Movies Similar to Desperate Lives

Say You Will(2017)

A recent high school graduate cares for his mother and navigates his first relationship in the wake of his father's suicide.

6.1

The White Sound(2001)

Lukas, a young schizophrenic man, has to deal with a new town, a new relationship, and the paranoia in his head.

7.0

Rome, Open City(1945)

In WWII-era Rome, underground resistance leader Manfredi attempts to evade the Gestapo by enlisting the help of Pina, the fiancée of a fellow member of the resistance, and Don Pietro, the priest due to oversee her marriage. But it’s not long before the Nazis and the local police find him.

8.0

The Million Dollar Hotel(2000)

A federal agent searches for a potential killer among the bizarre residents of a dilapidated Los Angeles hotel.

5.9

Insomnia(2002)

Two Los Angeles homicide detectives are dispatched to a northern town where the sun doesn't set to investigate the methodical murder of a local teen.

7.0

Eyes Wide Shut(1999)

After Dr. Bill Harford's wife, Alice, admits to having sexual fantasies about a man she met, Bill becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter. He discovers an underground sexual group and attends one of their meetings -- and quickly discovers that he is in over his head.

7.5

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Ben Tumbling(1985)

A stuntman who dabbles as a petty thief for corrupt policemen decides to quit. His bosses do not let him go but, instead, he is tortured. His consistent brushes with the law earn him a prize on his head and attention from a daily.

4.0

Donnie Darko(2001)

After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.

7.8

Warrior Strong(2023)

Bilal Irving, a professional basketball player returns to his small, Northern Ontario town of Dumont. He re-connects with his former coach, and conflict ensues as they both struggle to put their egos and complicated pasts aside to mentor the town’s only basketball team.

6.2

The Wonders(2014)

In the Tuscan countryside, a family of traditional honey farmers struggles to make ends meet. The household consists of only daughters—four of them—led by the eldest, Gelsomina, who takes on the responsibilities of the family. When a small boy is sent to stay with them for rehabilitation, their routine is disrupted. As financial troubles threaten their home, Gelsomina sees an opportunity in a reality TV contest searching for 'Italy’s Most Traditional Family.' Willing to expose their secluded life for the prize money, she clashes with her father’s rigid ways in a bid to secure their future.

6.8

My Friend Dahmer(2017)

Jeffrey Dahmer struggles with a difficult family life as a young boy. During his teenage years he slowly transforms, edging closer to the serial killer he was to become.

6.5

Broken Mile(2017)

A drug addict awakens to find the girl he is with dead, and must rush to escape the consequences.

6.2

Apt Pupil(1998)

One day in 1984, Todd Bowden, a brilliant high school boy fascinated by the history of Nazism, stumbles across an old man whose appearance resembles that of Kurt Dussander, a wanted Nazi war criminal. A month later, Todd decides to knock on his door.

6.5

Election(1999)

Tracy Flick is running unopposed for this year’s high school student election. But Jim McAllister has a different plan. Partly to establish a more democratic election, and partly to satisfy some deep personal anger toward Tracy, Jim talks football player Paul Metzler to run for president as well.

6.9

Queen for a Day(2013)

In Sara's class, the popular kids, also known as the kings and queens, are subjected to daily humiliations, which include having their pants pulled down or water thrown on them, but this is only a sign of their elevated status. Sara is the only blond and blue-eyed girl in her class, and she is completely overlooked by the kings and queens who do not have blond hair and blue eyes. She has a secret crush on one of the kings, who is way out of her league, and she doesn't have any friends either, but would like to become friends with Karen, also an outsider who aspires to a better status. One day, Sara eyes an opportunity to boost her popularity by humiliating herself and thereby become queen. Karen instantly becomes her friend, she seems to catch the eye of her kingly crush and popularity appears within her reach. However, her happiness is short-lived, and in the end she learns a far more valuable lesson than how to be queen for a day.

0.0

Riding in Cars with Boys(2001)

In 1965, a young woman with dreams of becoming a writer has a son at the age of 15 and struggles to make things work with the drug-addicted father.

6.8

Human Traffic(1999)

For Jip, Lulu, Koop, Nina and Moff, the dead-end jobs they endure during the week just kill the time until Friday night. That's when they cut very loose and get on the rollercoaster ride that takes them right through to Monday morning.

6.8

Water Lilies(2007)

Set during a sultry summer in a French suburb, Marie is desperate to join the local pool's synchronized swimming team, but is her interest solely for the sake of sport or for a chance to get close to Floriane, the bad girl of the team? Sciamma, and the two leads, capture the uncertainty of teenage sexuality with a sympathetic eye in this delicate drama of the angst of coming-of-age.

6.6

Savage Grace(2007)

This examination of a famous scandal from the 1970s explores the relationship between Barbara Baekeland and her only son, Antony. Barbara, a lonely social climber unhappily married to the wealthy but remote plastics heir Brooks Baekeland, dotes on Antony, who is homosexual. As Barbara tries to "cure" Antony of his sexuality -- sometimes by seducing him herself -- the groundwork is laid for a murderous tragedy.

5.6

Let Me Eat Your Pancreas(2017)

A dying girl meets a nonchalant boy who found out her secret. She decided to fulfill her bucket list with none-other-than the boy who couldn't care less about the world.

7.0