The "Movies That Will Make You Cry" List

I am quite an emotional person. My friends can vouch for this.

But sometimes, just like everyone, I cannot always express myself in the ways I would like to.

More often than not, I am forced to swallow whatever stuff I'm dealing with because I can't just cry in public (its not socially acceptable).

For this reason, I have always enjoyed watching movies that make me cry. 

If I need to cry, like, REALLY NEED TO, it is a great way to get the tears out, and afterwards I feel SO MUCH BETTER!!!!

I have been putting this list together for a wee while. 

Sadly, sometimes the movies that used to make me cry don't have that effect on me anymore.

You also need to remember that emotional responses are completely unique and vary depending on people's personal life experiences. Something that makes me cry may not work for you, and vice versa.

*please note: I have recently added more films to the bottom of the blog and will hopefully continue to add crying-making films as I see them.

I have been watching as many "sad movies" as I can, even reading other people's lists to try and find ones I haven't heard of. 

But alas, I still don't always cry at "sad movies" and that could be why there are obvious ones missing. Sorry!!!

*** In reference to your quintessential 'Rom-Com-Chick-Flick-Tear-Jerkers':

Sadly it seems like romantic movies can't really make me cry anymore. I'm not even going to add The Notebook to this list because it didn't make me cry. SHOCK HORROR. Neither did Titanic. And the same thing goes for The Vow. The girls I watched it with were a total mess by the end of it, I think I was the only dry eye in the whole cinema. #Heartless.

But anyway, here is my list!

Feel free to add some films you think I have missed in the comments section of the blog.

The films in this list are in no particular order of sadness.

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The Lion King (1994)
Who has seen this and NOT cried? I remember that as a child I watched it and didn't cry, but when I revisited it as a hormonal teenage girl I cried like a little baby. The scene with Simba and Mufasa is so heartbreaking, even for a cartoon.



Of Mice and Men (1992)
I watched this the same night I watched The Lion King when I was a hormonal 13 year old. I cried. A lot. The book is equally as sad.








A Walk to Remember (2002)
As a teenage girl, I sobbed and sobbed throughout this movie, but I watched it last year and didn't shed a tear.




One True Thing (1998)
I watched this movie when it was randomly on tv one night when I was travelling around New Zealand. I was surprised by how sad it was, and the fact that I cried in it stayed with me. I just googled the words: 'Meryl Streep Movie Dying of Cancer' and I found it.





Crash (2004)
I studied this film for English class back in highschool but that didn't stop me from crying!!!




Up (2009)
Way more sad than you even realise when you're watching it!







Wreck it Ralph (2012)
I didn't expect to have such an emotional reaction to this movie, it was really great! I have it on the cards to watch it again soon.



Toy Story 3 (2010)
I cry everytime I see this film as well. I watched it in the cinema and bawled.



The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
Its anime, but it got me good!



Boy (2010)
I laughed, I cried. This movie is awesome. I wrote it about it in my Honours Dissertation so it doesn't make me cry anymore, but it definitely used to!!!





Rain (2001)
Ok, to be quite honest, a lot of Kiwi films make me cry. This one is no exception.



Out of the Blue (2006)
Really really sad, made more sad by the fact that it actually happened.





Once Were Warriors (1994)
Wrote about this in my Dissertation as well, very sad film.



The Pianist (2002)
Watched it quite recently. Openly yelled at my laptop and sobbed uncontrollably near the end (you need to watch it).



The Green Mile (1999)
Only shed a few tears when I was expecting a sob-fest. Its a nice movie though, I like the soundtrack.



Schindler's List (1993)
Super long movie and also super emotional.




The Lives of Others (2006)
Watched this on in my German Film class, its actually a really good story, quite hard-warming and also tear-inducing. German with English subtitles.



Big Fish (2003)
I have seen this a few times, I cried the first time I watched it but never again after that. I still really like it though.






The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
Poor Boromir. I cried the first time I watched it. Never again afterwards, but at least it got me once!





The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
OH MY GOODNESS! So hard to watch!!! It was super depressing. I watched it with my Mum, I think I cried. I definitely felt crappy during and afterwards.





I Am Legend (2007)
You know the part that made me cry. I watched it with my friend Nathan and he laughed at me when I wept for the dog.




Finding Neverland (2004)
Same as Big Fish. Very cute movie, but sad.



The Help (2011)
Absolutely ADORE this movie! Cry every time I see it. I loved it so much that I bought it on DVD so I could watch it ALL THE TIME!







Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (2005)
I bought this one on DVD as well. I watched it HEAPS of times and it wasn't until about the fifth or sixth time that I didn't cry anymore.



Dear John (2010)
More often than not, romantic movies don't make me cry, but this one did. It wasn't because of the love story though.







Soul Surfer (2011)
Much like Out of the Blue, this film is much more poignant watching it with the fact that it actually happened. Not only does this movie make me cry everytime I see it, its also pretty dang inspiring!





The Blind Side (2009)
Naaaaw, its beautiful. I cried the first time I watched it but not again afterwards, and I've seen it at least three or four times. I really like it though. Much like Soul Surfer, it is really inspiring.



P.S I Love You (2007)
Naaaawwwwww.




50/50 (2011)
Both funny and heartbreaking. A really good film though, I recommend it :)



The Intouchables (2011)
Such a lovely film, its french with english subtitles. I watched it with my friend Ben in the cinema and cried. We both agreed it is an awesome movie, its also based on a true story. I also recommend it!



American Beauty (1999)
I remember that I cried in this movie but I can't remember why. The soundtrack is really good though, the song that plays during the plastic bag scene is AMAZING!




Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009)
Right, here we see the age old: Martinette-crying-in-animal-movies. My friend Matt can vouch for how much I cried in this movie. I cried, like, a lot. I watched it purely because I knew it would make me cry a ridiculous amount and BOY DID IT DELIVER! Hahaha.. I'm so weird.




Red Dog (2011)
Hands-down my favourite Aussie movie of all time. I adore this movie, and again, it is based on an actual dog called Red Dog that lived in Australia. I watched it in the cinema and cried my eyes out. After a few months I went around to different DVD stores for weeks before I finally got my hands on my own copy. Love love love! And yes, it still makes me cry even though I have seen it a bunch of times.



Marley and Me (2008)
So. Much. Crying.





Eight Below (2006)
Another movie I saw in the cinema and cried throughout. Still looking for it to buy on DVD so I can experience the awesomeness whenever I want. Its so sad for me that I will cry if I give you a step-by-step synopsis of the plot.



War Horse (2011)
Absolutely beautiful film, Spielberg did an epic job! I loved this one so much I bought it on DVD as well. Makes me cry every time.






King Kong (2005)
Yes, I cried in this. I still count King Kong as an animal. Which leads me to...




Mighty Joe Young (1998)
Same thing really.










Les Miserables (2012)
Its pretty sad, I only cried near the end there. I shed maybe a maximum of three tears.









Now Is Good (2012)
The current winner of "Film-That-Makes-Martinette-Cry-Like-A-Baby-And-End-Up-Rocking-Herself-On-Her-Bed-In-The-Fetal-Position". I cried SO much. Wept even. Its a great movie but so sad.
I'll probably buy it on DVD so I can have an instant crying-trigger.

Blackfish (2013)
Another documentary. Wooaaahhhh. Very intense and heartbreaking. The poor whales! I cried a lot. I would recommend you watch it before you ever visit SeaWorld







Hitler's Children (2011)
A documentary about the descendants of high-ranking Nazi officers and their coming to terms with what their families did. Really interesting and, obviously, tear-inducing at times.

No Strings Attached (2011)
I was very surprised this movie made me cry. You wouldn't expect it! But it was actually very sad during this one scene. Maybe it just resonated with me a lot, or maybe it's because Natalie Portman is just such a good actress. Either way it made me cry, and I actually like this movie a lot.







The Fault In Our Stars (2014)
Yes, this movie got me, but only JUST! Definitely didn't find this movie as sad as 'Now Is Good' (which I mentioned earlier). I cried once, from what I recall. If you want to cry I really would recommend watching 'Now Is Good' as opposed to this one.




12 Years A Slave (2013)
Oh man. This film is rough. Very very hard to watch but at the same time, SUPER POWERFUL. There were definitely tears.









Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012)
Naaaawwww. This film was the story-of-my-life-but-not-really-but-pretty-much. I found it really hard to watch because it was just straight-up breaking my heart.





If I Stay (2014)
WOOOOWWWW!!! Just WOW! I watched this with my fiance, and he was fluffing around and leaving the room, and even though I was very emotional and crying, I felt that if I was alone and not being distracted by the comings and goings, I would have been more affected by it. Potentially watch this one alone!!!! It is very sad.



Life of Pi (2012)
I watched this again recently and was just so saddened by it, I was crying in places I didn't think I cried in when I watched it for the first time (That means the movie MUST BE GOOD!) Such an amazing film, the cinematography alone is just unbelievable.



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For now, that's everything I can think of.

I have obviously forgotten some movies off this list. As a film student I have seen HUNDREDS of movies, and I cannot possibly remember them all.

What I have realised about myself though, is the thing that usually makes me cry in movies is what I like to call "love in its purest form".

The love between a parent and a child, or between an animal and its master, or maybe between siblings. 

Romantic love does not usually make me cry, but put me in a theater with a movie about an animal that dies and I will be a mess.

I can't handle it when an animal survives its master, it is the most heartbreaking thing ever, and I also can't handle it when a parent survives a child.

But anyway, that's just me.

I love to cry, so I will continue watching sad movies. If you have any suggestions for me, please comment below.

***Shameless plug: I have released my album full of songs that might explain some of what I've written about in this blog (see: Celeste and Jesse Forever), it would be awesome if you could check it out. Link is here: https://martinette.bandcamp.com/***

Thank you for your continued support!