Cozying up for a sweet romantic comedy on February 14 is a Valentine’s Day staple and this month conveniently sees the addition of several of the genre’s most acclaimed and adored titles on one of the best streaming services around, Hulu.
Classic rom-coms like “You’ve Got Mail” and “Crazy Stupid Love” are fan favorites for a reason: They feature charming big-screen pairings (Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, et al.), heartwarming and hilarious storylines, and, comfortingly, a happily-ever-after for all involved.
As is its monthly ritual, Hulu is shaking up its film library by welcoming a wide range of movies to the platform in February. Among those additions are four of our favorite romantic comedies, whether you’re in the mood for a bit of late-’80s nostalgia (with an iconic soundtrack to boot) or an early-aughts darling packed with cultural charm.
If you’d rather something more dramatic and weepily beautiful for V-Day, the streamer will also offer romantic dramas like “The Notebook,” “The Fault in Our Stars” and “William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet.” And if you’re after something else entirely, check out the current top 10 movies on Hulu to see what else is on offer.
‘Say Anything’ (1989)
You know the scene: John Cusack’s lovelorn slacker Lloyd Dobbler trying to win over the heart of ambitious class valedictorian Diane Court (Ione Skye) by playing Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes” from a boombox aimed at her bedroom window. It’s one of the most recognizable and enduring moments in cinema history and undoubtedly inspired many lover-boy copycats over the decades.
One of the best ’80s movies, “Say Anything” currently holds a stellar 98% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critical consensus praising the title as “equally funny and heartfelt” and establishing star John Cusack as “an icon for left-of-center types everywhere.” The film is the feature directorial debut of Cameron Crowe (“Jerry Maguire”, “Almost Famous”), who The New Yorker’s Pauline Kael commended for being “wired into teen-age flakes and the sloppy, exuberant confusion of high-school dating … the comedy helps to dry out the romanticism — to give it lightness and a trace of enchantment.”
Watch “Say Anything” on Hulu
‘You’ve Got Mail’ (1998)
They’re arguably the greatest pairing in rom-com history: Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan collaborated not once, not twice, but thrice on romantic comedies throughout the 1990s, from “Joe Versus the Volcano” to “Sleepless in Seattle” to, yes, “You’ve Got Mail.”
The latter beloved ’90s movie sees the actors playing rival bookstores owners — she, the proprietor of a family-owned neighborhood bookseller, and he, the magnate behind a major bookstore chain — who, unbeknownst to them, fall for each other sight unseen as anonymous e-mail pen pals. The Nora Ephron classic has a 70% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics applauding the “great chemistry between the leads” that makes the movie such “a warm and charming delight.” (An ensemble cast of Parker Posey, Steve Zahn, Greg Kinnear and Jean Stapleton certainly doesn’t hurt, either!)
Watch “You’ve Got Mail” on Hulu
‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding’ (2002)
Based on writer-star Nia Vardalos’ one-woman play of the same name, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” initially was a sleeper hit when it debuted in theaters back in spring 2002, but the indie rom-com slowly but surely became a box-office juggernaut, ultimately grossing over $368.7 million worldwide and cementing its status as the highest-grossing rom-com of all time.
The charmingly relatable yet culturally specific story (Vardalos’ script earned her an Oscar nomination) certainly helped that word-of-mouth success: Vardalos plays Toula, an unmarried thirty-year-old whose traditional Greek family is worried about her future prospects. When she gets a job at her aunt’s travel agency, however, she encounters Ian Miller (John Corbett), a sweet and handsome but decidedly not Greek teacher. Their courtship results in a hilarious culture clash — don’t tell lamb-loving Aunt Voula that Ian is a vegetarian! — as the couple moves forward with their titular nuptials.
Watch “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” on Hulu
‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’ (2011)
A more recent entry into the rom-com canon, 2011’s “Crazy, Stupid, Love” features an all-star cast — Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and Julianne Moore, among others — in a series of interconnected love stories centered around Carell’s Cal Weaver, a recently separated, middle-aged man who gets pointers on how to dress better and woo women from Gosling’s cool Casanova, Jacob Palmer. (One of Ryan Gosling’s best movies, the comedic part earned the Canadian star a Golden Globe nomination.)
“It never lives up to the first part of its title, but Crazy, Stupid, Love‘s unabashed sweetness — and its terrifically talented cast — more than make up for its flaws,” reads its critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes, where the film boasts a 79% Certified Fresh rating. That sweetness moved critics like Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times, who wrote that the film “conjures up the bittersweet magic of first loves, lasting loves, lost loves and all the loves in between.”
Watch “Crazy, Stupid, Love” on Hulu