During a year when action thrillers such asTwistersandThe Beekeeperdominated movie screens, Hollywood still made room for a diverse array of more somber films.Dramais the best-suited genre to elicit powerful emotions of despair and doom from the audience, which is why most of the films on the list fall under that category.
Fans not in the mood for upbeat comical antics or in-your-face action stunts will appreciate movies that morerealistically reflect the soaring heights and crashing depths of the human experience, and these 10 most depressing movies of 2024 do that extremely well.
10’Good Grief'
Good Grief
Dual directors Dan Levy and Arnaud Valois expertly weave comedy with tragedy inGood Grief,which stars Levy as a recently bereaved husband who is thrown for an emotional loop as he discovers his latehusband was entangled in a secret affair. In an effort to mend his broken heart, he embarks with his best friends on a healing journey to Paris, which is somewhat reminiscent of a more solemnEat, Pray, Love-style trek.
A Reality Picture of Love, Loss, and Betrayal
Released at the tail end of 2023, the movie was rife for discussion throughout 2024. One Reddit poster described the tragic film as “over-the-top tear baiting,” making it a great choice for any fan craving a good cry. Gorgeous nighttime shots of London and Paris punctuatethe piercingly sad dramedyfor an impressive result.
9’How to Have Sex'
How to Have Sex
How to Have Sexchronicles the vacation travels of a trio of teenage friends seeking to explore their burgeoning sexuality. Tara, the main character played by emerging British actress Mia McKenna Bruce, is particularly fixated on the pursuit of sexual experiences, due to feeling peer pressure from her friends to lose her virginity. Thecoming-of-age trip takes a dark turnas the teens find themselves facing uncomfortable realities.
Not a Typically Light-Hearted Teen Drama
The movie squarelyavoids formulaic growing-up tropesby diving into murkier waters than the typical feel-good teen film. Rather than being mindlessly fun entertainment, the movie serves as a starkwarning about the pitfalls of party culturethat can strike when predatory behavior descends as adolescents start to go out on their own.
8’The Wild Robot'
The Wild Robot
Audiences probably wouldn’t expect a children’s film to be depressing, butThe Wild Robottakes the unexpected direction to relay a remarkably downtrodden story. Themes of loneliness are emphasized as Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o adds another hit toher collection of sparkling rolesas she voicesRoz, a service robot who finds herself trapped on a desolate islandafter becoming the sole survivor of a storm which sinks her cargo ship. Surrounded by unwelcoming wildlife, she must battle alone to make her way in a foreign land.
A Beautifully Tragic Victory for Dreamworks
Dreamworks has received heavy praise for the thoughtfully crafted animated adventure drama. The simple buttouching tale possesses “core memory” qualities, with many fans calling it this generation’sIron Giant.The environmental message about protecting nature and wildlife is timely and needed in an era ofunprecedented disregard for the planetin favor of short-term convenience and industrial expediency.
7’Bleeding Love'
Bleeding Love
With the several overdose deaths in recent years of Gen Z staples such as Lil Peep, Mac Miller, Juice WRLD, andEuphoria superstar Angus Cloud, drug struggles have become an increasingly relevant topic whichBleeding Loveuses as a main plot point.Director Emma Westenberg’s family drama contains themes of generational trauma as a formeraddict played by Star Wars star Ewan McGregortries to heal his relationship with his daughter who has recently survived an alarming overdose.
Heartrending Drug Movies Like ‘Bleeding Love’ Humanize Addiction, But May Unintentionally Worsen a Crisis
Hollywood is rife with sob stories about the destructive nature of drug addiction, and a particular focus has recently been placed on opioids, such as in Timothee Chalamet’sBeautiful Boy.The harsh crackdowns on traditional painkillers that have swept the nation have precipitated a soaring demand for counterfeit pills that often contain Fentanyl, which can be instantly lethal in tiny amounts.
Films that beat viewers over the head about the perils of addiction, butfail to touch on the life-saving nature of harm reduction strategies, can potentially drum up public support for draconian zero tolerance policies. While many of these films are careful to paint addiction as a gripping illness rather than a criminal flaw, they often fail to evolve any further beyond a flat “drugs are bad” message for viewers to take away.
6’Good One'
Good One,directed by India Donaldson, is an emotional drama with amajestic nature settingabout a teen girl named Sam who finds herself caught mediating the conflict that arises from a long-simmeringresentment between her father and his best friend, Matt, during a week-long camping excursion. Her father’s friend, who she sees as an uncle, cuts a depressing figure as he grapples with his recent divorce and crumbling career. Meanwhile, Sam’s father dampens the vacation’s mood with his stuffy demeanor and controlling tendencies.
India Donaldson Proves Less Is More With Minimalist Movie Win
Donaldson received rave reviews from critics for her understated debut film. The piece has been praised for its slow buildup into what reviewer Mark Dujsik called “a quietly harrowing story.” The film explores both the beauties and disappointments of life, using one particularly pitiful scene tohighlight the ravages of agingby comparing the middle-aged Matt to bright-eyed college students.
5’We Live in Time'
We Live in Time
We Live in Timeis unusually dark for a romantic comedy. It stars highly accomplished starlet Florence Pugh, alongside Andrew Garfield. The two play a toiling couple with a complicated relationship which the film offersglimpses of at different points over the course of a ten-year timeframe. The pair’s saga is complicated by compounding elements such as pregnancy, divorce, and recurring cancer.
Chronological Jumps Heighten ‘We Live in Time’s’ Emotional Punch
Director John Crowley expertly incorporates timeline play tojuxtapose joyous scenes with heartbreaking ones. The quick comparisons make the sad scenes more gutting by several notches. The film’s quality is also bolstered by the classic sarcasm andno-nonsense wit of its British-style dialogue, stopping the film from suffering what easily could have been a disastrous slide into overly mawkish territory.
4’Sing Sing'
It is hard to imagine anything more depressingly wrongful than a falsely accused person being trapped in prison. That is the infuriating basis ofSing Sing’splot, which shows Colman Domingo’s character “Divine G” accomplish the seeminglyimpossible task of finding joy in prison through the power of musical performance. The character shares wrongful imprisonment in common with the real man on whom he is based, John Whitfield, as well asreal-life former prisoner JJ Velazquez, who was exonerated of a wrongful murder convictionafter serving nearly 24 years in prison and is also a part of the film’s cast.
A Transformative Fact-Based Film
Sing Singdoes one of cinema’s most important jobs by using the power of entertainment to draw viewership to aserious societal issue. The cast members have been praised for their strong acting and authentic emotion as they relay the tale of tragedy and triumph. Despite the presence of several joyful moments in the film, JJ Velazquez cautioned in an NBC interview,“This is not a celebration. This is an indictment of the system.”
3’Here After'
Here After
Fans ofAmerican Horror Story: Murder Housewill appreciate seeing star Connie Britton in another bone-chilling project. Here she plays Claire, whose daughter has been miraculouslyresurrected after a deadly disaster. At first thinking she and her child have been reunited with no strings attached, she soon realizes that a dangerous darkness now stands between them.
Connie Britton Entertains in Dreary Drama
Although some fans disliked the heavy use ofDutch anglesand found the pacing too slow, many appreciated the haunting thematics and interesting family trauma story. Fans of soapy stories will appreciate that the film doesn’t hold back or try to be too serious.Britton’s performance as a guilt-ridden motheris effective in casting the blue mood over the production that the director appears to be going for.
2’The Peasants'
Released in the USA on July 18, 2025,The Peasantsoffered a creative visual masterpiece to start off the year. The Polish film is a unique labor of love which doesn’t take any shortcuts. It is hand-painted by a group of 60 artists who created six oil-painted frames for every second of live footage. In a cultural landscape facing the looming explosion of AI, this gorgeous presentation of the mournful story aboutabject poverty clashing against riches in a 19th-century Polish villageproves the value of human-made art without automated interference.
An Outstanding Visual Triumph
The Peasantshonors and celebrates film’s identity as a visual medium first and foremost. While some critics called the story “too conventional,” it is hard to nitpick the script when the filmmakers' obvious main goal was to execute a lofty painting feat. Deep tones complement the thematic darkness of the sorrowful story starringKamila Urzedowska as an impoverished farmhanddetermined to defy her mother’s plans for an arranged marriage. The ugly ending of thisanti-fairytalesnaps viewers out of any fantasy the enchanting scenes might have begun to weave.
1’His Three Daughters'
His Three Daughters
Netflix’sHis Three Daughtersstars popularOrange is the New Blackalum Natasha Lyonne alongside Elizabeth Olsen, the younger sister of elusive legends Mary Kate and Ashley. The two are joined by Carrie Coon to form atrio of sisters who unite in New York City to care for their fatheras his health fails. The movie’s sad plot hits home and has widely heartbreaking appeal because almost everyone has either seen a loved one deal with a sick parent, or been forced to do so themselves.
A Simple Showcase of Three Big Talents
The non-flashy film gives ample opportunity for each woman to show her drama skills. The movie incorporatesstage-acting techniquesto conjure emotion and make viewers feel like they are in the room with the characters. It received an impressive 98% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with admirers calling it “realistically messy.” Thestars' grief translates across the screenfor one of the subtly saddest releases of the year.
