Valentine’s Day is here – and what would the holiday be without romantic movies? From star-crossed lovers to friends turned partners, to a pair whose passion together turns destructive, here we’re paying tribute to four of the most iconic on-screen couples, according to the Skin Cupid team – and showing you how to get their makeup looks, courtesy of some of our favourite Korean beauty brands.
J.D. and Veronica, Heathers
"Our love is God. Let’s go get a slushie."
Without Heathers, there would be no Jawbreaker, no Mean Girls. This 1988 black comedy, the antithesis to John Hughes’ feel-good high-school movies, was intended as a satire of the hysteria surrounding teen suicide in the late '80s. It’s now largely remembered for its Bonnie and Clyde-esque couple at the centre who go around killing popular kids and staging their deaths as suicides to create a “fairer” social landscape. Winona Ryder plays Veronica, who’s on the in with the titular Heathers—a trio of girls at the top of the social ladder—but is dissatisfied with their meanness and vacuity. Christian Slater plays J.D., a cool loner who catches Veronica’s attention and comes up with the plan to rid their school of its most popular students. Sure, they’re not the healthiest couple, but their chemistry is electric. What better example of their toxic relationship than when Veronica, distraught over having killed a classmate, burns her palm with a cigarette, only for J.D. to light his cigarette from her wound?
To get Veronica’s look:
DASIQUE Shadow Palette in Sugar Brownie
The ‘80s wasn’t all about blue eyeshadow and frosted lipstick. For a modern take on Veronica’s glittery smokey eye, use golden sugar and cocoa shades in this DASIQUE palette to blend out a fierce eye look that will take you from school to staging a crime scene.
ROM&ND Glasting Melting Balm in Buffy Coral
For Veronica’s nude lips, try ROM&ND’s Glasting Melting Balm in Buffy Coral. This cult-favourite lip balm offers a hint of coral-nude colour with a wax-oil blend that locks in moisture. For a matte finish, blot after application to get that classic anti-heroine vibe.
DASIQUE Blending Mood Cheek in #09 Almond Vanilla
Complete your look with DASIQUE’s Blending Mood Cheek in Almond Vanilla. This peachy blush, made up of beige, pink, and brown tones, gives you that flushed, in-love-with-a-criminal look that Veronica rocks effortlessly.
Howl and Sophie, Howl’s Moving Castle
"Sophie. Your hair is like starlight. It’s beautiful."
Studio Ghibli is famous for its rich world-building and beautiful relationships, especially the love stories between young men and women. Howl and Sophie’s relationship is a mature take on love. Sophie, a milliner cursed by a witch to look old, finds herself in Howl’s castle, where the vain young wizard learns to look beyond appearances and Sophie teaches us all about compassion, resilience, and the grace to accept what cannot be changed. Their love is about embracing each other’s flaws and growing together.
To get Sophie’s look:
UNLEASHIA Pretty Easy Glitter Stick in Wee Hours and PERIPERA Sugar Twinkle Glitter in Glitter Wave
Getting your hair to look like starlight might be a tough ask, but you can at least bring some twinkle to your eye makeup with these two glittery eyeliners. We think Sophie would love UNLEASHIA’s vegan, cruelty-free glitter stick in Wee Hours, a purple-pink shade reminiscent of the first light of dawn, topped up with PERIPERA’s holographic glitter in a subtle pink hue for extra luminescence.
ETUDE HOUSE Drawing Eye Brow in Grey
Sophie’s gorgeous hair is made only the more striking by her matching eyebrows. To replicate her strong brow, try ETUDE HOUSE’s double-sided eyebrow crayon, which features a sharply angled tip at one end, to add colour and fill out your arch, and a brush at the other, to fluff up brows and tame any stray hairs.
ETUDE HOUSE Curl Fix Mascara in Black
Sophie spends a lot of time looking surprised – and after going from a humdrum existence working in a hat shop to facing off against powerful sorceresses and her country’s war machine, who can blame her? For a similar wide-eyed look, try ETUDE HOUSE’s iconic Curl Fix Mascara in Black, which features a slim, fine wand to curl even your outer- and innermost lashes, and a smudge-proof formula that won’t budge with rain, tears, or unexpected time travel.
Jesse and Celine, Before Sunrise
“I believe if there's any kind of God it wouldn't be in any of us, not you or me but just this little space in between. If there's any kind of magic in this world it must be in the attempt of understanding someone sharing something. I know it's almost impossible to succeed, but who cares, really? The answer must be in the attempt.”
Told in 3 installments filmed over nearly 20 years, Before Sunrise is the first in Richard Linklater’s beautiful, dialogue-driven trilogy about one postmodern relationship. Jesse, a young American man, meets Celine, a French university student, on a train across Europe: Jesse to catch a flight back to the States from Vienna, and Celine to return to her studies in Paris after visiting her grandmother. They strike up a conversation, and when they reach Vienna, Jesse asks Celine to join him for the evening. They wander around the city, too broke to get a room for the night, and have long, meandering but meaningful conversations about life, death, and everything in between – and eventually share a kiss. When they part, they don’t take each other’s contact information, instead promising to reunite in Vienna in six months’ time. Though the following movies in the trilogy show them re-encountering each other nearly 10 years later, and, later still, married, the uncertainty with which this first film ends makes it a tribute to chance encounters, and how finding someone that you can really talk to is rare and beautiful, no matter how long you’re together.
To get Celine’s look:
KUNDAL Caffeine Shampoo in White Musk
Despite spending the night in a park, Celine’s enviable mass of blonde curls never ends up looking disheveled or matted. We can’t promise the same will happen for you if you try something similar this Valentine’s, but you can still help your hair look its best with KUNDAL’s Caffeine Shampoo in White Musk. This deliciously fragranced shampoo is packed with 24 plant extracts, Panthenol, Niacinamide, and Salicylic Acid to combat hair loss, keep your scalp dandruff-free, and keep your locks looking full and healthy.
KUNDAL Volume & Fixing Curl Cream in Wedding Bouquet
Add extra volume and tame frizz with KUNDAL’s delicious curl cream, formulated with Argan Seed, Macadamia, and Avocado Oils to nourish your hair, protect against heat damage, and add definition to your curls. The delicious scent – a sweet but tangy blend of fruits and florals – makes the perfect accompaniment to unexpected romantic encounters.
TIRTIR Waterism Glow Melting Balm in Salmon Syrup
To cap off your Celine-inspired look, leave your face bare, your hair loose, and add just a hint of color with TIRTIR’s Waterism Glow Melting Balm in Salmon Syrup. This lip tint, in a creamy pale pink shade shot through with coral, contains a Shine Complex infused with Jojoba, Olive, and Grape Seed Oils to nourish chapped lips, and has a non-tacky, glossy finish that will take you from first kisses to heartfelt goodbyes.
Chow Mo-wan (Mr Chow) and Su Li-zhen (Mrs Chan), In the Mood for Love
“I didn't think you'd fall in love with me.”
“I didn't either. I was only curious to know how it started. Now I know. Feelings can creep up just like that. I thought I was in control.”
An instant classic following its release in 2000, In the Mood for Love is the second in a loose trilogy of films from Hong Kong auteur Wong Kar-wai. Set in 1960s Hong Kong in a Shanghainese enclave, Mr Chow, a journalist, and Mrs Chan, a secretary, both live in the same crowded boarding house with their spouses. After discovering that their spouses are having affairs with each other, the lonely expatriates start meeting up to act out various scenarios together – attempting to imagine the moment the affair started, rehearsing confrontations in which they elicit confessions from their respective partners – as well as collaborating on a martial arts serial that Chow has been writing. They come to develop feelings for each other, but insist that they won’t be “like them”, and their relationship, which oozes romantic tension despite their buttoned-up attitudes, remains unconsummated. Eventually, Chow, who has left his wife, decides to leave for a job opportunity in Singapore and invites Mrs Chan to join him, but she makes her decision to join him too late, and he departs without her. There are several frustrating missed encounters over the course of the next few years, but they never reunite, and the final scene shows Chow finally confessing his feelings by whispering them into the rocks at Angkor Wat, before walking away. Gorgeously realised and heartbreakingly nostalgic, Mr Chow and Mrs Chan’s unspoken love reminds us that we refuse happiness, even if it does not look quite as we would like, at our peril.
To get Su Li-zhen’s look:
ETUDE HOUSE Fixing Tint in Vintage Red or Cranberry Plum
Mrs. Chan never looks anything less than immaculate – as her landlady observes incredulously, “she goes out to pick up noodles dressed like that?!” Her coiffed hair, beautiful qipaos, and heels are topped off with a matte red lip that apparently never needs touch-ups – perhaps she uses ETUDE HOUSE’s Fixing Tint? This velvety lip product delivers high-intensity color in a smudge-proof formula that won’t dry out lips – perfect for looking put-together even in states of emotional turmoil.
TIRTIR Mask Fit Red Cushion SPF40 PA++
The best partner for a bold red lip is flawless skin. We think Mrs. Chan would be a fan of TIRTIR’s iconic cushion foundation – not only does it provide all-over coverage with a unique air-layered formula that minimizes facial oils and delivers a semi-matte finish, but the chic red compact would look perfectly at home in her ever-present handbag.
ETUDE HOUSE Zero Sebum Drying Powder
Complete your homage to Mrs. Chan’s impeccable look with ETUDE HOUSE’s Zero Sebum Drying Powder, a finely milled powder to absorb excess oils and prevent makeup from caking on the skin. Instantly removing shine and keeping sebum levels under control with Salix Alba and Silica, it is ideal for touch-ups throughout the day, or after a particularly gruelling re-enactment of your husband’s infidelity.