6 Best Movies for Motivation Ever Made

Need some motivation to push through a hard day or see the light at the end of the tunnel? No matter the circumstances, sometimes we need a feel-good movie that will pick us up and show us the power of perseverance. Next time you need an inspiring film night, try out these six best movies for motivation.

6. The Blind Side (2013)

6 Best Movies For Motivation Ever Made — Credit: Alcon Entertainment

Our sixth selection for best movies for motivation is The Blind Side, based on the true story of Michael Oher. Homeless and traumatized, Oher is taken in by Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy, and he slowly gets opportunities to succeed in life. When Oher expresses interest in football, Leigh Anne goes all out to help him, eventually improving his skills and education level enough that he would qualify for an NCAA Division I athletic scholarship.

–IMDb score: 7.6

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5. The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Next on our list of best movies for motivation is The Pursuit of Happyness, based on the true story of Christopher Gardner. Garnder invested heavily in a device known as a “bone density scanner,” confident that these devices would sell. As Gardner tries in vain to sell the devices, his wife leaves him, and he loses his apartment. Gardner is out on the streets with his son, still selling the devices while also taking an unpaid internship as a stockbroker to give a better life to his son.

–IMDb score: 8.0

4. Rocky (1976)

Fourth on our best movies for motivation list is Rocky, one of the most recognizable motivational films out there. Rocky Balboa is a struggling boxer trying to make it big while working as a debt collector for a pittance. When heavyweight champion Apollo Creed visits Philly, his managers want to set up a fight between him and a “nobody” who could become a “somebody.” Rocky takes the opportunity, seeing this as the one chance to finally make it big.

–IMDb score: 8.1

CHECK OUT: Ranking the 9 Best Rocky Movies from Worst to Best

3. Good Will Hunting (1997)

Jumping into the top three for best movies for motivation is Good Will Hunting, centering on a wayward young man who happens to have a gift for mathematics. Will Hunting is a janitor at MIT but is extraordinary in math, solving every problem except for the one deep within himself. After solving a problem on a hallway chalkboard, he is approached by a professor and a psychologist who want to help him find direction in his life.

–IMDb score: 8.3

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2. Forrest Gump (1994)

Second on the best movies for motivation list is Forrest Gump, a classic film that shows the power of living life to the fullest. Forrest Gump is a man with an IQ of 75 who has good intentions and wants to find his way in the world. Gump joins the army for service in Vietnam, wins medals, creates a shrimp fishing fleet, inspires people to jog, starts a ping-pong craze, meets the president several times, and more. This is all irrelevant to Gump, though, as he searches for his childhood sweetheart, Jenny Curran.

–IMDb score: 8.8

1. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Last but not least on our list of best movies for motivation is The Shawshank Redemption. The film chronicles the experiences of a banker convicted of a crime he didn’t commit as he becomes a prisoner in the jailhouse Shawshank. He forms a friendship with a hardened convict, maintains his innocence, and tries to change the world around him through simple compassion.

–IMDb score: 9.3