I don’t know about you, but I am a huge “sobber” at the movies. So much so that, because I feel so embarrassed by my (spontaneous) behaviour, if I get an inkling that a particular movie is going to be teary, I altogether skip watching the movie in a public place.
Check out this other self-confessed “cryer” and her story: Confession Corner: Crying at the Movies
Okay, so we have established the fact that I am an accomplished weeper. Give me anything; a happy ending, a sad ending, a good book, God’s beautiful world, a hug from dad, or even a rainy day; all these could make tears well up in the corner of my eyes. The funny thing is I know some people who weep at the movies, but are rather stoic once they emerge out of the theatre and into their daily lives. Wonder why that happens?
While doing a bit of reading for this post, I came across this column about why people cry at the movies. The author mentions three reasons why people who are seemingly emotionless suddenly become crybabies (literally).
- Human Drama Unfolds Before our Eyes
- Emotional Magic of the Movie Musical Score
- Cinematography Enhances Experience
Read the rest of the post, here: Cinema Therapy – How Movies Stir Up Emotions
But, I am not interested in the hows and whys of crying at the movies. I am here to tell you about 5 classic films that will surely make you reach for your tissue box. Take a look.
I don’t have to talk about the plot or history of the film. The film in its entirety, the loving marriage, the unfaithfulness, the illegitimate son, the step-mother, all are perfect ingredients for a massive tear-jerker, and I was not spared. Watch the movie and know why.
This film is what inspired me to write this post in the first place. As it ran yesterday on Star Movies, I could not help but shedding a tear or two (even after an embarrassing crying session at the theatre where I watched it for the first time). There is just something about having a pet that makes a movie all the more teary; the next couple of suggestions will tell you more.
This is Walt Disney’s classic offering of an unlikely friendship between adversaries. A baby fox and hound grow up together not knowing that they are supposed to be enemies. Does friendship overcome all? Watch, cry a little and find out.
I remember watching this film when it was released worldwide. The touching story of a boy and a killer whale and especially its release back into the wild is just beautiful, one of my all-time favourites. Don’t miss the scene where Willy the killer whale jumps high over the boy into the open ocean, and finds its family again.
I coaxed some of my friends (in different cities) to watch it before I did, because I was scared. And all of them warned me to ‘take a tissue box’. As you can well imagine, I didn’t want to embarrass myself in the theatre again (So DVD it was!). Aamir Khan’s superb production and Darsheel Safary’s heart-warming tale of dyslexia, brought about a film that is all about the “sniff-factor”. I am warning you, tissues ARE required.
What are some of your favourite tearjerker movies? Don’t forget to leave your suggestions in the comments box.
Catch my earlier posts:
Kuchh Kuchh Hota Hai is the best love story. A touching and making one cry.
I am embarrased to confess as it doesn’t seem manly,
but I have to say , I do cry wathing movies.
how can you forget Dead man walking,Rain man,Stepmom and in bollywood movies Anand is good and Kaash starring Jackie shroff worth mentioning and when you mentioned Fox and the hound i remembered my childhood and its sweet memories when i saw this movie long back in 80s
PS I LOVE YOU definitely made me cry buckets..still unable to finish the book too..;p i start crying and LOVE STORY by ERICH SEGAL is awesome.!
May be these are the sad movies. But u can’t forget “The Pursuit of happyness”. bcoz this movie actually has the things which make people’s eyes wet……
It’s undoubtedly Rajesh Khanna’s ‘Anand’. Who can forget the dialogue at the end …..Babumoshai, Jindagi Badi honi chhahiye…Lambi Nahin’. One of my 10 most favourite movies is ‘Anand’.
Even I watched Marley and Me a couple of days back. It is undoubtedly the most touching film I have ever seen. I cried throughout the second half, and even after the movie was over. In Bollywood, Sadma is a tearjerker. Even Masoom, TZP and Rang de Basanti.
SADMAA – the climax scene at the railway platform wherein Kamal Hassan, all bruised up with a bulging eye and a broken leg tries hard to make Sridevi remind of himself (since she has lost her memory). He makes all kind of funny gestures (uses a pitcher to imitate a monkey, somersaults etc.) and she in turns throw a bread at him, thinking him to be an insane beggar! She is travelling in a train which slowly chugs out of the station leaving him wailing on the bench while its raining heavily.
The camera lifts up to capture the frame from above….SADMAA !
khiladi akshay kumars is also tearjerker.
hey y’d u forget Satyakam starring Dharmendra and also the Amarprem of Rajeshkanna also the Anand. The namak haram was the one which was really a great movie and also the real tearjerker.
I have seen all comments but didnt find the one my favourite. it is SWAMI. defenately you will need tissue box. Its story of middle class common man.( swami means life partner in sanskrit) so far it is the best performance of Manoj Bajpai for me.
I would like to Add the Movie “Sansar” staring Anupam Kher, Raj babbar, Rekha…to the List
My brother Nikhil
Some of the movies that made my eyes wink with the tears that rolled down where movies that still remain close to my heart –
English –
1. Armagadon – (Climax Scene – where Mr. Bruce sacrifice his life for his loving daughter and her fiancee who is going to marry her daughter and not but the least for the safety of the world)
2. Pursuit of Happiness – ( Mr. Will Smith’s inspirational movie)
3. Marley & ME – this one is really a emotional movie for what it deserves (the fag end of the movie & in between). I watched it in star movies and luckily no one was present to embarrass myself.
4. Gladiator -( some times even action movies make you shed tears for some of the scenes that make you sit up and watch )
5. The NOTE BOOK
6. RADIO – a mentally challenged man and his community
7. GLORY ROAD – a movie for emotional sport buffs
8. BOYS DON’T CRY
So finally my language origin top emotional movies
Telugu –
1. Oiyee!!
2. 7/g brindavan colony
3. Surya S/o Krishna (Surya)
4. Yee Maya chesaveeee
5. Nayakudu (Kamalhasan Sir)
6. Thalapthi (Rajnikanth Sir)
Hindi –
1. Kal Ho Na Ho and many more
How could you miss “Gone with the wind”, “Schindler’s List” and Tom Hanks “Green Mile”
Also Add PremRog, Song – Meri kismat mein nahi tu shayad……
touching movie and one can cry
How can u forget Mera naam joker .. Just by hearing th esong u ll start to sted tears.. My all time fav flick.. just if i think abt tht movie i get tears in my eyes.:((((
MARLEY&ME FOR SURE!!!!!
Do not forget some oldies – Waterloo Bridge in black and white starring Robert Taylor. A high society woman does not like the idea of her son played by Robert Taylor getting involved with a commoner during WW II in war torn London. They met one night on Waterloo Bridge when air raid sirens were blaring and took shelter together. From there love blossomed for the two. When she was introduced to his mother instantly the older woman took a dislike to the girl. The girl died in another air raid in Robert Taylor’s arms. Years went by and an elderly Robert Taylor walked down memory lane on Waterloo Bridge for what might have been. The movie is a flash back from this scene.
Then there is Random Harvest. A man looses his memory after a critical accident. He is lovingly nursed and survives but he has no memory of who he was. The nurse hopes he will recover so that they can marry. On another day he is almost run down again and all of a sudden his memory is restored but he has no memory of his life after he lost his memory. He walks past the nurse without recognizing her at all and goes back to his earlier life.
Then there are the other greats “How Green Was My Valley ” about life in a Welsh coal mining town and “For Whom The Bell Tolls” by Ernest Hemmingway about the Spanish Civil War with a young Ingrid Bergman in the lead.
The last great movie I saw “One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest” starring Jack Nicholson in the 1970s. This was about the lives of inmates in a mental institution where people are locked away by people who think the inmates are loony. Jack Nicholson an inmate himself thinks they are mot loony and it is the cruel guards who cause more suffering to the inmates. He tries to cheer them up by taking them on a busride to freedom after having highjacked the bus by overpowering the guards. In the end he is judged insane and ordered by the state to be subjected to shocks in his brain which will make him a vegetable and more manageable. His friend a hulking Red Indian, another inmate out of his love for Jack Nicholson cannot bear the thought of seeing Jack reduced to a vegetable. He frees him from this existance by killing him and then jumping over the wall and disappearing into the night never to be caught.
Subrata Datta
FOR THE LOVE OF BENJI did it for me and ET real tears here
How can u miss ‘A Beautiful Life’……. made me cry so hard at the end……
MARLEY&ME FOR SURE THE HANDS DOWN WINNER, THE THOUGHT OF THE MOVIE GETS TEARS TO MY EYES 😦
DDLJ FOR and tere naam for ME
Hi,
Thanks for the article about movies that get tears while watching….
But how can one forget about Maniratnam’s Anjali?. That little girls dies of cance..While she dies…her sister was crying and begging,” Anjali, uth na anjali..anjani??”
We should not forget ” Titanic” also..While the ship was sinking and the people on board were turned upside down,people were falling in the sea…but trying their level best to grab something..to stay alive and avois not to fall in the sea. But their efforts went in vain…This definitely gets tears ion ur eyes to see how people struggling to be alive…
Life is beautiful…… a very emotional n touching one…… couldn’t help crying!
How come early Satyjit Ray’s films like Pather Panchali, Aparjito and Apu’s Sangsar the triology based on life in rural Bengal acclaimed by viewers the world over as masterpieces has not found a mention so far by anyone.
Subrata Datta
Add ”SADMA”” and ”EK DUJE KE LIYE” on top.
Halo by santosh shivan will definately make you cry ………. the story is about a girl whose mother dies when she was young. she makes a puppy friend as an angel. one day it is lost. the real emotional scenes start when she starts searching for her lost puppy named as halo. a movie i would rate 100 out of 100.
How can you miss Kamal’s Mahanadhi? (Tamil)
Vasu
how can you miss Kamal’s Mahanadhi?
Mani Ratnam’s ANJALI.
The last scene when the children accept the mentally handicapped child
as their sister and keep chanting Anjali get up….
Even after seeing the movie several times, tears are automatic
How can we Forget about will smith’s Pursuit of happiness?!!!!!!!!!!!
ah.. me cried when i saw Brokeback Mountain!
Add Lion King in this list.. I think everybody will agree with me. The Best cartoon movie of all time……
I think u should have added My name is Khan.
I am a cry baby whn it come to sad to highly emmotional movies 🙂 titanic kal ho na ho, pursuit of happiness etc wer some which made me cry
reshma ki jawani…made me cry like childrens…..
well all the movies spoken above are a sure tear full movies but in addition to them it would be
IF ONLY
and
P.S.I LOVE YOU.
never found better movies than these
BAGBAAN starring Amitabh and hema malini
Baghban made me cry..and Rajesh Khanna-Amitabh Bachchan starrer Anand too made me cry
any movie has never made me cry. my dad says i have a really good control over myself.
the pursuit of happiness almost made me cry but i never let tears roll down my cheeks.
To,
rashmi on July 12, 2010 at 12:28 pm
Madam are mentioing about the movie plot where in her husband a driver of a Asharam dies because of liver failfure because he being a durnkard.
I had seen this movie in Kannada in the Year 1996, this movie had won the national award for Social message.”Alchol being a social evil.”
South Indian Singer Chitra had also won the national award for this movie.
How can i forget
murder(hindi movie) made me cry…….very emotional movie..
From MOLLYWOOD the film AAKASHADOODH directed by Sibimalayil running more than 100 days – dont talk about tissues to wipe tears – the whole theatre was flooded with tears
my list of top 5 are:
Pursuit of happiness
The Notebook
Sadma
Taare Zameen Par
Aanand
There are also so many which are still left.
1. Kabhi Khushi Khabhi Gham
2. Hum Apke Hai Kaun
3. Tare Zameen Par
4. Baghban
5. Kal Ho Na Ho
for me which bring tear jerker s PS I LOVE YOU,WALK TO REMEMBER,MILLLION DOLLAR BABY,OYE(TELUGU),ERIQ SEGALS LOVE STORY,TAREE AMEEN PAR,PAA,KEITH,KALLORI(TAMIL),PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS & NOTEBOOK(MALAYALAM)…….
My list of movies:
Anand
Masoom
Green Mile
PS i love you
Sawdes
Tare zammen par
DIL CHAHATA HAI.