Melodramas of 2025: Top New Romance Films

Contents:

• Materialist
• Leave it to the wind
• Boys with tattoos. Straight to the heart
• Bridget Jones. Crazy about the boy
• There
• Mother Mary
• June and John
• Looks like love
• Dreams about her
• Plagiarist
• Couple for couple

The Materialist

18+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: June 12, 2025
Countries: Finland, USA
Director: Celine Song
In Cast: Pedro Pascal, Chris Evans, Dakota Johnson, Marin Ireland, Eddie Cahill

Lucy is a successful matchmaker from New York. She is perfect at bringing other people together, but she remains lonely. Everything changes when the charming millionaire Randy begins to court her. But feelings for her ex-boyfriend John still smolder in her heart... It seems love has overtaken Lucy, too, and no professional tricks will help her sort out this tangled triangle.
"The Materialist" is the new work of Celine Sohn. Her debut project, "Past Lives," was nominated for an Oscar for Best Picture and Best Screenplay. So the new film has all the ingredients for success: a bright cast, a talented director and an original story.

Leave It to the Wind

16+
Where to watch: in theaters and on streaming
Release date: January 7, 2025
Country: Turkey
Director: Engin Erden
In Cast: Hande Erçel, Barış Arduç, Barış Aytaç, Gözde Mutluer, Deniz Balkanli

Businesswoman Aslı with an iron character and surfer Ege, who is looking for a simple and free life, find themselves drawn into a confrontation. Asli wants to build a hotel on the Aegean coast to save the family business, but Ege, who prefers the silence of the waves to the noise of meetings, resists her plans with all his might. Suddenly, in this struggle between two worlds, something greater is born—a love story that could change the lives of these two characters forever.
The leading roles are played by stars of Turkish TV series superhits. The goal-oriented Asli is played by Hande Erçel from "Knock on My Door," and the surfer Ege is played by Barış Arduç from "Love for Rent."

Guys with tattoos. Straight to the Heart

18+
Where to watch: In theaters and streaming
Release date: January 21, 2025
Country: USA
Director: Nick Cassavetes
Cast: Sydney Taylor, Chase Stokes, Alexander Ludwig, Natalie Alyn Lind, Ella Balinska

A shy student, Shaw, falls in love with her neighbor, the daring tattoo artist Rule. After one of the parties, they spend a night together that they will not be able to forget.
The film is based on a series of novels by American writer Jay Crownover. The film was directed by Nick Cassavetes, director of the cult melodrama "The Notebook," and was produced by the producers of the "After" franchise, which also told the love story between a shy heroine and a rebel.

Bridget Jones. Mad About the Boy

18+
Where to watch: Peacock
Release date: February 12, 2025
Countries: UK, France, USA
Director: Michael Morris
Cast: Renée Zellweger, Leo Woodall, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Colin Firth

British journalist and mother of two Bridget Jones is trying to cope with the loss of her beloved husband Mark Darcy. Suddenly, two new suitors appear on the horizon: a young handsome Roxter, who is 20 years younger than her, and her children's teacher, Mr. Wallacher. Juggling work, household chores, and judgement from other mothers, Bridget tries to establish her personal life.
"Boy Crazy" is the fourth installment in the popular franchise that began with the 2001 film "Bridget Jones's Diary." Like other parts, the plot of the new film is based on the novel by the English writer Helen Fielding, who personally participated in the preparation of the script.

There

16+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: May 15, 2025
Country: Russia
Director: Ivan Petukhov
Cast: Pyotr Fyodorov, Irina Starshenbaum, Aleksey Serebryakov, Evgeniya Dobrovolskaya, Vladislav Tiron

One ​​evening, Moscow taxi driver Vadim receives an unusual order. He needs to take a cheerful girl named Vera to Ufa—a nearly 1,500-kilometer, 18.5-hour journey without stops. Vadim agrees, and so begins a journey that will forever change the life of the usually silent and gloomy guy.
The rom-com was directed and written by Ivan Petukhov. He has already filmed about taxi drivers: in the film almanac "Alice" all the events were shown from the perspective of an on-board computer, which observes the amazing stories of drivers and passengers from the side.

Mother Mary

18+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: 2025
Countries: UK, USA
Director: David Lowery
Cast: Anne Hathaway, Michaela Coel, Hunter Schafer, Jessica Brown Findlay

"Mother Mary" is an "epic melodrama" from the director of "History "Ghost" and "The Green Knight" by David Lowery. The story centers on the relationship between a pop star and her fashion designer. No other plot details are available yet, but it is known that Anne Hathaway, who plays the lead character, performed all the musical numbers herself.
The soundtrack is being produced by singer Charli XCX and musician and producer Jack Antonoff, both Grammy winners. A24 Studios is producing.

June and John

18+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: February 13, 2025
Country: France
Director: Luc Besson
Cast: Matilda Price, Luke Stanton Eddie, Ryan Schuss, Dean Testerman, Sherry Mattson

Every day is the same for John: a boring job, an annoying boss, and a bunch of small problems. One day, he meets the vibrant and unusual June on the subway, and from that moment on, John's life becomes a kaleidoscope of wild adventures.
Luc Besson shot the film back in 2020 on an iPhone, at the height of the Los Angeles quarantine. The lead roles are played by aspiring actors Matilda Price and Luke Stanton Eddy, and their characters' names likely allude to Johnny Cash and his wife, June Carter: their complicated love story, full of obstacles and rejection, ends happily. The star couple lived in a happy marriage for 35 years.

Looks Like Love

12+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: March 27, 2025
Country: Russia
Director: Yana Klimova-Yusupova
Cast: Anna Zavtur, Kuzma Kotrelev, Sergey Goroshko, Alexandra Revenko, Elena Valyushkina

Young Lisa comes to St. Petersburg from Pskov for the first time and instantly falls under the spell of the Northern capital. But harsh reality immediately teaches the naive girl a lesson: first, she falls victim to scammers and is left without a rental apartment, and then without her bag containing her money, documents, and phone. Utterly desperate, Liza meets a young artist, Vasily, and his friend, Viktor. They desperately need to deliver an antique bed to the other side of town, and Liza agrees to join them. Many critics compare the film to other films about young people in love on the streets of St. Petersburg: "Piter FM" and "Progulka." For such projects, they even came up with their own name: "curb-melodrama."

Dreams of Her

18+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: June 5, 2025
Countries: Spain, USA, Belgium, France, Finland
Director: Nacho Vigalondo
In Starring: Beatrice Granno, Henry Golding, Aura Garrido, Ruben Ochandiano, Natalie Poza

Nicholas is trying to recover from the death of his girlfriend and turns to specialists for help. He is offered to participate in an experimental program. After taking a special drug, Nicholas immerses himself in lucid dreams, where he can reconnect with his deceased lover. However, instead of therapy and overcoming his loss, the hero begins to depend increasingly on these "meetings."
The film combines elements of melodrama and science fiction. To avoid losing the line between sleep and reality, director Nacho Vigalondo uses color correction and different aspect ratios: in a dream, the boundaries of reason seem to “expand,” and the colors become brighter and more saturated.

The Plagiarist

12+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: July 10, 2025
Country: Russia
Director: Anton Megerdichev
Cast: Roman Evdokimov, Stasya Miloslavskaya, Aglaya Shilovskaya, Maxim Lagashkin, Marat Basharov

30-year-old Egor cannot boast of a successful career. His job is singing along with karaoke customers. Yegor's girlfriend, Yulia, like her oligarch father, is not at all thrilled with his career choice. Suddenly, the guy finds himself transported straight from his closet to 1991. Yegor decides to take advantage of the situation and begins performing karaoke hits in public that hadn't even been written in the early 1990s.
The film features a lot of music: "Glass of Vodka on the Table," "Crying at the Techno," and other familiar hits. The creators themselves describe the genre of the film as a "musical rom-com."

Couple for a Couple

18+
Where to watch: in theaters
Release date: May 22, 2025
Country: Russia
Director: Vladimir Kott
Cast: Dmitry Chebotarev, Irina Gorbacheva, Alexander Robak, Ulyana Zhang, Evgeny Egorov

While on vacation at a sanatorium, Olya meets businessman and former athlete Sergei and leaves her husband, the good-for-nothing university professor Kostya, for him. Kostya decides to take revenge and meets Sergei's daughter, Sonya, who, in turn, wants to spite her father. The foursome meets for dinner at Sergei's house.
Judging by the trailer, the main action will take place in one location. In such an intimate setting, acting comes to the forefront, and this is precisely what the new Russian melodrama is counting on.