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Movies Like Tarnation

Fans of Tarnation, will enjoy these picks that questions the purpose and weight of our choices all while offering targets the intellect with complex, multi-layered ideas. Carefully balances character depth with narrative flow makes this definitely worth a watch.

Mood Breakdown
Runtime Cluster

Standard feature-length experiences.

Viewer Fit

Best for fans of who appreciate concise storytelling.

Top Picks

Short Term 12
7.8

Short Term 12

2013

Grace, a compassionate young supervisor at a foster care facility, helps at-risk teens. But when a new charge dredges up memories of her own troubled past, Grace's tough exterior begins eroding.

David and Lisa
7.2

David and Lisa

1962

Teenager David Clemens develops a hysterical fear that he will die if he comes into physical contact with another person. Perturbed, David's overbearing mother places him in a home for mentally disturbed young people, but David remains withdrawn from the other patients and his psychiatrist. Over time, however, David grows interested in 15-year-old Lisa, who suffers from multiple personalities – one who can only speak in rhyme, and the other, a mute.

Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot
7.0

Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot

2024

Led by Donna and Reverend W.C. Martin, 22 families from a rural Black church in the small East Texas town of Possum Trot adopt 77 of the most difficult-to-place kids in the foster system and kickstart a movement in the process.

Hard Candy
6.8

Hard Candy

2005

Hayley’s a smart, charming teenage girl. Jeff’s a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, an impromptu fashion shoot back at Jeff’s place. Jeff thinks it’s his lucky night. He’s in for a surprise.

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons
6.8

The Strange Thing About the Johnsons

2011

A suburban father gets trapped in a one-sided incestuous relationship with his abusive son.

Flowers in the Attic
6.7

Flowers in the Attic

2014

After the sudden death of their father, four children face cruel treatment from their ruthless grandmother.

Palmer
8.1

Palmer

2021

After 12 years in prison, former high school football star Eddie Palmer returns home to put his life back together—and forms an unlikely bond with Sam, an outcast boy from a troubled home. But Eddie's past threatens to ruin his new life and family.

Natural Born Killers
7.0

Natural Born Killers

1994

Two victims of traumatized childhoods become lovers and serial murderers irresponsibly glorified by the mass media.

More Movies Like Tarnation

Mommie Dearest
6.3

Mommie Dearest

1981

Renowned film star Joan Crawford's abuse towards Christina, her adopted daughter, intensifies as her professional and romantic relationships turn sour.

Megan Is Missing
6.2

Megan Is Missing

2011

Fourteen-year–old Megan and her best friend Amy spend a lot of time on the internet, posting videos of themselves and chatting with guys online. One night Megan chats with a guy named Josh who convinces her to meet him for a date. The next day, Megan is missing—forever. Based on actual cases of child abduction.

Possum
6.2

Possum

2018

A disgraced children's puppeteer returns to his childhood home and is forced to confront his wicked stepfather and the secrets that have tortured him his entire life.

Sleepwalking
6.0

Sleepwalking

2008

When her boyfriend is arrested for marijuana possession, Joleen Reedy and her 11-year-old daughter, Tara, take refuge with Joleen's aimless brother, James. Joleen soon runs off with a truck driver, and James is unable to meet his responsibilities. After Child Protective Services takes possession of Tara, James abducts her from a foster home, and the two travel from California to Utah, where his abusive father lives.

Lilith
6.4

Lilith

1964

Vincent Bruce, a war veteran, begins working as an occupational therapist at Poplar Lodge, a private psychiatric facility for wealthy people where he meets Lilith Arthur, a charming young woman suffering from schizophrenia, whose fragile beauty captivates all who meet her.

Mammal
6.1

Mammal

2016

After Margaret, a divorcée living in Dublin, loses her teenage son, she develops an unorthodox relationship with Joe, a homeless youth. Their tentative trust is threatened by his involvement with a violent gang and the escalation of her ex-husband's grieving rage.

The Prince of Tides
6.6

The Prince of Tides

1991

A troubled Southern man talks to his suicidal sister's psychiatrist about their family history and falls in love with her (and New York City) in the process.

Chained
6.9

Chained

2012

A serial killer kidnaps a young boy after murdering his mother, then raises him to be his accomplice. After years in captivity, the boy must choose between escaping or following in his captor's bloody footprints.

An American Crime
7.3

An American Crime

2007

The true story of suburban housewife Gertrude Baniszewski, who kept a teenage girl locked in the basement of her Indiana home during the 1960s.

Girl in the Bunker
7.2

Girl in the Bunker

2018

When Elizabeth is abducted by a fugitive sexual predator, she realizes she must take matters into her own hands and plot her escape. Based on a true story.

Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story
6.2

Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story

2025

Unravel the case of Utah therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, whose child abuse arrest with parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke exposed a twisted tale of manipulation.

Peacock
6.1

Peacock

2010

A minor train accident in rural Nebraska gradually unveils a mystery involving the town's reclusive bank clerk.

Why These Movies Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Tarnation (2003): Documentary and Drama themes, similar narrative structure, and comparable emotional depth. NoBadPicks uses a combination of TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface films most likely to resonate with fans of Tarnation.

See full details for Tarnation (2003)

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