Relationship Drama backdrop

Relationship Drama movies

A bond under stress (partners, friends, exes), driven by trust, betrayal, negotiation, and emotional cost.

The Bucket List

151. The Bucket List

Drama Comedy Buddy Comedy Relationship Drama
7.3

20071h 37min

United States

Director: Rob Reiner

Corporate billionaire Edward Cole and working class mechanic Carter Chambers are worlds apart. At a crossroads in their lives, they share a hospital room and discover they have two things in common: a desire to spend the time they have left doing everything they ever wanted to do and an unrealized need to come to terms with who they are. Together they embark on the road trip of a lifetime, becoming friends along the way and learning to live life to the fullest, with insight and humor.

Themes

Travel as transformation, Class disparity and friendship, Mortality and meaning, Aging and legacy, Estranged family ties, Life-affirming experiences

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Lars and the Real Girl

152. Lars and the Real Girl

Comedy Drama Romance Romantic Comedy Relationship Drama
7.3

20071h 47min

United States

Director: Craig Gillespie

Lars finally finds a ‘girlfriend’ who makes him feel safe, seen, and alive—only she’s a life-size plastic doll. His family and town play along to protect his fragile heart. But when real connections start knocking, will Lars cling to the love that saved him or risk shattering his illusion to truly live?

Themes

Loneliness under community gaze, Stigma around mental illness, Delusion as coping mechanism, Doll as social catalyst, Rituals of social inclusion, Family distance and care

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Talk to Her

153. Talk to Her

Drama Romance Relationship Drama Passionate Romance
7.9

20021h 52min

Spain

Director: Pedro Almodóvar

Two men share an odd friendship while they care for two women who are both in deep comas.

Themes

Illness and dependence, Ambiguous caregiving ethics, Rape and pregnancy, Caregiving under strain, Boundary tensions in care, Grief and stillbirth

Available on

Apple TV
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Painted Veil

154. The Painted Veil

Romance Drama Bittersweet Romance Relationship Drama
7.4

20062h 5min

Canada, United States

Director: John Curran

A British medical doctor fights a cholera outbreak in a small Chinese village, while also being trapped at home in a loveless marriage to an unfaithful wife.

Themes

Extramarital affair consequences, Public health crisis ethics, Loveless marriage tension, Colonial social expectations, Caregiving and moral growth, Pregnancy and motherhood under strain

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Notes on a Scandal

155. Notes on a Scandal

Drama Romance Relationship Drama Dark Romance
7.4

20061h 32min

United Kingdom, United States

Director: Richard Eyre

A veteran high school teacher befriends a younger art teacher, who is having an affair with one of her 15-year-old students. However, her intentions with this new "friend" also go well beyond platonic friendship.

Themes

Manipulation and control, Extramarital affair, Power dynamics in relationships, Stalker dynamics, Loneliness and companionship, Public exposure consequences

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Don Jon

156. Don Jon

Romance Comedy Drama Romantic Comedy Satire
6.5

20131h 30min

United States

Director: Joseph Gordon-Levitt

A New Jersey guy dedicated to his family, friends, and church, develops unrealistic expectations from watching porn and works to find happiness and intimacy with his potential true love.

Themes

Deception and trust challenges, Unrealistically relationship expectations, Class and affluence tensions, Pornography and intimacy, Emotional withdrawal and connection, Trauma and bonding through loss

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Upstream Color

157. Upstream Color

Drama Science Fiction Relationship Drama Bio-Genetic Sci-Fi
6.5

20131h 36min

United States

Director: Shane Carruth

A man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the lifecycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives.

Themes

Shared trauma memory, Parasite mediated control, Loss as connective force, Identity refracted by transfer, Economic coercion through manipulation, Illusion of pregnancy

Available on

Apple TV
Google Play Movies
YouTube
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

158. Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Drama Romance Passionate Romance Relationship Drama
7.1

20081h 36min

Spain, United States

Director: Woody Allen

Two girlfriends on a summer holiday in Spain become enamored with the same painter, unaware that his ex-wife, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship, is about to re-enter the picture.

Themes

Love triangle dynamics, Bohemian independence vs commitment, Artistic tension and risk, Jealousy and balance of affection, Polyamorous arrangement pressures, Creative obsession and frustration, Redefining partnership boundaries

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Although living a comfortable life in Salon-de-Provence, a charming town in the South of France, Julie has been feeling depressed for a while. To please her, Philippe Abrams, a post office administrator, her husband, tries to obtain a transfer to a seaside town, on the French Riviera, at any cost. The trouble is that he is caught red-handed while trying to scam an inspector. Philippe is immediately banished to the distant unheard of town of Bergues, in the Far North of France...

Themes

Regional prejudice, Relocation and belonging, Deception for mobility, Dialect as social marker, Unhappy marriage, Hospitality and community

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Frozen River

160. Frozen River

Drama Crime Relationship Drama Organized Crime
7.1

20081h 37min

United States

Director: Courtney Hunt

After her husband deserts her, working-class mother Ray Eddy is in great need of money to find a home. Lured by the possibility of easy cash, she joins Lila, a widowed Mohawk who earns a living by smuggling immigrants from Canada to the U.S. across the St. Lawrence.

Themes

Economic precarity, Parental responsibility, Community judgment, Illicit economies, Border crossing tensions, Female solidarity under duress

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.