Drama Best 00-24, a list by dave Miller

7.6

/27838/

76

/1302/

74

/310/

4.3

/292958/

97

/215/

98

/77/

83

/43/

4.0

age 15+

Divine G, imprisoned at Sing Sing for a crime he didn't commit, finds purpose by acting in a theatre group alongside other incarcerated men in this story of resilience, humanity, and the transformative power of art.

86

8.2

/697596/

80

/13445/

81

/7166/

4.5

/1153051/

91

/244/

86

/36700/

93

/42/

3.5

age 16+

Ruthless silver miner, turned oil prospector, Daniel Plainview, moves to oil-rich California. Using his son to project a trustworthy, family-man image, Plainview cons local landowners into selling him their valuable properties for a pittance. However, local preacher Eli Sunday suspects Plainview's motives and intentions, starting a slow-burning feud that threatens both their lives.

85

7.6

/123734/

76

/4582/

76

/1701/

4.2

/1402621/

96

/246/

81

/315/

95

/46/

4.0

age 14+

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.

85

8.1

/759721/

80

/13478/

79

/10112/

4.0

/430761/

90

/268/

90

/15860/

86

/39/

4.0

age 14+

Despondent over a painful estrangement from his daughter, trainer Frankie Dunn isn't prepared for boxer Maggie Fitzgerald to enter his life. But Maggie's determined to go pro and to convince Dunn and his cohort to help her.

85

8.1

/598527/

79

/23913/

80

/10622/

4.1

/776149/

90

/408/

87

/2607/

88

/50/

4.0

age 17+

After seven months have passed without a culprit in her daughter's murder case, Mildred Hayes makes a bold move, painting three signs leading into her town with a controversial message directed at Bill Willoughby, the town's revered chief of police. When his second-in-command Officer Jason Dixon, an immature mother's boy with a penchant for violence, gets involved, the battle between Mildred and Ebbing's law enforcement is only exacerbated.

85

7.4

/348594/

73

/16003/

73

/7366/

4.2

/1309491/

98

/402/

79

/2200/

99

/53/

4.0

age 15+

The tender, heartbreaking story of a young man’s struggle to find himself, told across three defining chapters in his life as he experiences the ecstasy, pain, and beauty of falling in love, while grappling with his own sexuality.

87

84

8.3

/2614/

80

/574/

79

/359/

4.4

/115428/

100

/32/

92

/178/

90

/7/

Bill struggles to put together his shattered psyche.

84

7.5

/818/

82

/55/

75

/24/

4.0

/2418/

97

/30/

78

/10/

87

/7/

4.0

Fifteen-year-old Heidi Schreck earned her college tuition by winning Constitutional debate competitions across the United States. In this hilarious, hopeful, and achingly human show, Heidi resurrects her teenage self in order to trace the profound relationship between four generations of women and the founding document that shaped their lives.

84

7.6

/144692/

75

/6074/

74

/2997/

4.1

/946456/

96

/318/

81

/958/

92

/44/

4.0

age 16+

The story of a precocious six year-old and her ragtag group of friends whose summer break is filled with childhood wonder, possibility and a sense of adventure while the adults around them struggle with hard times.

84

7.9

/94978/

79

/3206/

78

/1373/

4.2

/143988/

98

/174/

92

/981/

82

/36/

3.5

age 16+

Grace, a compassionate young supervisor at a foster care facility, helps at-risk teens. But when a new charge dredges up memories of her own troubled past, Grace's tough exterior begins eroding.

84

7.8

/349737/

74

/13325/

75

/6231/

4.1

/943680/

96

/356/

78

/2566/

96

/53/

4.0

age 17+

After his older brother passes away, Lee Chandler is forced to return home to care for his 16-year-old nephew. There he is compelled to deal with a tragic past that separated him from his family and the community where he was born and raised.

83

7.8

/23928/

77

/1370/

80

/720/

4.2

/256743/

95

/147/

82

/21/

81

/25/

3.5

age 14+

Forcibly separated from her twin brother when they are orphaned, a melancholic misfit learns how to find confidence within herself amid the clutter of misfortunes and everyday life.

83

7.5

/132675/

74

/5410/

75

/2627/

4.0

/564492/

92

/399/

83

/727/

85

/65/

4.0

age 13+

Growing up in post-World War II era Arizona, young Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker as he reaches adolescence, but soon discovers a shattering family secret and explores how the power of films can help him see the truth.

83

7.7

/134117/

77

/2657/

75

/1355/

4.1

/118531/

93

/96/

89

/7329/

86

/23/

3.5

age 16+

A story about a troubled boy growing up in England, set in 1983. He comes across a few skinheads on his way home from school, after a fight. They become his new best friends, even like family. Based on experiences of director Shane Meadows.

83

8.1

/200195/

80

/4198/

78

/2165/

4.3

/175571/

96

/67/

92

/2118/

72

/7/

age 14+

A tale of friendship between two unlikely pen pals: Mary, a lonely, eight-year-old girl living in the suburbs of Melbourne, and Max, a forty-four-year old, severely obese man living in New York.

83

7.8

/151369/

79

/7679/

77

/2220/

4.1

/350491/

97

/208/

91

/1197/

81

/30/

3.5

age 12+

Ricky is a defiant young city kid who finds himself on the run with his cantankerous foster uncle in the wild New Zealand bush. A national manhunt ensues, and the two are forced to put aside their differences and work together to survive.

83

7.8

/551287/

78

/13023/

76

/7615/

4.2

/1944132/

91

/216/

91

/45115/

80

/36/

3.5

age 16+

A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.

82

7.5

/7805/

76

/396/

71

/81/

4.0

/24344/

99

/108/

92

/153/

82

/21/

3.5

age 15+

When a construction worker unexpectedly joins a local theater's production of Romeo and Juliet alongside his estranged teenage daughter, the drama onstage starts to mirror his own life.

82

7.6

/19266/

75

/899/

74

/282/

4.1

/42504/

95

/200/

90

/97/

81

/33/

3.5

age 13+

Two couples meet for a painful and raw conversation in the aftermath of a violent tragedy.

82

7.4

/9104/

74

/433/

72

/203/

3.9

/14244/

100

/63/

94

/45/

80

/15/

3.5

age 12+

John, a 35-year-old window cleaner, has dedicated his life to bringing up his 4-year-old son, Michael, after the child's mother left them soon after giving birth. When John is given only a few months left to live, he attempts to find a new, perfect family for Michael, determined to shield him from the terrible reality of the situation.

82

7.6

/28420/

73

/402/

71

/379/

3.9

/18332/

93

/160/

84

/747/

83

/40/

4.0

age 18+

Abortionist Vera Drake finds her beliefs and practices clash with the mores of 1950s Britain – a conflict that leads to tragedy for her family.

82

7.4

/34069/

75

/2189/

73

/708/

4.1

/77446/

94

/179/

86

/299/

75

/43/

4.0

age 16+

Collin must make it through his final three days of probation for a chance at a new beginning. He and his troublemaking childhood best friend, Miles, work as movers, and when Collin witnesses a police shooting, the two men’s friendship is tested as they grapple with identity and their changed realities in the rapidly-gentrifying neighborhood they grew up in.

82

7.2

/22915/

73

/1097/

70

/344/

4.1

/120147/

93

/213/

84

/98/

82

/39/

4.0

age 13+

Jimmie Fails dreams of reclaiming the Victorian home his grandfather built in the heart of San Francisco. Joined on his quest by his best friend Mont, Jimmie searches for belonging in a rapidly changing city that seems to have left them behind.

82

7.5

/33097/

72

/500/

68

/333/

3.9

/27316/

95

/106/

88

/686/

85

/31/

4.0

age 16+

A single mother's life is thrown into turmoil after her struggling, rarely-seen younger brother returns to town.

82

8.3

/962887/

81

/18461/

80

/10662/

4.1

/1460947/

80

/182/

93

/28635/

71

/32/

3.5

age 18+

The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island residents are shattered when their addictions run deep.

81

7.1

/20908/

72

/997/

69

/254/

3.8

/124239/

97

/150/

82

/173/

83

/39/

4.0

age 15+

Emotions run high when three estranged sisters reunite in a cramped New York City apartment to watch over their ailing father during his final days.

81

7.7

/290400/

75

/9520/

74

/3177/

4.1

/1134640/

96

/377/

75

/309/

87

/62/

3.5

age 15+

Two lifelong friends find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them.

81

7.2

/130110/

70

/4581/

69

/1483/

3.9

/719787/

93

/337/

79

/519/

90

/57/

4.0

age 17+

When an innovative modern architect flees post-war Europe, he is given the opportunity to rebuild his legacy. Set during the dawn of the modern United States (in Pennsylvania), his wife joins him, and their lives are forever changed by a demanding, wealthy patron.

81

7.4

/16349/

71

/236/

70

/236/

3.8

/9597/

97

/87/

88

/297/

86

/25/

3.5

Determined to have a normal family life once his mother gets out of prison, a Scottish teenager from a tough background sets out to raise the money for a home.

81

7.0

/675/

69

/37/

65

/10/

3.7

/2812/

100

/22/

100

/2/

89

/5/

3.5

A man and a woman in Lagos want to escape their everyday lives, but extricating themselves is no easy task. Two stories narrated with tenderness and restraint that only fleetingly touch, the dream of migrating to Europe floating above them all the while.

81

7.3

/42348/

74

/1495/

72

/742/

4.1

/196138/

94

/216/

77

/188/

82

/43/

4.0

age 14+

Johnny and his young nephew forge a tenuous but transformational relationship when they embark on a cross-country trip to see life away from Los Angeles.

81

7.3

/214853/

72

/7423/

72

/3217/

3.8

/507755/

93

/440/

82

/313/

87

/57/

4.0

age 15+

A woman in her sixties embarks on a journey through the western United States after losing everything in the Great Recession, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad.

81

7.2

/23501/

74

/1183/

70

/443/

4.0

/134688/

96

/134/

80

/167/

89

/27/

3.5

age 13+

When a renowned architecture scholar falls suddenly ill during a speaking tour, his son Jin finds himself stranded in Columbus, Indiana - a small Midwestern city celebrated for its many significant modernist buildings. Jin strikes up a friendship with Casey, a young architecture enthusiast who works at the local library.

81

7.6

/117961/

77

/5021/

73

/1543/

3.9

/293510/

95

/226/

96

/1093/

70

/28/

3.5

age 13+

A down-on-his-luck crab fisherman embarks on a journey to get a young man with Down syndrome to a professional wrestling school in rural North Carolina and away from the retirement home where he’s lived for the past two and a half years.

81

7.1

/69783/

70

/3951/

68

/1326/

3.7

/86817/

100

/248/

78

/624/

88

/44/

4.0

age 13+

A father and daughter live a perfect but mysterious existence in Forest Park, a beautiful nature reserve near Portland, Oregon, rarely making contact with the world. But when a small mistake tips them off to authorities, they are sent on an increasingly erratic journey in search of a place to call their own.

81

7.3

/6246/

70

/125/

69

/81/

3.8

/2781/

93

/105/

81

/386/

89

/25/

4.0

A man planning to commit suicide hires a taxi driver to take him to his jumping-off point.

81

7.7

/29845/

75

/525/

74

/448/

3.8

/14204/

91

/149/

89

/791/

83

/38/

3.5

age 16+

Three young Irish women struggle to maintain their spirits while they endure dehumanizing abuse as inmates of a Magdalene Sisters Asylum.

81

7.6

/45282/

73

/443/

71

/375/

3.8

/11232/

90

/174/

91

/1662/

76

/41/

4.0

age 15+

A family of Irish immigrants adjusts to life on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen while also grieving the death of a child.

81

7.6

/78440/

74

/1536/

73

/743/

3.8

/44287/

94

/159/

89

/2032/

81

/36/

3.5

age 16+

When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.

81

7.6

/83606/

76

/2053/

77

/1209/

4.2

/506140/

86

/116/

89

/2800/

74

/32/

3.5

A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.

81

7.3

/131467/

72

/2638/

70

/1529/

3.6

/211695/

93

/165/

84

/4229/

91

/32/

4.0

age 17+

Two quirky, cynical teenaged girls try to figure out what to do with their lives after high school graduation. After they play a prank on an eccentric, middle aged record collector, one of them befriends him, which causes a rift in the girls’ friendship.

81

7.7

/127890/

74

/3044/

74

/1863/

4.0

/103747/

90

/252/

83

/2127/

86

/46/

3.5

age 16+

An aging, booze-addled father takes a trip from Montana to Nebraska with his estranged son in order to claim what he believes to be a million-dollar sweepstakes prize.

81

7.9

/488639/

77

/12732/

74

/5564/

4.1

/583647/

84

/210/

87

/16024/

67

/34/

4.0

age 17+

Ray and Ken, two hit men, are in Bruges, Belgium, waiting for their next mission. While they are there they have time to think and discuss their previous assignment. When the mission is revealed to Ken, it is not what he expected.

81

7.4

/359390/

73

/15196/

72

/8862/

3.8

/2754308/

99

/401/

79

/2221/

93

/52/

3.5

age 16+

Lady Bird McPherson, a strong willed, deeply opinionated, artistic 17 year old comes of age in Sacramento. Her relationship with her mother and her upbringing are questioned and tested as she plans to head off to college.

80

7.3

/15344/

75

/1052/

72

/184/

4.0

/273354/

96

/134/

91

/96/

78

/38/

3.0

age 14+

In 2008, during the last month of summer before high school begins, an impressionable 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy learns what his family can't teach him: how to skate, how to flirt, and how to love your mom.

80

6.9

/10380/

67

/340/

62

/465/

3.6

/65946/

97

/134/

91

/29/

87

/37/

4.0

After an impulsive travel decision to visit friends, Freddie, 25, returns to South Korea for the first time, where she was born before being adopted and raised in France. Freddie suddenly finds herself embarking on an unexpected journey in a country she knows so little about, taking her life in new and unexpected directions.

80

6.9

/23224/

67

/1134/

66

/307/

4.0

/216463/

92

/213/

75

/123/

91

/49/

4.0

age 14+

Chronicles the powerful friendship between two young Black teenagers navigating the harrowing trials of reform school together in Florida.

80

7.0

/136415/

69

/5701/

67

/1266/

3.7

/1047319/

96

/278/

82

/242/

85

/55/