Best movies like Sleeping and Waking
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
If you had a second chance at life, would you take it? Sullivan Daniels (Jeff Allin), an artist known for his harsh religious paintings, chose a bizarre experimental surgery over his faith to save him from terminal cancer. Now his hands can't paint, his wife (Hope Lambert) won't touch him, his mother (Helen Hedman) believes he should be dead, and his best friend (Ray Ficca) keeps trying to get him to re-join the living. Only his beautiful student (Elizabeth Jernigan) can rescue him from his life-saving decision.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 20
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags:
Best tv shows and movies like Sleeping and Waking (2009):
Similar in 86%
Vanechka (2007)
Plot Summary:
A young girl dreaming to become an actress goes through hell with an orphan baby on her hands. The whole world seems to be against her. She meets the love of her life when there is no one to stand by her.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 136
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Russia
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing, crying
Similar in 75%
The Lessee (2016)
Plot Summary:
In a series of life events, a group of young adults expressed their love, desires, and secrets in ways they didn't imagine they could.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 34
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: multicultural
Similar in 77%
A Husband, a Wife and a Lover (1996)
Plot Summary:
When her cheating husband has a debilitating stroke, a woman invites her lover to move in with them.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 283
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 76%
Two (1989)
Plot Summary:
The manager of a contemporary music composer falls in love with the real estate agent with whom he is looking for a house in Paris. But both have been used to living an independent life: they want to marry but at the same time, are afraid of marriage.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 228
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: France
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 77%
Promises (2020)
Plot Summary:
Latchkey kids lose touch when one of them moves away, only to reconnect years later without realizing it, having changed their names to escape their pasts. Once they realize who each other are; they are able heal the wounds of their pasts.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 84
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, captivating, realistic, affectionate
Similar in 89%
Distance (1975)
Plot Summary:
’Distance’ is an award-winning, independent feature film exploring the distance between men and women through the intertwined stories of two couples. Made by the filmmaker while he was still in his 20s, ‘Distance’ features Oscar-nominee James Woods in his first leading role.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 44
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: independent film
Similar in 79%
Paso Doble (1985)
Plot Summary:
Drama directed by Dan Pita.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 266
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Romania
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 75%
Bye Bye Love (1993)
Plot Summary:
Two women, a friendship. Two parallel love stories. Marianne has a passionate affair with Nino while the relationship of Lea and David is falling apart. While a couple is forming, another's becoming undone. Yet, the choice of the two friends remains the same: break up with the past and plunge into the unknown.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 44
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Canada
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 79%
Sleepless Nights (2003)
Plot Summary:
A strong controversial adult drama about troubles facing young married and non-married couples. The old friends are invited at Khaled's and Perry's daughter birthday. Moushira is married to Ali, Amr to Farah , and Sameh is having an affair with Inas. After the party all the problems explodes when Moushira tells Ali that he doesn't satisfy her sexually, Perry tells Amr about her discovery of his infidelity, Amr is jealous of Ali as Farah's ex-boyfriend and she is faces him with the fact that her rich family improved his standard. While Inas gives the choice to Sameh of either marrying or separating. Then everyone faces his problem trying to make decisions with the help of his/her friends.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Egypt
Duration: 128 min
Plot tags: islamic
Similar in 82%
Close Friends (1992)
Plot Summary:
Fifteen-year-old Sabrina has lived with her father since he split with her mother. As the film unfolds it gradually becomes clear that Sabrina is a victim of incest.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 123
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Italy
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: erotic
Similar in 90%
Falling Leaves (1966)
Plot Summary:
A young idealist takes a job at a local state run winery only to discover and become disillusioned by the corruption of the Soviet State.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 955
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: spiritual
Similar in 82%
Deedar-E-Yaar (1982)
Plot Summary:
Childhood pals Javed (Rishi Kapoor) and Akhtar (Jeetendra) will do anything for each other, but their loyalties are tested when they fall in love with the same woman. For Javed, it's love at first sight when he meets the beautiful Firdaus. But when her father insists she marry the wealthy Akhtar instead, the loyal young man agrees -- but only to help out Javed by quickly divorcing her. Now that he's seen her, though, that may prove difficult.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 57
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: India
Duration:
Plot tags:
Similar in 81%
Past Lives (2023)
Plot Summary:
Two childhood friends are separated after one’s family emigrates from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one week as they confront notions of destiny, love and the choices that make a life.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 48000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, South Korea
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: semi autobiographical, independent film, period drama
Similar in 75%
The Weather in the Streets (1983)
Plot Summary:
Passion comes calling when a man suffering through an unhappy marriage in 1920s England runs into first love.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 40
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: UK
Duration: 133 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 87%
The Delinquent Season (2018)
Plot Summary:
Two couples appear to live in marital bliss until cracks begin to appear in both seemingly steady marriages. The film asks the question 'How well do any of us really know each other' and explores the ideas of love, lust, and family relationships.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Ireland
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, thought provoking, captivating, romantic, romantic comedy
Similar in 77%
Dearest Jane (2015)
Plot Summary:
A young girl learn to accept love and change, after being sent to live with her uncle in Indiana.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 161
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: psychological, touching, tense, suspense, contemplative, independent film, unusual plot structure
Similar in 80%
Indignation (2016)
Plot Summary:
In 1951, Marcus Messner, a working-class Jewish student from New Jersey, attends a small Ohio college, where he struggles with anti-Semitism, sexual repression, and the ongoing Korean War.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, China, Brazil, Germany
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: intellectual, melancholic, exciting, stylized, spiritual, social, novela, existential, historical drama, crying
Similar in 83%
Oliver's Story (1978)
Plot Summary:
Oliver Barrett IV is emotionally devastated by the death of his wife Jenny, and, while he tries to lose himself in his work as a lawyer, the long hours don't ease his pain, especially when he finds that his leftist views conflict with those of the senior partners at the firm. Eventually, Oliver's inconsolable grief begins to alienate those around him, until he finds new love with Marcie Bonwit, the wealthy and beautiful heiress to the Bonwit Teller fortune. Despite his affection for her, Oliver finds it difficult to leave the memory of Jenny behind, which causes major problems in their relationship.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: sad, sentimental, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 89%
What's Up with Cinta? (2002)
Plot Summary:
A popular high school girl strains her relationship with her close-knit clique when she begins falling for a reclusive, lower-class schoolmate.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Indonesia
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: romantic, captivating, teen, entertaining
Similar in 89%
Satellite of Love (2012)
Plot Summary:
Catherine and Blake just tied the knot. Samuel and Catherine have a long and intimate history which is significant to the fact that Samuel and Blake are best friends. When Samuel decides not to attend their wedding under some pretense that no one believes, he invites the newlyweds to Nadi Vineyards for a week-long party in paradise to make up for his absence. Records spin, wine flows, and bottles pile up. What unfolds over the course of this week will rearrange the geometry of Samuel, Catherine, and Blake's relationships and test the boundaries of their complicated, revolving love for one another.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 128
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 79 min
Plot tags: romantic, captivating
Similar in 90%
XX/XY (2002)
Plot Summary:
When two college students, Sam and Thea, meet Coles at a party, their mutual attraction is immediate, leading to a passionate and awkward night together, and the onset of an intensely charged bond. As they continue to push the sexual boundaries of their friendship, however, they are tested by Sam and Coles' incipient romance and Thea's increasing recklessness, until the relationship dissolves amid a cloud of fear, resentment and mistrust. Eight years later they reunite. An animator for a high-profile ad agency, Coles now lives with Claire, his girlfriend of five years. Thea is happily married to Miles, with whom she owns a flourishing restaurant. And Sam has just returned to Manhattan after working in London where she recently broke off her engagement. Yet upon reconnecting, the three are drawn back into the complicated dynamic that defined their relationship from the start and are forced to confront the true meaning of commitment and love.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: melancholic, intense, psychological, touching, humorous, erotic, art house, independent film, talky, sensual
Similar in 76%
Mother and Child (2009)
Plot Summary:
The lives of three women have a commonality: adoption. Karen is a physical therapist who regrets that, as a teenager, she gave up her daughter for adoption. Elizabeth was an adopted child and is now a successful lawyer, but her personal life lacks warmth. Lucy and her husband have failed to conceive and now hope to adopt a baby to make their family complete.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Spain
Duration: 125 min
Plot tags: sincere, emotional, realistic, talky, sad, captivating, cult classic, indie film, serious, contemplative
Similar in 78%
Lovin' Molly (1974)
Plot Summary:
Spanning nearly 40 years from 1925 to 1964, two Texas farm boys; straight-arrow Gid and laid-back Johnny fight over the affections of the beautiful and headstrong Molly Taylor, who consistently refuses to marry either of them.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 590
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 83%
Intentions (2003)
Plot Summary:
Renee leads a fulfilling life as a professor of theater, mother of two girls, and wife to a kind and successful husband. Her life of contentment is changed forever when she discovers an undeniable attraction between herself and a female graduate student. Now every element of her life is called into question -- a question only she can answer about what she wants and needs.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 224
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: psychological, sincere, serious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 76%
Fireproof (2008)
Plot Summary:
In Albany, the marriage of Caleb and Catherine Holt is in crisis and they decide to divorce. However, Caleb's father, John, proposes that his son delays their separation process for forty days and follow a procedure called "The Love Dare" to make them love each other again.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 24000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: inspirational, christian film, uplifting, touching, melancholic, romantic, biblical, spiritual, smart, indie film
Similar in 84%
Starting Out in the Evening (2007)
Plot Summary:
Leonard Schiller once counted among New York's Literary lions, but illness and ten years of writers block have lowered his profile, almost to the point of obscurity. When Heather Wolfe, an ambitious literature major, asks to interview him for her theses on his work, her interest forces hims to address the issues that have been he has avoided all these years, and stirs in him feelings he has long forgotten, much to his daughter's consternation.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, intellectual, talky, melancholic, emotional, sincere, serious, depressing, contemplative
Similar in 75%
Julie Johnson (2001)
Plot Summary:
A New Jersey housewife is dissatisfied with her everyday life because she is smarter than she or anyone else knows. While taking a computer class, Julie discovers her abilities and finds the courage to make dramatic life changes. This is a story of realizing one's potential and being willing to turn one's life upside down to take a chance on finding happiness. Claire, Julie's best friend, goes along with Julie's secret quest and eventually moves in with her. Both women are on a search to realize their dreams and come to terms with their love for each other.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 712
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sincere, clever, touching, realistic, emotional, talky, semi serious, queer cinema
Similar in 75%
Feast of Love (2007)
Plot Summary:
A meditation on love and its various incarnations, set within a community of friends in Oregon. It is described as an exploration of the magical, mysterious and sometimes painful incarnations of love.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: touching, romantic, sentimental, semi serious, feel good, humorous, realistic, erotic, inspirational, emotional
Similar in 82%
We Don't Live Here Anymore (2004)
Plot Summary:
Married couple Jack and Terry Linden are experiencing a difficult period in their relationship. When Jack decides to step outside the marriage, he becomes involved with Edith, who happens to be the wife of his best friend and colleague, Hank Evans. Learning of their partners' infidelity, Terry and Hank engage in their own extramarital affair together. Now, both marriages and friendships are on the brink of collapse.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: emotional, stylized, psychological, touching, sincere, contemplative, erotic, realistic, scary, sensual
Similar in 78%
Falling in Love Again (1980)
Plot Summary:
Harry and Sue Lewis met in the 40s as teenagers living in the Bronx. He was an aspiring architect, she was the most beautiful girl in school, and both had a fondness for bran muffins. They fell in love, got married, moved to Los Angeles, and had two kids. While struggling with his midlife crisis, Harry receives an invitation for his high school's reunion back so he takes Sue and their teenage kids on a cross-country car trip back to the Big Apple. Will they see in the Bronx what they expected? Will the good memories from their past help rekindle their fading love? Is it too late to dream?.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 444
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: romantic, sweet, melancholic, light, entertaining, intense, sentimental, touching, serious, realistic