films that hurt me
by gabriel-milon | created - 06 Aug 2014 | updated - 15 Sep 2014 | PublicThis is a list of films that I have seen in my 20 years of existence on this confusing planet that have hurt me... But in the best way possible. They have all made me feel something very strongly. Whether they have made me feel more alive, more in touch with who I am, help me see the world with a little more clarity or just simply made me cry.
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1. Brother Sun, Sister Moon (1972)
PG | 121 min | Biography, Drama, History
Dramatization of events in the life of St. Francis of Assisi from before his conversion experience through his audience with the pope, including his friendship with St. Clare.
Director: Franco Zeffirelli | Stars: Graham Faulkner, Judi Bowker, Leigh Lawson, Kenneth Cranham
Votes: 4,946
Makes me want to cast off all material possessions and become a missionary again. So powerful, so tender and so beautiful.
2. Blood Diamond (2006)
R | 143 min | Adventure, Drama, Thriller
A fisherman, a smuggler, and a syndicate of businessmen match wits over the possession of a priceless diamond.
Director: Edward Zwick | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou, Jennifer Connelly, Kagiso Kuypers
Votes: 585,894 | Gross: $57.37M
While I was living in Ghana I watched this film and I connected with the subject matter instantly. I cried at so many places in this film. I'm pretty sure it was the first film that made me cry (13yrs). It stuck with me all my life, so much so that I have seen it 5 times in total.
A beautiful heartbreaking film.
3. Titanic (1997)
PG-13 | 194 min | Drama, Romance
A seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.
Director: James Cameron | Stars: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates
Votes: 1,279,908 | Gross: $659.33M
Saw this film when I was 7 in a hotel in Paris before flying to South Africa with my mother and sister but I had leave the room when the sinking bit happens and I remember listening to the screams of the passengers. Saw it again a couple years later in its entirety and it made me cry so much. Ever since then it's been my favorite romance film.
A soul-torture of a film.
4. The Prince of Egypt (1998)
PG | 99 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
Egyptian Prince Moses learns of his identity as a Hebrew and his destiny to become the chosen deliverer of his people.
Directors: Brenda Chapman, Steve Hickner, Simon Wells | Stars: Val Kilmer, Ralph Fiennes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Sandra Bullock
Votes: 146,291 | Gross: $101.22M
I got nightmares from this film because of the babies being killed and then watched it when I was older and it has stuck with me forever. Forever in love with the soundtrack and the film as a whole. Always reduces me to tears without fail.
The power of the human spirit in overcoming oppression.
5. Jesus (1999)
TV-PG | 77 min | Biography, Drama, History
A movie about the life, work and death of Jesus as we know it from the Bible.
Stars: Jeremy Sisto, Debra Messing, Jacqueline Bisset, Gary Oldman
Votes: 3,259
What can I say? This film is the basis of my religious upbringing. I am not a Christian anymore but I still feel the power of it and the part when Mary holds Jesus in her arms after he's been taken off the cross and Pie Jesu plays. I can't even begin to describe how heart-wrenching that scene is.
The Jesus that I would want to believe in.
6. Ghost (1990)
PG-13 | 127 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
After a young man is murdered, his spirit stays behind to warn his lover of impending danger, with the help of a reluctant psychic.
Director: Jerry Zucker | Stars: Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Goldwyn
Votes: 235,862 | Gross: $217.63M
Whenever Demi Moore cries in this film, I cry. It's rare that you feel every bit of pain that character feels. This film has heartbreak written all over it.
Unchained Melody.
7. Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)
G | 83 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
A captured mustang remains determined to return to his herd no matter what.
Directors: Kelly Asbury, Lorna Cook | Stars: Matt Damon, James Cromwell, Daniel Studi, Chopper Bernet
Votes: 85,305 | Gross: $73.28M
There are two things that are sure to make me cry: the Native American genocide and nature. And this film has both in spades. Such sprawling beautiful landscapes the emotion the directed managed to convey in this film is just overpowering.
And the soundtrack...
8. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
PG-13 | 178 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions set out on a journey to destroy the powerful One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron.
Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom, Sean Bean
Votes: 2,006,369 | Gross: $315.54M
Seen these films so many times and I cry so much that my eyes are red and puffy at the end of the trilogy.
A spell-binding fantasy film.
9. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
PG-13 | 201 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring.
Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen, Orlando Bloom
Votes: 1,978,464 | Gross: $377.85M
Spell-binding.
10. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
PG-13 | 179 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
While Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.
Director: Peter Jackson | Stars: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen, Orlando Bloom
Votes: 1,783,154 | Gross: $342.55M
Spell-binding Fantasy.
11. Gladiator (2000)
R | 155 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
A former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery.
Director: Ridley Scott | Stars: Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed
Votes: 1,619,448 | Gross: $187.71M
Of course this film made me cry. It's an epic of epic proportions. So beautiful it hurts.
12. Pan's Labyrinth (2006)
R | 118 min | Drama, Fantasy, War
In the Falangist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Ivana Baquero, Ariadna Gil, Sergi López, Maribel Verdú
Votes: 702,821 | Gross: $37.63M
This film is magical and terrifying and yet has so much realistic horror and magic at the same time.
One of the best films ever made.
13. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
The 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.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall
Votes: 523,650 | Gross: $56.36M
Heartbreakingly tender.
14. Lady in the Water (2006)
PG-13 | 110 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Apartment building superintendent Cleveland Heep rescues what he thinks is a young woman from the pool he maintains. When he discovers that she is actually a character from a bedtime story who is trying to make the journey back to her home, he works with his tenants to protect his new friend from the creatures that are determined to keep her in our world.
Director: M. Night Shyamalan | Stars: Paul Giamatti, Bryce Dallas Howard, Jeffrey Wright, Bob Balaban
Votes: 103,751 | Gross: $42.29M
This film makes me cry so much. I know the majority of critics and viewers hate it but I can't get over how amazing it is nonetheless.
15. The Sound of Music (1965)
G | 172 min | Biography, Drama, Family
A young novice is sent by her convent in 1930s Austria to become a governess to the seven children of a widowed naval officer.
Director: Robert Wise | Stars: Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Eleanor Parker, Richard Haydn
Votes: 260,950 | Gross: $163.21M
It's one of the first films ever that I remember watching as a child. and i Loved it. It always made me happy and I watched it about 100 times when I was young. Almost every week. Grew up and then finally watched it and was so beautiful to see it again. So emotional!
16. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
PG | 143 min | Adventure, Family, Fantasy
While playing, Lucy and her siblings find a wardrobe that lands them in a mystical place called Narnia. Here they realize that it was fated and they must now unite with Aslan to defeat an evil queen.
Director: Andrew Adamson | Stars: Tilda Swinton, Georgie Henley, William Moseley, Skandar Keynes
Votes: 427,926 | Gross: $291.71M
When Aslan dies I sat away from my family and friends in the cinema and cried softly to myself. So powerful.
17. Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)
Approved | 115 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A young New York socialite becomes interested in a young man who has moved into her apartment building, but her past threatens to get in the way.
Director: Blake Edwards | Stars: Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard, Patricia Neal, Buddy Ebsen
Votes: 192,085
Moon River. Audrey Hepburn. Heartbreak
That is all.
18. The Last of the Mohicans (1992)
R | 112 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Three trappers protect the daughters of a British Colonel in the midst of the French and Indian War.
Director: Michael Mann | Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Madeleine Stowe, Russell Means, Eric Schweig
Votes: 187,577 | Gross: $75.51M
19. Troy (2004)
R | 163 min | Adventure, Drama
An adaptation of Homer's great epic, the film follows the assault on Troy by the united Greek forces and chronicles the fates of the men involved.
Director: Wolfgang Petersen | Stars: Brad Pitt, Eric Bana, Orlando Bloom, Julian Glover
Votes: 570,243 | Gross: $133.38M
20. Tarzan (1999)
G | 88 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
A man raised by gorillas must decide where he really belongs when he discovers he is a human.
Directors: Chris Buck, Kevin Lima | Stars: Tony Goldwyn, Minnie Driver, Brian Blessed, Glenn Close
Votes: 247,112 | Gross: $171.09M
21. Source Code (2011)
PG-13 | 93 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
A soldier wakes up in someone else's body and discovers he's part of an experimental government program to find the bomber of a commuter train within 8 minutes.
Director: Duncan Jones | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga, Jeffrey Wright
Votes: 549,623 | Gross: $54.71M
22. The Invisible (2007)
PG-13 | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Fantasy
A teenager is left invisible to the living after an attack.
Director: David S. Goyer | Stars: Justin Chatwin, Margarita Levieva, Marcia Gay Harden, Christopher Rodriguez Marquette
Votes: 36,551 | Gross: $20.57M
23. Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
PG-13 | 125 min | Biography, Comedy, Drama
Author P.L. Travers reflects on her childhood after reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney, who seeks to adapt her Mary Poppins books for the big screen.
Director: John Lee Hancock | Stars: Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Annie Rose Buckley, Colin Farrell
Votes: 170,011 | Gross: $83.30M
24. The Girl Next Door (2004)
R | 109 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A teenager's dreams come true when a former porn star moves in next door and they fall in love.
Director: Luke Greenfield | Stars: Emile Hirsch, Nicholas Downs, Elisha Cuthbert, Timothy Olyphant
Votes: 239,687 | Gross: $14.59M
25. It's a Wonderful Life (1946)
PG | 130 min | Drama, Family, Fantasy
An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.
Director: Frank Capra | Stars: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Thomas Mitchell
Votes: 499,007
26. Mysterious Skin (2004)
Unrated | 105 min | Drama
Two pre-adolescent boys both experienced a strange event and later it affects their lives in different ways. One becomes a reckless, sexually adventurous prostitute, while the other retreats into a reclusive fantasy of alien abduction.
Director: Gregg Araki | Stars: Brady Corbet, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Elisabeth Shue, Chase Ellison
Votes: 76,294 | Gross: $0.70M
27. The Devil's Backbone (2001)
R | 106 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
After Carlos - a 12-year-old whose father has died in the Spanish Civil War - arrives at an ominous boys' orphanage, he discovers the school is haunted and has many dark secrets which he must uncover.
Director: Guillermo del Toro | Stars: Marisa Paredes, Eduardo Noriega, Federico Luppi, Fernando Tielve
Votes: 70,992 | Gross: $0.75M
28. The Orphanage (2007)
R | 105 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A woman brings her family back to her childhood home, which used to be an orphanage for handicapped children. Before long, her son starts to communicate with an invisible new friend.
Director: J.A. Bayona | Stars: Belén Rueda, Fernando Cayo, Roger Príncep, Mabel Rivera
Votes: 163,570 | Gross: $7.16M
29. Julia's Eyes (2010)
Not Rated | 118 min | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
The story of a woman who is slowly losing her sight whilst trying to investigate the mysterious death of her twin sister.
Director: Guillem Morales | Stars: Belén Rueda, Lluís Homar, Pablo Derqui, Francesc Orella
Votes: 37,418
30. Pocahontas (I) (1995)
G | 81 min | Animation, Adventure, Drama
An English soldier and the daughter of an Algonquin chief share a romance when English colonists invade seventeenth century Virginia.
Directors: Mike Gabriel, Eric Goldberg | Stars: Mel Gibson, Linda Hunt, Christian Bale, Joe Baker
Votes: 202,938 | Gross: $141.60M
31. The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
PG-13 | 143 min | Drama, Musical, Romance
A young soprano becomes the obsession of a disfigured and murderous musical genius who lives beneath the Paris Opéra House.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum, Patrick Wilson, Miranda Richardson
Votes: 130,650 | Gross: $51.27M
32. Almost Famous (2000)
R | 122 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
A high-school boy in the early 1970s is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone magazine about an up-and-coming rock band as he accompanies them on their concert tour.
Director: Cameron Crowe | Stars: Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, Kate Hudson, Frances McDormand
Votes: 293,302 | Gross: $32.53M
33. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)
R | 134 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Laura Palmer's harrowing final days are chronicled one year after the murder of Teresa Banks, a resident of Twin Peaks' neighboring town.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Sheryl Lee, Ray Wise, Mädchen Amick, Dana Ashbrook
Votes: 105,119 | Gross: $4.16M
34. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008)
PG | 150 min | Action, Adventure, Family
The Pevensie siblings return to Narnia, where they are enlisted to once again help ward off an evil king and restore the rightful heir to the land's throne, Prince Caspian.
Director: Andrew Adamson | Stars: Ben Barnes, Skandar Keynes, Georgie Henley, William Moseley
Votes: 225,399 | Gross: $141.62M
When the kids have to return to England and the older ones are told they won't be coming back and The Call by Regina Spektor plays I cry. So lovely. Although the rest of the film is kind of *beep*
35. Love Story (1970)
PG | 100 min | Drama, Romance
A boy and a girl from different backgrounds fall in love regardless of their upbringing - and then tragedy strikes.
Director: Arthur Hiller | Stars: Ali MacGraw, Ryan O'Neal, John Marley, Ray Milland
Votes: 37,433 | Gross: $106.40M
36. Closer (I) (2004)
R | 104 min | Drama, Romance
The relationships of two couples become complicated and deceitful when the man from one couple meets the woman of the other.
Director: Mike Nichols | Stars: Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Clive Owen, Julia Roberts
Votes: 236,008 | Gross: $33.99M
37. Les Misérables (1998)
PG-13 | 134 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Valjean, a former criminal, has atoned for his past and now finds himself in the midst of the French Revolution, avoiding a law-obsessed policeman hell-bent on capturing him.
Director: Bille August | Stars: Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, Uma Thurman, Christopher Adamson
Votes: 43,176 | Gross: $14.10M
38. Brigadoon (1954)
Passed | 108 min | Fantasy, Musical, Romance
Two Americans on a hunting trip in Scotland become lost. They encounter a small village, not on the map, called Brigadoon, in which people harbor a mysterious secret, and behave as if they were still living two hundred years in the past.
Director: Vincente Minnelli | Stars: Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, Cyd Charisse, Elaine Stewart
Votes: 9,368
39. Martyrs (2008)
R | 99 min | Horror
A young woman's quest for revenge against the people who kidnapped and tormented her as a child leads her and a friend, who is also a victim of child abuse, on a terrifying journey into a living hell of depravity.
Director: Pascal Laugier | Stars: Morjana Alaoui, Mylène Jampanoï, Catherine Bégin, Robert Toupin
Votes: 106,365
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