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Parallel Mothers poster

Movies that feel likeParallel Mothers (2021)

Two unmarried women who have become pregnant by accident and are about to give birth meet in a hospital room: Janis, in her late-thirties, unrepentant and happy; Ana, a teenager, remorseful and frightened.

If you loved Parallel Mothers, the closest films we have are Pain and Glory (2019), Godland (2022) and A Hero (2021). All three share Parallel Mothers' contemplative feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Clergy (2018).

🍅 96% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.1 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Pedro Almodóvarcontemplative
6 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · Amazon Prime Video

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If Parallel Mothers hit the spot, these will too

Pain and Glory poster
Pain and Glory
2019 · dir. Pedro Almodóvar
🍅 96%★ 7.5drama

Pedro Almodóvar working the same nerve twice

Salvador Mallo, a filmmaker in the twilight of his career, remembers his life: his mother, his lovers, the actors he worked with. The sixties in a small village in Valencia, the eighties in Madrid, the present, when he feels an immeasurable emptiness, facing his mortality, the incapability of continuing filming, the impossibility of separating creation from his own life. The need of narrating his past can be his salvation.

Godland poster
Godland
2022 · dir. Hlynur Pálmason
🍅 91%★ 7.1dramaRent or buy

Contemplative drama in both cases

In the late 19th century, a young Danish priest travels to a remote part of Iceland to build a church and photograph its people. But the deeper he goes into the unforgiving landscape, the more he strays from his purpose, the mission and morality.

A Hero poster
A Hero
2021 · dir. Asghar Farhadi
🍅 97%★ 7.5dramaPrime Video

Drama built on stillness, twice over

Rahim is in prison because of a debt he was unable to repay. During a two-day leave, he tries to convince his creditor to withdraw his complaint against the payment of part of the sum. But things don't go as planned. Is he truly a hero?

Queen of Hearts poster
Queen of Hearts
2019 · dir. May el-Toukhy
🍅 97%★ 7drama

Both lean on stillness more than on drama

Anne, a brilliant and dedicated advocacy lawyer specialising in society’s most vulnerable, children and young adults, lives what appears to be the picture-perfect life with her doctor-husband, Peter, and their twin daughters. When her estranged teenage stepson, Gustav, moves in with them, Anne’s escalating desire leads her down a dangerous rabbit hole which, once exposed, unleashes a sequence of events destined to destroy her world.

Let Go poster
Let Go
2024 · dir. Josephine Bornebusch
★ 7dramaNetflix

Both know what they want from drama

A jaded mother makes a last-ditch effort to keep her family together by taking them on a trip to their teenage daughter’s pole dancing competition.

The Teachers' Lounge poster
The Teachers' Lounge
2023 · dir. İlker Çatak
🍅 95%★ 7.4dramaRent or buy

Drama in the same key

When one of her students is suspected of theft, teacher Carla Nowak decides to get to the bottom of the matter. Caught between her ideals and the school system, the consequences of her actions threaten to break her.

Clergy poster
Clergy
2018 · dir. Wojtek Smarzowski
★ 7.3drama

The drama is handled with the same confidence

The fate of three Catholic priests were linked together through tragic events a few years back. Every year, on the anniversary of the catastrophe, they gather to celebrate their survival of the tragedy. Lisowski works at a curia in a big city, building his career while dreaming of the Vatican. Standing in his way, Mordowicz, the archbishop, a luxurious church dignitary who is making use of his political connections to build the largest sanctuary in Poland. Trybus, is a parish priest and often submits to human weaknesses. Kukuła also is not doing well. Despite his passion for faith, he is losing the trust of his flock. Soon, through new tragic events, the paths of the three priests will cross again.

Hunger poster
Hunger
2023 · dir. Sitisiri Mongkolsiri
🍅 86%★ 6.6dramaNetflix

Drama of the same temperament

A talented young street-food cook pushes herself to the limit after accepting an invitation to train under an infamous and ruthless chef.

Invisible Life poster
Invisible Life
2019 · dir. Karim Aïnouz
🍅 94%★ 7.7dramaPrime Video

The same drama instincts

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1950. In the conservative home of the Gusmão family, Eurídice and Guida are two inseparable sisters who support each other. While Guida can share with her younger sister the details of her romantic adventures, Eurídice finds in her older sister the encouragement she needs to pursue her dream of becoming a professional pianist.

Rams poster
Rams
2015 · dir. Grímur Hákonarson
🍅 95%★ 7.2drama

Both play drama straight

In a secluded valley in Iceland, Gummi and Kiddi live side by side, tending to their sheep. Their ancestral sheep-stock is considered one of the country’s best and the two brothers are repeatedly awarded for their prized rams who carry an ancient lineage. Although they share the land and a way of life, Gummi and Kiddi have not spoken to each other in four decades. When a lethal disease suddenly infects Kiddi’s sheep, the entire valley comes under threat. The authorities decide to cull all the animals in the area to contain the outbreak. But Gummi and Kiddi don’t give up so easily – and each brother tries to stave off the disaster in his own fashion: Kiddi by using his rifle and Gummi by using his wits.

Aquarius poster
Aquarius
2016 · dir. Kleber Mendonça Filho
🍅 97%★ 7.4drama

Cut from the same drama cloth

Clara, a vibrant former music critic and widow with flowing tresses is the only remaining apartment owner in a beautiful older building targeted for demolition by ruthless luxury high-rise developers. Clara proves to be a force to be reckoned with as she thwarts the builders plans to kick her out of the apartment.

Loveless poster
Loveless
2017 · dir. Andrey Zvyagintsev
🍅 95%★ 7.6drama

Both are drama through and through

Zhenya and Boris are going through a vicious divorce marked by resentment, frustration and recriminations. Already embarking on new lives, each with a new partner, they are impatient to start again, to turn the page – even if it means threatening to abandon their 12-year-old son Alyosha. Until, after witnessing one of their fights, Alyosha disappears.

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