My Favorite Dramas
Here's a list of my favorite films that might be categorized best as dramas.
List activity
417 views
• 0 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
61 titles
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsHenry FondaLee J. CobbMartin BalsamThe jury in a New York City murder trial is frustrated by a single member whose skeptical caution forces them to more carefully consider the evidence before jumping to a hasty verdict.
- DirectorMichael CurtizStarsHumphrey BogartIngrid BergmanPaul HenreidA cynical expatriate American cafe owner struggles to decide whether or not to help his former lover and her fugitive husband escape the Nazis in French Morocco.
- DirectorPeter WeirStarsRobin WilliamsRobert Sean LeonardEthan HawkeMaverick teacher John Keating returns in 1959 to the prestigious New England boys' boarding school where he was once a star student, using poetry to embolden his pupils to new heights of self-expression.
- DirectorRichard AttenboroughStarsBen KingsleyJohn GielgudRohini HattangadiThe life of the lawyer who became the famed leader of the Indian revolts against the British rule through his philosophy of nonviolent protest.
- DirectorRichard DutcherStarsMatthew A. BrownRichard DutcherJacque GrayLife as a Mormon missionary isn't what 19-year-old Brandon Allen expected: so many rules and so few successes. Los Angeles is as unrepentant as Sodom and Gomorrah. He's forced to share a small apartment with five young prank-loving missionaries and, to top it off, his first companion, 29-year-old Marcus Dalton, proves to be a harsh mentor. After only one day as a missionary, Allen is ready to hang up his necktie and go home. His point-of-view changes, however, as he begins to see the struggles and sacrifices that the other missionaries endure: Dalton, he soon learns, is fighting a losing battle with cancer. Banks, an African-American missionary, was disowned by his family when he joined the Mormon church. Kinegar, a fifth-generation Latter-Day Saint, finds himself doubting under the intellectual attacks of anti-Mormons. Working and living with these young men, Allen becomes a part of the drama occurring under the everyday surface of missionary life. After only a few intense days, Allen finds faith he didn't know he had, and courage he didn't know he lacked. He learns that the time has come to put away childish things, and to become more than just a man--to become a man of God.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsGary CooperGrace KellyThomas MitchellA town Marshal, despite the disagreements of his newlywed bride and the townspeople around him, must face a gang of deadly killers alone at "high noon" when the gang leader, an outlaw he "sent up" years ago, arrives on the noon train.
- DirectorFrank CapraStarsJames StewartDonna ReedLionel BarrymoreAn 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.
- DirectorStanley KramerStarsSpencer TracyBurt LancasterRichard WidmarkIn 1948, an American court in occupied Germany tries four Nazis judged for war crimes.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsHumphrey BogartMary AstorGladys GeorgeSan Francisco private detective Sam Spade takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a gorgeous liar and their quest for a priceless statuette, with the stakes rising after his partner is murdered.
- DirectorFred ZinnemannStarsPaul ScofieldWendy HillerRobert ShawThe story of Sir Thomas More, who stood up to King Henry VIII when the King rejected the Roman Catholic Church to obtain a divorce and remarry.
- DirectorFrank CapraStarsJames StewartJean ArthurClaude RainsA naive youth leader is appointed to fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate. His idealistic plans promptly collide with corruption at home and subterfuge from his hero in Washington, but he tries to forge ahead despite attacks on his character.
- DirectorCatherine HardwickeStarsKeisha Castle-HughesShohreh AghdashlooOscar IsaacA drama that focuses on the period in Mary and Joseph's life where they journeyed to Bethlehem for the birth of Jesus.
- DirectorElia KazanStarsMarlon BrandoKarl MaldenLee J. CobbAn ex-prize fighter turned New Jersey longshoreman struggles to stand up to his corrupt union bosses, including his older brother, as he starts to connect with the grieving sister of one of the syndicate's victims.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneTakashi ShimuraKeiko TsushimaFarmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai to join him.
- DirectorGeorge StevensStarsAlan LaddJean ArthurVan HeflinA weary gunfighter in 1880s Wyoming begins to envision a quieter life after befriending a homestead family with a young son who idolizes him, but a smoldering range war forces him to act.
- DirectorKenneth BranaghStarsKenneth BranaghDerek JacobiSimon ShepherdIn the midst of the Hundred Years War, the young King Henry V of England embarks on the conquest of France in 1415.
- DirectorKenneth BranaghStarsKenneth BranaghJulie ChristieDerek JacobiHamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns home to find his father murdered and his mother remarrying the murderer, his uncle. Meanwhile, war is brewing.
- DirectorBaz LuhrmannStarsLeonardo DiCaprioClaire DanesJohn LeguizamoShakespeare's famous play is updated to the hip modern suburb of Verona still retaining its original dialogue.
- 1954–19971h 30mUnrated6.6 (189)TV EpisodeDirectorBeau BridgesStarsBeau BridgesMillie PerkinsCourtney Thorne-SmithA teenage boy is torn between his love for an injured Canadian goose that he has found and his agreement to fatten and kill it for an approaching Thanksgiving dinner for his neighbors.
- DirectorBrian Desmond HurstStarsAlastair SimJack WarnerKathleen HarrisonEbenezer Scrooge, a curmudgeonly, miserly businessman, has no time for sentimentality and largely views Christmas as a waste of time. However, this Christmas Eve, he will be visited by three spirits who will show him the error of his ways.
- DirectorFritz LangStarsPeter LorreEllen WidmannInge LandgutWhen the police in a German city are unable to catch a child-murderer, other criminals join in the manhunt.
- DirectorVictor FlemingGeorge CukorSam WoodStarsClark GableVivien LeighThomas MitchellA sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.
- DirectorJames AlgarSamuel ArmstrongDavid HandStarsHardie AlbrightStan AlexanderBobette AudreyThe story of a young deer growing up in the forest.
- DirectorNicholas RayStarsJames DeanNatalie WoodSal MineoA rebellious young man with a troubled past comes to a new town, finding friends and enemies.
- DirectorDavid LeanStarsWilliam HoldenAlec GuinnessJack HawkinsBritish POWs are forced to build a railway bridge across the river Kwai for their Japanese captors in occupied Burma, not knowing that the allied forces are planning a daring commando raid through the jungle to destroy it.
- DirectorRobert MulliganStarsGregory PeckJohn MegnaFrank OvertonAtticus Finch, a widowed lawyer in Depression-era Alabama, defends a Black man against an undeserved rape charge, and tries to educate his young children against prejudice.
- DirectorFranklin J. SchaffnerStarsGeorge C. ScottKarl MaldenStephen YoungThe World War II phase of the career of controversial American general George S. Patton.
- DirectorHugh HudsonStarsBen CrossIan CharlesonNicholas FarrellTwo British track athletes, one a determined Jew and the other a devout Christian, are driven to win in the 1924 Olympics as they wrestle with issues of pride and conscience.
- DirectorPhilip KaufmanStarsSam ShepardScott GlennEd HarrisThe U.S. space program's development from the breaking of the sound barrier to selection of the Mercury 7 astronauts, from a group of test pilots with a more seat-of-the-pants approach than the program's more cautious engineers preferred.
- DirectorJohn BadhamStarsMatthew BroderickAlly SheedyJohn WoodA young man finds a back door into a military central computer in which reality is confused with game-playing, possibly starting World War III.
- DirectorJohn G. AvildsenStarsRalph MacchioPat MoritaElisabeth ShueA martial arts master agrees to teach karate to a bullied teenager.
- DirectorMilos FormanStarsF. Murray AbrahamTom HulceElizabeth BerridgeThe life, success and troubles of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as told by Antonio Salieri, the contemporaneous composer who was deeply jealous of Mozart's talent and claimed to have murdered him.
- DirectorClaude BerriStarsYves MontandGérard DepardieuDaniel AuteuilA greedy landowner and his backward nephew conspire to block the only water source for an adjoining property in order to bankrupt the owner and force him to sell.
- DirectorClaude BerriStarsYves MontandEmmanuelle BéartDaniel AuteuilA beautiful but shy shepherdess plots vengeance on the men whose greedy conspiracy to acquire her father's land caused his death years earlier.
- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsJeff BridgesJoan AllenMartin LandauThe story of Preston Tucker, the maverick car designer and his ill-fated challenge to the auto industry with his revolutionary car concept.
- StarsSidney PoitierBurt LancasterRichard KileyA dramatization of the American court case that destroyed the legal validity of racial segregation.
- DirectorBoaz YakinStarsDenzel WashingtonWill PattonWood HarrisIn 1971 Virginia high school football was everything to the people of Alexandria. But when the school board was forced to integrate an all-black school with an all-white one, the very foundation of football's tradition was put to the test.
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsMel GibsonSophie MarceauPatrick McGoohanScottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsJodie FosterMatthew McConaugheyTom SkerrittDr. Ellie Arroway, after years of searching, finds conclusive radio proof of extraterrestrial intelligence, sending plans for a mysterious machine.
- StarsBen KingsleyPaul MercurioMartin LandauThe Biblical story of Joseph, who was sold to slavery by his brothers who were jealous of his prophetic abilities to analyze dreams and of his being their father's favorite.
- DirectorKevin ReynoldsStarsJim CaviezelGuy PearceChristopher AdamsonA young man, falsely imprisoned by his jealous "friend", escapes and uses a hidden treasure to exact his revenge.
- DirectorGary RossStarsTobey MaguireJeff BridgesElizabeth BanksTrue story of the undersized Depression-era racehorse whose victories lifted not only the spirits of the team behind it but also those of their nation.
- DirectorJim HanonStarsLouie LeonardoChad AllenJack GuzmanTwo people come to the end of a spear in order to realize that the divisions between them are not real.
- DirectorGabriele MuccinoStarsWill SmithThandiwe NewtonJaden SmithA struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career
- DirectorMichael AptedStarsIoan GruffuddAlbert FinneyMichael GambonThe idealist William Wilberforce maneuvers his way through Parliament, endeavoring to end the British transatlantic slave trade.
- DirectorChristian VuissaStarsErin ChambersRachel EmmersBettina SchwarzA wide-eyed sister missionary arrives in Austria to begin her 18-month-long mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Despite having to make a few cultural adjustments, Sister Taylor meets every challenge with optimism. Her enthusiasm to share the Gospel makes her indomitable, until she finds herself with an abrasive companion whom she doesn't understand and doesn't particularly like. This challenge, along with the ordinary vicissitudes of missionary life begin to wear on her, and thus in the process of sharing the Gospel, Sister Taylor finds herself gaining a better understanding of its key precepts: faith, repentance, forgiveness, and charity.
- DirectorAlex KendrickStarsKirk CameronErin BetheaKen BevelIn an attempt to save his marriage, a firefighter uses a 40-day experiment known as "The Love Dare."
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweCate BlanchettMatthew MacfadyenIn twelfth-century England, Robin Longstride and his band of marauders confront corruption in a local village and lead an uprising against the crown that will forever alter the balance of world power.
- DirectorSean McNamaraStarsAnnaSophia RobbDennis QuaidHelen HuntBethany Hamilton, a professional surfer, loses her left arm in a shark attack. Unwilling to pay attention to the gravity of her situation, Bethany decides to get back into the ocean and surf again.
- DirectorT.C. ChristensenStarsJasen WadeEmily WadleyJason CelayaThe Willie Handcart Company treks across America to the Salt Lake Valley, experiencing many trials and deaths, as well as 17 miracles.
- DirectorAlex KendrickStarsAlex KendrickKen BevelKevin DownesWhen a tragedy strikes close to home, four police officers struggle with their faith and their roles as husbands and fathers. Together they make a decision that will change all of their lives.
- DirectorChristian VuissaStarsMatthew BellowsDalton BlaineAlexis BossStep into nineteenth-century New England and experience the story of one of the most influential men in religious history. The story that chronicles the coming forth of the Book of Mormon.
- DirectorT.C. ChristensenStarsDarin ScottRichard BenedictJames GaisfordBy listening to and following his heart, Ephraim Hanks finds his way in life and eventually provides relief and rescue to the suffering Martin Handcart Company. Based on a true story.
- DirectorPhillip BorsosStarsMary SteenburgenGary BasarabaHarry Dean StantonAn angel must show a mother the true meaning of Christmas. It's not just presents and materialistic things, but the people she cares about too.
- DirectorMitch DavisStarsChristopher GorhamAnne HathawayJoe FolauJohn Groberg, a farm kid from Idaho Falls, crosses an ocean to become a missionary in the remote and exotic Tongan islands during the 1950s.
- DirectorKieth MerrillStarsKathleen BellerBenton JenningsSteve AboltThe story of the Mormon pioneers from the 1830's to the 1890's. The movie follows the experiences of Eliza Williams from New York to Missouri to Illinois to Utah. Eliza endures sickness, storms, and mobs because she has a testimony of her new religion.
- DirectorKieth MerrillStarsRick MacyJeremy HoopArianna MarsdenAlthough in America, Helam witnesses the star heralding the birth of Christ, and 33 years later he faithfully awaits the promised coming of The Messiah despite persecution for this belief. Helam's son Jacob is more interested in the ways of the world, including lovely Laneah, and when his abilities as an artisan bring an offer to work for wealthy, powerful Kohor, he jumps at the chance and is estranged from his father's house. Kohor is plotting to destabilize the existing government and become the absolute ruler. In contrast, Amaron, a holy man, preaches to people of Christ, whose ministry and miracles are concurrently taking place across the seas in The Holy Land. As Jacob becomes more immersed in the secular life of Kohor's house, Laneah becomes more interested in the humble faith he is forsaking. Her conversion to Christ, and the death of Amaron at the hand of Kohor's men, brings Jacob to his senses, but he knows of Kohor's plans and is imprisoned when he refuses to join the conspiracy. In Jerusalem, Jesus is crucified and the faraway city of Zarahemla is plunged into darkness and destruction as Helam pushes through the crowds and ruins to help his son. All seems hopeless when he is blinded, has not found Jacob, and thinks his quest to see The Messiah has failed.
- DirectorT.C. ChristensenGary CookStarsNathan MitchellTayva PatchRick MacyJoseph Smith: The Prophet of the Restoration focuses on some of the events during the life of Joseph Smith, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement, which was both filmed and distributed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church).
- DirectorPeter N. JohnsonStarsCraig WassonMichael McGuireMorgan WhiteIt showed the process it took to write the Constitution of the United States.
- DirectorGarrett BattyStarsCorbin AllredMaclain NelsonNikita BogolyubovThis riveting drama tells the true story of two young American Mormon missionaries held captive and brutalized for a week in a remote part of Russia.
- DirectorHarold CronkStarsShane HarperKevin SorboDavid A.R. WhiteCollege philosophy professor Mr. Radisson's curriculum is challenged by his new student, Josh, who believes God exists.