Existential movies and TV shows
The list contains the best, new and most relevant existential movies ordered by relevance. The recommendation service has sorted out existential, melancholic, philosophical, thought provoking, cerebral and complex films and TV shows about / with existentialism, storytelling, loneliness, life & death, philosophy, dialogue, life philosophy, death, artistic and mentor plots mostly in Drama, Comedy and Sci-Fi genres shot in USA, France, UK and other countries.
2375
TOP 10 movies tagged as existential: Solaris (1972), The Man from Earth (2007), Brazil (1985), Donnie Darko (2001), Naked (1993), Mr. Nobody (2009), Requiem for a Dream (2000), I Heart Huckabees (2004), Severance (2022), Black Swan (2010).
Best films
New films
104K
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 167 min.
Story:
A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor and the mental problems of cosmonauts on the station. He soon discovers that the water on the planet is a type of brain which brings out ...
Style:
art house, atmospheric, cerebral, enigmatic, philosophical ...
Audience:
teens, adult
Plot:
outer space, scientist, metaphysics, space travel, space and aliens, space station, dream, trapped in space, astronaut, loneliness, science, philosophy ...
Time:
distant future, 70s, future, year 1972
Place:
soviet union, ussr, russia, tokyo
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min.
Story:
An impromptu goodbye party for Professor John Oldman becomes a mysterious interrogation after the retiring scholar reveals to his colleagues he never ages and has walked the earth for 14,000 years.
Style:
philosophical, reflective, mindfuck, psychological, cerebral ...
Plot:
philosophy, immortality, atheism, religion, storytelling, immortal, dialogue, professor, society, myth, heart attack, eternal youth ...
Time:
future, medieval times, 2000s, prehistory, 17th century ...
Is relevant?
221K
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 132 min.
Story:
Low-level bureaucrat Sam Lowry escapes the monotony of his day-to-day life through a recurring daydream of himself as a virtuous hero saving a beautiful damsel. Investigating a case that led to the wrongful arrest and eventual death of an innocent ...
Style:
surreal, cult classic, mind bending, psychological, futuristic ...
Audience:
adult
Plot:
dystopia, dream, satire, distopia, cyberpunk, surrealism, surveillance, absurdism, fighting the system, bureaucracy, christmas, hallucination ...
Time:
future, year 1985, year 1984
Place:
england, london, britain, europe, brazil ...
Is relevant?
905K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 113 min.
Story:
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.
Style:
psychological, surreal, mind bending, atmospheric, philosophical ...
Audience:
teens, date night, adult, teen drama
Plot:
mental illness, imaginary friend, schizophrenia, psychology, time travel, insanity, parallel universe, suburbs, surrealism, time loop, trippy, schizophrenic ...
Time:
80s, year 2001, 2000s, future, 20th century ...
Place:
los angeles, america, usa, virginia, harvard university
Is relevant?
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48K
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 131 min.
Story:
Johnny flees Manchester for London, to avoid a beating from the family of a girl he has raped. There he finds an old girlfriend, and spends some time homeless, spending much of his time ranting at strangers, and meeting characters in plights very ...
Style:
disturbing, talky, philosophical, black comedy, compassionate ...
Audience:
adult
Plot:
existentialism, sexual abuse, nihilism, humiliation, voyeurism, alienation, drifter, character study, sex scene, rape, cruelty, rapist ...
Time:
90s, year 1993
Place:
london, england, united kingdom, manchester, europe
Is relevant?
256K
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: Belgium, Germany, Canada, France, UK, Luxembourg, USA
Duration: 141 min.
Story:
Nemo Nobody leads an ordinary existence with his wife and 3 children; one day, he wakes up as a mortal centenarian in the year 2092.
Style:
psychological, surreal, mind bending, philosophical, thought provoking ...
Audience:
date night, teens, adult
Plot:
time, destiny, philosophy, choice, alternate reality, depression, twists and turns, butterfly effect, surrealism, utopia, multiple outcomes, parallel world ...
Time:
future, year 2009, year 1975, year 2011, 2010s ...
Place:
canada
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min.
Story:
The hopes and dreams of four ambitious people are shattered when their drug addictions begin spiraling out of control. A look into addiction and how it overcomes the mind and body.
Style:
psychological, disturbing, bleak, depressing, atmospheric ...
Audience:
kids, adult
Plot:
addiction, drug abuse, heroin, drug addiction, insanity, drug, junkie, loneliness, mental illness, depression, dream, subculture ...
Time:
year 2000, future, y2k, 20th century, 90s ...
Place:
britain, america, new york, usa, coney island brooklyn new york city ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy
Country: UK, Germany, USA
Duration: 107 min.
Story:
A husband-and-wife team play detective, but not in the traditional sense. Instead, the happy duo helps others solve their existential issues, the kind that keep you up at night, wondering what it all means.
Style:
philosophical, psychological, humorous, witty, dark comedy ...
Audience:
girls' night
Plot:
existentialism, private detective, self discovery, jealousy, making love, philosophy, relationships, investigation, environmental activism, meditation, buddhism, multiple storylines ...
Time:
year 2004, 20th century, 21st century
Place:
seattle
Is relevant?
375K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 50 min.
TV show
Story:
Mark leads a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. When a mysterious colleague appears outside of work, it begins a journey to discover the truth about their jobs.
Style:
tense, existential, breathtaking, captivating, philosophical ...
Audience:
date night
Plot:
office, memory, distopia, alternate world, mind control, satire, memory loss, conspiracy, colleague, double life, dystopian society, split personality ...
Time:
2020s, future
Is relevant?
882K
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min.
Story:
A ballet dancer wins the lead in "Swan Lake" and is perfect for the role of the delicate White Swan - Princess Odette - but slowly loses her mind as she becomes more and more like Odile, the Black Swan.
Style:
psychological, cerebral, atmospheric, suspense, twist ending ...
Audience:
chick flick, adult
Plot:
ballet, mental illness, obsession, psychology, character study, dancing, insanity, hallucination, mother daughter relationship, ballerina, surrealism, schizophrenia ...
Time:
year 2010, 2000s, 2010s, 21st century
Place:
bolivia, usa, new york, manhattan new york city
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min.
Story:
Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory, apparently playing themselves, share their lives over the course of an evening meal at a restaurant.
Style:
philosophical, surreal, clever, existential, artsy ...
Plot:
philosophy, conversation, food, dialogue, restaurant, existentialism, art, cooking, dinner, realism, transcendence, occult ...
Time:
80s, 20th century, year 1980, year 1981
Place:
new york, poland, sahara, middle east, manhattan new york city ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Germany, France
Duration: 137 min.
Story:
A tragic love story set in East Berlin with the backdrop of an undercover Stasi controlled culture. Stasi captain Wieler is ordered to follow author Dreyman and plunges deeper and deeper into his life until he reaches the threshold of doubting the ...
Style:
gloomy, political thriller, sincere, political, emotional ...
Audience:
date night, adult
Plot:
surveillance, cold war, spy, communism, berlin wall, stasi, politics, redemption, espionage, iron curtain, life philosophy, voyeurism ...
Time:
80s, 20th century, year 1989, 2000s, 90s ...
Place:
east germany, germany, berlin germany, europe, soviet union ...
Is relevant?
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Genre: Drama
Country: Argentina
Duration: 73 min.
Story:
Sebastian, a man in his thirties, works a series of temporary jobs and embraces love at every opportunity. He transforms, through a series of short encounters, as the world flirts with possible apocalypse.
Style:
existential, captivating, disturbing, psychological, contemplative ...
Plot:
meteorite, dog, owner dog relationship, society, life is a bitch, psychology, social problems, alienation, existential crisis, social commentary, male protagonist, absurd humor ...
Place:
poetic realism, chile, argentina
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama
Country: France, USA
Duration: 110 min.
Story:
After being heralded by Jean-Luc Godard as the great hope of the New American Cinema, Peter Emanuel Goldman relocated to Paris just in time for 1968. Social dissolution permeates WHEEL OF ASHES, a stripped-down account of a young man's ...
Style:
existential, avant garde, art film, philosophical, art house ...
Plot:
existential crisis, alienation, introspection, religion, hallucination, surrealism, symbolism, isolation, a vision, psychological torment, male protagonist, urban ...
Time:
60s
Place:
paris france
Is relevant?
Genre: Adventure, Drama
Country: Mexico
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
Five men are hired to paint the yellow line the road between two villages in Mexico forgotten. Aboard an old pickup truck, initiated the work of more than two hundred kilometers of asphalt and yellow paint to be completed in less than a fortnight
Style:
existential, disturbing, psychological, captivating, poignant ...
Plot:
road trip, character study, journey, on the road, working class, social problems, workplace, society, coworker, workplace situations, co worker co worker relationship, small town life ...
Place:
mexico
Is relevant?
Genre: Animation, Comedy, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min.
Story:
An undercover cop in a not-too-distant future becomes involved with a dangerous new drug and begins to lose his own identity as a result.
Style:
psychedelic, psychological, philosophical, adult animation, bleak ...
Audience:
kids, teens, adult
Plot:
cyberpunk, drug abuse, dystopia, schizophrenia, conspiracy, disorder, addiction, trippy, society, fighting crime, consciousness, losing-it hero ...
Time:
future, year 2006, 2000s, near future, 21st century
Place:
california, texas, usa, san diego california
Is relevant?
57K
Genre: Biography, Drama
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 107 min.
Story:
A dying man in his forties remembers his past. His childhood, his mother, the war, personal moments and things that tell of the recent history of all the Russian nation.
Style:
cerebral, atmospheric, surreal, philosophical, art house ...
Plot:
childhood, surrealism, world war two, poetry, stream of consciousness, dream, winter, memory, coming of age, mirror, levitation, female nudity ...
Time:
year 1935, 1940s, 1930s, 20th century, year 1975 ...
Place:
soviet union, russia, moscow russia, ussr, europe ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, War
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min.
Story:
Set in 19th-century Russia, Allen is a cowardly serf drafted into the Napoleonic war, who would rather write poetry and obsess over his beautiful but pretentious cousin. Allen's cowardice serves him well when he hides in a cannon and is shot ...
Style:
parody, philosophical, surreal, intellectual, witty ...
Plot:
satire, war, philosophy, napoleonic wars, irreverent, nothing goes right, love and romance, disorder, fall in love, military, goofy hero, couple relations ...
Time:
year 1975, 1810s, 1800s, 19th century, 1930s ...
Place:
russia, ussr, st. petersburg russia
Is relevant?
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Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 130 min.
Story:
A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television.
Style:
political, clever, witty, black comedy, satirical ...
Plot:
politics, satire, comedy of errors, lawyer, secret service, impotence, mansion, funeral, eviction, country estate, wealth, garden ...
Time:
year 1979, 20th century, 70s
Place:
washington d.c., north carolina, usa
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Country: West Germany, France
Duration: 128 min.
Story:
Wings of Desire is Wim Wender’s artistically beautiful film about the lonely and immortal life of angels during a post-war Berlin. It’s a poetic journey from the perspective of the angels of which one falls in love with a living woman and wants ...
Style:
atmospheric, lyrical, meditative, surreal, cerebral ...
Audience:
date night
Plot:
philosophy, love, angel, circus, dream, immortality, mortality, surrealism, existentialism, suicide, actor, love story ...
Time:
20th century, 80s, year 1987
Place:
berlin germany, germany, west germany, east germany, europe
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Austria
Duration: 101 min.
Story:
On his way to Vienna, American Jesse meets Céline, a student returning to Paris. After long conversations forge a surprising connection between them, Jesse convinces Celine to get off the train with him in Vienna. Since his flight to the U.S. ...
Style:
philosophical, sentimental, sexy, intellectual, romantic comedy ...
Audience:
date night, teens, girls' night, chick flick
Plot:
love, chance meeting, destiny, lovers, tourist, young lovers, fall in love, relationships, coincidence, love story, teenage girl, stranger ...
Time:
90s, 20th century, year 1995
Place:
vienna, austria, europe, france, los angeles ...
Is relevant?
138K
Genre: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 125 min.
Story:
66-year-old Warren Schmidt is a retired insurance salesman and has no particular plans other than to drive around in the motor home his wife insisted they buy. He's not altogether bitter, but not happy either, as everything his wife does annoys ...
Style:
road movie, dark comedy, depressing, sad, philosophical ...
Plot:
road trip, wedding, existentialism, parenthood, elderly, letter, salesman, fish out of water, dysfunctional family, self discovery, family life, life changing ...
Time:
year 2002, 2000s, 21st century
Place:
nebraska, colorado, denver colorado, kansas, california
Is relevant?
228K
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min.
Story:
Andrew returns to his hometown for the funeral of his mother, a journey that reconnects him with past friends. The trip coincides with his decision to stop taking his powerful antidepressants. A chance meeting with Sam - a girl also suffering from ...
Style:
sentimental, funny, indie film, sweet, independent film ...
Audience:
chick flick, teens, date night
Plot:
depression, self discovery, melancholy, coming of age, female nudity, paraplegic, love story, love, family relations, relationships, drug, dealing with death ...
Time:
year 2004, near future, medieval times, 2000s, 21st century
Place:
new jersey, los angeles, new york, usa, seattle
Is relevant?
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Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA, Japan
Duration: 102 min.
Story:
Two lost souls visiting Tokyo -- the young, neglected wife of a photographer and a washed-up movie star shooting a TV commercial -- find an odd solace and pensive freedom to be real in each other's company, away from their lives in America.
Style:
melancholic, atmospheric, cerebral, intellectual, sexy ...
Audience:
girls' night, date night, family friendly, chick flick
Plot:
loneliness, midlife crisis, older man younger woman relationship, age difference, friendship, character study, alienation, fish out of water, melancholy, unlikely couple, actor, hotel room ...
Time:
2000s, year 2003, 21st century
Place:
japan, tokyo, asia, yale university, america ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Drama, Romance
Country: South Korea, Germany
Duration: 103 min.
Story:
This South Korean film takes place on an isolated lake, where an old monk lives in a small floating temple. The monk has a young boy living with him, learning to become a monk. We watch as seasons and years pass by.
Style:
philosophical, atmospheric, melancholic, meditative, spiritual ...
Plot:
buddhism, life & death, coming of age, isolation, meditation, buddhist monk, monk, guilt, existentialism, buddhist, nature, beautiful scenery ...
Time:
year 2003, 2000s, 21st century
Place:
south korea, tibet, korea, east asia, asia ...
Is relevant?
696K
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Country: USA, Taiwan, UK, Canada, India, France
Duration: 127 min.
Story:
The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
Style:
philosophical, touching, visually appealing, reflective, scenic ...
Audience:
date night, girls' night, kids, family outing, chick flick ...
Plot:
survival, animal, ocean, human animal relationship, loneliness, life & death, stranded, survivor, hopes, beautiful scenery, storm at sea, journey ...
Time:
70s, year 2012, 2010s
Place:
india, america, asia, montreal, pacific ocean ...
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 119 min.
Story:
A fading actor best known for his portrayal of a popular superhero attempts to mount a comeback by appearing in a Broadway play. As opening night approaches, his attempts to become more altruistic, rebuild his career, and reconnect with friends and ...
Style:
surreal, dark comedy, psychedelic, black comedy, independent film ...
Audience:
teens, date night, adult
Plot:
midlife crisis, existentialism, satire, theater, surrealism, actor, dark humor, showbiz, father daughter relationship, mental illness, alter ego, backstage ...
Time:
year 2014, 2010s, 21st century
Place:
new york, manhattan new york city, ethiopia, america, los angeles ...
Is relevant?
1K
Genre: Drama
Country: Brazil
Duration: 97 min.
Story:
André, a teenager, lives in an industrial town in Brazil near an old aluminum factory. One day, a factory worker, Cristiano, suffers an accident. Asked to go to Cristiano’s house to pick up clothes and documents, André stumbles on a notebook, ...
Style:
existential, psychological, thought provoking, thrilling, captivating ...
Plot:
existentialism, working class, lonely, social issues, poverty, social commentary, character study, social realism, life is a bitch, society, social problems, coming of age ...
Place:
brazil, poetic realism
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: UK, Romania, France, USA
Duration: 107 min.
Story:
A computer hacker's goal to discover the reason for human existence continually finds his work interrupted thanks to the Management; this time, they send a teenager and lusty love interest to distract him.
Style:
surreal, philosophical, thought provoking, offbeat, psychedelic ...
Plot:
loneliness, computers and web, society, computer, computer system, virtual reality, escape from reality, computer genius, dystopian future, uncover truth, hacker, distopia ...
Time:
future, 2010s, year 2013, distant future
Is relevant?
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min.
Story:
Seven vignettes explore the difference between fantasy and reality, memory and history, and the joy and agony of the human condition.
Style:
anthology, existential, serious, thought provoking, satirical ...
Plot:
memory, loss, satire, hollywood, social problems, family problems, society, lifestyle, social satire, marriage, relationship problems, introspection ...
Place:
new mexico, chicago
Is relevant?
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