You're never going to get any two Movie lovers to agree on a list of the best films of any genre. For instance, science fiction fans were thrilled to find out that a sci-fi film, The Shape of Water, won the 2018 Oscars while Vegas casino film-goers who don't enjoy science fiction were appalled.

Yet among dedicated movie buffs there is a level of agreement regarding some romantic movies that are generally accepted as being at the top of the pile.

Some of those include:

The Americanization of Emily

The Americanization of Emily was released in 1964. James Garner plays a WWII naval officer who does everything possible to remove himself from battle in his struggle to stay alive. He often hides out in the London flat of his navy buddy (James Coburn) where he falls in love with a war widow (Julie Andrews). When Garner is chosen to land on Omaha beach in D-Day's initial landing party he redeems himself and earns Emily's respect and love.

One of the reasons that this film resonates with so many people is that it puts all the romantic clichés to test --heroism on the battlefield, self-sacrifice and loyalty in the bedroom. Emily lost her father, husband and brother in World War II but she continues to believe in service to country even while trying to avoid the cultural complicity that pushes men to be heroes.

Brokeback Mountain

This movie, set against the sweeping landscapes of Texas and Wyoming, tells the tale of two young men -- a rodeo cowboy and a ranch-hand who meet in the summer of 1963 during a cattle drive. They forge a lifelong relationship despite its complications and tragedies, providing a testament to the power and endurance of love, however unconventional.

The romantic drama ranks 12th among the highest-grossing movies of this genre. Ennis Del Mar is in love with Jack Twist. Ennis is stoic and closed while Jack is open. Jack envisions life with Ennis but Ennis is reticent, fearing a love that goes against convention and normative boundaries.

The two secretive lovers call their bond “a goddam bitch of an unsatisfactory situation"; which is further complicated by the fact that both are married and don't have any idea of how to relate to their wives, especially after their affair begins.

Jack's blend of naivete and savvy contrasts with Ennis's repression that actor Heath Leger portrays by constantly clenching his jaw. This movie doesn't have a happy ending but it's a life lesson that shows how innocuous youthfulness gives way to austere, hard maturity.

Casablanca

In many ways Casablanca is the classic by which all other romantic stories are compared. The WWII movie starred Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Berman, Peter Lorre, Claude Rains, Paul Henreid and Sydney Greenstreet, the A-listers of the '40s who created a masterpiece that not only gave viewers a great love story but also stirred up patriotism and gave audiences a sense of hope in the dark days when the Allies were struggling against the Axis powers.

The action takes place in Casablanca where Rick Blaine (Humphry Bogart) runs a nightclub. Rick is cynical and jaded but his patriotism is tested when he comes into possession of two letters of transit which could offer someone the chance to escape from Nazi-ruled Casablanca and travel to neutral Portugal.

Nazi Major Strasser, in the meantime, is pursuing Victor Laslow, a Czechoslovakian underground leader. Lazlo's wife, Ilsa, was an old flame of Ricks and they still carry a flame for each other. The pair consider using the letters of transit to run off together but Rick's patriotism wins out and in the end he sends Ilsa on the plane with her husband as he develops his own plans to join the struggle against the Nazis.

Movie critics have always regarded Casablanca as the romance by which all other films should be measured. There are no pat, happy endings in this film but it captures all of the pathos of a couple in love who must think of the bigger picture before they consider their own happiness.

Love Story

If you came of age in the '70s you are probably familiar with this story that explores how true love can endure. The movie is based on a book by Erich Segal that tells the story of Oliver Barrett IV, a preppy Harvard student who falls in love with Jenny, working class girl. Against his upper crust parents'; wishes they get married and struggle as Oliver studies at law school.

Jenny fails to conceive and the tests show that it's because she has cancer. Oliver's devastation and devotion are chronicled throughout her last months and death. The movie is regarded as a classic that showed how love changes a person for the better -- even though the finale isn't always the way that we'd want it to end.

An Officer and a Gentleman

An Officer and a Gentleman is a true feel-good film that packs all the elements of a good story into an hour and a half film. Richard Gere plays Zack Mayo who aspires to be a navy pilot. He's aloof but at the training camp for his 13-week officer's course he becomes involved in an affair with working girl Paula Pokrifi (Debra Winger).

Zack is as closed as a person can get but when his best friend Sid commits suicide over an unhappy romance, Paula helps Zack to realize the importance of opening up. Slowly he begins to learn how to give of himself to the benefit of those around him and himself.