Best movies like The Day Will Come
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Set in the blooming 1960s, the film centres around two young brothers who are instantly robbed of their lives when they are placed in a boy's home forgotten by time. Armed only with a vivid imagination and a fickle hope, the boys engage in the frightening battle against Headmaster Heck and his lethal tyranny. The film is based on actual events.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama
Country: Denmark, Sweden
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, captivating, suspense, suspenseful, social
Best tv shows and movies like The Day Will Come (2016):
Similar in 89%
Sanctuary (2015)
Plot Summary:
Summer 1968. 14-year-old Wolfgang is deported from his family in the secluded Church Welfare Institution sanctuary. One thing is clear for Wolfgang: His yearning for freedom, he will not soon buried in the bog.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Germany
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: sad
Similar in 77%
Chronicle of a Boy Alone (1965)
Plot Summary:
The story of a delinquent eleven-year-old orphan in fascist Argentina.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 792
Genere: Drama
Country: Argentina
Duration: 79 min
Plot tags: neorealism, depressing, crying
Similar in 88%
Perfect Obedience (2014)
Plot Summary:
The fictional Father Ángel de la Cruz is based on Legion of Christ founder Marcial Maciel, whose long history of child abuse was not addressed until 2006 and only publicly acknowledged in 2009. But director Luis Urquiza chooses to structure his film through the largely uncomprehending, wondering eyes of 13-year-old Julián, who travels from the arms of his loving pastoral family into the austere, hallowed halls of the seminary. Singling out the boy as his intimate disciple, installing him in his palatial private quarters and redubbing him “Sacramento Santos,” Father Ángel begins Julian’s instruction into the mysteries of “perfect obedience,” whose cardinal rule is: Never question a superior’s actions.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Mexico
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: suspense, disturbing
Similar in 90%
Play (2011)
Plot Summary:
In central Gothenburg, Sweden, a group of boys, aged 12-14, robbed other children on about 40 occasions between 2006 and 2008. The thieves used an elaborate scheme called the 'little brother number' or 'brother trick', involving advanced role-play and gang rhetoric rather than physical violence.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: Sweden, France
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, psychological, serious, captivating, inspirational, touching, transgressive, realistic, witty, contemplative
Similar in 88%
Christmas Oranges (2012)
Plot Summary:
In a town not so far away and a time not so long ago, baby Rose was left on the porch of Greenwoods Orphanage, where Mrs. Hartley (Nancy Stafford) and the children under her tender care become her family. But when tragedy strikes, Rose (Bailee Johnson) loses the only home she has ever known and she is abruptly shipped to Irongates—a place that seems as cold and cruel as her previous home was kind. The strict headmaster, Mr. Crampton (Edward Herrmann), immediately seems to dislike Rose—and makes sure she and the other children are punished for any minor infraction of his rules. Rose soon makes friends with Emily, but in spite of her gentle and forgiving nature, some of the children will take any chance they can to get her into trouble. When she learns that every Christmas Mr. Crampton’s generous brother gives an orange to each child, Rose waits in eager anticipation.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 700
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: fairy tale, uplifting, sincere, touching, social, compassionate, christian film
Similar in 80%
Suspect (2005)
Plot Summary:
Teacher Rob Dekoster is a good man, albeit a bit too frivolous and liberal with funds the local arts center's interim director. His wife Nelle, who sometimes abuses drugs, spoils his ingrate teenage stepdaughter Sandy, who is kind only to her sweet, mentally handicapped brother, Jimmy Vandevyver. After a class on sexual abuse from feminist teacher Lydia De Beule, Sandy pretends Rob abused her. Lydia, Rob's ex, eagerly helps her fabricate 'proof', which a female police commissioner eagerly believes. A frustrated judge (and father) shamelessly ignores the legal benefit of the doubt, even tricks Rob while in jail. Nelle discovers more then one sick truth.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 197
Genere: Drama
Country: Belgium
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, captivating, realistic, thought provoking
Similar in 87%
Man Dancin' (2003)
Plot Summary:
Tough comedy drama set in Glasgow. Former enforcer Jimmy exits jail a changed man, but both his criminal boss and a corrupt copper think he's bluffing.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 226
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, captivating, psychological, rough, suspenseful
Similar in 80%
The Boys of St. Vincent (1992)
Plot Summary:
The true story of boys being sexually abused at their orphanage ran by a religious community in Newfoundland.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: realistic, disturbing, bleak, sad, art house, sincere, rough, thought provoking, serious, emotional
Similar in 78%
The King of Ping Pong (2008)
Plot Summary:
Rille, an ostracized and bullied teenager, who only excels in the ping pong room, descends into a life-and-death struggle with his younger, more popular brother when the truth about their father surfaces during their spring break.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Sweden
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: realistic, sentimental, touching, psychological, captivating, humorous, witty, semi serious
Similar in 85%
Cowards (2008)
Plot Summary:
A young victim of bullying at school realizes that even the adult world is dominated by fear similar to his own. He pays a high price when he decides to fight back.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 596
Genere: Drama
Country: Spain
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, touching, captivating, hispanic
Similar in 77%
No One's Child (2014)
Plot Summary:
The movie is based on the fascinating, true story of a feral boy whom hunters found among wolves in a forest in the mountains of Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) in the mid-1980s. The boy was sent to the institution for children in an attempt to socialize him and got the Muslim name – Haris. Contrary to most predictions, he was developing and making friends quickly. When the war in BiH broke out in 1992, Haris got the letter from local Bosnian authorities which asked for his immediate return. Upon returning to BiH, he had nowhere to go. While wandering aimlessly, he came across a group of soldiers that gave him a gun and took him with them.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Serbia, Croatia
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, captivating
Similar in 76%
For the Love of a Child (2006)
Plot Summary:
1959, support from US troops based in Asia and later from the Sates enables two actresses to start a charity for mixed-race 'orphans' who are locally neglected as outcasts. Thus originates Childhelp, which later runs multi-disciplinary centers for abused and/or neglected children in the States. Among them is bright Jacob Fletcher, whose stepfather, a lawyer, terrorized him into utter trauma and reclaims him shortly after 10 months in jail. Jacob's peers have distressing stories of their own, but competent, devoted staff helps most of them decisively on the former farm, using animal therapy.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 431
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: touching, disturbing, rough, thought provoking, tense, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 86%
Brother (2014)
Plot Summary:
Giorgi is 16 years old when he discovers another world through American films forbidden in all Soviet Union until then. Since the post-revolutionary chaos in his home town, Tbilisi, Giorgi has wanted to have succeeded by following the path of his idols: Tony Montana and Vito Corleone. He has almost reached his goal when he is confronted with a dilemma; how can he stop his little brother who is 12 years old to follow his path when he could become a famous pianist? All this in a world that only knows chaos.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 265
Genere: Drama
Country: Georgia, France
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: realistic, atmospheric, touching, serious, captivating, stylized, gloomy, entertaining
Similar in 83%
The Devil in the Skin (2011)
Plot Summary:
Coming-of-Age drama telling the story of the strong bond between Xavier and his little brother Jacques and their struggle to remain together despite all odds.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 71
Genere: Drama
Country: France
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, serious, realistic
Similar in 76%
The Italian (2005)
Plot Summary:
Set in 2002, an abandoned 5-year-old boy living in a rundown orphanage in a small Russian village is adopted by an Italian family.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: Russia
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, realistic, breathtaking, inspirational, talky, emotional, disturbing, intense, sincere
Similar in 85%
The Foster Boy (2011)
Plot Summary:
Switzerland, 1955. The young orphan Max is sent as a foster child and contracted to work for the Bösiger family who lives on a farm. His foster parents treat him like a workhorse while their son seizes every opportunity to humiliate him. Playing the accordion is the one thing that is entirely his. But when the new teacher stands up for Max, it only makes a bad situation much worse. The only thing preserving his will to survive is his friendship with Berteli, who was also taken on to work at the farm. Max dreams of Argentina with her: a fantasy world, where allegedly even hayforks are made of silver.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Switzerland, Germany
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, sincere
Similar in 79%
Accused (2005)
Plot Summary:
On the surface Henrik and Nina Christofferson are an ordinary family living happily. But they have a problem. Their daughter, Stine, a difficult 14 year old, has a habit of telling lies in class. When Stine accuses her father of sexual abuse, and is believed by seemingly eager social workers, their family is thrust into crisis. Could Henrik have done it? And when Stine prepares to return home, the ugly side of family life is exposed.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Denmark
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: disturbing, tense, bleak, serious, gloomy, depressing, sexual, realistic, sexy
Similar in 81%
For My Brother (2014)
Plot Summary:
The two brothers Aske (17 years old) and Bastian (12 years old) live with their father, Lasse. Their mother died seven years earlier. Every day they live in a world where fear, violence and alcohol are huge factors, but where the brothers' strong and close relationship means everything. Aske's fight for survival means that he has to serve his father's sexual needs, which include abuse from the father, but also from paying customers and the father's friend Hans (who has a lot of contacts in the pedophile environment). Aske tries everything to keep his little brother out of it all so that he won't experience the same as himself. But one day Bastian is abused by their father and Aske's entire world is about to fall apart. The brothers choose to move to Norway, far away in the beautiful mountains. Their friendship outshines everything! They are together and far away from their evil father.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 715
Genere: Drama
Country: Denmark
Duration: 117 min
Plot tags: rough, disturbing, touching, suspense, independent film
Similar in 89%
Abandoned (2001)
Plot Summary:
Áron is a happy child in his family. But at some point things take a different turn, and his mother starts to lose her health rapidly. As this happens, the man in charge decides what's best for Áron without consulting the young boy's opinion, and the boy finds himself thrown out of his warm home into an orphanage in the woods. He's utterly displeased by what's happening, without knowing he has yet to face much worse. After a hard time getting over the harrassment of his classmates and being accepted as one of them, another obstacle on the way to his peace of mind faces him: His obnoxious teachers. He has no intention of being bad, but it's beyond his ability to blend into the revolting place he's in. The nasty treatment of the teaching crew gets the better of him, and he's not all that calm and passive anymore. But that leads into unpleasant events which Áron himself wouldn't want.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 610
Genere: Drama
Country: Hungary
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: sincere, uplifting, touching, serious, art house, bleak, emotional, realistic
Similar in 87%
I Wish (2011)
Plot Summary:
Two young brothers at opposite ends of Kyushu devise a magical plan to reunite their separated parents in Hirokazu Koreeda's benign and superbly acted picture of family life.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 128 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, stylized, realistic, poignant, art film, teen, moody, beautiful
Similar in 89%
Chicken (2015)
Plot Summary:
RICHARD, 15 with learning difficulties, longs to put down roots but his restless and destructive brother, POLLY, needs to keep moving. When the land they live on is bought by a new landowner, and the electricity supply to their caravan is cut, their already precarious living conditions get even worse. Then a chance meeting with the new landowner's daughter, 17 year old ANNABEL (Yasmin Paige), leaves RICHARD besotted; whilst POLLY befriends the guys who run a seedy traveling fair. Richards optimistic view on life becomes increasingly difficult to maintain as Polly's abusive behavior worsens, family secrets are revealed, and he is torn between loyalty to his brother and his first true friend in ANNABEL. For better or worse, Richards life is about to change forever.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 535
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: touching, psychological, sentimental, unusual plot structure, captivating, suspenseful, contemplative
Similar in 88%
Radio Flyer (1992)
Plot Summary:
A father reminisces about his childhood when he and his younger brother moved to a new town with their mother, her new husband and their dog, Shane. When the younger brother is subjected to physical abuse at the hands of their brutal stepfather, Mike decides to convert their toy trolley, the "Radio Flyer", into a plane to fly him to safety.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: emotional, touching, sentimental, serious, realistic, sad, suspense, scary, depressing, epic
Similar in 89%
Baby Sellers (2013)
Plot Summary:
Inspired by true events, the Lifetime Original Movie, Baby Sellers, exposes the shocking international criminal enterprise of infant trafficking. Stars Emmy winner Jennifer Finnigan and Emmy and Golden Globe winner Kirstie Alley.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 460
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, rough, psychological, captivating, exciting, bleak, suspenseful
Similar in 89%
Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
Plot Summary:
Difficult tale of poor, struggling South Carolinian mother & daughter, who each face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as her last chance. The film won an Emmy Award for "Outstanding Casting for a Miniseries or a Special" and was nominated for "Outstanding Directing for a Miniseries or a Special", "Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Special", and "Outstanding Made for Television Movie". It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: disturbing, emotional, realistic, touching, suspense, thought provoking, serious, heartbreaking, depressing, gothic
Similar in 81%
The Class (2007)
Plot Summary:
An average guy of an Estonian high-school decides to defend his bullied classmate. This starts war between him and the informal leader of the class. As teenagers' honour is a touchy thing, everything ends in bloodshed.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Drama
Country: Estonia
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: serious, disturbing, tense, emotional, realistic, sad, crying, thought provoking, touching, brutal
Similar in 86%
Tom Brown's Schooldays (2005)
Plot Summary:
The determined new headmaster of an English prep school attempts to reform the frequently unruly students, who are tormented by a ruthless bully.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: touching, realistic, serious, exciting, tense, suspenseful, crying, period drama
Similar in 78%
Evil (2003)
Plot Summary:
Stockholm, the fifties. Though academically bright, violent pupil Erik Ponti is expelled from his state school with the headmaster’s words “there’s only one word for people like you – evil… what you need is a good thrashing, and more”. In fact already Erik frequently receives a ‘good’ thrashing at the hands of his sadistic stepfather – so he is packed off by his mother to boardingschool.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 41000
Genere: Drama
Country: Sweden, Denmark
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: psychological, disturbing, touching, rough, emotional, bleak, harsh, teen, realistic, serious
Similar in 79%
The Magdalene Sisters (2002)
Plot Summary:
Four women are given into the custody of the Magdalene sisterhood asylum to correct their sinful behavior: Crispina and Rose have given birth to a premarital child, Margaret got raped by her cousin and the orphan Bernadette had been repeatedly caught flirting with the boys. All have to work in a laundry under the strict supervision of the nuns, who break their wills through sadistic punishment.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 28000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK, Ireland
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: bleak, disturbing, brutal, controversial, harsh, depressing, suspense, factual, compassionate, rough
Similar in 87%
Jack (2014)
Plot Summary:
Although he is only ten years old, Jack is responsible for himself and his little brother Manuel and this fills him with pride. Their single mother works during the day and often goes out at night. There’s no father in sight. One day, Manuel burns himself with boiling hot water while bathing and Jack is blamed for the incident. It's reason enough for social services to put him in a home where he is dreadfully homesick. He soon gets into trouble and bolts, heading for home. He arrives back, only to find his mother is once again absent. Jack and Manuel roam the city in search of her. They sleep in parks and in an underground car park, run away from the police and encounter adults, some of whom help and others who are indifferent.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Germany
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: realistic, atmospheric, touching, captivating, serious, social, gloomy
Similar in 79%
Kauwboy (2012)
Plot Summary:
Ten-year-old Jojo lives with his father, a security guard with a volatile personality who drinks to manage the unspoken despair he feels about his wife's absence, which he refuses to discuss with his son. In the midst of so much uncertainty, Jojo finds comfort and happiness in caring for an abandoned baby bird, a jackdaw, who is even more vulnerable than himself.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Netherlands
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, melancholic, realistic