Movies Like A Man Whose Life Was Full of Woe Has Been Surprised by Joy

If you liked A Man Whose Life Was Full of Woe Has Been Surprised by Joy (1997), a movie directed by R. Bruce Elder, 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
Jules (2023)
★ 7.1/10
A flying saucer lands in the backyard of an elderly suburbanite with memory problems, who forms a bond with the scared alien inside.
2
The Rule of Jenny Pen (2025)
★ 6.1/10
Confined to a secluded rest home and trapped within his stroke-ridden body, a former Judge must stop an elderly psychopath who employs a child's puppet to abuse the home's residents with deadly consequences.
3
Lucky (2017)
★ 7.3/10
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.
4
Elegy (2008)
★ 6.3/10
Cultural critic David Kepesh finds his life -- which he indicates is a state of "emancipated manhood" -- thrown into tragic disarray by Consuela Castillo, a well-mannered student who awakens a sense of sexual…
5
The Addams Family (1991)
★ 7.1/10
When a man claiming to be long-lost Uncle Fester reappears after 25 years lost, the family plans a celebration to wake the dead. But the kids barely have time to warm up the electric chair before Morticia begins to…
6
Cutie and the Boxer (2013)
★ 6.9/10
This candid New York love story explores the chaotic 40-year marriage of famed boxing painter Ushio Shinohara and his wife, Noriko. Anxious to shed her role as her overbearing husband's assistant, Noriko finds an…
7
The Giver (2014)
★ 6.6/10
In a seemingly perfect community, without war, pain, suffering, differences or choice, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man about the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world.
8
The Master (2012)
★ 7.1/10
Freddie, a volatile, heavy-drinking veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, finds some semblance of a family when he stumbles onto the ship of Lancaster Dodd, the charismatic leader of a new "religion"…
9
The Father (2020)
★ 8.1/10
A man refuses all assistance from his daughter as he ages and, as he tries to make sense of his changing circumstances, he begins to doubt his loved ones, his own mind and even the fabric of his reality.
10
Upside Down (2012)
★ 6.3/10
In an alternate universe where twinned worlds have opposite gravities, a young man battles interplanetary prejudice and the laws of physics in his quest to reunite with the long-lost girl of his dreams in this visually…
11
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…
12
Ruby Sparks (2012)
★ 7.1/10
Calvin is a young novelist who achieved phenomenal success early in his career but is now struggling with his writing – as well as his romantic life. Finally, he makes a breakthrough and creates a character named Ruby…
13
The Zero Theorem (2013)
★ 6.1/10
A computer hacker's goal to discover the reason for human existence continually finds his work interrupted thanks to the Management; this time, they send a teenager and lusty love interest to distract him.
14
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022)
★ 7/10
Nancy Stokes, a retired schoolteacher, is pretty sure she has never had good sex. Now that her husband has died, she is determined to take a tour of sexual vistas that until now she has only imagined. She even has a…
15
I Want Your Sex (2026)
★ 6/10
When a naive young man becomes the sexual muse for a renowned and provocative artist, his dream job quickly turns dangerous as he is drawn into an obsessive world of power, betrayal, and murder.
16
All of Me (1984)
★ 6.5/10
Just before stubborn millionaire Edwina Cutwater dies, she asks her uptight lawyer, Roger Cobb, to amend her will so that her soul will pass to the young, vibrant Terry Hoskins – but the spiritual transference goes…
17
Equals (2015)
★ 6.1/10
A futuristic love story set in a world where emotions have been eradicated.
18
Limelight (1952)
★ 7.9/10
A fading music hall comedian tries to help a despondent ballet dancer learn to walk and to again feel confident about life.
19
Garden State (2004)
★ 7.1/10
Andrew returns to his hometown for his mother’s funeral, a journey that reconnects him with old friends. The trip coincides with his decision to stop taking his powerful antidepressants. A chance meeting with Sam—a…
20
Problemista (2024)
★ 6.7/10
Alejandro is an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador, struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in New York City. As time on his work visa runs out, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast becomes his only…