Movies Like Happiness Is a Choice

If you liked Happiness Is a Choice (1984), a movie directed by Fred Holmes, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
Off the Map (2003)
★ 6.4/10
An 11-year-old girl watches her father come down with a crippling depression. Over one summer, she learns answers to several mysteries and comes to terms with love and loss.
2
To Write Love on Her Arms (2015)
★ 6.7/10
The story follows 19-year-old Renee who has always loved fairy tales: the idea of a princess, a hero and a happily ever after. But Renee’s life is that of a darker tale: she’s a young woman battling addiction…
3
The Other (2025)
★ 6.3/10
Unable to conceive, a couple seeks to build a family with a young orphan, survivor of tragic childhood. But their act of love turns to horror when they realize the violence in their foster's past has returned to…
4
Greenberg (2010)
★ 5.9/10
Roger Greenberg, a failed musician now making a living as a carpenter in New York, returns to Los Angeles to house-sit for his brother. He's stranded there—since he doesn't drive—until his brother's assistant…
5
Sometimes I Think About Dying (2024)
★ 6.8/10
Fran likes to think about dying. It brings sensation to her quiet life. When she makes the new guy at work laugh, it leads to more: a date, a slice of pie, a conversation, a spark. The only thing standing in their way…
6
Vertigo (1958)
★ 8.1/10
A retired San Francisco detective suffering from acrophobia investigates the strange activities of an old friend's wife, all the while becoming dangerously obsessed with her.
7
Seconds (1966)
★ 7.4/10
An unhappy middle-aged banker agrees to a procedure that will fake his death and give him a completely new look and identity; one that comes with its own price.
8
Nobody's Fool (2018)
★ 6/10
After serving five years in prison, wild child Tanya looks to her buttoned-up, by-the-book sister Danica to help her get back on her feet. The feisty ex-con becomes suspicious and concerned when Danica tells her that…
9
Helen (2009)
★ 6.5/10
On the outside, Helen has it all – a loving family and a successful career – but when her suppressed mental illness resurfaces, the world crumbles around her. Crippled by depression, Helen finds solace through her…
10
Petulia (1968)
★ 6/10
Dr. Archie Bollen is having a midlife crisis. He's just divorced his wife and is establishing a new life for himself. One night, he catches the eye of Petulia Danner, a charming, free-spirited young woman. Petulia's…
11
I'm Thinking of Ending Things (2020)
★ 6.5/10
Nothing is as it seems when a woman experiencing misgivings about her new boyfriend joins him on a road trip to meet his parents at their remote farm.
12
On the Count of Three (2022)
★ 6.4/10
Val has reached a place where he feels the only way out is to end things. But he considers himself a bit of a failure—his effectiveness lacking—so he figures he could use some help. As luck would have it, Val’s best…
13
Memoir of a Snail (2024)
★ 8.1/10
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.
14
The Beaver (2011)
★ 6.4/10
Suffering from a severe case of depression, toy company CEO Walter Black begins using a beaver hand puppet to help him open up to his family. With his father seemingly going insane, adolescent son Porter pushes for his…
15
Christmas On My Mind (2019)
★ 6.4/10
When Lucy wakes up with a wedding dress in hand, she believes that she is late to her wedding with her ex-boyfriend Zac. However, she has no recollection of the past 2 years, including the fact that she is engaged to…
16
Blue Heron (2026)
★ 6.6/10
A family of six's fresh start on 1990s Vancouver Island unravels as their youngest child, Sasha, witnesses the increasingly dangerous behavior of her older brother, Jeremy.
17
Corner Office (2023)
★ 6.5/10
In this office satire, Orson, a straight-laced employee, retreats to a blissfully empty corner office to get away from his lackluster colleagues. But why does this seem to upset them so much?
18
Strange Weather (2016)
★ 5.9/10
Years after her son's suicide, a woman longs to confront both the past and a friend of his who took his business idea.
19
In Good Company (2004)
★ 6.1/10
Dan Foreman is a seasoned advertisement sales executive at a high-ranking publication when a corporate takeover results in him being placed under naive supervisor Carter Duryea, who is half his age. Matters are made…
20
The Double (2014)
★ 6.5/10
An awkward office drone becomes increasingly unhinged after a charismatic and confident look-alike takes a job at his workplace and seduces the woman he desires.