The first decade of 21st century wasn't exactly great for the romantic comedies fans (comparing to the 90s), but it brought us some gems worth watching over and over again. Here are in my opinion the 5 best romantic comedies which made us laugh and sigh from 2000 until 2009, in chronological order.
Bridget Jones's Diary (2001)
Director: Sharon Maguire.
Chubby, chain-smoking singleton Bridget (Renée Zellweger) starts flirting with her womanizer boss Daniel (Hugh Grant) while her parents are trying to set her up with stiff divorced lawyer Mark (Colin Firth). Based on Helen Fielding's bestselling novel, this is one of the funniest on-screen romances, that gets better with each viewing and can be enjoyed both my female and male audience. Not only has it a witty screenplay, but also a superb cast, led by Renée Zellweger (Mrs. Potter), Colin Firth (The King's Speech) and Hugh Grant (Music and Lyrics) as the trio of lovable heroine, 'man in reindeer sweater' and slimy boss you'll love to hate.
Amélie (2001)
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Parisian waitress Amélie (Audrey Tautou) decides to change the lives of the people she knows for better. However, when she meets Nino (Mathieu Kassovitz), a lonely video store clerk, she's too shy to approach him. It stars the adorable Audrey Tautou (Coco Before Chanel) in the leading role. Set in the beautiful Parisian area of Montmartre, this charming and stylized romantic comedy is an ode to Paris and love. Also, interesting screenplay written by movie's director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (A Very Long Engagement) makes Amélie'one of the most original movie romances of the decade.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Director: Michael Gondry
Withdrawn Joel (Jim Carrey) finds out that his ex-girlfriend Clementine (Kate Winslet) went through experimental procedure to erase memories of their relationship and decides to have the same procedure done to himself. Popular comedian Jim Carrey (Yes Man) gives the performance of his career in this unusual romantic comedy that deals with significance of relationships' memories even if they aren't always pleasant. Although they are playing opposites-attract characters, chemistry between Jim Carrey with Kate Winslet (The Reader) is nothing less than perfect.
WALL-E (2008)
Director: Andrew Stanton
In 2700, the only inhabitant of the planet Earth, beside a cockroach, is robot WALL-E (voice of Ben Burtt), whose job is to collect and compact trash. Suddenly, WALL-E's life is interrupted by presence of modern robot EVE (voice of Elissa Knight), who arrived from the spaceship. This Disney/Pixar humorous animated romance, directed and written by Andrew Stanton (Finding Nemo) may have nice ecological message, but the central focus is on growing affection between WALL-E and EVE. Despite being made of metal, the two of them make a great couple, showing that true love knows no boundaries.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
Director: Nicholas Stoller
Composer Peter (Jason Segel) sets on Hawai holidays in order to forget about his break-up with TV actress Sarah (Kristen Bell), only to discover she is staying at the very same hotel with her new boyfriend, British rock-star Aldous (Russell Brand). When it comes to the funniest romantic comedies of the decade it's impossible to leave out this one. Producer/screenwriter Judd Appatow (Knocked Up) and gifted comedians Jason Segel (How I Met Your Mother) and Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek) provide this film with many hilarious moments that will make you laugh even if you've had to deal with the break-up situation like the main character.
Additional great romantic comedies:
- Shallow Hal (2001)
- Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
- Hitch (2005)
- Music and Lyrics (2007)
- 500 Days of Summer (2009)
Interested in top romantic movies couples of all time? Read here.
Tired of romantic films? Read about best animated movies of 2000s.
Hijacinta Švabelj - Hijacinta Svabelj was born in Croatia, where she graduated journalism from the University of Zagreb. She's been working in print media ...
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