The Saddest Movies Ever
Note that this list is entirely opinion based and in no particular order. KEEP IN MIND THAT SOME FILMS ON THIS LIST ARE EXTREMELY UPSETTING AND VIOLENT AND MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE FOR YOUNGER VIEWERS. Some of these are also made for TV rather than feature films, and a couple were released as 2-parters.
There is more than one page of films making up this list, so if a title you're looking for appears to be missing, check the 2nd page ahead for it.
*UPDATES:
Wow, this list is getting popular? Who'd have thought?
Here is a separate list for sad ANIMATED FILMS (it's a work in progress, that one): https://www.imdb.com/list/ls091677836/
There is more than one page of films making up this list, so if a title you're looking for appears to be missing, check the 2nd page ahead for it.
*UPDATES:
Wow, this list is getting popular? Who'd have thought?
Here is a separate list for sad ANIMATED FILMS (it's a work in progress, that one): https://www.imdb.com/list/ls091677836/
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- DirectorIsabel CoixetStarsSarah PolleyScott SpeedmanMark RuffaloA young woman conceals the fact of her terminal cancer to live her life with a passion she never had before.
- DirectorRichard GlatzerWash WestmorelandStarsJulianne MooreAlec BaldwinKristen StewartA linguistics professor and her family find their bonds tested when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease.
- DirectorNick WernhamStarsLarenz TateSarah CarterJulian De ZottiA young, ambitious businessman gradually loses his friends - and his soul - as he tries to keep his elaborate Ponzi scheme afloat with acts of fraud, deception and even murder.
- DirectorAntonio CamposStarsRebecca HallMichael C. HallTracy LettsThe story of Christine Chubbuck, a 1970s TV reporter struggling with depression and professional frustrations as she tries to advance her career.
- DirectorJohn GuillerminStarsPaul NewmanSteve McQueenWilliam HoldenAt the opening party of a colossal, but poorly constructed, office building, a massive fire breaks out that threatens to destroy the tower and everyone in it.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsLiam NeesonRalph FiennesBen KingsleyIn German-occupied Poland during World War II, industrialist Oskar Schindler gradually becomes concerned for his Jewish workforce after witnessing their persecution by the Nazis.
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsRachel WeiszMark WahlbergSaoirse RonanCenters on a young girl who has been murdered and watches over her family - and her killer - from purgatory. She must weigh her desire for vengeance against her desire for her family to heal.
- DirectorSteven SoderberghStarsJesse BradfordJeroen KrabbéLisa EichhornA young boy struggles on his own in a run-down hotel after his parents and younger brother are separated from him in 1930s Depression-era Midwest.
- DirectorFrank DarabontStarsTom HanksMichael Clarke DuncanDavid MorseA tale set on death row, where gentle giant John Coffey possesses the mysterious power to heal people's ailments. When the lead guard, Paul Edgecombe, recognizes John's gift, he tries to help stave off the condemned man's execution.
- DirectorBrian PercivalStarsSophie NélisseGeoffrey RushEmily WatsonWhile subjected to the horrors of World War II Germany, young Liesel finds solace by stealing books and sharing them with others. In the basement of her home, a Jewish refugee is being protected by her adoptive parents.
- DirectorGuy MosheStarsRon LivingstonChris PennUdo KierIn Cambodia, Holly, a 12 year old Vietnamese girl, encounters Patrick, an American stolen artifacts dealer. The story follows their strong connection and her unrelenting efforts to escape her fate.
- DirectorMike NicholsStarsMeryl StreepKurt RussellCherA worker at a plutonium processing plant is purposefully contaminated, psychologically tortured and possibly murdered to prevent her from exposing worker safety violations at the plant.
- DirectorHoward ZieffStarsAnna ChlumskyMacaulay CulkinDan AykroydVada is obsessed with death. Her mother is dead, and her father runs a funeral parlor. When Vada's father hires Shelly, a makeup expert, and begins to fall in love, Vada is outraged and does everything in her power to split them up.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsKevin KlineJoan AllenSigourney WeaverIn suburban New Canaan, Connecticut, 1973, middle-class families experimenting with casual sex and substance abuse find their lives beyond their control.
- DirectorPeter BogdanovichStarsCherEric StoltzSam ElliottA teenager with a massive facial skull deformity and biker gang mother attempt to live as normal a life as possible under the circumstances.
- DirectorTim BurtonStarsJohnny DeppWinona RyderDianne WiestThe solitary life of an artificial man - who was incompletely constructed and has scissors for hands - is upended when he is taken in by a suburban family.
- DirectorLynne LittmanStarsJane AlexanderWilliam DevaneRossie HarrisThe life of a suburban American family is scarred after a nuclear attack.
- DirectorMikael HåfströmStarsJohn CusackSamuel L. JacksonMary McCormackA man who specialises in debunking paranormal occurrences checks into the fabled room 1408 in the Dolphin Hotel. Soon after settling in, he confronts genuine terror.
- DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsMatthew McConaugheySandra BullockSamuel L. JacksonIn Canton, Mississippi, a fearless young lawyer and his assistant defend a black man accused of murdering two white men who raped his ten-year-old daughter, inciting violent retribution and revenge from the Ku Klux Klan.
- DirectorScott McGeheeDavid SiegelStarsJulianne MooreAlexander SkarsgårdSteve CooganIn New York City, a young girl is caught in the middle of her parents' bitter custody battle.
- DirectorOliver StoneStarsNicolas CageMichael PeñaMaria BelloTwo Port Authority police officers become trapped under the rubble of the World Trade Center.
- DirectorMark HermanStarsAsa ButterfieldDavid ThewlisRupert FriendThrough the innocent eyes of Bruno, the eight-year-old son of the commandant at a German concentration camp, a forbidden friendship with a Jewish boy on the other side of the camp fence has startling and unexpected consequences.
- DirectorDarren AronofskyStarsEllen BurstynJared LetoJennifer ConnellyThe drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island people are shattered when their addictions run deep..
- DirectorMichael SwitzerStarsRichard ThomasBrooke ShieldsViveka DavisA young beautiful computer technician starting off her career in Silicon Valley during the 1980s is stalked and harassed by a deranged colleague with a twisted obsession.
- DirectorRyan MurphyStarsMark RuffaloJonathan GroffFrank De JulioIn the early 1980s, the onset of the HIV-AIDS crisis in New York led to an emergence of homosexual activists. With support from the medical community, they try to raise awareness about the disease.
- DirectorMimi LederStarsKevin SpaceyHaley Joel OsmentHelen HuntA young boy attempts to make the world a better place after his teacher gives him that chance.
- DirectorGus Van SantStarsSean PennJosh BrolinEmile HirschThe story of American gay activist Harvey Milk, who fought for gay rights and was elected as California's first openly gay official.
- DirectorBernard RoseStarsCharlotte BurkeJane BertishSamantha CahillA young girl lost in the loneliness and boredom of reality finds solace in an ill boy, whom she can visit in a surreal dream world that she drew in her school composition book.
- DirectorTony KayeStarsEdward NortonEdward FurlongBeverly D'AngeloLiving a life marked by violence, neo-Nazi Derek finally goes to prison after killing two black youths. Upon his release, Derek vows to change; he hopes to prevent his brother, Danny, who idolizes Derek, from following in his footsteps.
- DirectorBarry JenkinsStarsMahershala AliNaomie HarrisTrevante RhodesA young African-American man grapples with his identity and sexuality while experiencing the everyday struggles of childhood, adolescence, and burgeoning adulthood.
- DirectorJonathan DemmeStarsTom HanksDenzel WashingtonRoberta MaxwellWhen a man with HIV is fired by his law firm because of his condition, he hires a homophobic-small time lawyer as the only willing advocate for a wrongful dismissal suit.
- DirectorJ.A. BayonaStarsLewis MacDougallSigourney WeaverFelicity JonesConor, a twelve-year-old boy, encounters an ancient tree monster who proceeds to help him cope with his mother's terminal illness and being bullied in school.
- DirectorMark RomanekStarsRobin WilliamsConnie NielsenMichael VartanA mentally unstable photo developer targets an upper middle-class family after his obsession with them becomes more sick and disturbing than any of them could imagine.
- DirectorJosh BooneStarsShailene WoodleyAnsel ElgortNat WolffHazel and Gus are teenagers who meet at a cancer support group and fall in love. They both share the same acerbic wit and a love of books, especially "An Imperial Affliction", so they embark on a journey to visit an author in Amsterdam.
- DirectorZach HelmStarsNatalie PortmanDustin HoffmanJason BatemanThe young apprentice of a magical, eccentric toy store owner learns to believe in herself, and in her friends, upon learning some grave news about the future.
- DirectorJ.J. AbramsStarsElle FanningAJ MichalkaKyle ChandlerDuring the summer of 1979, a group of friends witness a train crash and investigate subsequent unexplained events in their small town.
- DirectorDavid S. GoyerStarsJustin ChatwinMargarita LevievaMarcia Gay HardenA teenager is left invisible to the living after an attack.
- DirectorGus Van SantStarsMia WasikowskaHenry HopperRyô KaseThe story of a terminally ill teenage girl who falls for a boy who likes to attend funerals and their encounters with the ghost of a Japanese kamikaze pilot from WWII.
- DirectorGabor CsupoStarsJosh HutchersonAnnaSophia RobbZooey DeschanelA preteen's life turns upside down when he befriends the new girl in school and they imagine a whole new fantasy world to escape reality.
- DirectorRob ReinerStarsWil WheatonRiver PhoenixCorey FeldmanA writer recounts a childhood journey with his friends to find the body of a missing boy.
- DirectorPeter HortonStarsJoseph MazzelloBrad RenfroAeryk EganErik, a loner, finds a friend in Dexter, an eleven-year-old boy with AIDS. They vow to find a cure for AIDS together and save Dexter's life in an eventful summer.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsTom HanksRobin WrightGary SiniseThe history of the United States from the 1950s to the '70s unfolds from the perspective of an Alabama man with an IQ of 75, who yearns to be reunited with his childhood sweetheart.
- DirectorNicole KassellStarsKevin BaconKyra SedgwickYasiin BeyA child molester returns to his hometown after 12 years in prison and attempts to start a new life.
- DirectorGabriele MuccinoStarsWill SmithThandiwe NewtonJaden SmithA struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsAnthony HopkinsJohn HurtAnne BancroftA Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man who is mistreated while scraping a living as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of kindness, intelligence and sophistication.
- DirectorMichel GondryStarsJim CarreyKate WinsletTom WilkinsonWhen their relationship turns sour, a couple undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories forever.
- DirectorStephen DaldryStarsThomas HornTom HanksSandra BullockA nine-year-old amateur inventor, Francophile, and pacifist searches New York City for the lock that matches a mysterious key left behind by his father, who died in the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
- DirectorGabriele MuccinoStarsWill SmithRosario DawsonWoody HarrelsonA man with a fateful secret embarks on an extraordinary journey of redemption by forever changing the lives of seven strangers.
- DirectorStephen GyllenhaalStarsTalitha Eliana BatemanAlfre WoodardJohn HeardA young girl named Heidi, who lives with her mentally disabled mother, travels across the country to find out about her and her mother's past.
- DirectorTravis FineStarsMelissa LeoAnthony KeyvanBrad William HenkeA cynical, alcoholic flight attendant and a Pakistani-American child prodigy find themselves both thrown together in the aftermath of the World Trade Center Attacks.
- DirectorTim BurtonStarsEwan McGregorAlbert FinneyBilly CrudupA frustrated son tries to determine the fact from fiction in his dying father's life.
- DirectorAlexander PayneStarsJack NicholsonHope DavisDermot MulroneyA recently retired man embarks on a journey to his estranged daughter's wedding, only to discover more about himself and life than he ever expected.
- DirectorColin FinbowStarsSusannah YorkBert ParnabyArnaud MorellA young boy living in a large house with his sisters is subjected to very frightening phenomena and doubts about who he is after his scriptures teacher discusses black magic in the classroom.
- DirectorEric SmallStarsHayden PanettiereRyan KelleyArmin Mueller-StahlThe Dust Factory is an adventure about the love and friendship between two teenagers who help each other through a difficult time in their lives.
- DirectorDon TaylorStarsRichard HarrisJodie FosterLois NettletonA couple whose daughter has a life-threatening heart condition decides to make her last days of life as meaningful for her as possible by taking her to the Canadian province of Nova Scotia.
- DirectorBoaz YakinStarsThomas Haden ChurchJosh WigginsLuke KleintankA military dog that helped American Marines in Afghanistan returns to the United States and is adopted by his handler's family after suffering a traumatic experience.
- DirectorLee DanielsStarsGabourey SidibeMo'NiquePaula PattonIn New York City's Harlem circa 1987, an overweight, abused, illiterate teen who is pregnant with her second child is invited to enroll in an alternative school in hopes that she can re-route her life in a better direction.
- DirectorKenneth LonerganStarsCasey AffleckMichelle WilliamsKyle ChandlerA depressed uncle is asked to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies.
- DirectorNick CassavetesStarsCameron DiazAbigail BreslinAlec BaldwinAnna Fitzgerald looks to earn medical emancipation from her parents who until now have relied on their youngest child to help their leukemia-stricken daughter Kate remain alive.
- DirectorMark RomanekStarsKeira KnightleyCarey MulliganAndrew GarfieldThe lives of three friends, from their early school days into young adulthood, when the reality of the world they live in comes knocking.
- DirectorRodrigo GarcíaStarsAnne HathawayPatrick WilsonDavid MorseA grief counselor working with a group of plane-crash survivors finds herself at the root of a mystery when her clients begin to disappear.
- DirectorRoland JofféStarsSam WaterstonHaing S. NgorJohn MalkovichA journalist is trapped in Cambodia during tyrant Pol Pot's bloody 'Year Zero' cleansing campaign, which claimed the lives of two million 'undesirable' civilians.
- DirectorKimberly PeirceStarsHilary SwankChloë SevignyPeter SarsgaardA young man named Brandon Teena navigates love, life, and being transgender in rural Nebraska.
- DirectorPeter WeirStarsMel GibsonSigourney WeaverLinda HuntA young Australian reporter tries to navigate the political turmoil of Indonesia during the rule of President Sukarno with the help of a diminutive photographer.
- DirectorMilos FormanStarsJack NicholsonLouise FletcherMichael BerrymanIn the Fall of 1963, a Korean War veteran and criminal pleads insanity and is admitted to a mental institution, where he rallies up the scared patients against the tyrannical nurse.
- DirectorAnthony FriedmanStarsPaul ScofieldJohn McEneryThorley WaltersAn asocial and enigmatic office clerk refuses to do his work, leaving it up to his boss to decide what should be done with him.
- DirectorMichael AlmereydaStarsHarry Dean StantonSuzy AmisCrispin GloverDelusional and spoiled Maureen and her eccentric brother Howdy decide to track down and meet their estranged mother, all while the drama of dysfunctional relationships, disastrous weather conditions and a dark family secret ensue.
- DirectorTom ShadyacStarsRobin WilliamsDaniel LondonMonica PotterThe true story of a heroic man, Hunter "Patch" Adams, determined to become a medical doctor because he enjoys helping people. He ventured where no doctor had ventured before, using humour and pathos.
- DirectorJean-Marc ValléeStarsMatthew McConaugheyJennifer GarnerJared LetoIn 1985 Dallas, electrician and hustler Ron Woodroof works around the system to help AIDS patients get the medication they need after he is diagnosed with the disease.
- DirectorAllen CoulterStarsRobert PattinsonEmilie de RavinCaitlyn RundA romantic drama centred on two new lovers: Tyler, whose parents have split in the wake of his brother's suicide, and Ally, who lives each day to the fullest since witnessing her mother's murder.
- DirectorFrank DarabontStarsThomas JaneMarcia Gay HardenLaurie HoldenA freak storm unleashes a species of bloodthirsty creatures on a small town, where a small band of citizens hole up in a supermarket and fight for their lives.
- DirectorDaniel BarnzStarsElle FanningPatricia ClarksonFelicity HuffmanConfounded by her clashes with the seemingly rule-obsessed world, a troubled young girl seeks enlightenment from her unconventional drama teacher.
- DirectorMary LambertStarsDale MidkiffDenise CrosbyFred GwynneAfter tragedy strikes, a grieving father discovers an ancient burial ground behind his home with the power to raise the dead.
- DirectorKire PaputtsStarsJulian RichingsNicholas CampbellJordan Johnson-HindsEugene, a young man with Down Syndrome, embarks on the journey of a lifetime: he's going to find the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and save the day.
- StarsBen KingsleyHannah Taylor GordonBrenda BlethynThe life of Anne Frank and her family from 1939 to 1945: pre-war fears, invasion of Netherlands by German troops, hiding in Amsterdam, deportation to the camps, return of Anne's father.
- DirectorBrad AndersonStarsDavid CarusoStephen GevedonPaul GuilfoyleTensions rise within an asbestos cleaning crew as they work in an abandoned mental hospital with a horrific past that seems to be coming back.
- DirectorPeter BergStarsMark WahlbergMichelle MonaghanJ.K. SimmonsThe story of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing and the aftermath, which includes the city-wide manhunt to find the terrorists responsible.
- DirectorRichard AttenboroughStarsAnthony HopkinsAnn-MargretBurgess MeredithA ventriloquist is at the mercy of his vicious dummy while he tries to renew a romance with his high school sweetheart.
- DirectorJames MangoldStarsWinona RyderAngelina JolieClea DuVallA directionless teenager, Susanna, is rushed to Claymoore, a mental institution, after a supposed suicide attempt. There, she befriends a group of troubled women who deeply influence her life.
- DirectorJessie NelsonStarsSean PennMichelle PfeifferDakota FanningAn intellectually disabled man fights for custody of his 7-year-old daughter and in the process teaches his cold-hearted lawyer the value of love and family.
- DirectorWilliam PhillipsStarsDavid HewlettAaron AshmoreClé BennettAn advertising executive, trapped in a tree by a gang of would-be muggers, manipulates them into fighting to save his life.
- DirectorVincent WardStarsRobin WilliamsCuba Gooding Jr.Annabella SciorraChris Nielsen dies in an accident, and enters Heaven. But when he discovers that his beloved wife Annie has killed herself out of grief over the loss, he embarks on an afterlife adventure to reunite with her.
- DirectorChris ColumbusStarsRobin WilliamsEmbeth DavidtzSam NeillAn android endeavors to become human as he gradually acquires emotions.
- DirectorRobert WiseStarsAnthony HopkinsMarsha MasonJohn BeckA stranger attempts to convince a happily married couple that their daughter is actually his daughter reincarnated.
- DirectorFranco ZeffirelliStarsJon VoightFaye DunawayRicky SchroderBilly Flynn is an ex-champion boxer who was KO'd by booze and gambling. When the wealthy, estranged mother of his young son begins trying to lure the boy away from him, Flynn must return to the ring to provide for his child.
- DirectorRobert RedfordStarsDonald SutherlandMary Tyler MooreJudd HirschThe accidental death of the older son of an affluent family deeply strains the relationships among the bitter mother, the good-natured father and the guilt-ridden younger son.
- DirectorRichard KellyStarsJake GyllenhaalJena MaloneMary McDonnellAfter narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a man in a large rabbit suit who manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsSissy SpacekPiper LaurieAmy IrvingCarrie White, a shy, friendless teenage girl who is sheltered by her domineering, religious mother, unleashes her telekinetic powers after being humiliated by her classmates at her senior prom.
- DirectorNicholas MeyerStarsJason RobardsJoBeth WilliamsSteve GuttenbergThe effects of a devastating nuclear holocaust on small-town residents of eastern Kansas.
- DirectorLloyd KramerStarsJon VoightEllen BurstynJeff DanielsAn elderly amusement park maintenance man, Eddie, is trapped in purgatory and the only way out is to confront five people from his past. Unfortunately, dark secrets from his service in the Philippines begin to haunt him.
- DirectorAnna JusticeStarsAlice DwyerMateusz DamieckiDagmar ManzelA Polish man rescues a Jewish woman during the chaos of WWII, but they become separated until a chance encounter over 30 years later in New York reunites them.
- DirectorDanny LeinerStarsMaggie GyllenhaalSeth GilliamJim ParsonsThe Great New Wonderful weaves five stories against the backdrop of an anxious and uncertain post-9-11 New York City.
- DirectorMarc WebbStarsChris EvansMckenna GraceLindsay DuncanFrank, a single man raising his child prodigy niece Mary, is drawn into a custody battle with his mother.
- DirectorRobert AldrichStarsBette DavisJoan CrawfordVictor BuonoA former child star torments her paraplegic sister in their decaying Hollywood mansion.
- DirectorArto ParagamianStarsJohn TurturroOleg KisseliovKatherine BorowitzA paleontologist is diagnosed with a fatal brain disease and, rather than falling into a depression, explodes into life.
- DirectorVanessa PariseStarsFreddie Prinze Jr.Taryn ManningPeter StebbingsJack is a N.Y.C. advertising executive with a life as glossy as the commercials he spins. Jill is new to the city, with nothing to stand on but her fiery personality and romantic ideals. Opposites attract, and together they author their own manifesto of "rules to live by." But Jill betrays Jack by violating rule one - Be Honest.
- DirectorDavid FrankelStarsOwen WilsonJennifer AnistonEric DaneA family learns important life lessons from their adorable, but naughty and neurotic dog.
- DirectorDarren AronofskyStarsNatalie PortmanMila KunisVincent CasselNina is a talented but unstable ballerina on the verge of stardom. Pushed to the breaking point by her artistic director and a seductive rival, Nina's grip on reality slips, plunging her into a waking nightmare.
- DirectorOliver StoneStarsJames WoodsJim BelushiMichael MurphyA burnt-out photojournalist becomes involved in a Central American revolution.
- DirectorJames IvoryStarsAnthony HopkinsEmma ThompsonJohn HaycraftA butler who sacrificed body and soul to service in the years leading up to World War II realizes too late how misguided his loyalty was to his lordly employer.