The American Film Institute in Los Angeles, California conducted their fifth polling, 100 Years...100 Passions, celebrating the centennial of American cinema, and highlighting "the complex, cinematic tales of the heart that have become an abiding part of American film history." See also this site's informative section on the Romantic Films Genre and the Greatest Romances of All Time.

AFI's 100 Years…100 Passions revealed America's 100 America's greatest love stories, as chosen by leaders of the entertainment community, in a three-hour television event, that aired on the CBS Television Network in June 2002. AFI distributed a ballot with 400 nominated films to a jury of 1,800 leaders from the creative community, including film artists (directors, screenwriters, actors, editors, cinematographers) critics and historians.

Judging Criteria for Selection of Nominated Films included:

• Feature Length Fiction Film - The film must be in narrative format, typically over 60 minutes in length.
  
• American Film - The film must be in the English language with significant creative and/or production elements from the United States.
  
• Love Story - Regardless of genre, a romantic bond between two or more characters, whose actions and/or intentions provide the heart of the film's narrative.
  
• Legacy - Films whose "passions" have enriched America's film and cultural heritage while continuing to inspire contemporary artists and audiences.

1. Cleopatra (1912)
2. A Fool There Was (1914)
3. Carmen (1915)
4. Enoch Arden (1915)
5. Blind Husbands (1919)
6. Broken Blossoms (1919)
7. Daddy Long Legs (1919)
8. Male And Female (1919)
9. True Heart Susie (1919)
10. When The Clouds Roll By (1919)
    
    The Twenties

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11. Way Down East (1920) *
12. The Sheik (1921) *
13. Salome (1922)
14. The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (1923)
15. He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
16. The Marriage Circle (1924)
17. The Big Parade (1925)
18. The Phantom Of The Opera (1925)
19. Don Juan (1926)
20. La Boheme (1926)
21. The Scarlet Letter (1926)
22. Flesh And The Devil (1927)
23. Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1927)
24. My Best Girl (1927)
25. Seventh Heaven (1927)
26. Sunrise (1927) *
27. The Wedding March (1927)
28. The Crowd (1928)
29. Lilac Time (1928)
30. Sadie Thompson (1928)
31. The Kiss (1929)
32. The Love Parade (1929)
33. Our Modern Maidens (1929)
34. Queen Kelly (1929)
    
    The Thirties

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35. Morocco (1930) *
36. City Lights (1931) *
37. Tabu (1931)
38. Back Street (1932)
39. Bird Of Paradise (1932)
40. A Farewell To Arms (1932)
41. Grand Hotel (1932)
42. Love Me Tonight (1932)
43. Madame Butterfly (1932)
44. One Way Passage (1932)
45. Red Dust (1932)
46. Smilin' Through (1932)
47. Trouble In Paradise (1932)
48. Christopher Strong (1933)
49. Design For Living (1933)
50. King Kong (1933) *
51. Man's Castle (1933)
52. Queen Christina (1933)
53. The Barretts Of Wimpole Street (1934)
54. Cleopatra (1934)
55. Death Takes A Holiday (1934)
56. It Happened One Night (1934) *
57. Of Human Bondage (1934)
58. Sadie McKee (1934)
59. Tarzan And His Mate (1934)
60. The Thin Man (1934)
61. Alice Adams (1935)
62. Anna Karenina (1935) *
63. The Devil Is A Woman (1935)
64. The Good Fairy (1935)
65. Naughty Marietta (1935)
66. Peter Ibbetson (1935)
67. Top Hat (1935)
68. Come And Get It (1936)
69. Desire (1936)
70. Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936)
71. My Man Godfrey (1936)
72. Next Time We Love (1936)
73. Romeo And Juliet (1936)
74. Rose Marie (1936)
75. San Francisco (1936)
76. Show Boat (1936)
77. Small Town Girl (1936)
78. Swing Time (1936) *
79. Theodora Goes Wild (1936)
80. The Awful Truth (1937) *
81. Camille (1937) *
82. History Is Made At Night (1937)
83. Nothing Sacred (1937)
84. A Star Is Born (1937)
85. Algiers (1938)
86. Bringing Up Baby (1938) *
87. Four Daughters (1938)
88. Holiday (1938)
89. Jezebel (1938) *
90. Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)
91. Three Comrades (1938)
92. Dark Victory (1939) *
93. First Love (1939)
94. Gone With The Wind (1939) *
95. Goodbye Mr. Chips (1939)
96. The Hunchback Of Notre Dame (1939) *
97. Intermezzo, A Love Story (1939)
98. Love Affair (1939)
99. Midnight (1939)
100. Ninotchka (1939) *
101. The Private Lives Of Elizabeth And Essex (1939)
102. Wuthering Heights (1939) *
     
     The Forties

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103. All This, And Heaven Too (1940)
104. His Girl Friday (1940)
105. My Favorite Wife (1940)
106. The Philadelphia Story (1940) *
107. Pride And Prejudice (1940)
108. Rebecca (1940)
109. Remember The Night (1940)
110. The Shop Around The Corner (1940) *
111. They Knew What They Wanted (1940)
112. Waterloo Bridge (1940)
113. Ball Of Fire (1941)
114. Hold Back The Dawn (1941)
115. The Lady Eve (1941) *
116. The Strawberry Blonde (1941)
117. That Hamilton Woman (1941)
118. Tom, Dick And Harry (1941)
119. The Big Street (1942)
120. Casablanca (1942) *
121. I Married A Witch (1942)
122. The Major And The Minor (1942)
123. Now, Voyager (1942) *
124. Random Harvest (1942) *
125. The Talk Of The Town (1942)
126. Woman Of The Year (1942) *
127. Cabin In The Sky (1943)
128. For Whom The Bell Tolls (1943)
129. A Guy Named Joe (1943)
130. The More The Merrier (1943)
131. Cover Girl (1944)
132. Double Indemnity (1944) *
133. Jane Eyre (1944)
134. Laura (1944)
135. Meet Me In St. Louis (1944)
136. To Have And Have Not (1944) *
137. The Clock (1945)
138. The Enchanted Cottage (1945)
139. Love Letters (1945)
140. Spellbound (1945)
141. Duel In The Sun (1946)
142. Gilda (1946)
143. Humoresque (1946)
144. It's A Wonderful Life (1946) *
145. Notorious (1946) *
146. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) *
147. Bachelor And The Bobby-Soxer (1947)
148. The Bishop's Wife (1947)
149. The Farmer's Daughter (1947)
150. The Ghost And Mrs. Muir (1947) *
151. Out Of The Past (1947)
152. Letter From An Unknown Woman (1948)
153. Mr. Peabody And The Mermaid (1948)
154. One Touch Of Venus (1948)
155. The Pirate (1948)
156. Portrait Of Jennie (1948)
157. Romance On The High Seas (1948)
158. They Live By Night (1948)
159. Adam's Rib (1949)
160. The Fountainhead (1949)
161. Gun Crazy (1949)
162. The Heiress (1949)
163. Samson And Delilah (1949)
     
     The Fifties

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164. Cinderella (1950)
165. Cyrano De Bergerac (1950)
166. My Foolish Heart (1950)
167. The African Queen (1951) *
168. An American In Paris (1951) *
169. A Place In The Sun (1951) *
170. Quo Vadis? (1951)
171. Royal Wedding (1951)
172. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951) *
173. Carrie (1952)
174. Ivanhoe (1952)
175. My Cousin Rachel (1952)
176. Pat And Mike (1952)
177. The Quiet Man (1952) *
178. Singin' In The Rain (1952) *
179. Calamity Jane (1953)
180. From Here To Eternity (1953) *
181. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
182. Kiss Me Kate (1953)
183. Mogambo (1953)
184. Roman Holiday (1953) *
185. Brigadoon (1954)
186. Carmen Jones (1954)
187. The Last Time I Saw Paris (1954)
188. Magnificent Obsession (1954)
189. Rhapsody (1954)
190. Sabrina (1954) *
191. A Star Is Born (1954) *
192. Three Coins In The Fountain (1954)
193. Young At Heart (1954)
194. All That Heaven Allows (1955)
195. Daddy Long Legs (1955)
196. Guys And Dolls (1955)
197. Lady And The Tramp (1955) *
198. Love Is A Many-Splendored Thing (1955) *
199. Love Me Or Leave Me (1955)
200. Marty (1955) *
201. Oklahoma! (1955)
202. Picnic (1955) *
203. Summertime (1955)
204. To Catch A Thief (1955) *
205. Bus Stop (1956)
206. Carousel (1956)
207. The King And I (1956) *
208. Love Me Tender (1956)
209. Tea And Sympathy (1956)
210. The Tender Trap (1956)
211. An Affair To Remember (1957) *
212. Designing Woman (1957)
213. Desk Set (1957)
214. Funny Face (1957)
215. Love In The Afternoon (1957)
216. Raintree County (1957)
217. Sayonara (1957)
218. Tammy And The Bachelor (1957)
219. Bell, Book And Candle (1958)
220. Gigi (1958) *
221. Houseboat (1958)
222. I Married A Monster From Outer Space (1958)
223. Indiscreet (1958)
224. The Long Hot Summer (1958)
225. South Pacific (1958)
226. A Time To Love And A Time To Die (1958)
227. Vertigo (1958) *
228. Pillow Talk (1959) *
229. Porgy And Bess (1959) *
230. Some Like It Hot (1959)
231. A Summer Place (1959)
     
     The Sixties

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232. The Apartment (1960) *
233. Bells Are Ringing (1960)
234. Breakfast At Tiffany's (1961) *
235. Flower Drum Song (1961)
236. Splendor In The Grass (1961) *
237. West Side Story (1961) *
238. David And Lisa (1962)
239. Lolita (1962)
240. That Touch Of Mink (1962)
241. Charade (1963)
242. Cleopatra (1963)
243. Love With The Proper Stranger (1963)
244. The Americanization Of Emily (1964)
245. Lilith (1964)
246. Marnie (1964)
247. My Fair Lady (1964) *
248. Doctor Zhivago (1965) *
249. A Patch Of Blue (1965)
250. The Sound Of Music (1965) *
251. Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? (1966) *
252. Barefoot In The Park (1967) *
253. Bonnie And Clyde (1967) *
254. The Graduate (1967) *
255. Guess Who's Coming To Dinner (1967) *
256. The Taming Of The Shrew (1967)
257. Two For The Road (1967) *
258. The Fox (1968)
259. Funny Girl (1968) *
260. The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
261. Cactus Flower (1969)
262. Goodbye, Columbus (1969)
263. The Sterile Cuckoo (1969)
264. Sweet Charity (1969)
     
     The Seventies

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265. Carnal Knowledge (1970)
266. Love Story (1970) *
267. The Owl And The Pussycat (1970)
268. Harold And Maude (1971) *
269. McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
270. Minnie And Moskowitz (1971)
271. Summer Of '42 (1971)
272. Butterflies Are Free (1972)
273. Last Tango In Paris (1972) *
274. Play It Again, Sam (1972)
275. A Touch Of Class (1972)
276. What's Up, Doc? (1972) *
277. Badlands (1973)
278. Blume In Love (1973)
279. Cinderella Liberty (1973)
280. Love And Pain (And The Whole Damn Thing) (1973)
281. The Way We Were (1973) *
282. The Great Gatsby (1974)
283. Thieves Like Us (1974)
284. Shampoo (1975)
285. Robin And Marian (1976)
286. Rocky (1976)
287. Annie Hall (1977) *
288. The Goodbye Girl (1977) *
289. Coming Home (1978) *
290. Days Of Heaven (1978)
291. Grease (1978) *
292. Heaven Can Wait (1978)
293. Same Time, Next Year (1978)
294. Ice Castles (1979)
295. A Little Romance (1979)
296. Manhattan (1979) *
297. 10 (1979)
     
     The Eighties

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298. American Gigolo (1980)
299. The Blue Lagoon (1980)
300. Somewhere In Time (1980)
301. Superman II (1980)
302. Arthur (1981)
303. Body Heat (1981) *
304. Endless Love (1981)
305. On Golden Pond (1981) *
306. The Postman Always Rings Twice (1981)
307. Reds (1981) *
308. An Officer And A Gentleman (1982) *
309. Lianna (1983)
310. Valley Girl (1983)
311. Racing With The Moon (1984)
312. Romancing The Stone (1984)
313. Splash (1984)
314. Starman (1984)
315. Desert Hearts (1985)
316. Mala Noche (1985)
317. Murphy's Romance (1985)
318. Out Of Africa (1985) *
319. Prizzi's Honor (1985)
320. The Purple Rose Of Cairo (1985)
321. The Sure Thing (1985)
322. Witness (1985) *
323. About Last Night (1986)
324. Children Of A Lesser God (1986)
325. The Fly (1986)
326. Hannah And Her Sisters (1986)
327. 9 1/2 Weeks (1986)
328. Pretty In Pink (1986)
329. Barfly (1987)
330. The Big Easy (1987)
331. Dirty Dancing (1987) *
332. Fatal Attraction (1987)
333. Moonstruck (1987) *
334. The Princess Bride (1987) *
335. Roxanne (1987) *
336. The Accidental Tourist (1988)
337. Bull Durham (1988)
338. Crossing Delancey (1988)
339. Dangerous Liaisons (1988)
340. Tequila Sunrise (1988)
341. The Unbearable Lightness Of Being (1988) *
342. Working Girl (1988) *
343. The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989)
344. The Little Mermaid (1989)
345. Say Anything... (1989)
346. When Harry Met Sally... (1989) *
     
     The Nineties

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347. Ghost (1990) *
348. Henry And June (1990)
349. Longtime Companion (1990)
350. Pretty Woman (1990) *
351. Trust (1990)
352. Wild At Heart (1990)
353. Beauty And The Beast (1991) *
354. Dogfight (1991)
355. Frankie And Johnny (1991)
356. Jungle Fever (1991)
357. Mississippi Masala (1991)
358. Basic Instinct (1992)
359. The Bodyguard (1992)
360. The Last Of The Mohicans (1992)
361. Prelude To A Kiss (1992)
362. Singles (1992)
363. The Age Of Innocence (1993)
364. Benny & Joon (1993)
365. Groundhog Day (1993)
366. The Remains Of The Day (1993)
367. Sleepless In Seattle (1993) *
368. Sommersby (1993)
369. True Romance (1993)
370. Forrest Gump (1994)
371. Legends Of The Fall (1994)
372. Reality Bites (1994)
373. The American President (1995) *
374. Before Sunrise (1995)
375. The Bridges Of Madison County (1995) *
376. Clueless (1995)
377. Don Juan Demarco (1995)
378. French Kiss (1995)
379. Leaving Las Vegas (1995)
380. Sense And Sensibility (1995) *
381. While You Were Sleeping (1995)
382. Emma (1996)
383. The English Patient (1996) *
384. Jerry Maguire (1996) *
385. One Fine Day (1996)
386. William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996)
387. As Good As It Gets (1997)
388. Chasing Amy (1997)
389. My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
390. Titanic (1997) *
391. Ever After (1998)
392. Shakespeare In Love (1998) *
393. There's Something About Mary (1998)
394. You've Got Mail (1998)
395. The End Of The Affair (1999)
396. Never Been Kissed (1999)
397. Notting Hill (1999)
398. The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)
399. Chocolat (2000)
400. Keeping The Faith (2000)