10 Offbeat Romantic Comedies To Watch On Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is a time to eat candy and chocolate, and if someone is single, they should definitely buy themselves some flowers. Regardless of relationship status, it’s the perfect time of year to get some junk food ready and sit down to watch a couple of romantic comedies. But instead of settling for movies that tell the same stories over and over again, there are so many other options.

Whether looking for a rom-com about a time loop or a story featuring high school characters, there are many romantic comedies that break the mold of what people expect from this genre.

10 The Lovebirds (2020)

When a couple has decided to break up, they typically have a heart-wrenching, awkward conversation that may or may not turn into a massive argument. They don’t usually witness a murder and then spend a wild night trying to escape taking the blame for a crime that they didn’t commit.

In the quirky romantic comedy The Lovebirds, Leilani (Issa Rae) and Jibran (Kumail Nanjiani) assume that they’re just going to a dinner party. Their lives change forever when they see a man kill a cyclist and they end up running all over town. Both characters take turns making smart choices as they try to make it through this crazy time. The Lovebirds has smart dialogue, fun action scenes, and a relatable couple who have a bond that feels honest.

9 Someone Great (2019)

The Netflix movie Someone Great is a romantic comedy that deals with the aftermath of a bad break-up and it’s also a sweet love letter to long-term friendships.

Jenny (Gina Rodriguez) never thought that her relationship would end, but after getting dumped, she realizes that she has to rethink her future. It’s nice to see a romantic comedy about a character picking themselves up and learning to move on. In many movies, the single protagonist dissolves into tears and eats junk food and watches movies, like in the Bridget Jones franchise. In Someone Great, Jenny is going to be just fine and she has her best friends to help her through.

8 Social Animals (2018)

It’s not every day that a wife tells her husband to look for another partner, but in the 2018 romantic comedy Social Animals, Jane (Aya Cash) lets Paul (Josh Radnor) know that he should consider sleeping with someone else.

Paul meets Zoe (Noël Wells) and they start a romance, although it’s a strange and quirky one. This isn’t the way that most relationships begin, and there’s a lot of chaos and conflict on their path to happiness. It’s definitely an offbeat romantic comedy that feels fresh and stands out from the crowd.

7 Liberal Arts (2012)

Many movies and TV shows feature fake colleges and the 2012 romantic comedy Liberal Arts features an idyllic campus that is a reminder of so many beautiful schools.

Zibby (Elizabeth Olsen) is wise beyond her years, so it makes sense that she falls for Jesse (Josh Radnor) when he visits her college campus. This movie is unique in a few ways, mostly because Jesse stops his relationship with Zibby before things go too far. He realizes that he was trying to recapture his youth, which is definitely gone now, and that he can’t ruin her life like this. Both characters are grateful for meeting one another, as they realize that they need to act their age and find a partner who is better suited to them.

6 Man Up (2015)

Most romantic comedies feature characters meeting each other at a party, at work, or on a blind date. In the case of the 2015 movie Man Up, Nancy (Lake Bell) isn’t the woman that Jack (Simon Pegg) is supposed to meet, but she fakes it so she can spend some time talking to him and getting to know him.

It’s always fun hearing stories of how couples met each other and fell in love, and the characters are unconventional enough here to keep viewers interested.

5 The First Time (2012)

In most romantic comedies about teenagers, the main characters are earnest and ready to fall in love, with the exception of a few cynical characters who are fun and entertaining to watch.

The 2012 movie The First Time has a few romantic comedy elements that audiences see all the time. These include characters meeting at a party, spending a romantic evening together talking about everything under the sun, and a big fight that separates them until they realize their connection is real. Aubrey (Britt Robinson) and Dave (Dylan O’Brien) meet and like each other, but they’re both caught up in other romances. They spend a lot of time talking about having sex, which is a unique feature of this story, and they get upset when their first time is awkward. The movie feels so fresh and relatable.

4 Warm Bodies (2013)

There have been some great movies made about zombie characters but they don’t tend to be part of the romantic comedy genre.

Warm Bodies changed that with the love story between R (Nicholas Hoult) and Julie (Teresa Palmer). Julie might be terrified of him at first, which is of course logical, but she slowly starts to see that he’s a lot more loveable than she originally thought. The movie has it all, from action scenes to romance, and the ending is smart and satisfying, which is what everyone looks for in a good romantic comedy.

3 The Big Sick (2017)

Based on Kumail Nanjiani’s real life experience with his wife Emily, The Big Sick finds Kumail and Emily (Zoe Kazan) meeting and falling in love right before she falls into a coma. This beloved movie has too many hilarious quotes to count as the characters have an intelligent way of looking at the world around them.

While Kumail could decide that the situation is too much for him, since he didn’t get to know Emily that well, he stays by her side at the hospital, bonding with her parents and realizing that he wants to spend his whole life with her. Their love story is wonderful as it feels real and it doesn’t escalate too quickly. They take the time that they need to get back together and it all makes sense.

2 Friends With Kids (2011)

In a perfect world, everyone in a friend group is at the same life stage and has kids at the same time. That would definitely make life easier as typically, friendships have to adapt to this big change.

The smart movie Friends With Kids sees Julie (Jennifer Westfeldt) and Jason (Adam Scott) watching their best friends Missy (Kristen Wiig) and Ben (Jon Hamm) and Alex (Chris O’Dowd) and Leslie (Maya Rudolph) start families. Jason and Julie have obvious chemistry but it takes them the whole movie to figure out that they should be together. The movie feels offbeat and quirky as it admits that relationships do change over time and that nothing is perfect.

1 Isn’t It Romantic? (2019)

Isn’t It Romantic promises to make fun of rom-com cliches as Rebel Wilson’s character Natalie wakes up in her own romantic comedy movie.

The movie works for people who don’t usually watch this genre, as it’s honest about the things that are wrong with these stories. It definitely has enough juicy romance for those who love these movies, though. It’s a great addition to a crop of movies that can often feel too similar to each other.

About The Author

Aya Tsintziras
(1742 Articles Published)

Aya Tsintziras is a freelance writer who writes about pop culture and TV. She has a Political Science degree from the University of Toronto and a Masters of Journalism from Ryerson University. She loves coffee, reading, working out, and watching TV. She lives in Toronto with her husband.

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