Nine movies that will make you feel something

When was the last time you watched a film that truly made you feel something? The truth is, most of us treat watching films as a way of passing time, but actually, we rarely engage fully in a film to the point that it makes us happy, sad, angry, or scared. Most of the time, our engagement with films leaves us feeling blah.

Here is a selection of films that made me feel something:

Eden Lake - Reaction: Anger

The film Eden Lake left me furious, but in a good way. Our heroes Jenny & Steve, played by Kelly Reilly & Michael Fassbender, head off for a romantic weekend at a man-made lake. However, they encounter some truly despicable youths, and it's not long before they discover that these kids are more dangerous than they ever expected, leaving one of them dead and the other fighting for their life. When you think everything is finally going to be okay, the clever storytelling by James Watkins flips, revealing the most truly disturbing finale that rocked me to my core.

Never Let Me Go – Reaction: Sadness

Set in a weird dystopian universe, a group of school children lead relatively mundane existences in a boarding school run by a strict headmistress played by Charlotte Rampling. There is much questioning about what is happening in their world, with a very clear indication that life for them might be limited because they are clones, created to provide organs for the ones that matter when they fall sick. On an adventure to uncover the truth and fight for freedom, romance beckons, and the reality they know and expect is only half their battle. The film plays out like a casting wet dream, with Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan, and Andrew Garfield all taking prime positions, their likeability pouring off the screen, leaving their individual fates a thing of truly tear-jerking cinema.

End Of Watch – Reaction: What The Fuck

David Ayer is an established director and writer, but his 2012 film End Of Watch marked the first time (to date) that he really broke ground. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Peña, and Anna Kendrick, the film plays out a bit like the 90s smash TV show Cops. A camera crew follows two cops on what are frankly mundane duties. For 45 minutes, the film barely moves beyond a snail's pace, and then completely and unexpectedly, out of the blue, our two heroes stumble upon a mass grave. Suddenly, the mundane gets all Blair Witch, and you'll need to be emotionally devoid if you don't pick your jaw off the floor during the final 60 minutes because the movie treads a path you never expected in a million years.

Lost In Translation – Reaction: Chilled

Lost In Translation, in my mind, is unlike any movie that has traveled before it. It's a movie about friendship or possibly innocent love, thousands of miles from home. Hollywood A-Lister Bob Harris, played by Bill Murray, is sent by his agent to Tokyo for an advertising gig for Whisky. Between the jet lag, weirdness of Tokyo, and the frustration of a mundane job taking him away from his family, he stumbles upon Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), a girl some 40 years his junior. They bond over shared emotions and turn boredom into fun while realizing that the things that bring them happiness are not what they thought. The film is serene in its storytelling; nobody gets hurt, nobody dies, but everyone gains from it.

Christiane F. - Reaction: Depressed

This German classic finds the young and impressionable Christiane following her dreams of living in Berlin and engaging in the underground music scene. All the while, she desperately hopes to meet David Bowie. Sadly, she soon falls foul of the reality of life in an evolving country and is heavily dragged into the drug scene. Her spiral into drug addiction and depression is one of the most truly tragic tales of a generation. The story is allegedly based on a number of innocent youths who slipped off the rails. The film feels incredibly raw, like watching a documentary, leaving you wanting a bath to clear the scum off.

Shakespeare In Love – Reaction: Joy

I'm aware many hate the film, but for me, it was a true blessing. It was so much more fun than I ever expected, with witty humor throughout, snappy lines, and a kind of dreamlike romantic mist. Yes, there is love, but much more than anything else, it is a tale of utter nonsense based largely around a version of events we can only speculate on. Hollywood A-Listers clash with virtually unknown British actors at the time. It's all a bit silly, and its running time slips by in the blink of an eye.

The Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane – Reaction: Nostalgia

Among a catalogue of growing bodies, Jodie Foster stars in this uncomfortably charming film. A young girl hiding a secret lives in a big old house in the middle of nowhere. She doesn't want to talk to people, not surprising when you find out what's in her basement. But weirdly, sitting in the horror of a body count and a creepy paedophile played by Martin Sheen, is something awfully heartwarming and nostalgic. It's like some family epic with horror thrown in. It's not scary; it's quite charming, making you nostalgic for a time you probably never got to live in. As I write, the film is 46 years old. The town she lives in, the serenity of her home, and the beach, it's all too inviting. It's a place and time you feel like you really want to live and experience.

Salo: 120 Days of Sodom - Reaction: Fury

Director Pier Paolo Pasolini met with a tragic end, possibly run over, shot, and most definitely set on fire while he was alive. He was deemed a visionary, but off the back of this film, I kind of think he deserved it. Salo is considered an important artistic film, but personally, I feel it's a vile and disgusting piece of shit (literally). I'm sure it has deep and meaningful overtones, but it's tragic, vile, and disgusting on all levels. I have never seen a film treated with such acclaim that I feel was so utterly contemptible. Watch it if only to truly understand the disgustingness of "humanity" or rather the lack of.

Into The Wild – Reaction: Pity

The story of Into The Wild follows Chris McCandless (played by Emile Hirsch), who turns his back on the expected pattern of his life and ventures off around America in search of real experience. The story is based on a true event, centred around the real Chris. In this story, everywhere Chris goes, he meets people and touches their hearts, leaving everyone feeling better about meeting him. I'd love to 100% believe this is true; hopefully, it is, but the reality is that we always want people to believe our past loved ones are the very best people they can be. Whichever the case, the movie is filled with incredible highs and incredible lows, where intelligence plays out, and stupidity falls not too long after. The result? It will leave you crying like a baby.

Feel free to recommend films that make you feel something in the comments below.