Greatest 21 Romance Movies Must-Watch Released in 1940

A sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods. More about Gone with the Wind / IMDB / YouTube

A self-conscious woman juggles adjusting to her new role as an aristocrat's wife and avoiding being intimidated by his first wife's spectral presence. More about Rebecca / IMDB / YouTube

A newspaper editor uses every trick in the book to keep his ace reporter ex-wife from quitting and remarrying, using an exclusive interview with a death row convict as an enticement to buy himself some time to win her back. Explore His Girl Friday / IMDB / YouTube

Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand each other, without realizing that they are falling in love through the post as each other's anonymous pen pal. Find out about The Shop Around the Corner / IMDB / YouTube

On the eve of World War II, a young American reporter tries to expose enemy agents in London. Read about Foreign Correspondent / IMDB / YouTube

After being tricked and cast out of Bagdad by the evil Jaffar, King Ahmad joins forces with a thief named Abu to reclaim his throne, the city, and the Princess he loves. Learn about The Thief of Bagdad / IMDB / YouTube

The wife of a rubber plantation administrator shoots a man to death and claims it was self-defense, but a letter written in her own hand may prove her undoing. Get info on The Letter / IMDB / YouTube

Missing for seven years and presumed dead, a woman returns home on the very day that her husband remarries. Find out about My Favorite Wife / IMDB / YouTube

Geoffrey Thorpe, a buccaneer, is hired by Queen Elizabeth I to nag the Spanish Armada. The Armada is waiting for an attack on England and Thorpe surprises them with attacks on their galleons where he shows his skills with the sword. Learn about The Sea Hawk / IMDB / YouTube

Myra and Roy meet and fall in love on Waterloo Bridge during an air raid. Their love will be one of the war's unspoken casualties. Details on Waterloo Bridge / IMDB / YouTube

A young Spanish aristocrat must masquerade as a fop in order to maintain his secret identity of Zorro as he restores justice to early California. Read about The Mark of Zorro / IMDB / YouTube

The arrival of wealthy bachelors in town causes an uproar when families with single daughters aggressively seek engagements, including the Bennet family, with five eligible daughters. Check out Pride and Prejudice / IMDB / YouTube

In this classic adaptation of Emile Zola's novel, a tortured train engineer falls in love with a troubled married woman who has helped her husband commit a murder. Details on The Human Beast / IMDB / YouTube

After committing a murder, a man locks himself in his apartment and recollects the events that led him to the killing. See more about Daybreak / IMDB / YouTube

Love blooms between a sympathetic attorney and the comely shoplifter he has taken home for the Christmas holiday. Details on Remember the Night / IMDB / YouTube

After Germany invades Czechia, the German and the British intelligence services try to capture Czech scientist Dr. Axel Bomasch (James Harcourt), inventor of a new type of armor-plating. More about Night Train to Munich / IMDB / YouTube

A duchess's irrational behavior toward her children's governess triggers tragic events that will change her family's lives forever. Info on All This, and Heaven Too / IMDB / YouTube

An aspiring reporter is the key witness at the murder trial of a young man accused of cutting a café owner's throat, and is soon accused of a similar crime himself. Explore Stranger on the Third Floor / IMDB / YouTube

After the co-workers of an ambitious clerk trick him into thinking he has won $25,000 in a slogan contest, he begins to use the money to fulfill his dreams. What will happen when the ruse is discovered? Info on Christmas in July / IMDB / YouTube

A hard-working white-collar girl from a middle-class family meets and falls in love with a young socialite, but she soon clashes with his family. See more about Kitty Foyle / IMDB / YouTube

Two playboys try to forget previous romances in Singapore - until they meet a beautiful dancer. Details on Road to Singapore / IMDB / YouTube