Some of the most depressing movies have often fared well among movie lovers especially because of their unique storylines which are almost always about the most barbaric of events that humanity has ever witnessed. This evokes certain emotions in viewers that keep them glued to their screens.
Considering our innate desire to keep up with our history, and the sad happenings around us, it is barely a surprise that people have nurtured a strong bond with this kind of film.
If you are one of those, the following are some of the finest depressing movies to watch.
Most Depressing Movies
1. Requiem for a Dream
Initial release: 6 October 2000
Darren Aronofsky set out to tell stories of one of the world’s saddest tragedies – addiction. Requiem for a Dream is vivid, captivating, earth-shattering, deafening, and downright nightmarish. It is one of the most depressing movies you can see. Viewers are thrown into a world of characters struggling with their dependence on one form of drugs or another.
By the end of the movie, they are completely defeated, and so are the viewers. The movie captures the intense, difficult, and intimate consequences of drug use in a way that stays with you long after the credits roll.
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2. Manchester by the Sea
Initial release: 14 November 2016
In this Academy Award-winning movie, Lee a depressed handyman is unable to escape the most tragic event of his life, and he is forced to confront it first hand after his brother’s death forces him to become his nephew’s guardian.
Be prepared to get slammed by emotions as Lee wrestles with the grief that consumes him in what seems a losing battle. Manchester by the Sea is as depressing as a movie can get, and then some more.
3. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Initial release: 12 September 2008
You think you’ve seen all there is to see about war movies until you sit through The Boy in the Striped. It is an excellent work of cinema as well as one of the most depressing movies ever made.
A Nazi commandant’s son, Bruno before a Jewish boy and things get terribly twisted from there, leading one of the boys to the gas chamber. It is a gripping story that will leave you crushed and speechless.
4. Precious
Initial release: 6 November 2009
There is a reason this movie received critical acclaim and 6 Academy Award nominations: the story it tells is devastating and soul-crushing. The main character Precious is coming of age in 1987 Harlem, amidst an onslaught of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.
She is raped by her father and becomes pregnant as a result. Her mother also physically and verbally abuses her throughout the movie. Precious, which is considered one of the most depressing movies ever made, takes the viewer in a break and horrendous journey that is almost too hard to sit through.
5. Grave of the Fireflies
Initial release: 16 April 1988
If you’re the kind of person who thinks animation is silly, Grave of the Fireflies promises to make you think again. It is a harrowing tale of the cruelty of war and it will break your heart. Set in Japan at the end of WWII, the movie follows two orphaned siblings trying to survive without a home in their little bombed-out town.
It’s hard enough to watch adults go through such difficulty but to see kids do it, well, keep a box of tissues within reach.
6. Blue Valentine
Initial release: 27 December 2010
When it comes to crushing emotional depth, Blue Valentine packs a punch. It tells the story of a love gone awry juxtaposed with the days when it was still great and full of possibilities. It shows a couple in a sour marriage trying to hold it together for their daughter, as well as flashbacks to the time when they were still madly in love.
It is a sad and grim portrayal of reality. Love hurts, and it hurts even worse when it stops being love!
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7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Initial release: 19 March 2004
It would be impossible to make a list like this without this cult classic forcing its way in. To put it simply, it is an emotionally devastating piece of cinematic storytelling. It tells the story of Joel Garish, a jilted boyfriend who decides to undergo a procedure to wipe all memories of his ex after he learns that she has done this, but as the story unfolds he realizes that memories are not so easy to let go.
This film is a certified tearjerker and its weight will always remain with you as it is one of the most depressing movies ever made.
8. Schindler’s List
Initial release: 30 November 1993
If you’re looking for a movie that will trample on your heart, Schindler’s List is the way to go. It has mountains of depressing moments waiting in store. The film follows Oscar Schindler, a German entrepreneur who helped over a thousand Jews escape the Holocaust by employing them as workers in his factories.
It depicts the harsh and unforgiving realities of concentration camps in WWII. Schindler’s List is not just one of the most depressing movies of all time, it is a poignant marker of humanity’s frightening history.
9. Hotel Rwanda
Initial release: 22 December 2004
What is more harrowing than watching the story of one of the world’s worst genocide unfolding on your TV screen? Hotel Rwanda tells the gruesome tale of the modern-day holocaust that saw threw million Tutsi people brutally murdered in less than three months while the world stood idly by.
It follows Paul Rusesabagina, a hotel manager who prevents the deaths of thousands of people by letting them hide in his hotel. If stomach-churning scenes of senseless violence and corpses littered on roads for miles don’t break something in you, nothing will.
10.12 Years A Slave
Initial release: 18 October 2013
Slavery is one of the most horrendous aspects of human history that blighted millions of lives beyond measure. 12 Years A Slave tells the true story of Solon Northrup, a black man kidnapped from his family and sold into slavery. The cruelty and atrocities he endures at the hands of his wicked master is enough to induce sniffles.
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Some things are too depressing to remember, but this film reminds the viewer of the necessity of keeping the bitter memories alive by confronting the horrific truths about slavery if there can ever be hope of moving past it.
11. Leaving Las Vegas
Initial release: 27 October 1995
The baseline of Leaving Las Vegas is one we all understand and, on some level, fear because it hits too close to home, which is why it is one of the most depressing movies of all time. You know those moments when things get so bad and it feels like it can never get better again?
The protagonist, played by Nicholas cage is firmly rooted in them. He is a deeply dissatisfied and unhappy man who has decided to end his life in Las Vegas. He meets a wonderful stripper and she tries but fails to save him.
