20 best movies like Sparrow (1993)

Baptista, a rich Paduan merchant, announces that his fair young daughter, Bianca, will remain unwed until her older sister, Katharina, a hellish shrew, has wed. Lucentio, a student and the son of a wealthy Pisan merchant, has fallen in love with Bianca. He poses as a tutor of music and poetry to gain entrance to the Baptista household and to be near Bianca. Meanwhile, Petruchio, a fortune-hunting scoundrel from Verona, arrives in Padua, hoping to capture a wealthy wife. Hortensio, another suitor of Bianca, directs Petruchio's attention to Katharina. When Hortensio warns him about Katharina's scolding tongue and fiery temper, Petruchio is challenged and resolves to capture her love. Hortensio and another suitor of Bianca, Gremio, agree to cover Petruchio's costs as he pursues Katharina.

At a picturesque lakeside estate, a love triangle unfolds between the legendary diva Irina, her lover Boris, and the ingénue Nina.

A luminously beautiful biopic of the celebrated eighteenth-century Italian poet, essayist and philosopher Giacomo Leopardi, who created immortal verse whilst struggling with a debilitating illness.

In Justine’s family everyone is a vet and a vegetarian. At 16, she’s a gifted teen ready to take on her first year in vet school, where her older sister also studies. There, she gets no time to settle: hazing starts right away. Justine is forced to eat raw meat for the first time in her life. Unexpected consequences emerge as her true self begins to form.

Suzanne Simonin describes her life of suffering in letters. As a young woman she is sent to a convent against her will. Since her parents cannot afford the dowry required for a marriage befitting her rank they decide she must instead become a nun. Although a kind and understanding Mother Superior helps her to learn the convent’s daily routine, Suzanne’s desire for freedom remains unabated. When the Mother Superior dies, Suzanne finds herself faced with reprisals, humiliation and harassment at the hands of the new Abbess and the other Sisters. For many years, Suzanne is subjected to bigotry and religious fanaticism. (Berlinale.de)

Northern Italy, 17th century. In a monastery, a nun accused of witchcraft tries to seduce a young confessor who refuses to yield to his searing temptation.

In the Russian provinces life seems to have frozen since the 1990s. Here you can hide from the worries of the big world, and heal the wounds of the soul. Thus argues Mila, having decided to return home to the mother’s house after an unsuccessful attempt “to conquer Moscow”. Mila’s sister Galya also wants happiness without thinking about the price. The passion that is aroused in the women by Rustam, a young handsome man from Central Asia, disrupts the family peace. A terrible enlightenment awaits the participants of this family drama.

Four sisters come of age in America in the aftermath of the Civil War.

As a young New York couple goes from college romance to marriage and the birth of their first child, the unexpected twists of their journey create reverberations that echo over continents and through lifetimes.

Erik, a lecturer in architecture, inherits his father’s large old house in Hellerup, north of Copenhagen. His wife Anna, a well-known television newscaster, suggests that they invite their friends to come and live with them. In this way she hopes to evade the boredom that has begun to seep into their marriage. Before long, a dozen women, men and children move into the country house, make collective decisions, engage in discussions and go swimming together in the nearby Øresund strait. They also rub each other up the wrong way on account of their smaller and larger idiosyncrasies. Their fragile equilibrium threatens to come undone when Erik falls in love with his student Emma and the young woman moves into the house. Fourteen-year-old Freja, daughter of Erik and Anna, aloofly observes these goings-on and seeks her own way.

Set in the 1980s, a young Italian-American from the wrong side of the tracks falls for a Jewish girl from Long Island.

Still reeling from his breakup with college sweetheart Allison, Adam's world is thrown into further chaos when he’s surprisingly invited to attend her wedding.

Trapped in a loveless marriage, aristocrat Anna Karenina enters into a life-changing affair with the affluent Count Vronsky.

A woman on the brink of a marriage proposal is told by a friend that she should date other men before spending the rest of her life with her boyfriend.

In a little Sicilian village at the edge of a forest, Giuseppe, a boy of 13, vanishes. Luna, his classmate who loves him, refuses to accept his mysterious disappearance. She rebels against the silence and complicity that surround her, and to find him she descends into the dark world which has swallowed him up and which has a lake as its mysterious entrance.

Lucía and Ofelia, two sisters, finally meet after 7 years of cold relationships upon Lucia 's wedding. But when Juan, Lucia's husband, and Ofelia meet, they feel like a disruptive fantasy have enchanted their minds and bodies...

A film where anything can happen - the hero and the heroine changes their faces, age, look, names, and so on. The only same thing: The love between man and woman... in an archetypical love story cut from 500 classics from all around the world.

Longing for a baby, a stripper pursues another man in order to make her boyfriend jealous.

Through round after round of extensive plastic surgery and vigorous maintenance, Ririko has become the absolute manifestation of beauty, and becomes a wildly successful model, actress, and singer. However, soon, her body, unable to withstand the burdens of surgery, begins to crumble, and along with it so does her mind, as she plummets towards a frightening and inevitable end.

On his quest for happiness, Per decides to leave Jutland and an upbringing in a strict religious home. He runs from his family and his patriarch father, and sets sail towards Copenhagen to become an engineer. Parallel to his studies, he works on a visionary energy project based on wind and wave energy, a project so much ahead of its time, that professors consider him insane and far too self-confident. However, Per’s project becomes a success and he marries the beautiful Jakobe who is a part of a wealthy Jewish family. One would imagine that Per’s happiness now is made. But Per’s childhood keeps haunting him and his dogmatic family cannot accept his new life. Despite his luck and success, Per is unable to fully cut the strings to his strict religious background, and he now fears that he will repeat his father’s patriarchist behavior.

A service which creates holographic projections of late family members allows an elderly woman to spend time with a younger version of her deceased husband.

Over the course of a midsummer night in Fermanagh in 1890, an unsettled daughter of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy encourages her father's valet to seduce her.

During a dinner, a group of friends decide to share whatever text message or phone call they will receive during the evening - and all hell breaks loose.

Rosalie, a beautiful young woman gets involved with successful businessman Cesar. One day, Rosalie's former flame David appears and attempts to win her back. Cesar reacts with a jealous intensity never before seen by Rosalie, and because of that, she returns to David. She remains conflicted regarding her choice of partner, but eventually, one of the men does something which resolves the situation.

A couple's visit with their son takes a dramatic turn when the father tells him he plans on leaving his mother.

An American couple drift toward emptiness in postwar North Africa.

Inspired by real events and spanning three eras of German history, film tells the story of Kurt, a young art student who falls in love with fellow student, Ellie. Ellie’s father, Professor Seeband, a famous doctor, is dismayed at his daughter’s choice of boyfriend, and vows to destroy the relationship. What neither of them knows is that their lives are already connected through a terrible crime Seeband committed decades ago.

The life of an aging black slave, Tom, and the people he interacts with.

A young woman's desperate search for her abducted boyfriend that draws her into the infamous Colonia Dignidad, a sect nobody ever escaped from.

Beautiful violin virtuoso Camille has two obsessions: the music of Ravel, and a friend of her husband's who crafts violins. But his heart seems to be as cold as her playing is passionate.

This fun and sexy comedy tells a timelessly entertaining story where wealthy, secret passions and mischievous women put love to the test.. When a spirited young woman, Fanny Price, is sent away to live on the great country estate of her rich cousins, she's meant to learn the ways of proper society. But while Fanny learns "their" ways, she also enlightens them with a wit and sparkle all her own!

Shy, straight-A student Ellie is hired by sweet but inarticulate jock Paul, who needs help wooing the most popular girl in school. But their new and unlikely friendship gets tricky when Ellie discovers she has feelings for the same girl.

Based on the literary classic by Thomas Hardy, Far from the Madding Crowd is the story of independent, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene, who attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak, a sheep farmer, captivated by her fetching willfulness; Frank Troy, a handsome and reckless Sergeant; and William Boldwood, a prosperous and mature bachelor. This timeless story of Bathsheba's choices and passions explores the nature of relationships and love – as well as the human ability to overcome hardships through resilience and perseverance.

The lives of four women intersect in small-town America, where each is imperfectly blazing a trail.

Seasoned musician Jackson Maine discovers — and falls in love with — struggling artist Ally. She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer — until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally's career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.

Straitlaced Princeton University admissions officer, Portia Nathan is caught off-guard when she makes a recruiting visit to an alternative high school overseen by her former college classmate, the freewheeling John Pressman. Pressman has surmised that Jeremiah, his gifted yet very unconventional student, might well be the son that Portia secretly gave up for adoption many years ago.

A boy meets a girl named Riya and falls in love. After struggling to convince her to be his girlfriend, she half-heartedly agrees to be his `half-girlfriend'.

Two parallel tales of redemption, a century apart. In the New York storyline, Edge hunts for Angela's gold to pay back a debt, and gradually grows closer to her. In the Macedonian story, the brothers end up fighting for opposite sides of a revolution, with the religious Elijah taking up sides with the Ottoman sultan and gunslinger Luke joining "the Teacher" , a Macedonian rebel.

The story of American poet Emily Dickinson from her early days as a young schoolgirl to her later years as a reclusive, unrecognized artist.

After her fiance is falsely imprisoned, a pregnant African-American woman sets out to clear his name and prove his innocence.

The story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress, who dreamed of becoming an opera singer, despite having a terrible singing voice.

Fabienne is a star; a star of French cinema. She reigns amongst men who love and admire her. When she publishes her memoirs, her daughter Lumir returns from New York to Paris with her husband and young child. The reunion between mother and daughter will quickly turn to confrontation: truths will be told, accounts settled, loves and resentments confessed.

Victor Bukowski is an out-of-work actor with problems. He's got a lousy agent, he has a habit of falling out with directors and he's still in love with his ex-girlfriend. However, Victor is about to embark on an unexpected emotional journey which will make him confront his future and his past mistakes.

A 50-year-old single father faces disapproval from his family and his ex-wife when he falls in love with a 26-year-old woman.

A lonely city transplant, and a sheltered girl haunted by a lover’s promise, meet by chance on a canal bridge and begin a tentative romance that quickly entangles them in a web of longing and self-delusion.

The story of the women and relationships that define a family across a century.

On a business trip to the Cannes Film Festival, Manhee is accused of being dishonest and fired. A teacher named Claire goes around taking photos with a Polaroid camera. She gets to know Manhee and sympathizes with her. Through taking photos, Claire has acquired the ability to look slowly at things and to transform objects.

Newlyweds Claire and Ryan have just moved into a new house. Both are hoping Claire’s pregnancy will be the cement needed to hold their already fraying relationship together. Little do they know their marital issues are the least of their problems. For unbeknownst to them, their scruffy, sleazy and lascivious landlord has installed numerous miniature cameras all over their home and has been spying on them from Day One. Then Ryan begins an office affair, and the landlord kits out the secret basement with chains and soundproofing. Something is going to give in this suburban shocker packed with nasty surprises.

Kathleen Turner stars as suburban mother and devout Catholic Eileen Cleary, who has always kept up appearances. When she runs for the Catholic Woman of the Year title at her local parish, her final test is introducing her family to the board for the seal of approval. Now she must finally face the nonconformist family she has been glossing over for years...

Toward the end of World War II, middle-aged soldier Keita is entrusted with a postcard from a comrade who is sure he will die in battle. After the war ends, Keita visits his comrade's wife Yuko and bears witness to the tragic life she has led. This year's Oscar entry from Japan finds SHINDO in top form and his 49th and reportedly last film as fresh and poignant as ever.