Curl Up With Mom This Mother's Day and Watch These Movies
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Moms. They're our caregivers, our sources of love and comfort, our friends—and occasionally foes—and they are, undeniably, at the heart of one of the most meaningful and complex relationships that most of us have in our lives. No wonder there are so many movies about them. If you're struggling to put all that you feel about your mom into words—or could use a little TLC from a fictional mother figure—there movies have your back, which also happens to make them perfect for snuggling up with this Mother's Day. From tearjerkers that will have you reaching for the phone to call your mother to laugh fests that will remind you of how much you love the leading lady in your life, these films are a perfect homage to moms.
The First Wives Club
Goldie Hawn, Bette Midler, and Diane Keaton, how could you go wrong? In this dark comedy, three divorcées—and longtime friends—decide to take revenge on their ex-husbands who each left them for other women.
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The Sound of Music
When a young nanny named Maria (Julie Andrews) comes to tend after an aristocrat’s seven motherless children, she fills their home with love and music. In the end, she turns out to be exactly what they and their stoic father needed most.
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Little Women
Take your pick of the countless adaptations of Louisa May Alcott's iconic 1868 novel. Greta Gerwig's 2019 film is the latest retelling of the lives of four sisters coming of age in the 19th century. While the story centers on the girls, they wouldn't have been such remarkable and independent women without the moral guidance of their formidable mother Marmee.
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20th Century Women
It's the 1970s in Santa Barbara, California, and a single mother (Annette Bening) enlists the help of two young women (Greta Gerwig and Elle Fanning) to connect with her 15-year-old son. This sweet film explores both unconventional family dynamics and a time filled with change and revolution.
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Troop Beverly Hills
Shelley Long stars as a woman determined to prove herself to be more than just a spoiled Beverly Hills housewife by taking charge of the local troop of a Girl Scouts-like organization, called the Wilderness Girls. The group of privileged girls and their naive leader soon find themselves on a crash course in wilderness training—learning valuable life lessons on the way.
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Erin Brockovich
This inspiring true story, for which Julia Roberts won a Best Actress Oscar, is about how one woman successfully (and singlehandedly) fought the PG&E power company and held it responsible for contaminating the water supply in her home town—all of which she accomplished as a single mom of three.
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Room
Brie Larson, who won an Oscar for her performance in this film, stars as a kidnapped young mother whose son knows nothing beyond the small room in which they are held captive. Witness the maternal strength it takes as she guides her son through their imprisonment, escape, and transition to the real world. Inspired by a harrowing true story, it's a testament to a mother's true love.
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Mother's Day
Perhaps the most fitting movie for Mother's Day is, well, Mother's Day. The Gary Marshall rom-com follows in the footsteps of Valentine's Day and New Year's Eve and traces the lives of four families leading up to Mother's Day.
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Stepmom
Call it a dramedy. Julia Roberts plays Isabel, the young soon-to-be stepmother to Susan Sarandon’s two children. As their contentious relationship plays out, you see the highest highs and lowest lows of motherhood while the two women brace for life’s unanticipated circumstances.
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The Parent Trap
Hallie has lived her whole life wishing she knew her mom, meanwhile Annie has always wondered about her dad. When the two meet at summer camp they realize that they are identical twins who have each been living with one of their biological parents. In an elaborate plan, the two decide to switch places so they can get to know the other parent and eventually bring them back together.
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Book Club
Four friends have met as a book club for 30 years, but then decide to tackle 50 Shades of Grey. Obviously, this causes rippling effects in their lives and relationships. If anything, watch it for the cast of legends: Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Mary Steenburgen, and Candice Bergen.
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Brave
A headstrong young princess who refuses to conform to tradition thinks she's found a way to escape her mother's expectations—but the magic she uses make new problems for them both that they'll have to work together to solve in this heartwarming Pixar favorite.
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The Guilt Trip
In this adorable comedy, a mother (Barbara Streisand) and her grown son (Seth Rogan) embark on a cross-country road trip. Naturally, hilarity ensues as an adult learns to connect with his overbearing, but lovable, mother.
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Because I Said So
This list is heavy on the Diane Keaton (as it should be). Watch another one of her rom-com masterpieces—Because I Said So. In the movie, Keaton plays the mother of three daughters, who tries to set up her youngest (Mandy Moore) with the perfect man.
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Everything Everywhere All at Once
There's plenty to love in this critical darling of a film (it took home multiple Academy Awards, including for Best Picture and Best Actress) but the love between a mother and daughter at its core is the driving force behind the multidimensional romp.
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Bad Moms
In this raunchy comedy, three stressed-out mothers join forces to blow off steam. What ensues can only be described as a mom war, between overzealous PTA moms and those trying to keep it all together.
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Julie & Julia
Julie & Julia is the definition of a feel-good movie. The film follows Julia Child (played by the incomparable Meryl Streep) and her modern-day admirer Julie Powell (Amy Adams) as they search for meaning in their lives and kitchens—perfect for moms who love to cook.
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Mildred Pierce
After Mildred Pierce (Joan Crawford) is left by her husband she does everything she can to provide a good life for her daughters—even as her relationship with them becomes increasingly strained.
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Cheaper By The Dozen
A classic family comedy, Cheaper by the Dozen will not disappoint. The movie follows parents who have sacrificed a lot to raise twelve children. When the mother, Kate (Bonnie Hunt), goes on tour for her recently published parenting memoir, Tom (Steve Martin) is left to parent the dozen kids on his own.
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It's Complicated
A Nancy Meyers classic, It's Complicated is about a divorcée (Meryl Streep), who, after years of putting all of her energy into her three children, finds herself in a complicated triangle with her married ex-husband (Alec Baldwin) and her new love interest (Steve Martin).
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Baby Boom
J.C. (Diane Keaton) is a high powered Manhattanite who suddenly becomes the guardian to her distant relative’s baby. As motherhood turns her life upside down– which we witness through a slew of endearing and hilarious antics–she is forced to find balance between work and her new home life, even though it wasn't what she ever expected for herself.
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Postcards From The Edge
Many believe that writer Carrie Fisher drew inspiration from her relationship with her mother, Debbie Reynolds, for this film, which follows a young actress and former addict who moves in with her famous mother after hitting rock bottom. You'll laugh and cry.
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This is 40
Watching this flick with your mother will instantly give you an overwhelming sense of appreciation for her. As Debbie and Peter (the same characters from Knocked Up) prepare to both turn 40 they evaluate their life as a couple, as parents, and as themselves.
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Mothers and Daughters
Susan Sarandon, Courtney Cox, Sharon Stone, and Selma Blair star in this dramatic film that interweaves multiple mother-daughter relationships that are tied together through the lens of a newly pregnant photographer, played by Blair.
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Ricki And The Flash
Meryl Streep and her real life daughter, Mamie Gummer, play a mother and daughter with a strained relationship. The film picks up after Julie (Gummer) suffers a breakdown and Ricki (Streep) attempts to rejoin the family fold after she abandoned them to pursue her rock ’n roll career.
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Lady Bird
If you haven't seen this Oscar-nominated movie yet then you're missing out on a poignant, bittersweet depiction of a millennial mother-daughter relationship. This coming-of-age film follows a high school senior as she navigates her connection with her headstrong, overbearing yet deeply loving mom.
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Grey Gardens
This iconic documentary tells the story of Big and Little Edie Beale, an older woman and her middle-aged daughter who happen to be the aunt and cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and the lives they live in strange isolation inside a decaying mansion.
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Terms of Endearment
Box of tissues required for this classic about a mother who struggles to learn how to come to terms with her daughter's new beginnings. Some of these firsts include marriage, pregnancy, and relationship challenges. The moral of this one is easy to love—there's no one way to be a great mother.
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Psycho
This suggestion is for those with a very strong relationship with their mothers. In this Alfred Hitchcock horror classic, a young woman checks in to a secluded hotel run by a man being controlled by his disturbed mother.
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Tully
Charlize Theron plays Marlo, an overworked and overwhelmed mom of three whose brother hires her a nanny named Tully (Mackenzie Davis) to help with the demands of motherhood and parenting. Initially hesitant, Marlo soon forms a deep bond with her new friend.
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The Blind Side
This film, which earned Sandra Bullock a Best Actress Oscar, tells the true story of NFL player Michael Oher, who overcame poverty and homelessness as a teenager when a wealthy family, led by matriarch Leigh Anne Tuohy (Bullock), took him in, adopted him, and encouraged his football career.
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Monster-In-Law
Jane Fonda is hilarious in this comedy, in which she plays an overbearing mother who schemes to break up her son with his girlfriend (played by Jennifer Lopez), who she doesn't approve of. Wanda Sykes as her sharp-tongued assistant add plenty more laugh-out-loud moments.
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Coda
It's all about family in this Oscar-winning film centered on Ruby, the only hearing member of her family, who must choose between her relationships and her love of singing when faced with the chance to leave her small town life behind. Marlee Matlin in particular pulls on your heartstrings as Ruby's mother.
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Freaky Friday
Jamie Lee Curtis plays a single mom who struggles to maintain a healthy relationship with her teenage daughter. After receiving magical fortune cookies from a Chinese restaurant, the two wake up to find out they've switched bodies. Popcorn movie gold.
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The Kids Are All Right
After learning that they were conceived through a sperm donor, the children of two mothers, played by Annette Bening and Julianne Moore, team up to figure out who their biological father is. The father winds up at their family dinner and things get messy when he begins an affair with one of their moms.
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The Color Purple
Based on the Alice Walker novel, this 1985 period drama follows the harrowing life of young Celie as she faces racism, sexism, and domestic violence. Her life is completely transformed when two strong women help her find her self-worth.
You can also catch the 2023 version based on the Tony winning musical on Max as well.
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The Joy Luck Club
Based on Amy Tan's bestselling novel, The Joy Luck Club focuses on the relationships between a group of Chinese women living in San Francisco. The women gather to share advice on cultural conflict and family dilemmas while playing Mahjong.
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Steel Magnolias
This classic tearjerker follows a group of friends in the south as they deal with both tragedy and good fortune. A celebration of the ways that women can be both delicate and strong, it's the perfect choice to watch with your mom.
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Mamma Mia!
Meryl Streep stars as a mother-of-the-bride who's put in quite the predicament when her daughter invites three men from her past to the ceremony. Although her daughter's intentions were strictly to meet her real father, the surprising reunion results in some dramatic confrontation. Watch if you love a mother-daughter sing along.
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Eve's Bayou
A daughter walks in on her father having an affair and is faced with the tough decision of choosing how to handle the situation. Fearful of what might tear her family apart, she struggles to come to terms with how the handle her father's infidelity.
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Real Women Have Curves
The film that put America Ferrera on the map, this tale of a Los Angeleno teen who's caught between the pull of her own ambitions for her future and the path her mother wants her to take as the two work side by side in a clothing factory one summer.
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Laurel Canyon
Francis McDormand is always a good idea on Mother's Day. An engaged couple moves to Los Angeles to stay at one of their mother's homes while she's away, but are surprised to discover that she's still living there while finishing up a work project with her boyfriend. Relationship trouble begins to form between the young couple and mother as they're forced to live in close quarters.
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Dumplin'
To prove a point about measuring up and fitting in, Texas teen Willowdean Dickson (Danielle Macdonald) enters a local pageant run by her ex-beauty queen mom (Jennifer Anniston). Plus, the soundtrack features music by Dolly Parton.
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Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again
Arguably a perfect movie, featuring a tale of mothers and daughters. Both a prequel and a sequel to Mamma Mia!, it shows young Donna (Lily James) falling in love and becoming a mom, and Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) navigating becoming a mom without her mom (Meryl Street) by her side. Plus, ABBA.
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Crazy Rich Asians
A swoony romantic comedy featuring a supportive mom? What more could you want! Native New Yorker Rachel Chu (Constance Wu) goes to Singapore to meet her boyfriend Nick's (Henry Golding) family—and has to navigate a whole new world. Thankfully, she has her mom Kerry Chu (Tan Kheng Hua) when things go wrong.
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Wine Country
According to the logline, "When longtime friends meet up for a wine-soaked birthday getaway in Napa Valley, their perfectly planned weekend turns messier by the minute." A perfect mom comedy, starring Saturday Night Live alums Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Rachel Dratch, Ana Gasteyer, Paula Pell and Emily Spivey.
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The Princess Diaries
More of a grandma movie than a mom movie, but a classic nevertheless. The plot follows teenager Mia Thermopolis (Anne Hathaway) who learns she is a princess when her grandmother (Julie Andrews) arrives in San Francisco.
More: Everything We Know About The Princess Diaries 3
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Lion
When five-year-old Saroo gets lost on the streets of Calcutta, thousands of miles from home, he has to survive on his own. Later, he's adopted by a couple in Australia—and when he grows up, he sets out to find his family. Dev Patel plays older Saroo, searching for his family, Nicole Kidman plays Saroo's adoptive mother, and Priyanka Rose plays Saroo's biological mother.
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Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
This 2017 crime drama film stars Frances McDormand as Mildred Hayes, a woman desperate to get justice for her daughter's unsolved rape and murder.
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Chocolat
While some may think of this charming period piece about an enigmatic chocolate shop owner who changes the fate of a sleepy French town as a romance, at its core, the movie centers on the relationship between mothers and their children, and how their feelings for each other shape them throughout their lives.
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