Best movies like The Rainbow Troops
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
In the 1970s, a group of 10 students struggles with poverty and develop hopes for the future in Gantong Village on the farming and tin mining island of Belitung off the east coast of Sumatra.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Family
Country: Indonesia
Duration: 124 min
Plot tags: touching, captivating, psychological, atmospheric, serious, realistic, gloomy, inspirational, cult film
Best tv shows and movies like The Rainbow Troops (2008):
Similar in 83%
Nomadic Childhoods (2014)
Plot Summary:
3 stories, 3 countries. Tibet, Mongolia, Siberia. Nomad children fill a hostile world with their wishes and their dreams. At major cross-roads in their lives, they are confronted by love, danger and death.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 17
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Family
Country: France, Russia, Mongolia, India
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: sincere, atmospheric, serious, realistic
Similar in 75%
Punch (2011)
Plot Summary:
Tall, exotic looking and aimless 17-year-old Do Wan-deuk lives in a shabby house in a poor hillside village with a dwarf father and a stammering uncle. One day, his teacher reveals the surprising news that Wan-deuk’s runaway mother was actually from the Philippines and that Wan-deuk has a chance to see her again.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Sport
Country: South Korea
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: realistic, psychological, sincere, captivating, uplifting, touching, serious, gloomy
Similar in 83%
Vanished Empire (2008)
Plot Summary:
This story take place in Moscow during the 1970s and unfolds around the love triangle between two young men and a girl who study at the same university. They argue, make up, and face their first disappointments and victories. While busy with personal lives and loves, they miss foreseeing that the country in which they were born and live will soon disappear from the map.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 583
Genere: Drama
Country: Russia
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: sentimental, atmospheric, serious, realistic, gloomy, period piece
Similar in 89%
Jungle Child (2011)
Plot Summary:
A family of a German linguist lives with an indigenous tribe in Papua New Guinea.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Adventure, Biography, Drama, Family
Country: Germany
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: captivating, serious, realistic, educational, touching, crying
Similar in 83%
Kathmandu Lullaby (2011)
Plot Summary:
Laia, a young Catalan teacher, moves to Kathmandu in the early 90's, to volunteer in a local school. She will soon discover extreme poverty and a devastatingly bleak educational system that leaves out the most needy. She initially protests and later decides to get married out of convenience, so as to legalize her situation and take on an ambitious educational project in the slums of Kathmandu. She immediately realizes that she can't do it all by herself. She also discovers a beautiful gift she had never expected: to fall in love with the stranger she marries. She finds herself torn between her love life and her commitment to the children she helps. Laia and Sharmila, another young teacher who becomes her dearest friend, work side by side to launch a new project that will distance Laia from her partner beyond repair. It will, however, always unite her to Sharmila and small Kushila, in a personal journey into the depths of the Nepalese society and also to her most inner self.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 775
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Spain
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: realistic, captivating, psychological, atmospheric, uplifting, touching, humorous, semi serious
Similar in 83%
Mr. Pip (2012)
Plot Summary:
As a war rages on in the province of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea, a young girl becomes transfixed by the Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations, which is being read at school by the only white man in the village. In 1991, a war over a copper mine in the South Pacific tore the island of Bougainville apart. The reclusive “Popeye” (Hugh Laurie) offers the children in fourteen-year-old Matilda’s tiny village an escape with Charles Dickens' Great Expectations. But on an island at war, fiction can have dangerous consequences.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, captivating, realistic
Similar in 79%
Pass the Light (2015)
Plot Summary:
Pass the Light tells the story of Steve Bellafiore, an 17 year old high school senior who decides to run for Congress in order to protect the faith that he so loves.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 158
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: serious, uplifting, feel good, realistic
Similar in 88%
The Invisible Eye (2010)
Plot Summary:
Spying on her students, a teacher finds an exciting hobby.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 841
Genere: Drama
Country: Argentina, France, Spain
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: realistic, tense, serious, psychological, captivating, sincere, bleak, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 77%
Secret of the Cave (2006)
Plot Summary:
A young American boy spends his summer in Ireland and solves the mystery that captivates the entire village. Driven by curiosity and his own search for meaning in life, he faces his fears and discovers the Secret of the Cave.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 507
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, suspenseful, captivating
Similar in 89%
Firelight (2012)
Plot Summary:
Incarcerated women join a band of volunteers who battle forest fires and assist during natural disasters.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 631
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: emotional, realistic, sincere, touching, serious, psychological, captivating
Similar in 75%
Under the Protection of Ka'Bah (2011)
Plot Summary:
Growing up in West Sumatra in the 1920s, Hamid and Zainab comes from families from very different social classes. Hamid is poor, while Zainab is wealthy. Hamid receives a scholarship from Zainab’s father and Hamid’s mother works for Zainab’s family. Hamid and Zainab fall in love and dream of finding a way for society to accept their union, and also to make the pilgrimage to Mecca.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 124
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Indonesia
Duration: 121 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 79%
My Little Devil (2000)
Plot Summary:
After the tragic passing away of his mother, Joseph Ignace alias Jassiya (Rushabh Patni) is sent to a Catholic Hostel where he can continue his studies as well as live in the hostel. The sudden separation from his mother, diet, and familiar surroundings of his village, has a deep impact on Joseph, and he initially cannot stomach the food served in the hostel cafetaria. He then comes across a fellow student, Sandu (Gaffar Modi) who belongs to the Siddi community, a little known minority group in India, who are of African origin. He finds out Sandu is so hungry that he will not even eat the cafetaria food but also take some home to his mom and two other siblings, who are struggling to make a living after their father left them for whereabouts unknown. Joseph starts to share the food from his plate; then he takes extra servings; even byhelping in the cafetaria; and then takes to stealing as much food as he can for Sandu's family. Then one day one of the students' informs Father Lobo, and.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 32
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family, Musical
Country: India, Canada
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: sentimental, serious, emotional, realistic, gujarati
Similar in 85%
Let the Wind Blow (2004)
Plot Summary:
A collegian in turbulent Mumbai attempts to improve his lifestyle.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 127
Genere: Drama
Country: India
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative, gloomy, independent film, banned
Similar in 75%
Carrie's War (2004)
Plot Summary:
Carrie's War is an adaptation of a 1973 children's novel by Nina Bawden, set during the Second World War and following two evacuees, Carrie and her younger brother Nick.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 494
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: UK
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic, bleak
Similar in 75%
Natural Sciences (2014)
Plot Summary:
In a rural school in the middle of the mountains, a girl who is starting to become a woman feels the profound need to discover her true identity. She does not know who her father is and she is determined to find him, but her mother does not approve it. The hostility of winter in such a harsh place turns this desire into a real threat: freezing in the middle of nowhere. Going behind the backs of the school authorities and the girl's mother, her teacher decides to help her. They set off on this quest for truth, but it is not going to be an easy journey... Their only clue is a small, rusty plate.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 319
Genere: Drama
Country: Argentina, France
Duration: 70 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, touching, serious, captivating, realistic, gloomy, road movie
Similar in 77%
Little Big Girl (2002)
Plot Summary:
While out and about tending to his herd, young shepherd Larus meets a mysterious little girl named Tinke. Quickly realizing that the girl is alone, Larus brings Tinke some food and slowly builds a friendship with her. Tinke, whose parents died within the past year, has managed to survive by her own devices in the wild and has hence become quite feral. Larus convinces Tinke to come to his home so that his parents can take care of her.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 633
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Denmark, Sweden
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, captivating, realistic, serious, offbeat
Similar in 90%
My Sweet Orange Tree (2012)
Plot Summary:
Zezé is an 8 year old boy who, although a naughty boy, has a good heart. He leads a very modest life, due to the fact that his father has been unemployed for a long time, and has the habit of having long conversations with a sweet orange tree which is in his backyard. Until one day he meets Portuga, a man who begins to help him and soon becomes his best friend.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Brazil
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, atmospheric, captivating, serious, realistic
Similar in 78%
Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning (2008)
Plot Summary:
Anne, now a middle-aged woman, is troubled by recent events in her life. Her husband, Gilbert, has been killed overseas as a medical doctor during World War II. Her two daughters are pre-occupied with their own young families and her adopted son Dominic has yet to return from the war. When a long-hidden secret is discovered under the floorboards at Green Gables, Anne retreats into her memories to relive her troubled early years prior to arriving as an orphan at Green Gables and being adopted by the Cuthberts.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 652
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Canada
Duration: 144 min
Plot tags: sincere, feel good, captivating, psychological, realistic, serious
Similar in 83%
An American Girl: Saige Paints the Sky (2013)
Plot Summary:
Meet nine-year old Saige, a talented artist with a passion for horses, in this modern-day story about finding your voice! Saige is excited about the new school year, until she discovers that art-her favorite class-has been cut. On top of that, her best friend, Tessa, seems to be spending more and more time with another girl. For help, Saige turns to her grandma Mimi, a well-known artist and horse-woman, who inspires her to take action. Can Saige find the courage to overcome her fears and save the art program-and her friendship with Tessa? Heart-warming, empowering, and fun, it's a movie for every girl who has ever dreamed big. Written by Anonymous (IMDB.com).
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 523
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: touching, feel good, humorous, captivating, light, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 87%
When I Find the Ocean (2006)
Plot Summary:
A little girl leaves home with her pet dog and rabbit to escape abuse and find the ocean in the hopes of feeling closer to her father who has passed away.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 259
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic, sincere, captivating
Similar in 75%
Trader (1973)
Plot Summary:
Moti is a merchant who sells jaggery in the market, with the help of an older woman, Mahjubhi, who makes exemplary jaggery. He is in love with a village girl, but cannot afford to pay the dowry/marriage expenses to her father. So he decides to marry Mahjubhi, while secretly harbouring the dream of saving enough money for dowry and marrying the village girl. After marrying Majubhi, Moti extracts a lot of work from her to this end. He eventually does collect the amount and divorces her, accusing her of infidelity. Shortly after that he marries the village girl, and goes back to his business of selling jaggery, but faces the consequence of losing Mahjubhi's jaggery.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 859
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: India
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, realistic
Similar in 83%
War of the Buttons (1994)
Plot Summary:
The children of Ballydowse and Carrickdowse engage in battles where they cut of the buttons, shoe-laces and underwear of their captured opponents. This is to get the boys in trouble with their parents. They go to battle in mass groups of dozens, throwing stones and cutting off their opponents buttons etc. And sometimes they go to battle completely naked and exposed. In one such scene about 30 boys return from a battle to celebrate victory at a barn-house only to find some girls waiting for them and they get very embarrassed at losing their privacy.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Family
Country: UK, France, Japan, USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, realistic, epic, sincere, serious, contemplative, light, romantic, sexy
Similar in 79%
Beyond the Blackboard (2011)
Plot Summary:
Inspired by a true story, “Beyond the Blackboard” is about a 24-year-old first-time teacher who makes a difference in the lives of the homeless children she teaches in a shelter’s makeshift classroom. Set in 1987 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, this movie tells the story a brand-new teacher and Mom who is given a tougher than expected teaching job and winds up teaching homeless children in a school that is housed in a room and called, literally, The School with No Name. She has some personal prejudicial hurdles to cross before she is able to be a true teacher for these children and of course there are hurdles like the lack of books and supplies.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Biography, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: uplifting, touching, serious, emotional, inspirational, realistic, learning
Similar in 79%
Snow in August (2001)
Plot Summary:
In a world filled with hatred, their only hope was magic. Believe and anything can happen.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 326
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: touching, sentimental, atmospheric, emotional, psychological, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 81%
Goodbye, Mr. Chips (2002)
Plot Summary:
In the later years of the nineteenth century Latin master Mr. Chipping is the mainstay of Brookfields boys boarding school, a good teacher and a kindly person but he is considered to be married to the job so that it is a surprise when, on a walking holiday, he meets and marries the vivacious Kathie,who becomes his helpmate at the school but sadly pre-deceases him. Just before World War One insensitive new headmaster Ralston tries to edge Chipping out but the boys rally and Sir John Rivers, an old pupil of Chipping's and now head of the board of governors, invites him to stay and,when the war breaks out and Ralston joins up, Chipping becomes the new head.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 898
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 77%
A Time in Quchi (2013)
Plot Summary:
Bao stays with his grandfather for the summer and is shocked to see there are no modern appliances.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 130
Genere: Drama
Country: Taiwan
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: realistic, touching, atmospheric, captivating, serious
Similar in 90%
We Shall Overcome (2006)
Plot Summary:
A drama about a boy who's inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and challenges repressive school authority in 1969 Denmark.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Denmark
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, captivating, realistic, uplifting
Similar in 89%
Finn (2013)
Plot Summary:
Nine year old Finn lives with his father in a small town. Together with his best friend Erik he plays football, but he prefers to play music. His dad wants him to play football, just like every other kid his age. Finn does not understand why, but his father doesn't want to talk about it. When Finn meets a mysterious old man, who plays the violin beautifully, he decides to learn how to play the violin as well. The old man teaches him, while Finn's dad thinks he is playing football... Is Finn the only one who sees the magic of music? What does his father hide?.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 356
Genere: Drama, Family
Country: Netherlands
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, serious, realistic, twisted
Similar in 80%
Alice Upside Down (2007)
Plot Summary:
Still mourning the death of her mother a few years back, ALICE McKINLEY finds her life seriously disrupted when her father BEN buys a store and moves her and her older brother LESTER to a new town. In the painful throes of adolescence, Alice has a rough time adjusting to her new school, especially after she gets the stern MRS. PLOTKIN as her core teacher. Feeling shy and isolated, Alice frequently escapes into a vivid fantasy life that occasionally gets her into hot water. But with a little unexpected help from Mrs. Plotkin, Alice learns not to judge by appearances or jump to conclusions. More importantly, she confronts her father over his inability to accept their loss and move on into the future.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: France, USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: touching, feel good, humorous, realistic, semi serious, teen, silent, silent film
Similar in 84%
Stanley Ka Dabba (2011)
Plot Summary:
Stanley studies in the all-boys Holy Family High School in Andheri East, Mumbai. While his class-mates bring their own tiffin-boxes, Stanley does not do so on the pretext that his mother is away. His friends share their food with him, much to the chagrin of the Hindi Teacher: Babubhai Verma, who not only cajoles fellow-teachers, but also virtually forces the children to share their food with him. With extra classes being imposed on both students and teachers, and the recess-breaks being doubled, parents are also forced to pack more food in their children's lunch-boxes. The students continue to share their food with Stanley. Babubhai then warns Stanley that he must get a lunch box if he wants to attend school.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: India
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: realistic, sentimental, humorous, semi serious, inspirational, touching, feel good, cult classic