The 22 best romantic period movies of all time

When it comes to period piece movies, there are a few patterns: Jane Austen, old time-y relationship problems, Emma Thompson, Merchant Ivory productions, or Keira Knightley dramatically storming away from someone. As Helena Bonham Carter once said, "Period movies are my destiny. I should get a few ribs taken out, because I'll be in a corset for the rest of my life."

And the thing is, some combination of these common tropes is probably why you're a fan of romantic period movies in the first place. But the genre exists outside of those themes (and England), too — whether it takes place in 1960s Wyoming or 19th-century China.

So, yes, there's plenty of Austen (Pride & Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, and Emma) and some repeat regular actors on this list, but there's also some more history to explore.

Check out EW's picks for 22 of the best romantic period movies that are sure to make you swoon.

<i>Titanic</i> (1997)

Why not start with a movie that is huge in every way? Titanic is famous for James Cameron's special effects that sent hundreds of passengers realistically hurling from the side of a giant ship, but it's mainly remembered for the timeless love story between soulful vagabond Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and repressed socialite Rose (Kate Winslet). After all, it was their whirlwind romance that forever changed how we look at fogged up windows. And floating doors. And drawing.

<i>Pride & Prejudice</i> (2005)

Before any Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle stans get up in arms, remember: This is a movies-only list. So, 2005's Pride & Prejudice is the clear favorite to represent Jane Austen's classic 1813 novel. This adaptation from Joe Wright stars Keira Knightley as the ever-defiant Elizabeth Bennet and Matthew MacFayden as the moody Mr. Darcy. Period drama nerds will be interested to know that Wright set the movie in the late-18th century instead of the early-19th century in part because of his hatred of empire waist dresses.

<i>Sense and Sensibility</i> (1995)

It wouldn't be a period movies list without Emma Thompson, and this won't be the last you see of her here. Thompson wrote and starred in Sense and Sensibility, which was directed by Ang Lee (it won't be the last you see of him, either). The film tells the story of the Dashwood sisters, Elinor (Thompson) and Marianne (Kate Winslet), as they deal with 19th-century-style relationship issues involving Colonel Brandon (Alan Rickman), Edward Ferrars (Hugh Grant), and John Willoughby (Greg Wise). Many credit this essential dowry drama for launching Austen adaptations into the mainstream, and we're all forever in debt.

<i>A Room With a View</i> (1985)

Here's another period piece theme: Merchant Ivory movies. The first one on our list directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail Merchant is A Room With a View. The 1985 film stars Helena Bonham Carter as the young Lucy Honeychurch who visits Florence with her older cousin (Maggie Smith) and meets an array of fellow guests at their hotel. Of course, this includes an intriguing romantic interest played by Julian Sands, plus plenty of kissing in open fields.

<i>Portrait of a Lady on Fire</i> (2019)

In Céline Sciamma's Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Noémie Merlant plays an artist who is sent to paint a wedding portrait for a woman (Adèle Haenel) who does not want to enter an arranged marriage. The eerie, sensual French film was described by EW's Leah Greenblatt as "an 18th-century lesbian love story set almost entirely within the windswept parameters of a remote seaside villa, with reams of meditative dialogue and almost no male roles to speak of." Consider us sold.

<i>Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon</i> (2000)

Period pieces aren't all corsets and European history. Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a wuxia movie and a love story between skilled warriors Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) and Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat). Bai entrusts his machete-wielding lover to transport his treasured sword, Green Destiny, but when she's robbed of the precious artifact, their relationship is pushed to the limit in this action-packed adventure. As Lee put it himself, "Sense and Sensibility, but with kick-ass."

<i>Belle</i> (2013)

Amma Asante's Belle is based on the life of Dido Elizabeth Belle, a multiracial woman who was brought up in British aristocracy in the 1700s. While not much is known about the real Belle's life, the film (starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw) explores the prejudice she faces in high society, her romance with law student John Davinier (Sam Reid), and her ties to the abolitionist cause. "Belle is like a Jane Austen novel spiked with an extra shot of social conscience," EW's Chris Nashawaty writes. "...[It] subtly skewers the absurd rules and hypocrisies of class."

<i>The Notebook</i> (2004)

Moving things forward a couple of centuries, there's the romance to end all romances: The Notebook. Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams (who, by the way, hated each other at first) star as couple Noah and Allie, who begin a tumultuous relationship in the 1940s before the two are separated by World War II, though that's far from the end of their love story. The older versions of their characters are played to a full-on sobbing effect by James Garner and Gena Rowlands.

<i>My Fair Lady</i> (1964)

Based on the George Bernard Shaw play Pygmalion, Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison star in the classic musical My Fair Lady as Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins. You know the story: She's a woman living in poverty and selling flowers, he's a wealthy professor who bets he can make her into a high society lady. Romance ensues, obviously.

<i>Atonement</i> (2007)

Another Keira Knightly–Joe Wright collab, Atonement stars Knightley as a wealthy woman, Cecilia, who falls in love with Robbie (James McAvoy), a worker on her family's property. But their romance is thwarted thanks to the accusations brought forth by her younger sister, Briony (a 13-year-old Saoirse Ronan). Beginning in the 1930s, the movie shows Briony's decades-long attempt to atone for her grievances, with older versions of her character played by Romola Garai and Vanessa Redgrave.

<i>Little Women</i> (1994 or 2019)

1994 or 2019 — your choice. Both adaptations of Louisa May Alcott's novel, Little Women, feature touching meditations on sisterhood, as well as the complicated 19th-century romance between writer Jo March and boy-next-door Laurie. You just have to decide if you're more of a Winona Ryder and Christian Bale person or a Saoirse Ronan and Timothée Chalamet fan.

<i>Emma</i> (1996 or 2020)

What goes around comes around...even if it first came around in 1815. Jane Austen's novel Emma was adapted in 1996 with Gwyneth Paltrow in the title role, and again in 2020 starring Anya Taylor-Joy. In both cases, the story is about a wealthy young woman who plays matchmaker for the people in her life while facing romantic woes of her own. The book also inspired Clueless, which is more of a time capsule of 1995 than a period piece.

<i>Romeo and Juliet</i> (1968)

It would simply feel wrong not to include the most famous romantic tale of all time. The Franco Zeffirelli version of Romeo and Juliet is a classic — maybe you watched it in school at some point? — and stars Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey in the title roles. (Honorable mention to 1996's Romeo + Juliet, which doesn't quite qualify as a period piece despite its Shakespearean dialogue.)

<i>Howards End</i> (1992)

It all comes together with this one as period piece regulars Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter star in Howards End from Merchant Ivory Productions. The actresses play sisters Margaret and Helen Schlegel, who become involved in the lives of the wealthy Wilcox family as they navigate relationships and the new ownership of a country estate called — you guessed it — Howards End.

<i>Carol</i> (2015)

Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett star in Carol, which follows Therese (Mara), a young department store worker who begins seeing the titular older woman (Blanchett) in the early-1950s. Their affair is complicated by their other relationships with men, Carol's custody battle for her daughter, and the intolerance of their time period.

<i>The English Patient</i> (1996)

Though Seinfeld's Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) didn't like it, the WWII epic The English Patient was a huge hit when it came out in 1996. The film by Anthony Minghella tells the story of a man (Ralph Fiennes) who has been badly burned and cannot remember his identity. As his memories trickle in, he recounts details of a past love affair to his nurse, Hana (Juliette Binoche), through a series of tender flashbacks.

<i>Loving</i> (2016)

Loving tells the story of Mildred and Richard Loving who, following two arrests, won the 1967 landmark Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia, which invalidated laws prohibiting interracial marriage. While the film does focus on the lawsuit, their defiant love is at the center of the narrative, thanks in part to the stellar performances by Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton.

<i>Shakespeare in Love</i> (1998)

Sure, there is some controversy surrounding Shakespeare in Love's enthusiastic Oscars campaign, but that doesn't mean it's not an acclaimed romantic period movie. (It just maybe wouldn't have won quite so many awards...) Either way, the film stars Joseph Fiennes as William Shakespeare in a (fictional) affair with a merchant's daughter, Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow). It's set during the time he wrote Romeo and Juliet, and indulges in more than a few literary parallels.

<i>Brokeback Mountain</i> (2005)

Set between 1963 and 1983, Brokeback Mountain is the most modern period romance listed here, but it certainly still counts. The film stars Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal as two Wyoming cowboys who fall in love on a ranching trip before going their separate ways and marrying women (Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway). But their love affair is far from over.

<i>The Sound of Music</i> (1965)

There's so much going on in The Sound of Music — catchy songs, rambunctious children, day-saving nuns, and a World War — that the romantic aspect moves down the list of things that come to mind. But the love between a strict naval officer (Christopher Plummer) and his carefree governess (Julie Andrews) is at the center of the story. What more is there to say? It's only been regularly airing on TV for the past several decades...

Related content:

• James Cameron's dialogue in Titanic is actually great

• Watch the first trailer for Little Women — and get new details from Greta Gerwig

• Jake Gyllenhaal says Heath Ledger 'never joked' about Brokeback Mountain: 'This is about love'