The Most Memorable Love Stories From Best Picture Winners

Over the years, the Oscar-winning films for best picture have featured some of the most iconic romances of all time, proof that even the Academy appreciates a good love story. Dating all the way back to the first winner, 1927's Wings, there has been a variety of heartbreaking or happily-ever-after tales that won over the Academy. This year features a couple romantic films vying for the win, too, including The Theory of Everything and The Grand Budapest Hotel. For a dose of romance, take a look back at the memorable love stories from past best picture winners!

Source: MGM

Wings (1927)
Paramount Pictures

Wings (1927)

When Jack (Charles "Buddy" Rogers) and David (Richard Arlen) fall in love with Mary (Clara Bow), things get complicated, and the awkward love triangle creates tension in their friendship.

Love-Filled Lines:

Mary: "D'you know what you can do when you see a shooting star?"

Jack: "No, what?"

Mary: "You can kiss the girl you love."

It Happened One Night (1934)
Columbia Pictures

It Happened One Night (1934)

After Ellie (Claudette Colbert) marries a man her father doesn't like, he forces her to annul the marriage. She decides to run back to her fiancé but meets handsome reporter Peter (Clark Gable) along the way.

Love-Filled Lines:

Peter: "Why didn't you take off all your clothes? You could have stopped 40 cars."

Ellie: "Well, ooh, I'll remember that when we need 40 cars."

Gone With the Wind (1939)

Gone With the Wind (1939)

In the midst of the Civil War, Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) has to deal with all kinds of tragedy, but nothing gets under her skin nearly as much as Rhett Butler (Clark Gable).

Love-Filled Lines:

Scarlett: "I only know that I love you."

Rhett: "That's your misfortune."

Source: MGM

Casablanca (1943)
Warner Bros.

Casablanca (1943)

When ex-lovers Rick (Humphrey Bogart) and Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) are reunited, they have one big obstacle that keeps them from running away together: her husband.

Love-Filled Lines:

Ilsa: "I can't fight it anymore. I ran away from you once. I can't do it again. Oh, I don't know what's right any longer. You have to think for both of us. For all of us."

Rick: "All right, I will. Here's looking at you, kid."

Ilsa: "I wish I didn't love you so much."

An American in Paris (1951)

An American in Paris (1951)

Jerry (Gene Kelly) is trying to make it as a painter in Paris when he falls for Lise (Leslie Caron). Unfortunately, Lise is in a relationship with another man and she's forced to choose.

Love-Filled Lines:

Lise: "Maybe Paris has a way of making people forget."

Jerry: "Paris? No. Not this city. It's too real and too beautiful to ever let you forget anything."

Source: MGM

West Side Story (1961)

West Side Story (1961)

In a Romeo and Juliet-inspired twist, it's love at first sight between Maria (Natalie Wood) and Tony (Richard Beymer), but they're from rival New York City gangs.

Love-Filled Lines:

Tony: "I didn't believe hard enough."

Maria: "Loving is enough."

Tony: "Not here. They won't let us be."

Maria: "Then we'll run away."

Tony: "Yeah, we can."

Maria: "Yes."

Tony: "We will . . . "

Source: MGM

My Fair Lady (1964)
Warner Bros.

My Fair Lady (1964)

Professor Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison) takes flower girl Eliza Doolittle (Audrey Hepburn) under his wing to transform her into a lady. A handsome aristocrat falls in love with her, and when she tries to leave the professor, he realizes he has feelings for her too.

Love-Filled Lines:

Eliza: "So you are a motor bus! All bounce and go, and no consideration for anybody. But I can get along without you. Don't you think I can't!"

Professor Higgins: "I know you can. I told you you could. . . . You've never wondered, I supposed, whether . . . whether I could get along without you."

Eliza: "Well, you have my voice on your phonograph. When you feel lonesome without me, you can turn it on. It has no feelings to hurt."

Professor Higgins: "I . . . I can't turn your soul on."

The Sound of Music (1965)
20th Century Studios

The Sound of Music (1965)

Maria (Julie Andrews) goes to work as a governess for the von Trapp family in Austria. While she's there taking care of the children, her relationship with Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer) takes a more intimate turn.

Love-Filled Lines:

Captain von Trapp: "Maria, there isn't going to be any Baroness anymore."

Maria: "I don't understand."

Captain von Trapp: "Well, we called off our engagement, you see, and . . . "

Maria: "Oh, I'm sorry."

Captain von Trapp: "Yes. You are?"

Maria: "Mmhmm. You did?"

Captain von Trapp: "Yes. Well, you can't marry someone when you're in love with someone else, can you?"

Rocky (1976)

Rocky (1976)

While Rocky (Sylvester Stallone) strives to make it as a boxer, it's Adrian (Talia Shire) supporting him from the side of the ring.

Love-Filled Lines:

Adrian: I'll be here waiting for you."

Rocky: "How 'bout I stay here and you fight?"

Source: MGM

Annie Hall (1977)

Annie Hall (1977)

Comedian Alvy (Woody Allen) examines his relationship with Annie (Diane Keaton) — his match made in neurotic New York City heaven.

Love-Filled Lines:

Alvy: "Hey listen, gimme a kiss."

Annie: "Really?"

Alvy: "Yeah, why not? Because we're just gonna go home later, right, and then there's gonna be all that tension. We've never kissed before and I'll never know when to make the right move or anything. So we'll kiss now and get it over with, and then we'll go eat. We'll digest our food better."

Source: MGM

Terms of Endearment (1983)
Paramount Pictures

Terms of Endearment (1983)

Aurora (Shirley MacLaine) and her daughter Emma are both looking for love, and one of Aurora's most striking affairs is with her party-loving neighbor Garrett (Jack Nicholson).

Love-Filled Lines:

Aurora: "Do you have any reaction at all to my telling you I love you?"

Garrett: "I was just inches from a clean getaway."

Dances With Wolves (1990)

Dances With Wolves (1990)

Civil War hero John Dunbar (Kevin Costner) finds himself in a western territory where an Indian tribe resides. When he becomes friends with the tribe, he falls for Stands With a Fist (Mary McDonnell), a woman who was raised by the group.

Love-Filled Lines:

Stands With a Fist: "He thanks Dances With Wolves for coming."

John: "Who is Dances With Wolves?"

Stands With a Fist: "It is the name all the people are calling you now."

Source: MGM

Forrest Gump (1994)
Paramount Pictures

Forrest Gump (1994)

Forrest (Tom Hanks) and Jenny (Robin Wright) meet as children, and their lifelong relationship becomes more complicated in the midst of war and Jenny's personal problems.

Love-Filled Lines:

Jenny: "Why are you so good to me?"

Forrest: "You're my girl!"

Jenny: "I'll always be your girl."

Braveheart (1995)
Paramount Pictures

Braveheart (1995)

Scottish warrior William Wallace (Mel Gibson) is leading his people in a rebellion against King Edward I of England when he's taken by Princess Isabelle (Sophie Marceau).

Love-Filled Lines:

William: "Why do you help me?"

Princess Isabelle: "Because of the way you are looking at me now."

Titanic (1997)
20th Century Studios

Titanic (1997)

When Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) gambles his way onto the famous Titanic ship, he meets Rose (Kate Winslet), a well-to-do woman engaged to a cruel man. They fall for each other right away, only to face tragedy soon after.

Love-Filled Lines:

Jack: "Rose, you're no picnic, all right? You're a spoiled little brat, even, but under that, you're the most amazingly, astounding, wonderful girl — woman — that I've ever known."

Rose: "Jack, I . . . "

Jack: "No, let me try and get this out . . . I know how the world works. I've got 10 bucks in my pocket, I have nothing to offer you and I know that. I understand. But I'm too involved now. You jump, I jump, remember? I can't turn away without knowing you'll be all right. That's all that I want."

Shakespeare in Love (1998)
Universal Pictures

Shakespeare in Love (1998)

A young William Shakespeare (Joseph Fiennes) finds his muse in Viola (Gwyneth Paltrow), but he can't pursue her because he's already married.

Love-Filled Lines:

Viola: "I loved a writer and gave up the prize for a sonnet."

William: "I was the more deceived."

Viola: "Yes, you were deceived, for I did not know how much I loved you."

A Beautiful Mind (2001)
Universal Pictures

A Beautiful Mind (2001)

As a professor, brilliant mathematician John Nash (Russell Crowe) falls for one of the graduate students, Alicia (Jennifer Connelly), who finds herself by his side as he struggles with mental illness.

Love-Filled Lines:

Nash: "Alicia, does our relationship warrant long-term commitment? I need some kind of proof, some kind of verifiable, empirical data."

Alicia: "I'm sorry, just give me a moment to redefine my girlish notions of romance."

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Searchlight Pictures

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

Jamal (Dev Patel), an orphan from the Mumbai slums, ends up on India's Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? TV show. When he finds himself in the midst of odd legal trouble, he revisits his relationship with the girl he loved and lost, Latika (Freida Pinto).

Love-Filled Lines:

Jamal: "I knew you'd be watching."

Latika: "I thought we would meet only in death."

Jamal: "This is our destiny."

Latika: "Kiss me."

The King's Speech (2010)
The Weinstein Company

The King's Speech (2010)

To help her husband, King George VI (Colin Firth), improve his speech impediment, Queen Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) enlists the help of an eccentric therapist who helps to build his confidence.

Love-Filled Lines:

Queen Elizabeth: "I intend to be a very great queen . . . to a very great king.

The Artist (2011)
The Weinstein Company

The Artist (2011)

Silent movie star George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) falls for up-and-coming dancer Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo), but the arrival of "talkies" threatens George's career and the relationship in the process.

Love-Filled Lines:

Peppy Miller:"I won't work anymore. It's him or me. . . . What I mean is, it's him and me! Or it's neither of us!"