Still looking for ideas on how to spend Valentine’s Day? We got you covered.
If you’re not in the mood to go out and have a romantic dinner date, why not celebrate at home, sit on the couch, and have a movie night with your loved one?
Today, Brightlife Seniors Alliance will share our top 14 picks for the best romantic movies for older and senior couples that you can watch this Valentine’s Day.
Best Romantic Movies for Seniors this 2023
If you love watching movies, you might have probably noticed that most recent romantic movie releases on Netflix or other movie streaming services are about young love – and the plot of the stories? They’re all the same.
While there are far fewer romantic films that follow the love lives of older characters, there are many classic and award-winning examples that will give you inspiration whether you’re single, married, or looking for new love.
1. Senior Moment
Senior Moment, Giorgio Serafina’s 2021 romantic dramedy, follows retired NASA test pilot Victor, who loses his driver’s license and is forced to rely on public transportation.
Along the way, he meets environmentalist Caroline, and they fall in love. The film follows Victor as he grows as a person and romantically while courting the intriguing Caroline, with William Shatner and Jean Smart as the charming leads and a dynamic supporting cast including Christopher Lloyd and Esai Morales.
Senior Moment emphasizes that it is never too late to find love and that even an old dog can learn new tricks.
2. Ticket to Paradise
In this movie, Julia Roberts and George Clooney play long-fighting exes who can’t be in the same room without screaming at each other in a destination wedding rom-com.
When their only daughter Kaitlyn Dever decides to marry a young Balinese man on the spur of the moment, they travel across the world to his home island to disrupt, not celebrate, the wedding.
As the two A-list charmers come to accept their daughter’s happiness and, perhaps, rediscover that the sun hasn’t completely set on their love connection, emotional tension turns to romantic heat.
3. The Notebook
This is definitely one of the all-time faves of all generations. The Notebook, a romance genre classic and arguably the most beloved Nicholas Sparks adaptation, follows Allie and Noah’s love story from their young adult days to their final moments as an elderly couple, Allie having developed dementia and residing in a nursing home.
Starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams, the majority of the film is spent with the younger version of the couple. However, it is the older Allie and Noah who elicit the most emotional response from the audience when their love story comes to a bittersweet conclusion.
4. Letters to Juliet
Letters to Juliet depicts the phenomenon of letter-writing to Shakespeare’s most famous romantic heroine, following journalist Sophie as she abandons her fiancé on a pre-honeymoon in Italy to search for the elderly Claire’s long-lost love.
The wistful once-couple is reunited in a touching and tender manner by Amanda Seyfried’s Sophie in the 2010 romantic dramedy. Letters to Juliet is unique in that Claire and Lorenzo fell in love and lost each other as young adults, lived their lives, and started families before magically reuniting in old age.
Interestingly, leads Vanessa Redgrave and Franco Nero had a real romance after meeting on the set of Camelot, which adds to the sweetness of their pairing.
5. Our Souls at Night
In this film, Robert Redford and Jane Fonda star as a pair of widows who have lived next door to one another for years with no apparent relationship; however, everything changes when a connection develops between the two.
Lonely, Louis and Addie decide to start spending evenings together to combat their loneliness and form a transactional relationship in the process.
The playful and touching Netflix drama is a unique take on a romance film and a compelling character piece driven by Redford and Fonda’s powerhouse performances.
6. Before Sunrise
Before Sunrise is an interesting, and heartbreaking entry here. This talky 1995 drama from Richard Linklater, 61, pairs writer Jesse (Ethan Hawke, 51) and grad student Celine in the “your regiment leaves at dawn” tradition of urgent romance (Julie Delpy, 52).
They meet on a European train, disembark in Vienna, and spend the next 24 hours falling in love. Will their love last? Check out Before Sunset and Before Midnight to find out.
7. Something’s Gotta Give
In Something’s Gotta Give, Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton deliver one of the most beloved mature romance stories, proving that love can always be found again, or for the first time, after you’ve passed the prime of your youth.
Harry, 63, prefers younger women, but he is surprised to find himself falling in love with Erica, his latest girlfriend’s neurotic mother.
The film has a classic enemies-to-lovers romance in which Harry and Erica go from hating each other to realizing they are soul mates, demonstrating that a successful and lasting love story does not have to be centered on the younger generation.
8. Hampstead
Based on true events, Hampstead is a story of determination and unexpected love, brought to life by romance veterans Diane Keaton and Brendan Gleeson with an unusual meet-cute, as an American widow meets a man living wild on Hampstead Heath and helps him avoid eviction.
Finding love without looking is a common romantic trope that is used effectively here. Two people from completely different worlds come together to fight for a cause and fall in love in the process, making this a great example of light, feel-good cinema in addition to the beautiful shots of the storied London neighborhood.
9. Grumpier Old Men
Laugh, laugh, and love! The hilarious sequel to the comedy classic Grumpy Old Men, Grumpier Old Men, reunites longtime Hollywood icons Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau as ‘frenemies’ John and Max.
In this comedic sequel, the two men band together to save their beloved bait shop from being turned into an Italian restaurant. Their crusade is complicated when Max develops romantic feelings for Maria, the new female owner played by the legendary Sophia Loren.
Grumpier Old Men, a delightful rom-com, uses its star power to create a film full of humor and pleasantry, as Lemon and Matthau’s chemistry shines once more—as does the latter’s budding on-screen romance with the lovely Loren.
10. Mamma Mia!
It’s no surprise that Mamma Mia! – the iconic movie set on a beautiful Greek island and features the greatest hits of the Swedish pop band ABBA is extremely popular in the romantic genre.
Sophie invites three men to her wedding in order to find out who her father is, after discovering that they all had affairs with her mother around the time of her conception. Trapped on an island with her old flames, Donna must confront them as well as 1970s music, with her quest for love ultimately overshadowing her daughter’s (and her wedding).
Donna’s romantic relationships receive the most attention in the film, with some of the most memorable musical moments taking place between her and one of her former loves.
11. It’s Complicated
Here’s another best from Streep. In the 2009 romantic comedy It’s Complicated, Meryl Streep plays bakery owner and single mother Jane, who begins a secret affair with her ex-husband.
The film is emotionally sophisticated and dynamic, starring Alec Baldwin as the aforementioned ex-husband of ten years and notorious funnyman Steve Martin as the charming architect neighbor Jane also finds herself attracted to.
The film’s talented leads contribute to it being a fun and engaging rom-com that shows the power and appeal of romance and attraction no matter what stage of life a person is in. Though it is a story about courtship in middle age rather than old age, It’s Complicated demonstrates that love can happen at any age.
12. Say Anything
We can’t say anything more – this is another old but gold movie you should watch. Lloyd (John Cusack), an eternal optimist, tries to win the heart of Diane (Ione Skye), an unattainable high-school beauty and straight-A student, in this charming, critically acclaimed tale of first love.
Everyone is surprised when she returns the sentiment. But Diane’s overbearing, divorced father (John Mahoney) is not on board, and it will take more than love to triumph.
13. When Harry Met Sally
This is another classic film we love. During a car ride from Chicago to New York in 1977, college graduates Harry Burns (Billy Crystal) and Sally Albright (Meg Ryan) argue about whether men and women can ever truly be strictly platonic friends.
Ten years later, Harry and Sally re-emerge in a bookstore, this time with their respective best friends, Jess (Bruno Kirby) and Marie (Carrie Fisher), to try to stay friends without sex becoming an issue.
14. As Good as It Gets
Last, but definitely not our least pick! Melvin Udall, a misanthropic New York City best-selling romance novelist, suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder; he only uses soap bars once, dislikes touching pets, avoids stepping on sidewalk cracks while walking through the city, and eats breakfast at the same table in the same restaurant.
He develops feelings for his waitress, Carol Connelly, the only server at the restaurant who can put up with his obnoxious behavior. Clearly, love is patient and kind, and it conquers all – even bad OCD attacks.
Have a Brightlife with a Romantic Movie Night this Valentine’s Day!
So that ends our list for the best Valentine’s Day movies you can watch! Clearly, these old love stories frequently convey the message that you don’t have to be young to find love, try something new, and make the most of your romantic life!
So whether you’re single, married, or in a new relationship, these films, along with the time you spend watching them together, could be the perfect complement to your flowers, love letters, and wine glasses! Cheers, and have an amazing Valentine’s Day!