Six New Romcoms To Warm Up Your February
If you’ve been missing the big budget romcoms of the early 2000s, we have a Valentine’s gift for you. Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Lopez and Julia Roberts all have new films available to rent or stream just in time for February 14. If small budget movies are more your speed, try an indie passion project from actors (and real-life boos) Alison Brie and Dave Franco. Love the classics? We’ve got two fresh and funny Jane Austen adaptations you may have missed that are packed with wit… and a lot of half-naked men.
Your Place or Mine
Reese returns to her romcom movie roots in this best friends-to-lovers romp also starring Ashton Kutcher. Debbie (Witherspoon) is a single mom who takes little time for herself. Her playboy best friend Peter (Kutcher) offers a one-week life swap—his NY bachelor pad for her LA family home. When Debbie meets someone, Peter realizes Debbie may be what he needs—but does she need him in return?
Out February 10 on Netflix.
Shotgun Wedding
Bless JLo for keeping the romcom fires lit. Here she stars as bride Darcy to Josh Duhamel’s groom Tom. The couple are just trying to have a luxurious destination wedding when pirates take their guests hostage. (Yes, pirates.) Plus Jennifer Coolidge is there, too—which alone makes this movie worth a watch. The couple fight for their guests and each other. Will they say 'I do' in the end?
Out now on Prime. Related: After My Partner Broke Up With Me Out Of Nowhere, I Wrote A Book About It
Ticket to Paradise
The charm offensive of Julia Roberts and George Clooney star as Georgia and David, long-divorced parents who fly to Bali to convince their daughter she shouldn’t marry a man she just met. They form a truce and team up to sabotage the wedding. Hijinks ensue. Will they rekindle an old spark or actually become friends? A surprisingly sweet undercurrent powers this comedy from last fall.
Available to rent on Apple TV, Prime, Google Play and YouTube.
Somebody I Used to Know
Real-life couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco collaborated fully on this film—they wrote the screenplay, she stars and he directed. Ally (Brie) runs into her ex-boyfriend Sean (Jay Ellis) and ends up at his engagement party. Ally, struggling with her workaholic ways and longing for something more, is drawn to both Sean and Cassidy, Sean's free-spirited fiancée (Kiersey Clemons). An emotional and funny romance with an indie streak.
Out February 10 on Prime.
Persuasion
In this first of two wildly different Jane Austen adaptations, Dakota Johnson stars as “spinster” Anne Elliot in Persuasion. Anne turns down sailor Frederick’s (Cosmo Jarvis) proposal only to suffer from FOMO when he returns years later as a dashing captain. Modern dialogue and Johnson’s cheeky performance update a classic.
Out now on Netflix.
Fire Island
Writer and comedian Joel Kim Booster wrote and stars in this gay take on Pride and Prejudice, also starring Saturday Night Live standout Bowen Yang. Noah (Booster) and his friends vacation on Fire Island every year. When they discover that their “house mother” Erin (Margaret Cho) is selling her beach house, they have one last bash—but who will fall in love?
Out now on Disney+. Related: What It’s Really Like To Date In Midlife
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Alicia Cox Thomson has worked for 20 years as an editor, writer and content producer for some of Canada's biggest lifestyle brands. Today, she writes about culture, business and the arts for Chatelaine, the Globe and Mail and more. She also speaks about books as a columnist for CBC Radio's The Next Chapter.
