Photo Credit (Freepik)

There are excellent dramas. There are awful dramas. Then there are the plays that never receive the recognition they deserve. Our collection includes unnoticed dramas, many of which are not part of popular culture. These titles will make you feel everything, from tears to indie love.

Past Lives (2023).
There’s no need to worry about Chat GPT just yet. No robot could have created this honest, real, and personal story of a Korean immigrant and her childhood romance, which may be the best film of 2023. Prepare to have your heartstrings pulled straight out of your chest.

Portrait of a Lady On Fire (2019)

This film follows two lesbians as they spend the summer together before having to return home. It’s a romance told in brushstrokes as one paints the other’s portrait over the course of a weekend. We, too, get to adore every corner of their features, every ridge of their minds, as the director draws their lives one line at a time.

The Prestige (2006)
Christopher Nolan? Underrated? While The Prestige has a large fan base, it does not have the same level of popularity as films like Inception and Memento. That’s a shame, because this narrative about two magicians is pure magic.

The Florida Project (2017)

Childhood-themed films create excellent dramas. Consider this: to a child, the promise of ice cream is the best thing in the world, whereas the thought of mom being home late can be disastrous. That’s what makes Sean Baker’s indie so unique. It pulls us into a child’s head while simultaneously showing us the realities of motel life.

The Battle of Algiers (1966)
I’ve never been more on the edge of my seat than I was during The Battle of Algiers, a combat film so realistic that it was presented in the Pentagon. Because the camera makes everything feel so genuine, you might believe you’ve joined the revolution while watching these people take on a Nazi regime.

The Grand Illusion (1937)
How can there be drama in a military film? Aren’t war movies basically about people firing and cursing at one another? The Grand Illusion is a rare war film that features almost little action. It focuses on the soldiers’ personal lives, how they find hope in the wreckage, and humor in the horror. After all, it’s the work of Jean Renoir, a director often regarded as “cinema’s great humanist.”

Tokyo Story (1953).
Yasujiro Ozu has joined the chat. Ozu, one of cinema’s other great humanists, directed films about ordinary families. There is no action. There are no firearms or explosions. This is simply a movie about regular life that is as enjoyable as a blockbuster.

Before Sunset (2004
I mean, I could definitely put the first movie on here. However, that may be too popular for an underappreciated list. Instead, we take up with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in Paris, five years after they originally met in Vienna. In scene after scene, they make you drool over the possibilities of love.

Leave No Trace. (2018)
This one didn’t leave much of an impression at the box office, but those who saw it were left with a sense of shell shock. The narrative of a military veteran and his daughter camping out in the woods remains with you long after the credits roll. Ben Foster and Thomasin McKenzie deliver softly painful performances, while Debra Granik’s direction is among the best of 2018.

Nomadland (2021).
Chloe Zhao enjoys making audiences cry in movies. In her breakthrough film, The Rider, she transformed the story of a rodeo rider into an emotional rollercoaster. In her subsequent film, Nomadland, she transformed the story of a nomad into a path to despair. And in her Marvel film Eternals, she bored us to tears. How is that for consistency?

The Two Popes (2019)

The Two Popes is similar to witnessing two people become buddies in front of your eyes… except they’re popes. They begin by discussing life, religion, and philosophy before moving on to more prophetic topics like pizza and soda. It’s the type of thing that sounds boring on paper yet is executed with such zeal that you believe in the picture.

In Brugge (2008)
Collin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are hitmen in Bruges who have nothing to do. They speak, wander, and drink in this meandering masterpiece by Martin McDonagh.

Manchester By The Sea (2016)
If you can get through Michelle Williams’ speech in Manchester by the Sea without crying, you’ll be the first. The story of two divorcees is incredibly moving.

The Father (2020)
In terms of tearjerkers, The Father is one of the saddest films released in recent years. Anthony Hopkins’ portrayal of a father with dementia will break your heart, while Olivia Coleman’s portrayal of his daughter will help you pick up the pieces. It’s the type of film that was designed for the Oscars, and Hopkins won Best Actor in 2020.