Nevertheless, for moviegoers of a historical romantic bent, the curious (and the curiously profane)—I'm veering somewhere in between at this point—Madonna's movie might just be the ticket (and certainly her recording of "Masterpiece," the theme from the film, has whetted a few appetites). Queer writer-director Michael Sucsy (who helmed HBO's marvelous Grey Gardens) now makes his feature debut with the romantic melodrama The Vow, in which comely young wife (Rachel McAdams) wakes up from a coma following a devastating accident to find that she can't remember her equally gorgeous husband (Channing Tatum). Jessica Lange, who won an Emmy for Grey Gardens, is featured and heartstrings are sure to be plucked and tears shed as said gorgeous husband does whatever it takes to win back the long-suffering wife. I can't vouch for the emotional temperature of the picture, as it also wasn't screened in time for critics (although the score by Rachel Portman is indeed, lush and lovely, and the theme song by Taylor Swift appropriately wistful).

For those not willing to risk tamping down the embers of love, however, look no further than the weekend's one bona fide romance classic. This is the Music Box Theatre's special matinee screening, on Sunday, Feb. 12, at 2 p.m. of Blake Edwards' Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Writer and queer icon Truman Capote was never happy with Audrey Hepburn as his Holly Golightly; he wanted Marilyn Monroe (who would've made a stunning, although very different, Holly) for the part and famously carped about Hollywood's 1961 ruination of his novella, Breakfast at Tiffany's. However, Capote's is a lone voice in the wilderness: True the re-imagining of the George Peppard character from gay best friend (best on Tru himself) to hunky would-be lover for Audrey Hepburn's Holly Golightly is a big switch from the novella—but, poured into the traditional Hollywood romance mold, it improbably works.

Between Hepburn's effortless chic (dressed, as usual, in a combination of Givenchy's French couture and Edith Head's sensible daywear), Edwards' sure direction of George Axelrod's clever script (and Edwards expert choreography of the memorable party sequence), Peppard at the height of his stunning blond looks and the acidic voiced Patricia Neal as his monetarily generous "patron of the arts," the movie is gloriously romantic. All of it, of course, is bathed in Henry Mancini's gorgeous music, highlighted by the Oscar-winning "Moon River."

The making of Breakfast at Tiffany's—detailed in Sam Wasson's recent book Fifth Avenue, 5 A.M.—is filled with fascinating backstory details (including the truth behind the movie's major false step: Mickey Rooney's unintentionally offensive performance as the outraged Japanese neighbor). However, delving into Wasson's breezy tome might spoil much of the mystery for hardcore romantics, so those folks might want to wait to read it after the Music Box screening.

The event kicks off with a "Sweetheart Sing-a-long" with the Music Box organist, and the venue is offering a special after-screening dinner tie-in with the newly opened DeLeece restaurant just up the street. For lighter movie fare, Music Box is also programming 1984's wacky fairy-tale comedy The Princess Bride on Valentine's Day itself (Tuesday, Feb. 14) at 7:30 p.m. Details and tickets are at www.musicboxtheatre.com .

Although queer romantic films (the sort where no one dies or is mourned, that is) are rarely found in cinemas these days, here's a list of five favorite, random recommendations for home viewing to increase the room temperature on your own Valentine Day's celebration (and feel free to add to this short list with your own suggestions at our website):

1. Normal (2003): Jessica Lange is the understanding wife when husband Tom Wilkinson becomes a female after their 25th-wedding anniversary in out writer-director Jane Anderson's compassionate view of middle-aged transgender love.

2. Maurice (1987): Forbidden gay love in Edwardian England is told through the lens of Merchant-Ivory. James Wilby and best friend Hugh Grant begin a tentative romance that is thwarted by societal conventions, but hang on; the handsome "underkeeper" is waiting in the shadows to save the course of true love.

3. D.E.B.S. (2004): Out writer-director Angela Robinson's spy caper parody is fun and funny. It also features a budding—and forbidden—love between plaid, mini-skirted schoolgirl/spy Sara Foster and her equally comely nemesis, superspy assassin Jordana Brewster. Holland Taylor is hilarious as the tough house mother.

4. Were the World Mine (2008): Queer writer-director Tom Gustafson collaborated with off-screen partner Cory James Krueckeberg on this delightful gay fantasia, a teen musical reimagining of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, set at an elite male boarding school.

5. Big Eden (2000): All the residents in tiny Big Eden, Mont., are trying to help Henry (Arye Gross), the big-time artist from New York, who has returned home to take care of his ailing grandfather. Gross figures out that the man of his dreams is not the hunky Dean (Tim McKay), his best friend from boyhood, but rather the shy Native American, Pike (Eric Schweig), who is waiting in the wings. This delightful romantic comedy (my fave gay-romance movie of all time) was the debut feature from out writer-director Thomas Bezucha.

Check out my archived reviews at www.windycitymediagroup.com or www.knightatthemovies.com . Readers can leave feedback at the latter website.