25 Great Movies Like The Proposal That Are Worth Your Time

Gracie Hart (Sandra Bullock) is a tough and spirited woman whose independent nature has caused her to butt heads with the men in her world. Gracie works as an FBI agent, but when her headstrong attitude compromises a sting operation, she gets demoted to a menial desk job. While working off her punishment at the desk, Gracie discovers the plan of a domestic terrorist, who has threatened to set off a bomb at the upcoming Miss United States beauty pageant. The FBI decides to send in an undercover agent to keep the contestants safe and find the person behind the threat. To everyone's surprise, they pick Gracie, who has to learn to pass herself off as a pageant contestant in record time. 

 "Miss Congeniality" was a high point for Bullock's career, drawing in more than $200 million at the global box office and establishing her both as a leading lady and a skilled comedic actor. The film moves along at a brisk, breezy pace with some daring physical comedy on Bullock's part that any fan of "The Proposal" will love. She's ably assisted by Michael Caine as Victor Melling, a pageant coach, who helps Gracie unearth her inner swan after years of viewing herself as an ugly duckling. 

In an enchanted and animated land far, far away, there live a prince and a princess. Prince Edward (James Marsden) falls in love with a beauteous young maid named Giselle (Amy Adams). But their "happily ever after" spells doom for Edward's evil stepmother Narissa (Susan Sarandon), who is desperate to maintain her hold on the throne and plots to keep the lovers apart. 

Thanks to Narissa's machinations, Giselle is transported as a human form of herself to real-life Manhattan. Lost and frightened, Giselle is helped out by world-weary lawyer Robert (Patrick Dempsey), whose wife passed away, which has left him struggling to take care of their daughter Morgan (Rachel Covey). Thanks to Giselle's unreasonably sunny disposition, Robert begins to see the lighter side of life again. And he's helped along by some catchy song-and-dance numbers like "That's How You Know." Meanwhile, Edward has also jumped into our world to track down Giselle, while Narissa and her minions are hot on their trail, as she intends to take care of the prince and would-be princess once and for all. 

"Enchanted" is a charming modern taken on typical "Disney Princess" films, bolstered by a star-making performance by Amy Adams, which she will soon be reprising in an upcoming sequel. "Amy Adams spreads a contagion of delight," Joe Morgenstern notes in his review of "Enchanted" for The Wall Street Journal. He adds, "The movie is great fun, but [Adams is] enchanting" and fans of "The Proposal" will be sure to agree. 

There are few rom-com couples who enjoy as much sparkling chemistry as Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, as seen in their first film together, "The Wedding Singer." The duo put that chemistry to good use again in "50 First Dates," in which Sandler plays Henry Roth, a veterinarian, who works with exotic animals at a sea-life park in Oahu, Hawaii.

One day in a café, Henry notices Lucy Whitmore (Drew Barrymore), who plays with the waffles on her plate before eating them. The next day, Henry talks to Lucy, and the two arrange to meet for a date at the same time next morning. But when Henry sees Lucy again, she has no recollection of him. It turns out that Lucy suffers from a memory disorder that leaves her unable to remember anything for more than a day. 

Despite the complications, Henry is unable to stop himself from going back to see Lucy, even though he has to introduce himself to her over and over again. "50 First Dates" has a charming edge that puts it over most other Adam Sandler "romedies" of the past two decades. This is thanks to the pairing of the actor with the charming Barrymore, as well as the bittersweet nature of the relationship between Henry and Lucy. The storyline feels more heartfelt than "The Proposal," since there is no desire for personal gain in Henry's seeking out of Lucy, beyond the fact that he feels a strong attraction to her.  

Aditya Kashyap (Shahid Kapoor) is a young man, who possesses great wealth and resources, but also secret troubles that no one else knows. For, Aditya is locked in a power struggle with his own mother over control of their family's telephone company, while the love of his life has just married someone else, all of which has put him into a depression. 

Thinking dark thoughts about ending it all, Aditya intends to jump off a railway train, but his plan gets foiled thanks to the inquisitive and talkative nature of Geet Dhillon (Kareena Kapoor), a woman he's just met. Geet's interest forces Aditya to get out of his head, and instead, he focuses on helping her reach Bhatinda to reunite with her family. As Aditya and Geet make the journey together through a number of bizarre situations, Geet reveals that she is planning to elope with the love of her life Anshuman (Tarun Arora). Despite having fallen in love with Geet himself, Aditya decides to help her get to Anshuman and step out of her life. But can Aditya truly stay away from Geet for long?

Like "The Proposal," "Jab We Met" looks at how two people can fall in love while traveling together, as Aditya and Geet find their lives transformed by this unexpected road trip that they take. The film's colorful cinematography enhances the beauty of this journey, as "Jab We Met" explores different parts of India that Aditya and Geet cross on their trip.

Daniel "Danny" Maccabee (Adam Sandler) is a successful plastic surgeon, who has hit upon a winning formula for his romantic life: He pretends to be in an unhappy marriage, so he can get women to trust him and then sleep with him, but not want to get involved with him. 

No one knows about Danny's scheme, other than his assistant, the single mother Katherine Murphy (Jennifer Aniston), who does not enjoy being a part of her boss' efforts at duping women. Things hit a hitch when Danny meets Palmer (Brooklyn Decker), who refuses to get involved with a married man. So, Danny tells her about his fictional wife "Devlin," whom he's going to divorce because she cheated on him, and in an effort to keep up this ruse, Danny convinces Katherine to pose as Devlin on a family vacation. Danny, "Devlin," and their kids (a.k.a. Katherine's kids) take a trip to Hawaii with Palmer, and the lies start to get even more complicated.

"Just Go With It" has echoes of "The Proposal" in its story of a boss who asks a subordinate to pretend to be in a relationship, which opens the door to a genuinely loving relationship in the end. Sandler and Aniston enjoy an easy camaraderie that adds credence to this tale of two people who have known each other for a long time, but suddenly find themselves on an unexpected path of falling in love. 

Lee Seung-min (Uhm Tae-woong) is a hot-shot young architect living in Seoul. One day, he is approached by Yang Seo-yeon (Han Ga-in) to oversee the building of her dream house on her family's property. As Tae-woong and Seo-yeon work together on designing the house, it is revealed that the two knew each other in college more than a decade ago.

Through flashbacks, we see the relationship that Tae-woong and Seo-yeon had in college: Tae-woong is in love with Seo-yeon, but she is enamored with their dashing fellow student Jae-wook (Yoo Yeon-seok). Tae-woong yearns to tell Seo-yeon about his true feelings, but feels himself to be unworthy of her love. Tae-woong finally gathers the courage to ask Seo-yeon to meet him at a special spot to tell her about his feelings, but that's when things go all wrong. In the present, these two discover more about what's happened in each of their lives in the years since college, and what really happened that one fateful night.

"Architecture 101" explores the idea of whether "first loves" are ever really as perfect as people remember them, and whether it is possible to move ahead in life if you insist on clinging to the past. It is a more tender love story than "The Proposal," but rests on similar narrative trappings of misunderstandings and secret longings.

There was a time when Hugh Grant was known as the king of rom-coms. Although this status declined, in part, as Hollywood shifted its focus to big-budget franchise movies. But Grant's status as a heartthrob still occasionally resulted in some well-received returns to the genre that first made him a star, as happened with 2011's "Two Weeks Notice."

Grant stars as George Wade, a reckless billionaire playboy, who does not care about much beyond his own personal satisfaction. Despite having endless resources available to him, George is also quite naïve about the way the world works. He hires dedicated environmental conservation lawyer Lucy Kelson (Sandra Bullock) as his chief counsel, even though they differ greatly in their views on sustainable real-estate development. 

As the two work together, a mutual attraction develops. But those feelings are tempered by George's need to be coddled by Lucy and her frustration at his often infantile conduct. Sandra Bullock's character in "Two Weeks Notice" is a lot like the one she plays in "The Proposal," while her chemistry with Hugh Grant is a lot more acerbic. As seasoned vets of the rom-com genre, both Bullock and Grant know how to imbue this rather predictable plot with charm and personality, and keep you watching even when their characters aren't behaving very nicely towards each other. 

Before Matthew McConaughey reinvented himself as a serious dramatic actor with award-winning performances, he made a name for himself as a star of rom-coms. One of McConaughey's most popular romantic comedies is "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days," where he stars opposite Kate Hudson. The movie follows Andie (Hudson), a writer who specializes in giving tips to women on how to conduct their romantic affairs. 

Bored of writing about the usual subjects, Andie decides that her next article will be based on her real-life experience of successfully making a man lose interest in her in just 10 days. Meanwhile, Ben (McConaughey) is an advertising executive, whose landing of a new account requires taking a bet that he can make a woman fall in love with him in — you guessed it — 10 days. Naturally, Ben and Andie start dating. She's determined to drive him away, while he's committed to holding on no matter what, and many hijinks ensue.

Just like with "The Proposal," the somewhat predictable nature of "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" is alleviated thanks to the charisma and acting chops of the lead pair. Some of the best parts of the movie are when McConaughey and Hudson are clearly just having fun together. McConaughey best explained his dynamic with his co-star during an interview with BBC, saying, "It's not necessarily what's being said, but the stuff between the lines that makes [the chemistry] sexy and fun." 

While the usual rom-com features a single couple learning to move past their differences to find happiness together, "He's Just Not That into You" features a whole bunch of such stricken souls, who operate in the same loose social circle. The concept behind the film is based on the self-help book of the same name by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo.

Gigi (Ginnifer Goodwin) is naïve and often misinterprets the meaning behind the actions of her dates. Janine (Jennifer Connelly) is stuck in an unhappy relationship with her husband Ben (Bradley Cooper), who is cheating on her with Anna (Scarlett Johansson). Meanwhile, Anna is struggling with her own feelings for this married man, while her close friend Conor struggles to let her know he wants to have a deeper relationship with her. Finally, Beth (Jennifer Aniston) has been living with Neil (Ben Affleck) for seven years, and hopes the relationship will turn into marriage, but she comes to the realization that it is never going to happen. 

While at times "He's Just Not That into You" threatens to get hopelessly tangled in its own intersecting plot lines, the talented cast helps keep the narrative afloat. As Richard Propes notes in his review, "What makes 'He's Just Not That Into You' rise above mediocrity is a cast that manages to infuse the entire affair with moments of sheer, sparkly humanity and hilarious wonder."

"Step Up" has become a franchise that focuses on scrappy dancers from disadvantaged backgrounds, who win respect, championships, or admission to prestigious schools thanks to dazzling choreography and elaborate props. But 2006's original "Step Up" seems far removed from this world, as this flashy franchise actually started as a low-key love story between two dancers. 

Tyler Gage (Channing Tatum) is a young man who comes from a poor background, and spends his days hanging out, break-dancing, and going to parties. A night out ends with Tyler and his friends vandalizing the Maryland School of Arts. Tyler takes the fall and gets sentenced to perform community service as a janitor at the school. There, Tyler observes ballet dancer Nora Clark (Jenna Dewan) trying to choreograph a routine that will be good enough to get her admitted into a professional dance company. When Nora runs out of potential male partners for the dance, Tyler volunteers his street-dancing skills. 

While later films in the franchise contend with entire groups of dancers, "Step Up" keeps its focus sharply on the chemistry between Nora and Tyler. In fact, this chemistry is so palpable that it led to the real-life marriage between Tatum and Dewan. The dance scenes in the movie are also a treat for the eyes and ears, as Tatum and Dewan put their well-honed skills to good use in solo and duet performances. Plus, fans of "The Proposal" can delight in the extra bonus of watching this feature film debut of director Anne Fletcher.

It is a rare thing for a romantic comedy movie to become a franchise, but that is exactly what happened with 2000's "Meet the Parents." The picture was followed by two sequels, and all three films made over $1.1 billion worldwide. The series may continue to grow, as the cast and crew are open to making another sequel somewhere down the line.

"Meet the Parents" kicks off with the story of Gaylord "Greg" Focker (Ben Stiller), a nurse who wants to pop the question to his girlfriend Pam (Teri Polo). But Greg's plan has to be postponed, as he and Pam have to attend her sister's wedding. They're staying at Pam's parents' house, so Greg decides to impress Pam's parents first and then use their help to pull off the perfect proposal. However, that plan also gets derailed when he finally meets Pam's father Jack (Robert De Niro), who isn't going to let Greg into the family so easily. 

Unusually for a rom-com, the chemistry between the lead romantic pair in "Meet the Parents" is overshadowed by that between Stiller and De Niro. The latter was mostly known for dramatic roles at the time, but here he shows a delightful willingness to go all-out in a comedic role as a paranoid and suspicious father of the bride, who gradually softens up to his would-be son-in-law.  

While people don't usually connect Jim Carrey with the romance genre, the fact is, most of the actor's biggest box-office hits – from "The Mask" to "Bruce, Almighty — have strong elements of romance in them. Such is the case with the 2000 black comedy, "Me, Myself & Irene," which has rom-com elements in it as well.

Carrey stars as the mild-tempered Rhode Island State Trooper Charlie, whose loved ones have taken advantage of him for years. Charlie feels broken on the inside, but he maintains a cheerful demeanor to show to the rest of the world. However, all of this rage and grief that Charlie has kept bottled up finally lets loose in the form of a split personality. Where Charlie is meek and passive, his new self, Hank, is brash and confrontational. One day, Charlie is assigned the task of escorting Irene Waters (Renée Zellweger) across state borders in relation to a crime that she insists she did not commit. 

The split personality premise of the movie allows Carrey to indulge in some of the most inspired physical comedy of his entire career. But it is his character's relationship with Irene that gives emotional heft to the narrative. The chemistry between the lead actors of the film is a clear high point, so much so that Carrey and Zellweger became involved with each other after finishing the movie. In fact, Carrey later described the actress as "his last great love," and this on-and-off-screen love connection is sure to appeal to any fan of romantic films like "The Proposal."

Musicals may be seen as something of a lost art in Hollywood. But the film industry does occasionally still turn out movies that combine rousing song-and-dance numbers with touching storylines, which can result in a rollicking time for audiences. What better way to produce that effect than with the help of classic songs by legendary Swedish pop group ABBA, as seen in 2008's "Mamma Mia!"

Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is planning to marry the love of her life Sky (Dominic Cooper) at their Greek island home. She lives there with her single mom Donna (Meryl Streep), who has kept the identity of Sophie's father a secret. Determined to learn more about who she is and unbeknownst to anyone else, Sophie invites three of her mother's ex-lovers to the wedding, one of whom is her real father. As the three potential dads arrive along with the rest of the party guests, Sophie and Donna's lives are turned upside down.

Like Maggie and Andrew in "The Proposal," Sophie and Donna both tell lies to try to protect their loved ones, but things quickly fall apart. Punctuated by peppy musical numbers, "Mamma Mia!" makes excellent use of its cast — particularly Streep and Seyfried — to tell a fun and genuinely moving story about growing up and learning to live with past regrets. The film was a huge hit at the box office, which resulted in a 2018 sequel, and the franchise's producer has hinted that a third part is currently in development.