Christine Giordano
When in doubt, cry it out. You’ve had a tough work week, you scrolled through the doomsday news cycle and everything looks bleak, you’re nursing a throbbing heartbreak, or you just need a good sob. Whatever the reason, a big, cathartic cry can make you feel better. It’s true—researchers have shown that crying releases oxytocin and endogenous opioids (a.k.a. endorphins), the feel-good chemicals that help ease emotional and physical pain, according to Harvard Medical School. And when you need that very specific type of release, there’s no better way to stir up a fresh set of tears than a sad movie—so, cue these tear-jerkers.
If you’re one of those people who love getting emotionally destroyed by movies, you’ve come to the right place. Maybe you absolutely lose it over movies with animals (and inevitably, their death) like Marley and Me, or bawl like a baby through sappy, dramatic Titanic-esque romance flicks. You could be a purist and go straight for the jugular with My Sister’s Keeper and Sophie’s Choice. Or let the silent, stricken sorrow of films rooted in reality unravel you *cough*The Florida Project *cough*.
Grab some tissues or not (skincare by YourTears™), get your emotional support blanket, and let yourself feel all the feels with these 40 best sad movies.
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Based on James Baldwin’s 1974 novel of the same name, If Beale Street Could Talk is a love story set in 1970s Harlem about love, family, and injustice. Your heart will flutter and ache for these young lovers trying to make it in a world that does not love them back. Prepare for the type of sad that weighs in your soul and sets off silent streams of tears.
Two teenagers, both battling cystic fibrosis, meet in the hospital and fall in love, despite strict restrictions to keep a safe distance between each other. With a premise like that, Five Feet Apart is an automatic tear-jerker. But it’s also a beautiful drama about experiencing first love and navigating the unknowns and uncertainties of life.
The Last Song is the greatest love story to come out of Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth’s marriage. Seriously, if you searched “how to make someone cry,” this movie would come up first.
It’s impossible not to tear up watching this story about the unconditional love between humans and dogs. I remember seeing this when it came out, and I had to leave the theater for a quick sec because I was so distraught (complete breakdown, uncontrollable sobs, etc.).
Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson play a stage director and his actor wife, struggling through a grueling divorce. Their performances are next-level, depicting the grief, anger, and devastation of breaking up a family. Tissues are a necessity, not a recommendation.
There’s something about children’s movies that rattle adults to their core. Inside Out might be an animated film, but its message of learning to embrace the wholeness of ourselves and giving ourselves permission to feel everything is all too real. You’ll sit in silence with tears streaming down your face for a bit after this one.
A beautiful film about romantic melancholy and loss, maturation and self-discovery, erotic exploration and first love between two young men, Call Me by Your Name captures intimacy in all its forms and pulls at your heartstrings.
Sophie’s Choice won Meryl Streep her first Academy Award for Best Actress as a Holocaust survivor and mother forced to make unimaginable decisions. It’s deeply moving, heartbreaking, and transformative. There aren’t enough tears to cover the emotional heft of this film.
There’s romance, and then there’s Nicholas Sparks. Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams star in this whirlwind of a love story that hits HARD.
Will Smith stars in this touching story about a struggling single father and son who get evicted from their apartment and are forced to live in shelters. Despite various obstacles, he refuses to give into despair as he works to create a better life for himself and his son.
Ready the tissues for this classic film about young love with iconic scene after iconic scene. It’s based on the true story of the 1912 RMS Titanic shipwreck, but the fictional rich girl/poor boy romance between Jack and Rose has wrecked audiences for more than 20 years.
Set in 1935 England, two young lovers are torn apart by a lie constructed by a jealous younger sister. Atonement is betrayal, longing, and loss tied up in one devastating romance. Tear level: 10.
After the death of his older brother, a janitor from Boston returns to his hometown of Manchester-by-the-Sea to take care of his late brother’s teenage son, and is forced to face his broken past. A film about the heavy burden of grief, loss, and guilt, it’s a painful, yet powerful movie.
A young woman takes on the job as caretaker of a wealthy young man who is paralyzed from a previous accident. His cynical outlook begins to change when she shows him the beauty of life.
Prepare for another tear jerker, courtesy of Pixar. A young boy opens the world back up to a lonely old man who lost the love of his life. This animated movie hits all the real emotions, hard.
This coming-of-age story follows a six-year-old girl living with her unemployed, single mother in Magic Castle, a motel in Florida right outside Walt Disney World. The realities of impending homelessness, poverty, and desperation are a stark contrast to the dream-like world of Magic Kingdom. A raw portrait of childhood, The Florida Project is heartbreaking.
A man shields his son from the horrors of the Holocaust with his stories, imagination, and humor. The Italian film captures the strength of the human spirit—and the power of love in the midst of war and hate.
Forever a classic, Forrest Gump will run into your hearts and stay there. Played by Tom Hanks, Forrest may be different, but his love and selflessness leave a monumental impact everywhere he goes.
Adapted from John Greene’s famous novel, two teens fall in love while fighting cancer in this drama. The movie not just pulls, but drags your heartstrings and makes a hurricane of your tears.
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal play two cowboys who fall in love while working as sheep herders. Brokeback Mountain follows the tortured and tumultuous love affair between two men who can’t afford to call it that.
In this biographical drama, the life of mathematical genius John Forbes Nash Jr. takes an unexpected, painful turn. Russell Crowe gives an extraordinary performance portraying the depths of mental illness.
If you’re searching for a beginning-to-end, non-stop waterfalls of tears type of movie, look no further. My Sister’s Keeper makes me weep just thinking about the unthinkable choices each character is forced to make.
When a determined female boxer enlists the help of a guarded trainer, both broken individuals form an unbreakable bond. A movie about the relationships that save us, Million Dollar Baby hits hard.
When I think of true love, Oliver and Jenny come to mind. The epic love story follows a young woman and young man from different backgrounds who fall in love at first sight. But their instant connection is tested by the obstacles and sacrifices in life.
In this cult-favorite classic, the great Robin Williams plays an English teacher at an intense prep school who helps his students embrace their true selves.
The fact that this is based off of the real life love story between Pakistani comic Kumail Nanjiani (who plays himself in the film) and American grad student Emily Gordon (his real-life wife) makes this even more of a heartwarming tale.
Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio team up again in this 1950s-era drama as a couple attempting to deal with their personal problems, while desperate to escape the conventional mold of suburbia.
A six-year-old girl relies on her imagination to survive a storm all alone in the deep Louisiana bayou. The strength and wisdom from such a small human is as powerful as it is poignant.
An animated movie about death that triggers water works in adults yet delightfully entertains children, Coco is a moving story about the importance of family and honoring the memory of those who are no longer with us.
Sixteen-year-old Calireece “Precious” Jones gets impregnated by her father for a second time, is abused by her mother, and cannot read or write. But she’s determined to create a better life for herself. Precious follows the journey of a young woman from oppression to empowerment.
A young girl’s spirit comes back to guide her loved ones in discovering the truth of her murder, as they grapple with loss, tragedy, and self-blame. The whole movie is tinged in sadness and horror.
Based on the true story of Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved over a thousand Jews from concentration camps by employing them at his factory during World War II, Schindler’s List is one of the greatest Holocaust films of all time.
Lady Gaga stuns as Ally, a singer with dreams of making it big time, but soon learns that fame comes with a price. Her chemistry with Bradley Cooper will make you swoon, but that ending will make you sob.
Meryl Streep delivers an Oscar-winning performance as a wife and mother who leaves her husband and child. Dustin Hoffman also gives us some stellar acting with his intimate portrayal of a heartbroken father. Utterly devastating, Kramer Vs Kramer captures the raw pain of divorce.
Inspired by the tragic death of Oscar Grant, a young man killed in 2009 by a BART police officer at the Fruitvale station in Oakland, Fruitvale Station is a powerful film about police brutality, violence, and race.
Get swept up in this passionate love affair between a badly burned man and his nurse near the end of World War II.
Few movies shed light on the profound grief and emotional trauma of losing a newborn. Pieces of a Woman captures the unsurmountable weight of such an experience.
A Netflix original, To The Bone follows a young woman (played by Lily Collins) as she battles a severe eating disorder. Your eyes will swell while watching such a close-up, raw look into the inner workings of this very real mental and physical illness.
Matthew McConaughey won Best Actor in his Oscar-winning performance as Ron Woodroof, a man in 1980s Texas who is diagnosed with AIDS and told that he has just 30 days left to live. The film tells a powerful, moving story about the AIDs epidemic and the failure of the medical establishment to approve treatment and drugs that could have saved so many.
Set during one of the darkest periods in our country’s history, this movie captures the brutality, violence, and inhumanity of slavery. It’s a phenomenal, harrowing film that will undo you. Sad doesn’t begin to cover it.
Hunter Levitan is a freelance journalist specializing in fashion, style, culture, sex, and wellness stories, as well as a writer/poet, photographer, and mixed media brand consultant.
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