- You Are Not Alone (with Depression & Anxiety)
- Depression Does Not Define You
- What Does Depression Look Like?
- 10 Encouraging Bible Verses to Ease Depression
- Navigating Tough Parenting of Teens: When Your Daughter Wants to Dye Her Hair Blue
- How to Manage Depression and Chronic Pain
- Truths About Depression: Stuff You Don’t Want to Hear
- I Got Punched in the Face This Weekend
- Straight Talk About How to Survive Heartbreaking Grief
- For a Day When You Need Motivation
- Sometimes Grief Comes From Unexpected Places
- For Parents of a Teen Who Had a Near Miss
- 10 Simple Ways to Bring Creativity to Your Life
- A Depression Solution: Speak!
- Q & A with a Therapist about Depression
- 4 Realistic Steps to Motivation When You Are Depressed {Based on Research!)
- 101 Ways to Get in a Good Mood When Depressed
- Is it Okay to Avoid Pain?
- How Can I Serve If I’m Depressed?
- Do You Have Angry Depression?
- A Room Full of Love: Thoughts After a Loved One’s Suicide
- Top 5 Offbeat I’m Depressed and Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now Movies
- What You Need to Know about Postpartum Depression
- Why You Need More Mental Flexibility
- How To Stop Stress Eating
- How to Exercise When You Don’t Feel Like It – 10 Workout Motivation Tips
- A Cure for Panic Attacks: The Potato Chip Method
- Can’t Sleep? Read This at 3:00 AM (When Depression Causes Insomnia)
- Secondary Traumatic Stress: How I Found Healing
- You Were Set Free For a Reason: A Daily Devotion about Freedom in Christ
- If You Write, Please Read This. (Plus, a FREE GIFT for All!)
Top 5 Offbeat I’m Depressed and Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now Movies
by Jeff Marshall
In my last blog, I gave you some suggestions of movies I use to help me get out of a funk. Sara displayed her utter lack of good taste by disagreeing with many of my titles.
Today, I look at the other end of the rainbow connection – movies I watch when I’m depressed and enjoy being depressed, thank you very much. Sometimes in life you just gotta wallow in it, like a pig in a mud bath, and these five movies, along with a buffet spread of assorted Nestle products, do the trick every time.
Top 5 Offbeat I’m Depressed and Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now Movies
by Jeff Marshall
1. SHADOWLANDS

We went home devastated and so emotionally exhausted I personally could have inhaled a full jar of extra crunchy Jiff.

Sara actually reminded me about this movie recently. We went to see it at the theater back in 1993 when it first came out, and we went home devastated and so emotionally exhausted I personally could have inhaled a full jar of extra crunchy Jiff. This heartbreaker details the relationship between C.S. Lewis and wife Joy Gresham, who passed away from cancer less than four years after getting married.
Most people probably know Lewis as the author of the CHRONICLES OF NARNIA series of books and he is incarnated in this film by Hannibal Lecter himself, Anthony Hopkins. His wife is played by Debra Winger, who suffered a similar fate in another tearjerker, TERMS OF ENDEARMENT. One suggestion – stock up on Kleenex and Prozac before viewing.
2. THE HOURS

I actually voted this as my favorite movie of the 2000s recently.

I’m going to be blunt. This movie is depression porn, and I eat up every second of it. I actually voted this as my favorite movie of the 2000s recently. Two suicides. An abandoned child. A dying poet. Nicole Kidman has a big nose, Meryl Streep has a nervous breakdown in her kitchen, and Julianne Moore can’t bake a cake.
You’ll find more laughs in a mortuary, but you’ll find yourself contemplating the fine line between despair and the desire to live. Nicole Kidman’s narration at the end and her final haunting image just before the end credits are unforgettable. Bring on the chocolate!

I realize this is a very controversial choice, and many people won’t even contemplate putting this movie in their DVD player, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a tragic love story so perfectly told. Regardless of your feelings concerning the subject at hand, I think you’d have to have a heart of stone not to be moved, and – yes – wonderfully depressed!
There’s an extra layer of melancholy and sadness when you consider the death of Heath Ledger, whose performance here is nothing less than phenomenal. There are only two movies that guarantee I’ll walk away in tears – this and FIELD OF DREAMS. When Kevin Costner and his dad play catch, I am a basket case. OK, I’m getting verklempt. Give me a minute…

This is a serious-as-serious-can-get drama about a female philosophy professor whose life seems picture perfect until a chance encounter with a suicidal pregnant woman makes her realize that she’s actually on the verge of losing everything.

Hi, I’m back. Woody Allen is a very polarizing figure – both for his films and his personal life. Between the late 1970s and the early 2000s, I think he was a genius filmmaker who rarely hit a false note. This movie came out in 1988, and while Allen is mainly known for his comedies, this is a serious-as-serious-can-get drama about a female philosophy professor whose life seems picture perfect until a chance encounter with a suicidal pregnant woman makes her realize that she’s actually on the verge of losing everything. Everybody dance!
ANOTHER WOMAN is a challenging but ultimately rewarding film, particularly if you have a can of Cheese Whiz and a family size bag of sour cream and onion Lays.

None of the movies I’m recommending for depression day are necessarily for kids – but this one DEFINITELY isn’t for kids. The subject matter is extraordinarily disturbing. You’re basically watching the unraveling of a family after the father and one of his sons are accused of the most heinous and sick crime imaginable – and this is REAL LIFE.
This is a documentary featuring home video footage shot by one of the other sons, who happens to be a children’s party clown. Truth is indeed stranger than fiction. You watch a train wreck in slow motion. This movie is on my list of the ten best films I’ve ever seen. The subject matter is beyond disturbing, but it’s a hypnotic experience. You won’t believe what you’re seeing!
Looking for a new option to stream movies? Check out VidAngel. Movies for just $1, and you have the option to filter content if you desire.
Hope you enjoy, and I look forward to any comments or suggestions you have.
The Hope Toolbox
Today’s Bible Verse:
But you O Lord are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
Psalm 3:3
Today’s Journaling Prompt:
Do you want to watch uplifting or sad movies when you are feeling down? Why?
Resources:
Scraping Raisins: What I Took and What I Left Behind
Probably in Purple: A Dash of Lemon and Some Salt — a neat 31 days blog about creating community in Dubai
Jeff is a musician, humorist, gardener, and uncle. Jeff is Sara’s cousin, life-long dear friend, and “Uncle Oscar” (our nickname for him because of his love of all things movie) to Sara’s kids. Our lives have been intertwined in the most blessed way!
Looking for movie tickets online? Check out Fandango and Movietickets.com!
- You Are Not Alone
- Depression Does Not Define You
- What Does Depression Look Like?
- 10 Encouraging Bible Verses to Ease Depression
- When Your Daughter Wants to Dye Her Hair Blue
- How to Manage Depression and Chronic Pain
- Truths About Depression: Stuff You Don’t Want to Hear
- I Got Punched in the Face This Weekend
- Straight Talk About How to Survive Heartbreaking Grief
- For a Day When You Need Motivation
- Sometimes Grief Comes From Unexpected Places
- For Parents of a Teen Who Had a Near Miss
- 10 Simple Ways to Bring Creativity to Your Life
- A Depression Solution: Speak!
- Q & A with a Therapist about Depression
- Research Shows 4 Keys to Motivation When You Are Depressed
- 101 Ways to Boost Your Mood Immediately
- Is it Okay to Avoid Pain?
- How Can I Serve If I’m Depressed?
- Do You Have Angry Depression?
- A Room Full of Love: Thoughts After a Loved One’s Suicide
- Top 5 Offbeat I’m Depressed and Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now Movies
- What You Need to Know about Postpartum Depression
- Why You Need More Mental Flexibility
- How to Eat Healthy When You Don’t Feel Like It
- How to Exercise When You Don’t Feel Like It
- A Cure for Panic Attacks: The Potato Chip Method
- Can’t Sleep? Read This at 3:00 AM
- Do You Have Secondary Traumatic Stress?
- You Were Set Free For a Reason
- If You Write, Please Read This. (Plus, a FREE GIFT for All!)