Film/NS/Tear Jerker: Difference between revisions

* ''Offside'', the movie about the Iranian women trying to sneak into the World Cup qualifying match, when the First Girl tells everyone on the bus why she was at the football match. And then they light the sparklers.

* All of ''Okuribito'' (Departures); it's about a guy who learns how to clean, dress, and make up bodies for burial, ''in front of their families''. Naturally, the biggest tear jerker comes at the end when {{spoiler|Daigo claims the body of his long-[[Disappeared Dad]] and finally remembers his face.}}

* ''[[Om Natten]]'' (At Night), a short Danish film nominated for the Oscar for Best Live Action Short Film: It depicts the lives of three young women living with cancer. One of them is about to undergo a risky procedure that will either save her or kill her. She breaks down in front of her father, saying she doesn't want to go through with it, and she's sorry she can't be stronger or brave like he wants her to.

* ''[[Pay It Forward]]''

** when {{spoiler|the kid dies}}.

* At the end of the 2003 version of ''[[Peter Pan]]'' with Aunt Millicent. "Then I... am your mother".

** Then there's Mr. Darling trying to contain his immense relief that his children are okay in the end and tries to act formal, only shaking John's hand... which backfires in them hugging each other in tears.

* ''[[The Pianist]]''. This movie is visually stunning, and hits home several times.

* ''[[The Piano]]''. The scene with the axe.

* The BBC documentary "The Pink Floyd And Syd Barrett Story", of all movies. When they played "Shine On, You Crazy Diamond" at the end they very nearly had me in tears...

* The final church scene in ''Places in the Heart''.

* ''[[The Polar Express]]''

** The scene where the boy tries to believe so he can hear the beautiful bell's sound, where he finally sees Santa Claus, when he gets chosen to receive the first gift of Christmas, when he loses the bell and subsequently regains it, and when the epilogue reveals that only he can hear the bell's "sweet, sweet sound", as can those who truly believe.

* ''[[Prayers for Bobby]]'': No matter what your opinion on the film's controversial theme, the Griffith family's heart-wrenching devastation to the news that {{spoiler|Bobby committed suicide}} has got to have a lasting impact for any viewer.

* ''[[The Prestige]]''... the [[People Jars]], Borden's adorable daughter who looks like something out of an American Girl doll catalogue, {{spoiler|the awkward brotherly moments, Borden ready to be hanged, the deaths of the two guys' respective wives... 'Which knot did you tie?'...}} BUT MOST OF ALL, THE BIRDS. They make very clear that {{spoiler|when they look like they've just crushed a poor innocent canary? They have.}}

** The part with Tesla talking about obsessions can be really jarring for who suffers from [[Super OCD|obsessive compulsive disorder]].

* "Today-ay-ay I consider myself-elf-elf the luckiest man-an-an on the face of the earth-rth-rth." --Lou Gehrig, ''[[Pride Of The Yankees]]''.

** ''"This is for Matilda." Cue tears.''

* Both of the scenes in ''[[The Proposition]]'' that involve Sam singing "Peggy Gordon", an old Irish drinking song. The first time is {{spoiler|intercut with a scene of Mikey, a mentally-handicapped teenager, being brutally flogged}}. The second time he sings it, {{spoiler|he's raping [[Emily Watson]]'s character}}. There's also something sad about watching {{spoiler|[[Alas, Poor Villain|Arthur die, even if he deserves it]]}}.

* ''[[Rabbit Proof Fence]]'': Molly and Daisy finally make it home but [[Bittersweet Ending|Gracie didn't]]. Molly apologizing to her grandmother for having lost her is so heartbreaking.

*** [http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj8_ZBeb-2E Brian Tyler's musical motif "Battle Adagio." It would take one with a heart of stone to not get teary eyed to this theme.]

* ''[[Rango]]'' has one in Rango's [[Heroic BSOD]], after Rattlesnake Jake calls him out on his tall tales and runs him out of town. He wanders alone across the desert night with a lost and forlorn look on his face, until he gets to the highway. Rango finds his [[Companion Cube|imaginary friends]], then sits there watching the traffic for a bit before finally saying to himself "[[Arc Words|Who am I?]] ...I'm nobody."

* ''[[Reign Over Me]]'', featuring an amazing dramatic performance by Adam Sandler

** When the lawyer {{spoiler|showed Charlie the photo of his dead family. It felt really good when the judge (Donald Sutherland) tells him point-blank to shut up.}}

** "Didn't Know I'd Love You So Much".

** "Cromaggia". It may have been Blind Mag's [[Awesome Moment]], but it's a gut-wrenching one.

* ''[[Reservoir Dogs]]''. It doesn't really incite tears, but the sadness at the tragic conclusion lingers for days. There are also scenes earlier in the film showcasing Mr Orange's agony and terror and Mr White's attempts to comfort him that really tug at the heartstrings.

* ''[[Return of the Living Dead]]'' has the scene where Frank, upon realizing that his time was coming because of Trioxin, walks to a burning oven, kisses his wedding ring, hangs it on a switch, offers a final prayer to the Lord for forgiveness for what he's about to do, climbs into the oven, and shuts himself in. The scene makes even the background music (titled "Burn the Flames", for those wondering) sound poignant.

* The ending of ''Ring 0: Birthday''. As a prequel, you ''know'' it's coming, but that doesn't make the ending any less powerful and gut-wrenching.

* ''[[Road to Perdition]]''

** When {{spoiler|the mobster fully admits to being a criminal, but would still rather die than work for a Nazi}}.

* The {{spoiler|death of Mickey}} in ''Rocky III'' and later {{spoiler|Apollo Creed}} in ''Rocky IV''.

** This troper couldn't feel anything for the Rocky-sequels, but teared up at the end of the first one. {{spoiler|All he wanted all along was to "go the distance" and not get KO'd. So he doesn't even want to know if he has won. When the points are read all he does is search for "ADRIAAAAN!"}}

* {{spoiler|Richie's suicide attempt}} in ''[[The Royal Tenenbaums]]'' always leads to tears. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pyBB7y8fDU Beautifully shot,] and especially painful considering the haunting Elliott Smith song (and the implications that go along with it).

** Oh my god yes. And also {{spoiler|Royal's death, with Chas holding his hand in his final moments, after they have finally bonded.}}

* ''[[The Rugrats]] Movie'': Near the end of the movie, Tommy Pickles had practically lost it all: he's lost in the middle of the woods with his brother, Dil, and his friends have abandoned him because he wanted to protect his brother over sticking with them. When Tommy tries to take care of Dil during the storm, Dil's newborn greediness kicks in, drinking the last bottle of milk down, then hogs a blanket Tommy was trying to share. When the two rip it and Dil finds it funny, Tommy ''snaps'', tossing away his "'Sponsertility" (a pocket watch Stu Pickles gave him), then dragging Dil out into the rain blaming him for everything wrong that's happened since they got lost. Tommy plans to dump a jar of banana baby food for the circus monkeys to come in and take Dil away, but before he does, Dil looks up at Tommy in pity and fear: his big brother was ''scaring'' him! When Tommy sees himself in a puddle, he realizes what he's become and embraces Dil, apologizing for what he was going to do. Tommy, then, takes them back to their little shelter, retrieves the pocket watch and falls asleep with Dil, singing a small version of a lullaby Stu and Didi were singing in the beginning.

* In ''[[Rumble Fish]]'' the final showdown between The Motorcycle Boy and the police, followed by Rusty James letting the titular fish free into the river... where they stop fighting, just like his big brother promised.

** The book is even sadder--Rusty James is arrested before he can release the fighting fish, and they die on the floor amid the broken glass and the shallow puddles of water.

* ''[[A Sad Movie]]'' is rather mean in that, at first, it makes you think the movie will be tragic (just look at the name!). But then the movie turns out to be a romantic comedy focusing the relationships between four pairs of people. The Tear Jerking comes at the very, very end when {{spoiler|every single one of those four relationships end, at best, bittersweetly. And the movie does this to you just when you think it's all going to be a happy ending for everyone.}}

* ''[[Saw]]'' has a lot of them, but John and Jill's relationship takes the cake. You see how he loved her before {{spoiler|the death of Gideon, their unborn son and John's transition to Jigsaw}}. Just try watching {{spoiler|Jill's miscarrage or the tape to Gideon without crying}}.

** The death of {{spoiler|Josh}} on the Carousel. He KNOWS he's gonna die since his boss's wasted his second choice of survivor ''before he could even [[Incredibly Lame Pun|get a shot]] so he is finally honest with his employer, also forcing him to look him in the eyes and realize that his death, and all of the others who died up to that point is all his fault, and calling him out on his [[Men Are the Expendable Gender|misandrist bias]]. Doubles as a [[Dying Moment of Awesome]].

* ''[[Scott Pilgrim vs. the World]]''

** Scott is on the bus after breaking up with Knives, and then the song Teenage Dream (by T-Rex, not Kate Perry) starts playing.

** Scott comes across Knives after {{spoiler|defeating the Katayanagi Twins}} and the song Anthems for a 17-Year-Old Girl briefly plays in the background as Knives says to him, "I just came to see your show..."

** Both the regular and alternate ending will make you cry, {{spoiler|no matter which girl, Ramona or Knives, you wished Scott would get engaged with, seeing the other one depart alone will still be heart-braking}}.

* ''[[Secondhand Lions]]''. Most of the second half of the movie is a massive [[Tear Jerker|Tear Jerking]] [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]], but the most heartbreaking part is the speech that Uncle Hub (played by an always-terrific Robert Duvall) gives to the protagonist.

** Also, the death of Jasmine the lioness.

* ''[[Selena]]'': [[Downer Ending|The scene in the hospital where her family are told that she did not make it.]]

** The worst part about it, [[Foregone Conclusion|you know it was coming since it happened in REAL LIFE]] as the movie is created as a tribute for the Tejano legend.

* The end of ''[[A Series of Unfortunate Events]]'' when the orphans get the letter from their parents. The music that's playing while she reads it, and the terrible burned up background doesn't help.

** The "One Little Star" song. "One little star, in the darkening blue, do you long for another, just the way that I do?"

* The ending to ''[[Seven Pounds]]''. While the movie was pretty emotional overall, the saddest part was at the end when Will Smith's character {{spoiler|kills himself so that his love interest can have his heart and live}}.

* ''[[Shakespeare in Love]]'', particularly during the end of Romeo and Juliet. And again, when the Queen forbade William and Viola from being together. And AGAIN, when it is shown that Will's next [[Twelfth Night|play]] would be a tragedy, {{spoiler|mirroring Viola's shipwreck on the way to America}}. Their play should be renamed "William and Viola".

* ''[[Shaun of the Dead]]''

** The climax, when {{spoiler|Ed volunteers to be left behind to die so he won't slow Shaun and Liz down}}. Especially the reprise of the joke from earlier - "I'll stop doing it when you stop laughing" / "I'm not laughing" -- and you realise he's really ''not'' laughing: he's crying.

** Shaun says to Liz, {{spoiler|"You don't want to die single, do you?"}}. The look on his face, covered in blood and trying valiantly to smile through his tears...

* ''[[The Shawshank Redemption]]''

** Brook's final monologue and death. It particularly strikes hard {{spoiler|after he hangs himself and the camera pans over his carved message on the ceiling which simply reads "Brooks was here" while the old man's limp body hangs below.}}

** For tears of joy, try ''everything'' after Andy's escape from Shawshank. ''When'' he escapes from Shawshank is enough to get the eyes watering: he's just crawled through just under half a mile of raw sewage, he gets to his feet in the middle of the pouring rain, he's stumbling, dragging his pack behind him ... and then there's that fanfare of trumpets and strings as he removes his shirt and stands, arms raised, laughing, in the rain.

** When Red's letter started to [[Ironic Echo|repeat the same speech]] as Brooks', just in anticipation that he ''might'' ''[[Department of Redundancy Department|maybe]]'' meet the same end?

** The last bit: "Get busy living ... or get busy dying. ''That's goddamn right.''" Pan up. SO WAS RED.

** When {{spoiler|Tommy}} is murdered by Hadley and Norton. You see it coming a split-second before it happens, but it's still a shock. {{spoiler|Tommy was dumb, surly, and a habitual criminal...and also friendly, outgoing, had a baby girl and was trying really hard to turn his life around for her sake and for his mentor, Andy's, and was going to provide evidence that Andy was innocent after all...and he was murdered for it.}}

* In ''[[She Wore a Yellow Ribbon]]'', when Capt. Brittles goes to inspect his troop for the last time due to his retirement and all the men are in their best uniforms and when they present him with the watch that they all chipped in to buy and Brittles puts on his glasses to read the sentiment "[[Lest We Forget]]."

* The end of ''[[Shiri]]'': {{spoiler|Hee's death is tear jerking, but the clincher is when Yu went to meet the real Myung-hyun in the mental institution}}. The beginning of the movie was no emotional picnic either.

* John Cameron Mitchel's ''[[Shortbus]]'' may be famous for featuring explicit, non-simulated sex but good god it's an incredible emotional release. The entire ending sequence is a [[Heartwarming Moment]], [[Awesome Music]], and pure catharsis are rolled into one. They're happy tears, to be sure, but oh there's always a lot of them.

* ''[[Sin City]]''. Specifically "The Hard Goodbye". Frank Miller's work is often criticized for a lack of humanity, of being filled with lousy people in a lousy town, and Sin City is built around that. However, the story of Marv fighting to avenge the death of the one woman named Goldie who gave him some love is very touching. Over the course of the story, Marv kills countless people, tortures many of them and kills one of the most powerful men in town. And he enjoys it. Given his violent tendencies and the comment that he'd be right at home on an ancient battlefield killing people, its possible to think that he's simply using Goldie's death to have some fun. But then, {{spoiler|he is almost killed and is sentenced to death. Hours before his execution, he gets his only visitor in 18 months. It's Goldie's twin sister, Wendy, who aided Marv in the killings. But Marv has a mental illness and he gets confused. So when Wendy walks in the door, he thinks it's Goldie, and he says "I got them for you good, didn't I Goldie?". We are instantly reminded that he gave his life to avenge this one woman who he only knew for a couple hours. Cue the Manly Tears. Then he apologizes and says "Sorry, I got confused again." What does Wendy say? "You can call me Goldie." She spends the night with him. }} Two Tearjerkers in 30 seconds at the very end of the first story of what's seen as one of the most nihilistic, violent and heartless mainstream comics around.

** The ending of ''That Yellow Bastard''. "An old man dies. A young woman lives. A fair trade. I love you, Nancy." ''BANG!''

* The 2005 version of ''[[War of the Worlds]]''. The characters are making their way through a valley, along with a few hundred other refugees. A fairly substantial group of soldiers trying to hold back the tripods tripods closing in on them while the refugees pass, despite the fact that their weapons do nothing. {{spoiler|So they CHARGE}}.

* The entirety of ''Snoopy Come Home''. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jldngb69BTc Case in childhood trauma point]. The cold cereal is the clincher. It's one those Schulz touches that's too irrevocably human to bear.

* In ''Snow Cake'', when Alex breaks down feeling guilty about Vivienne's death. {{spoiler|Made even worse when you realise that it's not the first time he lost a would-be friend in a car crash. His son was killed ''before he could even meet him''. That time, he was so angry, he went to the driver's home and hit him. And accidentally killed him.}}

** The last scene, with Mark Zuckerberg sitting alone, refreshing the page while waiting for his ex-girlfriend to accept his friend request. [[The Beatles|The song]] playing over the scene made it worse -- baby, you're a rich man, but what else do you have?

** The hallway scene in the house in Palo Alto. ''That one line''. [[Award Snub|Jesse Eisenberg was robbed.]]

* The [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7U4EQXFMBE scene where Sol "goes home"] in ''[[Soylent Green]]'' is this on many levels. When Sol realizes what he must to do expose the [[It Was His Sled|terrible secret of Soylent Green]], Thorn tries to stop him but finds out too late so all he can do is watch as his closest and best friend dies. Sol is also one of the few characters old enough to remember the Earth when it was still full of natural beauty. The beautiful nature footage he is shown before his death, set to classical music, deeply moves both characters (Sol: "I told you." Thorn: "How could I know? How could I ever imagine?") and drives home the film's environmental message. Finally there's the [[Reality Subtext]] that Edward G. Robinson (Sol) was dying in real life and the only other person on the film who knew was [[Charlton Heston]] (Thorn), who cried real tears during that scene.

* The end of ''[[Spartacus]]'' is a Tearjerker, a [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]], and a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] all rolled into one. Spartacus' large army of slaves is captured by the Roman army, who declare that they all face crucifixion unless anyone will identify which of them is Spartacus. Spartacus starts to stand up to give himself up and spare his people, when the two people to either side of him stand and both declare that [[I Am Spartacus|they are Spartacus]]. Following that, every single person stands up one by one and shouts "I'm Spartacus!" A single tear falls down Spartacus' cheek as he sees just how devoted to him his men are.

** "He will know who his father is. Because I'll tell him!" (You know it's a good movie when a [[Yaoi Fangirl]] cries for the straight couple).

* Toward the end of ''[[Speak]]'' (the Film of the Book), when Melinda shows Mr. Freeman all of the tree paintings/projects she's done in the old janitor's closet.

* ''Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron''. "Sound the Bugle". That is all.

* ''Stage Door''. The impetus for Katharine Hepburn's magnificent performance in the play.

*** When Riker recalled the first time he and Data had met: in a holodeck, with Data trying in vain to whistle. The heartbreaking bit, though, was that Riker just couldn't remember what song it was Data had been humming... The audience'' knew, and several of them started whistling it right then and there.

*** And just to make it worse: B4, trying to sing "Blue Skies" - with some help from Picard. (Brent Spiner is a freaking ''genius''.)

*** Kirk racing desperately through the ''Enterprise'' to get to his friend -- and then McCoy, Scotty, ''and'' someone else having to use all their strength to keep him from going in there himself.

** Or ''The Search for Spock''. "[[My God, What Have I Done?|My God, Bones, what have I done?]]"

*** McCoy's response could probably count as this, a [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|CMOA]] and a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|CMOH]] all wrapped into one.

** Kirk and Klingon Chancellor Azetbur's reconciliation at the end of ''The Undiscovered Country'':

'''Kirk''': And you've restored my son's. }}

*** The last scenes are also very sad, and much more so to those who have watched the entire original series and the rest of the films. Enterprise is about to be decommissioned, meaning that it is the final voyage of Kirk and his crew, and the end of an era. The fact that they also decide to 'take their time' in getting back to Earth also makes this a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]].

*** Kirk and old Spock were in the cave {{spoiler|talking about the existence where Spock came from and where Kirk knew his father}}.

*** Spock introducing himself with: "I have been, and always shall be, your friend."

*** A short shot in this scene from Papa Kirk's perspective, {{spoiler|showing red "Systems Failed" messages across the Kelvin's screen while explosions and destruction goes on around}}. All this being set to [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZSQJ-XnR78 a piece of music] that is a tear jerker all on its own.

*** And the opening scene comes back later to gut-punch you with the line:

** And then later on, when {{spoiler|Vulcan is being destroyed and Chekov is beaming up the elders that Spock has gathered, his mother among them, and the ground collapses under Spock's mother, and she screams for her son}}--especially {{spoiler|Chekov's frantic repetition of "I'm losing her! I'm losing her!" and then his shell-shocked face after the remaining Vulcans appear on the pad, with Spock's arm stretched out, reaching at nothing}}.

** In a crossover with both [[Heartwarming Moments]] and an [[Awesome Moment]], {{spoiler|Leonard Nimoy's voiceover of the famed TOS narration, which then segues into a grand orchestral recapitulation of Alexander Courage's original theme}}, is wrenching.

** "I have been, and always shall be, your friend."

** {{spoiler|Spock Prime: As he was helpless to save his planet, I would be helpless to save mine. *shot of him staring up into the sky with heart-broken expression* Billions of lives lost, because of me, Jim. Because, I failed.}}

* The ending of ''[[Straight Story]]'' - {{spoiler|two brothers finally meet. The viewer cries.}}.

* ''[[Stranger Than Fiction]]'' - for much of the movie, the driving action involves Harold Crick learning that he is a character in a book. After meeting the author and getting to read a copy of the book, he returns to her and {{spoiler|calmly accepts his own impending death because the book is just that wonderful}}.

* ''[[Sunset Boulevard]]'' makes you feel really horrible for Norma. And it was a true story, since that was what had happened to Gloria Swanson, who played the role.

** She got ditched by the industry, yes, but happily she didn't go nuts over it.

** When Capa {{spoiler|ends up in the Payload chamber heading for the sun, Capa finds Cassie slumped on the floor. There's this beautiful, gentle moment between them where he tells her they're flying into the sun}}.

** When {{spoiler|Capa blasts across the void of space to reach the door to the payload.}} The music, accompanied by the close-up of Capa screaming, and the visual itself, is tear jerking.

* ''[[Super 8]]'': Joe's mother locket flies, he grabs it as the thing shows the picture inside (she with baby Joe)... and decides to let go. The locket is absorbed by an alien ship, [[Dramatic Alien VTOL|it takes off slowly]], the end. (the only thing that makes it less sad is "[[Show Within a Show|The]] [[Crowning Moment of Funny|Case]]" [[Mood Whiplash|playing afterwards]])

* In the DVD of the original 1978 ''[[Superman]]'', there's a restored scene where Superman talks to his dad (or rather his hologram) following his first outing as a hero. Jor-El tells him to be wary of the thrill of being a hero..

** The opening: A stage curtain parts to reveal not Superman, or a busy city, or an operatic space utopia, but a boy reading a comic. It's a really great way of saying that this mythology, for all its success and influence, started as a humble little funnybook for kids.

** The most tearjerking moment from the first Superman movie was definitely Pa Kent's death. After he tells his adopted son that he is on Earth for a special reason even if he doesn't know what that might be. Glenn Ford's acting was amazing when he just clutched his left arm and saying softly "Oh no..." and his collapse in a long shot. Then his funeral with John Williams' music plays as young Clark Kent tells his mother that even will all his powers he couldn't save his own father.

** [[Tear Jerker]] and [[Crowning Moment of Awesome]]: the end of the Fortress of Solitude sequence which features the strongest images of Jor-El as "God", John Williams' wonderful music, and the hopeful, uplifting monologue: "They can be a great people, Kal-El -- they wish to be. They only lack the light to show the way. It is for this reason above all, their capacity for good, that I have sent them you ... my only son." Then Jor-El's smiling face becomes a mask, which slips onto Superman's face -- the son becoming the father. And then John Williams finishes it off with a triumphant clarion call on horns to Superman's theme: DAAAA-DA-DA-DA-DAAAAAAAAHHH ... DAAAH DAAAH DAAAH ... as Superman flies for the first time in the costume.

** In the Richard Donner cut of Superman II, when {{spoiler|Kal-El returns to the Fortress of Solitude powerless and encounters the image of his father -- who had predicted his choice to become human. The subsequent sacrifice of the final remaining essence of Jor-El (thus fulfilling the prophecy "The father becomes the son; and the son, the father")}} is wrenching.

** They didn't. [[Nightmare Fuel|"No, Anthony, they never go away."]]

** {{spoiler|It's very easy to read Sweeney's movements while Toby is sneaking up behind him as baring his throat for the blade; which is worse; that he is killed after murdering the wife he has lived through hell to see again, or that he is so completely crushed he ''wants'' it?}}

* ''[[Sympathy for Lady Vengeance]]'', when miss Geum-Ja starts scoffing cake. This does not sound like a tear jerking moment, but with that plot, and that shot, and that music... Oh dear.

** While we're talking of Park Chan-Wook's films, the final scene in ''[[Im A Cyborg]]''.

 

[[Category:Film/Tear Jerker]]