Best movies like Under the Volcano
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Against a background of war breaking out in Europe and the Mexican fiesta Day of Death, we are taken through one day in the life of Geoffrey Firmin, a British consul living in alcoholic disrepair and obscurity in a small southern Mexican town in 1939. The Consul's self-destructive behaviour, perhaps a metaphor for a menaced civilization, is a source of perplexity and sadness to his nomadic, idealistic half-brother, Hugh, and his ex-wife, Yvonne, who has returned with hopes of healing Geoffrey and their broken marriage.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Mexico
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, depressing, psychological, serious, realistic, grim, sexy, political thriller, independent film, contemplative
Best tv shows and movies like Under the Volcano (1984):
Similar in 78%
Desperate Characters (1971)
Plot Summary:
With wit and real wisdom, Desperate Characters brilliantly examines the life of two disillusioned New Yorkers as they struggle to come to grips with the "normal" life with which they can no longer cope. Featuring powerful performances by MacLaine, Kenneth Mars (The Producers) as her disenchanted husband, and a young Carol Kane (The Princess Bride).
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 340
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: psychological, sentimental, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 83%
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
Plot Summary:
Mike Nichols’ film from Edward Albee's play brought new themes to the film industry. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton have never been more brilliant together as they portray an experienced married couple who love each other yet verbally attack one another when they see how boring their naïve newlywed guests have made their night.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 79000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: tense, black and white, psychological, clever, black comedy, dark comedy, rough, captivating, minimal cast, atmospheric
Similar in 89%
Love Streams (1984)
Plot Summary:
Two closely bound, emotionally wounded siblings reunite after years apart.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 141 min
Plot tags: independent film, grindhouse, art film, existential, cult classic, psychological, tense, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 76%
The Dark Side of Love (2012)
Plot Summary:
Two brothers on different life paths, a gay waiter with a crush on an eligible bachelor and a drug addict in a twisted dependent relationships with his girlfriend, reunite to mourn the death of their mother.
IMDB Rating: 3.9
IMDB Votes: 178
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: psychological, realistic, sentimental, serious, captivating, touching, contemplative, gloomy, crying
Similar in 78%
Curse of the Starving Class (1994)
Plot Summary:
Curse of the Starving Class is a play by Sam Shepard, considered the first of a series on family tragedies. Drama about a dirt-poor 1950's-era farm family. Dad's a foul talking drunk and Mom is desperately trying to save what's left of their family life.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: gloomy, independent film, serious, realistic
Similar in 81%
Fear of Fear (1975)
Plot Summary:
After having her second child, a German housewife suffers from post-partum depression before inexplicably falling into a continually misdiagnosed mental state, befuddling her relatives.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: West Germany
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: philosophical, depressing, art house, dread, psychological, serious, emotional, realistic, disturbing, avant garde
Similar in 86%
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 83%
No One Writes to the Colonel (1999)
Plot Summary:
Every Friday, the Colonel puts on his only suit and goes to the dock to await a letter announcing the arrival of his pension. But the townsfolk all know that this pension will never come. His wife also knows it, and even he knows it. But he is still waiting, living with the pain of the death of his son.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Mexico, France, Spain
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, atmospheric, realistic, psychological, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 78%
We're All Christs (2006)
Plot Summary:
Adaś Miauczyński, a Polish intelectual, has severe alcohol problems which affect his relationship with his son Sylwek.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: Poland
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, surreal, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 83%
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1984)
Plot Summary:
Brick, an alcoholic ex-football player, drinks his days away and resists the affections of his wife, Maggie. His reunion with his father, Big Daddy, who is dying of cancer, jogs a host of memories and revelations for both father and son.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 588
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 144 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, sincere, serious, emotional, realistic, talky, gloomy, sexual, southern gothic
Similar in 81%
Coast to Coast (2003)
Plot Summary:
Contemporary story of a couple whose marriage has gone astray, partly due to the infidelity of both partners and also the fact that their eldest son was killed in a car accident 8 years before.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, captivating, disturbing, clever, talky, gloomy
Similar in 77%
The Fire Within (1963)
Plot Summary:
Alain Leroy is a recovering alcoholic who decides to end his life, but first decides to visit his friends in Paris one last time, in an attempt at finding a reason to continue living.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama
Country: France
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: philosophical, depressing, art house, independent film, existential, bleak, touching, sad, anthology, powerful
Similar in 85%
Shoot the Moon (1982)
Plot Summary:
After fifteen years of marriage, an affluent couple divorce and take up with new partners.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 124 min
Plot tags: emotional, realistic, offbeat, serious, psychological, tense, atmospheric, sexy, thought provoking, touching
Similar in 82%
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 88%
Open Window (2006)
Plot Summary:
The engagment between a struggling photographer and an assistant professor is marred by an act of violence.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: psychological, sincere, serious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 83%
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 87%
Stuart: A Life Backwards (2007)
Plot Summary:
Story about the remarkable friendship between a reclusive writer and illustrator and a chaotic homeless man, whom he gets to know during a campaign to release two charity workers from prison.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: bleak, realistic, serious, sincere, christian film, sentimental, gloomy, emotional, hot, iconic
Similar in 76%
3 Backyards (2010)
Plot Summary:
An executive, a housewife and a youngster spend a day in their Long Island suburban town during the course of one curious autumn day afternoon.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 753
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: realistic, psychological, atmospheric, serious, tense, sincere, gloomy, independent film, psychological thriller, psycho film
Similar in 85%
Providence (1977)
Plot Summary:
Clive Langham (Sir John Gielgud) spends one tormenting night in his bed suffering from health problems and thinking up a story based on his relatives. He is a bitter man and he shows, through flashbacks, how spiteful, conniving and treacherous his family is. But is this how they really are or is it his own vindictive slant on things?.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: Switzerland, France
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: realistic, psychological, thought provoking, serious, emotional, philosophical, anthology, black comedy, metafiction, contemplative
Similar in 85%
Particles of Truth (2003)
Plot Summary:
Life, love, and the fear of failing... Lilli Black, battling her painful memories and the secrets surrounding her dying father, collides into the complicated and obsessive life of Morrison Wiley on the streets of New York City. This peculiar love story exposes Lilli's internal bouts and her nightmarish "bad luck". We weave in and out of eight defective lives and go for a turbulent mental ride where Lilli's reality spirals out of control and we're lead to an unforgettable climax where some fall apart and some piece themselves together.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 587
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, realistic, gloomy, independent film
Similar in 85%
Smashed (2012)
Plot Summary:
Kate and Charlie like to have a good time. Their marriage thrives on a shared fondness for music, laughter… and getting smashed. When Kate’s partying spirals into hard-core asocial behavior, compromising her job as an elementary schoolteacher, something’s got to give. But change isn’t exactly a cakewalk. Sobriety means she will have to confront the lies she’s been spinning at work, her troubling relationship with her mother, and the nature of her bond with Charlie.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: sincere, depressing, touching, realistic, indie film, sentimental, spiritual, mumblecore, cute, informative
Similar in 82%
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 83%
Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962)
Plot Summary:
The film follows one day in the lives of the Tyrone family, each member is troubled and has been damaged by alcohol and/or drugs. In addition, they have issues with each other that lead to fights and an inability to reconcile completely with one another.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 174 min
Plot tags: tense, depressing, talky, psychological, serious, realistic, grim, clever, retro, spiritual
Similar in 82%
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 90%
Days of Wine and Roses (1962)
Plot Summary:
An alcoholic falls in love with and gets married to a young woman, whom he systematically addicts to booze so they can share his "passion" together.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min
Plot tags: sexy, poignant, realistic, depressing, black and white, bleak, emotional, social, offbeat, spiritual
Similar in 88%
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%
The Mighty Angel (2014)
Plot Summary:
A shocking story about addiction and attempts to overcome it. The script is based on Jerzy Plich’s excellent novel “The Mighty Angel” (alternative title: "The Strong Angel Inn"). Jerzy (Robert Więckiewicz) is a writer and a heavy drinker. We meet him at the point when he believes that he can beat his addiction. He falls in love with a young girl (Julia Kijowska) and finally feels that he has got the person and the reason to live for. But soon he yields to his addiction.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: Poland, Hungary
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, cynical, psychological, captivating, thought provoking, touching, gloomy
Similar in 87%
The Panic in Needle Park (1971)
Plot Summary:
This movie is a stark portrayal of life among a group of heroin addicts who hang out in Needle Park in New York City. Played against this setting is a low-key love story between Bobby, a young addict and small-time hustler, and Helen, a homeless girl who finds in her relationship with Bobby the stability she craves.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: depressing, disturbing, bleak, rough, serious, controversial, grim, cult classic, realistic, dark
Similar in 87%
Ironweed (1987)
Plot Summary:
Albany, New York, Halloween, 1938. Francis Phelan and Helen Archer are bums, back in their birth city. She was a singer on the radio, he a major league pitcher. Death surrounds them: she's sick, a pal has cancer, he digs graves at the cemetery and visits the grave of his infant son whom he dropped; visions of his past haunt him, including ghosts of two men he killed. That night, out drinking, Helen tries to sing at a bar. Next day, Fran visits his wife and children and meets a grandson. He could stay, but decides it's not for him. Helen gets their things out of storage and finds a hotel. Amidst their mistakes and dereliction, the film explores their code of fairness and loyalty.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 143 min
Plot tags: emotional, touching, intense, sincere, serious, realistic, depressing, compassionate, cult classic, gloomy
Similar in 87%
Dangerous Game (1993)
Plot Summary:
A New York film director, working on his latest movie in Los Angeles, begins to reflect the actions in his movie and real life, especially when he begins an affair with the lead actress.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama
Country: Italy, USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: psychological, sexy, melancholic, erotic, rough, art house, independent film, erotic drama, bleak, serious