On Valentine’s Day we asked our Twitter followers that all-important question: what movie do you show a potential romantic partner to impress them, or gauge their tastes? The prize was the chance to win a signed magazine:

November/December 2013
Christopher Nolan Claire Denis Joel and Ethan Coen
Guy Maddin David Cronenberg Wes Anderson

The response was unprecedented, a testament to the breadth of film knowledge and tastes of our readership. Even the smart-asses were pretty creative:

Of course, some people took the challenge seriously, as evidenced by their willingness to subject their prospective dates to some nontraditional romantic fare:

But what’s more serious than not sharing a sense of humor? 

The same goes for gore. So many different kinds are out there, but do you want to share a bed with a Dario Argento, an Asia Argento, an Eli Roth, or a Wes Craven? (Figuratively speaking.)

Not to be forgotten are the Classical Hollywood and New Hollywood selections—you know, for someone who gets as excited by The American Cinema and Robert Osborne’s introductions as you do. Then when the two of you get old, you can go on the TCM Classic Cruise and debate Further Research candidates together.

Or you could trawl other cinephilic waters with the copy/paste aesthetics of a Quentin Tarantino movie. Notably, QT has said that when it’s getting serious with a woman, he’ll show them Rio Bravo. (I guess “Spiderbaby” passed the test.)

And for the comprehensive romantic, there is Richard Linklater’s Before trilogy. You can more or less run predictive models about a prospective relationship based on how your partner reacts to these:

Even if you’re alone on Valentine’s Day, remember: the best part about being single is getting to watch whatever you want, whenever you want!

Congratulations to our winners Adriana Floridia (@adrifloridia), James McLallen (@ThyJamesMachine), and Mitch Anderson (@MitchFAnderson). We love you! Cinema loves you.