Top 20 ’80s Romantic Comedy Movies
Films and romance go hand in hand. Whether watching at a cineplex, at the local drive-in or on the couch at home, dinner and a movie has served as the go-to date for generations of couples.
Romance in the audience is often heightened by romance on the screen, and perhaps no other era gave us a greater collection of romantic comedies than the ‘80s.
Teen coming-of-age stories were a staple of the decade, with John Hughes pictures leading the charge. With movies like Sixteen Candles and Pretty in Pink, Hughes opened the door for many more high school-based romantic comedies, including Say Anything and Can’t Buy Me Love.
Of course, it’s not just angsty teens who deal with matters of the heart. Moonstruck, Roxanne and Look Who’s Talking each gave a distinctively adult spin on the romantic comedy genre, while When Harry Met Sally ... proved to be one of the most popular films of the decade.
Some romantic comedies opted to take their stories to new and distinct places - like the fantasy world of The Princess Bride or the minor-league baseball life portrayed in Bull Durham.
Others, such as Crocodile Dundee or the Eddie Murphy classic Coming to America, opted to tell fish-out-of-water tales within the guise of the love-story structure. There were even some movies that chose to stretch the boundaries of imagination: Splash and Mannequin had their leading men fall in love with a mermaid and life-size doll, respectively.
So grab your popcorn and snuggle a loved one close, because we’ve rounded up the Top 20 ‘80s Romantic Comedy Movies below.