Best movies like Charlie's War
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Charlie's War is the story of Charlotte Lewis, a woman who is experiencing serious emotional and mental turmoil brought about by nightmares of increasing intensity. In the dreams, she is a young girl, and she runs from unknown terrors. Trying to understand her troubling dreams, Charlotte revisits part of her childhood, which comes back to her in a series of impressionistic memories. Charlie, her sister, Jobie, and her mother move in with her grandmother. It is 1944, and World War II rages in Europe and the Far East. Though Grandma's farm seems to be a peaceful refuge, there is an undercurrent of fear and brooding menace in their surroundings.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 75
Genere: Drama, Family, Mystery, War
Country: USA
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, suspenseful, tense, independent film
Best tv shows and movies like Charlie's War (2003):
Similar in 82%
My Good Hans (2015)
Plot Summary:
It is a story about the Soviet worker Pyotr and the German engineer Hans, who came to the USSR before the war on a business trip. At a Soviet plant the German team works in cooperation with Russian specialists. Once Hans makes a mistake which causes the explosion of the furnace and human losses. Hans finds himself at the mercy of Pyotr, the only witness to his actions near the furnace. Pyotr also depends on Hans, because Pyotr’s very presence near the furnace entails accusation of subversive actions and a death sentence. Mutual suspicion gives way to silent sympathy and later friendship. They even look like each other, both have small children. Pyotr secretly leaves the town with his family but Hans feels loss rather that relief at the disappearance of the embarrassing witness.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 210
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Germany, Russia
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 78%
Incident in a Small Town (1994)
Plot Summary:
Lily and her son John live alone in a small town as her husband has been killed fighting the war in France. Or at least that is what she told John, but the arrival of Frank back in the town leads him to find out that she not only has been lying about that but also about the fact that she never married him. When Frank tussles with Lily in her yard she applies for a restraining order, calling on the help of her father (the esteemed judge Stoddard Bell) and his partner (lawyer Harmon Cobb). The case fails and when Frank is found murdered later that night Stoddard is arrested and Cobb has a defence case on his hands.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 412
Genere: Drama, War
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, surprise ending
Similar in 86%
The Letter (2012)
Plot Summary:
A playwright who begins to mentally unravel before premiere night. She is plagued by dreams and visions of being watched, but cannot decide if she is at the center of a manipulative plot or simply losing her grip on reality.
IMDB Rating: 3.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, atmospheric, realistic, suspenseful, serious
Similar in 87%
I'll Remember April (1999)
Plot Summary:
Four young boys find a shipwrecked Japanese sailor during World War II and struggle with the decision to save him.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 753
Genere: Drama, Family, War
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, exciting, melancholic, sincere, touching, independent film
Similar in 77%
Elina: As If I Wasn't There (2002)
Plot Summary:
In rural Sweden of the early 1950s, little Elina goes to school again after recovering from tuberculosis, the same illness that has killed her father a few years earlier. Elina's family belongs to Finnish-speaking Finns frowned upon by a staunch schoolmistress who starts hounding Elina for questioning her authority. Elina's mother, sister, and a liberal young male teacher all try to mediate the ensuing battle of wills between Elina and Miss Holm. Elina finds consolation in wandering out on the dangerous marshlands to have imaginary conversations with her dead father. Written by Markku Kuoppamäki.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Sweden, Finland
Duration: 77 min
Plot tags: touching, captivating, realistic, atmospheric, serious, stylized
Similar in 83%
Caroline and Jackie (2012)
Plot Summary:
A woman turns her sister's belated birthday celebration into an intervention, but as events unfold, it becomes unclear which sibling needs the most help.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 764
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: realistic, touching, serious, captivating, psychological, independent film
Similar in 81%
Interstate 84 (2000)
Plot Summary:
When a body is found floating in an upstate New York river, hard-drinking cop Joe Weldon is left with few clues. After uncovering the man's identity - an enigmatic simpleton named Hap - Weldon is led to the crooked hustler who took advantage of Hap and the disturbed, young punk who tormented him. A tale of personal demons, shattered lives, and ultimate redemption.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 273
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, tense, touching, suspenseful, contemplative, gloomy, independent film
Similar in 87%
After the Game (1997)
Plot Summary:
After the Game is a crime fiction murder mystery with a theme of "after the game of poker" and "after the game of life." It deals with revenge, deceit, lust and greed, and explores karma and the afterlife. Aging gambler Benny Walsh (played by Gorshin) dies in a suspicious car crash after the biggest poker win of his life. His son, Clyde (played by Dubac), comes to the Nevada town in search of answers. He discovers that each of his father's gambling buddies had ample reason to see him dead.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 133
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: independent film, tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 87%
Normandy (2011)
Plot Summary:
Klaus Muller, a battle-hardened veteran, finds himself fighting for his life on the Russian front. Surrounded by overwhelming numbers of Russian tanks and planes, he and his men are doomed until famed German tank ace, Michael Wittmann, shows up in his Tiger Tank and saves the day. Once wounded, Klaus is transferred to Normandy to serve under Field Marshal Rommel just days before the Allied invasion. Much to his surprise, he finds that his beloved Klaudia is also stationed nearby as a field nurse. Unfortunately, so is her father, who is working with the French resistance and now finds himself pursued by the ruthless Gestapo officer Brahms, whose search leads him to Klaus and Klaudia attempting a rescue. They are caught and imprisoned. As D-Day begins and the Allies attack from the beaches and the sky, they escape from the prison, fighting the Gestapo in the middle of the biggest invasion in world history... Written by tino struckmann.
IMDB Rating: 2.6
IMDB Votes: 460
Genere: War
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, emotional, realistic, suspenseful, sex comedy, independent film
Similar in 87%
McBride: The Chameleon Murder (2005)
Plot Summary:
As a favor to a friend, defense attorney McBride takes on a client accused of murdering a woman. When McBride and his partner Phil investigate the deceased, they discover she had many identities and with each new life she was leading the list of suspects grows larger.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 363
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, detective
Similar in 88%
Into the White Night (2010)
Plot Summary:
A pawn shop owner in Osaka is murdered, but due to a lack of conclusive evidence the police lists the man's death as a suicide. Detective Sasagaki, who investigated the case, can't forget the dark eyes of the main suspect's daughter Yukiho and the pawn shop owner's son Ryouji. As time goes by, more mysterious deaths surround Yukiho & Ryouji. Detective Sasagaki still unable to let go of the pawn shop owner case discovers startling details about Yukiho and Ryouji.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 490
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: Japan
Duration: 149 min
Plot tags: tense, atmospheric, serious, psychological, captivating, twisted, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 86%
Godspeed (2009)
Plot Summary:
Joseph McKelheer and Cory Knauf (The Hamiltons, The Violent Kind) star in this intense thriller set in the lingering light of the Alaskan midnight sun. Charlie Shepard, a modern day faith healer with a small flock of believers, is stunned when his family is brutally murdered. Six months later a young, mysterious girl (Courtney Halverson) appears and becomes the link to his family's killing and the murderers themselves, ultimately leading to violent consequences for all.
IMDB Rating: 4.4
IMDB Votes: 558
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, psychological, captivating, rough, serious, suspenseful, stylized, independent film, suspense
Similar in 89%
Secrets From Her Past (2011)
Plot Summary:
Ten years ago, Kate Collins (Ashley Jones) was a different person. Literally. She was living in Chicago, working as a bartender, and going by her real name ‘Stephanie Wickers.’ That all changed when she witnessed the murder of her boss by a ruthless member of an up and coming crime syndicate named Alek Ravik (Al Sapienza). Knowing that Klebanov saw her, she faked her death, changed her name, and went into hiding in Philadelphia. When a crooked cop retires and young, eager Detective Miesen (Alain Chanoine) is chosen to head a new task force to tackle crime syndicates in Chicago, the unsolved murder case is reopened. Miesen believes that Kate/Stephanie is still alive and begins to look for her. Unfortunately, so does Alek.
IMDB Rating: 4.2
IMDB Votes: 287
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: tense, suspenseful, captivating, suspense, serious, realistic
Similar in 79%
Headwinds (2011)
Plot Summary:
Sarah tells Paul that she wants out of their marriage; the next day she disappears. A year later and Paul along with their children return to his childhood town to start anew after the loss of his wife and their mother.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: France, Belgium
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, touching, serious, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 79%
The Thirteenth Tale (2013)
Plot Summary:
Margaret Lea, a young biographer, attempts to interview writer Vida Winter, whose health is deteriorating. Vida has previously denied access to the secrets of her life and childhood home. Vida tells her story to Margaret, helping Margaret to confront her past.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: UK
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: gothic, captivating, touching, serious, psychological, suspense, suspenseful, disturbing, slasher, sentimental
Similar in 87%
Small Town Conspiracy (2002)
Plot Summary:
Crime - Set in Florida at the close of 1941, this film noir follows small-town police chief John Haleran's (Zen Gesner) investigation of the murder of a young Japanese girl, a case that leads to a top secret government conspiracy. With the help of retired cop Taylor (William Morgan Sheppard), Haleran discovers a connection between the victim and an imminent Japanese attack. - Zen Gesner, Jeannetta Arnette, William Morgan Sheppard.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 127
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, War
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, tense, bleak
Similar in 75%
Saving Shiloh (2006)
Plot Summary:
In this third movie about Shiloh, Judd Travers is accused of killing a man he once fought in a bar. Everyone in the town consider Judd to be guilty except Marty Preston, but even him has some doubts. Trying to clear Judd's name Marty and his friend searches the woods to find the criminal.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 930
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, sincere, touching, captivating, saga
Similar in 84%
Carrie's War (2004)
Plot Summary:
Carrie's War is an adaptation of a 1973 children's novel by Nina Bawden, set during the Second World War and following two evacuees, Carrie and her younger brother Nick.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 494
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: UK
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic, bleak
Similar in 89%
Under the Flag of the Rising Sun (1972)
Plot Summary:
A war widow determined to clear the name of her disgraced husband, who was court-martialed for desertion and executed. Official records have been destroyed, and the ministry that distributes benefits continues to deny her a pension. Twenty-six years after the war, she seeks out four survivors of her husband's garrison. Each tells a dramatically different story about her husband's conduct, but she is determined to learn the truth.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, War
Country: Japan
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, serious, disturbing, captivating, emotional, sincere, atmospheric, bleak, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 78%
In August of 1944 (2001)
Plot Summary:
The movie is set in Belarus, where a team of counter-intelligence officers is given only three days to find a German radio operator posing as a Soviet soldier, behind soviet lines, on the eve of a major offensive.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Mystery, Drama, Thriller, War
Country: Russia, Belarus
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, serious, realistic, rough, emotional, suspense, suspenseful, stylized, intense
Similar in 90%
Adam Resurrected (2008)
Plot Summary:
Before the war, in Berlin, Adam was an entertainer- cabaret impresario, magician, musician-loved by all until he finds himself in a concentration camp, confronted by Commandant Klein. Adam survives the camp by becoming the Klein's "dog", entertaining him while his wife and daughter are sent off to die. "Adam Resurrected" is the story of a man who once was a dog who meets a dog who once was a boy.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Germany, Israel, USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: touching, bleak, serious, realistic, contemplative, emotional, gloomy, entertaining, period drama
Similar in 90%
Goodnight, Mister Tom (1998)
Plot Summary:
We're in an English village shortly before Dunkirk. "Mr. Tom" Oakley still broods over the death of his wife and small son while he was away in the navy during WWI, and grief has made him a surly hermit. Now children evacuated from London are overwhelming volunteers to house them. Practically under protest, Mr. Tom takes in a painfully quiet 10-year-old, who gradually reveals big problems.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, Family, War
Country: UK
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: touching, sexy, sad, sincere, uplifting, serious, realistic, warmhearted
Similar in 86%
Yanks (1979)
Plot Summary:
During WWII, the United States set up army bases in Great Britain as part of the war effort. Against their proper sensibilities, many of the Brits don't much like the brash Yanks, especially when it comes to the G.I.s making advances on the lonely British girls. One relationship that develops is between married John, an Army Captain, and the aristocratic Helen, whose naval husband is away at war. Helen loves her husband, but Helen and John are looking for some comfort during the difficult times.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: UK, USA, West Germany
Duration: 138 min
Plot tags: serious, touching, emotional, realistic, historical drama
Similar in 77%
Sword of Honour (2001)
Plot Summary:
Guy Crouchback joins the war effort during World War 2, an idealistic quest to join the forces of good in the fight against evil. But his efforts is not rewarded, he never has any chance to join any real fighting, circumstances always prevent it. Instead he finds himself in the middle of an army full of cowards, incompetents and a few outright evil men. They of course reap the fortunes of war, promotions and fame, but never Crouchback. His war is just an endless list of transfers and an hopeless but noble quest for righteousness.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 918
Genere: Drama, War
Country: UK
Duration: 208 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, captivating, touching, semi autobiographical, gloomy
Similar in 84%
Stones for the Rampart (2014)
Plot Summary:
To be defeated and not be - a victory. This is the motto that life is guided by three young friends: Alek, Sophy and Rudy. Scouts, high school graduates high school in Warsaw drifting ambitious plans for the future broken through September 1939. Entering adulthood in a very dramatic times, which puts them a choice - to survive at any cost, or to join the fighting for a free homeland, risking everything. The boys brought up in patriotic homes, shaped by the ideals of scouting, they decide to fight. They become soldiers, and although every scrape with death, they can live a full life.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Poland
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, disturbing
Similar in 85%
Back Door to Hell (1964)
Plot Summary:
During WWII, a three-man commando team places its trust in the hands of a band of Filipino resistors, as they try to knock out a Japenese communication center.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 907
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Philippines, USA
Duration: 75 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, realistic, tense, psychotronic, bleak, suspenseful
Similar in 76%
Abandoned Houses, Empty Homes (2000)
Plot Summary:
A war movie that takes place in Finnish Karelia in 1944.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 309
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Finland
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 78%
A Long Way Home (2003)
Plot Summary:
Family members struggle to heal their emotional wounds after an incident of sexual abuse.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 216
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: touching, sincere, emotional, realistic, serious, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 76%
Living in Fear (2001)
Plot Summary:
A man returning to his childhood home for the reading of a will is met with hostility. Do the townsfolk know more about him than his new wife?.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 401
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 86%
Hart's War (2002)
Plot Summary:
Fourth-generation Army Col. William McNamara is imprisoned in a brutal German POW camp. Still, as the senior-ranking American officer, he commands his fellow inmates, keeping a sense of honor alive in a place where honor is easy to destroy, all under the dangerous eye of the Luftwafe vetran Col. Wilhelm Visser. Never giving up the fight to win the war, McNamara is silently planning, waiting for his moment to strike back at the enemy. A murder in the camp gives him the chance to set a risky plan in motion. With a court martial to keep Visser and the Germans distracted, McNamara orchestrates a cunning scheme to escape and destroy a nearby munitions plant, enlisting the unwitting help of young Lt. Tommy Hart. Together with his men, McNamara uses a hero's resolve to carry out his mission, ultimately forced to weigh the value of his life against the good of his country.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 55000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: USA
Duration: 125 min
Plot tags: realistic, tense, suspense, harsh, factual, rough, serious, sincere, emotional, suspenseful