal in its dark beauty and sadness.

You get to watch the natural chemistry blossom between these two "just friends" for almost two decades of their lives. There's laughter and also heartbreak, and watching them figure out they love each other is too exciting to look away.

Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. I don't need to say much more than that.

Casablanca will crush you, but it's so good at telling the story of its two fearless star-crossed lovers (Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman) that you'll let it.

All the swoons for underrated Fiennes brother Joseph. He's a dreamy, roguish William Shakespeare and Gwyneth Paltrow is a passionate free-willed woman deeply in love with poetry, specifically Shakespeare's. The two act on their incredible physical chemistry as they face the challenge of their differing backgrounds.

The ultimate romance pairing of all time in many folks' minds, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan make for a classic, picture perfect last dash for love.

This iconic love story was even shouted out in 'Sleepless in Seattle', that's how romantic it is.

A complex and beautifully made film, Brokeback Mountain showcases a lifelong romance that has no equal. "I can't quit you" will never not give you goosebumps.

Historical epic though it may be, the most epic part about this movie may well be the knees-weakening way Rhett Butler looks at Scarlett O'Hara.

A very dreamy Ethan Hawke and a very flawless Julie Delphy spent the whole movie walking around together, talking, and falling utterly in love.

This contemporary teen romance drama will make your heart swell, but it will also make you sob your eyes out, so prepare.

A mourning widow receives a series of notes that her husband wrote before his death, which leads her on an incredible journey. Always say yes to a sensual and romantic Gerard Butler.

The most emotional musical film of all time? Watching Ewan McGregor belt out declarations of love and passion in a lush cabaret setting will set your heart aflame.

And pottery class was never the same again.

Also a Christmas movie, The Holiday functions spectacularly all year round thanks to the warm breezy L.A. setting of half the movie and the pure goodness and love among all the main characters. Two love stories in one.

Swooningly seductive, full of crackling chemistry between the two leads and the most bittersweet ending ever. Not to mention the world's best original soundtrack.

A young and dashing Richard Gere dons navy whites and laments that he's "got nowhere else to go!" in this classic and wonderfully mushy melodrama.

Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood practically invented chemistry in this utterly classic romance.

Let's all be grateful that these 31 mushy, romantic movies exist in our lives.