Love triangles in movies are nothing new, and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is certainly no exception.
In the latest installment of the popular franchise, we see the further development—and the increased drama—of the relationships between Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) and Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth).
And so, after watching the sequel, as thousands of others clearly did over the weekend, it got us thinking about some other relatively recent flicks in which a third party can often create complications.
1. My Best Friend's Wedding: This 1997 romantic comedy found Julia Roberts' Julianne trying to sabotage the nuptials of her, well, best friend Michael (Dermot Mulroney) to Kimmy (Cameron Diaz) after realizing her true feelings for him. The moral of the story? Never make an agreement with someone saying that you'll marry each other if neither of you has found that special someone by the time you turn a certain age. You're just askin' for trouble.
2. Bridget Jones' Diary: In one corner, Hugh Grant's caddish Daniel Cleaver. In the other, Colin Firth's Mr. Nice Guy Mark Darcy. And in the middle is Renée Zellweger's title character caught between the two. Of course, Firth had us the moment we saw him pull off that rarest of feats—wearing a Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas turtleneck sweater.
3. The Twilight Saga: Ah, young love. As it is, it can be hard enough. But if you're Bella Swan (Kirsten Stewart), and you have to choose between a hunky werewolf (Taylor Lautner) and a sparkly vampire (Robert Pattinson), that definitely doesn't make it any easier.
4. Titanic: OK, seriously. Who really thought Cal (Billy Zane) would ever be able to hold on to fiancée Rose (Kate Winslet) once Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) entered the picture? Yep. No sinking feeling here. (Aside from the actual ship, of course.)
5. Pretty in Pink: Here's a love triangle that could have gone either way. And actually it did. After all, the original ending for John Hughes' 1986 classic had best pals Andie (Molly Ringwald) and Duckie (Jon Cryer) winding up together at the prom, much to the dismay of test audiences. As a result, the final scene was reshot, with Duckie telling Andie that Blane (Andrew McCarthy) isn't like the other "richie" kids and to go after him, which of course, she does. Awww, we could all use a friend like the Duckman.