29 Romantic Movies That Ring True

Amazon looks to rom-com, Barry White sales

(NEWSER) - Seeking a romantic getaway this Valentine’s Day? Love is in the air (and perhaps the water supply) in Amazon ’s 20 most romantic cities in America. The firm compiled the list with an eye on key sales data: romance novels, rom-coms, and, of course, Barry White albums. The winners:

1. Alexandria, Va. (for the second year in a row)
2. Knoxville
3. Orlando
4. Miami

Jason Segel, Emily Blunt star in truthful romantic comedy

(NEWSER) - The Five-Year Engagement clocks in at over two hours, which is a bit too long for many critics. But its honesty about relationships makes the Jason Segel-Emily Blunt rom-com stand out from the pack.

• "Because it's so willing to drill down into Tom and Violet's misery, The Five-Year Engagement involves a higher grim-to-grin ratio than its fluffier brethren," writes Ann Hornaday in the Washington Post . "But there's an unmistakable ring of truth to the couple's conflicts and mixed feelings."

Want a job? Avoid fine art, according to 'Daily Beast' list

(NEWSER) - Hey, college students: If your life plans include getting an actual job, you may want to avoid the stars of the Daily Beast 's "most useless" majors list. Majors are ranked in terms of employment, taking into account unemployment rates among recent and experienced grads, earnings, and likely job growth this decade. The list contains a few surprises—sure, fine arts won't get you far, but neither will hospitality management:

1. Fine arts (12.6% unemployment among recent grads; recent grads earn an average $30,000)
2. Drama and theater arts (7.8%, $26,000)

Steve Carell, Julianne Moore star in winning romantic comedy

(NEWSER) - Critics largely enjoyed Crazy, Stupid, Love—and some have fallen head over heels for the romantic comedy with an all-star cast.

• In the Los Angeles Times , Betsy Sharkey gushes that the film “may well restore your faith in the very possibility of love, to say nothing of romantic comedies.” The “grand romantic gesture about grand romantic gestures conjures up the bittersweet magic of first loves, lasting loves, lost loves and all the loves in between.”
• "It’s the mild exception that makes, if not for a great movie, then at least for a pleasant surprise," writes Rick Groen in the Globe and Mail .

Sorry, Transformers fans

(NEWSER) - The summer blockbuster: proof that, when it comes to movies, budget is often inversely proportional to quality. In Time , Everett Rosenfeld and Gilbert Cruz reflect on the worst of the worst:

1. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen: Director Michael Bay’s only priority: explosions.
2. Star Wars: Episode I—The Phantom Menace: “This is the story of a man with too much power and the terrible things he did”—that is, George Lucas.
3. Sex and the City 2: Our heroes go to the Middle East and “proceed to act closed-minded and condescending.”