The following article is a guest post, courtesy of Alina Polishuk

When watching any movie involving romance, it’s easy to scoff into your popcorn and say something along the lines of, “Puh-lease. That relationship is so unrealistic!”
While this may be true of most fantasy inducing scenes and happy-ending tales of love, some on-screen romances that seem absurd at first glance actually prove themselves to be relatable upon some… “deeper analysis.”

Young Love

Ah yes, your eyes first met across the desks of Mrs. Jefferson’s 4th grade classroom. By recess you had decided you would hold hands, and by lunch you were boyfriend and girlfriend. Suzy and Sam’s relationship in Moonrise Kingdom might be a little bit more complex than your first romantic encounter, but their charming naivety and steadfast dedication to each other is certainly reminiscent of your adorable puppy love.

Unrequited Love

“Boy meets girl. Boy falls in love. Girl does not.” So goes the tale of unrequited love: the relationship that will simply never be because feelings are simply not mutual. No modern account of love mirrors this sad situation more perfectly than 500 Days of Summer, a sweet flick that looks like a rom-com but is actually a horror story.

The Love that was Always There

A list involving romantic movies wouldn’t really be complete without the Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan classic, When Harry Met Sally. You know that girl that you always viewed as just a friend? The girl that you could talk to about your exes, and watch Game of Thrones with, without it getting weird during the R-rated scenes? Well, maybe one day, you guys just looked at each other and realized that your long-lasting friendship should be more than just that.

Passionate Love

You and this past partner were polar opposites and maybe even despised each other… Until you realized that opposites attract. No movie encapsulates this highly emotional strand of love better than the Woody Allen classic, Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Two-thirds of a threesome, the temperaments of artists Maria Elena and Juan Antonio go together like water and oil, but amidst the turmoil lies a magnetic kind of passion. While this is perhaps not the longest-lasting relationship, chances are all of the “feels” you had for it’s duration it took up more than a few pages in your diary.

Friends with Benefits Love

Ah yes, the friends with benefits kind of love. You were always been super chill with this person, be it hanging out and watching movies together or getting beer drunk with your friend group down at O’Malleys.  Until one night you had a pint too many and ended up in bed together. Instead of making it awkward, you two decided to roll with it. This person is fun, unattached, and also kinda cute. And that is why it’s love.

Long Distance Love

This one is hard, and many people would rather sacrifice a relationship than go through a long distance romance. But to those of you who have chosen to test love’s international boundaries, you can probably relate to the heart-wrenching trials that quirky Jacob and adorable Anna have to endure in the indie-flick, Like Crazy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBCTEeEv1gc

Digital Love

Maybe you met this person online, or maybe you’re just too shy to talk to her in person. But regardless, your romance takes place mostly through the Facebook, Snapchat, or text. It’s hard for this relationship to feel sustainable, when the object of your affection is far or maybe unattainable in real life. While we are a far cry from dating our computers, Her, which follows Theodore as he falls madly in love with his quick-witted personal operating system, Samantha, reminds us that love doesn’t always have to be tangible.

Forbidden Love

There are probably hundreds of movies out there about forbidden love (from Twilight, to Avatar, to Pocahontas), but there is no tale more classic than Romeo+Juliet.  Baz Luhrmann’s colorful 1996 Shakespeare adaptation starring youngsters Leo DiCaprio and Claire Danes will tear your heart out, and make you reminisce about the time you dated a boy from the rival high school. Relatively comparable stories, right?

Unexpected Love

This guy was supposed to be your rebound, supposed to be your filler date, or supposed to be… the subject of an article you were writing? Regardless of what the original situation was, you fell for this person when you really didn’t expect it. In the chick-flick classic, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, Andie and Ben each had an agenda when beginning the relationship, but their eventual feeling for each other are, of course, a pleasant surprise.

True Love

We’ve all been through the relationship ringer at some point or other. Perhaps it’s infidelity, perhaps it’s an identity crisis, or perhaps it’s just realizing your partner isn’t actually “the one.” But this true love came in and swept you off your feet, right when you decided you had given up on relationships forever. This person loves you “just as you are” (*swoon*), the way Mark Darcy loves Bridget in the relatable classic, Bridget Jones’ Diary.

Enjoy this post? Then you’ll love reading about the 9 stages of falling in love!
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