The SwanMovies like The Swan
- Key Features:
- Bullying, Cruelty, Book adaptation, Young protagonist, Power dynamics, Childhood, Innocence, Vulnerability
- Tone:
- serious, restrained
- Target Audience:
- Literary adaptation enthusiasts, Viewers interested in dark themes, Those who appreciate short stories, People interested in social issues
- Emotional Arc:
- Vulnerability → Fear → Despair
The Swan

Two large, ignorant bullies ruthlessly pursue a small, brilliant boy in this young adult Roald Dahl short story.
The Swan
A bullied schoolboy takes drastic measures against his tormenter, summoning an ancient being in the woods using a spellbound book passed down through the generations of his family.

In the near future, writer Victor Banev gets himself on a UN commission to investigate what's going on in the remote town of Tashlinsk, where reports tell of a virus-created race of brainiac mutants. Banev's tween daughter Ira is enrolled at a school for gifted children which has been taken over by the mutants, who have grown to despise ordinary humanity.

The magical tale of a mouse who sets foot on a woodland adventure in search of a nut. Encountering predators who all wish to eat him - Fox, Owl and Snake - the brave mouse creates a terrifying, imaginary monster to frighten them away. But what will the mouse do when he meets this frightful monster for real?

Bullied at school and ignored and abused at home by his indifferent mother and older brother, Billy Casper, a 15-year-old working-class Yorkshire boy, tames and trains his pet kestrel falcon whom he names Kes. Helped and encouraged by his English teacher and his fellow students, Billy finally finds a positive purpose to his unhappy existence.

In an English village, a reporter and a mechanic listen to a ratcatcher explain his clever plan to outwit his prey.

After losing his parents, a young Jewish boy wanders Eastern Europe, seeking refuge during World War II.

In the near future, Cameron Turner is diagnosed with a terminal illness. Presented with an experimental solution to shield his wife and son from grief, he grapples with altering their fate in this thought-provoking exploration of love, loss, and sacrifice.

Nicholas Nickleby, a young boy in search of a better life, struggles to save his family and friends from the abusive exploitation of his coldheartedly grasping uncle.

The beautiful princess Odette is transformed into a swan by an evil sorcerer's spell. Held captive at an enchanted lake, she befriends Jean-Bob the frog, Speed the turtle and Puffin the bird. Despite their struggle to keep the princess safe, these good-natured creatures can do nothing about the sorcerer's spell, which can only be broken by a vow of everlasting love.

The adventures of a young Trumpeter swan who cannot speak. With the help of a human boy and the love of his family and friends, Louie discovers his own unique talents which help him find his place in the world.

When a poisonous snake slithers onto an Englishman's stomach in India, his associate and a doctor race to save him.

A boy with an active imagination faces his fears on an unforgettable journey through the night with his new friend: a giant, smiling creature named Dark.

The son of a Vietnam War Veteran must deal with neighborhood bullies as well as his dad's post-traumatic stress disorder while growing up in the deep south in the 1970's.

A bullied girl becomes friends with a new kid during a break, but when classes start up again, their new friendship is nearly ruined when the bullying continues.

A long time ago in a distant fairy tale countryside, a young girl leads her little brother into a dark wood in desperate search of food and work, only to stumble upon a nexus of terrifying evil.

A young American woman takes a job as a nanny in a remote English village, soon discovering that the family's eight-year-old son is a life-sized doll that comes with a list of strict rules.

One day in 1984, Todd Bowden, a brilliant high school boy fascinated by the history of Nazism, stumbles across an old man whose appearance resembles that of Kurt Dussander, a wanted Nazi war criminal. A month later, Todd decides to knock on his door.

Abel Grey is sent to investigate the death of a boy from an exclusive local school, who is found floating in the river. Fearing scandal, the school insists it was suicide. But after discovering from the boy's girlfriend, Carlin, that he was being badly bullied, Abel suspects that a dangerous schoolboy initiation has gone horribly wrong and he secretly solicits the help of a sympathetic teacher, Betsy. He is warned off the investigation by his boss, as the school is a generous benefactor to the Police benevolent fund. Abel, however, cannot let the case go, not only because his own brother committed suicide years before, but also it seems that the spirit of the dead boy is leaving them clues as to what really happened that night.

When Alena arrives at her new elite boarding school, Filippa and the other girls start to harass her. But Alena’s best friend Josefin won’t let her take anymore beating. If she won’t strike back, Josefin will do it for her. Hard.

A teacher lives a lonely life, all the while struggling over his son’s custody. His life slowly gets better as he finds love and receives good news from his son, but his new luck is about to be brutally shattered by an innocent little lie.

Based on a classic Danish children's book by Ole Lund Kirkegaard. Being small doesn't make life easy for little ten-year-old Victor and his friends, who not only have to face a world full of stern grown-ups but also the town bully Freddy Frogface. When a circus comes to the sleepy little town, Victor is thrilled at having the chance to perform in a talent show with his dog Sausage. Yet Freddy soon comes up with a sinister plot of his own to spoil Victor's plans...

The story of August Pullman – a boy with facial differences – who enters fifth grade, attending a mainstream elementary school for the first time.

A group of teenagers in South Florida enact a murder plot against their mutual bully, Kent, who has emotionally, physically, and sexually abused them for years.

Based on the best-seller book 'The Little Prince', the movie tells the story of a little girl that lives with resignation in a world where efficiency and work are the only dogmas. Everything will change when accidentally she discovers her neighbor that will tell her about the story of the Little Prince that he once met.

A boy in New York is taken in by a wealthy family after his mother is killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In a rush of panic, he steals 'The Goldfinch', a painting that eventually draws him into a world of crime.

A young boy discovers a stray balloon, which seems to have a mind of its own, on the streets of Paris. The two become inseparable, yet the world’s harsh realities finally interfere.

When his family moves from their home in Berlin to a strange new house in Poland, young Bruno befriends Shmuel, a boy who lives on the other side of the fence where everyone seems to be wearing striped pajamas. Unaware of Shmuel's fate as a Jewish prisoner or the role his own Nazi father plays in his imprisonment, Bruno embarks on a dangerous journey inside the camp's walls.

Twelve year-old Jamie Benjamin is a solitary misunderstood boy in his preteens. His classmates pick on him, his neighbors think he's weird and his parents ignore him. But now Jamie has a secret weapon: deep in the woods he has discovered a deep pit full of man-eating creatures he calls Trogs... and it isn't long before he gets an idea for getting revenge and feeding the Trogs in the process!

12-year-old Conor encounters an ancient tree monster who proceeds to help him cope with his mother's terminal illness and being bullied in school.

The unlikely friendship of a boy, a mole, a fox and a horse traveling together in the boy's search for home.

Stick Man lives in the family tree with his Stick Lady Love and their stick children three, and he's heading on an epic adventure across the seasons. Will he get back to his family in time for Christmas?

When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin known as the Artful Dodger and his criminal mentor, Fagin. When kindly Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver in, Fagin's evil henchman Bill Sikes plots to kidnap the boy.

A young governess for two children becomes convinced that the house and grounds are haunted by ghosts and that the children are being possessed.

A teenage boy, raised by a mother who considers herself psychic, takes a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits. As the group’s troubles escalate toward life-threatening situations, an inner voice awakens in the boy and, with the help of his mother and his new friend, he manages to find his own path.

Two 13-year-old boys spend an idyllic summer together, but their connection is put to the test when they become the subject of speculation at school.

Francie and Joe live the usual playful, fantasy filled childhoods of normal boys. However, with a violent, alcoholic father and a manic depressive, suicidal mother the pressure on Francie to grow up are immense. When Francie's world turns to madness, he tries to counter it with further insanity, with dire consequences.

A hyperactive boy and his best friend, a slow-witted youth with an affinity for horses, start collecting scrap metal for a shady dealer.

A soldier recounts his relationship with a famous political prisoner attempting to overthrow their country's authoritarian government.

When he refused to support power-hungry witch, the good shoemaker's boy, Jacob is transformed into a hunchbacked dwarf with overlong nose. Of their mother no longer recognized, mocked by the people of the city and driven away, Jacob runs one day a goose on the road. Together with the spring animal - in fact the king's daughter Greta enchanted - Jacob is now trying to make the transformation to reverse and put the wicked witch craft.

When 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist dares to ask his cruel taskmaster, Mr. Bumble, for a second serving of gruel, he's hired out as an apprentice. Escaping that dismal fate, young Oliver falls in with the street urchin known as the Artful Dodger and his criminal mentor, Fagin. When kindly Mr. Brownlow takes Oliver in, Fagin's evil henchman Bill Sikes plots to kidnap the boy.

Fed up with being targeted by the neighborhood bully, 10-year-old Lucas Nickle vents his frustrations on the anthill in his front yard ... until the insects shrink him to the size of a bug with a magic elixir. Convicted of "crimes against the colony," Lucas can only regain his freedom by living with the ants and learning their ways.

Darren Mullet, a bullied asthmatic, is driven to suicide by his tormented life - ignored by his parents, ridiculed by his teachers and bullied at school. He returns from the dead to pay his teenage tormentors a final visit.

When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.

Targeted by Nazis as they hunt down and murder people with disabilities, a boy with a limb difference makes a daring decision while running for his life.

A young man abandons his family for a solitary life of fly-fishing. His goal was to find his own way in the fishing world and thereby find himself and love.

Jared, the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, is outed to his parents at age 19. Jared is faced with an ultimatum: attend a gay conversion therapy program – or be permanently exiled and shunned by his family, friends, and faith.

Two friends, Jung Jong-suk and Hwang Kyung-min, meet after several years and talk about their time in school, which left them scarred.

A group of German boys are ordered to protect a small bridge in their home village during the waning months of the second world war. Truckloads of defeated, cynical Wehrmacht soldiers flee the approaching American troops, but the boys, full of enthusiasm for the "blood and honor" Nazi ideology, stay to defend the useless bridge. The film is based on a West German anti-war novel of the same name, written by Gregor Dorfmeister.

Wendy Darling, a young girl afraid to leave her childhood home behind, meets Peter Pan, a boy who refuses to grow up. Alongside her brothers and a tiny fairy, Tinker Bell, she travels with Peter to the magical world of Neverland. There, she encounters an evil pirate captain, Captain Hook, and embarks on a thrilling adventure that will change her life forever.

The Hans Christian Anderson tale gets a new treatment, this time with a rat trying to exploit the talents of a little ugly duckling for profit.

The story of a close-knit group of young kids in Nazi Germany who listen to banned swing music from the US. Soon dancing and fun leads to more difficult choices as the Nazis begin tightening the grip on Germany. Each member of the group is forced to face some tough choices about right, wrong, and survival.

When Nora witnesses Abel being bullied by other kids, she rushes to protect him by warning their father. But Abel forces her to remain silent. Caught in a conflict of loyalty, Nora will ultimately try to find her place, torn between children's and adult's worlds.

An orphaned boy raised by underground creatures called Boxtrolls comes up from the sewers and out of his box to save his family and the town from the evil exterminator, Archibald Snatcher.

An orphan little girl befriends a benevolent giant who takes her to Giant Country, where they attempt to stop the man-eating giants that are invading the human world.

A rich man learns about a guru who can see without using his eyes. He sets out to master the skill in order to cheat at gambling.

A psychiatrist faces his past, present and future when he finds himself involved in the treatment of a young man recently released from prison for a murder committed when the boy was just 11 years old.

The surreal tale of an unassuming man who is accused of a never-specified crime and shambles through bizarre encounters to escape this nightmare.

Hansel and Gretel tells the tale of two young children driven from home by their scolding mother. Losing their way in the dark forest they stumble upon the cottage of a kindly old woman. But is this kindly old woman everything she seems...?

Fourteen-year-old Charlie's life changes when Jasper takes his help to dispose of the body of his girlfriend, Laura. He decides to look for the murderer and falls in love with Laura's younger sister.

During a writing slump, playwright J.M. Barrie meets a widow and her four children, all young boys—who soon become an important part of Barrie’s life and the inspiration that lead him to create his masterpiece. Peter Pan.

A small suburban town receives a visit from a castaway unfinished science experiment named Edward.

An extraordinary young girl discovers her superpower and summons the remarkable courage, against all odds, to help others change their stories, whilst also taking charge of her own destiny. Standing up for what's right, she's met with miraculous results.

A look at the lives of two teenage girls - inseparable friends Ginger and Rosa -- growing up in 1960s London as the Cuban Missile Crisis looms, and the pivotal event the comes to redefine their relationship.

Four children become friends during the summer holidays, and out of sight of the adults they discover they have hidden powers. While exploring their newfound abilities in the nearby forests and playgrounds, their innocent play takes a dark turn and strange things begin to happen.

When the young, attractive Joe Orton meets the older, more introverted Kenneth Halliwell at drama school, he befriends the kindred spirit and they start an affair. As Orton becomes more comfortable with his sexuality and starts to find success with his writing, Halliwell becomes increasingly alienated and jealous, ultimately tapping into a dangerous rage.

Long ago in a land with an ailing king, there was a pair of boys who looked exactly alike, a pauper called Mickey and the other, the Crown Prince.

Dede is a sole parent trying to bring up her son Fred. When it is discovered that Fred is a genius, she is determined to ensure that Fred has all the opportunities that he needs, and that he is not taken advantage of by people who forget that his extremely powerful intellect is harboured in the body and emotions of a child.

A bullied overweight teenager sees a glimpse of hope when her tormentors are brutally abducted by a mesmerizing stranger.

The feeble-minded Sven's mother dies and he gets work as a farm-hand at the rich, affluent Höglund's farm. He has to work without pay and sleeps together with the cows. He meets the disabled Anna who is the first one to treat him as an adult. One day he has had enough of Höglund's maltreatment and moves in with Anna's family. Plot by Mattias Thuresson.

Wilbur the pig is scared of the end of the season, because he knows that come that time, he will end up on the dinner table. He hatches a plan with Charlotte, a spider that lives in his pen, to ensure that this will never happen.

Jojo, a lonely German boy during World War II has his world shaken when he learns that his single mother is hiding a Jewish girl in their home. Influenced by a buffoonish imaginary version of Adolf Hitler, he begins to question his beliefs and confront the conflict between propaganda and his own humanity.

The suicide of a former high-school bully puts the boy's father on a quest for answers.

Set against the backdrop of a beautiful garden in the heart of London, this contemporary fairy tale revolves around the unlikely friendship between a reclusive young woman and a cantankerous old widower. Bella Brown is a beautifully quirky young woman who dreams of writing and illustrating a successful children’s book. After she is forced by her landlord to deal with her neglected garden or face eviction, she meets her match, nemesis, and unlikely mentor in Alfie Stephenson, a grumpy, loveless, old man who lives next door who happens to be an amazing horticulturalist.

While hiding from bullies in his school's attic, a young boy discovers the extraordinary land of Fantasia, through a magical book called The Neverending Story. The book tells the tale of Atreyu, a young warrior who, with the help of a luck dragon named Falkor, must save Fantasia from the destruction of The Nothing.

After the Evil Queen marries the King, she performs a violent coup in which the King is murdered and his daughter, Snow White, is taken captive. Almost a decade later, a grown Snow White is still in the clutches of the Queen. In order to obtain immortality, The Evil Queen needs the heart of Snow White. After Snow escapes the castle, the Queen sends the Huntsman to find her in the Dark Forest.

Sasha is a young vampire with a serious problem: she's too sensitive to kill. When her exasperated parents cut off her blood supply, Sasha's life is in jeopardy. Luckily, she meets Paul, a lonely teenager with suicidal tendencies who is willing to give his life to save hers. But their friendly agreement soon becomes a nocturnal quest to fulfill Paul's last wishes before day breaks.

Simon Birch and Joe Wenteworth are boys who have a reputation for being oddballs. Joe never knew his father, and his mother, Rebecca, is keeping her lips sealed no matter how much he protests. Simon, meanwhile, is an 11-year-old dwarf whose outsize personality belies his small stature. Indeed, he often assails the local reverend with thorny theological questions and joins Joe on his quest to find his biological father.

In post–War England, a writer and sometime-ghost hunter investigates a reported haunting at a boys boarding school.

A small-town shoemaker with a knack for spinning yarns, Hans encounters happiness and heartbreak on his road to becoming a full-fledged writer.

A mother concerned about her young son's disturbing behavior thinks something supernatural may be affecting him.

Following a plane crash a group of schoolboys find themselves on a deserted island. They appoint a leader and attempt to create an organized society for the sake of their survival. Democracy and order soon begin to crumble when a breakaway faction regresses to savagery with horrifying consequences.

Angus is a large, pathetic 14-year-old whose thoughts are most often filled with the image of only one girl, Melissa Lefevre. Angus is shy and thinks that he has no chance of ever 'getting' her. Being especially uncool, he is incredibly surprised (along with the rest of the school) that he is chosen to dance with her at the Winter Ball. The only one not surprised is the cool kid who set him up to fail, but Angus' best friend is going to help him win the heart of Melissa by developing a new look for him

In the town of Blithe Hollow, Norman Babcock can speak to the dead, but no one other than his eccentric new friend believes his ability is real. One day, Norman's eccentric uncle tells him of a ritual he must perform to protect the town from a curse cast by a witch centuries ago.

When their plane crashes, 25 schoolboys find themselves trapped on a tropical island, miles from civilization.

A twist on the morality tale of forbidden love between the beautiful Belle and the feared Beast. As the villagers are being brutally murdered and the Beast is hunted down as the one responsible for the mayhem, Belle and Beast team up to defeat the real killer; the power-hungry witch's malevolent troll.

Set in a surface mine, two boys sink into a seemingly innocent power game with Mother Nature as the sole observer.

A pair of rivaling stage magicians are forced to confront their falling out over a guillotine mishap when they compete in a magic competition.

Susan, a single mother of two, works as a waitress in a small town. Her son, Henry, is an 11-year-old genius who not only manages the family finances but acts as emotional support for his mother and younger brother. When Henry discovers that the girl next door has a terrible secret, he implores Susan to take matters into her own hands.

Chronicling the troubled existence of Duncan Mudge, a 14-year-old misfit who—while vying for the attention of his vacant father—struggles to fill the void brought on by his mother's sudden death.

Telling the true story of Marvin Bijou, a young boy from a working-class family in a small village, who suffers constant bullying at school and home for being ‘different’ – too sensitive and too feminine. A chance encounter with a drama teacher opens the doors to a world that offers him the chance to escape his situation.

Young orphan Heathcliff is adopted by the wealthy Earnshaw family and moves into their estate, Wuthering Heights. Soon, the new resident falls for his compassionate foster sister, Cathy. The two share a remarkable bond that seems unbreakable until Cathy, feeling the pressure of social convention, suppresses her feelings and marries Edgar Linton, a man of means who befits her stature. Heathcliff vows to win her back.

When her father unexpectedly passes away, young Ella finds herself at the mercy of her cruel stepmother and her daughters. Never one to give up hope, Ella's fortunes begin to change after meeting a dashing stranger in the woods.

Forty-year-old misanthrope, Guy Trilby, enters the National Golden Quill Spelling Bee through a loophole in the rules.

Several people try to take advantage of a little girl's innocence to hustle money her mom gave to her to buy a goldfish with.

The evil Iago pretends to be friend of Othello in order to manipulate him to serve his own end in the film version of this Shakespeare classic.

Storm Boy lives a lonely life with his reclusive father on a desolate coastline, but when he forms a close bond with a pelican, Mr. Percival, his life takes a new and unexpected turn.

In a small town in Maine, seven children known as The Losers Club come face to face with life problems, bullies and a monster that takes the shape of a clown called Pennywise.

When a feisty little fox named Tod is adopted into a farm family, he quickly becomes friends with a fun and adorable hound puppy named Copper. Life is full of hilarious adventures until Copper is expected to take on his role as a hunting dog -- and the object of his search is his best friend!

