25 Drama Movies on Netflix For When You Just Want to Feel All of the Things

Netflix is loved and hated for the fact that it allows people to watch their favorite shows in one giant binge (it's so depressing when you finish a show so fast!). But the streaming site is also constantly changing its lineup of available movies, and there are actually a ton of gems waiting for you when you've knocked out your go-to favorite show or just need a break. And if you're in the mood for a quality drama, good news! Netflix is currently offering up tons of options, from recent Oscar winners like Spotlight to 1970s classics like The Godfather. Keep reading for 25 must-see dramas to add to your queue.

01
Gangs of New York
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Gangs of New York

In 1860s New York, Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a young Irish immigrant just released from prison and on a mission to find his father's murderer.

Watch it now.

02
Jackie Brown
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Jackie Brown

In this crime thriller, flight attendant Jackie Brown (Pam Grier) is caught smuggling money for her gun dealer boss (Samuel L. Jackson). When she's forced to help with the police investigation, she comes up with a creative plan to make off with the money herself.

Watch it now.

03
Blue Jasmine
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Blue Jasmine

In this film, Cate Blanchett plays a New York City socialite forced to get a job and trade in the high life after her marriage falls apart.

Watch it now.

04
Into the Wild
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Into the Wild

Based on the nonfiction book of the same title, Into the Wild follows recent college graduate Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch), who gives up his trust fund and all of his possessions before setting off on a journey to explore the Alaskan wilderness.

Watch it now.

05
Adventureland
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Adventureland

When his parents refuse to foot the bill of his planned European vacation, recent college graduate James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg) takes a job at a local amusement park, where he ends up falling for his coworker Em (Kristen Stewart).

Watch it now.

06
Revolutionary Road
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Revolutionary Road

In this film, Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio play a 1950s married couple whose relationship grows troubled when a plan to escape the emptiness in their lives falls apart.

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07
Dead Poets Society
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Dead Poets Society

In this 1989 drama, Robin Williams plays a quirky prep school teacher who inspires his students to look at poetry with deeper feelings and a different perspective.

Watch it now.

08
The King's Speech
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The King's Speech

In this British historical drama, Colin Firth plays England's Prince Albert, who has a speech impediment. As he prepares to ascend the throne as King George VI, his wife Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) hires a speech therapist (Geoffrey Rush) with whom Prince Albert forms a deep friendship as he learns to speak with confidence.

Watch it now.

09
Dallas Buyers Club
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Dallas Buyers Club

In 1980s Texas, Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey) learns that he has AIDS and is told he has just 30 days to live. Even so, he sets out to find alternative treatments and begins selling smuggled unapproved drugs with a fellow AIDS patient (Jared Leto) to others who are also running out of time.

Watch it now.

10
Chocolat
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Chocolat

Based on the novel of the same name, Chocolat tells the story of a single mother and her daughter who move to a French village and open a chocolate shop at the start of the Lenten season in 1959.

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11
Carol
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Carol

Set in the 1950s, Carol tells the story of a wealthy married woman (Cate Blanchett) who begins a complicated affair with a female department store clerk (Rooney Mara).

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12
Friday Night Lights
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Friday Night Lights

In this film, which inspired the popular TV series of the same name, high school football coach Gary Gaines works to get his small-town team to the state championships.

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13
The Imitation Game
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The Imitation Game

Set during World War II, this film follows a gay mathematician working to lead a team of cryptanalysts to crack Nazi Germany's infamous Enigma code.

Watch it now.

14
The Godfather
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The Godfather

In this 1972 classic, which is widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, the youngest son (Al Pacino) of a family living a life of organized crime joins the mafia to face his father's attempted killers.

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15
Moonrise Kingdom
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Moonrise Kingdom

In this coming-of-age drama set in 1965, two 12-year-olds fall in love and plot to escape their small New England town.

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16
Atonement
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Atonement

In this English drama, based on Ian McEwan's novel of the same name, young Briony spreads a lie about her sister's lover, which ultimately leads to his imprisonment.

Watch it now.

17
Donnie Darko
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Donnie Darko

In this sci-fi drama, teenager Donnie Darko sleepwalks out of his house and meets a giant rabbit named Frank who tells him the world will end in 28 days. The rabbit then forces him to commit various crimes, and Donnie questions if he's living in a parallel universe.

Watch it now.

18
Finding Neverland
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Finding Neverland

This Oscar-winning historical fantasy drama showcases the relationships and events that inspired Peter Pan author J.M. Barrie (Johnny Depp) to write the iconic story.

Watch it now.

19
Life Is Beautiful
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Life Is Beautiful

In this film, a Jewish-Italian waiter's family is torn apart when he and his son are separated from his wife and taken to a concentration camp, which he tries to convince his son is part of a game.

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20
Milk
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Milk

This film tells the true story of openly gay San Francisco politician Harvey Milk (played by Sean Penn), who was murdered by a city employee in 1978.

Watch it now.

21
Cruel Intentions
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Cruel Intentions

In this 1999 teen drama, Kathryn (Sarah Michelle Gellar) places a bet with her stepbrother (Ryan Phillippe) to see if he can sleep with Annette (Reese Witherspoon), who has vowed to stay a virgin until marriage.

Watch it now.

22
Up in the Air
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Up in the Air

Based on the novel of the same name, this film follows human resources consultant Ryan Bingham (George Clooney), who flies around the country to fire employees on behalf of their companies while facing the fact that he may lose his own job if his company decides to start conducting the layoffs via videoconferencing.

Watch it now.

23
Lion
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Lion

Based on a true story, Lion is about Saroo Brierley, an Indian man who becomes separated from his family on a train at age 5 and is eventually adopted by an Australian family. Twenty-five years later, he sets out to track down his lost family using Google Earth.

Watch it now.

24
Eyes Wide Shut
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Eyes Wide Shut

When Alice (Nicole Kidman) tells her husband, Bill (Tom Cruise), that she is having sexual fantasies about a man she met, he grows obsessed with having his own affair. He then falls into an underground sexual network and quickly finds that he is in over his head.

Watch it now.

25
Spotlight
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Spotlight

This 2015 drama is based on the 2003 Boston Globe investigative stories by the newspaper's "Spotlight" team about the Boston-area child molestation scandal involving several Catholic priests.

Watch it now.