All-Time Best Movie Couples: What Makes Them So Good to You? Does the Question of Greatest Film Couple Even Make Any Sense?

In another thread Mogambo mentioned that his all-time favorite film couple. I’m interested in hearing some of the best couples—both personal favorites as well a couples we think are greatest in film history—and the reasons behind these choices. I’m specifically interested in the notion of greatest couple of film history. Is there really such a thing? Instinctively, the question seems a bit absurd or silly. It’s like asking who is the greatest movie character of all time. Wouldn’t the answer depend on the criteria, criteria which would be highly arbitrary? As some of you know, I’m interested in greatness, but even I think this is an area where the issue isn’t appropriate. (I’m not completely sure about that, but that’s my feeling now.)

But I can list some favorites (off the top of my head):

Lily Tomlin and Art Carney in The Late Show. I love them because the character are so different, but they still manage to have a real connection. Their mutual feelings of loneliness and feeling marginalized brought them together despite their differences, and I found this exciting and interesting. As far as what made the characters work, part of it comes from chemistry, and saying anything meaningful about that is difficult.

Jazz, Of course the question makes sense!! It’s simple and offers room for many interpretations and opinions.

And I have a simple answer. I love the Baileys in It’s a Wonderful Life.

This is my favorite on-screen “couple.” I love the quipping and the tension under that. Very exciting to me. :D

I love Roz :)

Agree with Grant/Roz. The only time in his career Cary met a woman worthy of him.

Beautifully evil:

Eviler:

@Bijoux

To be clear, I’m differentiating “favorite” from “greatest”—“favorite” referring to a couple you really love and “greatest” referring to…something like the objectively best couple. Does the “greatest couple” make any sense?

@Odi

They’re a good couple, especially for the witty, rapid-fire banter. This raises an sub-question: were they the best couple of screwball comedies? (This question makes more sense to me.) There’s Myrna Loy and William Powell in the Thin Man series (although I don’t know if those films qualify as screwball comedies, though.) Grant and Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby were also good, too. Grant and Rosalind Russell might be one of the best, though.

The question makes complete sense the way I interpreted it :)

^Good choices, Jerry.

Lousy film. Great Couple.

Tom Laughlin and Delores Taylor are a great screen and real life couple. They compliment each other with their differences, both like their individuality and both have a common goal (education).

Doris Day and Clark Gable are an perfect couple in Teacher’s Pet. Sometimes old fashioned men need a touch of modern light to keep them from being stodgy and younger woman need some old fashioned ideals and charm; also, when he reads her revered father’s work, he is not afraid to tell her it is awful even when he is impressed and in love with her.

He is a just about out of luck show off. She is a small beauty queen who would like to escape, dreams big. They will hop a train. He is a hot-head who may beat her or leave her with child soon but they have heat, more heat than I have seen in any other movie. Sometimes heat and offering what each other wants is enough to make an amazing couple.

These two were also lovely together:

That’s a great one, Odil!

My personal favorite movie couple of all

The two had magic together. Watching them fight, bicker, and drink copious amounts alcohol both entertained me and made me shrink in my seat.

George and Martha – absolutely!

I would submit the greatest film couple of all time to be William Powell and Myrna Loy as Nick and Nora Charles in the Thin Man movies. Great chemistry, great timing as a couple, and they’re better with each other than with anyone else onscreen in those films.

I think when trying to find the greatest anything, one has to first decide on a set of criteria. So as long as you can do that, determining a greatest anything is not silly at all (except when it is, which I don’t think is the case here).

Other candidates: Katharine Hepburn and Peter O’Toole in The Lion in Winter, Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor in Singin’ In The Rain, Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis in Some Like It Hot, Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and of course, C-3PO and R2-D2 in Star Wars.

since odile stole my favorites:

surprised no one has mentioned

or even

I would say that Grant met his match more than once.

many great screwball couples

also i love gable and harlow in red dust

LOL Ruby, we just share some similar tastes in couples. :D

Here’s two more faves of mine:

So interesting how the same actors can have very different dynamics depending on the pairing.

Can’t believe I forgot Bogie & Bacall and Tracy & Hepburn. Probably because I can’t choose the “best” of their films together. Same thing with Astaire & Rogers.

d’oh. i think we have a winner

Ummm… guys… You forgot…

Jean Paul Belmondo is hot and I’m not afraid to admit it! :P

Jean Paul Belmondo is hot and I’m not afraid to admit it! :P

Well good for you! Now for the Fassbinder sex fest….. sigh…. lol

If we’re going to go French then…

^ What movie is that from, Odi?

These two are madly, if ahem in a different sort of way, in love. The ending was ridiculous and hilarious (to me), but the rest of the movie was interesting, if from an unusual perspective.