Best movies like American Son
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Time passes and tension mounts in a Florida police station as an estranged interracial couple awaits news of their missing teenage son.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, heartbreaking, suspense, suspenseful, rough, sad, disturbing
Best tv shows and movies like American Son (2019):
Similar in 84%
Saf (2018)
Plot Summary:
Turkish director Ali Vatansever weighs the human cost of politically motivated urban renewal in his achingly resonant second feature, about a young couple forced to compromise their ideals and work for the very industry encroaching on their Istanbul neighbourhood, in order to keep up with the rent.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 520
Genere: Drama
Country: Turkey, Germany, Romania
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: tense, rough, suspense, suspenseful, disturbing, political
Similar in 87%
The Bus Is Coming (1971)
Plot Summary:
A young black soldier returns home to Los Angeles from combat in Vietnam to find out that his brother had been killed by a gang of racist cops. Angered, he joins a black nationalist group to take his revenge.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 80
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: black cinema
Similar in 88%
Mad World (2010)
Plot Summary:
In this independent drama, writer-director Cory Cataldo explores the pain of adolescence with dark and disturbing results. Facing the pitfalls of high school with no support from their parents and teachers, a foursome of ostracized teenagers (Gary Cairns II, Dylan Vigus, Matthew Thompson and David Huynh) are forced into adulthood much sooner than the world expected. With nothing to lose and no escape from the onslaught of ridicule, they decide to unleash their mean streaks in a whirlwind of pranks, partying and destruction.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 363
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspense, rough, unusual plot structure, suspenseful, contemplative, sad, crying
Similar in 83%
Across the Line (2015)
Plot Summary:
Out of the approximately 600 players in the National Hockey League, thirty are Black. Mattie Slaughter, a hockey phenom from the rural Black community of North Preston, wants to make it thirty-one. To reach his goal, Mattie needs to keep his nose clean and avoid trouble. Hard to do though, when you go to a school where racism taints every interaction, your older brother is a hustler and you’re crushing on a girl who’s already hooked up.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 524
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: captivating, suspense, disturbing
Similar in 77%
Freedom Road (1979)
Plot Summary:
Muhammad Ali, in a rare acting role, plays Gideon Jackson, an ex-slave in 1870's Virginia who gets elected to the U.S. Senate in Washington D.C. and battles other former slaves and white sharecroppers to keep the land they tended all their lives.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 205
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 186 min
Plot tags: political, crying, period piece
Similar in 85%
Confirmation (2016)
Plot Summary:
Judge Clarence Thomas' nomination to the United States' Supreme Court is called into question when former colleague, Anita Hill, testifies that he had sexually harassed her.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: political, psychological, thought provoking, serious, suspense, disturbing, non fiction, anamorphic, cult classic, political drama
Similar in 89%
Sus (2010)
Plot Summary:
Election Night 1979: Margaret Thatcher is about to come into power. A young black man is held on suspicion of murdering his pregnant wife. Officers Karn and Wilby, racist to the core and high on the prospect of a Conservative Party victory, try to lure the suspect into a quick confession. But the night has just begun...Callous humiliation gives way to a barrage of sinister violence, leading to a devastating conclusion.Written by Barrie Keefe, who was behind the British classic The Long Good Friday, SUS is an emotionally charged and incredibly tense crime drama that serves as a powerful outcry against past institutional racism. But in the age of counter-terrorism SUS also begs the question: has history caught up with us?.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 432
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: disturbing, rough, realistic, suspenseful, tense, serious, independent film, minimal cast
Similar in 82%
Gospel Hill (2008)
Plot Summary:
Gospel Hill tells the intersecting story of two men in the fictional South Carolina town of Julia. Danny Glover plays John Malcolm, the son of a slain civil rights activist. Jack Herrod (Tom Bower) is the former sheriff who never got to the bottom of the murder. Their paths begin to cross when a development corporation comes to town with plans to raze Julia's historic Gospel Hill.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 986
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, serious, suspenseful, sincere, realistic, rough, exciting, tense, suspense
Similar in 87%
White Lie (1991)
Plot Summary:
A black New York man returns to his southern hometown to investigate his father's lynching at the hands of a white mob.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 138
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: reflective, tension, suspense
Similar in 78%
The Last Black Man in San Francisco (2019)
Plot Summary:
Jimmie Fails dreams of reclaiming the Victorian home his grandfather built in the heart of San Francisco. Joined on his quest by his best friend Mont, Jimmie searches for belonging in a rapidly changing city that seems to have left them behind.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 121 min
Plot tags: psychological, sincere, unusual plot structure, captivating, disturbing, thought provoking, political, poignant, cult classic, independent film
Similar in 87%
The Learning Tree (1969)
Plot Summary:
The story, set in Kansas during the 1920's, covers less than a year in the life of a black teenager, and documents the veritable deluge of events which force him into sudden manhood. The family relationships and enmities, the fears, frustrations and ambitions of the black teenager in small-town America are explored with a strong statement about human values.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: existential, aesthetic, independent film, sentimental, sincere, thought provoking, touching, serious, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 84%
Bopha! (1993)
Plot Summary:
In this story of a black policeman during South African apartheid, Danny Glover plays the cop, who believes he's trying to help his people, even while serving as a pawn of the racist government. When his son gets involved in the anti-apartheid movement, he finds himself torn between his family (including long-suffering wife Alfre Woodard) and what he believes is his duty.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: independent film, uplifting, thought provoking, serious, emotional, realistic, historical drama, political drama
Similar in 86%
10,000 Black Men Named George (2002)
Plot Summary:
In the 1920s, the rights of American workers to join a labor union was still considered an open question, and African-Americans were routinely denied their civil and economic rights. 10,000 Black Men Named George, the title, refers to the fact Pullman porters were often called "George" by white passengers, which was considered a racial slur.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 349
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, captivating, disturbing, tense, sincere, serious, realistic, contemplative, entertaining
Similar in 85%
Through the Valley (2008)
Plot Summary:
An innocent man framed for murder, and the system that just wants another minority conviction.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 74
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, crime drama, independent film
Similar in 77%
Blood Done Sign My Name (2010)
Plot Summary:
A drama based on the true story in which a black Vietnam-era veteran is allegedly murdered by a local white businessman who is later exonerated. The plot focuses on the role of a local high school teacher and the civil unrest that followed the acquittal.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 635
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 128 min
Plot tags: disturbing, serious, captivating, realistic, thought provoking, tense, bleak, contemplative, entertaining
Similar in 77%
A Raisin in the Sun (2008)
Plot Summary:
Dreams can make a life worth living, but they can also be dashed by bad decisions. This is the crossroads whare the Younger family find themselves when their father passes away and leaves them with $10,000 in life insurance money. Should they buy a new home for the family? Perhaps a liquor store? While no choice is easy, life on the South Side of Chicago in the 1950s is even harder.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: sentimental, sincere, emotional, uplifting, touching, serious, family saga, captivating, realistic
Similar in 75%
Panther (1995)
Plot Summary:
Panther is a semi-historic film about the origins of The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. The movie spans about 3 years (1966-68) of the Black Panther's history in Oakland. Panther also uses historical footage (B/W) to emphasize some points.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 124 min
Plot tags: political, disturbing, controversial, philosophical, hood, cult classic, tense, bleak, serious, realistic
Similar in 87%
White Water (2015)
Plot Summary:
White Water is the story of a 7 year-old black kid in segregated 1963 Opelika, Alabama who becomes obsessed with the desire to taste the water from the "white's only" drinking fountain and sets out on a quest to do the unthinkable: drink from it.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 209
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, serious, suspenseful, realistic
Similar in 75%
Drew Peterson: Untouchable (2012)
Plot Summary:
The story of Drew Peterson, who is charged with the death of his third wife after the mysterious disappearance of his fourth wife.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, serious, realistic, tense, rough, ridiculous
Similar in 81%
Jasper, Texas (2003)
Plot Summary:
In 1998, three white men in the small town of Jasper, Texas, chained a black man to the back of their pickup truck and dragged him to his death. This film relates that story and how it affected all of the residents of the town, both black and white.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 750
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, realistic, disturbing, freeze frame
Similar in 75%
Color of Justice (1997)
Plot Summary:
Four young black men kill a white woman, the D.A. is very cautious in how to proceed.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 228
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, rough, thought provoking, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 78%
One Night in Miami... (2020)
Plot Summary:
In the aftermath of Cassius Clay's defeat of Sonny Liston in 1964, the boxer meets with Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown to change the course of history in the segregated South.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 34000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: uplifting, thought provoking, suspense, political, sad, political drama
Similar in 76%
Riot (1996)
Plot Summary:
In April 1992, following the notorious Rodney King verdict, the streets of Los Angeles became a battlefield, the backdrop to four personal intertwined stories.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 395
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: independent film, anthology, tense, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 80%
Imperial Dreams (2014)
Plot Summary:
A 21-year-old reformed gangster's devotion to his family and his future is put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his old stomping grounds in Watts, Los Angeles.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: uplifting, touching, rough, serious, hood, inspirational, feel good, social, crime drama, realistic
Similar in 88%
Black Like Me (1964)
Plot Summary:
Black Like Me is the true account of John Griffin's experiences when he passed as a black man.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 753
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: deep, independent film
Similar in 79%
Freedom Song (2000)
Plot Summary:
Freedom Song (2000) is a made-for-TV film based on true stories of the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi in the 1960s. It tells the story of the struggle of African Americans to register to vote in the fictional town of Quinlan. In the midst of the Freedom Summer, a group of high school students in the small town are eager to make grassroots changes in their own community. The young activists meet resistance not only from white southerners, but from their parents, who have experienced firsthand the violence that can result from speaking out.[1] As high school students band together with the support of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, they make strides in registering African-American voters and gaining awareness for their cause.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 891
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, captivating, emotional, political, tense, serious, realistic
Similar in 87%
Our Song (2000)
Plot Summary:
Focusing on the bonding between three female (an African American female, a half African American half Latino American female, and a Latino American female) high school members of Brooklyn's "Jackie Robinson Steppers Marching Band" and the choices the girls face once their school closes down because of the need for asbestos removal. This film is about a host of topics, not least of which is the hard-work involved in maintaining.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 848
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: disturbing, sincere, thought provoking, touching, independent film, serious, realistic, contemplative, neorealism, erotic
Similar in 76%
A Raisin in the Sun (1961)
Plot Summary:
Walter Lee Younger is a young man struggling with his station in life. Sharing a tiny apartment with his wife, son, sister and mother, he seems like an imprisoned man. Until, that is, the family gets an unexpected financial windfall.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 128 min
Plot tags: black and white, retro, social, existential, aesthetic, sentimental, sincere, thought provoking, touching, serious
Similar in 80%
Black August (2007)
Plot Summary:
The last 14 months of George Jackson's life was an existence under subjective and objective conditions in California's industrial prison complex. George Jackson would spend 11 years in jail (7 of which were in solitary confinement) for a $70 gas station robbery crime in 1960. He was 18 years of age when the sentence of one year-to-life was handed down to him.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 302
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: rough, thought provoking, serious, realistic, political
Similar in 88%
The Color Purple (1985)
Plot Summary:
An epic tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry. After Celie's abusive father marries her off to the equally debasing "Mister" Albert Johnson, things go from bad to worse, leaving Celie to find companionship anywhere she can. She perseveres, holding on to her dream of one day being reunited with her sister in Africa. Based on the novel by Alice Walker.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 94000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 154 min
Plot tags: sentimental, uplifting, touching, inspirational, sad, sincere, emotional, compassionate, period piece, heartbreaking