Last updated March 2024
On the hunt for sensationally awesome Best Drama Movies 2005 ? See our compilation of 30 marvelous, universally beloved Best Drama Movies 2005 handpicked for your viewing pleasure. Critically celebrated by revered IMDB reviewers and widely adored by our own legion of savvy users, these world-class titles simply have no equal. Lend fellow viewers a hand by voting up the titles you feel are keepers. We appreciate your stellar contributions showcasing the finest entertainment available!
Anniyan (2005)
Plot Summary:
Ambi, a meek lawyer, ends up being a vigilante named Anniyan, and a supermodel named Remo, after suffering with multiple personality disorder due to the society
Duration: 181 min
IMDB Rating: 8.3/10
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: split personality, vigilante, lawyer, multiple personality disorder, alter ego, unrequited love, punishment, vigilantism, anguish, mental illness, love affair, psychiatrist, life is a bitch, irony of fate, murder, disguise, superhero, exploitation, dual role, fight, kung fu, police officer, violence, model, internet
Batman Begins (2005)
Plot Summary:
Driven by tragedy, billionaire Bruce Wayne dedicates his life to uncovering and defeating the corruption that plagues his home, Gotham City. Unable to work within the system, he instead creates a new identity, a symbol of fear for the criminal underworld - The Batman
Duration: 140 min
IMDB Rating: 8.2/10
IMDB Votes: 15000000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA, UK
Plot tags: superhero, batman, heroes, secret identity, double life, corruption, disguise, martial arts, good versus evil, social decay, justice, vigilante, comic book, crime fighter, fight, organized crime, ninja, gotham city, redemption, superpower, violence, dark hero, chase, billionaire, deception
V for Vendetta (2005)
Plot Summary:
In a world in which Great Britain has become a fascist state, a masked vigilante known only as 'V' conducts guerrilla warfare against the oppressive British government. When 'V' rescues a young woman from the secret police, he finds in her an ally with whom he can continue his fight to free the people of Britain
Duration: 132 min
IMDB Rating: 8.2/10
IMDB Votes: 12000000
Genere: Action, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, UK, Germany
Plot tags: revolution, distopia, revenge, vengeance, dystopia, fighting the system, freedom, vigilante, anti hero, society, protest, rebellion, vigilantism, mysterious character, masked vigilante, superhero, dark hero, moral ambiguity, fascist, conspiracy, mentor, disguise, totalitarianism, masked man, oppression
Cheetah The Power Of One (2005)
Plot Summary:
Nandu, an orphan, is a top-notch professional killer in town. He manoeuvres his operations with the help of his buddy. In one such operation, he falls into the eyes of the cops. While fleeing from the crime scene, he unintentionally becomes the cause for the death of a stranger called Pardhoo, a run-away youngster who wants to return home after 12 years. Nandu assumes the identity of Pardhoo and enters his household in a remote village to escape from the cops. The rest of the story is all about how Nandu solves all the problems
Duration: 172 min
IMDB Rating: 8.2/10
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: assassination, on the run, hidden identity, dishonesty, chases and races, assassination attempt, frame up, police, betrayal, gunfight, accidental killing, fashion, exploitation, village, murder, church, politics, village life, skyscraper, one against many, sniper, bank robbery, fight, train, wedding
My Father and My Son (2005)
Plot Summary:
A Turkish man, whose wife died while giving birth to his son during a military coup, finally returns home. Estranged from his father for turning his back on the family farm, he takes his 8 year-old and tries to repair relations
Duration: 112 min
IMDB Rating: 8.2/10
IMDB Votes: 91000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Turkey
Plot tags: family relations, homecoming, tragic hero, father son relationship, society, trial, parents and children, family life, rebel, rebelliousness, coming of age, life is a bitch, choice, single parent, reconciliation, political unrest, family disapproval, father, village, childbirth, father and son, turk, family problems, relationship problems, meaning of life
Iqbal (2005)
Plot Summary:
This is all about chasing your dreams, no matter what the obstacles. The story involves a young deaf and dumb boy who is crazy about cricket
Duration: 132 min
IMDB Rating: 8.1/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Drama, Sport
Country: India
Plot tags: cricket, disability, prodigy, human spirit, follow your dream, ambition, lifestyle, against the odds, obsession, rise to the top, rivalry, struggle, hopes, athlete's life, village, misfit, family relations, society, contests and competitions, drinking problem, underdog, deaf mute, boy, muslim, deaf
Black (2005)
Plot Summary:
Black is an adaptation of Helen Keller's autobiography. Black revolves around a blind and deaf girl, and her relationship with her teacher who himself later develops Alzheimer's disease
Duration: 122 min
IMDB Rating: 8.1/10
IMDB Votes: 36000
Genere: Drama
Country: India
Plot tags: communication problem, mute or deaf, disability, teacher, deaf, teachers and students, blindness, age difference, struggle, determination, graduation, human spirit, parents and children, life is a bitch, dysfunctional family, teenage life, family problems, social misfits, rehabilitation, optimism, fighting illness, hopes, character change, deaf child, overcoming
Pardon (2005)
Plot Summary:
Based on a true event, Pardon tells the tragicomic story of three friends who end up in prison when they are mistaken as members of a terrorist organization. Ibrahim's fear of uniforms makes him runaway whenever he sees one. Because of this, police mistakes him with a terrorist and takes him and his friend Muzo into custody. Fooled by the police during the interrogation they name another friend, Aydin, in hope of saving themselves. As they all end up in prison, they remember the families and lovers they left behind
Duration: 99 min
IMDB Rating: 8.1/10
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Turkey
Plot tags: prison, friendship, prison life, false accusation, confined, mistaken identity, dark humor, life is a bitch, corruption, injustice, society, disorder, dishonesty, fear, down on your luck, incompetent court, racism, kurd, turk, advice, judgment, friends, nothing goes right, wrongfully committed, incompetent police
Cinderella Man (2005)
Plot Summary:
The true story of boxer, Jim Braddock who, in the 1920’s after his retirement, has a surprise comeback in order to get him and his family out of a socially poor state
Duration: 144 min
IMDB Rating: 8.0/10
IMDB Votes: 196000
Genere: Biography, Drama, Romance, Sport
Country: USA
Plot tags: boxing, underdog, human spirit, great depression, biopic, boxer, athlete's life, poverty, depression, motivation, financial problem, family bonds, fight, rise to the top, prizefighter, lifestyle, comeback, boxing champion, follow your dream, career, life is a bitch, vengeance, inspiration, redemption, family drama
C.R.A.Z.Y. (2005)
Plot Summary:
A story of two love affairs. A father's love for his five sons. And one son's love for his father, a love so strong it compels him to live a lie. That son is Zac Beaulieu, born on the 25th of December 1960, different from all his brothers, but desperate to fit in. During the next 20 years, life takes Zac on a surprising and unexpected journey that ultimately leads him to accept his true nature and, even more importantly, leads his father to love him for who he really is
Duration: 129 min
IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
IMDB Votes: 34000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Canada, Morocco, France
Plot tags: coming of age, gay, homosexual, childhood, father son relationship, drug addict, gender, lgbtq, gay teenager, glbt, gay interest, teenage boy, closeted homosexual, adolescence, sexuality, reconciliation, life philosophy, lgbt, parents and children, self discovery, acceptance, eccentric family, brother brother relationship, gay son, gay bar
Lovelorn (2005)
Plot Summary:
A retired teacher who returns to Istanbul after years away, Nazim tries to reacquaint himself with his hometown, which has changed significantly. While waiting for his pension to begin, Nazim takes a temporary job as a taxi driver and frequently ends up in the seedier parts of the city. …
Duration: 142 min
IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama
Country: Turkey
Plot tags: stalking, village, family relations, love and romance, couples, village life, fall in love, society, single parent, sleazy, hopes, woman in danger, love, psychopath, violence, tragedy, taxi driver, turk, women's issues, teacher, taxi, kurd, singer, poet, homecoming
The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (2005)
Plot Summary:
Mr. Lazarescu (Ion Fiscuteanu) is a retired Romanian engineer, spending his time in the company of his cats and booze. When he starts feeling unusually ill, he first seeks painkillers from his neighbors. It soon becomes apparent that Lazarescu is indeed sick, and an ambulance arrives with a nurse (Luminita Gheorghiu) who has a few ideas about what could be the problem. However, a major traffic accident and poor organization leaves little room in Romanian hospitals for the fading Lazarescu
Duration: 153 min
IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Romania
Plot tags: medical, hospital, paramedic, doctors and patients, ambulance, character study, self discovery, storytelling, surgery, terminal illness, public health, fighting illness, health situation, alcohol abuse, life is a bitch, medicine, artist, dialogue, existentialism, father daughter relationship, old age, death, doctor, drinking, hunting
Walk the Line (2005)
Plot Summary:
A chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash's life, from his early days on an Arkansas cotton farm to his rise to fame with Sun Records in Memphis, where he recorded alongside Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins
Duration: 136 min
IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
IMDB Votes: 262000
Genere: Biography, Drama, Music, Romance
Country: Germany, USA
Plot tags: music, rock and roll, country music, musician's life, musician, addiction, marriage, biopic, accident, prison, drug, rise and fall, singer, concert, rags to riches, drug abuse, drug addiction, rock, love story, music business, profanity, childhood, rising to stardom, destiny, redemption
The World's Fastest Indian (2005)
Plot Summary:
The life story of New Zealander Burt Munro, who spent years building a 1920 Indian motorcycle -- a bike which helped him set the land-speed world record at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats in 1967
Duration: 127 min
IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
IMDB Votes: 58000
Genere: Biography, Drama, Sport
Country: New Zealand, Japan, USA
Plot tags: motorcycle, human spirit, against the odds, follow your dream, motorcycle race, racing, race, car race, elderly, auto mechanic, goodhearted, ambition, philosophy, eccentricity, transformation, biker, on the road, honest, hitchhiker, friendship, optimism, obstacle, obsessive quest, supportive friend, motivation
Pride & Prejudice (2005)
Plot Summary:
Pride & Prejudice is a humorous story of love and life among English gentility during the Georgian era. Mr. Bennet is an English gentleman living in Hertfordshire with his overbearing wife and five daughters. If Mr. Bennet dies their house will be inherited by a distant cousin whom they have never met, so the family's future happiness and security is dependent on the daughters making good marriages
Duration: 129 min
IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
IMDB Votes: 322000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: France, UK, USA
Plot tags: prejudice, love, happy ending, fall in love, love and romance, opposites attract, aristocracy, strong female character, initially antagonists, wooing, unlikely couple, social differences, pride, gentleman, pride and honor, sisters, male female relationship, couples, society, family relations, couple relations, eligible bachelor, rich and poor, looking for love, verbal byplay
Water (2005)
Plot Summary:
The year is 1938, and Mahatma Gandhi's groundbreaking philosophies are sweeping across India, but 8-year-old Chuyia, newly widowed, must go to live with other outcast widows on an ashram. Her presence transforms the ashram as she befriends two of her compatriots
Duration: 117 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, India
Plot tags: hinduism, women, prostitute, prostitution, friendship, love, marriage, politics, relationships, mentor, sin, destiny, brutality, family problems, couple relations, religion, youth, exile, parents and children, couples, lifestyle, death in the family, adolescence vs adulthood, religions or cults, love and romance
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Plot Summary:
Two modern-day cowboys meet on a shepherding job in the summer of '63, the two share a raw and powerful summer together that turns into a lifelong relationship conflicting with the lives they are supposed to live
Duration: 134 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 376000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Canada
Plot tags: gay, homosexuality, gay romance, homosexual, gay relationship, lgbt, forbidden love, love story, closeted homosexual, gays and lesbians, gay slur, first gay sexual experience, gay love, gay interest, gay husband, cowboy, glbt, sex scene, tragic love, male nudity, loneliness, gay teenager, love, lgbtq, gay sex
Merry Christmas (2005)
Plot Summary:
In 1914, World War I, the bloodiest war ever at that time in human history, was well under way. However on Christmas Eve, numerous sections of the Western Front called an informal, and unauthorized, truce where the various front-line soldiers of the conflict peacefully met each other in No Man's Land to share a precious pause in the carnage with a fleeting brotherhood
Duration: 116 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 31000
Genere: Drama, History, Music, Romance, War
Country: France, Germany, UK, Belgium, Romania, Japan
Plot tags: christmas, world war one, truce, war, soldier, holiday, human spirit, idealism, christmas eve, friendship, trench warfare, prejudice, initially antagonists, winter, great war, military, anti war, battles, soccer, hopes, german army, new year, military life, behind enemy lines, battle zone
Adam's Apples (2005)
Plot Summary:
A neo-nazi sentenced to community service at a church clashes with the blindly devotional priest
Duration: 94 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 54000
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Country: Denmark, Germany
Plot tags: church, priest, religion, funeral, skinhead, racial slur, belief, cynic, existentialism, disability, prejudice, good versus evil, society, clergy, hopes, religious, nordic, neo nazi, christianity, dark humor, melancholy, redemption, god, anger, faith
Lord of War (2005)
Plot Summary:
Yuri Orlov is a globetrotting arms dealer and, through some of the deadliest war zones, he struggles to stay one step ahead of a relentless Interpol agent, his business rivals and even some of his customers who include many of the world's most notorious dictators. Finally, he must also face his own conscience
Duration: 122 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 332000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA, Germany, France, Zambia, Italy, Denmark, UK
Plot tags: business, greed, corruption, arms dealer, cold war, arms dealing, millionaire, gunrunner, rags to riches, smuggling, rise and fall, human nature, cynic, notoriety, pride and honor, organized crime, interpol, russian mafia, mafia, gangster, drug, success, drug addiction, criminal heroes, ambition
Sophie Scholl: The Final Days (2005)
Plot Summary:
True story of Germany's most famous anti-Nazi heroine brought to thrilling, dramatic life. Sophie Scholl stars Julia Jentsch in a luminous performance as the fearless activist of the underground student resistance group, The White Rose. Armed with long-buried historical records of her incarceration, director Marc Rothemund expertly re-creates the last six days of Sophie Scholl's life
Duration: 120 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 28000
Genere: Biography, Crime, Drama, History, Thriller, War
Country: Germany
Plot tags: nazism, politics, world war two, nazi germany, resistance, death sentence, gestapo, nazi, historical character, trial, lawyer, rebellion, fighting the system, holocaust, war, freedom, idealism, treason, courtroom, human spirit, world war, biopic, justice, social activist, martyr
Match Point (2005)
Plot Summary:
Match Point is Woody Allen’s satire of the British High Society and the ambition of a young tennis instructor to enter into it. Yet when he must decide between two women - one assuring him his place in high society, and the other that would bring him far from it - palms start to sweat and a dark psychological match in his head begins
Duration: 124 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 226000
Genere: Drama, Romance, Thriller
Country: UK, USA, Luxembourg
Plot tags: infidelity, love triangle, couples, lust, adultery, seduction, destructive relationship, passionate interest, love and romance, fatal attraction, tennis, passion, sexy woman, sex, husband wife relationship, manipulation, murder, twists and turns, sexual attraction, social differences, marriage, society, character study, instructor, blind ambition
Shooting Dogs (2005)
Plot Summary:
Two westerners, a priest and a teacher find themselves in the middle of the Rwandan genocide and face a moral dilemna. Do they place themselves in danger and protect the refugees, or escape the country with their lives? Based on a true story
Duration: 115 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: UK, Germany
Plot tags: genocide, politics, violence, survival, rwandan genocide, teacher, priest, survivor, human spirit, fighting the system, moral dilemma, against the odds, tragic hero, catholic, battles, life is a bitch, society, conflict, danger, idealism, against humanity, racism, injustice, civil war, un
Ghajini (2005)
Plot Summary:
The film's story is around a rich business entrepreneur falling in love with an ad film actress. The entrepreneur and the actress fall in love, though she does not know that he is an entrepreneur. When she successfully saves a bunch of children who were in danger, she is brutally murdered by a gang leader and the entrepreneur himself gets hit hard on the head when he tries to save his lover, eventually leading him into a state of short term memory loss. He is later studied about and helped by a psychology student to take revenge on the one who murdered his lover
Duration: 175 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Action, Drama, Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: murder, memory loss, revenge, injustice, tragic event, life is a bitch, fall in love, danger, disorder, haunted by the past, obsessive quest, uncover truth, tragic love, love and romance, escapades, vengeance, dishonesty, kidnapping, amnesia, exploitation, mental health, model, chases and races, love affair, rivalry
Thank You for Smoking (2005)
Plot Summary:
Nick Naylor is a charismatic spin-doctor for Big Tobacco who'll fight to protect America's right to smoke -- even if it kills him -- while still remaining a role model for his 12-year old son. When he incurs the wrath of a senator bent on snuffing out cigarettes, Nick's powers of "filtering the truth" will be put to the test
Duration: 92 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 227000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: marketing, advertising, business, social satire, lobbyist, satire, tobacco, reporter, lung cancer, journalism, politics, society, cigarette smoking, cancer, philosophy, capitalism, addiction, political satire, health, lie, drug, debate, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, dialogue
Lady Vengeance (2005)
Plot Summary:
After a 13-year imprisonment for the kidnap and murder of a 6 year old boy, beautiful Lee Guem-ja starts seeking revenge on the man that was really responsible for the boy's death. With the help of fellow inmates and reunited with her daughter, she gets closer and closer to her goal. But will her actions lead to the relief she seeks?
Duration: 115 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 85000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Plot tags: vengeance, revenge, serial killer, violence, prison, vigilantism, torture, murder, female vigilante, violent, kidnapping, female protagonist, women's prison, vigilante, ex convict, parents and children, rape and revenge, heroine, asian, macabre, storytelling, femme fatale, extreme, redemption, mother daughter relationship
Munich (2005)
Plot Summary:
During the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, eleven Israeli athletes are taken hostage and murdered by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September. In retaliation, the Israeli government recruits a group of Mossad agents to track down and execute those responsible for the attack
Duration: 164 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 236000
Genere: Action, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, France
Plot tags: terrorism, espionage, vengeance, assassination, mossad, spy, judaism, politics, murder, terrorist, islamic terrorism, cia, tragedy, covert operation, revenge, olympics, vigilante, hitman, assassin, conflict, moral ambiguity, undercover, arab, conspiracy, secrets
A Bittersweet Life (2005)
Plot Summary:
Kim Sun-woo is an enforcer and manager for a hotel owned by a cold, calculative crime boss, Kang who assigns Sun-Woo to a simple errand while he is away on a business trip; to shadow his young mistress, Heesoo, for fear that she may be cheating on him with another, younger man, with the mandate that he must kill them both if he discovers their affair
Duration: 119 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 42000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Plot tags: hitman, gunfight, organized crime, revenge, vengeance, mafia, betrayal, gangster, fall in love, gang, brutality, character study, asian, asian gangster, rivalry, violent, mob boss, martial arts, hotel, tragic hero, dying, infidelity, buried alive, darkness, gang war
Green Street Hooligans (2005)
Plot Summary:
After being wrongfully expelled from Harvard University, American Matt Buckner flees to his sister's home in England. Once there, he is befriended by her charming and dangerous brother-in-law, Pete Dunham, and introduced to the underworld of British football hooliganism. Matt learns to stand his ground through a friendship that develops against the backdrop of this secret and often violent world. 'Green Street Hooligans' is a story of loyalty, trust and the sometimes brutal consequences of living close to the edge
Duration: 109 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 159000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Sport, War
Country: UK, USA
Plot tags: soccer, gang, hooliganism, friendship, self discovery, subculture, friends, buddies, skinhead, football, bar fight, uninhibited rivalry, lifestyle, obsession, rivalry, hooligan, society, student, american abroad, revenge, gangster, social relations, social decay, loyalty, respect
A History of Violence (2005)
Plot Summary:
An average family is thrust into the spotlight after the father commits a seemingly self-defense murder at his diner
Duration: 96 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 250000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, UK, Germany
Plot tags: small town, gangster, self defense, mafia, sex scene, violent, revenge, mobster, attempted robbery, organized crime, bullying, redemption, twists and turns, female nudity, vigilantism, family relations, robbery, attempted murder, irish mob, diner, double life, nudity, violence, vengeance, serial killer