Best movies like Up the Sandbox
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A young wife and mother, bored with day-to-day life in New York City and neglected by her husband, slips into increasingly outrageous fantasies: her mother breaking into the apartment, an explorer's demonstration of tribal fertility music at a party causing strange transformations, and joining terrorists to plant explosives in the Statue of Liberty.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: hilarious, independent film, offbeat, humorous, surreal, semi serious, vintage
Best tv shows and movies like Up the Sandbox (1972):
Similar in 79%
The Road to Wellville (1994)
Plot Summary:
An unhappy young couple visit the infamous Kellogg spa in Battle Creek, Michigan while a young hustler tries get into the breakfast-cereal business and compete against John Kellogg's corn flakes.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: humorous, talky, witty, surreal, hilarious, clever, offbeat, feel good, captivating, satirical
Similar in 78%
Loving (1970)
Plot Summary:
Brooks Wilson is in crisis. He is torn between his wife Selma and two daughters and his mistress Grace, and also between his career as a successful illustrator and his feeling that he might still produce something worthwhile.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 703
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, semi serious, disgusting, cult film
Similar in 87%
Hi, Mom! (1970)
Plot Summary:
Vietnam vet John Rubin returns to New York and rents a rundown flat in Greenwhich Village. It is in this flat that he begins to film, 'Peeping Tom' style, the people in the apartment across the street. His obsession with making films leads him to fall in with a radical 'Black Power' group, which in turn leads him to carry out a bizarre act of urban terrorism.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: dark comedy, funny, social, surreal, cult classic, offbeat, humorous, realistic, witty, cynical
Similar in 81%
The Family Tree (2011)
Plot Summary:
A mother and wife stricken with memory loss allows a dysfunctional family a second chance at harmony and happiness.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Australia, USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, touching, semi serious, erotic, profound, offbeat, independent film, sex comedy, teen comedy
Similar in 77%
Barney's Version (2010)
Plot Summary:
The picaresque and touching story of the politically incorrect, fully lived life of the impulsive, irascible and fearlessly blunt Barney Panofsky.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 26000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Italy, Canada
Duration: 134 min
Plot tags: emotional, unusual plot structure, sincere, witty, semi serious, sad, realistic, talky, romantic, thought provoking
Similar in 78%
Lonesome Jim (2005)
Plot Summary:
Failing to make it on his own, 27-year-old Jim moves back in with his parents and deals with crippling family obligations.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: touching, emotional, stylized, sincere, humorous, mumblecore, cult classic, aesthetic, offbeat, realistic
Similar in 75%
The Daytrippers (1996)
Plot Summary:
Eliza D'Amico thinks her marriage to Louis is going great, until she finds a mysterious love note to her husband. Concerned, she goes to her mother for advice. Eliza, her parents, her sister Jo and Jo's boyfriend all pile into a station wagon, to go to the city to confront Louis with the letter. On the way, the five explore their relations with each other, and meet many interesting people.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: independent film, hilarious, clever, humorous, realistic, witty, talky, road movie, offbeat, cynical
Similar in 80%
Please Give (2010)
Plot Summary:
In New York City, a husband and wife butt heads with the granddaughters of the elderly woman who lives in the apartment the couple owns.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: depressing, melancholic, sincere, humorous, semi serious, clever, touching, philosophical, smart, indie film
Similar in 82%
Margot at the Wedding (2007)
Plot Summary:
Margot and her son Claude decide to visit her sister Pauline after she announces that she is getting married to less-than-impressive Malcolm. In short order, the storm the sisters create leaves behind a mess of thrashed relationships and exposed family secrets.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: talky, depressing, melancholic, stylized, humorous, tragicomedy, semi serious, cult classic, biting, deep
Similar in 78%
A Change of Seasons (1980)
Plot Summary:
Marriage takes a sour turn when a middle-aged husband falls for a young and sexy woman. Things get even more complicated when his wife starts a hot affair with a young lover of her own.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: sexy, touching, humorous, realistic, witty, semi serious, sexual, hot
Similar in 81%
Heartburn (1986)
Plot Summary:
Rachel is a food writer at a New York magazine who meets Washington columnist Mark at a wedding and ends up falling in love with him despite her reservations about marriage. They buy a house, have a daughter, and Rachel thinks they are living happily ever after until she discovers that Mark is having an affair while she is waddling around with a second pregnancy.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: melancholic, lyrical, sentimental, humorous, realistic, semi serious, talky, emotional, sex comedy, cult classic
Similar in 90%
Junebug (2005)
Plot Summary:
On the way to meet with an independent artist in the South, newlywed art dealer Madeleine is convinced by her husband, George, that they should stop to meet his family in North Carolina. Madeleine's affluent lifestyle clashes with the family, but she befriends George's wide-eyed and pregnant sister-in-law, Ashley, who is nearing her due date. Through the family, Madeleine gains greater insight into George's character.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: humorous, independent film, emotional, sentimental, semi serious, realistic, comedy drama, romantic, depressing, romantic comedy
Similar in 76%
An Unmarried Woman (1978)
Plot Summary:
A wealthy woman from Manhattan's Upper East Side struggles to deal with her new identity and her sexuality after her husband of 16 years leaves her for a younger woman.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 124 min
Plot tags: sentimental, psychological, touching, humorous, emotional, sincere, semi serious, retro, independent film, romantic comedy
Similar in 82%
Ellie Parker (2005)
Plot Summary:
Ellie Parker, an aspiring actress from Australia, lives a hectic Hollywood lifestyle, perpetually trying to land the role that will elevate her career. Living with her lothario musician boyfriend, Justin, Ellie is far from happy, finding support primarily from her friend Sam. But when Ellie meets Chris after a minor traffic accident, she sees new potential for both romance and her life in general.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: semi serious, neurotic, humorous, realistic, witty, mockumentary, psychological, clever, offbeat, biting
Similar in 89%
Bonneville (2006)
Plot Summary:
Three women take a road trip to Santa Barbara in order to deliver the ashes of one of their dead husbands to his resentful daughter. Faced with the decision of a lifetime, Arvilla Holden hijacks her two best friends and sets off in a vintage '66 Bonneville convertible.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, humorous, semi serious, road movie, comedy drama, realistic, crying
Similar in 81%
Adult Beginners (2014)
Plot Summary:
A young, hipster entrepreneur crashes and burns on the eve of his company’s big launch. With his entire life in disarray, he leaves Manhattan to move in with his estranged pregnant sister, brother-in-law and three year-old nephew in the suburbs — only to become their manny. Faced with real responsibility, he may finally have to grow up — but not without some bad behavior first.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: humorous, semi serious, entertaining, mumblecore, feel good, hilarious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 79%
As Cool as I Am (2013)
Plot Summary:
A smart teenage girl comes of age in a small town with her self-centered parents who had her when they were teenagers.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, semi serious, realistic, independent film, vintage
Similar in 77%
One Last Thing... (2005)
Plot Summary:
Sixteen-year-old Dylan is dying of cancer. When a charitable organization offers to grant Dylan his final wish, the teen has a surprising request: to meet supermodel Nikki Sinclair. Much to his mother's dismay, Dylan, with the help of his best friends, goes to New York to fulfill his dream.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: emotional, tragicomedy, humorous, realistic, sexy, semi serious, independent film, crying
Similar in 79%
S.O.B. (1981)
Plot Summary:
A movie producer who made a huge flop tries to salvage his career by revamping his film as an erotic production, where its family-friendly star takes her top off.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: funny, clever, humorous, witty, cynical, sex comedy, black comedy, meta, offbeat, tragicomedy
Similar in 81%
Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970)
Plot Summary:
Tina Balser is a bored New York housewife-mother married to Jonathan, a pompous, social-climbing lawyer who ridicules her in front of their children, criticizing everything she does or wears. She begins an affair with George Prager, a dashing, successful and blatantly sadistic writer. Finally after George has tormented Tina in much the same manner Jonathan has, and has been unfaithful to boot, she goes back to her husband and begins group therapy.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: romantic, sexy, clever, humorous, realistic, witty, semi serious, biting, sex comedy, suspense
Similar in 86%
Diggers (2006)
Plot Summary:
Diggers is a coming-of-age story directed by Katherine Dieckmann. It portrays four working-class friends who grow up in The Hamptons, on the South Shore of Long Island, New York, as clam diggers in 1976. Their fathers were clam diggers as well as their grandfathers before them. They must cope with and learn to face the changing times in both their personal lives and their neighborhood.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: humorous, touching, realistic, witty, semi serious, period piece, independent film, biting, suspense
Similar in 79%
How to Kill Your Neighbor's Dog (2000)
Plot Summary:
The story of Peter McGowan, a chain-smoking, impotent, insomniac playwright who lives in Los Angeles. Once very successful, he is now in the tenth year of a decade-long string of production failures. He finds himself bonding with a new neighbor's lonely young daughter who has mild cerebral palsy; and during one of his middle-of-the-night strolls, he encounters his oddball doppelgänger.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Germany, USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: humorous, melancholic, light, sentimental, touching, realistic, semi serious, black comedy, dark comedy, hilarious
Similar in 82%
Duane Hopwood (2005)
Plot Summary:
A down-on-his-luck divorced father struggles to get his life and family back together before it's too late.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: emotional, humorous, realistic, captivating, psychological, clever, touching, gloomy, semi serious, independent film
Similar in 89%
The Year of Getting to Know Us (2008)
Plot Summary:
A commitment-phobic man reunites with his estranged, ailing father and comes to terms with his own childhood.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious, offbeat, independent film
Similar in 77%
Strange Relations (2001)
Plot Summary:
Drama - A NYC psychiatrist is diagnosed with leukemia - and when he finds out he was adopted, he travels to England in search of his birth mother and some answers. - Paul Reiser, Amber Sealey, Lachele Carl.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 807
Genere: Drama, Comedy
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, emotional, semi serious, realistic, crying
Similar in 81%
This Is Where I Leave You (2014)
Plot Summary:
When their father passes away, four grown, world-weary siblings return to their childhood home and are requested -- with an admonition -- to stay there together for a week, along with their free-speaking mother and a collection of spouses, exes and might-have-beens. As the brothers and sisters re-examine their shared history and the status of each tattered relationship among those who know and love them best, they reconnect in hysterically funny and emotionally significant ways.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 88000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, independent film, emotional, melancholic, funny, realistic, hilarious, teen, thought provoking
Similar in 77%
Boys on the Side (1995)
Plot Summary:
After breaking up with her girlfriend, a nightclub singer, Jane, answers a personal ad from Robin, a real estate agent with AIDS, seeking a cross-country travel partner. On their journey from New York City to Los Angeles, the two stop by Pittsburgh to pick up Robin's friend Holly, who is trying to escape an abusive relationship. With three distinct personalities, the women must overcome their differences to help one another.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA, France
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: road movie, sentimental, touching, emotional, erotic, thought provoking, lgbt cinema, cult classic, hilarious, humorous
Similar in 78%
The Women (2008)
Plot Summary:
The story centers on a group of gossipy, high-society women who spend their days at the beauty salon and haunting fashion shows. The sweet, happily-wedded Mary Haines finds her marriage in trouble when shop girl Crystal Allen gets her hooks into Mary's man.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: entertaining, witty, humorous, light, realistic, emotional, sexy, semi serious, erotic, clever
Similar in 78%
Terms of Endearment (1983)
Plot Summary:
Aurora and Emma are mother and daughter who march to different drummers. Beginning with Emma's marriage, Aurora shows how difficult and loving she can be. The movie covers several years of their lives as each finds different reasons to go on living and find joy. Aurora's interludes with Garrett Breedlove, retired astronaut and next door neighbor are quite striking.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 64000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 132 min
Plot tags: tear jerker, touching, emotional, sad, heartbreaking, sentimental, compassionate, romantic, crying, realistic
Similar in 88%
Rich and Famous (1981)
Plot Summary:
Two literary women compete for 20 years: one writes for the critics; the other one, to get rich.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min
Plot tags: sentimental, clever, realistic, witty, semi serious, biting, erotic, sexy, intellectual, suspense