Best movies like Promise
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Promise, the most honored movie in television history, is a deeply moving story of family love and loyalty. Bob (James Garner) returns home for his mother’s funeral knowing that he must fulfill a promise made 30 years earlier—to care for his younger brother D.J. (James Woods), who is schizophrenic. When Bob eventually takes over responsibility for his younger brother’s well-being, he embarks upon the most difficult challenge of his life. Following its premiere in 1986, Promise won virtually every award a television program can win, including five Emmys® (Best Actor, Best Special, Best Direction, Best Teleplay, Best Writing), two Golden Globes®, a Peabody Award, a Christopher Award, the Humanitas Prize and several other honors. The movie remains an enduring favorite in the Hallmark Hall of Fame’s library of films.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 479
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: family saga
Best tv shows and movies like Promise (1986):
Similar in 75%
Fearless Faith (2020)
Plot Summary:
The life of a respected sheriff's deputy spirals out of control as he questions God's will after witnessing his partner gunned down by an unknown assailant... then is confronted by a staggering truth. Can faith carry him through?.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 169
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: christian film
Similar in 76%
A Family On Edge (2013)
Plot Summary:
"A Family On Edge" is about two brothers, Michael and Gabriel Bonds, who were thick as thieves growing up in Atlanta who protected each other by any means necessary.When a fatal mistake separates the siblings, their rock-solid relationship is forever changed. Shocking secrets from past and present create intensifying tension between the brothers who find themselves faced with a perilous choice, resulting in A Family On Edge. This highly realistic urban drama is layered with unpredictable twists and turns that appeal to an intergenerational audience. This is a must see for those love suspense, drama and action.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 9
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 78%
Runaway (1989)
Plot Summary:
After witnessing the accidental death of a friend who was attempting to rescue him from bullies, an African-American boy blames himself and, stricken with guilt, hides out among underground street people in New York.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 61
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 58 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 85%
Badge of the Assassin (1985)
Plot Summary:
Three black revolutionaries gun down two New York City police officers. The subsequent investigation puts a white assistant DA and a black police detective on the trail of the killers that leads from New York to San Francisco and down to New Orleans.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 356
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: crime drama
Similar in 83%
Fielder's Choice (2005)
Plot Summary:
Phillip Fielder is a man who is struggling to rise up in his competitive career. Then his sister passes away leaving him custody of her 8 year old autistic son. Soon Fielder learns responsibilities of being a father.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 315
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 84%
More Than Puppy Love (2002)
Plot Summary:
This is the story of a girl, her dog, and a man who needs to regain his self-reliance. Curtis Peterson, a strong, vital man in his late twenties, and his wife Marie want to start a family. Tragedy strikes when Curtis is paralyzed in a construction accident. Meanwhile, another family welcomes an addition to its household. Teenager Steve Barnett adopts an 8 week old puppy to train as part of a church project. The Barnett family is to house-train Banner for a year. Then the dog would be returned to the Kansas Specialty Dog Service, where it will be trained to assist the disabled and visually impaired. Steve's sister, 8 year old Emily, ends up taking care of Banner, and falls in love with the dog. Her happiness is offset by the tragic circumstances affecting Curtis and Marie. When Marie takes a job as a waitress to support the family, Curtis is left to sit at home alone, wallowing in self pity.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 117
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: psychological, sincere, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 88%
Stand Strong (2011)
Plot Summary:
Matt Webster measures his success by his possessions. Though he appears to have it all, pride of ownership does little to fill the void of a purposeless life. Brokern relationships, isolation and pain for himself and his family, are the result of his pride and selfishness. Through a series of financial and family crises, Matt and his family are stripped of all they own and are humbled enough to learn what success is really all about.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 108
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing, christian film
Similar in 90%
A Level (2017)
Plot Summary:
After getting through the O/L Examination with outstanding results, Anuththara with his friends eagerly look forward to experience their final years in school as seniors in the A/L class. They befriend Ahinsa and the other new girls who join their school. Ahinsa draws everyone’s attention for her smartness as well as her cheerful yet mysterious behaviour. Her irregular school attendance and the rumours circulating about her, make the others suspect that there’s a hidden story behind her cheerfulness.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 214
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Sri Lanka
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: crying
Similar in 87%
The Whiz Kid and the Mystery at Riverton (1974)
Plot Summary:
A 13-year-old brainiac invents an ingenious listening device, which he uses to bring a crooked city official and his pals to justice.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 73
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 85%
Audrey's Rain (2003)
Plot Summary:
Jean Smart and Richard Gilliland star in "Audrey's Rain" for Hallmark. Jean plays Aunt Audrey, who took in her sister's two kids after her sister's recent suicide.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 276
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 80%
Godless (2015)
Plot Summary:
Two brothers reconnect after the death of their parents.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 531
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing, controversial, queer cinema, gay cinema
Similar in 86%
About Scout (2015)
Plot Summary:
A rebellious Goth girl embarks on a road trip across Texas with a suicidal young man in an effort to find her little sister.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 829
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 81%
The Legend of Tillamook's Gold (2006)
Plot Summary:
Julie, a lonely fourteen year old girl, moves to Manzanita, an Oregon seaside town, from Los Angeles after her writer father, Robert, loses his job. Her family, including mother Kathryn and older sister Susan, has trouble adjusting to life in a small town. Julie parents struggle with her father's unemployment and her sister, Susan, finds solace in a summer fling with Tom.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 304
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: captivating, entertaining, light, feel good, serious, family saga
Similar in 80%
Begin Again (2013)
Plot Summary:
12-year-old Jessica Jones world is torn apart when she is taken out of her abusive home and placed in to Foster care. Jessica will grapple with her past, present, and future, and meet numerous struggles along the way. Her story is the reality of so many abuse victims in communities nationwide. The flashback scenes are from my own abusive childhood. I share these scenes with the hope that others in abusive situations will seek help for themselves and their abusers before it is too late.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 65
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 68 min
Plot tags: serious, emotional, realistic, captivating
Similar in 80%
A Place Called Home (2004)
Plot Summary:
Tula Jetters is a stubborn widow living her older years in a huge, yet crumbling, country house. Wary of visitors, her routine is shaken by two con artists, Hank Ford and his daughter Cali, who are eying up Tula as their next victim.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 368
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: captivating, light, sincere, emotional, touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 85%
Jake's Corner (2008)
Plot Summary:
The fictional story of an ex-football star, Johnny Dunn, who moves far from the spotlight after a family tragedy to a small, desert town he owns called Jake's Corner. This dramatic comedy is a cross between Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) and "Northern Exposure" (1990). Set in the real town of Jake's Corner, Arizona, it is a rest stop for travelers making their way through the Arizona desert, but for the people who live there, it's a rest stop for life. Johnny and the eclectic ensemble that live and work in the town occupy trailers behind the Corner Store and Jake's Corner Bar. Through the years, this cast of misfits has become closer than most families - they are kin. The dynamic of the town is changed forever when Johnny's young nephew comes to live with him.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 240
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: sentimental, semi serious, sincere, psychological, captivating, touching, humorous, realistic, independent film
Similar in 76%
Danny (1979)
Plot Summary:
A young girl's special love for a horse helps them both.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 131
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: independent film, sentimental, touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 81%
Jack of the Red Hearts (2015)
Plot Summary:
A teenage con artist tricks a desperate mother into hiring her as a live-in companion for her autistic daughter.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, thought provoking, melancholic, compassionate, sad, teen, inspirational
Similar in 79%
Christmas for a Dollar (2013)
Plot Summary:
America is in the midst of the Depression, and the Kamp family is struggling to get by, especially after Mrs. Kamp's untimely death. Now little Ruthie, with her mother gone and her father overwhelmed by doctor bills resulting from her brother's polio, expects another Christmas without presents or festivities. But when her father brings home one dollar in change and lets the children use it to buy special gifts for each other, the Kamps come to find that money isn't what fills Christmas with joy, love, and miracles.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 686
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, feel good, disturbing, christian film
Similar in 89%
A Christmas Memory (1997)
Plot Summary:
A boy, Buddy, whose parents have split and whose mother is an actress in New York, has been dumped in the south at the small-town home of some older cousins, all of whom are unmarried.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 796
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: sentimental, atmospheric, uplifting, touching, feel good, realistic, semi serious, southern gothic
Similar in 89%
An American Girl Adventure (2005)
Plot Summary:
Pre-American Revolution Virginian girl whose love for the outdoors leads to the friendship of a lifetime. Felicity loves horses, and though her parents plead with her to remain indoors, she years to ride the open plains. When Felicity comes into contact with a beautiful mare which has suffered at the hands of its callous owner, she takes it upon herself to care for the creature.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, feel good, realistic
Similar in 77%
The 12 Dogs of Christmas (2005)
Plot Summary:
This holiday tale has all the elements of a classic heartwarmer--cuddly dogs, small town spirit, and even a full-fledged Christmas pageant. Set during the meager years of the Great Depression, 12 DOGS OF CHRISTMAS follows the story of Emma, a 12-year-old who is sent to live in Doverville, a rural town, with her aunt. The town has, like the rest of the nation, fallen on lean times and seem to have lost all interest in celebrating. However, Emma manages to enlist the town's dogs into a colorful holiday pageant that reminds the inhabitants that even the Great Depression cannot ruin the spirit of Christmas.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 996
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: feel good, light, humorous, sentimental, touching
Similar in 76%
This Girl's Life (2003)
Plot Summary:
"Slice of life" take on life of international porn celebrity, Moon, and her musings on modern life, love and loss.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: psychological, thought provoking, serious, realistic, erotic, captivating, sexual, sexy
Similar in 88%
Race to Space (2001)
Plot Summary:
In the 1960s a young woman works at NASA as an animal trainer responsible for the chimpanzee who will go into space.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 969
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Germany, USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, captivating, independent film
Similar in 79%
My Name Is Bill W. (1989)
Plot Summary:
Based on the true story of Bill W. (James Woods), a successful stock broker whose life falls apart after the stock crash of the 20's and how he comes to grips with his alcoholism. Along with a fellow alcoholic (James Garner) he forms a support group that would eventually become Alcoholics Anonymous.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, sincere, uplifting, thought provoking, serious, spiritual, contemplative
Similar in 79%
The Ultimate Gift (2006)
Plot Summary:
When his wealthy grandfather finally dies, Jason Stevens fully expects to benefit when it comes to the reading of the will. But instead of a sizable inheritance, Jason receives a test, a series of tasks he must complete before he can get any money.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Drama, Family, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: inspirational, touching, sincere, emotional, romantic, christian film, tear jerker, biblical, feel good, spiritual
Similar in 83%
The River Within (2009)
Plot Summary:
Jason returns home to get away while he studies for the upcoming bar exam. After visiting his oldest friend, a "coulda-been-girlfriend" who is now engaged, and a pushy preacher, his easygoing summer becomes filled with unwanted drama. Over the few months he's there, he begins to question what life is about, and what is his purpose in it? Written by Barley.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 205
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, inspirational, independent film, crying
Similar in 77%
Of Two Minds (2012)
Plot Summary:
Follows the story of the challenging relationship between Billie and her younger schizophrenic sister, Elizabeth Baby. After their mother dies, Billie takes responsibility by moving Baby in with her family, including her husband, their teenage son and young daughter. At first, Baby and the family work to adjust to their new living arrangement. However, after a disturbing incident involving her son and Baby, it becomes clear to Billie that she and her family are not equipped to handle Baby's illness, ultimately forcing her to make the difficult decision to do what's best for her sister and her family.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 484
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: realistic, touching, serious, psychological, captivating
Similar in 82%
Snapshots (2018)
Plot Summary:
Rose spends her days fishing near the beautiful lake house she’s called home for 50 years. She’s not getting any younger and her daughter Patti worries about Rose being all alone, but the stubborn matriarch will not sell. There are memories here that she doesn’t want to leave. These come flooding back one weekend during a visit from Patti and granddaughter Allison, when a long-forgotten roll of film reminds Rose of the summer she met and fell in love with the bold and beautiful Louise.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: psychological, sincere, touching, unusual plot structure, tense, independent film, queer cinema
Similar in 80%
Little Women (2018)
Plot Summary:
A modern retelling of Louisa May Alcott's classic novel, we follow the lives of four sisters - Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March - detailing their passage from childhood to womanhood. Despite harsh times, they cling to optimism, and as they mature, they face blossoming ambitions and relationships, as well as tragedy, while maintaining their unbreakable bond as sisters.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, sweet, captivating, period piece