# Saddest Movie? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 23, 2003, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787 "2003-06-23T15:51:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![moejuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@moejuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moejuck)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/1 "2003-06-23T15:51:29Z")
This should be fun… Give your saddest movie nomination, and why. I have to go with “The Story of Us” Bruce Willis and Michelle Pfeifer. Unfortunately, I cried my eyes out during this one, because it reminded me way too much of my parents while I was growing up. I think it was healthy though. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/2 "2003-06-23T15:57:28Z")
Fail Safe (Henry Fonda - 1964) or On The Beach (Gregory Peck - 1959) Losing humanity seems pretty sad to me. ---
**Author:** ![missbunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/76d3ee/32.png) [@missbunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missbunny)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/3 "2003-06-23T15:59:42Z")
I thought Leaving Las Vegas was very depressing. ---
**Author:** ![karomon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@karomon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/karomon)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/4 "2003-06-23T16:04:49Z")
“Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl” ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/5 "2003-06-23T16:05:27Z")
I can’t think of a saddest movie per se, tho SYBIL with Sally Fields was pretty heart & gut-wrenching. The most depressing movie I’ve seen is JOHNNY GOT HIS GUN (please God, make them put it back into print!) ---
**Author:** ![darksight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3da27b/32.png) [@darksight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/darksight)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/6 "2003-06-23T16:07:51Z")
What dreams may come ~ Robin Williams ---
**Author:** ![Selkie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbce88/32.png) [@Selkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Selkie)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/7 "2003-06-23T16:15:41Z")
Antarctica. The story follows a team of abandoned sled dogs as they slowly freeze and starve to death. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/8 "2003-06-23T16:15:48Z")
Also in the category of “losing all humanity”, the somewhat overlooked _Miracle Mile_, with Anthony Edwards. Just happened to see _Casino_ again last night and found myself thoroughly depressed by the end, although it is unclear whether this was because of the complete unlikability of the characters or simply its interminable length. What a catalogue of self-inflicted misery, though. ---
**Author:** ![refusal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@refusal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/refusal)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/9 "2003-06-23T16:38:27Z")
“Breaking The Waves” in which Emily Watson suffers horribly at the hands of a cruel religious community, has to be one of the most moving films ever (despite director Lars Von Trier’s constant ironic devices). Von Trier’s “Dancer in the Dark” is also quite moving, but a bit more contrived. “Sling Blade” (in which Billy Bob Thornton is a simple-minded murderer) also had me crying loads. As did “The Royal Tenenbaums”, though neither are primarily tearjerkers. (On the other hand, “Terms of Endearment” has to be the least tragic intended-weepie ever.) ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/10 "2003-06-23T16:53:36Z")
I’ll repeat what I said last time this topic came up: “Grave of the Fireflys” It’s about two Japanese war orphans starving to death. Unrelentingly heartbreaking. An order of magnitude sadder than any other movie I’ve ever seen. ---
**Author:** ![InquisitiveIdiot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3ec8ea/32.png) [@InquisitiveIdiot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InquisitiveIdiot)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/11 "2003-06-23T16:59:06Z")
“Artificial Intelligence” - for two reasons. Neither is enough to nominate it by itself, but both together is depressing: David spends all of eternity praying to the blue fairy in vain. That is the end of the movie. Ignore the spielburg-esque alien scene. That’s just a mass hallucination. The second reason is because of spielburg’s desecration of what would otherwise have been a half-decent movie. Everytime I think of it I get depressed. ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/12 "2003-06-23T17:11:01Z")
**Simon Birch** is pretty sad, and one of only three movies I remember crying during. One of the others was **The Iron Giant** , so I guess I’m a sucker for sacrificing your life/existence to save others. ---
**Author:** ![DreadCthulhu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DreadCthulhu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DreadCthulhu)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/13 "2003-06-23T17:18:22Z")
I am going to second what \*\* Pochacco \*\* said; “Grave of the Fireflys” made \* me \* cry, and I am a heartless, insensative bastard. ---
**Author:** ![well\_he\_s\_back](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/3ab097/32.png) [@well\_he\_s\_back](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/well_he_s_back)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/14 "2003-06-23T17:21:34Z")
I nominate Sophie’s Choice, though I cried more when I read the book. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/15 "2003-06-23T17:26:44Z")
“Butcher Boy,” directed by Neil Jordan, based on the novel by Patrick McCabe. The film, by the way, is a regular light-hearted comedy compared to the book (or any of McCabe’s other books). ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/16 "2003-06-23T17:35:32Z")
_Brian’s Song_ gets my vote. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/17 "2003-06-23T17:38:28Z")
Since _Grave of the Fireflies_ has been said already, I’ll nominate my second choice, _Awakenings_. ---
**Author:** ![sj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/65b543/32.png) [@sj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sj2)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/18 "2003-06-23T17:59:14Z")
Powder…watched that one and Leaving Las Vegas in the same night. Ugh. Also, the following chick-like-flicks Boys on the Side Moonlight and Valentino Playing by Heart When a Man Loves a Woman And Schindler’s list 6th Sense ending made me weepy too ---
**Author:** ![Deadly\_Nightlight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Deadly\_Nightlight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deadly_Nightlight)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/19 "2003-06-23T18:02:14Z")
farewell my concubine was really sad ---
**Author:** ![Eman\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Eman\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eman_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787/20 "2003-06-23T18:16:29Z")
Whoa, I was just thinking of “Farewell My Concubine”… I thought “The Pianist” was pretty damn depressing. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saddest-movie/183787.md?page=2)