Great Depression Movies, Great Depression List Movies

The Boys in the Boat 2023

7 /10

The triumphant underdog story of the University of Washington men's rowing team, who stunned the world by winning gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics.

Run Time: 124 Min . MMPA: 13 . Release: Dec 25, 2023

Director: Director: George Clooney,

Stars: Callum Turner, Joel Edgerton, Jack Mulhern, Sam Strike, Luke Slattery,

Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken 1991

7.1 /10

A runaway orphan, young Sonora, persists in a menial job mucking stables in Doc Carver's travelling stunt show. Her great wish is to become a death-defying "diving girl," but Doc refuses her pleas. Undaunted, Sonora's gutsy resolve finally convinces him to give her a break. On the brink of stardom, however, a cruel twist of fate threatens to destroy her dream.

Run Time: 88 Min . MMPA: 8 . Release: May 24, 1991

Director: Director: Steve Miner,

Stars: Gabrielle Anwar, Cliff Robertson, Michael Schoeffling, Dylan Kussman, Kathleen York,

Billy Bathgate 1991

5.9 /10

In the year 1935, a teen named Billy Bathgate finds first love while becoming the protégé of fledgling gangster Dutch Schultz.

Run Time: 106 Min . MMPA: 17 . Release: Nov 01, 1991

Director: Director: Robert Benton,

Stars: Loren Dean, Dustin Hoffman, Nicole Kidman, Bruce Willis, Steve Buscemi,

Water for Elephants 2011

6.9 /10

In this captivating Depression-era melodrama, impetuous veterinary student Jacob Jankowski joins a celebrated circus as an animal caretaker but faces a wrenching dilemma when he's transfixed by angelic married performer Marlena.

Run Time: 122 Min . MMPA: 14 . Release: Apr 15, 2011

Director: Director: Francis Lawrence,

Stars: Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, Christoph Waltz, Paul Schneider, Jim Norton,

Lawless 2012

7.2 /10

Set in the Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a bootlegging gang is threatened by authorities who want a cut of their profits.

Run Time: 115 Min . MMPA: 17 . Release: Aug 29, 2012

Director: Director: John Hillcoat,

Stars: Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Guy Pearce, Jason Clarke,

Modern Times 1936

8.5 /10

The Tramp struggles to live in modern industrial society with the help of a young homeless woman.

Run Time: 87 Min . MMPA: 6 . Release: Feb 05, 1936

Director: Director: Charlie Chaplin,

Stars: Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman, Tiny Sandford, Chester Conklin,

Serena 2014

5.4 /10

North Carolina mountains at the end of the 1920s – George and Serena Pemberton, love-struck newly-weds, begin to build a timber empire. Serena soon proves herself to be equal to any man: overseeing loggers, hunting rattle-snakes, even saving a man’s life in the wilderness. With power and influence now in their hands, the Pembertons refuse to let anyone stand in the way of their inflated love and ambitions. However, once Serena discovers George’s hidden past and faces an unchangeable fate of her own, the Pemberton’s passionate marriage begins to unravel leading toward a dramatic reckoning.

Run Time: 102 Min . MMPA: 17 . Release: Oct 12, 2014

Director: Director: Susanne Bier,

Stars: Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, Rhys Ifans, Toby Jones, Blake Ritson,

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day 2008

7 /10

London, England, on the eve of World War II. Guinevere Pettigrew, a strict governess who is unable to keep a job, is fired again. Lost in the hostile city, a series of fortunate circumstances lead her to meet Delysia LaFosse, a glamorous and dazzling American jazz singer whose life is a chaos ruled by indecision, a continuous battle between love and fame.

Run Time: 88 Min . MMPA: 13 . Release: Mar 07, 2008

Director: Director: Bharat Nalluri,

Stars: Frances McDormand, Amy Adams, Lee Pace, Ciarn Hinds, Shirley Henderson,

Thieves Like Us 1974

7 /10

Bowie, a youthful convicted murderer, and bank robbers Chicamaw and T-Dub escape from a Mississippi chain gang in the 1930s. They hole up with a gas station attendant and continue robbing banks. Bowie, who is injured in an auto accident, takes refuge with the daughter of the gas station attendant, Keechie. They become romantically involved but their relationship is strained by Bowie's refusal to turn his back on crime. The film is based on the novel Thieves Like Us by Edward Anderson. The novel is also the source material for the 1949 film They Live by Night, directed by Nicholas Ray.

Run Time: 123 Min . MMPA: 13 . Release: Feb 11, 1974

Director: Director: Robert Altman,

Stars: Keith Carradine, Shelley Duvall, John Schuck, Bert Remsen, Louise Fletcher,

King Kong 2005

7.2 /10

In 1933 New York, an overly ambitious movie producer coerces his cast and hired ship crew to travel to mysterious Skull Island, where they encounter Kong, a giant ape who is immediately smitten with the leading lady.

Run Time: 187 Min . MMPA: 14 . Release: Dec 12, 2005

Director: Director: Peter Jackson,

Stars: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Colin Hanks,

Dogville 2003

8 /10

A barren soundstage is stylishly utilized to create a minimalist small-town setting in which a mysterious woman named Grace hides from the criminals who pursue her. The town is two-faced and offers to harbor Grace as long as she can make it worth their effort, so Grace works hard under the employ of various townspeople to win their favor. Tensions flare, however, and Grace's status as a helpless outsider provokes vicious contempt and abuse from the citizens of Dogville.

Run Time: 178 Min . MMPA: 17 . Release: May 19, 2003

Director: Director: Lars von Trier,

Stars: Nicole Kidman, Harriet Andersson, Lauren Bacall, JeanMarc Barr, Paul Bettany,