Best movies like Illegal
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Tania, a young Russian woman who lives illegally in Belgium with her 13-year-old son Ivan. Constantly on her guard, she dreads police checks until the day she is arrested.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 936
Genere: Drama
Country: Belgium, Luxembourg, France
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, captivating, emotional, political, serious, realistic
Best tv shows and movies like Illegal (2010):
Similar in 79%
Morgen (2010)
Plot Summary:
NELU, a man in his forties, works as a security guard in the local supermarket in Salonta, a small town on the Romanian-Hungarian border. This is the place where many illegal emigrants try to cross, by any means posible, to Hungary and then further to Western Europe. One morning, NELU will “fish” something different out of the river: a Turkish man trying to cross the border. Not able to communicate verballly, the two men will somehow understand each other. NELU takes the stranger to the farmhouse, gives him some dry clothes, food and shelter. He doesn’t really know how to help this stranger. The Turkish man gives NELU all the money he has on him so he will help him cross the border. Eventually, NELU takes the money and promises he will help him cross the border tomorrow, MORGEN….
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Romania, France, Hungary
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: sentimental, sincere, serious, realistic, social
Similar in 89%
Goodbye Gary Cooper (2009)
Plot Summary:
Au milieu de nulle part, une cité ouvrière vidée de sa population depuis quelques années déjà. Pourtant, certains habitants ont décidé d'y rester, plus par choix que par nécessité, parce que c'est là qu'ils sont nés et qu'ils ont grandi. Parmi eux il y a Francis, l'ouvrier consciencieux qui continue d'entretenir la machine sur laquelle il a travaillé toute sa vie ; Samir, son fils.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 271
Genere: Drama
Country: France
Duration: 75 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, captivating, realistic, emotional
Similar in 90%
Good Day, Ramon (2013)
Plot Summary:
After five failed attempts to go to the United States, 18-year-old Ramón decides to look for a friend’s aunt in Germany, but never finds her. With no papers or money, and without knowing the language, he barely survives living on the street until he meets Ruth, an old retired nurse who doesn’t speak Spanish. Beyond language barriers and prejudices, they discover that solidarity and humanity make life bearable.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: Mexico, Germany
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, emotional, captivating, motivational, feel good, humorous, semi serious
Similar in 75%
For a Moment, Freedom (2008)
Plot Summary:
Centers on a group of weary Middle Eastern refugees who have made their way to Turkey to apply for European visas.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 661
Genere: Drama
Country: Austria, France
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic, captivating, road movie, clever, fast
Similar in 75%
Northless (2009)
Plot Summary:
Andres reaches the Mexican border to cross into the United Sates. There between each attempt, he discovers that Tijuana is a troubled city. As he waits there, Andres is not only confronted with his feelings and what he left behind, but also with those he meets.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 366
Genere: Drama
Country: Mexico, Spain
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 79%
All Our Desires (2011)
Plot Summary:
Claire and Stéphane are two Lyon-based judges who could hardly be more different. She is young and enthusiastic, committed to helping those unfortunates who find themselves in debt. He is older, wiser, but disillusioned with his work and his life. Under Claire’s influence, Stéphane discovers a new lease of life and at last finds a cause that is worth fighting for.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 930
Genere: Drama
Country: France
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, realistic, serious
Similar in 86%
Between Us (2009)
Plot Summary:
Abruptly abandoned by her husband in a country completely foreign to her, Colombian native Mariana (Paola Mendoza) struggles to take care of herself and her two young children on the unforgiving streets of New York City. Sebastian Villada, Laura Montana and Anthony Chisholm also star in this gritty independent drama jointly written and directed by Mendoza and her collaborator Gloria La Morte.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, serious
Similar in 80%
Pavee Lackeen: The Traveller Girl (2005)
Plot Summary:
An intimate portrait of a resilient and spirited young girl and her proud and dignified family, who are part of Ireland's "traveller" community.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 332
Genere: Drama
Country: Ireland
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: touching, sincere, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 84%
Love Belongs to Everyone (2006)
Plot Summary:
Shy, gentle half-wit Dennis, whose only obsession is train-spotting, is released early on account of good behavior after a rape sentence. His parents who run a modest barbershop, skeptic André and Rita, desperately try to keep him out of girl trouble, but his victim's sister Barbara starts a hate campaign. After another girl reports abuse, Dennis is jailed and beaten black and blue daily. Barbara's boyfriend, lawyer Thomas Verelst, accepts to help 'pro deo' (no cost) and pleads that Dennis belongs in a mental institution.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 405
Genere: Drama
Country: Belgium
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 83%
Yasmin (2004)
Plot Summary:
In England, the Pakistanis Yasmin lives two lives in two different worlds: in her community, she wears Muslin clothes, cooks for her father and brother and has the traditional behavior of a Muslin woman. Further, she has a non-consumed marriage with the illegal immigrant Faysal to facilitate the British stamp in his passport, and then divorce him. In her job, she changes her clothes and wears like a Westerner, is considered a standard employee and has a good Caucasian friend who likes her. After the September, 11th, the prejudice in her job and the treatment of common people makes her take side and change her life.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 786
Genere: Drama
Country: Germany, UK
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, sincere, touching
Similar in 77%
Tar Angel (2001)
Plot Summary:
Newly-arrived Ahmed tries to integrate his family to the canadian society, while attempting to control his son's life orientation.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 276
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: tense, captivating, suspenseful, disturbing, thought provoking, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic, road movie
Similar in 87%
Here and There (2012)
Plot Summary:
Pedro returns home to a small mountain village in Guerrero, Mexico after years of working in the US. He finds his daughters older, and more distant than he imagined. His wife still has the same smile. Having saved some earnings from two trips to the US, he hopes to now finally make a better life with his family, and even to pursue his dreams on the side by starting a band: Copa Kings. He cherishes the everyday moments with his family. The villagers think this year's crop will be bountiful. There is also good work in a growing city an hour away. But the locals are wise to a life of insecurity, and their thoughts are often of family members or opportunities far away, north of the border. While working in the fields, Pedro meets and begins to mentor a teenager who dreams of the US. That place somehow always feels very present, practically knocking at the door. "Aquí y Allá" is a story about hope, and the memories and loss of what we leave behind.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 238
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Spain, Mexico
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: realistic, atmospheric, serious, psychological
Similar in 79%
Macondo (2014)
Plot Summary:
A drama centered on an 11-year-old Chechnyan refugee living in Vienna whose life is thrown into disarray when a friend of his deceased father materializes.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 310
Genere: Drama
Country: Austria
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 87%
The Dollmaker (1984)
Plot Summary:
Jane Fonda gives an Emmy-winning performance as Gertie Nevels, a pioneer woman and the mother of five from the Kentucky hills who is forced to uproot her children to follow her husband Clovis (Levon Helm) to Detroit when he finds work during World War II. One setback follows another and shattering tragedy strikes the family. It's all up to Gertie to find new strength, courage and determination to keep her family together and strong.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 946
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 142 min
Plot tags: sentimental, uplifting, touching, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic
Similar in 82%
Red Leaves (2014)
Plot Summary:
An Ethiopian immigrant, sets out on a journey through his children's homes after losing his wife. Coming to know some of life's harsh new realities, he tries to survive in his own way.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 47
Genere: Drama
Country: Israel
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic, tense
Similar in 81%
Shirley Adams (2009)
Plot Summary:
Shirley Adams spends her days caring for her disabled son, Donovan - he was shot in the back of the neck on his way home from school one afternoon over a year ago. Since then the Adams family has lost all their worldly possessions to medical bills. Shirley has no money, no job and no husband - he left. The shooter is one of Donovan's childhood friends. Her reaction to the betrayal is so overwhelming that she chooses not to tell Donovan in fear of further damaging his already unstable emotional state. Determined to make a change in their lives, Shirley actively decides to embrace their new circumstances, hoping that Donovan will follow her example.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 124
Genere: Drama
Country: South Africa, USA, UK
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: sincere, uplifting, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 75%
Master Harold ... and the Boys (2010)
Plot Summary:
This movie is of Hally, an adolescent white South African. He is stuck between his intolerant father's outlook of him and those of his caretaker, Sam. Sam is a black waiter and Hally's friend and teacher. Hally is required to laugh at his father's racist jokes, by contrast, Sam exposes Hally to uplifting experiences. One day Hally was terribly humiliated by his father and Sam shows Hally how to be proud of something he can achieve.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 580
Genere: Drama
Country: South Africa
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 86%
Profoundly Normal (2003)
Plot Summary:
Based on a true story. Donna Lee Shelby (Kirstie Alley), a mentally retarded girl who lives in Forest Haven, an institution for the developmentally disabled, meets Ricardo Thornton (Delroy Lindo), a fellow resident. When Forest Haven is closed by a court order, Donna and Ricardo venture into the real world on their own. Their friendship and dependency on each other blossoms into love. They marry and have a child together, who does not suffer from mental retardation.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 360
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: serious, emotional, sentimental, sincere, uplifting, touching, realistic
Similar in 89%
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 83%
Phantom Pain (2009)
Plot Summary:
Marc is a passionate cyclist and urban slacker who avoids work and responsibility. Marc's life changes from one moment to the next when he suffers a life-changing accident. He can either wallow in self-pity or tackle the beast called life with the help of love and willpower.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 930
Genere: Drama
Country: Germany
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, psychological, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 79%
Everyday (2012)
Plot Summary:
This film charts the relationship between a man imprisoned for drug smuggling and his wife and is being shot over the course of five years, a few weeks at a time.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 834
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, psychological, captivating, independent film, sincere, touching
Similar in 76%
The God of Wood (2010)
Plot Summary:
Yao (Madi Diocou) and Moroccan Rachid (Soufiane Ouaarab) arrive illegally in Valencia, Spain, and separate. Yao sells pirated DVDs in the street and wanders disconsolately around the barrio until he glimpses divorcee Maria Luisa (Marisa Paredes) working in her boutique. High-strung and irritable, Maria lives with her gay son, Rober (Nao Albet), who, like many other things in life, is a disappointment to her. Rachid, meanwhile, is doing just fine working as a hairstylist in a beauty salon; Rober is hopelessly in love with him. When Yao starts sleeping in Rober's flat, a confrontation between him and Maria suddenly becomes inevitable, and when it comes, what could have been an embarrassment is actually handled with grace.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 152
Genere: Drama
Country: Spain
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: realistic, emotional, sentimental, psychological, captivating, touching, serious, sexual, sexy
Similar in 75%
Strike (2006)
Plot Summary:
In poverty, she found strength. In oppression, she found courage. In solidarity, she found a reason to believe again. Acclaimed German actress Katharina Thalbach (THE TIN DRUM, SOPHIES CHOICE) stars in this hard-hitting historical drama set during the rise of Polands Solidarity movement. An illiterate single mother, Agnieszka Kowalska is a Socialist "heroine of labor" for working long hours as a shipyard welder until her superiors deny compensation to the widows of 21 workers killed in an industrial disaster. Risking her job, her life, and the love of her son to defy the bureacracy, Agnieszka inspires the largest labor strike in world history and becomes a national hero. Volker Schlöndorff adapted this "ballad based on historical events" from the biography of Anna Walentynowicz, the free trade activist who mobilized a million Poles for Solidarity and helped hasten the fall of Communism. Filmed entirely on location at Polands Lenin Shipyard, where history was made.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 490
Genere: Drama
Country: Germany, Poland
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic, sincere, captivating
Similar in 80%
Under the Starry Sky (2013)
Plot Summary:
The debut feature from Franco-Senegalese filmmaker Dyana Gaye charts the interconnected destinies of three far-flung sojourners across three continents. A quiet drama, about the anxieties of negotiating journeying to foreign countries and making a place for oneself in the world.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 92
Genere: Drama
Country: France, Belgium, Senegal
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 85%
Fly Away (2011)
Plot Summary:
The poignant yet humor filled story about a single mother of a teenager severely impacted by autism, forced to reckon with her daughter's future. As her child becomes an adult, what used to work, no longer does. What will sustain her daughter, and herself? A parent-child love story, when love means letting go.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 374
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: sentimental, sincere, touching, emotional, serious, captivating, realistic, independent film
Similar in 75%
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 81%
Snow in August (2001)
Plot Summary:
In a world filled with hatred, their only hope was magic. Believe and anything can happen.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 326
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, atmospheric, emotional, psychological, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 84%
The Rising Place (2001)
Plot Summary:
The close friendship of two young women, each of a different race, and their struggle to find purpose in their lives during this time of social injustice and world war.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 208
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sentimental, sincere, touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 79%
Face (2002)
Plot Summary:
Genie, a Chinese-American teenager, develops feelings for a charming African-American DJ, but her grandmother forbids their romance forcing Genie to choose between family and love.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 350
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, emotional, sentimental, serious, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 75%
My Father My Lord (2007)
Plot Summary:
"My Father My Lord" is an intimate and deeply disturbing story of the conflict between a father's love and his deep devotion to religion. A respected Orthodox Rabbi dotes on his only son but his religious strictures leave an emotional gap between the impish child and the stern father. When the father's all-consuming obsession with observing religious ritual inadvertently leads to tragedy, his previously subservient wife rages against both her husband and God. A dramatic retelling of the story of Abraham.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 492
Genere: Drama
Country: Israel
Duration: 72 min
Plot tags: sentimental, sincere, touching, emotional, captivating, sad, thought provoking, serious, realistic, contemplative