Tear jerker movies and TV shows

The list contains the best, new and most relevant tear jerker movies ordered by relevance. The recommendation service has sorted out tear jerker, touching, sentimental, sad, emotional and heartbreaking films and TV shows about / with love, grief, sadness, hopes, friendship, death, inspiration, family relations, life lesson and father daughter relationship plots mostly in Drama, Romance and Family genres shot in USA, UK, Japan and other countries.
tear jerker
 1050
tear jerker movies
TOP 10 movies tagged as tear jerker: The Notebook (2004), Seven Pounds (2008), I Am Sam (2001), Bridge to Terabithia (2007), The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), My Sister's Keeper (2009), If I Stay (2014), Up (2009), Me Before You (2016), The Light Between Oceans (2016).

List of tear jerker movies

Watch Trailers From This List to Choose a Movie
 7.8
 615K
The Notebook (2004)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 123 min.
Story: An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's. From a faded notebook, the old man's words bring to life the story about a couple who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately ...
Style: touching, romantic, emotional, sentimental, tear jerker ...
Audience: chick flick, girls' night, date night, teens, adult
Plot: love story, love and romance, love, fall in love, true love, youth, memory loss, love of one's life, power of love, love triangle, young lovers, love affair ...
Time: 1940s, year 2004, 50s, post world war two, 20th century ...
Place: south carolina, north carolina, iran, usa, europe ...
Is relevant ?
 7.6
 314K
Seven Pounds (2008)
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 123 min.
Story: An IRS agent with a fateful secret embarks on an extraordinary journey of redemption by forever changing the lives of seven strangers.
Style: touching, sad, emotional, depressing, tear jerker ...
Audience: chick flick, teens
Plot: redemption, depression, life philosophy, self sacrifice, life changing experience, true love, existentialism, life & death, suicide, philosophy, sadness, tragic event ...
Time: year 2008, 21st century
Place: usa
Is relevant ?
 7.6
 155K
I Am Sam (2001)
Genre: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 132 min.
Story: Sam has the mental capacity of a 7-year-old. He has a daughter with a homeless woman who abandons them when they leave the hospital, leaving Sam to raise Lucy on his own. But as Lucy grows up, Sam's limitations start to become a problem and the ...
Style: inspirational, touching, emotional, tear jerker, sad ...
Audience: adult
Plot: lawyer, father daughter relationship, mentally challenged, disability, single father, social services, custody, custody battle, child custody, parents and children, parenthood, mental illness ...
Time: year 2001, 21st century
Place: california, los angeles, usa
Is relevant ?
Bridge to Terabithia (2007)
Genre: Drama, Family, Fantasy
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min.
Story: Jesse Aarons trained all summer to become the fastest runner in school, so he's very upset when newcomer Leslie Burke outruns him and everyone else. Despite this and other differences, including that she's rich, he's poor, and ...
Style: emotional, tear jerker, sad, touching, heartbreaking ...
Audience: family outing, kids, teens, family friendly, chick flick ...
Plot: friendship, childhood, imagination, children, escape from reality, magical, fantasy world, loneliness, classmate, school, imaginary, friends ...
Time: year 2007, 21st century
Is relevant ?
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The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
Genre: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min.
Story: A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career.
Style: inspirational, emotional, sentimental, uplifting, motivational ...
Audience: family outing, chick flick, teens, family friendly
Plot: homeless, life, human spirit, life philosophy, family drama, rags to riches, success, rise to the top, single father, against the odds, life is a bitch, down on your luck ...
Time: 80s, year 2006, 2010s, 20th century
Place: usa, san francisco, bay area, california, america
Is relevant ?
My Sister's Keeper (2009)
Genre: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min.
Story: Sara and Brian live an idyllic life with their young son and daughter. But their family is rocked by sudden, heartbreaking news that forces them to make a difficult and unorthodox choice in order to save their baby girl's life. The ...
Style: sad, touching, sentimental, heartbreaking, tear jerker ...
Audience: chick flick, teens, girls' night, teen drama
Plot: cancer, family drama, terminal illness, sisters, lawyer, parenthood, mother daughter relationship, sick child, life is a bitch, leukemia, family relations, family life ...
Time: year 2009, 21st century
Place: rhode island, usa, montana, los angeles
Is relevant ?
 6.7
 128K
If I Stay (2014)
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Music, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min.
Story: Mia Hall, a talented young cellist, thought the most difficult decision she would ever have to make would be whether to pursue her musical dreams at prestigious Juilliard or follow her heart to be with the love of her life, Adam, a rock ...
Style: touching, emotional, sad, tear jerker, uplifting ...
Audience: teens, girls' night, chick flick, teen drama
Plot: love, teenager, hospital, teenage girl, family drama, love and romance, teenage love, teenage life, youth, death in the family, out of body experience, high school ...
Time: year 2014, 2010s, 21st century
Place: usa, indianapolis indiana, portland oregon
Is relevant ?
 8.3
 1.1M
Up (2009)
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA, Japan
Duration: 96 min.
Story: Carl Fredricksen spent his entire life dreaming of exploring the globe and experiencing life to its fullest. But at age 78, life seems to have passed him by, until a twist of fate (and a persistent 8-year old Wilderness Explorer named Russell) gives ...
Style: feel good, inspirational, touching, sweet, tear jerker ...
Audience: kids, family outing, family friendly, pre-teens, date night ...
Plot: dog, loneliness, friendship, unlikely friendships, follow your dream, hopes, friends, animal life, journey, obsessive quest, aging, wilderness ...
Time: year 2009, 2000s, 21st century
Place: south america, iran, venezuela, latin america, mount everest
Is relevant ?
 7.4
 284K
Me Before You (2016)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 110 min.
Story: A small town girl is caught between dead-end jobs. A high-profile, successful man becomes wheelchair bound following an accident. The man decides his life is not worth living until the girl is hired for six months to be his new caretaker. Worlds ...
Style: touching, romantic, emotional, tear jerker, sentimental ...
Audience: chick flick, girls' night, teens, family friendly, date night
Plot: love, disability, love story, fall in love, love and romance, quadriplegic, euthanasia, caregiver, handicapped, relationships, death, accident ...
Time: year 2016, 2010s, 21st century
Place: england, usa, mallorca, paris france, switzerland
Is relevant ?
The Light Between Oceans (2016)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: UK, India, Australia, New Zealand, USA
Duration: 133 min.
Story: A lighthouse keeper and his wife living off the coast of Western Australia raise a baby they rescue from an adrift rowboat.
Style: touching, sentimental, melancholic, tear jerker, heartbreaking ...
Audience: chick flick, girls' night, date night, kids
Plot: lighthouse, love, lighthouse keeper, island, husband wife relationship, adoption, trying to get pregnant, miscarriage, missing child, mother love, isolation, couples ...
Time: 1920s, year 2015, victorian era, 20th century, year 1918
Place: australia
Is relevant ?
What Dreams May Come (1998)
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Country: USA, New Zealand
Duration: 113 min.
Story: Chris Neilson dies to find himself in a heaven more amazing than he could have ever dreamed of. There is one thing missing: his wife. After he dies, his wife, Annie killed herself and went to hell. Chris decides to risk eternity in hades for the ...
Style: surreal, philosophical, touching, inspirational, tear jerker ...
Audience: family friendly, teens, chick flick, teen drama
Plot: afterlife, heaven and hell, life & death, life philosophy, heaven, redemption, reincarnation, spirituality, love, hell, metaphysics, life after death ...
Time: 90s, 20th century
Place: cuba
Is relevant ?
 7.2
 125K
Men of Honor (2000)
Genre: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 129 min.
Story: Against formidable odds -- and an old-school diving instructor embittered by the U.S. Navy's new, less prejudicial policies -- Carl Brashear sets his sights on becoming the Navy's first African-American master diver in this uplifting true ...
Style: inspirational, motivational, touching, emotional, sincere ...
Plot: racism, african american, u.s. navy, courage, military, navy, racial segregation, hopes, human spirit, racial discrimination, diving, dream come true ...
Time: 20th century, 1950s, year 2000, y2k, 60s ...
Place: america, africa, usa, pacific ocean, cuba
Is relevant ?
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Terms of Endearment (1983)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 132 min.
Story: 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 ...
Style: tear jerker, touching, sad, heartbreaking, sentimental ...
Audience: chick flick, girls' night
Plot: cancer, love, dysfunctional family, friendship, single mother, husband wife relationship, grief, adultery, terminal illness, death of daughter, relationships, mother daughter relationship ...
Time: 1950s, 1940s, 20th century, year 1983, 60s ...
Place: texas, houston texas, new york, nebraska, louisiana ...
Is relevant ?
 8.8
 2.2M
Forrest Gump (1994)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 142 min.
Story: A man with a low IQ has accomplished great things in his life and been present during significant historic events - in each case, far exceeding what anyone imagined he could do. Yet, despite all the things he has attained, his one true love eludes ...
Style: inspirational, touching, feel good, sentimental, uplifting ...
Audience: date night, kids, chick flick, girls' night, family outing ...
Plot: life & death, philosophy, life philosophy, mentally challenged, destiny, love, rise to the top, human spirit, selflessness, storytelling, life, journey ...
Time: 20th century, 60s, 70s, 50s, 1950s ...
Place: usa, washington d.c., vietnam, china, alabama ...
Is relevant ?
The Fault in Our Stars (2014)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 126 min.
Story: Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a patient named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Support ...
Style: touching, emotional, romantic, sentimental, sad ...
Audience: teens, chick flick, girls' night, date night, teen drama
Plot: cancer, terminal illness, teenager, fall in love, love story, youth, first love, teenage life, dealing with death, adolescence, coping, coming of age ...
Time: year 2014, 21st century
Place: amsterdam, usa, pittsburgh, ethiopia, indiana ...
Is relevant ?
A Walk to Remember (2002)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min.
Story: When the popular, restless Landon Carter is forced to participate in the school drama production he falls in love with Jamie Sullivan, the daughter of the town's minister. Jamie has a "to-do" list for her life and also a very big ...
Style: touching, romantic, inspirational, sad, tear jerker ...
Audience: teens, date night, chick flick, girls' night, kids ...
Plot: cancer, teenager, love story, opposites attract, fall in love, terminal illness, love and romance, love, first love, youth, teen romance, true love ...
Time: year 2002, 1900s, 90s, 2000s, 21st century
Place: north carolina
Is relevant ?
 6.7
 127K
City of Angels (1998)
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Country: USA, Germany
Duration: 114 min.
Story: When guardian angel Seth -- who invisibly watches over the citizens of Los Angeles -- becomes captivated by Maggie, a strong-willed heart surgeon, he ponders trading in his pure, otherworldly existence for a mortal life with his beloved. The couple ...
Style: sentimental, romantic, tear jerker, sincere, emotional ...
Audience: chick flick, date night, girls' night
Plot: angel, afterlife, life & death, heaven and hell, fall in love, supernatural romance, love and romance, medical, love, love story, destiny, self sacrifice ...
Time: year 1998, 20th century, 90s
Place: los angeles, california, usa
Is relevant ?
Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009)
Genre: Biography, Drama, Family
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 93 min.
Story: A drama based on the true story of a college professor's bond with the abandoned dog he takes into his home.
Style: touching, emotional, sad, heartbreaking, sentimental ...
Audience: family outing, chick flick, kids, girls' night, teens ...
Plot: dog, friendship, loyalty, pets, human animal relationship, life & death, animal, loss of friend, loneliness, loss, friends, death ...
Time: year 2009, 2000s
Place: japan, rhode island, usa
Is relevant ?
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 7.4
 259K
The Bucket List (2007)
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min.
Story: 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 ...
Style: feel good, inspirational, philosophical, sentimental, touching ...
Audience: chick flick, date night
Plot: friendship, road trip, elderly, terminal illness, unlikely friendships, journey, human spirit, philosophy, bucket list, dying, follow your dream, self discovery ...
Time: year 2007, 21st century
Place: usa, africa, cote d'azur, tanzania, mount everest ...
Is relevant ?
 7.8
 157K
Awakenings (1990)
Genre: Biography, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 121 min.
Story: Dr. Malcolm Sayer, a shy research physician, uses an experimental drug to "awaken" the catatonic victims of a rare disease. Leonard is the first patient to receive the controversial treatment. His awakening, filled with awe and enthusiasm, ...
Style: inspirational, motivational, sentimental, sincere, uplifting ...
Audience: teen drama
Plot: mental illness, mental institution, hospital, illness, doctors and patients, medical, psychiatry, fighting illness, hopes, medicine, disability, patient ...
Time: 20th century, 90s, 1930s, 60s, year 1969
Place: america, new york, usa, bronx new york city
Is relevant ?
 4.9
 1K
Endless (2020)
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story: When madly in love high school graduates Riley and Chris are separated by a tragic car accident, Riley blames herself for her boyfriend's death while Chris is stranded in limbo. Miraculously, the two find a way to connect. In a love story that ...
Style: romantic, sad, sincere, touching, tear jerker ...
Audience: girls' night, chick flick
Plot: love, life after death, boyfriend girlfriend relationship, death, life & death, ghost, dealing with death, tragedy, car accident, out of body experience, impossible love, relationships ...
Time: 2020s
Is relevant ?
 7.0
 165K
One Day (2011)
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 107 min.
Story: A romantic comedy centered on Dexter and Emma, who first meet during their graduation in 1988 and proceed to keep in touch regularly. The film follows what they do on July 15 annually, usually doing something together.
Style: sentimental, romantic, sad, emotional, touching ...
Audience: date night, chick flick, girls' night, teens
Plot: love, love story, love and romance, best friends in love, friendship, male female friendship, couples, ambition, opposites attract, boyfriend girlfriend relationship, relationships, divorce ...
Time: 80s, 2010s, 90s, 20th century, 2000s ...
Place: iran, scotland, paris france, london
Is relevant ?
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Genre: Animation, Drama, War
Country: Japan, USA
Duration: 89 min.
Story: In the final months of World War II, 14-year-old Seita and his sister Setsuko are orphaned when their mother is killed during an air raid in Kobe, Japan. After a falling out with their aunt, they move into an abandoned bomb shelter. With no ...
Style: anime, touching, depressing, heartbreaking, tear jerker ...
Audience: kids, adult
Plot: world war two, hunger, war, orphan, homelessness, survival, siblings relations, children, desperation, death of child, anti war, boy ...
Time: 1940s, 20th century, year 1988, year 1945, post world war two
Place: japan, east asia, asia, tokyo
Is relevant ?
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The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (2008)
Genre: Drama, War
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 94 min.
Story: When his family moves from their home in Berlin to a strange new house in Poland, young Bruno befriends Shmuel, a boy who lives on the other side of the fence where everyone seems to be wearing striped pajamas. Unaware of Shmuel's fate as a ...
Style: emotional, touching, sad, heartbreaking, tear jerker ...
Audience: kids, teens, family outing, family friendly, teen drama ...
Plot: world war two, holocaust, concentration camp, war, children, childhood, nazi, friendship, nazism, gas chamber, boy, morality ...
Time: 1940s, 20th century, ancient times, year 2008
Place: germany, poland, europe, berlin germany, switzerland
Is relevant ?
 6.1
 26K
Trapped (2002)
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Germany, USA
Duration: 106 min.
Story: When their daughter is kidnapped by experienced nappers (Bacon and Love), the Jennings' (Theron and Townsend) turn the tables on this seemingly foolproof plan.
Style: suspenseful, suspense, sexy, scary, clever ...
Audience: kids
Plot: kidnapping, hostage, asthma, psychopath, blackmail, brutality, captive, chase, betrayal, marriage, crime gone awry, family bonds ...
Time: year 2002, 21st century
Place: usa, seattle, oregon
Is relevant ?
 7.0
 167K
Marley & Me (2008)
Genre: Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min.
Story: A newly married couple who, in the process of starting a family, learn many of life's important lessons from their trouble-loving retriever, Marley. Packed with plenty of laughs to lighten the load, the film explores the highs and lows of ...
Style: touching, sad, feel good, funny, sentimental ...
Audience: family outing, date night, kids, teens, girls' night ...
Plot: dog, pets, animal, couple relations, life, parenthood, marriage, couples, friendship, family relations, children, family life ...
Time: year 2008, 21st century
Place: miami, ireland, usa, florida, pennsylvania
Is relevant ?
The Fox and the Hound (1981)
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 83 min.
Story: When a feisty little fox named Tod is adopted into a farm family, he quickly becomes friends with a fun and adorable hound puppy named Copper. Life is full of hilarious adventures until Copper is expected to take on his role as a hunting dog -- and ...
Style: touching, emotional, tear jerker, sad, sentimental ...
Audience: kids, family outing, family friendly, pre-teens, preschool
Plot: dog, friendship, reconciliation, hunting, animal life, childhood, fox, chase, rescue, animal, friends, rivalry ...
Time: 80s, 20th century, 60s
Place: canada
Is relevant ?
Dead Poets Society (1989)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 128 min.
Story: At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his students to rebel against convention and seize the potential of every day, courting the disdain of the stern headmaster.
Style: philosophical, inspirational, sentimental, uplifting, emotional ...
Audience: teens, family friendly, kids, family outing, teen drama ...
Plot: teacher, suicide, coming of age, friendship, poetry, poet, mentor, philosophy, teachers and students, literature, youth, teenager ...
Time: 50s, 20th century, 1950s, year 1989, year 1959
Place: vermont, new england, usa, harvard university
Is relevant ?
The Snow Walker (2003)
Genre: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 103 min.
Story: A bush pilot in nothern Canada who with the aid of modernity thinks he can handle it all & knows it all. After reluctantly agreeing to transport a local indian girl to a medical facility his light plane crashes & they have to survive whilst ...
Style: emotional, serious, sentimental, realistic, compassionate ...
Audience: adult
Plot: survival, nature, wilderness, arctic, airplane, human spirit, friendship, rescue, hunter, isolation, friends, hopes ...
Time: 50s, 20th century, year 1953, post world war two, 1950s
Place: canada, antarctic, persia
Is relevant ?
KinnPorsche the Series La 'forte (2022)
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Romance
Country: Thailand
Duration: 60 min.
TV show
Story: Kinn, the second son of a prominent mafia head, is ambushed by an enemy and meets Porsche, a college student who comes to his rescue, thus beginning their reluctant relationship as boss and bodyguard, which soon turns into something more.
Style: disturbing, captivating, tear jerker, satirical, yaoi ...
Plot: mafia, lgbt, bodyguard, martial arts, battles, fight, boys love, gay romance, sexual content, gang leader, gay relationship, rivalry ...
Is relevant ?
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