I live for the weekends. I love being able to sleep in and not have to rush my daughter into her uniform and stream through the front door, always having to go back for some forgotten item. I love sprawling out on the sofa engrossed in a book while the kids make a fort with boxes and pillows. I love turning the TV on and finding some cinematic gem that I can lose myself in. Action, comedy, drama — you name it, I’ll watch it if it’s good. Sometimes, though, I just need to satisfy my chick flick appetite. It is very morbid, but there’s something about tragedies in movies that moves me and wants to know that not everything is going to be okay right away. The more depressing or sadder, the better. I also crave the suspense of a good old love triangle. Who will the protagonist choose?  Will she follow her heart or opt for the sensible choice? Then there’s those movies that make you cheer the characters on. The sort of films where you hope with all your might that yes, good luck is finally on its way and the protagonist will finally live the life he or she deserves. Oh, the drama of it all!

I’ve listed just a few of my favorite movies that I can watch over and over again and get swept up in the characters’ internal struggles. Some of them have been hailed by critics and some of them have been panned, but who cares what they think when you have laughter, love and tears — if you don’t cry at these movies, you are a robot!

Il Postino: A popular Italian film in the mid-90’s. The movie follows the simple life of Mario Ruoppolo (Massimo Troisi), a hopeless romantic whose job is to deliver mail to one man, Chilean poet Pablo Neruda (Philippe Noiret). The famous poet has been exiled to the idyllic shores of Italy, escaping the political oppression he experienced in his homeland as a Communist. Slowly, Mario endears himself to Neruda and finds himself discussing life, love, and politics with the poet. Through with his enchanting poetry, Neruda encourages Mario to reveal his feelings for Beatrice. Lyrical, poetic and heartbreaking.

P.S. I love You: Gerry (Gerard Butler) and Holly Kennedy (Hillary Swank) live effervescently in their small New York apartment. Their lives seem destined for a lifetime of happiness until Gerry dies from a brain tumor. Suddenly Holly’s life is barely a life as she closes herself off to her best friends and family. During her first birthday after Gerry’s death, she receives a message from him, a plan he conceived while he was still alive. Through these letters, Holly comes out of her tight shell and is able to forge forward with her life — a life without Gerry.

The Notebook: Based on the book by Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook tells the tragic story of Allie (Rachel McAdams) and Noah (Ryan Gosling), young lovers who are torn apart by Allie’s parents’ refusal to see Noah again. Distraught over Allie’s absence, Noah writes her a letter for every day for one year, but Allie’s mom intercepts them and they never reach their intended destination. Allie later falls in love with Lon. The story also parallels the story of an elderly man named Duke (James Garner) who reads about a love story from a notebook to an elderly woman (Gena Rowlands) suffering from dementia.  Love it or hate it, this movie will make you cry for days.

Beaches: Based on the Iris Ranier Dart novel of the same name. The movie follows the complicated friendship of CC Bloom (Bette Midler) and Hillary Whitney (Barbara Hershey). Together they endure career struggles, failed marriages, and fatal disease. Despite their differences and their opinions of how the other spent or wasted their life, CC and Hillary remain loyal to one another. Expect to start crying at the middle part of the movie and never stop. Several boxes of tissues will be needed.

City of Angels: Director Brad Siberling’s remake of Wim Wenders’ Wings of Desire. In City of Angels, humans are watched over by angels, who congregate on the beach each morning to watch the sun rise. Seth (Nicholas Cage) is a content angel who guides those about to die into their next life, until he sees Maggie (Meg Ryan), a dedicated and driven doctor. Seth falls in love with Maggie and will sacrifice anything to be with her. Unfortunately, his sacrifice leads to another unexpected sacrifice that Seth must learn to live with for the rest of his life. If you don’t like to cry in front of anyone, watch this movie alone because you’ll be crying buckets.

Steel Magnolias: Based on Robert Harling’s play about the death of his sister (need I say more?), Steel Magnolias follows the tribulations of a group of Southern women who are life-long friends. In her first Oscar-nominated role, Julia Roberts pulls on your emotional strings as Shelby Eatonton-Latcherie, a happy young woman who marries Jackson Latcherie (Dylan McDermott). It is the movie’s emotional climax that will have you feeling more than just a lump in your throat.

My Life: Bob Jones (Michael Keaton) and his wife Gail (Nicole Kidman) must deal with the devastating truth of Bob’s cancer. As the couple prepares for the arrival of their first child, Bob takes it upon himself to videotape lessons he has learned in his life and pass these words of wisdom down to his child. The late Haing S. Ngor plays a compassionate healer that, along with the videotapes Bob is recording, helps Bob discover that his own anger and bitterness towards his parents and brother have been weighing him down all these years.

An Affair to Remember: You can’t go wrong with the eternally handsome Cary Grant and the equally beautiful Deborah Kerr. Immediately you want the lives of their characters, Nikkie Ferrante (Grant) and Terry McKay (Kerr) to live happily ever after with each other — you expect it. Unfortunately, they are both engaged to other people. It’s difficult to ignore Nikki’s charming disposition and Terry’s  trepidation in forming a bond with him. As their romantic interlude on a cruise ship comes to an end, they promise to meet each other at the top of the Empire State Building, if, six months later, they still feel the same. Tragedy strikes and their momentous meeting at the Empire State Building does not happen. If you’ve seen Sleepless in Seattle, you’ll know what I mean. When you finally realize why the meeting could not take place, you’ll cry even more.

Forget the dishes until tomorrow, turn off the cell phone, get the kids to sleep and sit back and cry for a couple hours.

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