100 best melodrama movies

A list of the best melodrama films, selected by visitors to our site: The Notebook, A Walk to Remember, Twilight, Mr. Nobody, (500) Days of Summer, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, In Time, Big Fish, The Adjustment Bureau, Stardust, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Amélie, Pride & Prejudice, Keith, The Proposal, Troy, Divergent, Sweet November, One Day, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
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Markimdb: 6.4
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:53

When an itinerant reluctantly returns home to help his sickly mother run her shop, they're both tempted to turn to crime to help make ends meet.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, adventure, detective, military
CountryUSA
Duration01:55

A radio correspondent tries to rescue a burlesque queen from her marriage to a Nazi official.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genrethriller, comedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:58

When the Holmes Woolen Mill burns down, political activist Leopold Dilg is jailed for arson and accidental murder. Escaping, Leopold hides out in the home of his childhood sweetheart Nora Shelley... which she has just rented to unsuspecting law professor Michael Lightcap.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:59

While listening to a recording of Penny Serenade, Julie Gardiner Adams begins reflecting on her past. She recalls her impulsive marriage to newspaper reporter Roger Adams, which begins on a deliriously happy note but turns out to be fraught with tragedy. Other songs remind her of their courtship, their marriage, their desire for a child, and the joys and sorrows they have shared. A flood of memories come back to her as she ponders on their present problems and how they arose.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:28

Seven years after a shipwreck in which she was presumed dead, Ellen Arden arrives home to find that her husband Nick has just remarried. The overjoyed Nick struggles to break the news to his new bride. But he gets a shock when he hears the whole story: Ellen spent those seven years alone on a desert island with another man.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genremelodrama, drama, adventure
CountryUSA
Duration02:01

Geoff Carter is the head of a crumbling air freight service in desperate need of a replacement pilot. He is forced to hire a descredited aviator who arrives with his wife, Carter's ex-lover. Meanwhile, traveler Bonnie Lee tries to get close to the emotionally closed-off Carter.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genrefantasy, comedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:20

Madcap couple George and Marion Kerby are killed in an automobile accident. They return as ghosts to try and liven up the regimented lifestyle of their friend and bank president, Cosmo Topper. When Topper starts to live it up, it strains relations with his stuffy wife.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:35

Johnny Case, a freethinking financier, has finally found the girl of his dreams — Julia Seton, the spoiled daughter of a socially prominent millionaire — and she's agreed to marry him. But when Johnny plans a holiday for the two to enjoy life while they are still young, his fiancée has other plans & that is for Johnny to work in her father's bank!

Markimdb: 7.7
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:31

Unfounded suspicions lead a married couple to begin divorce proceedings, whereupon they start undermining each other's attempts to find new romance.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genrefantasy, comedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:37

Madcap couple George and Marion Kerby are killed in an automobile accident. They return as ghosts to try and liven up the regimented lifestyle of their friend and bank president, Cosmo Topper. When Topper starts to live it up, it strains relations with his stuffy wife.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:35

When her father decides to flee to England, young Sylvia Scarlett must become Sylvester Scarlett and protect her father every step of the way, with the questionable help of plenty others.

Markimdb: 6.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, musical, history
CountryUSA
Duration01:06

New York singer and nightclub owner Lady Lou has more men friends than you can imagine. One of them is a vicious criminal who’s escaped and is on the way to see “his” girl, not realising she hasn’t exactly been faithful in his absence. Help is at hand in the form of young Captain Cummings, a local temperance league leader.

Markimdb: 6.8
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:33

In a small town of rolling fields and endless skies, isolated 16 year old Mason lives in a world where families exist in fragmented silence and love seems to have gone missing. Then Mason meets Danny, a sensitive and troubled girl, and their tender bond is soon tested after a fatal accident and a series of complications takes Mason away for something he didn't do.

Markimdb: 5.8
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA

Vietnam veteran Leon Barlow is struggling as a writer, and his personal life isn't much better. His unsympathetic ex-wife Marilyn doesn't approve of his visits with his two children, and he has problems with alcohol. Yet even when Leon manages to catch up on alimony and child support payments, things in his life seem to decline further, until a sudden tragedy catches him off guard.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:36

It's the day before Christmas, the day before John's 21st birthday. He's a prostitute on Santa Monica Blvd in L.A., and he wants to spend that night and the next day at the posh Park Plaza Hotel. Meanwhile, Donner, a lad new to the streets, wants John to leave the city with him. John spends the day trying to figure out how to deal with Donner's friendship.

Markimdb: 6.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, detective
CountryUSA
Duration01:38

To prove his brother's innocence, undercover officer Nick enrolls in high school again, dealing with crushes, bullies, humiliations, popularity swings, and quirky teachers and staff to find the real murderer.

Markimdb: 6
Genrethriller, melodrama, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:55

In a seaside California town, best friends Mac and Nick are on opposite sides of the law. Mac is a former drug dealer trying to clean up his act, while Nick is a high-profile detective trying to take down a Mexican drug lord named Carlos. Soon Nick's loyalties are put to the test when he begins an affair with restaurateur Jo Ann -- a love interest of Mac's -- unwittingly leading his friend into a police-orchestrated trap.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genremelodrama, drama, biography
CountryUSA

Five years after Yippie founder Abbie Hoffman goes underground to avoid a drug-related prison sentence, he contacts a reporter to get out the story of the FBI's covert spying, harassment and inciting of violence they then blame on the Left.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:48

A comedy that pays tribute to the science fiction genre -- specifically, the sub-genre of time travel. But here the alternate reality is contemporary New York City where past and future experiences of trust, commitment and denial are cleverly put to the test. Just as Ruby is beginning to relish her first-ever healthy relationship, Sam begins muttering about being a time traveler from the year 2470.

Markimdb: 5.4
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:39

Sam Clayton's marriage to ex-stripper Freddie comes about when she's strong-armed into the match by Red, a club proprietor who once did her a favor. But Freddie falls in love with Jjaks, Sam's brother, and the pair tries to escape the situation together. It isn't long before both Sam and Red catch up with them, resulting in threats against the two of them -- although tension also starts to build between Sam and Red.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genremelodrama, drama, biography
CountryUSA
Duration01:51

The Whole Wide World tells the story of Novalyne Price, an attractive feisty West Texas schoolteacher and her bittersweet, romantic and turbulent relationship with Robert E. Howard, the great pulp fiction writer of the 1930's.

Markimdb: 5.8
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:38

Electrician Gus gets the chance to fulfill a childhood dream by buying an old bowling-alley with some of his friends.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryGermany, Canada, France
Duration01:50

A Scottish woman who attends school in Paris comes home for the summer and helps take in the straw, where she meets an attractive and simple man. They begin a torrid affair despite the differences in their lifestyles. He asks her to marry him but she refuses, and they continue their separate lives but also continue their affair through the years, loving each other despite their differences.

Markimdb: 6.1
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:51

After she discovers that her boyfriend has betrayed her, Hilary O'Neil is looking for a new start and a new job. She begins to work as a private nurse for a young man suffering from blood cancer. Slowly, they fall in love, but they always know their love cannot last because he is destined to die.

Markimdb: 5.9
Genremelodrama, drama, crime
CountryLuxembourg, Argentina, Japan, USA
Duration01:30

When a young European woman assumes a false identity in 1920s Argentina, she gets more than she bargained for.

Markimdb: 6.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:44

Three teenage girls come of age while working at a pizza parlor in Mystic Connecticut.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genrecomedy, melodrama, adventure
CountryUSA
Duration01:49

'Guns' Donovan prefers carousing with his pals Doc Dedham and 'Boats' Gilhooley, until Dedham's high-society daughter Amelia shows up in their South Seas paradise.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration02:29

Alfred Eaton, an ambitious young executive, climbs to the top of New York's financial world as his marriage crumbles. At the brink of attaining his career goals, he is forced to choose between business success, married to the beautiful, but unfaithful Mary and starting over with his true love, the much younger Natalie.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genremelodrama, drama, musical
CountryUSA
Duration02:57

A movie star helps a young singer/actress find fame, even as age and alcoholism send his own career into a downward spiral.

Markimdb: 7
Genremelodrama, drama, history
CountryUSA
Duration01:38

Unhappily married, Julia Sturges decides to go to America with her two children on the unsinkable Titanic. Her husband, Richard also arranges passage on the luxury liner so as to have custody of their two children. All this fades to insignificance once the ship hits an iceberg.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genremelodrama, adventure, western, military
CountryUSA
Duration01:40

John Breen (John Wayne), a Kentucky militiaman falls in love with French exile Fleurette De Marchand (Vera Ralston). He discovers a plot to steal the land that Fleurette's exiles plan to settle on and aims to foil it.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:43

Lora May Hollingsway, who grew up next to the wrong side of the tracks, married her boss who thinks she is just a gold digger. Rita Phipps makes as much money writing radio scripts at night as her school teacher husband does. Deborah Bishop looked great in a Navy uniform in WWII but fears she'll never be dressed just right for the Country Club set. These three wives are boarding a boat filled with children going on a picnic when a messenger on a bicycle hands them a letter addressed to all three from Addie who has just left town with one of their husbands. They won't know which one until that night.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genremelodrama, drama, western, biography
CountryUSA
Duration01:37

Wyatt Earp and his brothers Morgan and Virgil ride into Tombstone and leave brother James in charge of their cattle herd. On their return they find their cattle stolen and James dead. Wyatt takes on the job of town marshal, making his brothers deputies, and vows to stay in Tombstone until James' killers are found. He soon runs into the brooding, coughing, hard-drinking Doc Holliday as well as the sullen and vicious Clanton clan. Wyatt discovers the owner of a trinket stolen from James' dead body and the stage is set for the Earps' long-awaited revenge.

Markimdb: 7.6
Genrethriller, melodrama, drama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:50

A young novelist, Richard Harland, meets beautiful Ellen Berent on a train where they fall in love and are soon married. When tragedies take first his handicapped young brother, then his unborn son from him, Harland gradually realises that his wife's insane jealousy may be the cause of the tragedies in his life. Yet another shock awaits them all, as Ellen's emotions become uncontrollable.

Markimdb: 8
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration02:09

In Brooklyn circa 1900, the Nolans manage to enjoy life on pennies despite great poverty and Papa's alcoholism. We come to know these people well through big and little troubles: Aunt Sissy's scandalous succession of "husbands"; the removal of the one tree visible from their tenement; and young Francie's desire to transfer to a better school...if irresponsible Papa can get his act together.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:37

After a harsh childhood, orphan Jane Eyre is hired by Edward Rochester, the brooding lord of a mysterious manor house to care for his young daughter.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:58

Ten screenwriters collaborated on this series of tales concerning the effect a tailcoat cursed by its tailor has on those who wear it. The video release features a W.C. Fields segment not included in the original theatrical release.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genremelodrama, drama, adventure
CountryUSA
Duration01:38

Sir Arthur Blake has inherited title and lands from his brother. He also has his orphaned nephew Benjamin working for him as a bonded servant. While he believes the lad was born out of wedlock and so cannot claim the inheritance, he is taking no chances. Benjamin eventually rebels against his uncle and sets sail to try and make his fortune. This may enable him to return to prove his claim to being the rightful heir to the estate.

Markimdb: 7
Genremelodrama, drama, western, military, history
CountryUSA
Duration01:44

Albany, New York, 1776. After marrying, Gil and Lana travel north to settle on a small farm in the Mohawk River Valley, but soon their growing prosperity and happiness are threatened by the sinister sound of drums that announce dark times of revolution and war.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genremelodrama, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:34

A simple Pennsylvania coal miner is drawn into the violent conflict between union workers and management.

Markimdb: 5.8
Genremelodrama, drama, sport
CountryUSA
Duration01:11

Featuring members of the 1931 National Champion football team from the University of Southern California Trojans, with team members Russell Saunders and Oscar "Dutch" Hendrian also cast in roles other than just team members.

Markimdb: 5.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:43

Jeff and Mari Thompson are contently married, but they are stunned to see many of their friends and neighbors going through separations and divorces. Seemingly surrounded by people with domestic problems, Jeff and Mari begin to question their own relationship.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:45

Bob and Carol Sanders are best friends with Ted and Alice Henderson. After attending a weekend self-help/ self-discovery getaway, Bob and Carol feel newly enlightened, and want their friends to feel the same way.

Markimdb: 7
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:50

A railroad official, Owen Legate comes to Dodson, Mississippi to shut down much of the town's railway (town's main income). Owen unexpectedly finds love with Dodson's flirt and main attraction, Alva Starr. Alva and Owen then try to escape Alva's mother's (Hazel) clutches and the town's revenge.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genremelodrama, drama, music
CountryUSA
Duration02:08

A girl on the road to stardom fights the dehumanizing effects of Hollywood life.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genrecomedy, melodrama, adventure, family, sport
CountryUSA
Duration02:40

Professional daredevil and white-suited hero, The Great Leslie, convinces turn-of-the-century auto makers that a race from New York to Paris (westward across America, the Bering Straight and Russia) will help to promote automobile sales. Leslie's arch-rival, the mustached and black-attired Professor Fate vows to beat Leslie to the finish line in a car of Fate's own invention.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genrecomedy, melodrama
CountryUSA
Duration01:50

A womanizing reporter for a sleazy tabloid magazine impersonates his hen-pecked neighbor in order to get an expose on renowned psychologist Helen Gurley Brown.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:42

Angie Rossini, an innocent New York City sales clerk from a repressive Italian-American family, engages in a short-lived affair with a handsome jazz musician named Rocky Papasano. When Angie becomes pregnant, she tracks down Rocky hoping he'll pay for her abortion. Rocky agrees to help, but after seeing the unsanitary abortion facility, he refuses to let Angie go through with the procedure and attempts to make her an honest woman.

Markimdb: 7.6
Genremelodrama, drama, musical, crime
CountryUSA
Duration02:32

In the slums of the upper West Side of Manhattan, New York, a gang of Polish-American teenagers called the Jets compete with a rival gang of recently immigrated Puerto Ricans, the Sharks, to "own" the neighborhood streets. Tensions are high between the gangs but two kids, one from each rival gang, fall in love leading to tragedy.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration02:04

A fragile Kansas girl's unrequited and forbidden love for a handsome young man from the town's most powerful family drives her to heartbreak and madness.




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