Best movies like Leaving Normal
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A female buddy story in which Meg Tilly plays a child-like 20-something who has just walked out on her abusive husband. Darly (Christine Lahti) is fleeing a life as a waitress and stripper and is on her way to Alaska to claim a home and family she abandoned eighteen years earlier after giving birth. The two run into each other on the road and Darly welcomes the company as they head north from Wyoming.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: road movie, sentimental, touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious, crying
Best tv shows and movies like Leaving Normal (1992):
Similar in 81%
Girls' Night (1998)
Plot Summary:
Two British best friends and in-laws Dawn and Jackie work together at a factory. When Dawn is diagnosed with a brain tumor Jackie shares $100,000 she's got from her secret lover with Dawn to fulfil her dream - a visit to Las Vegas. They buy two tickets and fly there.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 683
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: UK
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious, independent film
Similar in 79%
Moonlight and Valentino (1995)
Plot Summary:
Four women who discover untapped strength within themselves when they finally let go of what divides them.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, anamorphic, happy, independent film, psychological, sincere, realistic, gloomy, semi serious
Similar in 89%
The Banger Sisters (2002)
Plot Summary:
In the late '60s, the self-proclaimed belles of the rock 'n' roll ball, rocked the worlds of every music legend whose pants they could take off -- and they have the pictures to prove it. But it's been more than two decades since the Banger Sisters earned their nickname -- or even laid eyes on each other. Their reunion is the collision of two women's worlds; one who's living in the past, and one who's hiding from it. Together they learn to live in the moment.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, feel good, humorous, light, satirical, realistic, witty, semi serious, funny
Similar in 83%
The Freebie (2010)
Plot Summary:
A couple hatches a highly dubious scheme to put the spark back in their marriage in this independent comedy drama. Annie (Katie Aselton) and Darren (Dax Shepard) have been married for seven years, and they love each other as much as the day they were wed; they're affectionate, have fun together, and enjoy games such as crossword puzzle races. They would seem to have a perfect relationship, except for one thing -- they haven't had sex in ages, and seem to have lost all interest in making love with one another, no matter how they try to put each other in the mood. Hoping to put some adventure back into their lives, Annie and Darren come up with an unusual idea -- they each get one night in which they're free to find someone and have sex with them, scot-free. But is this going to help their relationship, or is it just going to turn a small problem into a big problem?.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 78 min
Plot tags: mumblecore, sincere, humorous, realistic, semi serious, psychological, sentimental, clever, touching, independent film
Similar in 86%
Beeswax (2009)
Plot Summary:
A marvelous new film from Andrew Bujalski, one of the brightest stars in indie film, Beeswax revolves around the personal and professional entanglements of twin sisters Jeannie and Lauren – played by extraordinary newcomers Tilly and Maggie Hatcher – living in Austin, Texas. Jeannie co-owns a vintage clothing store with Amanda, a semi-estranged friend who she fears is trying to end their partnership. Lauren leads a looser, less tethered existence and is considering getting out of the country altogether. When Jeannie receives an email from Amanda threatening a lawsuit, she calls her law student ex-boyfriend Merrill for help. Eager for distraction from his own problems, he begins helping the sisters with theirs. Imbued with an innate charm, Beeswax is a story about families, friends, lovers and those awkward moments that bring all of them together.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 875
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: mumblecore, humorous, semi serious, captivating, psychological, sentimental, sincere, touching, realistic, witty
Similar in 80%
Queens Logic (1991)
Plot Summary:
When childhood friends Al, Dennis and Eliot get together for Ray's wedding, which may or may not happen, they end up on a roller-coaster ride through reality. During one tumultuous, crazy weekend, they face adulthood and each other with new found maturity and discover what Queens Logic is all about. This comedy takes a look at friendship, loyalty, and love.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: sentimental, clever, humorous, realistic, talky, semi serious, independent film, philosophical, sexy, thought provoking
Similar in 79%
Five Aces (1999)
Plot Summary:
Chris Martin has a problem: his impending marriage. Like any other man about to enter into the holy vows of matrimony, Chris has begun to second guess himself. Is married life what he really wants? While his bride-to-be takes care of the wedding plans, Chris returns to the neighborhood of his youth to consider his married future and to spend one last week of bachelorhood with his four high school buddies: Ray, Ash, Todd and Sean. Together, the reunited "Five Aces" enjoy a funny bittersweet week reminiscing about a time when they had all the answers... only nothing turned out the way they planned. As the week's events unfold, the Five Aces begin to realize exactly what life and friends mean to each other.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 682
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: sentimental, humorous, realistic, contemplative, semi serious, sexual, sexy
Similar in 89%
Patti Rocks (1988)
Plot Summary:
It's Christmas time in the twin cities. Billy's working a lot of overtime, running barges on the Mississippi. He calls his friend Eddie, whom he hasn't seen in six months, and asks a favor: to drive with him to see his pregnant girlfriend, Patti, because Billy hasn't told her he's married and already has two children. The road trip of guy talk becomes a night of truths exchanged between men and women.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 337
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: independent film, clever, humorous, realistic, talky, semi serious, sex comedy
Similar in 79%
Bonneville (2006)
Plot Summary:
Three women take a road trip to Santa Barbara in order to deliver the ashes of one of their dead husbands to his resentful daughter. Faced with the decision of a lifetime, Arvilla Holden hijacks her two best friends and sets off in a vintage '66 Bonneville convertible.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, humorous, semi serious, road movie, comedy drama, realistic, crying
Similar in 88%
Breaking the Rules (1992)
Plot Summary:
Two friends take their dying buddy on one last road trip.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 722
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: feel good, sad, independent film, sentimental, touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 81%
Crossing the Bridge (1992)
Plot Summary:
A film about three high school friends who find their happy-go-lucky existence tarnished forever the instant they get embroiled in a drug-running scheme that goes awry. When things start getting messy, they rue the day they agreed to the venture; instead of smuggling weed from Canada to Detroit, which they'd expected, the threesome's forced to traffic a huge stash of heroin.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 931
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 88%
Grand Theft Parsons (2003)
Plot Summary:
There are times when it's right and proper to simply bury the dead. This is not one of those times... Gram Parsons was one of the most influential musicians of his time; a bitter, brilliant, genius who knew Elvis, tripped with the Stones and fatally overdosed on morphine and tequila in 1973. And from his dying came a story. A story from deep within folklore; a story of friendship, honour and adventure; a story so extraordinary that if it didn't really happen, no one would believe it. Two men, a hearse, a dead rock star, five gallons of petrol, and a promise. And the most extraordinary chase of modern times.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, humorous, semi serious, road movie, dark comedy, dark, offbeat, realistic, black comedy
Similar in 83%
Chutney Popcorn (1999)
Plot Summary:
Reena is a young Indian American lesbian who lives and works in New York. Her sister Sarita, who is happily married, discovers that she is infertile. Reena offers to be a surrogate mother for her sister's baby, hoping to improve her relationship with their mother, who disapproves of Reena's sexual orientation. Reena has second thoughts when her girlfriend Lisa feels left out.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: multicultural, independent film, clever, touching, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, queer cinema
Similar in 83%
Cleopatra (2003)
Plot Summary:
A retired teacher and a soap star leave their routines and the men in their lives behind and embark on a weekend trip.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 622
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Spain, Argentina
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, humorous, semi serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 89%
All Together (2011)
Plot Summary:
Five old friends decide to move in together as an alternate to living in a retirement home; joining them is an ethnology student whose thesis is on the aging population.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: France, Germany
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, semi serious, sentimental, realistic
Similar in 82%
The Lather Effect (2006)
Plot Summary:
On the eve of selling her mother's house, a thirty-something housewife wakes up to a hangover surrounded by her best friends from high school.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 712
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: humorous, talky, semi serious, realistic
Similar in 86%
LOL (2006)
Plot Summary:
The relationships of three men are examined through their use of technology.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 910
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: mumblecore, sincere, humorous, talky, clever, touching, offbeat, realistic, witty, semi serious
Similar in 86%
Hello Lonesome (2010)
Plot Summary:
Lonely since his wife left him and alienated from his daughter, a cantankerous voice-over artist strikes up an unlikely friendship with his regular deliveryman. Many suburbs away, an elderly widow loses her license to drive and turns to her wry younger neighbor for nostalgic cuddles and comfort. Meanwhile, a young urban sports fanatic meets a girl online and unexpectedly falls in love, though the trials the couple endure prove even more unexpected. Adam Reid's enchanting, compassionate debut weaves together the worlds of six lonely individuals as they negotiate the age-old process of giving and receiving love. It isn't easy, and it never happens the way they expect it, but for these isolated souls, there's an oddball magic in the way they make connections they never imagined.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 313
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: realistic, sentimental, humorous, semi serious, psychological, independent film, touching
Similar in 83%
The Big Ask (2013)
Plot Summary:
The Big Ask is a dark comedy about three couples who head to the desert to help their friend heal after the death of his mother. They would do anything for him - except for the one thing he wants.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 679
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: humorous, semi serious, psychological, captivating, realistic, independent film
Similar in 87%
Mind the Gap (2004)
Plot Summary:
Five seemingly unrelated people decide to take huge risks in their personal lives in an effort to find happiness.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 997
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 134 min
Plot tags: humorous, talky, semi serious, captivating, sincere, sentimental, clever, touching, offbeat, realistic
Similar in 75%
The Year of Getting to Know Us (2008)
Plot Summary:
A commitment-phobic man reunites with his estranged, ailing father and comes to terms with his own childhood.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious, offbeat, independent film
Similar in 76%
Heartlands (2002)
Plot Summary:
Gentle Colin 'Col' Lawes happily lead a quiet life, running a news agency with his soiled-rotten wife Sandra and playing competition darts in the Atletic Arms team. Colin catches her committing adultery with team captain Geoff, a cop, who pretends Colin abused her. Col is thrown off the team just after it qualified for the league finals in Blackpool. He decides to travel there alone, hoping to win her back. The adventurous journey feels like the start of a more playful life.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, semi serious, sentimental, funny, light, captivating, entertaining, road movie, feel good
Similar in 87%
Intimate Stories (2002)
Plot Summary:
Three people and a baby set off on separate journeys, along the same road; their disparate dreams and stories intertwine amidst the breathtaking deserted Patagonic route.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Argentina, Spain
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: road movie, sentimental, humorous, realistic, sincere, touching, semi serious, anthology
Similar in 86%
Tumbleweeds (1999)
Plot Summary:
A woman constantly runs from town to town with her 12 year old daughter to escape failed relationships. The film opens with one escape and the shift into a new start in San Diego. There Mom takes up with a controlling trucker and fights with her weirdo boss. Meanwhile, the daughter, used to making the constant shifts, finds a fit at school including getting chosen for a play lead.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: touching, road movie, feel good, realistic, sentimental, talky, entertaining, sincere, humorous, semi serious
Similar in 81%
The Four Seasons (1981)
Plot Summary:
Three middle-aged wealthy couples take vacations together in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. Along the way we are treated to mid-life, marital, parental and other crises.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, humorous, realistic, witty, talky, clever, semi serious, funny, light
Similar in 88%
Full Grown Men (2006)
Plot Summary:
A man stuck in the reveries of his youth tracks down the boyhood friend he once tormented, only to find that simpler times were more complicated than he thought.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 392
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 78 min
Plot tags: road movie, sentimental, touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious, offbeat, whimsical
Similar in 80%
Walkaway (2010)
Plot Summary:
Walkaway, a light-comedy drama, mocks the clutches of social obligations on young Indian professionals settled in New York City.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 813
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: touching, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, independent film
Similar in 84%
The Flats (2002)
Plot Summary:
The Flats tells a cautionary tale of friendship and desire played out among a group of 20-somethings transitioning into adulthood. Main character Harper and his buddies make the most of their freedom prior to an impending court-ordered jail sentence. Things get even more serious when Harper and his best friend's girlfriend, Paige, begin a sobering relationship.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 271
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 83%
Fandango (1985)
Plot Summary:
Five college buddies from the University of Texas circa 1971 embark on a final road trip odyssey across the Mexican border before facing up to uncertain futures, in Vietnam and otherwise.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: road movie, sentimental, touching, humorous, emotional, light, inspirational, melancholic, talky, semi serious
Similar in 87%
Motherhood (2009)
Plot Summary:
Motherhood is a comedy written and directed by Katherine Dieckmann, and stars Uma Thurman, Anthony Edwards and Minnie Driver. Shot on location in New York’s West Village, focuses on the dilemmas of motherhood, such as marriage, work, and self, shown in the trials and tribulations of one pivotal day.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: feel good, humorous, realistic, touching, semi serious, independent film, neurotic