What are the key ingredients for a successful first date? Firstly, you need to find someone compatible, another single you can build a rapport with before inviting them to a restaurant or cinema date. The most recommended way of accomplishing this is to sign up to a dating site, where you can browse through the profiles of other members, taking your pick from this treasure trove of talent. Checking out an outlet like Beyondthecharter will give newbies pointers towards the terrific range of outlets there are to choose from. When you have developed enough chemistry and are chatting about your first date, a cozy evening spent streaming movies will always bring you closer. Here are seven of the most recommended.
Roman Holiday (1953)
This classic rom-com features a princess (Audrey Hepburn) and a reporter (Gregory Peck), who is out to show her around the famous sights of one of the world’s most romantic locations. Hepburn won the best actress Academy Award; as did the excellent screenplay.
Ghost (1990)
Memorable for its scene where Sam (Patrick Swayze) woos Molly (Demi Moore) over a potter’s wheel to the strains of ‘Unchained Melody,’ this romantic fantasy was a massive hit. Sam is murdered early on in the story, but his spirit is channeled through a medium, Oda (Whoopi Goldberg), as he attempts to warn Molly her own life is in danger. The sparring between Oda and Sam, trascending this world and the next, becomes an entertaining diversion, while the real villain eventually discovers the grave long-term outcome of his evil actions.
Anchorman (2004)
This perfect date night outing pokes fun at the male-dominated TV news environment of the 1970s, with Will Ferrell in fine form as he clashes with and then falls for his new female counterpart, Christina Applegate. With a fine supporting cast, including Paul Rudd and Steve Carell, there’s a laugh every other minute. Any early date is bound to be frought with some awkwardness, so the reason this feature is so ideal is mainly down to Ferrell’s loveable character, even as he is playing someone who is, outwardly at least, a bit of a chauvinist dinosaur. Many of the scenes become ridiculous, such as a streetfight between rival news teams, involving various deadly weapons. But because this is enacted as slapstick, with nobody getting hospitalized, you and your partner can just bask in the sheer stupidity of it all.
Her (2013)
Science fiction may not be everyone’s idea of an obvious first date choice, but Spike Jonze’s film is romantic and thought-provoking – there are no deadly aliens. The twist here is that the lead character, Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) falls for a computer voice, Samantha (Scarlett Johansson). This might seem like an absurd premise, but the storyline explores his depth of emotions, so the unfeasible becomes plausible.
The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)
The highest-grossing independent film of the year, this charming tale focuses on the unlikely friendship of Zak (Zack Gottsagen), a young man with Down syndrome fleeing from an assisted living home, and Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a poacher on the run from fishermen whose property he vandalized. Their road trip takes them down the scenic North Carolina coast, as social worker Eleanor (Dakota Johnson) first tries to persuade Zak to return, then assist him follow his dream of becoming a wrestler. What makes this film so worthwhile as your first date movie is the way you invest in the characters. As with so many examples of US independent cinema, the action takes us far away from the big cities on the West or East coasts, and presents a less hectic background where the characters shine against the scenic backdrop. Tyler, is a tattooed, backwards-baseball-cap wearing upstart, frequently spitting disdainfully, being pursued by even coarser assailants – one of whom has ‘redneck’ inked on his neck. But when you’re getting to know someone on a first date, it’s always gratifying watching a plot unfold where opposites attract. On the one hand, Eleanor seems almost too refined to be interested in someone as rustic as Tyler. At the outset, Tyler just wants to shake off Zak’s uninvited presence. But as the mismatched trio continue their odyssey, the way they bond is a joy to behold. The scene where Zak eventually gets to make his debut in the wrestling ring, as his alter-ego ‘The Peanut Butter Falcon,’ is terrific.
JoJo Rabbit (2019)
Critics questioned this film’s taste, but there can be no denying many aspects of the Nazi regime were ripe for satire. Here the titular character (Roman Griffin Davies) tries his best to be a Hitler Youth, although finding out his mother (Scarlett Johansson) is harboring a Jewish girl (Thomasin McKenzie), tests his ideology. This tension isn’t helped by the appearances of his imaginary friend, the Fuhrer himself (Taika Waititi), who also wrote and directed this comedic gem. In amongst the genune tension of the brutish SS guards searching for Jewish fugitives, the villains are all played as hammy caricartures with exaggerated German accents, ensuring the sense of absurd comedy prevails. Rebel Wilson and Sam Rockwell relish every consonant of their Teutonic dialogue. If you can spend your first romantic get-together, cosying on a couch, dipping into a bucket of popcorn, while laughing at Adolf Hitler, your relationship is only going to get better and better.
Some Like It Hot (1959)
At the peak of her tragically short movie career, Marilyn Monroe exuded innocence while oozing sex appeal. Here she is perfectly cast as Sugar, a ukelele player and singer in a traveling all-girl band. This troupe is joined by two male musicians, Jerry (Jack Lemmon) and Joe (Tony Curtis), impelled to ‘drag up’ while fleeing Chicago gangsters. The ensuing comedy, as Joe courts Sugar while Jerry fights off an amorous millionaire admirer, is two hours of comedy gold. The most memorable scenes occur when Jerry and Joe are making the most of their female alter-egos, Daphne and Josephine; particularly when Daphne returns from a date convinced she’ll make a fortune from alimony payments.
