Sizzling Sexual Tension
10 films where the heat builds and builds
Witness (1985)
Forced to go into hiding in an Amish community after suffering a gunshot wound, a Philadelphia policeman (Harrison Ford) falls for the delightfully dour Rachel (Kelly McGillis) in this tale of forbidden love. With the exception of one passionate kiss, the only moments the solemn couple can ever share are a series of long, excruciating looks that will wring your heart dry.
Drive (2011)
The Driver (Ryan Gosling) doesn’t talk much. But with his shy, pixy neighbor, Irene (Carey Mulligan), he doesn’t have to. His long, intense gaze is enough to make her knees go weak in this simmering romance—her boyfriend notwithstanding—that never even has to get beyond a kiss.
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Red-blooded cowboys Ennis (Heath Ledger) and Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) are forced to keep a lid on their wildly passionate and dangerously taboo affair—they met as teens in the 1950s. Their feelings for one another become so pent up that the precious moments they get alone make for some of the most intense love scenes ever filmed.
Before Sunrise (1995)
After a chance encounter on a train, Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Céline (Julie Delpy), decide to stop off in Vienna and spend the day together. While their banter, rapport and sexual chemistry sparkle, it is the knowledge of their inevitable separation that spikes the tension in every glance, touch, and kiss they share.
Sense and Sensibility (1995)
You could fill this entire list with Jane Austen adaptations and all of the prim, proper, and often prudish exchanges characters have while dying to rip off all of those constricting bodices and breeches. Even so, the simmering love triangle of Elinor (Emma Thompson) and Edward (Hugh Grant) and Marianne (a gorgeous young Kate Winslet) puts this complicated little mess on the top of a very respectable heap.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
Although the bromantic chemistry between Butch (Paul Newman) and Sundance (Robert Redford) remains the hallmark of this film, the connection between Newman at peak charm and the stunning young Katharine Ross is just as strong. The rub? Her character is unhappily married to Sundance!
Some Like It Hot (1959)
While disguised as women and on the run from the mob, two musicians (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon) lust madly for their lead singer, Sugar Kane (peak Marilyn Monroe). Because Marilyn is, well, Marilyn, their attempts to compete for her affection while maintaining their cover—and composure—make for some of the tensest and funniest moments in movie history.
The Bourne Identity (2002)
If the fast fists, slick car chases, and wild shootouts fail to raise your hairs, those stolen glances between the super-dexterous Bourne (Matt Damon) and Marie (Franka Potente) in a quiet car might do the trick. Things finally come to a head when, after a sensuous grooming session, Marie bars his exit and the two go at it.
Lost in Translation (2003)
Although years and worlds apart from one another, the aging actor played by Bill Murray and the lonely college grad played by Scarlett Johansson find a kindred spirit in each other. Despite that bond, their relationship goes only as far as a touch on the foot and a last-second whisper in this wistful tale of love unfulfilled.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)
With a hot-and-bothered, sex-starved, and irresistible Maggie (Elizabeth Taylor) getting constantly resisted by her surly, uninterested, and matchingly hunky husband, Brick (Paul Newman), this classic Tennessee Williams adaptation cooks with tension right to the end. Between them is Brick’s guilt over his friend Skipper’s suicide, adding more frustrated desire to the mix.