Emotionally devastating dramas that will leave you reaching for tissues.
Movies That Make You Cry — 56 entries in the movies category, sortable by Title, Year, Director. Every row is ranked by community votes, giving you a crowd-sourced perspective you won't find on Wikipedia or IMDb.
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A touching story of an Italian book seller of Jewish ancestry who lives in his own little fairy tale. His creative and happy life would come to an abrupt halt when his entire family is deported to a concentration camp during World War II. While locked up he tries to convince his son that the whol...
The Pianist
2002
Roman Polanski
8.4
Drama, War
France
150
The true story of pianist Władysław Szpilman's experiences in Warsaw during the Nazi occupation. When the Jews of the city find themselves forced into a ghetto, Szpilman finds work playing in a café; and when his family is deported in 1942, he stays behind, works for a while as a laborer, and eve...
Ikiru
1952
Akira Kurosawa
8.3
Drama
Japan
143
Kanji Watanabe is a middle-aged man who has worked in the same monotonous bureaucratic position for decades. Learning he has cancer, he starts to look for the meaning of his life.
I Want to Eat Your Pancreas
2018
Shinichiro Ushijima
8.2
Animation, Drama, Romance
Japan
108
After his classmate and crush is diagnosed with a pancreatic disease, an average high schooler sets out to make the most of her final days.
Requiem for a Dream
2000
Darren Aronofsky
8
Crime, Drama
United States of America
102
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island residents are shattered when their addictions run deep.
Million Dollar Baby
2004
Clint Eastwood
8
Drama
Switzerland
132
Despondent over a painful estrangement from his daughter, trainer Frankie Dunn isn't prepared for boxer Maggie Fitzgerald to enter his life. But Maggie's determined to go pro and to convince Dunn and his cohort to help her.
The Elephant Man
1980
David Lynch
8
Drama, History
United States of America
124
A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his "owner" as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deforme...
Inside Out
2015
Pete Docter
7.9
Animation, Family, Adventure, Drama, Comedy
United States of America
95
When 11-year-old Riley moves to a new city, her Emotions team up to help her through the transition. Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness work together, but when Joy and Sadness get lost, they must journey through unfamiliar places to get back home.
The Notebook
2004
Nick Cassavetes
7.9
Romance, Drama
United States of America
123
An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's. From a faded notebook, the old man's words bring to life the story about a couple who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately reunited, seven years later, after they have taken different pa...
La Strada
1954
Federico Fellini
7.9
Drama
Italy
115
When Gelsomina, a naïve young woman, is purchased from her impoverished mother by brutish circus strongman Zampanò to be his wife and partner, she loyally endures her husband's coldness and abuse as they travel the Italian countryside performing together. Soon Zampanò must deal with his jealousy ...
I'm Still Here
2024
Walter Salles
7.9
Drama, History
Brazil
138
A woman married to a former politician during the 1971 military dictatorship in Brazil is forced to reinvent herself and chart a new course for her family after a violent and arbitrary act.
The Whale
2022
Darren Aronofsky
7.8
Drama
United States of America
117
A reclusive English teacher suffering from severe obesity attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter for one last chance at redemption.
A Man
2022
Kei Ishikawa
7.8
Comedy, Drama
Japan
126
When a lively young family moves in next door, grumpy widower Otto Anderson meets his match in a quick-witted, pregnant woman named Marisol, leading to an unlikely friendship that turns his world upside down.
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring
2003
Kim Ki-duk
7.8
Drama
South Korea
103
An isolated lake, where an old monk lives in a small floating temple. The monk has a young boy living with him, learning to become a monk. We watch as seasons and years pass by.
Edward Scissorhands
1990
Tim Burton
7.7
Fantasy, Drama, Romance
United States of America
105
A small suburban town receives a visit from a castaway unfinished science experiment named Edward.
Platoon
1986
Oliver Stone
7.7
Drama, War, Action
United Kingdom
120
As a young and naive recruit in Vietnam, Chris Taylor faces a moral crisis when confronted with the horrors of war and the duality of man.
Philadelphia
1993
Jonathan Demme
7.7
Drama
United States of America
126
Two competing lawyers join forces to sue a prestigious law firm for AIDS discrimination. As their unlikely friendship develops, their courage overcomes the prejudice and corruption of their powerful adversaries.
Magnolia
1999
Paul Thomas Anderson
7.7
Drama
United States of America
189
On one random day in the San Fernando Valley, a dying father, a young wife, a male caretaker, a famous lost son, a police officer in love, a boy genius, an ex-boy genius, a game show host and an estranged daughter will each become part of a dazzling multiplicity of plots, but one story.
Seven Pounds
2008
Gabriele Muccino
7.6
Drama
United States of America
123
An IRS agent with a fateful secret embarks on an extraordinary journey of redemption by forever changing the lives of seven strangers.
Billy Elliot
2000
Stephen Daldry
7.6
Drama, Comedy, Music
France
111
County Durham, England, 1984. The miners' strike has started and the police have started coming up from Bethnal Green, starting a class war with the lower classes suffering. Caught in the middle of the conflict is 11-year old Billy Elliot, who, after leaving his boxing club for the day, stumbles ...
Sleepers
1996
Barry Levinson
7.6
Crime, Drama, Thriller
United States of America
147
Two gangsters seek revenge on the state jail worker who during their stay at a youth prison sexually abused them. A sensational court hearing takes place to charge him for the crimes.
The Holdovers
2023
Alexander Payne
7.6
Comedy, Drama
United States of America
133
A curmudgeonly instructor at a New England prep school is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually, he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker — and with the school’s head cook, who has jus...
Talk to Her
2002
Pedro Almodóvar
7.6
Drama, Romance
Spain
112
Two men share an odd friendship while they care for two women who are both in deep comas.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
2007
Julian Schnabel
7.6
Drama, History
France
112
Jean-Dominique Bauby, editor-in-chief of French fashion bible Elle magazine, has a devastating stroke at age 43. The damage to his brain stem results in locked-in syndrome, with which he is almost completely paralyzed and only able to communicate by blinking an eye. Bauby painstakingly dictates h...
Harold and Maude
1971
Hal Ashby
7.6
Comedy, Drama, Romance
United States of America
92
A deadpan young man obsessed with death meets an eccentric septuagenarian who teaches him to live life to the fullest.
Manchester by the Sea
2016
Kenneth Lonergan
7.5
Drama
United States of America
138
After his older brother passes away, Lee Chandler is forced to return home to care for his 16-year-old nephew. There he is compelled to deal with a tragic past that separated him from his family and the community where he was born and raised.
The Iron Claw
2023
Sean Durkin
7.5
History, Drama
United Kingdom
132
The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s. Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the bigges...
Breaking the Waves
1996
Lars von Trier
7.5
Drama, Romance
Denmark
159
In a small, conservative Scottish village, an oilman is paralyzed in an accident. His wife, who prayed for his return, feels guilty; even more, when he urges her to have sex with another.
Malena
2000
Giuseppe Tornatore
7.4
Drama
Italy
108
During WWII, a teenage boy discovering himself becomes love-stricken by Malèna, a sensual woman living in a small, narrow-minded Italian town.
Midnight Express
1978
Alan Parker
7.4
Drama, Crime
United Kingdom
121
Billy Hayes is caught attempting to smuggle drugs out of Turkey. The Turkish courts decide to make an example of him, sentencing him to more than 30 years in prison. Hayes has two opportunities for release: the appeals made by his lawyer, his family, and the American government, or the "Midnight ...
Jacob's Ladder
1990
Adrian Lyne
7.4
Drama, Mystery, Horror
United States of America
113
After returning home from the Vietnam War, veteran Jacob Singer struggles to maintain his sanity. Plagued by hallucinations and flashbacks, Singer rapidly falls apart as the world and people around him morph and twist into disturbing images. His girlfriend, Jezzie, and ex-wife, Sarah, try to help...
The Big Blue
1988
Luc Besson
7.4
Romance, Adventure, Drama
France
168
Childhood friends Jacques and Enzo share a passion for the danger of free diving. Professional diver Jacques opted to follow in the footsteps of his father, who died at sea when Jacques was a boy; to the bewilderment of scientists, Jacques harbors a remarkable ability to adjust his heart rate and...
Drive My Car
2021
Ryusuke Hamaguchi
7.4
Drama
Japan
179
Yusuke Kafuku, a stage actor and director, still unable, after two years, to cope with the loss of his beloved wife, accepts to direct Uncle Vanya at a theater festival in Hiroshima. There he meets Misaki, an introverted young woman, appointed to drive his car. In between rides, secrets from the ...
21 Grams
2003
Alejandro González Iñárritu
7.3
Drama, Crime, Thriller
United States of America
124
Paul Rivers, an ailing mathematician lovelessly married to an English émigré; Christina Peck, an upper-middle-class suburban housewife and mother of two girls; and Jack Jordan, a born-again ex-con, are brought together by a terrible accident that changes their lives.
The Big Sick
2017
Michael Showalter
7.3
Comedy, Drama, Romance
United States of America
120
Pakistan-born comedian Kumail Nanjiani and grad student Emily Gardner fall in love but struggle as their cultures clash. When Emily contracts a mysterious illness, Kumail finds himself forced to face her feisty parents, his family's expectations, and his true feelings.
25th Hour
2002
Spike Lee
7.3
Crime, Drama
United States of America
135
On the eve of a seven-year prison sentence, a New York drug dealer spends his final day of freedom confronting his past, his relationships, and the choices that led to his downfall in a city still reeling from 9/11.
Stranger Than Fiction
2006
Marc Forster
7.3
Drama, Comedy, Romance, Fantasy
United Kingdom
113
Harold Crick is a lonely IRS agent whose mundane existence is transformed when he hears a mysterious voice narrating his life.
Philomena
2013
Stephen Frears
7.3
Drama
United Kingdom
98
A woman searches for her adult son, who was taken away from her decades ago when she was forced to live in a convent.
A Single Man
2009
Tom Ford
7.3
Drama, Romance
United States of America
100
Set in Los Angeles in 1962, at the height of the Cuban missile crisis, is the story of a British college professor who dwells on the past and cannot see his future. We follow him through a single day, where a series of events and encounters ultimately lead him to decide if there is a meaning to l...
Collateral Beauty
2016
David Frankel
7.2
Drama, Romance
United States of America
97
Retreating from life after a tragedy, a man questions the universe by writing to Love, Time and Death. Receiving unexpected answers, he begins to see how these things interlock and how even loss can reveal moments of meaning and beauty.
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This dataset contains 56 entries, each with multiple sortable, filterable columns. The full table is visible on this page and can be downloaded as a CSV, JSON, or Excel file.
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