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IMDb's Drama Top 50

50 films Ranked Updated 3 days ago
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The Shawshank Redemption
Frank Darabont 1994 2h 22m 9.1

Imprisoned in the 1940s for the double murder of his wife and her lover, upstanding banker Andy Dufresne begins a new life at the Shawshank prison, where he puts his accounting skills to work for an amoral warden. During his long stretch in prison, Dufresne comes to be admired by the other inmates -- including an older prisoner named Red -- for ...

The Godfather
Francis Ford Coppola 1972 2h 55m 9.0

The classic star-studded film from the brilliant direction of Francis Ford Coppola tells the saga of New York mafia family’s everyday life. The film from 1972 became the new ultimate gangster film in the new Hollywood movement.

Schindler's List
Steven Spielberg 1993 3h 15m 8.8

Told from the perspective of businessman Oskar Schindler who saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his armor factory. Schindler’s list is bases on a true story and is illustrated in black and white and filmed on many original locations which brought much discussions and controversy.

12 Angry Men
Sidney Lumet 1957 1h 37m 9.2

12 Angry Men is the 1957 film debut for director Sidney Lumet. An interpretion from a Broadway show, this film is about 12 jurors who must decide whether an 18-year-old is guilty of killing his father.

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Peter Jackson 2003 3h 21m 8.8

The former Fellowship of the Ring prepare for the final battle for Middle Earth, while Frodo & Sam approach Mount Doom to destroy the One Ring.

The Godfather: Part II
Francis Ford Coppola 1974 3h 22m 9.0

After the extraordinary success of the first Godfather film came this second saga of the New York mafia family. This mafia epic tells the story of Michael Corleone and his father Vito.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Peter Jackson 2001 2h 59m 8.8

In a small village in the Shire a young Hobbit named Frodo has been entrusted with an ancient Ring. Now he must embark on an Epic quest to the Cracks of Doom in order to destroy it.

Fight Club
David Fincher 1999 2h 19m 9.2

Jack, uno Yuppie in cerca di se stesso, subisce il fascino travolgente e malsano di Tyler Durden, un disturbato gestore di palestre clandestine dove gli atleti si picchiano a sangue per dar sfogo alle proprie repressioni.

Pulp Fiction
Quentin Tarantino 1994 2h 34m 9.2

Pulp Fiction is a cult film by Director Quentin Tarantino with three interwoven plots with lots of violence, absurdity, and great music. The film is Tarantino’s most famous and the film that cemented his name and style in Hollywood.

Forrest Gump
Robert Zemeckis 1994 2h 22m 8.8

This film tells the many unbelievable life adventures of a small town not-so-intelligent man named Forrest Gump. Throughout his life Forrest Gump influences popular culture, meets many famous people, and is witness to many historical events most of which he is unaware of their significance.

Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo.
Sergio Leone 1966 2h 41m 9.0

Scoundrels are competing for 200,000 dollars hidden in a grave. The third Italian-Western film of a trilogy from director Sergio Leone gives Western films a new (bloody) color.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Peter Jackson 2002 2h 59m 8.7

Frodo and Sam continue on to Mordor in their mission to destroy the One Ring, whilst their former companions make new allies and launch an assault on Isengard.

Ningen no jôken (III)
Masaki Kobayashi 1961 3h 10m 9.2

The Japanese forces having been shattered, Kaji and some comrades embark on an epic journey on foot southward to where Kaji hopes to rejoin Michiko. After surviving many perils he is captured by the Red Army and subjected to treatment that echoes that meted out to the Chinese.

Interstellar
Christopher Nolan 2014 2h 49m 8.4

Interstellar chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.

Goodfellas
Martin Scorsese 1990 2h 25m 8.7

Goodfellas is a mafia drama from Martin Scorsese about a gang of Irish-Americans who become fearless Mafia leaders.

Se7en
16.

Se7en

David Fincher 1995 2h 7m 8.7

Just before retiring from the force a disillusioned detective, along with his successor, must solve one last case. They are hunting down a psychotic serial killer who chooses his victims according to the seven deadly sins. A masterpiece from director David Fincher that set new standards for the thriller genre.

The Silence of the Lambs
Jonathan Demme 1991 1h 59m 8.8

Clarice Starling is a top student at the FBI's training academy. Jack Crawford wants Clarice to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist who is also a violent psychopath, serving life behind bars for various acts of murder and cannibalism. Crawford believes that Lecter may have insight into a case and that Starling, as an attracti...

Cidade de Deus
Fernando Meirelles 2002 2h 9m 8.9

City of God is one of the most successful Brazilian films of all times. It depicts the raw violence in the ghettos of Rio de Janeiro in the 1970’s that even had young kids carrying guns and joining gangs when they should be playing hide-and-seek.

Saving Private Ryan
Steven Spielberg 1998 2h 49m 8.5

Saving Private Ryan is Steven Spielberg’s war film based on actual events from World War II. After three of his brothers are killed, soldier James Ryan, must be sent back to his mother in the USA. Yet the mission to get Ryan is more difficult than they thought as Ryan is stationed as a paratrooper behind enemy lines.

The Green Mile
Frank Darabont 1999 3h 9m 8.6

Paul Edgecomb is the chief guard on death row in a U.S. Southern prison in the late 1950's. A huge black inmate named John Coffey awaits his execution. Racism and prejudice are themes in this war time drama of civil courage and the power of magic.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Miloš Forman 1975 2h 15m 8.9

The successful film drama from director Milos Forman portrays the life inside a psychiatric ward where the line between the insane and the not insane is blurred. Based on the novel by the same name by Ken Kesey.

La vita è bella
Roberto Benigni 1997 1h 56m 8.3

A touching story of an Italian book seller of Jewish ancestry who lives in his own little fairy tale. His creative and happy life would come to an abrupt halt when his entire family is deported to a concentration camp during World War II. While locked up he tries to convince his son that the whole thing is just a game.

It's a Wonderful Life
Frank Capra 1946 2h 11m 8.9

An angel helps a compassionate but despairingly frustrated businessman by showing what life would had been like if he never existed.

Shichinin no samurai
Akira Kurosawa 1954 3h 27m 8.9

Seven Samurai is the masterpiece from Akira Kurosawa from 1954 in which a town hires an old samurai to protect their village. A mix of action, comedy, and social drama. This epic film is an intimate look into the powerful emotions of the characters and named the greatest film in Japanese cinema history.

Seppuku
25.

Seppuku

Masaki Kobayashi 1962 2h 15m 9.0

When a ronin requesting seppuku at a feudal lord's palace is told of the brutal suicide of another ronin who previously visited, he reveals how their pasts are intertwined - and in doing so challenges the clan's integrity.

The Prestige
Christopher Nolan 2006 2h 10m 8.5

A mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy -- full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.

Gisaengchung
Bong Joon Ho 2019 2h 13m 8.7

All unemployed, Ki-taek's family takes peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks for their livelihood until they get entangled in an unexpected incident.

The Departed
Martin Scorsese 2006 2h 31m 8.3

The Departed is the Academy Award winning crime thriller from director Martin Scorsese. Set in Boston the film is a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film, Infernal Affairs, by director Andrew Lau. The film deals with the battle between the Irish mob and the Boston police and the complications of infiltration.

Gladiator
29.

Gladiator

Ridley Scott 2000 2h 35m 8.4

After the death of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, his devious son takes power and demotes Maximus, one of Rome's most capable generals who Marcus preferred. Eventually, Maximus is forced to become a gladiator and battle to the death against other men for the amusement of paying audiences.

Whiplash
30.

Whiplash

Damien Chazelle 2014 1h 47m 8.4

Under the direction of a ruthless instructor, a talented young drummer begins to pursue perfection at any cost, even his humanity.

The Usual Suspects
Bryan Singer 1995 1h 46m 8.6

A boat has been destroyed, criminals are dead, and the key to this mystery lies with the only survivor and his twisted, convoluted story beginning with five career crooks in a seemingly random police lineup.

Django Unchained
Quentin Tarantino 2012 2h 45m 8.4

With the help of a German bounty hunter, a freed slave sets out to rescue his wife from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner.

Léon
33.

Léon

Luc Besson 1994 1h 51m 8.9

Leon/The Professional is a story of a lonely hit-man who saves a little girl, played by Natalie Portman in her first starring role, and thus having to give her a place to stay. It’s an intense and fragile story of their relationship and how they take care of one another.

American History X
Tony Kaye 1998 1h 59m 8.7

With its explicit depiction of violence, American History X is a controversial drama about a convicted Neo-Nazi and his struggle with his friends, family, and with the identity he has created for himself. The film touches on nationalism and racism in the US.

Intouchables
Éric Toledano, Olivier Nakache 2011 1h 53m 7.9

A true story of two men who should never have met - a quadriplegic aristocrat who was injured in a paragliding accident and a young man from the projects.

The Pianist
Roman Polanski 2002 2h 30m 8.6

The Pianist is a film adapted from the biography of Wladyslaw Szpilman. A Jewish-Polish pianist who during the second world war lived and hid miraculously in Warsaw after having gone through a terrible tragedy. A film from Roman Polanski.

The Lion King
Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff 1994 1h 29m 8.4

One of the most popular Disney animated musicals, The Lion King presents the story of a lion cub's journey to adulthood and acceptance of his royal destiny. Simba begins life as an honored prince, son of the powerful King Mufasa. The cub's happy childhood turns tragic when his evil uncle Scar murders Mufasa and drives Simba away from the kingdom.

Hotaru no haka
Isao Takahata 1988 1h 29m 8.2

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 surviving relatives and their emergency rations depleted, Seita and Setsuko struggle to survive.

Psycho
39.

Psycho

Alfred Hitchcock 1960 1h 49m 8.7

Psycho is one of the most famous masterpieces from Hitchcock and for it’s time was unparalleled in it’s horror effect. A chilling score sets the pace for an introverted killer and a mystery thriller case of multiple dimensions. The credits for the film directed by Saul Bass were revolutionary for their time.

Casablanca
Michael Curtiz 1942 1h 42m 8.7

In Casablanca, Morocco in December 1941, a cynical American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.

C'era una volta il West
Sergio Leone 1968 2h 46m 8.8

As the railroad builders advance unstoppably through the Arizona desert on their way to the sea, Jill arrives in the small town of Flagstone with the intention of starting a new life.

Nuovo Cinema Paradiso
Giuseppe Tornatore 1988 2h 4m 8.6

A filmmaker recalls his childhood, when he fell in love with the movies at his village's theater and formed a deep friendship with the theater's projectionist.

Modern Times
Charlie Chaplin 1936 1h 27m 9.0

The Tramp struggles to live in modern industrial society with the help of a young homeless woman.

City Lights
Charlie Chaplin 1931 1h 27m 8.5

City Lights is the first silent film that Charlie Chaplin directed after he established himself with sound accompanied films. The film is about a penniless man who falls in love with a flower girl. The film was a great success and today is deemed a cult classic.

Le trou
45.

Le trou

Jacques Becker 1960 2h 12m 9.1

Four prison inmates have been hatching a plan to literally dig out of jail when another prisoner, Claude Gaspard, is moved into their cell. They take a risk and share their plan with the newcomer. Over the course of three days, the prisoners and friends break through the concrete floor using a bed post and begin to make their way through the sew...

Ningen no jôken (I)
Masaki Kobayashi 1959 3h 24m 8.9

The Human Condition is a Japanese epic film trilogy made between 1959 and 1961. The trilogy follows the life of Kaji, a Japanese pacifist and socialist, as he tries to survive in the fascist and oppressive world of WWII-era Japan. No Greater Love (1959) opens with Kaji marrying his sweetheart Michiko despite his misgivings about the future.

Ningen no jôken (II)
Masaki Kobayashi 1959 2h 58m 8.6

As a conscript in war-time Japan's military, a pacifist struggles to maintain his determination to keep his ideals.

Dune: Part Two
Denis Villeneuve 2024 2h 47m

Follow the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a path of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the known universe, Paul endeavors to prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.

Inglourious Basterds
Quentin Tarantino 2009 2h 33m 8.6

In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as "The Basterds" are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis. The Basterds soon cross paths with a French-Jewish teenage girl who runs a movie theater in Paris which is targeted by the soldiers.

Good Will Hunting
Gus Van Sant 1997 2h 7m 7.9

Gus van Sant’s film tells the story of a mathematically gifted young man, named Will Hunting, who’s on the search for his identity while ruthlessly eluding his fellow friends. His first introspective look at himself is achieved after meeting with the therapist Sean Maguire.