Romance before 1970: the best movies
24 romance films before 1970, ranked by audience rating. The best of the decade, and it still holds up tonight. Updated 25 September 2026
Modern Times leads with 8.3 out of 10, ahead of City Lights (8.2). Ratings range from 7.8 to 8.3. The oldest, The General, goes back to 1926.
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Modern Times
A bumbling tramp desires to build a home with a young woman, yet is thwarted time and time again by his lack of experience and habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time...
City Lights
A tramp falls in love with a beautiful blind flower girl. His on-and-off friendship with a wealthy man allows him to be the girl's benefactor and suitor.
The Apartment
Bud Baxter is a minor clerk in a huge New York insurance company, until he discovers a quick way to climb the corporate ladder. He lends out his apartment to the executives as a place to take their mistresses. Although he often has to deal with the aftermath of their visits, one night he's left with a major problem to solve.
Casablanca
In Casablanca, Morocco in December 1941, a cynical American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.
Vertigo
A retired San Francisco detective suffering from acrophobia investigates the strange activities of an old friend's wife, all the while becoming dangerously obsessed with her.
Singin' in the Rain
In 1927 Hollywood, a silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his paranoid screen partner struggle to make the difficult transition to talking pictures.
Some Like It Hot
In Prohibition-era Chicago, musicians Joe and Jerry witness a mob hit, and flee the state in an all-female band disguised as Josephine and Daphne, but further complications set in.
The Shop Around the Corner
Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand one another, without realising that they are falling in love through the post as each other's anonymous pen pal.
Children of Paradise
In a chaotic 19th-century Paris teeming with aristocrats, thieves, psychics, and courtesans, theater mime Baptiste is in love with the mysterious actress Garance. But Garance, in turn, is loved by three other men: pretentious actor Frederick, conniving thief Lacenaire, and Count Edouard of Montray.
Rocco and His Brothers
When a impoverished widow’s family moves to the big city, two of her five sons become romantic rivals with deadly results.
Toto, Peppino, and the Hussy
Antonio, Peppino and Lucia are three brothers who live in the country near Naples. Lucia's son, Gianni, goes to Naples to study medicine, but there he knows a ballet dancer. They fall in love and, when she goes to Milan, Gianni follows her. Informed of this and afraid that their nephew will stop studying, the three Caponi brothers leave for Milan to persuade Gianni to come back and continue studying and abandon the "Malafemmina" (bad girl).
The Red Shoes
A fledgling ballerina falls in love with a brilliant composer, but the jealous head of the ballet company plots to drive them apart.
Ballad of a Soldier
During World War II, earnest young Russian soldier Alyosha Skvortsov is rewarded with a short leave of absence for performing a heroic deed on the battlefield. Feeling homesick, he decides to visit his mother. Due to his kindhearted nature, however, Alyosha is repeatedly sidetracked by his efforts to help those he encounters, including a lovely girl named Shura. In his tour of a country devastated by war, he struggles to keep hope alive.
La Notte
A day in the life of an unfaithful married couple and their steadily deteriorating relationship in Milan.
The Circus
Charlie, a wandering tramp, becomes a circus handyman - soon the star of the show - and falls in love with the circus owner's stepdaughter.
The Cranes Are Flying
Veronika and Boris come together in Moscow shortly before World War II. Walking along the river, they watch cranes fly overhead, and promise to rendezvous before Boris leaves to fight. Boris misses the meeting and is off to the front lines, while Veronika waits patiently, sending letters faithfully. After her house is bombed, Veronika moves in with Boris' family, into the company of a cousin with his own intentions.
The General
During America’s Civil War, Union spies steal engineer Johnny Gray's beloved locomotive, 'The General'—with Johnnie's lady love aboard an attached boxcar—and he single-handedly must do all in his power to both get The General back and to rescue Annabelle.
Gone with the Wind
The spoiled daughter of a Georgia plantation owner conducts a tumultuous romance with a cynical profiteer during the American Civil War and Reconstruction Era.
Limelight
A fading music hall comedian tries to help a despondent ballet dancer learn to walk and to again feel confident about life.
Roman Holiday
Overwhelmed by her suffocating schedule, touring European princess Ann takes off for a night while in Rome. When a sedative she took from her doctor kicks in, however, she falls asleep on a park bench and is found by an American reporter, Joe Bradley, who takes her back to his apartment for safety. At work the next morning, Joe finds out Ann's regal identity and bets his editor he can get exclusive interview with her, but romance soon gets in the way.
Rebecca
Story of a young woman who marries a fascinating widower only to find out that she must live in the shadow of his former wife, Rebecca, who died mysteriously several years earlier. The young wife must come to grips with the terrible secret of her handsome, cold husband, Max De Winter. She must also deal with the jealous, obsessed Mrs. Danvers, the housekeeper, who will not accept her as the mistress of the house.
La Jetée
A man confronts his past during an experiment that attempts to find a solution to the problems of a post-apocalyptic world caused by a world war.
On the Waterfront
A prizefighter-turned-longshoreman with a conscience goes up against labor leaders to expose corruption, extortion, and murder among the union ranks.
Chikamatsu Monogatari
When the wife of a 17th-century Kyoto scrollmaker is falsely accused of having an affair with his best employee, the pair flee the city and find themselves truly falling for one another.
What to know before choosing
Romance is the genre most dependent on mood: the same film on two different evenings does not give the same evening. That is exactly what the Taro eira questionnaire is for, and why the by-mood list often beats this one. Ratings in the genre cluster towards the middle — romance divides few people and pleases many moderately, which is information in itself.
Before 1970 the selection stops being a sample and becomes a canon. What still circulates in streaming has passed sixty years of sorting, and the ratings show it: high and tightly clustered. The real criterion is therefore no longer the rating but the pace and the running time, which have nothing in common with today’s. A classic asks for an attention you do not have every evening.
Frequently asked questions
How were these 24 films chosen?
They come from the TMDB catalogue, filtered on audience rating and on a minimum number of votes — without that second filter, a film rated 9 out of 10 by eleven people would outrank a classic. No place is for sale: no platform, distributor or studio can enter this list other than by being well rated.
Which film in this list is rated highest?
Modern Times (1936), with 8.3 out of 10 from 4,201 audience votes.
Where can I watch these films?
Taro eira shows, film by film, which platforms carry it in the UK and at what price — subscription, rental or purchase. The per-platform lists are further down this page.
How often does this list change?
It is recomputed every day. Ratings move slowly, catalogues move fast: availability is what mostly pushes titles in and out.
Do I need an account?
No. Taro eira is free, asks for no account and no subscription, and the two-or-three-question flow works without installing anything.
See also
- Romance
- Romance from the 2020s
- Romance from the 2010s
- Romance from the 2000s
- Romance from the 1990s
- Romance from the 1980s
- Romance from the 1970s
- Action before 1970
- Adventure before 1970
- Animation before 1970
- Comedy before 1970
- Crime before 1970
- Documentary before 1970
- Drama before 1970
- Family before 1970
- Fantasy before 1970
- Biopic before 1970
- Horror before 1970
- Musical before 1970
- Sci-fi before 1970
- Thriller before 1970
- War before 1970
- Western before 1970
How this list is built
Films come from the TMDB catalogue, filtered on audience rating and vote count, then cross-checked against real availability in the country. No paid placement, no partnerships. How we choose the films.
Film data and posters: TMDB. This app uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.