Film Critics Pick Their 15 Worst Romance Movies of All Time

Film Critics Pick Their 15 Worst Romance Movies of All Time

Love on the big screen can sweep you off your feet, but sometimes it just trips over its own shoelaces.

We asked critics to name the romances that made them groan, cringe, and check the time.

You might find a guilty pleasure in here, or a title you once defended with fervor.

1. Gigli (2003)

There is awkward chemistry you can practically hear squeak. Scenes stall, then restart, like a car trying to climb a wet hill. Dialogue circles itself, chasing a punchline that never lands.

Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez look stranded in a script that confuses swagger for charm.

Jokes feel mean instead of playful, and forced sentiment smothers any warmth. You keep waiting for a spark that refuses to ignite.

Direction leans slack, letting beats hang too long without payoff. Tonal shifts crash together with thuds, romance turning into noise.

By the end, you are rooting for the credits, not the couple.

2. From Justin to Kelly (2003)

Spring break should feel fizzy, but this tastes like flat soda. Musical numbers land with the grace of a folding chair.

Choreography flaps around without direction, and the camera never finds rhythm.

Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini deserve better than dialogue that sounds crowd-sourced by a focus group.

Every flirtation arrives prepackaged, sealed with clichés you could guess a mile away. Songs pop in and out like commercial breaks, interrupting any possible feeling.

The sun is bright, yet the movie feels dim. Plot points stumble toward each other, then shrug. You will check your watch during the key change.

3. The Love Guru (2008)

Satire takes finesse, not a rubber mallet. Gags arrive loud, sweaty, and desperate, drowning any trace of romance. You can hear the rimshot before the joke even appears.

Mike Myers plays a character that mistakes mugging for charm. Every innuendo drags twice as long as it should, stretching punchlines into taffy.

The love story sits in the corner, forgotten under a pile of props.

Tone whiplashes between juvenile skits and limp tenderness.

Scenes feel stitched from unrelated sketches, leaving zero chemistry to breathe. By the finale, your sighs have their own laugh track.

4. All About Steve (2009)

Obsessive enthusiasm can be endearing, yet here it curdles. The humor pokes rather than hugs, turning eccentricity into abrasion.

You watch conversations cramp into uncomfortable corners.

Sandra Bullock commits, but the script boxes her into relentless quirk. Bradley Cooper plays avoidance more than attraction, which leaves romance nowhere to grow.

Each set piece feels like a dare to keep caring.

Pacing lurches between frantic and stalled. Jokes repeat until they fray, and heartfelt beats arrive unearned.

When credits roll, relief masquerades as closure.

5. Glitter (2001)

Fame and love intertwine best when vulnerability leads. Here, melodrama bulldozes nuance into glittery dust.

Songs try to paste over thin character arcs like sparkly Band Aids.

Mariah Carey has presence, but the screenplay gives her cardboard hearts to carry. Romantic beats appear on cue, then vanish without afterglow.

Chemistry fades the moment the spotlight cools.

Editing hacks scenes into fragments, sacrificing emotion for montage.

The result feels manufactured, not magical. You leave humming the idea of a better movie.

6. Norbit (2007)

Romance wilts under nonstop caricature. The humor punches downward so constantly you barely notice the supposed love story.

Jokes trample any tender moment before it can inhale.

Eddie Murphy’s multi-role spectacle distracts from emotional stakes. Every scene escalates noise rather than feeling, leaving chemistry buried under prosthetics.

You may laugh once, then wish you had not.

Plot mechanics jerk characters like marionettes. Heart is treated as a prop, not a pulse. By the end, sincerity feels like a lost item never claimed.

7. Valentine’s Day (2010)

Too many characters means not enough oxygen. Stories collide, yet none land with weight. You will recognize faces while forgetting names, motivations, and purpose.

Romance gets reduced to interchangeable greeting card messages. Scenes resolve by schedule, not emotion, ticking boxes like a candy assortment.

The charm melts before it touches your tongue.

Los Angeles looks polished, but the shine hides emptiness. A few moments flicker, then vanish under the cast list. It is quantity over quality, bouquet without scent.

8. The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)

Brooding can be intoxicating until it becomes fog. Long silences stretch like damp sweaters, heavy and itchy. The triangle sputters rather than burns.

Kristen Stewart stares into emotional abysses while the plot sulks. Edward leaves, Jacob flexes, and love still feels stalled at a red light.

Dialogue whispers important things without saying anything at all.

Visual gloom swallows warmth, smothering romance under grayscale angst.

Momentum disappears into longing that never matures. You might root for daylight more than any couple.

9. The Room (2003)

So bad it becomes hypnotic, yet romance is the first casualty. Lines land like alien transmissions, sincere and baffling. You watch disbelief transform into fascination.

Tommy Wiseau’s intensity turns ordinary scenes into fever dreams. Continuity wanders off and never returns, leaving emotions stranded.

The love triangle feels drawn with a broken compass.

Music swells at random, smothering conversations with soap-bubble grandeur. Every earnest moment slips on its own sincerity. By the end, you quote it, not feel it.

10. The Ugly Truth (2009)

Battle of the sexes comedy leans hard on groans. Advice masquerades as daring, but mostly sounds exhausted. You can sense punchlines sprinting from a decade earlier.

Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler spark a little, then suffocate under snark. The movie treats romance like a rigged focus group test.

Heartfelt beats arrive with timestamps and disclaimers.

Set pieces try shock value, yet reveal thin imagination. Laughs feel negotiated rather than earned.

When the confession finally comes, it lands like a spreadsheet.

11. Love Actually (2003)

Holiday charm cannot hide the lopsided storytelling. Some threads warm you briefly while others feel creepy or careless.

It is a box of sweets with more wrappers than chocolate.

Grand gestures replace honest growth, and shortcuts pose as destiny. The airport sprint reads like fantasy logistics, not romance. You may smile, then notice the aftertaste.

Editing hops so quickly that feelings barely register.

The movie mistakes coincidence for connection. Warm lights, thin emotions, and a seasonal pass for everything.

12. Serendipity (2001)

Fate gets blamed when characters refuse basic communication. Chance encounters multiply until they feel like scheduling errors.

You wait for grownups to speak plainly and end the scavenger hunt.

John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale glow, but the plot keeps them apart with contrivances. Notes on receipts and mystical coincidences do heavy lifting.

The romance is a crossword solved by guessing.

New York looks lovely, yet feels like a photo backdrop. Stakes never rise beyond postcard poetry.

You crave messier, truer choices instead.

13. The Kissing Booth (2018)

Teen romps can be fizzy, but this one burps. Rules about friendship and dating wobble whenever the plot needs a shortcut.

Boundaries become props, then vanish mid-speech.

Leads smile hard while chemistry slips on banana peels. Conflict repeats like a playlist stuck on track three. You will predict every twist two scenes early.

Montages work overtime to sell emotions the script underfunds.

The glossy sheen hides hollow beats. By the finale, the booth is the only thing with structure.

14. Fifty Shades of Grey (2015)

Power dynamics can be interesting when consent has texture. Here, eroticism feels like paperwork with lighting cues.

Scenes click forward like elevator floors, never quite arriving at intimacy.

Dakota Johnson brings wit, but the world around her is airless. Jamie Dornan’s character plays mystery as vacancy, draining heat. The romance asks for surrender without offering trust.

Dialogue tiptoes around desire, muting the very thing it sells.

The soundtrack sweats to compensate. You leave remembering furniture, not feelings.

15. Movie 43 (2013)

Romance barely survives the onslaught of shock gags. Each segment treats love as collateral damage for a dare. You can feel the writers high-fiving between sketches.

The ensemble slums it with gusto, yet sincerity never steps on set. Jokes chase outrage while characters evaporate.

Any spark gets smothered by the next gross-out.

Pacing ricochets like a pinball, leaving zero space for heartbeat. By the end, exhaustion outweighs laughter. It is a date night apocalypse in anthology form.