There are some movies that make you cry, while others make you uncontrollably ugly cry. What’s the difference? An inconsolable heart and inability to stop the water works. These movies are not for the faint of heart.
While I could add countless titles to this list, I decided to post 11 movies of my lifetime that I can’t think about without tearing up. I noticed while writing this post that it has a theme(s) behind it – love, unrequited love, and lost love. These movies are so brilliant that I sometimes find hard to revisit.
Here’s my list, in no particular order, of the movies that will make you ugly cry. I promise.😭
Warning: A lot of these movies are cliche tears, but I don’t care.
I hope you live a life you’re proud of, and if you find your’e not, I hope you have the courage to start all over again.
Reason You’ll Cry: As if the Hurricane Katrina backdrop wasn’t triggering enough (I’m from New Orleans), the fate of the two main characters is doomed due to unusual circumstances.
Why It Hurts: A performance best by both Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. The love these two characters have for each other struck me, the devoted details of New Orleans, and the city washing away in the end made this one burn.
But it helps me remember… i need to remember… sometimes there’s so much beauty in the world, i feel like i can’t take it, and my heart is just going to cave in.
Reason You’ll Cry: The main character, Lester, struggles this entire movie to find his own American Dream only to realize he already has it.
Why It Hurts: This movie introduced me to the notion that not only was my dysfunctional family okay, but it solidified that the American Dream was dead.
Every man dies, not every man really lives.
Reason You’ll Cry: Another tale of lost love that I simply don’t have the strength to revisit.
Why It Hurts: This damn William Wallace fights the entire movie for freedom, and he makes you cry till the credits roll.
Whoever saves one life saves the world entire.
Reason You’ll Cry: The Holocaust…enough said.
Why It Hurts: This is a great character study of true character progression and transformation till the very end.
I’m having a birthday party, but you’re not invited, but you can come if you want.
Reason You’ll Cry: The fact that many viewers thought that a young Leonardo DiCaprio was truly on the spectrum is reason enough to believe you’ll cry.
Why It Hurts: As one who has a brother with autism, this hit too close to home.
I was worried something would go wrong, but the things that went wrong were never what I was worried about.
Reason You’ll Cry: Lost love, unrequited love…etc. Some viewers don’t love the main character of this, but I applaud the story for showing how relationships can be more powerful than realized even till the bitter end.
Why It Hurts: It made me realize that every relationship I’ve ever had is not only beautiful, but important in my character development.
But I have infinite tenderness for you. I always will. My whole life.
Reason You’ll Cry: A story about how some relationships simply end, and it hurts, and it’s devastating.
Why It Hurts: I had just gotten out of a 6-year relationship when I saw this movie, and it broke me.
That might sound boring, but I think the boring stuff is the stuff I remember the most.
Reason You’ll Cry: You’ll cry within the first 10 minutes, and if you don’t, you need to reevaluate yourself.
Why It Hurts: Losing loved ones is and will never be easy, but this movie gives hope to the next adventure.
That’s my sweetheart in there. Wherever she is, that’s where my home is.
Reason You’ll Cry: A huge cliche, I know. I avoided this movie when it came out because of cliches, but when I finally saw it years later, I cried like a baby. It’s all about fate, and the ending is truly what crushed my soul.
Why It Hurts: Great performances make for great tears. It’s too relatable when it comes to true love, and that’s what hurts.
What a loss to spend that much time with someone, only to find out that she’s a stranger.
Reason You’ll Cry: The idea of being able to erase a relationship entirely from memory itself is a hard pill to swallow.
Why It Hurts: True love always finds a way, and this clever movie finds a way to tell you that despite the pain.
You died on a Saturday morning. And I had you placed here under our tree. And I had that house of your father’s bulldozed to the ground. Momma always said dying’ was a part of life. I sure wish it wasn’t.
Reason You’ll Cry: Possibly one of the greatest movies. Full stop. You’ll cry because of unrequited love, perseverance, and the inability to crush the human spirit.
Why It Hurts: Tom Hanks. Tom. Hanks. The best performance possibly ever by an actor.
On the Screen Reviews 
One film that did make me ugly cry throughout was Room in the scene in which Jack had gotten to the police and they freed his mother as I just was in tears for the rest of the movie.
I have no idea why but that movie didn’t move me at all! But Room is on many lists that I saw. IDK where my mind was when I saw it….might need a re-visit.