Seeking movie recommendations.
July 19, 2017 8:27 PM   Subscribe

I loved Rocky. I want more movies that will impact me similarly. I am not looking for sports movies or triumphant underdog movies specifically.

I saw Rocky for the first time recently and I was totally blown away. I didn't know Sly could do that. I watched it twice more immediately after.

I want more movies with characters that are acted as honestly as Rocky's character was, and in which that character is sincere and lovable. I particularly liked how understated and matter-of-fact much of the movie was; I thought it made the drama more significant.

(I immediately binged on the entire series but Sly's work in the subsequent movies didn't quite do it for me. Google just seems to recommend more sports movies).
posted by windykites to Media & Arts (14 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
Goodbye, Mr. Chips
posted by unliteral at 8:41 PM on July 19, 2017


Best answer: If you're OK with the slower pacing of 70s-80s films, you might try:

- Local Hero (gentle comedy, lovely people, baby Peter Capaldi)
- Breaking Away (yes, sports, but on a human level)
- Say Anything (nice characters in conflict)

A little more recent:
- Galaxy Quest (not just a funny SF film -- sincere characters who grow)
posted by maudlin at 8:55 PM on July 19, 2017 [3 favorites]


I think you want The Station Agent. And Nebraska.
posted by suelac at 9:28 PM on July 19, 2017 [4 favorites]


We Are the Best! is sincere, relatively understated, "sweet, empathetic," and matter-of-fact with an underdog element to it as well.
posted by Wobbuffet at 9:35 PM on July 19, 2017 [5 favorites]


Bad News Bears. Those kids are real, even the one played by Tatum O'Neal.
posted by infinitewindow at 9:38 PM on July 19, 2017 [1 favorite]


Best answer: The Browning Version
Mona Lisa
Marty
Ruby in Paradise
Passion Fish is wonderful, but you won't like the main character at first.
posted by heatvision at 4:07 AM on July 20, 2017


Best answer: You state that you don't want more sports movies, but what you're looking for is kind of the zeitgeist for a certain subset of sports movies. Like....almost the definition of this subset.

Think "Rudy" or "Eddie the Eagle."
posted by kuanes at 4:12 AM on July 20, 2017


Seconding:
The Station Agent
Breaking Away
We Are The Best!
posted by Caxton1476 at 4:36 AM on July 20, 2017


Diferent genre, but if you like acting surprises, I love Anthony Perkins' acting in Psycho II. I mean, he's fabulous in Psycho I- IV, but Psycho II stands out to me as his most sincere, ernest representation of Norman Bates.
posted by Dressed to Kill at 5:18 AM on July 20, 2017


Response by poster: Sorry! To clarify, I didn't mean that I'm against sports movies, just that I'm not specifically limiting my search to a particular genre. Sports movies are fine, they just have to meet the criteria!

The frustration was that searching for "movies like Rocky" on Google gets genre-based results, not character-based ones.
posted by windykites at 7:23 AM on July 20, 2017


Best answer: I want more movies with characters that are acted as honestly as Rocky's character was, and in which that character is sincere and lovable. I particularly liked how understated and matter-of-fact much of the movie was; I thought it made the drama more significant.

* Once
* Before Sunrise and Before Sunset (Before Midnight's characters aren't really lovable).
* The Big Sick
* The Intouchables
* Juno
* Little Miss Sunshine
* The Shawshank Redemption (the main characters are maybe not lovable, per se, but definitely sincere).

The rest of these maybe don't meet your understated qualification. They're all somewhat fantastic versions of reality in their own way, but the characters are sincere and lovable.
* Dope
* The 40 Year Old Virgin
* It's a Wonderful Life
* Big
* Amelie
* Ferris Bueller's Day Off
* The Princess Bride
* Baby Driver
* The Terminal
* Slumdog Millionaire
* Millions
posted by cnc at 9:44 AM on July 20, 2017


Oh, and East Side Sushi as well.
posted by suelac at 11:02 AM on July 20, 2017


Cast Away
posted by mefireader at 1:54 PM on July 20, 2017


Best answer: Marty
posted by mefireader at 2:00 PM on July 20, 2017


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