A number of romantic movies have some tie to Canada. Whether it’s the writer, actors or landscape, Canadians and Canada have been prominently featured in many well-known films of this genre. Sometimes, movies set in the United States are actually filmed in Canada for a variety of reasons, including economics.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding
The 2002 hit movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding was written by Canadian Nia Vardalos and nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The long awaited sequel, My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2, is currently in production and starts filming in May. The first movie tells the tale of a Greek-American woman, played by Vardalos, with a large boisterous family, who finds love in her hometown of Chicago. Vardalos has kept the plot of the second film mostly under wraps but has said it involves her character becoming a mother.
Anne of Green Gables series
Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables series is one of the most famous Canadian works of literature. It consists of six books published in the early 20th century. The romance that spans the series is between Anne Shirley and Gilbert Blythe. The two characters get off to a rocky start but eventually become friends and later marry. The first book in the series is set on Prince Edward Island. Several movies and TV shows were made from the books, and much of the filming took place in Ontario.
The Notebook
Another romantic movie with a connection to Canada is The Notebook. The film’s two stars, Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling, are both Canadian. They were both born in London, Ontario, and McAdams currently lives in Toronto. Written by Nicholas Sparks, the book was a New York Times bestseller that was made into a movie released in 2004. It tells the story of a young couple who share a brief summer romance but are ultimately separated by class differences (she is wealthy and he is poor) and WWII. They are later reunited. The film goes back and forth between present day and the beginning of their romance in the 1940s.
Twilight series
Stephenie Meyer’s phenomenally successful four-book Twilight series was set in Forks, Washington, just south of the Canadian border. The books were made into five movies and some scenes were filmed in Vancouver and other parts of British Columbia. The series chronicles an unlikely love story between Bella Swan and her vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen. Their relationship and its unique complications unfold throughout the novels.
Titanic
The 1997 film Titanic was an epic love story about a couple, played by Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, who meet on the ill-fated ocean liner. She is from an aristocratic family, and he is a poor artist. They meet by accident when she considers jumping off the ship because she can’t bear the thought of marrying her wealthy, heartless fiancé. Parts of the movie were shot in Nova Scotia and British Columbia.
Juno
Juno was released in 2007 and is about an unconventional high school student who must confront an unplanned pregnancy. The movie was filmed in British Columbia and premiered at the Toronto Film Festival to rave reviews. It was nominated for four Academy Awards and won one for Best Original Screenplay.
Brokeback Mountain
Brokeback Mountain is a romantic drama set in the American West from 1963-1983. Most of the film was shot in Alberta. It is about the complex love story and relationship of two men, played by Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal. It received eight Academy Award Nominations and won three Oscars.
These seven examples are some of the best-known romantic films with a link to Canada. The Great White North has produced a number of great writers, actors and is also a popular place to film movies.
