2121 Best Drama Movies to Watch (Page 141)

In life and cinema, drama is everywhere. You’ll find it in thrillers, animations, romances, you name it. For entertainment that explores the human experience with sensitivity and sincerity, here’s a mixed bag of the best dramas to stream now.

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2101. 10 Days of a Good Man (2023)

The fact that 10 Days of a Good Man feels so similar to many other hard-boiled detective stories still means there are reliable thrills to be had here for fans of the genre. But twists and turns and a suitably gruff lead performance by Nejat Isler can't make up for how the film seems so convinced of its own coolness. The more that they emphasize that Sadik is really a modest kind of tough guy with a big heart and an energy that just seems to draw women and dangerous people towards him, the more insincere it comes across. And as the convoluted central mystery continues to pile on details without engaging in much actual investigation, the more the whole thing feels like posturing to champion a very traditional and superficial idea of masculinity that Sadik embodies.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Nejat İşler, Nur Fettahoğlu, Şenay Gürler

Director: Uluç Bayraktar

Rating: R

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2102. Old Dads, 2023

For almost the entirety of its runtime, Old Dads feels like it has something it's desperately trying to prove. But while the millennial generation and a newfound popular interest in political correctness are ripe for satire, this film chooses the lowest hanging fruit possible to make jokes about—inventing one senseless situation after another in order to laugh at people's "sensitivity" with little energy or wit. The main cast has tried and tested talent, but the material they're working with feels more artificial and whiny than truly perceptive of today's generational clashes. The movie tries to manufacture some sort of dramatic realization by the end, but it hardly changes the protagonists anyway. A film need not be PC to be good, of course, but it should at least stand for something instead of simply standing against so much.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Abbie Cobb, Angela Gulner, Bill Burr, Bobby Cannavale, Bokeem Woodbine, Bruce Dern, C. Thomas Howell, Cameron Kelly, Carl Tart, Chelsea Marie Davis, Cody Renee Cameron, Dash McCloud, Erin Wu, Jackie Tohn, Josh Brener, Justene Alpert, Justin Miles, Katie Aselton, Katrina Bowden, Leland Heflin, Miles Robbins, Natasha Leggero, Paul Walter Hauser, Rachael Harris, Reign Edwards, Rick Glassman, Rory Scovel, Steph Tolev, Tom Allen

Director: Bill Burr

Rating: R

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2103. Melodate (2024)

There’s a unique boarding school charm in Melodate, as the philosophical Melody is able to turn the dorm around through the sheer force of her personality. It’s the type of charisma plenty of school girls would want, the kind that creates Queen Bees that can change the entire status quo, for better (by changing clearly dated rules) or for worse (by bringing her whole dorm to a bar). Therefore, her clear antagonist is dorm administrator Mrs. Rasti, who happens to be Melody’s boyfriend’s mom. To its credit, the film doesn’t demonize either Melody or Mrs. Rasti, and there’s an interesting exploration on how much freedom should these children have, and how much control parents and authorities should have over their kids, but the way these topics are handled are illogical, inorganic, and convoluted, especially when they add in Nadia’s storyline.Genre: Drama, Romance
Actor: Aida Nurmala, Caitlin Halderman, Greesella Adhalia, Jourdy Pranata, Tiwi Helmer
Director: Ainun Ridho

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2104. Hard Broken, 2023

Netflix is no stranger to murder mysteries, having a whole catalog of films and series in the genre from around the world. Because of this, it can be hard for lesser known, non-English titles from the streamer to get their work noticed, and we at A Good Movie to Watch try to find the best of these hidden gems. Unfortunately, Hard Broken is not one of them. The latest six-episode Lebanese series feels rushed, often containing plot points that don't make sense, with stock characters that feel so one-dimensional. With the quality of other murder mysteries on the platform, it’s strange that Netflix decided to produce this series.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery

Actor: Elie Mitri, Muhanned Al Hamdi, Rasha Bilal, رودريغ سليمان, طلال الجردي

Director: Elie F. Habib

Rating: TV-MA

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2105. Devil’s Advocate, 2023

Quick to start and slow to deliver, Devil's Advocate follows Bader, a renowned football player who is tried for being the primary suspect in his wife Dalal's murder. After the series' initial commentary on how the court of public opinion affects a case, nothing else about it stands out. It's mostly just the lawyer Loulwa desperately proving Bader's innocence, going against her father (the prosecutor), and avoiding her ex-fiance (the officer assigned to the case). All of those things collectively sound like a good setup, but they somehow have no impact. In two of the six episodes, there are countless conversations and baseless speculating, and yet nothing progresses past emphasizing Dalal's mental illness. So our two options, by that point, are to trust Bader or (if you can) believe that Dalal stabbed herself 14 TIMES. There's certainly more to the story, but the allure is no more than an ignorable simmer.

Genre: Crime, Drama

Actor: Haya Abdulsalam

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2106. Kandasamys: The Baby, 2023

The fourth Kandasamys installment may only appeal to viewers who've been there from the beginning, but no matter your history with the South African Indian series, The Baby really offers far too little. With unconvincing third-act drama and extremely loose connection tissue between scenes, it becomes very difficult to see what the point of all this is, unless you are truly charmed by the bickering of this dysfunctional family. Unfortunately there isn't any wit to the clashing of personalities here; these are characters who aren't even trying to get on the same page, so set in their stubborn ways that it becomes infuriating to watch them butt heads for no good reason.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Jailoshini Naidoo, Koobeshan Naidoo, Madhushan Singh, Maeshni Naicker, Mariam Bassa, Mishqah Parthiephal

Director: Jayan Moodley

Rating: PG-13

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2107. Famous, 2023

I appreciate what Famous, the movie, tries to do with its small budget. To portray the wealthy and luxurious life Famous, the character, supposedly leads, the movie opts for clean minimalist designs and tasteful close-ups that don’t betray the scruffy studio it’s actually set in. And the music, produced by Friyie, provides a nice ambiance to Famous and Wayne’s fraught relationship. But those are the only good things you could say about this film; everything else is a flat-out mess. The story feels limp, the acting forced, the dialogue loaded with exposition, and the overall execution clunky. Also, tell me why doesn’t Famous rap even once in a movie centered around him? We’re constantly told that Famous is a celebrated rapper, but not once are we made privy to his skills. What was the reason? This choice, like pretty much everything about the movie, is just baffling.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Brendan Jeffers, Farid Yazdani, Jas Dhanda, Lovina Yavari, Patrick Kwok-Choon, Ric Reid

Director: Martha McGrath

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2108. Dance Brothers, 2023

At 20 minutes per episode, the story of two brothers trying to make their dream of becoming professional, industry-changing dancers a reality is surprisingly uninteresting. Roni and Sakke are chasing their big break, but Roni is rude to anyone who doesn't think he's transformative, and Sakke insists on sticking by his brother even as he ruins their chances. By the end of episode two, they're offered a chance to open their own club and work with a suspiciously generous patron from their mother's laundromat. But despite the compelling gist of it all, nothing holds attention. The dancing sequences are mostly a miss, and the story's progression feels painfully by the numbers. If "chasing your dreams" is supposed to be the redeeming quality, the execution alone dismantles it.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Fanni Noroila, Jeanine Muyima, Laura Lohi, Roderick Kabanga, Samuel Kujala

Rating: TV-MA

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2109. Choose Love, 2023

With uninteresting characters and an aggressively bland story right from the start, Choose Love fails to establish any stakes worth caring about, no matter what choices we make throughout. Any sense of novelty from playing this choose-your-own-romcom vanishes once you notice how certain decision points lead to the exact same idea, or are blatantly disregarded by the character you "control" anyway. Choice is a complete illusion here, and the fact that we're only asked to participate when it comes to some of the most inane dilemmas only highlights how the film's protagonist isn't acting like a rational, adult human being with any self-respect or regard for others. Sure, people are inherently flawed and it can be fun to see how disastrous this situation can get through our own manipulation, but by the end there's still no believable spark to be found. It feels like a cop-out no matter what.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Actor: Avan Jogia, Benjamin Hoetjes, Blair Strang, Jack Bright, Jacque Drew, Jesse Griffin, Jordi Webber, Laura Marano, Lucy Wigmore, Megan Smart, Nell Fisher, Scott Michael Foster

Director: Stuart McDonald

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2110. The Tearsmith, 2024

This was an uncomfortable, unnecessary mess of a movie—it’d be a lot faster to just go to Literotica or something. It’s got rough romance dialogue; everyone’s faces are always pressed so close together; and worst of all is even the fight scenes are awkward. Outside of storylines, music from Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish were made to be associated with this movie which mucks up their good name for people that haven't discovered them in neutral conditions. Caterina Ferioli’s performance as the film’s muse Nica, along with Nica’s warm girl-friendships, carries the entire thing to a semblance of watchability. But I'm not trying to give you hope, I'm saying just open your Incognito tab if you're here "for the plot."

Genre: Drama, Romance

Actor: Alessandro Bedetti, Anna Cianca, Caterina Ferioli, Eco Andriolo Ranzi, Eugenio Krauss, Juju Di Domenico, Laura Baldi, Nicky Passarella, Orlando Cinque, Roberta Rovelli, Sabrina Paravicini, Simone Baldasseroni, Sveva Romano Candelletta

Director: Alessandro Genovesi

Rating: R

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2111. Prime, 2023

For some people, grief isn’t easy when a parent dies, especially if that parent is someone you wish you would never become. Grief can stir up a mix of uncomfortable emotions, like shame, anger, and guilt, and it can be very confusing to explain what’s happening to people who aren’t experiencing the same. There’s plenty of that here in South African drama Prime, with Marius losing his racist father, but the way the film depicts this grief is quite hard to follow because of the way it handles its other genres. The human horror of becoming someone you’ve hated is muddled with the randomly arranged sequences, sluggish pace, and mumbled dialogue, which is a shame, because the ideas and images could have made a better movie.

Genre: Drama, Horror, Thriller

Actor: Gérard Rudolf, Jasmine Hazi, Michael Lawrence Potter, Nomsa Twala, Richard Gau, Sharon Spiegel Wagner, Sizo Mahlangu

Director: Thabiso Christopher

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2112. Down the Rabbit Hole, 2024

It’s got a main character, 10-year-old Tochtli (Miguel Valverde Uribe), with the most unforgettably forgettable idiosyncrasies. The emotional anchor of this whole thing is entirely dependent on our inclination to be protective of children, but it gives surface level characterization of both the young boy and his father Yolcaut (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo). The most interesting thing it almost pulls off is the father trying to reconcile his commitment to his son and to being macho, but it’s barely a chapter in this 2-hour story. It has some potential with the teachings and aphorisms, but it never really leans into it. It fails four different times, never with fireworks.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Alfredo Gatica, Daniel Giménez Cacho, Debi Mazar, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Mercedes Hernández, Miguel Valverde, Pierre Louis, Raúl Briones, Teresa Ruiz

Director: Manolo Caro

Rating: R

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2113. Gilded Newport Mysteries: Murder at the Breakers, 2024

Hallmark movies aren't automatically bad if they're cheesy and on the cheaper side; there are ways to make these characteristics work, of course. But these qualities definitely don't help if the story they're telling is uninteresting and if the actors in front of the camera couldn't be compelled to deliver convincing emotions if their lives depended on it. Watching Gilded Newport Mysteries: Murder at the Breakers kind of feels like watching people rehearse a family-produced parody of an Agatha Christie novel, or like visiting Westworld and seeing the robots play-act a fictional scenario. Every line over-explains everything that happens on screen, and the mystery elements just aren't coherent enough for them to lead to a satisfying conclusion or interesting statement about the characters and their world.Genre: Drama, Mystery, TV Movie
Actor: Aisling Goodman, Alissa Skovbye, Amira Anderson, April Telek, Ava Telek, Cesare Scarpone, Danny Griffin, David Beairsto, Geoff Gustafson, Gillian Barber, James Drew Dean, John Prowse, Katherine Evans, Madeleine Kelders, Mark Humphrey, Nathan Witte, Sebastian Greaves
Director: Terry Ingram
Rating: PG

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2114. 10 Days of a Bad Man (2023)

At first it really seems like 10 Days of a Bad Man has learned from the mistakes of its unoriginal, self-satisfied predecessor. This sequel has a more distinct personality in general, with a better overall look and a more unique central mystery that doesn't only deal with edgy underground trafficking rings. But it doesn't take long to realize that this film still has the exact same attitude towards its protagonist Sadik, who refuses to develop in any meaningful way and whom the movie still lionizes as some impossibly charming but sexily flawed example of masculinity.

And throughout this ultimately pointless and hastily resolved mystery that makes no impact at the end, this 50-year-old man can't even confront his grief in an interesting way—choosing instead to strike up a relationship with an 18-year-old girl whose only function in the story is to try and seduce him. Because nothing says getting over the death of a loved one than grooming the young woman whom you've known since she was a minor.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery

Actor: Erdal Yildiz, Ilayda Akdogan, Nejat İşler, Nur Fettahoğlu, Şenay Gürler

Director: Uluç Bayraktar

Rating: R

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2115. A Young Time Ago, 2023

Shockingly little happens throughout A Young Time Ago's nearly two-hour runtime, and the little that does happen is all so poorly thought-out. As we're introduced to protagonist Tayo at a bar, a woman whom he doesn't know insists on hearing his love story—which turns out to be a story about how supernatural forces seem to have orchestrated the rape of the woman he once loved in school, and how a singer who was last seen with her tries to wash his hands of any suspicion (even if he thinks that he actually might've raped her anyway). It's an already tasteless and nonsensical plot that leads nowhere. Characters talk vaguely about who's to blame and how they can evade the fallout of the crime, while the survivor never really gets a voice or an opportunity to reclaim her control over what's happened to her.

The performances are awkward at best and totally inauthentic at worst, often leading to unintentionally hilarious line readings. And the overall technical package, while not necessarily bad, is just so flat and lifeless that it becomes impossible to track the film's emotional trajectory. And while we should consider ourselves fortunate to be able to see films from countries like Nigeria, which don't normally get a boost from mainstream streamers, we should always remember that a film this ill-conceived shouldn't represent the local industry it comes from.

Genre: Drama, Fantasy

Actor: Daniel Etim Effiong, Mofehintolaoluwa Jebutu, Timini Egbuson, Tolu Osaile

Director: Tolu Lordtanner

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