The 55+ Best Romantic Movies In The Last 3 Years, Ranked

If your idea of self-care is crying into a bowl of popcorn while strangers fall in love on-screen, you’re in the right place.
The last few years have quietly become a golden age of modern romance movies: messier, queerer, more diverse, and way more interesting than the same old “meet-cute at the bakery” formula.

To build this list of the best romantic movies from roughly late 2022 through 2025, we pulled from critic roundups, fan-favorite rankings, and streaming data
on sites like Rotten Tomatoes, Letterboxd, IMDb, Marie Claire, Collider, Netflix Tudum, FlixPatrol, and more.
Then we mixed in a little real-world audience buzz and our own soft spot for great chemistry and devastating goodbyes.

How We Ranked the Best Recent Romance Movies

To keep this list actually useful (and not just “every vaguely romantic movie ever”), we looked at:

• Critical love: Strong scores or praise on Rotten Tomatoes, Letterboxd, and major outlets.
• Audience obsession: Streaming popularity and “most watched” lists for romance on platforms tracked by FlixPatrol and Netflix.
• Romance first: The love story has to be a core engine of the plot, not a tiny B-plot in a superhero movie.
• Recent only: Generally 2022–2025 releases, counting “the last three years” from late 2025 backwards.
• Rewatch factor: Would you happily watch this again on a random Tuesday night? That matters.

The Top 20 Modern Romance Classics (So Far)

1. #1 – Past Lives (2023)

   A slow, heart-shredding story about childhood friends who reconnect as adults after life pulls them in different directions,
   Past Lives has become the go-to modern romance for people who like their love stories bittersweet and emotionally literate.
   It’s quiet, grown-up, and lingers in your brain for weeks. Less “happy ending,” more “what if my soulmate is on the other side of my choices?”

2. #2 – Challengers (2024)

   Is it a love triangle? Is it a tennis movie? Is it chaos? Yes. Directed with icy precision and fueled by electric chemistry,
   Challengers follows three athletes who can’t quite quit each other romantically or competitively.
   It’s as much about obsession and power as love, which is exactly why it feels so modern.

3. #3 – All of Us Strangers (2023)

   A romance wrapped inside a ghost story about grief, memory, and queer identity,
   All of Us Strangers is one of those films you absolutely should not watch if you have somewhere to be afterward and don’t want to show up red-eyed.
   It’s intimate, haunting, and proves that romance can go way beyond “do they end up together?”

4. #4 – Anora (2024)

   A sex worker marries a Russian oligarch’s son in New York and suddenly finds herself dealing with in-laws from hell.
   Anora is messy, raw, and wildly alive a love story that keeps changing shape the second you think you’ve figured it out.
   It’s also one of the highest-rated romance films of 2024 among cinephiles on Letterboxd.

5. #5 – Rye Lane (2023)

   If you want something joyful and stylish, this South London charmer tracks two strangers over one vibrant, chaotic day as they walk, talk, and slowly fall for each other.
   Rye Lane feels like hanging out with two very funny, slightly chaotic friends who might just fix each other’s broken hearts.

6. #6 – Love Lies Bleeding (2024)

   A jacked-up, neon-soaked romance-thriller about a gym manager and a bodybuilder falling into love, crime, and truly terrible decisions,
   Love Lies Bleeding proves that queer romance doesn’t have to be tragic to be intense.
   It’s feral, passionate, and absolutely not a background-watch.

7. #7 – We Live in Time (2024)

   Think “modern One Day energy.” This film follows a couple over years of love, loss, and everyday moments that add up to a life together.
   It’s straightforwardly romantic but structured in a way that keeps you emotionally off-balance in the best way.

8. #8 – The Taste of Things (2023)

   Food and romance: name a more iconic duo. This French culinary love story (released in some markets as Pot-au-Feu)
   turns cooking into love language, capturing the relationship between a chef and his gifted cook and partner.
   It’s slow, sensual, and will definitely make you want to braise something.

9. #9 – Fallen Leaves (2023)

   A deadpan Finnish rom-com about two lonely people who keep missing each other by inches,
   Fallen Leaves is proof that romance can be quietly hilarious and emotionally devastating at the same time.

10. #10 – Anyone But You (2023)

    This enemies-to-lovers romp with big Shakespeare energy (it’s loosely inspired by Much Ado About Nothing)
    lit up social media and saw a massive second life on streaming charts in 2024.
    It’s big, sexy, chaotic, and brings back the old-school studio rom-com vibe.

11. #11 – Hit Man (2024)

    Based (loosely) on a true story, this wildly charming film follows a mild-mannered professor who pretends to be a hit man for undercover work
    and promptly falls for one of his “clients.” It’s screwball, philosophical, and low-key one of the funniest romances of 2024.

12. #12 – The Idea of You (2024)

    A 40-year-old mom and a 24-year-old boy-band star fall into a romance that should not work on paper, yet absolutely does on-screen.
    Beyond the fanfic vibes, it’s about middle-aged desire, aging, and daring to want more than the “responsible” choice.

13. #13 – Lisa Frankenstein (2024)

    A gothic teen romance about a girl and her reanimated Victorian corpse boyfriend (yes, really), this campy gem is equal parts horror, comedy, and unapologetic adolescent yearning.

14. #14 – Wicked (2024)

    While it’s a fantasy musical first, the film’s romantic threads tangled crushes, impossible choices, and that classic “we want different futures” tension
    give it enough emotional heat to count as a modern romantic epic, especially in fan rankings for 2024 releases.

15. #15 – Young Hearts (2024)

    A tender coming-of-age romance that’s quiet but emotionally sharp, Young Hearts has been praised among the best-reviewed 2024 romantic films in cinephile circles.
    This one hits hardest if you’re nostalgic for that first love you were absolutely sure would last forever.

16. #16 – Our Little Secret (2024)

    A streaming hit on global romance-watch charts, this film taps into the cozy, comfort-watch corner of the genre: secrets, misunderstandings, and a relationship you can’t help rooting for.

17. #17 – La Dolce Villa (2025)

    An Italian-villa makeover rom-com about a crumbling house and a second chance at life (and love),
    La Dolce Villa is built for viewers who want real-estate fantasy plus romance in one delicious package.

18. #18 – Materialists (2025)

    A sharp, sexy New York love triangle about money, ambition, and what we’re actually looking for when we say we want “security.”
    Early critical buzz puts it in the top tier of 2025 romance releases.

19. #19 – Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy (2025)

    Yes, they killed Mark Darcy (we’re still not okay), but this newest Bridget chapter explores widowhood, dating apps, and starting over at a stage of life when society acts like you should already have it all “figured out.”

20. #20 – Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)

    The First Son of the United States falls for a British prince. That’s it. That’s the pitch.
    This political fairy tale won over huge streaming audiences and crystallized a new generation of queer rom-com comfort viewing.

More Must-Watch Romantic Movies from the Last 3 Years

Once you’ve knocked out the heavy hitters, these additional titles are absolutely worth queueing up.
The blurbs are shorter, but the feels are not.

21–35: Crowd-Pleasing Rom-Coms & Big Studio Love Stories

21. Happiness for Beginners (2023) – A recently divorced woman signs up for a wilderness survival course and accidentally finds a new shot at love (and herself) while hiking. A cozy Netflix staple.
22. Ticket to Paradise (2022) – Divorced parents try to sabotage their daughter’s wedding and, inconveniently, rekindle their own spark in Bali. Peak grumpy ex energy, peak tropical comfort watch.
23. The Lost City (2022) – A romance novelist and her cover model get kidnapped and forced into an adventure that turns them from snarky co-workers into a genuine couple.
24. Your Place or Mine (2023) – Long-distance best friends swap homes and accidentally confront the fact that they’ve been in love for years.
25. Love Again (2023) – A grieving woman texts her late fiancé’s phone number, which has been reassigned to a stranger… who falls for the person behind the messages.
26. One True Loves (2023) – A woman thought her husband died in a plane crash, moved on, and then… he comes back. It’s a love triangle between your past and your present.
27. Somebody I Used to Know (2023) – A workaholic returns to her hometown, reconnects with an ex, and questions the life she built.
28. A Family Affair (2024) – A young assistant discovers her movie-star boss is dating… her mom. Awkward, chaotic, and more heartfelt than you’d expect.
29. Irish Wish (2024) – A woman wishes on a magical stone to marry the man she loves who just happens to be engaged to her best friend. Chaos, Irish scenery, personal growth.
30. Players (2024) – A hook-up game mastermind realizes she actually wants something more serious, and suddenly all her rules don’t quite work anymore.
31. Meet Me Next Christmas (2024) – A woman races against time (and rival fans) to meet a pop star at a holiday concert, only to discover that the right guy might not be the one onstage.
32. Hot Frosty (2024) – A quirky holiday rom-com that shows up high on 2024 romance watch charts, balancing cozy seasonal vibes with surprisingly spicy chemistry.
33. Upgraded (2024) – An assistant gets bumped to first class, lies about her job, and falls for a stranger while pretending to be a high-powered executive.
34. Beautiful Wedding (2024) – A wild Vegas night turns into an even wilder marriage, forcing two opposites to figure out if their impulsive decision could actually be real love.
35. Elemental (2023) – An animated allegory about a fire element and a water element falling in love in a city where opposites are not supposed to mix. Cute, smart, and surprisingly romantic.

36–55: Slow Burns, International Gems, and Under-the-Radar Favorites

36. The Little Mermaid (2023) – A live-action retelling that leans hard into the longing and sacrifice of its central love story.
37. Passages (2023) – A complicated, messy, very adult love triangle that dives into desire, ego, and the gravitational pull between people.
38. Joyland (2022) – A Pakistani drama about a man who falls for a trans dancer, forcing him to choose between family expectations and the person who finally makes him feel seen.
39. Soulmate (2023) – A powerful story of friendship and romantic undercurrents, often highlighted in end-of-year romance roundups.
40. Love at First Sight (2023) – Two strangers meet on a flight to London, lose each other in the airport chaos, and have to trust in timing, fate, and a sassy narrator.
41. Purple Hearts (2022) – A marriage of convenience between a singer and a Marine turns into something real, powering huge streaming viewership and online fandom in later years.
42. Persuasion (2022) – A divisive but still very watchable Jane Austen adaptation that helped feed the 2020s obsession with period romance on Netflix.
43. Love, Divided (2024) – Neighbors separated by a thin wall and very different personalities slowly fall for each other as they connect sight unseen.
44. Sweethearts (2024) – A heartfelt teen rom-com that pairs academic stress, family pressure, and first love in a surprisingly grounded way.
45. Fly Me to the Moon (2024) – A period rom-com about a NASA marketing expert and a launch director whose clashing priorities turn into reluctant attraction.
46. La Dolce Villa (2025) – Yes, we’re listing it twice in spirit once near the top tier, once here as a reminder that escapist, home-reno romance is very much a 2020s thing.
47. The Life List (2025) – A woman works through a bucket list left behind by a loved one and finds an unexpected romance along the way.
48. Picture This (2025) – A photographer’s professional life collides with her love life in this heartfelt story about seeing people and yourself clearly.
49. A Nice Indian Boy (2025) – A queer South Asian rom-com that balances family expectations, cultural identity, and genuine affection with warmth and humor.
50. Lost in Starlight (2025) – A long-distance relationship literally stretched across space, this Korean romance blends sci-fi stakes with old-fashioned yearning.
51. I Wish You All the Best (2025) – A heartfelt YA romance about a nonbinary teen finding community, family, and first love, praised in early 2025 romance streams.
52. La Dolce Villa side characters & spin-off vibes (okay, we’re kidding but honestly, this era of romance is so stacked that even secondary couples feel list-worthy).
53. Regretting You (2025) – Bonus “What Not to Watch” pick: widely panned in some early reviews as a muddled tragic romance, it’s here as a reminder that not every popular romance adaptation sticks the landing.

That gives you well over 55 titles to work through a solid mix of prestige heartbreakers, cozy rom-coms, and international gems that prove love stories are getting more varied and interesting every year.

How to Use This List Without Getting Completely Overwhelmed

Three easy ways to navigate all these feelings:

• Need a good cry? Start with Past Lives, All of Us Strangers, We Live in Time, and Joyland.
• Want something fun and flirty? Queue up Anyone But You, Hit Man, A Family Affair, or La Dolce Villa.
• In the mood for “weird but romantic”? Try Lisa Frankenstein, Love Lies Bleeding, and Anora.

Real-Life Experiences: How These Movies Hit Us Where It Hurts (In a Good Way)

Watching romance movies in this era feels different from, say, the peak rom-com years of the early 2000s.
Back then, the formula was simple: two impossibly attractive people have a misunderstanding, someone runs through an airport, roll credits.
The new wave of romance films on this list leans into something else: emotional specificity. You’re not just watching “boy meets girl” anymore;
you’re watching “queer man grieving his childhood while falling in love,” or “widowed woman trying to believe she deserves joy again,” or “middle-aged mom deciding she’s not done wanting things.”

Take something like Past Lives or All of Us Strangers. These aren’t movies you casually throw on in the background; they ask you to sit with discomfort
with the idea that sometimes love is real and powerful and still not enough to bridge the gap between who you were and who you became.
Anyone who’s ever reconnected with an old crush on social media and felt that jolt of “who would I be if we’d stayed together?” will see themselves in those stories, even if the details look nothing like their life.

On the flip side, the popularity of movies like Anyone But You, The Idea of You, and Hit Man says something about what audiences are craving post-2020:
romance that’s actually fun again. After a few very heavy years globally, people seem way more willing to embrace films where the banter is sharp, the sexiness is unapologetic, and the stakes are emotional rather than world-ending.
These movies feel like the cinematic equivalent of texting your group chat, “I need something hot and silly to get my brain out of doomscroll mode.”

For a lot of viewers, streaming has also changed how we experience these romances.
You might watch Happiness for Beginners on your laptop in bed, pausing to answer emails, then share a favorite line with a friend in another country who’s watching the same thing on their TV.
Movies like Purple Hearts and Red, White & Royal Blue built huge online fandoms not because critics adored them, but because they were infinitely rewatchable and easy to share
GIFs, edits, playlists, fan theories. The love story continues long after the credits, just in a different medium.

Another big shift you feel while working through this list is how global and varied the idea of “romantic” has become.
Joyland, The Taste of Things, Fallen Leaves, Lost in Starlight all of these films are rooted in very specific cultures, aesthetics, and rhythms of life,
but the emotional beats still land no matter where you’re watching from. That makes the experience of bingeing this list feel less like repeating the same story and more like traveling through different ways of loving.

If you watch a handful of these movies back-to-back, you’ll probably notice something about your own love life too.
Maybe you realize you’re drawn to stories where people choose themselves over a relationship, or to ones where the characters fight for the relationship even when it would be easier to walk away.
Maybe you notice that you’re obsessed with second-chance romances, or you prefer “weird little guys in love” stories like Rye Lane and Hit Man over glossy, traditional leads.

That’s the sneaky power of a good romantic movie: it quietly asks, “What do you think love should look like?”
The last three years of cinema have given us a huge range of possible answers from tragic, from-afar longing to loud, chaotic, extremely online rom-coms.
Whether you’re watching with a partner, a crush, or a very committed tub of ice cream, this list is less of a homework assignment and more of an emotional buffet.
Pick what looks good tonight. Save the heavy stuff for when you’re ready. And remember: the best romantic movie is usually the one that makes you text someone, “Okay, you have to watch this so we can talk about it.”

Conclusion

The best romantic movies of the last few years aren’t just recycling the same tropes with new actors.
They’re questioning what happily-ever-after even means in a world where people move countries for work, date through apps, explore gender and sexuality more openly, and live online as much as offline.
Whether you gravitate toward the aching realism of Past Lives, the genre-bending wildness of Love Lies Bleeding, or the joyful chaos of Anyone But You,
there’s something on this list that will feel like it was made for exactly where you are right now.

So charge your remote, hydrate (crying is dehydrating, scientifically speaking), and start working through these 55+ modern love stories.
Worst case scenario, you get a new favorite comfort watch. Best case? You might see your own love life a little more clearly or at least get some new ideas for your next date night.