Best movies like A Shine of Rainbows
Last updated March 2024
Looking for movies related to A Shine of Rainbows? Share your insights to help others to tv shows and films you've seen already that may also spellbind them. Help enlarge the network of people mentioning videos to each other. We welcome your involvement!
Plot Summary:
An orphaned boy named Tomás is adopted by Maire O’Donnell to live on a whimsical Irish isle filled with new friends, secret caves and a lost baby pup seal stranded on the coast. But when Maire's reluctant husband Alec refuses to accept Tomás as his own son, the boy drifts down a fateful path of adventure and self-discovery, illuminating how rainbows can shine around - and within - us all.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Canada, Ireland
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: uplifting, feel good, sentimental, sincere, touching, serious, realistic, christian film, motivational
Best tv shows and movies like A Shine of Rainbows (2009):
Similar in 81%
Homecoming (1996)
Plot Summary:
When their mother disappears, a group of siblings are forced to fend for themselves, and make their way on their own. They eventually meet their grandmother, a loner who is reluctant to take them in. Based on the novel by Cynthia Voigt.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: sentimental, uplifting, touching, feel good, serious, realistic, crying
Similar in 85%
Anbulla Rajinikanth (1984)
Plot Summary:
Anbulla Rajinikanth.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 197
Genere: Action, Drama, Family
Country: India
Duration: 138 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
The Horses of Mcbride (2012)
Plot Summary:
When Nicki finds two horses stranded deep in the Rocky Mountain snow, she makes it her mission to find a way to get them to safety. With no other options, she picks up a shovel and starts to dig out the mile-long path, inspiring her father, Matt, and the rest of the community to join together and save the horses in the spirit of Christmas.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 374
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Canada
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: sentimental, uplifting, serious, realistic
Similar in 86%
Time of the Wolf (2002)
Plot Summary:
A boy is orphaned and his only surviving relatives, an ageing aunt and uncle, somewhat reluctantly, take him in. The aunt, still traumatised by the death by drowning, years earlier, of her own two sons, has little idea how to handle the boy. As if, losing his parents and not really feeling welcome in his new home, were not enough, the boy is bullied at school. He seeks sanctuary from all of his troubles in the open air, in the company of wolves and particularly in the presence of a young wolf whose life he has saved.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 294
Genere: Drama
Country: Germany, Canada
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: touching, uplifting, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 87%
Follow The Stars Home (2001)
Plot Summary:
Two brothers - one virtuous, one feckless - are in love with the same woman. She falls for Brother Wrong, carrying a torch for him even after he deserts her. But Brother Right remains steadfast and available. What's unusual here is why the bad brother pulls his disappearing act. Mark walks out on wife Dianne after learning that the baby they're expecting has severe genetic abnormalities. Dianne is nonetheless determined to bear her child, with support from her mother and Mark's brother David, a pediatrician whose love for Dianne is unspoken but obvious. How do they cope with the challenges of raising this little girl named Julia?.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Romance, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: uplifting, sentimental, sincere, touching, erotic, feel good, serious, emotional, realistic, romantic drama
Similar in 75%
Foster (2011)
Plot Summary:
Some years after their son is killed, a married couple decide to adopt a child. One day a 7-year-old boy, Eli, unexpectedly arrives on their doorstep and things take a strange turn.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: UK, India
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, feel good, sincere, philosophical, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 86%
All Roads Lead Home (2008)
Plot Summary:
The story is about a 12 year old girl who loses her mother in an automobile accident. Her father struggles with the loss of his wife and trying to raise his young daughter who believes her father is partly responsible for her mother's death. Belle's maternal grandfather is a changed man since losing his daughter in the accident. He finds it difficult to have a relationship with Belle since she is a constant reminder of her mother. It is Atticus the new puppy who will change Belle's life and the lives of those who love her.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 918
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, sentimental, melancholic, sincere, touching, disturbing
Similar in 89%
The Nephew (1998)
Plot Summary:
Twenty years ago, Tony Egan's sister went to America. Nobody ever heard of her again. But now, the message of her death arrives in her town of birth. Only days later, her only son Chad arrives, too. Obviously, his mother took a black husband. Soon, Chad falls for Aislin, who has a bit of a crush on him too. But there is an old conflict going on between her father and Chad's uncle. This conflict resurfaces and begins to draw circles, wider and wider.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Ireland
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: sincere, atmospheric, touching, serious, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 89%
Stay (2013)
Plot Summary:
A woman finds out she's pregnant and returns home when the expected father wants nothing to do with her.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 819
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, Ireland
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: emotional, realistic, touching, serious, psychological, captivating, teen, sincere
Similar in 76%
This Is My Father (1998)
Plot Summary:
When schoolteacher Kieran Johnson (James Caan) discovers that his father was not a French sailor (as he had been led to believe) but rather an Irish farmer, Kieran looks to his mother (Moya Farrelly) for answers. When she refuses to provide any, Kieran travels to Ireland. In flashbacks, we watch a romance develop between Kieran's mother, a college girl, and his father (Aidan Quinn), an inarticulat.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Ireland, Canada
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, realistic, sincere, serious, independent film, psychological, light, romantic, sexy
Similar in 76%
Misa mi (2003)
Plot Summary:
When her mother died, 10 year old girl Misa's world stopped. And when her father, along with her new girlfriend, wants to spend the summer in the Swedish province Skåne she refuses to come with them. Misa's father reluctantly agrees that Misa stays with her grandmother in Arjeplog over the summer instead. In the deep forest of northern Sweden Misa find more than she ever could imagine; she meets a wolf with cubs that Misa develop a deep and strange connection with. But the wolf spreads fear in the small village and someone has hired a poacher to kill it and her cubs.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 274
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Sweden
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, sincere
Similar in 77%
The Way Home (2010)
Plot Summary:
An inspirational true story about how a rural community rallied around a distraught family to search for their missing two year-old boy and through doing so changed the lives of many of those involved.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 816
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, christian film, uplifting, emotional, serious, realistic
Similar in 85%
Little Big Girl (2002)
Plot Summary:
While out and about tending to his herd, young shepherd Larus meets a mysterious little girl named Tinke. Quickly realizing that the girl is alone, Larus brings Tinke some food and slowly builds a friendship with her. Tinke, whose parents died within the past year, has managed to survive by her own devices in the wild and has hence become quite feral. Larus convinces Tinke to come to his home so that his parents can take care of her.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 633
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Denmark, Sweden
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, captivating, realistic, serious, offbeat
Similar in 76%
We Can Be Heroes! (2002)
Plot Summary:
Two kids - about 11 years old - Marcello and Fatima, meet and like each other very much. Both have dreams and problems. Marcello wants to fly but feels like an absolutely useless human being, Fatima wants to play soccer - which is not acceptable for her Muslim family. But then they start to support each other in a very delicate and subtle manner.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 999
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Sweden
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, serious, captivating, contemplative
Similar in 81%
Miracle Dogs Too (2006)
Plot Summary:
Zack, a young boy, finds two cocker spaniels caged in the woods and takes them home. The animals, Sissy and Buddy, have magical healing powers that change the people of a small town.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 340
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: sentimental, feel good, serious, touching
Similar in 79%
Eskil & Trinidad (2013)
Plot Summary:
Eskil moves from town to town with his father in Northern Sweden. He misses his mother and sucks at playing hockey, the main activity among the boys his age. Things changes when he meets Trinidad, a mysterious woman who lives outside society spending her time building a great ship that perhaps could take Eskil to his mother.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 185
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Sweden
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, feel good, sentimental, light, sincere, captivating, exciting, tense
Similar in 78%
Owd Bob (1998)
Plot Summary:
Recently orphaned David must move to the Isle of Man to live with his grandfather, Adam, who's a sheep farmer. Both long for the end of the summer, having nothing in common but their love for dogs, notably Adam's precious champion sheepdog Bob. David strikes a friendship with Maggie, the sassy daughter of friendly neighbor Keith Moore, but Adam hates that family on account of an old canine competition-related tragedy. Other neighbors suspect Bob and the Moore's dog of the recent series of nocturnal sheep-kills.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 418
Genere: Family, Drama
Country: UK, Canada
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 80%
When I Find the Ocean (2006)
Plot Summary:
A little girl leaves home with her pet dog and rabbit to escape abuse and find the ocean in the hopes of feeling closer to her father who has passed away.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 259
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, sincere, captivating
Similar in 87%
A Year in My Life (2006)
Plot Summary:
In 1950s France, a young boy is taken in by a couple after spending a few months in the care of social service.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 224
Genere: Drama
Country: France
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: sentimental, uplifting, touching, sincere, captivating, feel good, serious, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 77%
A Christmas Memory (1997)
Plot Summary:
A boy, Buddy, whose parents have split and whose mother is an actress in New York, has been dumped in the south at the small-town home of some older cousins, all of whom are unmarried.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 796
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: sentimental, atmospheric, uplifting, touching, feel good, realistic, semi serious, southern gothic
Similar in 88%
Summer of the Colt (1989)
Plot Summary:
This award-winning film by André Melançon -- set on a ranch on the pampas of Argentina -- tells the story of three children spending a summer with their grandfather. The youngest, Felipe, makes friends with a puppy; his older brother, Daniel, breaks and train his first horse; their 13-year-old sister, Laura, struggles with the transition between childhood and growing up. The kids find it difficult to adapt to their proud and stubborn grandfather, and he learns that he has to change his ways and try to understand them as they all experience the joys and sorrows of growing up and growing old. ~ Alice Duncan, Rovi.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 130
Genere: Family, Drama
Country: Argentina, Canada
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: touching, feel good, serious, realistic
Similar in 78%
Heidi (1968)
Plot Summary:
Heidi is an orphaned girl initially raised by her aunt Dete in Maienfeld, Switzerland. In order to get a job in Frankfurt, Dete brings 5-year-old Heidi to her grandfather, who has been at odds with the villagers for years and lives in seclusion on the alm. He at first resents Heidi's arrival, but the girl manages to penetrate his harsh exterior and subsequently has a delightful stay with him and her best friend, young Peter the goat-herd.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 665
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: West Germany, USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: sentimental, uplifting, touching, feel good, serious, realistic
Similar in 77%
Booky & the Secret Santa (2007)
Plot Summary:
Booky does everything she can to make an enjoyable Christmas, for her family, during the depression as her father is out of work.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 311
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Canada
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, realistic, sincere, captivating, feel good, serious
Similar in 90%
Smitty (2012)
Plot Summary:
SMITTY is a family film about a rescue dog. When life gets tough for Ben, a friendly paw is all it takes to pull him through. Mischievous thirteen-year-old Ben is sent to his grandfather's farm for the summer, where he crosses paths with a lovable mutt. With help from the unlikely canine companion, Ben learns the importance of friendship, family and responsibility.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 659
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: sincere, captivating, light, feel good, touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 77%
Evelyn (2002)
Plot Summary:
Desmond Doyle is devastated when his wife abandons their family on the day after Christmas. His unemployment and the fact that there is no woman in the house to care for the children, Evelyn, Dermot and Maurice, make it clear to the authorities that his is an untenable situation. The Catholic Church and the Irish courts decide to put the Doyle children into Church-run orphanages.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Germany, Ireland, UK, Netherlands
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: sentimental, emotional, touching, sincere, feel good, intense, social, uplifting, bleak, serious
Similar in 79%
Stolen Summer (2002)
Plot Summary:
Pete, an eight-year-old Catholic boy growing up in the suburbs of Chicago in the mid-1970s, attends Catholic school, where as classes let out for the summer, he's admonished by a nun to follow the path of the Lord, and not that of the Devil. Perhaps taking this message a bit too seriously, Pete decides it's his goal for the summer to help someone get into heaven; having been told that Catholicism is the only sure path to the kingdom of the Lord, Pete decides to convert a Jew to Catholicism in order to improve their standing in the afterlife. Hoping to find a likely candidate, Pete begins visiting a nearby synagogue, where he gets to know Rabbi Jacobson, who responds to Pete's barrage of questions with good humor. Pete also makes friends with the Rabbi's son, Danny, who is about the same age; when he learns that Danny is seriously ill, he decides Danny would be an excellent choice for conversion.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, sincere, uplifting, cult classic, feel good, serious, realistic, inspirational, dramatic
Similar in 83%
Martian Child (2007)
Plot Summary:
A recently-widowed, science fiction writer considers whether to adopt a hyper-imaginative 6-year-old abandoned and socially-rejected boy who says he's really from Mars.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: touching, emotional, sentimental, sweet, feel good, humorous, uplifting, spiritual, happy, realistic
Similar in 87%
Finn (2013)
Plot Summary:
Nine year old Finn lives with his father in a small town. Together with his best friend Erik he plays football, but he prefers to play music. His dad wants him to play football, just like every other kid his age. Finn does not understand why, but his father doesn't want to talk about it. When Finn meets a mysterious old man, who plays the violin beautifully, he decides to learn how to play the violin as well. The old man teaches him, while Finn's dad thinks he is playing football... Is Finn the only one who sees the magic of music? What does his father hide?.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 356
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Netherlands
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, realistic, twisted
Similar in 85%
Pollyanna (2003)
Plot Summary:
Pollyanna Whittier goes to live with her wealthy but bitter aunt after the tragic death of her father. Pollyanna shares a game her father taught her -- the 'Glad Game' -- in which everyone can find a silver lining in even the darkest cloud, and her sunny nature, good humor and determination to look on the bright side of life prove to have an astonishing effect on those around her. With the help of her orphaned friend, Jimmy Bean, she casts her spell on the grumpiest townsfolk of Beldingsville -- including the cynical shut-in Mrs. Snow, the morose millionaire Mr. Pendleton and the enigmatic Dr. Chilton. And Pollyanna masterminds the romance between her Aunt's maid, Nancy, and the handyman, Tim. It is only Aunt Polly, who cannot bring herself to embrace Pollyanna's innocence and joy. But all is not straightforward in Pollyanna's war against pessimism, since she must overcome a personal tragedy that threatens to banish "glad" from her vocabulary forever.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: UK
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: touching, feel good, uplifting, sentimental, realistic, semi serious, humorous, tear jerker, period drama, tearjerker
Similar in 87%
Change of Plans (2011)
Plot Summary:
Sally and Jason Danville's life are turned upside down when a tragic accident suddenly names them the caretakers of four young children.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 942
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 125 min
Plot tags: humorous, sincere, captivating, light, feel good, romantic, sentimental, touching, realistic, semi serious