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Movies like Wilson

Key Features:
Divorce, Mid-life crisis, Existential angst, Social awkwardness, Self-discovery, Reconnection, Family dynamics, Character study, Cynical protagonist, Personal growth, Relationship drama, Nudity-moderate
Tone:
cynical, humorous, dramatic
Target Audience:
Indie film lovers, Character-driven stories, Cynical humor fans, Relationship dramas
Emotional Arc:
Isolation → Reflection → Hope

Wilson

2017-03-24
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Middle-aged and divorced, Wilson finds himself lonely, smug, and obsessed with his past.

Genres
Comedy, Drama
Cast
Woody Harrelson, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Cheryl Hines, Isabella Amara, Laura Dern, Judy Greer, Brett Gelman, Margo Martindale, David Warshofsky, Sandy Oian-Thomas
Crew
Craig Johnson, Daniel Clowes
Rating
6(374 votes)
WilsonWilson
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Young Adult
5.8

A divorced writer from the Midwest returns to her hometown to reconnect with an old flame, who's now married with a family.



Melinda and Melinda
6.178

While dining out with friends, Sy suggests the difficulty of separating comedy from tragedy. To illustrate his point, he tells his guests two parallel stories about Melinda ; both versions have the same basic elements, but one take on her state of affairs leans toward levity, while the other is full of anguish. Each story involves Melinda coping with a recent divorce through substance abuse while beginning a romantic relationship with a close friend's husband.



Starting Over
6.3

After divorcing his ambitious singer wife, a middle-aged man begins a new relationship with a teacher.



Crazy, Stupid, Love.

Cal Weaver is living the American dream. He has a good job, a beautiful house, great children and a beautiful wife, named Emily. Cal's seemingly perfect life unravels, however, when he learns that Emily has been unfaithful and wants a divorce. Over 40 and suddenly single, Cal is adrift in the fickle world of dating. Enter, Jacob Palmer, a self-styled player who takes Cal under his wing and teaches him how to be a hit with the ladies.



Husbands and Wives

When their best friends announce that they're separating, a professor and his wife discover the faults in their own marriage.



Demolition
6.8

An emotionally desperate investment banker finds hope through a woman he meets.



Management
5.365

A traveling art saleswoman tries to shake off a flaky motel manager who falls for her and won't leave her alone.



Enough Said
6.7

Eva is a divorced soon-to-be empty-nester wondering about her next act. Then she meets Marianne, the embodiment of her perfect self. Armed with a restored outlook on being middle-aged and single, Eva decides to take a chance on her new love interest Albert — a sweet, funny and like-minded man. But things get complicated when Eva discovers that Albert is in fact the dreaded ex–husband of Marianne...



It's Complicated
6.5

Ten years after their divorce, Jane and Jake Adler unite for their son's college graduation and unexpectedly end up sleeping together. But Jake is married, and Jane is embarking on a new romance with her architect. Now, she has to sort out her life—just when she thought she had it all figured out.



Solitary Man
5.904

A car magnate watches his personal and professional life hit the skids because of his business and romantic indiscretions.



A Simple Story
5.9

A middle-aged woman leaves her partner and drifts back to her ex-husband, while the lives of her middle class friends intersect with her own.



Gloria
Gloria(2013)
6.6

Gloria is a 58-year-old divorcée. Her children have all left home but she has no desire to spend her days and nights alone. Determined to defy old age and loneliness, she rushes headlong into a whirl of singles’ parties on the hunt for instant gratification – which only leads to repeated disappointment and enduring emptiness. But when Gloria meets Rodolfo, an ex-naval officer seven years her senior, she begins to imagine the possibility of a permanent relationship.



Broken Flowers
6.921

Introverted Don Johnston receives an anonymous letter from an ex-lover informing him that he has a son who may be looking for him. A freelance sleuth neighbor motivates Don to embark on a cross-country search for his past flames seeking answers.



Marriage Story
7.7

A stage director and an actress struggle through a grueling, coast-to-coast divorce that pushes them to their personal extremes.



Hope Springs
6.262

After thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an intense, week-long counseling session to work on their relationship.



Fathers and Daughters

A Pulitzer-winning writer grapples with being a widower and father after a mental breakdown, while, 27 years later, his grown daughter struggles to forge connections of her own.



The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected)

An estranged family gathers together in New York for an event celebrating the artistic work of their father.



Manhattan
Manhattan(1979)
7.7

Manhattan explores how the life of a middle-aged television writer dating a teenage girl is further complicated when he falls in love with his best friend's mistress.



Goodbye to All That

Otto Wall is just a little unlucky in life, and unbeknownst to him, in love. When his wife suddenly asks for a divorce, he bounces between a search for answers, desperate attempts to stay connected to his daughter, and his fateful reentry into the dating pool.



Wakefield
Wakefield(2017)
6.134

A man's nervous breakdown causes him to leave his wife and live in his attic for several months.



About Schmidt
6.839

A recently retired man embarks on a journey to his estranged daughter's wedding, only to discover more about himself and life than he ever expected.



The Humbling
5.1

Following a breakdown and suicide attempt, an aging actor becomes involved with a much younger woman but soon finds that it's difficult to keep pace with her.



Made in Italy
6.067

Riko is an honest and hardworking man who can count on a group of real friends and a loving wife. Things change after he loses his job and experiences a midlife crisis.



People, Places, Things

Will Henry is a newly single graphic novelist balancing being a parent to his young twin daughters and teaching a classroom full of college students, all the while trying to navigate the rich complexities of new love and letting go of the woman who left him.



Shrink
Shrink(2009)
6.186

Unable to cope with a recent personal tragedy, LA's top celebrity shrink turns into a pothead with no concern for his appearance and a creeping sense of his inability to help his patients.



Jackie & Ryan
5.86

A modern day train hopper fighting to be a successful musician and a single mom battling to maintain custody of her daughter defy their circumstances by coming together in a relationship that may change each others lives forever.



Meet Bill
Meet Bill(2007)
6.1

A mild-mannered bank executive mentors a teenage con artist and tries to make a career change as a doughnut merchant.



Men, Women & Children
6.451

Follows the story of a group of high school teenagers and their parents as they attempt to navigate the many ways the internet has changed their relationships, their communication, their self-image, and their love lives.



The Royal Tenenbaums
7.464

Royal Tenenbaum and his wife Etheline had three children and then they separated. All three children are extraordinary --- all geniuses. Virtually all memory of the brilliance of the young Tenenbaums was subsequently erased by two decades of betrayal, failure, and disaster. Most of this was generally considered to be their father's fault. "The Royal Tenenbaums" is the story of the family's sudden, unexpected reunion one recent winter.



Funny People
5.9

Famous and wealthy funnyman George Simmons doesn't give much thought to how he treats people until a doctor delivers stunning health news, forcing George to reevaluate his priorities with a little help from aspiring stand-up comic Ira.



The Crisis
6.9

Victor is a legal advisor who finds himself abandoned by his wife and fired the same day. He tries to seek comfort from different friends and family members, but everyone he meets is concerned with their own problems. His morale begins to falter when he realizes that no one cares about him.



Birds of America
5.4

A regular guy struggles with a repressive home and professional life, as well as making amends for the trouble his free-spirited brother and sister cause about town.



Infinitely Polar Bear
6.631

A manic-depressive mess of a father tries to win back his wife by attempting to take full responsibility of their two young, spirited daughters, who don't make the overwhelming task any easier.



Shortcomings
6

When his girlfriend leaves for New York City on a 3-month-long internship, a strongly opinionated Berkeley arthouse movie theater manager begins exploring life as a bachelor.



A Dog's Purpose
7.639

A dog goes on quest to discover his purpose in life over the course of several lifetimes with multiple owners.



Life During Wartime

Friends, family, and lovers struggle to find love, forgiveness, and meaning in an almost war-torn world riddled with comedy and pathos.



Dad
Dad(1989)
6.385

A busy executive learns during a meeting that his mother may be dying and rushes home to her side. He ends up being his father's caretaker and becomes closer to him than ever before. Estranged from his own son, the executive comes to realize what has been missing in his own life.



The Guitar
5.5

The life of a woman is transformed after she is diagnosed with a terminal disease, fired from her job and abandoned by her boyfriend. Given two months to live, she throws caution to the wind to pursue her dreams.



Hollywood Ending
6.483

Woody Allen stars as Val Waxman, a two-time Oscar winner turned washed-up, neurotic director in desperate need of a comeback. When it comes, Waxman finds himself backed into a corner: Work for his ex-wife Ellie or forfeit his last shot. Is Val blinded by love when he opts for the reconnect? Is love blind when it comes to Ellie's staunch support? Literally and figuratively, the proof is the picture.



Thunder Road
6.797

A police officer faces a personal meltdown following a divorce and the death of his mother.



Interstate 60
7.383

An aspiring painter meets various characters and learns valuable lessons while traveling across America.



Ex
Ex(2009)
5.721

Six people struggling with their relationship, or lack thereof, cross paths with their respective exes — and discover they might still harbor feelings for each other.



Celebrity
Celebrity(1998)
5.965

The career and personal life of writer Lee are at a standstill, so he divorces his bashful wife, Robin, and dives into a new job as an entertainment journalist. His assignments take him to the swankiest corners of Manhattan, but as he jumps from one lavish party to another and engages in numerous empty romances, he starts to doubt the worth of his work. Meanwhile, top TV producer Tony falls for Robin and introduces her to the world of celebrity.



Father Figures
5.8

Upon learning that their mother has been lying to them for years about their allegedly deceased father, two fraternal twin brothers hit the road in order to find him.



Sideways
Sideways(2004)
7.1

Two middle-aged men embark on a spiritual journey through Californian wine country. One is an unpublished novelist suffering from depression, and the other is only days away from walking down the aisle.



The Misfits
6.9

While filing for a divorce, beautiful ex-stripper Roslyn Taber ends up meeting aging cowboy-turned-gambler Gay Langland and former World War II aviator Guido Racanelli. The two men instantly become infatuated with Roslyn and, on a whim, the three decide to move into Guido's half-finished desert home together. When grizzled ex-rodeo rider Perce Howland arrives, the unlikely foursome strike up a business capturing wild horses.



A.C.O.D.
A.C.O.D.(2013)
5.484

A grown man is still caught in the crossfire of his parents' 15 year divorce. He discovers he was unknowingly part of a study on divorced children and is enlisted in a follow-up years later, which wreaks new havoc on his family.



St. Vincent
7.1

A young boy whose parents just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic, war veteran who lives next door.



Arthur
Arthur(2011)
5.6

A drunken playboy stands to lose a wealthy inheritance when he falls for a woman that his family doesn't like.



The Confirmation
6.405

A divorced father reconnects with his son when they track down a stolen toolbox over the course of a weekend.



Liberal Arts
6.45

Newly single, 35, and uninspired by his job, Jesse Fisher worries that his best days are behind him. But no matter how much he buries his head in a book, life keeps pulling Jesse back. When his favorite college professor invites him to campus to speak at his retirement dinner, Jesse jumps at the chance.



Jealous
Jealous(2017)
5.9

A divorced teacher suddenly becomes jealous of everyone, including her daughter, friends and neighbors.



American Beauty
8.003

Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation with his daughter's attractive friend.



Boulevard
Boulevard(2014)
5.7

Nolan Mack, a soft-spoken bank employee, undoubtedly loves his wife Joy, though their cavernous empty house only underscores how disconnected they’ve always been from each other. Nolan finds himself drifting from his familiar present-day life in pursuit of lost time after meeting a troubled young man named Leo on his drive home. What begins as an aimless drive down an unfamiliar street turns into a life-altering series of events.



Matchstick Men
7.005

A phobic con artist and his protege are on the verge of pulling off a lucrative swindle when the con artist's teenage daughter arrives unexpectedly.



The Wendell Baker Story

Luke Wilson plays a good-hearted ex-con who gets a job in a retirement hotel. Three elderly residents help him win back his girlfriend as he lends them a hand in fighting hotel corruption.



The Kid
The Kid(2000)
6.747

Powerful businessman Russ Duritz is self-absorbed and immersed in his work. But by the magic of the moon, he meets Rusty, a chubby, charming 8-year-old version of himself who can't believe he could turn out so badly – with no life and no dog. With Rusty's help, Russ is able to reconcile the person he used to dream of being with the man he's actually become.



The Private Lives of Pippa Lee

After her much older husband forces a move to a suburban retirement community, Pippa Lee engages in a period of reflection and finds herself heading toward a quiet nervous breakdown.



Old Dads
Old Dads(2023)
6.2

A cranky middle-aged dad and his two best friends find themselves out of step in a changing world of millennial CEOs and powerful preschool principals.



Just Friends
6.218

While visiting his hometown during Christmas, a man comes face-to-face with his old high school crush whom he was best friends with – a woman whose rejection of him turned him into a ferocious womanizer.



Goodrich
Goodrich(2024)
6.315

Andy Goodrich's life is upended when his wife enters a rehab program, leaving him on his own with their young kids. Goodrich leans on his daughter from his first marriage, Grace, as he ultimately evolves into the father Grace never had.



Results
Results(2015)
5.048

Two mismatched personal trainers' lives are upended by the actions of a new, wealthy client.



Mr. Roosevelt
6.151

A young woman returns home and must confront her ex-boyfriend when an unexpected tragedy occurs.



Chinese Puzzle
6.571

Xavier is a 40-year-old father of two who still finds life very complicated. When the mother of his children moves to New York, he can't bear them growing up far away from him and so he decides to move there as well.



Rabbit Hole
6.665

Life for a happy couple is turned upside down after their young son dies in an accident.



The Souvenir: Part II

In the aftermath of her tumultuous relationship with a charismatic and manipulative older man, Julie begins to untangle her fraught love for him in making her graduation film, sorting fact from his elaborately constructed fiction.



Husbands
Husbands(1970)
6.7

A common friend's sudden death brings three men, married with children, to reconsider their lives and ultimately leave the country together. But mindless enthusiasm for regained freedom will be short-lived.



Separation
5.692

A young girl finds solace in her artist father and the ghost of her dead mother.



Nebraska
Nebraska(2013)
7.449

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.



Happiness
Happiness(1998)
7.4

The lives of several individuals intertwine as they go about their lives in their own unique ways, engaging in acts which society as a whole might find disturbing in a desperate search for human connection.



Storytelling
6.5

College and high school serve as the backdrop for two stories about dysfunction and personal turmoil.



Murphy's Romance
6.1

Emma, a divorced single mother seeking to start her life over, moves to a small town in Arizona. She befriends Murphy, the older local pharmacist, but things turn complicated when her ex-husband shows up.



I ♥ Huckabees
6.287

A husband-and-wife team play detective, but not in the traditional sense. Instead, the happy duo helps others solve their existential issues, the kind that keep you up at night, wondering what it all means.



Old Joy
Old Joy(2006)
6.3

Soon to be a father, Mark feels the pressure of domestic responsibility closing in, so he is more than happy to accept when his old friend Kurt proposes a camping trip in the Oregon wilderness. During their time together, the men come to grips with the changes in their lives and the effect on their relationship.



Crimes and Misdemeanors

A renowned ophthalmologist is desperate to cut off an adulterous relationship…which ends up in murder; and a frustrated documentary filmmaker woos an attractive television producer while making a film about her insufferably self-centered boss.



Common Wealth
6.9

Julia, a real estate agent, finds an enormous amount of money hidden in a dead man's apartment, a stroke of luck that will force her to face the wrath of the very peculiar inhabitants of the community, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on the money.



Almost Friends
6.3

A man in his mid-20s, still living at home with his mother and stepfather, puts all his eggs in one basket: the girl who works at his local coffee shop. The problem is, she has a serious boyfriend. As they become closer, the line between friendship and intimacy is blurred, and the situation forces both to examine where they are in their lives.



Breakup Buddies
6.132

Recently cuckolded and reeling from a messy divorce, a hapless former singer hits the road - and the bar - with his all-too-helpful best bud, in this hilarious romantic comedy.



Friendship
6.5

Suburban dad Craig falls hard for his charismatic new neighbor Austin, and his attempts to make an adult male friend threatens to ruin both of their lives.



Lucky
Lucky(2017)
7.3

Follows the journey of a 90-year-old atheist and the quirky characters that inhabit his off-the-map desert town. He finds himself at the precipice of life, thrust into a journey of self-exploration.



In a Relationship
5.733

Long-term couple Owen and Hallie are breaking up—or maybe not?—and just as their relationship reaches a turning point, Matt and Willa embark on a romance of their own.



Crazy Heart
6.923

When reporter Jean Craddock interviews Bad Blake—an alcoholic, seen-better-days country music legend—they connect, and the hard-living crooner sees a possible saving grace in a life with Jean and her young son.



Bliss
Bliss(2021)
5.498

A mind-bending love story following Greg who, after recently being divorced and then fired, meets the mysterious Isabel, a woman living on the streets and convinced that the polluted, broken world around them is just a computer simulation. Doubtful at first, Greg eventually discovers there may be some truth to Isabel’s wild conspiracy.



Wrestling Ernest Hemingway

Frank, a retired Irish seaman, and Walter, a retired Cuban barber, are two lonely old men trapped in the emptiness of their own lives. When they meet in a park Frank is able to start a conversation after several attempts. They begin to spend time together and become friends. But because of their different characters they often quarrel with each other and finally seperate after Frank misbehaves to Walter's friend Elaine.



Barbecue
Barbecue(2014)
5.822

On his 50th birthday, a man who's been watching his weight, health and temper all his life suffers a heart attack. He's been doing everything he was told he should do and it still didn't help. He decides to turn the page and let loose.



Married Life
5.774

A very gentle middle-aged man is married, but when he falls in love with another woman, he decides that to divorce his wife would humiliate her too much – so instead he decides to kill her.



Hope
Hope(2019)
6.9

Together for 20 years, a couple that has grown apart over time receives difficult news that will impact the entire family. As they try to make sense of the changes, they end up rediscovering their love for one another.



Rampart
Rampart(2011)
5.442

The story follows veteran police officer Dave Brown, the last of the renegade cops, as he struggles to take care of his family, and fights for his own survival.



While We're Young

An uptight documentary filmmaker and his wife find their lives loosened up a bit after befriending a free-spirited younger couple.



Simple Men
6.698

Two diametrically opposite brothers set off on a journey to reunite with their estranged father but when their motorcycle breaks down while passing through a small town, they become entangled in local life.



Mother
Mother(1996)
6.8

A neurotic, twice-divorced sci-fi writer moves back in with his mother to solve his personal problems.



When Margaux Meets Margaux

20-year-old Margaux makes the acquaintance of 45-year-old Margaux: they have a lot in common – so much so that it turns out they are one and the same person, at two different ages and stages of their life…



Modern Romance
6.744

A film editor breaks up with his girlfriend, unsure if he is in love.



Marley & Me
7.191

A newly married couple, in the process of starting a family, learn many of life's important lessons from their trouble-loving retriever, Marley. Packed with plenty of laughs to lighten the load, the film explores the highs and lows of marriage, maturity and confronting one's own mortality, as seen through the lens of family life with a dog.



A Fantastic Back and Forth

Middle-aged family man Arnaldo is kicked out by his wife because of a misunderstanding. Instead of despairing, Arnaldo takes advantage of the situation to turn around his unsatisfying adult life by going to live in a flat shared with four university students.



Once Around
6

Renata Bella feels like a failure at life and career. But when Renata attends a seminar on selling real estate, she finally finds True Love. Sam Sharpe, while a top-notch, successful salesman, is much older than Renata. She is swept away by his excessively flamboyant style and irrepressible nature. The very traits she finds romantic, however, lead to repeated conflict with her family, especially her beloved father Joe, leaving Renata trapped in the middle.



Heartburn
Heartburn(1986)
6

She's a magazine writer who gives up her career for love and family. He's a playboy newspaper columnist who can't quite give up his old tricks. And if that combination doesn't give a relationship heartburn, nothing will.



Entertainment
5.594

Set in the Mojave Desert, the film follows a broken-down comedian playing clubs across the Southwest, working his way to Los Angeles to meet his estranged daughter.



Nobody's Fool
6.8

A rascally nearing-retirement man juggles a workers' compensation suit while secretly working for his nemesis and flirting with his nemesis' young wife. As his estranged son returns, he faces new family responsibilities, while a banker plots to evict him from his home.

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