Paris?
FUHGETTABOUDIT!
If you want romance look no further than Brooklyn!
From The Brooklyn and Verrazano Bridges to Coney Island, Brooklyn has made appearances in some of the greatest love stories of all time. With its iconic architecture, bridges and restaurants it’s no wonder. How could you not fall in love in Brooklyn?
Here are some of Brooklyn’s best love stories to prove it!
Annie Hall (1977)
What it’s about: A neurotic, Jewish, New York comedian, who was born and raised in Coney Island, tries to figure out why his relationship with the quirky Annie Hall failed.
Director: Woody Allen (who was raised in Brooklyn)
Cast: Woody Allen, Diane Keaton
Best quote: Alvy Singer: I would never wanna belong to any club that would have someone like me for a member.
Tag line: A nervous romance.
Trivia: Alvy Singer’s childhood home was in Coney Island and his house was under a roller coaster. The actual building was the Kensington Hotel, which was under Coney Island’s Thunderbolt roller coaster. The roller coaster and hotel were demolished in 2000.
As Good as It Gets (1997)
What it’s about: An obsessive compulsive, cranky writer, his gay artist neighbor and a waitress form an unlikely friendship.
Director: Brooklynite James L. Brooks
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt and Greg Kinnear
Best quote: Receptionist: How do you write women so well?
Melvin Udall: I think of a man, and I take away reason and accountability.
Tag line: A comedy from the heart that goes for the throat.
Trivia: In the movie, Carol and her mother walk into the legendary Farrell’s Bar & Grill on Prospect Park West. The famous bar dates back to 1933, the year prohibition was lifted.
Moonstruck (1987)
What it’s about: Moonstruck tells the story of Loretta Castorini, an accountant in Brooklyn Heights, who falls in love with her fiance’s brother. Moonstruck proves that anything can happen when there’s a full moon over Brooklyn.
Director: Norman Jewison
Cast: Cher, Nicholas Cage, Olympia Dukakis, Danny Aiello
Best quote: Ronny Cammareri: I love you.
Loretta Castorini: Snap out of it!
Tag line: Life. Family. Love.
Trivia: The Cammareri Brothers bakery was a real bakery, established in 1921. A location scout for the movie was a local Brooklyn Heights resident who also happened to be a customer of the Bakery. It was this connection that offered the bakery its claim to fame. Unfortunately, the bakery has since shut its doors.
Sophie’s Choice (1982)
What it’s about: A young writer moves to Brooklyn in 1947 to write a novel and befriends Sophie, a Holocaust survivor, and her tempestuous lover.
Director: Alan J Pakula
Cast: Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Peter MacNicol
Best Quote: Stingo: That’s my seersucker.
Tag line: Between the innocent, the romantic, the sensual, and the unthinkable. There are still some things we have yet to imagine.
Trivia: The ‘Pink Palace’ boarding house shared by Sophie, Stingo and Nathan was painted pink for the movie to match the name of the house in the book. After production the house, located in Flatbush, was repainted grey.
Brooklyn (2015)
What it’s about: Brooklyn is the story of a young Irish woman who immigrates to 1950s Brooklyn torn between two men living on other sides of the world.
Director: John Crowley
Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Domhnall Gleeson, Emory Cohen, Jim Broadbent, Julie Walters
Best quote: Eilis Lacey: One day you’ll catch yourself thinking about something or someone who has no connection with the past, and you’ll realize that this is where your life is.
Tag line: Two countries, two loves, one heart.
Trivia: Most of the filming took place in Canada because of cost. They only shot two days in Brooklyn, one for exterior shots and the other to film the scenes in Coney Island.
As you can see Brooklyn is surely the place for love. Be sure to check out our Neighborhood Tour to see some of these movie locations for yourself!
What are your favorite romantic movies? Let us know in the comments!
