When dealing with a loss, one is not always in the mood for a distraction, but rather something that understands what they feel like. Death movies are not melodramas; they offer empathy, enlightenment, and—in rare cases—an odd feeling of solace. If you find yourself wanting to cry through something, to connect with, or to untangle the chaos of your feelings, these 10 movies delve into grief with truth and warmth. The list of the most impactful stories of sadness, from the lightest to the heaviest, and streaming right now, is our list.
10. Coco
Pixar’s Coco is more than music and pretty skeletons—it’s a tribute to the way we keep our loved ones alive. The movie follows Miguel into the Land of the Dead, learning about memory, legacy, and the profound emotional connections between generations. It’s particularly poignant for families walking through loss together, and its message—remember me—remains with you long after the credits are finished rolling.
9. Marley & Me
Anyone who’s ever been in love with a pet understands the sorrow at the end of that book. Marley & Me handles the messy, wonderful life of a family and their lovable dog, and the understated heartbreak of letting go. It’s not about a dog—it’s about love, madness, loyalty, and the sort of grief that catches up to you when you lose something that felt like home.
8. Bridge to Terabithia
Grief in childhood is different, and Bridge to Terabithia doesn’t shy away from that reality. The movie sensitively depicts the bond between Jesse and Leslie, and the devastating loss that ensues. With touches of fantasy and imagination, it addresses squarely how children attempt to understand the world—and how they learn to bear grief, even when it seems too much to bear.
7. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
After losing his dad in the 9/11 attacks, young Oskar sets out on a quest around New York City in pursuit of answers. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close condenses the disorientation, outrage, and nostalgia that follow sudden loss—particularly for kids. Through Oskar’s eyes, we see how loss distorts time and reason, and how curiosity can become survival at times.
6. Collateral Beauty
When grief engulfs Will Smith’s character, he addresses letters to Time, Love, and Death—and then miraculously, they respond. Collateral Beauty is quirky and lyrical, but under its fanciful premise lies a real examination of how humans struggle to find meaning in catastrophic loss. It’s about discovering grace in the unlikeliest of places and learning how to live with suffering but not be destroyed by it.
5. P.S. I Love You
The loss of a partner creates a certain kind of emptiness—and P.S. I Love You does it perfectly. Holly is in mourning, mired in her sorrow, until a series of her late husband’s letters encourages her to move on. It’s a poignant reminder that loss does not equal the end of love, and healing can sometimes start with permission to live anew.
4. Rabbit Hole
Few movies depict the loss of a child with so much brutal truthfulness as Rabbit Hole. Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart deliver gut-wrenching performances as a couple, separately dealing with their shared sorrow in very different ways. It’s not pleasant to watch, but it’s rawly honest—and it presents the quiet reality that sorrow doesn’t necessarily disappear, but that life may still develop around it.
3. Ghost
Yes, there’s a romance and some spooky suspense, but at its heart, Ghost is about how difficult it is to release. Patrick Swayze’s character remains behind when he dies because of love and unresolved business. The film plays on the pain of needing one last moment with someone deceased—and the sweet pain of finally letting go.
2. The Lovely Bones
In The Lovely Bones, Susie Salmon observes from the other side as her family mourns her murder. It’s an emotionally rich exploration of grief from every angle: victim, family, and even killer. Exquisite and hauntingly photographed, the movie eschews nothing of pain—but demonstrates that healing, slow as it may be, is a possibility.
1. This Is Where I Leave You
Grief may not manifest in tears—sometimes it comes in fumbled silences, recycled fights, and inside jokes. This Is Where I Leave You is about four siblings reunited by their father’s passing, commanded to sit together (literally) for a week. What transpires is messy, authentic, and uncomfortably reassuring. It’s a testament that family loss is complicated, but it can be the force that brings people back to one another.
These films don’t try to “fix” grief—they reflect it, hold space for it, and sometimes even laugh through it. Whether you’re deep in it or just want to better understand the emotional terrain, these stories show that grief is messy, unpredictable, and deeply human. And most of all, they remind us that we’re never alone in it.