By OnMilwaukee Staff Writers   Published Feb 12, 2007 at 5:13 AM

After dinner, why not snuggle up close to your loved one on the couch with a romantic film in the DVD player? Here are some of our favorite romantic movies.

  • "Amelie," starring Audrey Tautou, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Set in Paris (do we need to say more?), this charming movie is full of longing and affection and playful wooing. Amelie works in a cafe and plays matchmaker for everyone but herself. She finds herself enamoured by a man who has albums of discarded photos from photo booths, but she doesn't know anything else about him.

  • "An Affair of Love," is a French film starring Nathalie Baye and Sergi Lopez as a couple who meet when she creates a personal ad looking to satisfy her deepest desires and fantasies. They agree to keep things casual and commitment free, not even exchanging names, but eventually fall in love. It's honest and moving.

  • "Bride & Prejudice," starring Aishwarya Rai and Martin Henderson, is a Bollywood take on the Jane Austen classic "Pride and Prejudice." It's a mix of all different film styles, American, English and Indian. Will Mr. Darcy and Lalita (aka Elizabeth) get together? Well, after a few song and dance routines, it's always possible.

  • "Casablanca" may be the most romantic movie of all time, and you can't go wrong with it on Valentine's Day. Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman have serious chemistry. It's not a classic for nothing.

  • "City of Angels" is romance Hollywood style, which means big movie stars (Nicholas Cage and Meg Ryan) and excessive sentimentality. But this movie still gets to you. The performances are good, Gabriel Yared's score is perfect and there is some spectacular photography.

  • "Ever After," starring Drew Barrymore and Dougray Scott, is a Cinderella-esque story complete withthe beautiful girl (Barrymore as Danielle) evil stepmother and sisters who torture her, a godparent to help her out and a prince to fall in love with. It's the story that all other romantic stories base themselves.

  • "Moulin Rouge" starring Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor. This is a story of forbidden love with a secret love song. A courtesan and a writer fall madly in love, but destiny also plays a part in what will happen. A courtesan's job is to convince her charges that she is in love with them and this writer is trying to write about love. Their two worlds cannot mix without problems and secrets. Amazing songs, too.

  • "Sabrina" the Audrey Hepburn version. Chauffeur's daughter, Sabrina, has a crush on one of the employer's sons, David (William Holden) a rich playboy. This little love affair could hurt business and so the eldest son, Linus (Humphrey Bogart), steps in to stop anything from happening. However, in the process he falls in love with Sabrina. There's also a version starring Harrison Ford in Bogart's role.
  • "Say Anything" stars John Cusack and Ione Skye, and is written and directed by Cameron Crowe. Anyone who has seen "Jerry Maguire" knows Crowe can write good characters and make a good movie. He has yet to top his first effort, though, which is the story of a nobody who attempts to romance a girl way out of his league. Can't miss with this one, and Cusack is at his best.

  • "Shakespeare in Love" stars Gwyneth Paltrow and Joseph Fiennes. It's nice idea to think that William Shakespeare actually had a love life that he drew stories ideas from. This movie plays that idea out. Fiennes as Shakespeare finds love in Viola and creates a play inspired by their love affair, which turns out to be "Romeo and Juliet."

  • "The English Patient" stars Ralph Fiennes and Kristin Scott-Thomas, and is written and directed by Anthony Minghella. It's long, but the rewards are many in this heart-breaking story of a man who falls in love with a married woman, only to end up horrifically burned in a plane crash. This is an epic love story that deserved to win Best Picture in 1997.

  • "The End of the Affair," features Ralph Fiennes again, this time co-starring with Julianne Moore. They star as an author and his married lover, respectively, living in World War II London. It's a tragic but beautifully made love story. The camerawork by Roger Pratt and the music by Michael Nyman are especially impressive. If this doesn't spark the romance in you, nothing will.

  • "The Last of the Mohicans," starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Madeleine Stowe, directed by Michael Mann ("Ali"). Mann is the best director alive; his visuals can't be matched and he also writes extremely tight scripts. This movie will please anyone. It has action, drama, and at its heart, a touching romance. Add to that beautiful camerawork by Dante Spinotti and one of the best and most invigorating scores ever composed by Randy Edelman and Trevor Jones. A classic that should be considered a must-see.

  • "The Notebook," starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams. The movie love story spawned a real life relationship between stars. Allie and Noah have totally fallen for one another, but Allie's wealthy family disapproves of Noah's lower status. Allie moves away, but they both promise to write. After not hearing from one another for years, they meet again, but Allie is engaged. However, their love is still alive. Allie needs to make a choice.

  • "The Princess Bride" is a contemporary classic. Unlike most of the movies on this list, it has an upbeat and heartwarming conclusion. It stars Cary Elwes and Robin Wright Penn.

  • "When a Man Loves a Woman," is a touching triumph of the testiment of love starring Andy Garcia and Meg Ryan. What separates this title from other studio romances is the thoughtful and perceptive script by Ron Bass and Al Franken. This movie is about real people and the struggle to make a marriage work. It is not always nice and pretty, but then life isn't. Ryan has never been better, and Garcia shows why he is an underappreciated actor.

  • "You've Got Mail," starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. The two actors are back together after "Sleepless in Seattle" and this time their characters meet online and begin an Internet relationship. In real life, the two know each other and strongly dislike one another. The Internet couple decides to meet in person and things don't go as smoothly as they would have hoped.