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Are you the kind of person who hates it when you see couples holding hands or kissing in public? Do you think there’s no such thing as soul mates? Do you grind your teeth every time you see a trailer for a new movie starring Katherine Heigl or Jennifer Aniston about a pretty gal who just can’t get her love life together? Join the club. Luckily, there are some movies for people like us, and as much as we’d hate to admit it, they are technically romantic comedies. But, you know, the good ones. If you’re looking for one to watch tonight—in the privacy of your own home and without anyone finding out about it—here are a list of ten essential titles.
They Came Together
David Wain reunites many of the cast members from his cult classic Wet Hot American Summer to skewer the romantic comedy genre, with Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler playing a couple falling (sometimes literally) in love with each other.
They Came Together is available for rental on Amazon Instant Video, Google Play, and Vudu.
Chasing Amy
If you can look past Ben Affleck’s goatee and Joey Lauren Adams’ baby-voiced lesbian, you get a romantic comedy for the comic book set that’s as clever, dirty, and arguably writer/director Kevin Smith’s best film.
Chasing Amy is available to stream on Amazon Instant Video and Netflix.
Rushmore
Wes Anderson’s dark comedy follows the ambitious Max Fischer who pines for an elementary teacher at his prep school, only to find that his much older friend (played by the superb Bill Murray) also has her in his sights.
Rushmore is available for rental on Amazon Instant Video, Google Play, and Vudu.
Secretary
If you want your romantic films with a heavy dose of Fifty Shades of Grey, check out this brooding and sexy comedy starring the always creepy James Spader and Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Secretary is available for rental on Amazon Instant Video, Google Play, and Vudu.
Broadcast News
James L. Brooks’ follow-up to Terms of Endearment is like a romantic version of Network, with Holly Hunter caught in a love triangle between two local news anchors.
Broadcast News is available to stream on Amazon Instant Video and Netflix.
Drinking Buddies
Joe Swanberg’s Chicago-set and improvised film follows two couples who are as confused about their own love lives as much as they love drinking craft beer.
Drinking Buddies is available to stream on Netflix and for rental on Amazon Instant Video.
Annie Hall
Possibly the best and most influential anti-romantic comedy, Woody Allen’s award-winning classic is a comedy about what happens when a relationship ends rather than begins.
Annie Hall is available to stream on Amazon Instant Video and Netflix.
The 40-Year-Old Virgin
Gross, crude, awkward, and sometimes mean—The 40-Year-Old Virgin brings together some of Judd Apatow’s favorite stars for a cringe-worthy romantic comedy about growing up long after adolescence.
The 40-Year-Old Virgin is available for rental on Amazon Instant Video and Google Play.
Submarine
Richard Ayoade’s directorial debut is an absurd coming-of-age tale about first love and first heartbreak, all seen through the quirky eye of its protagonist, Oliver Tate.
Submarine is available to stream on Netflix and for rental on Amazon Instant Video.
My Best Friend’s Wedding
Hear me out on this one: on paper, it looks like a pretty standard, glossy, frilly, Julia Roberts-starring romantic comedy. But in reality, it subverts the genre by allowing the protagonist to slowly turn into a villain.
My Best Friend’s Wedding is available for rental on Amazon Instant Video, Google Play, andVudu.
