Best movies like Dadetown
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Interviews in the Michael Moore/"Roger and Me" tradition examine life in small-town America, class conflicts and the collapse of an upstate New York community, Dadetown, when the town's once-prosperous factory, reduced to the manufacture of paper clips and staples, finally closes. Facing massive unemployment, the blue-collar Dadetown residents next find yuppies moving into town to staff the local division of a big computer outfit.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 220
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, inspirational, atmospheric, sexy, clever, enigmatic, unusual plot structure, bad ending, emotional
Best tv shows and movies like Dadetown (1995):
Similar in 75%
A Sudden Loss of Gravity (2000)
Plot Summary:
Three generations of small town rebel-rebels crash into each other and burn in Todd Verow's new film, A Sudden Loss of Gravity. The small town of Bangor Maine is finally entering the 80's with a pile-up of new wave proportions. Based on true stories of the Northeastern town.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 57
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: independent film
Similar in 89%
The Death of Mario Ricci (1983)
Plot Summary:
Gian-Maria Volonte stars as a TV newscaster who journeys to a remote alpine village to interview a famed malnutrition expert. Upon his arrival, Volonte learns that there's an ongoing investigation in the village concerning the mysterious death of an Italian immigrant. Inexorably, the journalist becomes involved in the investigation, and with equal inexorability the chain of evidence leads to the malnutritionist.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 184
Genere: Drama
Country: Switzerland, France, West Germany
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
Katie: Portrait of A Centerfold (1978)
Plot Summary:
A naive Texas beauty queen, seeking Hollywood stardom, quickly learns the realities of the business after attending an unethical modeling school.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 215
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 86%
Where I Begin (2011)
Plot Summary:
A decade after a tragic event, Jacob decides to return home to his small southern roots, only to find that the past is not really the past and that people may change but they never forget. Can you ever really go home?.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 81
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 77 min
Plot tags: independent film
Similar in 89%
Clover Bend (2002)
Plot Summary:
When an L.A. cop gets called to a crime scene on his anniversary, he is forced into a shootout that leaves both a criminal and his hostage dead. Soon after, with a troubled yet clear conscience, the officer and his family go on a camping weekend. After they stop at a gas station and end up in the middle of a robbery, fate and a twisted web of revenge have other, more violent plans for them. When the score is finally settled, will anyone be left standing?.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 251
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 80%
Separate Tables (1983)
Plot Summary:
Two one-act plays explore love and loneliness. In "Table by the Window" an aging fashion model contrives a reunion with her ex-husband, a politician ruined by scandal, and their passion is rekindled. In "Table Number Seven" a meek woman harbors a secret love for a man accused of fraud and sex offenses, forcing her to take a stand for the first time in her life.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 214
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 82%
Where The Air Is Cool And Dark (1997)
Plot Summary:
Thirty-year-old Emmett LeClere, a former logger and recovering drug addict, returns from school in New York to make a film in his Olympic Peninsula hometown. To finance the project, he decides to grow marijuana with an old buddy. After an abbreviated affair with an ex-girlfriend ends in a drug binge, Emmett finds a promising but doomed new romance. Countering good intentions with dishonesty, Emmett is soon left questioning his place in the world.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 50
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: independent film
Similar in 90%
Georg (1964)
Plot Summary:
Essay film about a man coping with the aftermath of World War II.
IMDB Rating:
IMDB Votes:
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: fake documentary
Similar in 82%
Anima (1997)
Plot Summary:
A reporter doing a story on taxidermy discovers an odd older couple that he becomes convinced are ex-Nazi's. The chief item leading to this belief is an odd puppet theater the couple operate in their basement that re-creates the Nazi era using stuffed creatures.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 77
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: independent film, scary, psychological, tense, mind bending, serious, realistic, suspenseful, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 88%
A Memory in My Heart (1999)
Plot Summary:
Jane Seymour stars in this made-for-TV drama as Rebecca Blake, a bookstore employee who lives contently in San Pedro, California with her construction-worker husband Joe (A Martinez). A chance meeting with a woman named Lynn Wyman (Cathy Lee Crosby), coupled with her recent nightmares and searing headaches (one of which has prompted a spectacular collapse at her local grocery store), lead Lynn to the inescapable conclusion that she is an amnesiac--and that she might be Abbie Stewart, who has another family in Fillmore County. Journeying to Abbie's hometown to learn the truth, our heroine is put off somewhat by the curiously mixed reaction of the man who might be her "other" husband, school principal Chase Stewart (Bruce Davison). The key to mystery may not be the surrealistic dreams experienced by Rebecca/Abbie, but instead that painful-looking gash in her head.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 451
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: serious, emotional, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 87%
Different Flowers (2017)
Plot Summary:
Uptight Millie Haven has always followed the rules, but when she has doubts before her big Kansas City wedding, her attitude-prone little sister Emma, the least likely of heroes, comes to the rescue. They embark on a spontaneous roadtrip to their grandmother’s farm where, with the help of Grandma Mildred, they rediscover their bond.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 556
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: funny, emotional
Similar in 83%
Bull (2019)
Plot Summary:
In a near-abandoned subdivision west of Houston, a wayward teen runs headlong into her equally willful and unforgiving neighbor, an aging bullfighter who's seen his best days in the arena; it's a collision that will change them both.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: rough, disturbing, thought provoking
Similar in 84%
Home Before Dark (1997)
Plot Summary:
It's 1963 in rural Massachusetts, and Nora James has the usual worries of an eleven year-old girl:lipstick, first crushes, staying out of trouble at school...not easy when your teacher is the elderly Sister Concilia. And even harder when your parents are struggling to heal from an almost unbearable loss. Then tragedy strikes another Massachusetts family, the Kennedys, and shatters the fragile bonds holding the James family together, Nora, sent to live with her brittle Aunt Rose, soon learns who she is, what she wants, and what she must do to achieve it. She makes a decision that is both cruel and courageous. Nora's choice unlocks the way to what amounts to the rescue of her family. (Maureen Foley, writer/director of the film).
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 129
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, serious, realistic
Similar in 90%
The Scar (1976)
Plot Summary:
After discussions and dishonest negotiations, a decision is taken as to where a large new chemical factory is to be built and Bednarz, an honest Party man, is put in charge of the construction. He used to live in the small town where the factory is to be built, his wife used to be a Party activist there, and he has unpleasant memories of it. But he sets to the task in the belief that he will build a place where people will live and work well. His intentions and convictions, however, conflict with those of the townspeople who are primarily concerned with their short-term needs. Disillusioned, Bednarz gives up his post.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Poland
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 80%
Two Harbors (2005)
Plot Summary:
Drama - Vic's days are filled with selling sci-fi collectibles, harassing his fellow antique dealers, and trying to communicate with extraterrestrials. - Charles Brin, Alex Cole, Paul Cram.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 49
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 74 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, suspenseful, offbeat, independent film
Similar in 80%
Calm at Sunset (1996)
Plot Summary:
The struggle between a father and son at odds over the youths career choice. The 18 years old James Pfeiffer quits college and decides to become a fisherman like his father. Margaret and Russell are very upset with their son's decision. They had a lot of hopes for him, finishing law school and, like his older brother Joseph, make a decent living on shore rather than an uncertain and dangerous career at sea. But James dreams of having his own boat and is determined to persevere.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 131
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 87%
Ordinary Angels (2024)
Plot Summary:
A hairdresser single-handedly rallies an entire community to help a widowed father save the life of his critically ill young daughter.
IMDB Rating:
IMDB Votes:
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 76%
The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn (1999)
Plot Summary:
A 91 years old carpenter, who is still in completely good health, has to fight developers who are trying to force him to sell his land.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic
Similar in 87%
Harvest (1998)
Plot Summary:
A DEA agent and a local sheriff have to wrestle with their consciences as they start raids on local farmers, who have started growing marijuana simply to keep their farms operational. Story focuses on a young man, who accidentally discovers that his straight-laced parents are involved in the marijuana cultivation.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 318
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Germany
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, serious, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 76%
King Kelly (2012)
Plot Summary:
Kelly strips – her best friend Jordan captures the event on her mobile phone. Kelly’s name is well known among the visitors of (in)appropriate online portals. The two teenagers digitally record anything and everything that crosses their paths and upload the results to the internet. But, today is not their day: Kelly’s ex-boyfriend has taken her car containing a package she was not to lose under any circumstances. While searching for it, the two set off on a peculiar journey through a night peppered with drugs, sex, corrupt police officers and other catastrophes – and always with their trusty mobiles in hand. Made entirely using mobile phone cameras, KING KELLY is a satirical journey through the boundless narcissism of the YouTube generation.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 616
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: realistic, psychological, tense, captivating, erotic, sexy, offbeat, humorous, semi serious, independent film
Similar in 76%
Eye of the Stranger (1993)
Plot Summary:
A stranger comes into town and causes a stir when he stands up for the townfolk, in the face of the intimidation tactics from Mayor Howard Baines. The scheming mayor wants to buy up all the local properties, and has hired two thugs to help 'persuade' the owners to sell.
IMDB Rating: 3.7
IMDB Votes: 135
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: independent film, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, gloomy
Similar in 77%
On Valentine's Day (1986)
Plot Summary:
Elizabeth defies her wealthy parents by running off and marrying a young man of humble prospects, and her parents have not spoken to her since - even though the couple lives in a rooming house nearby, they are struggling financially, and she is pregnant. The story of unselfish love between a man and a woman and the abiding love within a family, this American classic explores the enduring themes of human existence.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 191
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: independent film, sentimental, sincere, uplifting, touching, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 81%
The Bed You Sleep In (1993)
Plot Summary:
Times are hard for Northwestern lumber-mill operators like Ray and his wife Jean. Ray and Jean's lives are thrown into chaos when their daughter writes home from college.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 285
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min
Plot tags: independent film, atmospheric, bleak, serious, realistic, experimental, disturbing, contemplative, stylized, gloomy
Similar in 81%
Blue River (1995)
Plot Summary:
Edward's father walked out on his family years ago. In the years since, his mother has become a fundamentalist Christian and fallen for the school's self-righteous principal, Henry Howland. When Howland begins to mistreat Edward's mother, Edward's troubled older brother decides to get revenge. Now, Edward must protect his family from his brother's wrath.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 308
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 86%
The Green Chain (2007)
Plot Summary:
The battle between loggers and environmentalists is defining, dividing and destroying communities in Canada and around the world. The Green Chain is a powerful, funny and thought-provoking film about the people who love trees.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 137
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, captivating, suspenseful, independent film, exciting, fake documentary, cult film
Similar in 82%
They Shoot Movies, Don't They? ...The Making of 'Mirage' (2000)
Plot Summary:
They Shoot Movies, Don't They? is a voyeuristic look at first time director Tom Paulson and the movie he wrote called Mirage. Frank Gallagher is the documentarian whose camera waits and watches as Paulson navigates through a jungle of investors, colleagues, friends and family, searching for money to finish his film. They Shoot Movies, Don't They? offers a line-blurring examination of what one might give up, in order to succeed.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 133
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: realistic, semi serious, clever, captivating, independent film, mockumentary, humorous, fake documentary, cult film
Similar in 80%
A Cool, Dry Place (1998)
Plot Summary:
A single father balances his work as an attorney with the care of his five year old son and his work as a high school basketball coach in rural Kansas, where he moved after his wife abandoned him in Chicago. Just as he starts to develop a new relationship with a veterinarian's assistant, his ex-wife suddenly reappears and wants to re-assert herself in her husband and son's life. On top of the romantic conflict, he is also suddenly presented with the opportunity of a lifetime to join a major firm in Dallas.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, serious, realistic, tense, light, feel good, unusual plot structure, sweet, emotional
Similar in 86%
Ricochet River (2001)
Plot Summary:
hree teenagers looking for adventure find more than they expected in this coming-of-age drama. High school seniors Wade (Jason James Richter) and Lorna (Kate Hudson) have spent all their lives in the small logging town of Calamus Grove, a conservative place where change comes slowly. Jesse Howl (Douglas Spain), a teenager of Native American ancestry, has just moved to Calamus Grove, and soon finds he doesn't fit in this close-knit community. Wade and Lorna go out of their way to befriend Jesse, and soon find that they're also regarded as outcasts among their peers. Eager to get away from the narrow minds which are stifling them, the three friends grab a car and take off for a summer road trip that turns out to be full of lessons in life and love. Ricochet River was based on the novel by Robin Cody.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 326
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, realistic, independent film, talky
Similar in 76%
Jerome (1998)
Plot Summary:
Jerome is a day in the life of a dreamer. Wade Hampton has found himself trapped by responsibility and lack of understanding by those closest to him. As a result, Wade simply leaves his old life with the idea of fulfilling a repressed dream of becoming an artist in Jerome, Arizona, a town he knows only through a postcard given to him years earlier by a co-worker. Naturally, an action as extreme as this is not without consequences. On his way, Wade meets Jane, a road hard, enigmatic drifter who lives the life of total freedom he has longed for. As the two speed farther and farther across the scorching Arizona desert, events snowball into an unforeseen crisis forcing Wade to confront realities he never could have imagined only hours earlier.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 143
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, sincere, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 85%
Sling Blade (1996)
Plot Summary:
Karl Childers is a mentally disabled man who has been in the custody of the state mental hospital since the age of 12 for killing his mother and her lover. Although thoroughly institutionalized, Karl is deemed fit to be released into the outside world.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 98000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 135 min
Plot tags: independent film, southern gothic, neo noir, serious, sincere, touching, bleak, depressing, emotional, sad