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Movies About Childhood Trauma
Watching movies involving childhood trauma, neglect, and abuse is a therapeutic method to connect with and heal your inner child.
From the screen, you’ll be able to see how these films relate to your childhood.
And you’ll be able to see why what happened to you was never okay and never your fault.
Have you downloaded your free inner child healing workbook yet? 👇
1. RIDING IN CARS WITH BOYS
Fun fact: Riding in Cars with Boys is my absolute favorite movie.
And as someone who loves a lot of movies, that’s truly saying a lot.
Synopsis:
Starring Drew Barrymore, Brittany Murphy, and Steve Zahn, Riding in Cars with Boys is about Beverly, an aspiring writer who becomes pregnant at 15.
Watch how she lives, struggles, and overcomes her relationship with her kid, her kid’s drug-addicted father, and the relationship she has with herself.
Content:
Drug abuse, teen parents, absentee father, poverty
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
Check out these coming-of-age TV shows:
👉 28 Coming-of-Age TV Shows (Bursting with 90s and 2000s Nostalgia)
2. THE HATE U GIVE
I instantly fell in love with the book with the same name the first time I read it, even though it was a painfully difficult read.
The Hate U Give (the movie) made me feel so much more heartbreak and anger.
Synopsis:
Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend, Khalil, at the hands of a police officer.
She quickly begins facing pressure from all sides, and she must learn to find her voice and stand up for what’s right.
Content:
Racism, police brutality, gang activity, violence, poverty
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
3. ENOUGH
I watched Enough growing up, and I still remember the fear and dread I felt watching it.
Synopsis:
Starring Jennifer Lopez, Enough showcases a terrified woman and her young daughter failing to escape a brutal case of domestic violence.
The abusive husband and father will stop at nothing to capture them back.
Content:
Domestic violence, stalking
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
4. UPTOWN GIRLS
Uptown Girls is another movie that tears at my heart, and not just because the late Brittany Murphy stars in it.
Synopsis:
Molly is a young woman (who kept her childish instincts and behaviors) that starts working as a nanny of Ray, an 8-year-old girl who is too mature for her own good.
Together, they balance each other out in the most unpredictable of ways.
Content:
Neglectful parents, death
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
5. BOOT CAMP
Teen boot camps are straight-up unethical, abusive, and traumatizing.
Boot Camp does an incredible job at showcasing these disgusting realities.
Synopsis:
Starring Mila Kunis, Boot Camp highlights a group of at-risk teens who are sent to a “rehabilitation program” in Fiji.
In reality, this program is a prison-like camp where kids are brainwashed and abused.
Content:
Sexual abuse, torture, violence, kidnapping, death, drowning
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
If you like the movie Boot Camp, you might like a similar book by Todd Strasser that also happens to be called Boot Camp.
6. THE KINGS OF SUMMER
I have a soft spot for coming of age stories, and The Kings of Summer is one of a kind.
Synopsis:
The Kings of Summer is a comedy where three teenage friends decide to spend their summer building a house in the woods and living off the land.
In search of independence, they learn that they can’t escape their families.
Content:
Animal death, emotional neglect
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
More movies about childhood friendships:
👉 27 Movies About Childhood Friends (Filled with Nostalgia)
7. MATILDA
Probably one of the most popular movies on this list, Matilda takes an almost caricature approach to childhood abuse.
Synopsis:
Matilda is a young girl who is constantly ignored, talked down to, neglected, and abused by her parents.
She uses her intellectual and psychic powers to deal with her family and free her teacher from the headmistress.
Content:
Domestic violence, abuse, neglect
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
8. THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES
The Secret Life of Bees is a captivating story of discovering who you are.
Synopsis:
To escape her tumultuous relationship with her dad, teenage Lily runs away to a small town in South Carolina in hopes of finding the truth about her deceased mother.
There, she finds a family of independent women who help connect her to her past.
Content:
Racism, torture, violence, suicide, death, drowning
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
9. THIRTEEN
If you’re looking for a movie that can be incredibly uncomfortable to watch at times, try the movie Thirteen.
Synopsis:
Tracy’s relationship with her mother is tested when she becomes best friends with troubled Evie.
Together, they forge down the path of self-destruction of drugs, drinking, sex, and petty crimes.
Content:
Drug abuse, alcohol abuse, addiction, self-harm, underage sex, eating disorder, violence, bullying
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
Movies about bullying:
👉 28 Best Movies About Bullying (for Teens, Kids, and Adults!)
10. THE NANNY DIARIES
The Nanny Diaries is a wonderful mix of romantic comedy and overcoming painful hardships.
Synopsis:
Annie, a college graduate, goes to work as a nanny for a rich New York family.
Living in their home, she must juggle their family dysfunction, a forbidden romance, and the spoiled son she’s in charge of.
Content:
Sexual harassment, emotional neglect
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
11. SPEAK
When I found out that the book Speak (one of my most reread books) was adapted into a movie, I was intrigued.
Synopsis:
Melinda suffers unspeakable trauma the summer before high school, which has caused her to become a selective mute.
Now, struggling with school, friends, and family, she finally speaks on the dark experience that shaped her.
Content:
Sexual assault, self-harm, bullying
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
12. GIRL IN PROGRESS
Girl in Progress is one of those coming of age stories that touches a part of your soul.
Synopsis:
Grace is a single mom who’s too busy juggling work, bills, and her affair with a married man to give her daughter, Ansiedad, the attention she deserves (and needs).
Ansiedad then plots her “shortcut to adulthood” after finding inspiration in the classic coming of age stories she’s reading in school.
Content:
Emotional neglect, bullying
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
13. FREEDOM WRITERS
I remember renting Freedom Writers from the video store way back in the day, and I watched it twice in one week.
Synopsis:
Young English teacher Erin Gruwell inspires her class of at-risk students to learn tolerance, see past race, and apply themselves in a system that let them down.
These students are guided to pursue learning that goes beyond high school.
Content:
Racism, anti-Semitism, violence, gun violence, domestic violence, death, sexual abuse
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
14. THE ROAD WITHIN
The Road Within features a delicate look into mental illness of three teenagers trying to make their way in the world.
Synopsis:
Vincent, a young man with Tourette’s Syndrome, embarks on a road trip with his recently deceased mother’s ashes.
With the help of two other teenagers (who both struggle with mental illness), they go on a life-changing road trip to deliver his mother’s ashes to the ocean.
Content:
Eating disorder, mental illness, death, homophobia, racism
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
15. MY GIRL
I watch My Girl every summer, and my heart breaks with each rewatch.
Synopsis:
Vada has been obsessed with death since her mother died days after childbirth…and the fact that she lives in a funeral home.
With the help of her neighborhood best friend, she learns how to live, how to love, and how to grieve.
Content:
Death
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
16. STEPMOM
Stepmom is another movie that utterly breaks my heart. But I love it all the same.
Synopsis:
Jackie is a terminally ill mother who must come to terms with leaving her kids in the care of their new stepmom.
Watch as she, her ex-husband, his fiance, and their children cope with life and loss.
Content:
Death, cancer
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
17. BEAUTIFUL
Beautiful is a movie I watched growing up, and I’m so glad I rediscovered it years later.
Synopsis:
Neglected as a child, Mona sees winning the “Miss American Miss” beauty pageant as a way of getting the attention and adoration she’s been missing from her life.
Mona’s childhood friend, Ruby, raises her daughter in order for her to compete.
Content:
Neglect
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
18. THE SECRET GARDEN
The Secret Garden is a childhood favorite of mine, and it always reminds me of finding beauty, hope, and magic in unexpected times.
Synopsis:
After living in India all of her life, Mary is a young girl who is sent to England to live with her uncle after her parents pass away.
Once there, she discovered her disabled cousin and a garden in desperate need of repair.
Content:
Neglect, ableism, death
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
19. JERSEY GIRL
Featuring Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler, Jersey Girl is a romantic comedy centered around family.
Synopsis:
Ollie seems to have it all until his wife dies shortly after childbirth.
Now living back at his dad’s house in the suburbs, he must learn how to rebuild his life.
Content:
Death
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
20. MADELINE
I used to watch Madeline all the time growing up, and now I get a huge wave of nostalgia whenever I watch it.
Synopsis:
Terrified at the prospect of her beloved school and home being sold, Madeline, a young French girl, tries to save it.
Using her smarts and craftiness to attempt to save it, she makes an unlikely friend in the process.
Content:
Death, kidnapping
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
21. ANNIE
For a musical about living through childhood trauma, Annie is a classic go-to.
Synopsis:
Annie is a spunky young orphan lives in an orphanage run by the tyrannical Miss Hannigan.
She is then selected to spend a brief time at the house of a wealthy industrialist, where she quickly charms the hearts of all who reside.
Content:
Alcoholism, death, abuse
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
22. RADIO FLYER
An early 90s classic, Radio Flyer depicts a strong case of childhood abuse.
Synopsis:
A family is torn apart and destroyed by domestic violence.
To escape this reality, two boys build an airplane out of a red wagon and fly into imagination and adventure.
Content:
Alcoholism, violence, abuse
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
23. IT
For a horror movie with a theme of child abuse, the movie It is a brutal choice.
Synopsis:
When children begin to disappear in the small town of Derry, Maine, a group of bullied kids is forced to face their biggest fears when they find themselves captured by a shapeshifting clown named Pennywise.
Content:
Abuse, sexual abuse, alcoholism, kidnapping, death, bullying
Rent or buy it here: Amazon
Films featuring child abuse:
Child neglect, trauma, and abuse are never easy to witness.
But when you’ve experienced this pain throughout childhood, watching movies with this subject matter can be cathartic.
Movie recommendations recap:
🍿 Riding in Cars with Boys
🍿 The Hate U Give
🍿 Enough
🍿 Uptown Girls
🍿 Boot Camp
🍿 The Kings of Summer
🍿 Matilda
🍿 The Secret Life of Bees
🍿 Thirteen
🍿 The Nanny Diaries
🍿 Speak
🍿 Girl in Progress
🍿 Freedom Writers
🍿 The Road Within
🍿 My Girl
🍿 Stepmom
🍿 Beautiful
🍿 The Secret Garden
🍿 Jersey Girl
🍿 Madeline
🍿 Annie
🍿 Radio Flyer
🍿 It
💾 Bookmark this page for when you need a reminder on how to reconnect with your younger self.
More inner child healing posts:
- 17 Magical Crystals for Healing Childhood Trauma (and Emotional Pain)
- 101 Healing Inner Child Affirmations (to Reparent Yourself)
- 70 Healing Inner Child Quotes (to Help Overcome Childhood Trauma)
- 40 Child Abuse Songs (When You Had a Bad Childhood)
- 13 Nostalgic Activities to Reconnect with Your Inner Child
- 107 Toxic Parents Quotes (When Mother and Father Are Abusive AF)
- 21 Powerful Inner Child Healing Meditations (Guided and Unguided)
- 13 Inner Child Healing Exercises (for Your Wounded Younger Self)
- 17 Must-Have Healing Gifts for Your Inner Child
- 11 Ways to Heal Childhood Trauma Spiritually (and Awaken Your Inner Child)
- 23 Inner Child Oracle Cards (for Deep Shadow Work)
- 23 Tarot Decks (for Intense Inner Child Work)
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