Romance is synonymous with Valentine’s Day, and a great way to celebrate the day has long been to appreciate the love stories that fill our hearts from the big screen. Chocolate, flowers, and big gestures of love were never bigger than in the decade of neon tights and side ponytails. This Valentine’s Day, it’s time to indulge in a little bit of love from the 80s!
1. Sixteen Candles, 1984
Written and directed by John Hughes
The nerdiest kid in school has her underpants, she’s stuck looking over her grandparent’s foreign exchange student, and her entire family has forgotten her sixteenth birthday. This movie is the definition of awkward and embarrassing moments of high school, while still offering hope that the cool popular guy in school may just notice you.
2. Pretty In Pink, 1986
Written and directed by John Hughes
A rich preppy falls for the outcast girl whose best friend is madly yet not so secretly in love with her. In spite of meddling friends and societal rules, they try and kindle a relationship with one another.
3. About Last Night…, 1986
Written by Tim Kazurinsky. Directed by Edward Zwick
It’s hard enough putting in an effort in your own relationship, but when your friends criticize your every decision it gets even harder. Love can be simple or it can be hard, and this movie follows a simple love story that is made complicated by outside variables.
4. Can’t Buy Me Love, 1987
Written by Michael Swerdick. Directed by Steve Rash
A nerd pays the girl of his dreams to make him popular and pretend to be his girlfriend. Letting popularity go to his head, he doesn’t realize what’s right in front of him, as his ultimate crush falls in love with him.
5. Dirty Dancing, 1987
Written by Eleanor Bergstein. Directed by Emile Ardolino
Spending a summer with your wholesome clean-cut family seems like all the fun you need until you meet a man that takes you out of your comfort zone and introduces you to the real world. Dancing never seemed so bad and exciting until this movie.
6. The Princess Bride, 1987
Written William Goldman. Directed by Rob Reiner
This movie shows that true love can conquer giant rats, con artists, evil princes, and a witch doctor. It can also inspire revenge and literally bring back someone from the “nearly” dead, giving hope to anyone that true love can really conquer all.
7. Overboard, 1987
Written by Leslie Dixon. Directed by Garry Marshall
After a spoiled wealthy woman falls overboard and loses her memory, a poor contractor, pretending to be her husband in order to seek revenge on her for treating him poorly, claims her as his wife. The scam escalates as the two look past each other’s exteriors and fall in love.
8. Mystic Pizza, 1988
Written by Amy Holden Jones. Directed by Donald Petrie
Three best friends endure the trials of love in very different relationships while working at an infamous pizza parlor. They attempt to grow up and make something of themselves in this small town in Maine, while also figuring out what they want.
9. Say Anything, 1989
Written and directed by Cameron Crowe
The dopey guy finally gets his crush, the valedictorian in school, to notice him, right before she goes off to college. They spend a summer loving and getting to know each other, hoping to help one another conquer their fears.
10. When Harry Met Sally, 1989
Written by Nora Ephron. Directed by Rob Reiner
A man and a woman take a road trip together, only to end up hating each other at the end of it. However, it seems they can never escape one another, and run into each other years and years later. Over ten years, they become best friends and question whether or not men and women can really be just friends.
The eighties were a time of trendy styles, neon, and love stories that made love look like something conceivable outside of fairytales. Movies filled with cheesiness and grand gestures dominated, making any romance seem obtainable, and til totoday remain a sure-fire way to lift our spirits!
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