Best movies like Self Medicated
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Based on true events. On the edges of Las Vegas, 17-year-old Andrew's life is spiraling out of control. Unable to cope with the loss of his father, Andrew's descent into drugs and violence is gaining momentum, and the once promising young man is now headed for self-destruction. Andrew's mother, helpless to control her son and fighting an addiction of her own, refuses to watch idly as her only child destroys himself. As a last resort, she hires a private company to forcibly kidnap and confine him in a locked-down and corrupt psychiatric hospital. As Andrew is subjected to the secret physical and emotional abuses of the program something inside him is re-awakened. He must somehow get free to save what's left of his life, but to do that, he knows he must first face his own demons head-on.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 926
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, serious, realistic, teen, contemplative, gloomy, independent film, semi autobiographical
Best tv shows and movies like Self Medicated (2005):
Similar in 88%
Wasted (2002)
Plot Summary:
A high-school track star (Nick Stahl) watches without judgment as his two best friends (Summer Phoenix, Aaron Paul) abuse heroin.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 652
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, realistic, rough, serious, gloomy, biting, suspense
Similar in 77%
We All Fall Down (2000)
Plot Summary:
In this dark independent drama, Michael (Darcy Belsher) is an out of work actor who has been trying to pull himself out of a downward spiral of drug abuse that set in after the death of his mother. Michael's best friend Kris (Martin Cummins) is, if anything, in even worse shape; a gifted artist, Kris' appetite for drugs has all but silenced his muse, and his girlfriend Ryan (Francoise Robertson) has little interest in helping him control his dangerous appetites. The drug-related death of a close friend and a bizarre experience with a junkie prostitute (Helen Shaver) convinces Michael that he needs to clean up once and for all, but Kris may be too far gone to save.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 233
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: realistic, bleak, serious, suspenseful, independent film, gloomy
Similar in 77%
Most High (2004)
Plot Summary:
When Julius (Marty Sader) loses his girlfriend, his job and the life of his pseudo father, Jack, his itch for a "quick fix" suffocates his ambitions and takes him on a trip through the disturbing addiction of crystal meth. Julius confides in Erica (Laura Keys), who lures him into her erratic lifestyle, and their crazy romance brings him terrifying hallucinations and isolation as he learns that hedonism will not eliminate his pain.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 294
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, serious, realistic, bleak, gloomy
Similar in 81%
Cocaine Angel (2006)
Plot Summary:
A week in the life of a young drug addict.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 323
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 75 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, psychological, captivating, mumblecore, independent film, sincere, witty, gloomy
Similar in 79%
I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can (1982)
Plot Summary:
An adaptation of Barbara Gordon's nonfiction account of her addiction to Valium.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 556
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, sincere, serious, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 86%
1 Out of 7 (2011)
Plot Summary:
Runaway teen Lexi find herself alone and pregnant on the streets. Seemingly beyond hope, she must turn to Devon, a woman with her own demons, to help her find a way back from her past mistakes.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 199
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sincere, rough, serious, realistic, bleak, independent film
Similar in 89%
The Secret Life of Zoey (2002)
Plot Summary:
Marcia always thought her overachieving daughter Zoey was the dream child. But then she discovers that her perfect teen has a not-so-perfect drug addiction. Marcia and her ex-husband go through plenty of denial as their daughter spirals out of control. It's a true-to-life tale that parents and their kids should watch together.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 389
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: humorous, captivating, psychological, touching, suspenseful, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 79%
America (2009)
Plot Summary:
In "America," Dr. Maureen Brennan, a psychiatrist at a youth treatment center, encounters her newest patient, a bi-racial boy named America. Through their sessions, Dr. Brennan helps America come to terms with his roller-coaster life, which began when he was taken by authorities from his crack-addicted mother, and placed into foster care as an infant. The short time of stability in his life occurred when America lived with Mrs. Harper, the elderly nanny to one of his foster families. Later reunited with his mother, she soon abandons America and he is again placed into foster care. Lagging behind in school and full of anger, America retreats further away from society after years of sexual abuse. After attempting suicide, America is placed in a treatment center where Dr. Brennan helps him open up about his painful past and discover the support and courage he needs to get his life back on track.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 698
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: psychological, sincere, uplifting, serious, realistic
Similar in 83%
When Andrew Came Home (2000)
Plot Summary:
A mother searches for five years to find her kidnapped son in this fact-based drama. Unexpectedly the boy is found, but the reunion is not as she hoped. She now has to deal with five years of abuse that the boy suffered at the hands of his kidnappers.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 657
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic, sad
Similar in 88%
Lost Angels (1989)
Plot Summary:
Rich L.A. party brat Tim (Adam Horovitz) spins into a cycle of despair after his parents divorce, and trying to fill the void with drugs and trouble only buys him a ticket to an asylum. But with the help of a psychiatrist (Donald Sutherland) who has taken an interest in him, will Tim try to pull himself out of the muck of teenage rebellion and ennui?.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, thought provoking, suspenseful, independent film, rough, captivating, gloomy, cult film
Similar in 88%
The Wool Cap (2004)
Plot Summary:
This film, originally made for tv, stars William H. Macy as a mute superintendent of a apartment building that is falling apart who becomes the unwilling guardian to a young girl with a bit of an attitude. The film is an updated and Americanized version of the 1962 feature film Gigot starring Jackie Gleason, who also wrote the original story.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: touching, sincere, serious, realistic, feel good, spiritual
Similar in 75%
Clean and Sober (1988)
Plot Summary:
Hotshot real estate salesman Daryl has a bad cocaine habit. After embezzling his company's money, he wakes up next to a girl who overdosed. To hide from the police, he checks into a rehabilitation program guaranteeing anonymity. Under the mentorship of counselor Craig, Daryl accepts that he has a substance abuse problem. As he falls in love with fellow patient Charlie, Daryl begins committing to a newly sober life.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 124 min
Plot tags: realistic, touching, emotional, compassionate, melancholic, sincere, serious, psychological, depressing, spiritual
Similar in 89%
The End of Innocence (1990)
Plot Summary:
Seemingly autobiographical story of a woman overwhelmed with trying to please everyone except herself, and not finding any answers until she's admitted to a rehab center by her parents. Eventually here is where she finds her answers.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 233
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, psychological, serious, emotional, contemplative, gloomy, independent film
Similar in 89%
The Ryan White Story (1989)
Plot Summary:
The story of Ryan White, a 13-year-old haemophiliac who contracted AIDS from factor VIII, which was used to control this disorder.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 953
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, sincere, uplifting, touching, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic
Similar in 75%
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 89%
Drunks (1995)
Plot Summary:
At the beginning of a nightly Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, Jim seems particularly troubled. His sponsor encourages him to talk that night, the first time in seven months, so he does - and leaves the meeting right after. As Jim wanders the night, searching for some solace in his old stomping grounds, bars and parks where he bought drugs, the meeting goes on, and we hear the stories of survivors and addicts - some, like Louis, who claim to have wandered in looking for choir practice, who don't call themselves alcoholic, and others, like Joseph, whose drinking almost caused the death of his child - as they talk about their lives at the meeting.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: independent film, realistic, talky, spiritual, sincere, serious, emotional, thought provoking, clever, depressing
Similar in 77%
Sweet Nothing (1995)
Plot Summary:
Angel celebrates the birth of his daughter by taking his first hit of crack cocaine. With the hesitant support of his wife, Monika, he joins a friend of his to deal drugs for a short time--enough time to get out of debt and buy some nice things for the family. Three years later, Angel is still dealing, and has not saved any money, instead spending it on crack. His addiction grows, straining his friendship and his family life, and he gradually loses control.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 580
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: melancholic, realistic, serious, independent film, crying, bleak, gloomy, weeping, light, road movie
Similar in 79%
Bill: On His Own (1983)
Plot Summary:
Bill Sackter struggles to cope after his best friend and guardian, Barry Morrow and his wife Beverly move away. Bill moves into a group home run by Mae Driscoll who teaches him how to read. Bill soon discovers his religious heritage, overcoming the fire that accidentally destroyed his small canteen business, and then travels to California to search for the Morrows.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 342
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: touching, emotional, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 76%
Acts of Worship (2001)
Plot Summary:
Alix is taken in by a photographer, Digna, who despite her friends' protests, tries to help Alix piece her life back together and overcome her addictions.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 316
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, disturbing, bleak, gloomy
Similar in 88%
Jumpin' at the Boneyard (1991)
Plot Summary:
Manny tries to get his crack addict brother, Danny, to clean up.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 553
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: cult classic, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 88%
Augusta, Gone (2006)
Plot Summary:
Martha is a businesswoman and divorced mother of two children - Augusta and Jack. However, when docile Augusta becomes a teenager, feelings of anger and self-hate cause her personality to undergo a scary transformation, and Martha realizes that this is not just typical teen angst. Augusta begins doing drugs, drinking, and ends up on the streets. Her concerned mother and father reach out to an educational consultant, who advises them to send Augusta to a strict wilderness camp for troubled teens. However, even the institution's experienced and tough administrators find Augusta a difficulty to keep under control. Martha comes to realize that there is no answer to her daughter's behavior.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: suspense, psychological, rough, disturbing, depressing, dark, sad, teen, serious, realistic
Similar in 79%
Purgatory House (2004)
Plot Summary:
An inside glimpse of how it feels to be a teen in today's disconnected world. PURGATORY HOUSE chronicles the after-life journey of Silver Strand: a lonely teen who abandons her life of turmoil and drug addiction, only to find herself caught somewhere between heaven and hell. There, she must choose whether she will accept her drab existence or discover within herself the power to change.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 470
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: gothic, serious, independent film, realistic, non-linear
Similar in 84%
Manic (2001)
Plot Summary:
Lyle is filled with rage. After badly beating a classmate during a schoolyard fight, Lyle is committed to a juvenile mental institution in lieu of criminal prosecution. Inside the hospital, Lyle encounters a group of adolescents struggling with a variety of illnesses.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: psychological, independent film, disturbing, compassionate, depressing, rough, cerebral, teen, realistic, talky
Similar in 79%
Miracle Run (2004)
Plot Summary:
Single mom Corrine discovers that her twins are autistic. She refuses to give up on their potential, even though it seems that the rest of the world has turned its back on them. Thanks to this incredible mother's support, her boys accomplish the unimaginable.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, uplifting, touching
Similar in 81%
Beautiful Boy (2018)
Plot Summary:
After he and his first wife separate, journalist David Sheff struggles to help their teenage son Nic, who goes from experimenting with drugs to becoming devastatingly addicted to methamphetamine.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 93000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: disturbing, sentimental, rough, captivating, social, sad, psychological, touching, intellectual, serious
Similar in 79%
Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story (2003)
Plot Summary:
Based on a true story. Liz Murray is a young girl who is taken care of by her loving, but drug-addicted parents. Liz becomes homeless at 15 and after a tragedy comes upon her, she begins her work to finish high school.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: emotional, sincere, touching, serious, captivating, realistic, inspirational, sad, teen, crying
Similar in 78%
Lenny (1974)
Plot Summary:
The story of acerbic 1960s comic Lenny Bruce, whose groundbreaking, no-holds-barred style and social commentary was often deemed by the Establisment as too obscene for the public.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: black and white, psychological, atmospheric, serious, realistic, rough, clever, bleak, semi documentary, art house
Similar in 90%
Bird (1988)
Plot Summary:
Saxophone player Charlie Parker comes to New York in 1940. He is quickly noticed for his remarkable way of playing. He becomes a drug addict but his loving wife Chan tries to help him.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Biography, Drama, Music
Country: USA
Duration: 161 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, psychological, factual, stylized, sincere, touching, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic
Similar in 90%
The Brooke Ellison Story (2004)
Plot Summary:
Rendered a quadriplegic since a child from a near-fatal neck injury, a young girl fights against all odds to succeed in life from grade school to her acceptance into college under the assistance of her loyal and dedicated mother.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: sincere, uplifting, sentimental, touching, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, saga
Similar in 84%
When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story (2010)
Plot Summary:
Based on the true story of the enduring but troubled love between Lois Wilson, co-founder of Al-Anon, and her alcoholic husband Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, captivating, touching, melancholic, thought provoking, spiritual, tragic