Best movies like The Black Balloon

Similar in 84%

Angel Baby (1995)

Plot Summary:

Two schizophrenics meet during therapy and fall in love. Unfortunately they are on a road to nowhere.

Similar in 86%

Remember Me (2010)

Plot Summary:

Still reeling from a heartbreaking family event and his parents' subsequent divorce, Tyler Hawkins discovers a fresh lease on life when he meets Ally Craig, a gregarious beauty who witnessed her mother's death. But as the couple draws closer, the fallout from their separate tragedies jeopardizes their love.

Similar in 77%

Now Is Good (2012)

Plot Summary:

A girl dying of leukemia compiles a list of things she'd like to do before passing away. Topping the list is her desire to lose her virginity.

Similar in 85%

December Boys (2007)

Plot Summary:

For many years, four teenage orphans at an Australian outback convent have watched their younger comrades find new parents, and realize that they may never be adopted. The Reverend Mother sends the four boys away on a seaside vacation, where they meet Teresa and Fearless, a couple who would make perfect parents. The youths compete with one another to be the one Teresa and Fearless decide to adopt.

Similar in 78%

X+Y (2014)

Plot Summary:

A socially awkward teenage math prodigy finds new confidence and new friendships when he lands a spot on the British squad at the International Mathematics Olympiad.

Similar in 84%

All the Bright Places (2020)

Plot Summary:

The story of Violet Markey and Theodore Finch, who meet and change each other’s lives forever. As they struggle with the emotional and physical scars of their past, they come together, discovering that even the smallest places and moments can mean something. This compelling drama provides a refreshing and human take on the experience of mental illness, its impact on relationships, as well as the beauty and lasting impact of young love.

Similar in 87%

Gas, Food Lodging (1992)

Plot Summary:

In the boring desert of New Mexico, a single mother raises her two teenage daughters, Shade and Trudi, whose deepest desire is to leave the dead calm town. Shade is the type to escape in her extravagant fantasies while Trudi is so rebelious it could drive her away.

Similar in 78%

Crazy/Beautiful (2001)

Plot Summary:

At Pacific Palisades High, a poor Latino falls hard for a troubled girl from the affluent neighborhood.

Similar in 77%

Japanese Story (2003)

Plot Summary:

Against the background of an Australian desert landscape, so much space and so few people, Sandy, a geologist, and Hiromitsu, a Japanese businessman, play out a story of human inconsequence in the face of the blistering universe. The end of the journey leaves no-one capable of going back to where they started from.

Similar in 87%

Sugar (2004)

Plot Summary:

Cliff has just turned 18 and his little sister has a gift for him: booze, a joint, a subway token and the command to have sex. Heading out on the town, Cliff finds friendship -- and more -- in the person of a young hustler named Butch. But Butch's dark side, along with a growing drug problem, leaves suburban family boy Cliff fearing for their future in this gay coming-of-age tale.

Similar in 80%

The Fault in Our Stars (2014)

Plot Summary:

Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a patient named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten.

Similar in 81%

Somersault (2004)

Plot Summary:

Australian teenager Heidi is left with little choice but to leave home after she's caught red-handed with her mother's boyfriend. With few options, Heidi ends up in Jindabyne, a tourist community. Upon meeting Joe at a bar, she pursues a relationship with him and tries to find something resembling a normal home life. Heidi makes small strides by getting a job and finding a place to stay, but her relationship with Joe must overcome more than its share of hurdles.

Similar in 86%

The Vow (2012)

Plot Summary:

Happy young married couple Paige and Leo are, well, happy. Then a car accident puts Paige into a life-threatening coma. Upon awakening she has lost the previous five years of memories, including those of her beloved Leo, her wedding, a confusing relationship with her parents, or the ending of her relationship with her ex-fiance. Despite these complications, Leo endeavors to win her heart again and rebuild their marriage.

Similar in 79%

Adam (2009)

Plot Summary:

Adam, a lonely man with Asperger's Syndrome, develops a relationship with his upstairs neighbor, Beth.

Similar in 75%

The Spectacular Now (2013)

Plot Summary:

A hard-partying high school senior's philosophy on life changes when he meets the not-so-typical "nice girl.".

Similar in 82%

Keith (2008)

Plot Summary:

Natalie (Elisabeth Harnois) is high school royalty, but her queen bee status falls apart when she falls for the new guy at school. Although Keith (Jesse McCartney) ignores her at first, they soon become friends -- even though Natalie suspects that Keith has something to hide. As the free-spirited Keith shows Natalie how to embrace what life offers, they grow closer -- until a secret tests the bounds of their relationship.

Similar in 80%

What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

Plot Summary:

Gilbert has to care for his brother Arnie and his obese mother, which gets in the way when love walks into his life.

Similar in 79%

Me Before You (2016)

Plot Summary:

A small town girl is caught between dead-end jobs. A high-profile, successful man becomes wheelchair bound following an accident. The man decides his life is not worth living until the girl is hired for six months to be his new caretaker. Worlds apart and trapped together by circumstance, the two get off to a rocky start. But the girl becomes determined to prove to the man that life is worth living and as they embark on a series of adventures together, each finds their world changing in ways neither of them could begin to imagine.

Similar in 87%

A Walk to Remember (2002)

Plot Summary:

When the popular, restless Landon Carter is forced to participate in the school drama production he falls in love with Jamie Sullivan, the daughter of the town's minister. Jamie has a "to-do" list for her life and also a very big secret she must keep from Landon.

Similar in 75%

It's Kind of a Funny Story (2010)

Plot Summary:

A clinically depressed teenager gets a new start after he checks himself into an adult psychiatric ward.