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La Strada poster

Movies that feel likeLa Strada (1954)

When Gelsomina, a naïve young woman, is purchased from her impoverished mother by brutish circus strongman Zampanò to be his wife and partner, she loyally endures her husband's coldness and abuse as they travel the Italian countryside performing together. Soon Zampanò must deal with his jealousy and conflicted feelings about Gelsomina when she finds a kindred spirit in Il Matto, the carefree circus fool, and contemplates leaving Zampanò.

If you loved La Strada, the closest films we have are 8½ (1963), Rebel Without a Cause (1955) and Aftersun (2022). Most of the picks below share La Strada's melancholy and wistful feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Devdas (2002).

🍅 97% Rotten Tomatoes★ 8 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Federico Fellinimelancholytenderwistful
8 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max · Criterion Channel

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If La Strada hit the spot, these will too

8½ poster
8½
1963 · dir. Federico Fellini
🍅 97%★ 8dramaMax

The same hand behind both of them: Federico Fellini

The difference: Takes it somewhere less tender than La Strada does

Guido Anselmi, a film director, finds himself creatively barren at the peak of his career. Urged by his doctors to rest, Anselmi heads for a luxurious resort, but a sorry group gathers—his producer, staff, actors, wife, mistress, and relatives—each one begging him to get on with the show. In retreat from their dependency, he fantasizes about past women and dreams of his childhood.

Rebel Without a Cause poster
Rebel Without a Cause
1955 · dir. Nicholas Ray
🍅 91%★ 7.6drama

Two things both keep coming back to: unsociability and authority

The difference: Easier on the melancholy than La Strada

After moving to a new town, troublemaking teen Jim Stark is supposed to have a clean slate, although being the new kid in town brings its own problems. While searching for some stability, Stark forms a bond with a disturbed classmate, Plato, and falls for local girl Judy. However, Judy is the girlfriend of neighborhood tough, Buzz. When Buzz violently confronts Jim and challenges him to a drag race, the new kid's real troubles begin.

Aftersun poster
Aftersun
2022 · dir. Charlotte Wells
🍅 96%★ 7.6dramaRent or buy

The same mix in both: melancholy, then wistfulness

The difference: Made in the 2020s, in a different era of the craft

Sophie reflects on the shared joy and private melancholy of a holiday she took with her father twenty years earlier. Memories fill the gaps between camcorder footages as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the troubled man she didn't.

The Hustler poster
The Hustler
1961 · dir. Robert Rossen
🍅 94%★ 7.9drama · romance

Tender drama in both cases

The difference: Sits closer to romance than La Strada does

Fast Eddie Felson is a small-time pool hustler with a lot of talent but a self-destructive attitude. His bravado causes him to challenge the legendary Minnesota Fats to a high-stakes match.

The Virgin Suicides poster
The Virgin Suicides
2000 · dir. Sofia Coppola
🍅 80%★ 7.2drama · romance

Drama built on melancholy, twice over

A group of male friends become obsessed with five mysterious sisters who are sheltered by their strict, religious parents.

All the Bright Places poster
All the Bright Places
2020 · dir. Brett Haley
🍅 67%★ 6.6romance · dramaNetflix

Tender drama, and it commits to that

The difference: The scrappier of the two with critics

Two teens facing personal struggles form a powerful bond as they embark on a cathartic journey chronicling the wonders of Indiana.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof poster
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
1958 · dir. Richard Brooks
🍅 97%★ 7.9drama

Common ground: mortality

An alcoholic ex-football player drinks his days away, having failed to come to terms with his sexuality and his real feelings for his football buddy who died after an ambiguous accident. His wife is crucified by her desperation to make him desire her: but he resists the affections of his wife. His reunion with his father—who is dying of cancer—jogs a host of memories and revelations for both father and son.

Mirror poster
Mirror
1975 · dir. Andrei Tarkovsky
🍅 100%★ 7.9drama · history

Both run wistful where it counts

A dying man in his forties recalls his childhood, his mother, the war and personal moments that tell of and juxtapose pivotal moments in Soviet history with daily life.

The 400 Blows poster
The 400 Blows
1959 · dir. François Truffaut
🍅 99%★ 8dramaMax

A streak of wistfulness through both

For young Parisian boy Antoine Doinel, life is one difficult situation after another. Surrounded by inconsiderate adults, including his neglectful parents, Antoine spends his days with his best friend, Rene, trying to plan for a better life. When one of their schemes goes awry, Antoine ends up in trouble with the law, leading to even more conflicts with unsympathetic authority figures.

La Dolce Vita poster
La Dolce Vita
1960 · dir. Federico Fellini
🍅 95%★ 8comedy · drama

Both are Federico Fellini's work, and they rhyme

Episodic journey of journalist Marcello who struggles to find his place in the world, torn between the allure of Rome's elite social scene and the stifling domesticity offered by his girlfriend, all the while searching for a way to become a serious writer.

Winter Light poster
Winter Light
1963 · dir. Ingmar Bergman
🍅 77%★ 8drama

Both work the same melancholy

A Swedish pastor fails a loving woman, a suicidal fisherman and God.

Devdas poster
Devdas
2002 · dir. Sanjay Leela Bhansali
★ 7.6drama · romance

The shared currency is tenderness

In 1900s India, Calcuttan zamindar Devdas Mukherjee — unable to marry his lover — takes up alcohol and the company of a courtesan to alleviate the pain.

In the mood for more melancholy?

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The best-reviewed films that share La Strada’s defining feeling.