Celebrate Father's Day or plan a dad-daughter movie night featuring one of these films, all of which feature a memorable father-daughter-type relationship. These movie dads and daring daughters are sure to entertain and move you. From Disney classics like Mulan to the emotional drama of Fly Away Home to the sweet comedy of Father of the Bride, there are great ideas here for all kinds of dads and kids of every age to watch together. For more great picks for movie night, check out one of our favorite Mother-Daughter Movies.
Many remark that a daughter's first love is her father; although, of course, this isn't always the case, it actually tends to happen a lot. As a child, having a healthy bond with your parents is crucial; it promotes mental, emotional, and linguistic development and is ultimately one of the most powerful connections two people can share. It's always heartwarming to witness these strong relationships translated into film, especially when a movie highlights how safe and secure a child feels with her caregiver.
Throughout the years, many touching movies have successfully depicted beautiful father-daughter relationships, showing how inspiring, unconditional, and encouraging a father's love can be. To celebrate Charlotte Wells' incredible directorial debut Aftersun, which came out in October and took home this year's British Independent Film Award for Best Film, audiences may want to check out similar great movies that feature strong dynamics.
From The Little Mermaid to John Wick: Chapter 4 and Knock at the Cabin, this year has "father-daughter movies" written all over. Whether in film or television (The Last of Us also depicted this), the moving, meaningful, and strong bond between two characters is one of the most satisfying to see portrayed on-screen. When well-written, father-daughter relationships touch the audience's hearts and elevate a piece of media. See what other father-daughter movie relationships have won many over.
In Hearts Beat Loud, a single dad and record store owner (Nick Offerman) and daughter (Kiersey Clemons) form an unlikely songwriting dynamic duo in the summer right before she leaves for college.
Will Smith steps into the shoes of Richard Williams, the father and coach of famed tennis players Venus and Serena Williams (played by Demi Singleton and Saniyya Sidney), in this critically-acclaimed film that landed Smith his Best Actor Academy Award in 2021. The biopic follows Williams as he brings willpower and determination to another level, carving his daughters' names into history.
There is no doubt that the highly praised film features heartwarming daughter-father bonds. As it navigates through the Williams' lives, King Richard showcases the close relationship the family shares, highlighting how big of a role Williams played in the girls' lives, both on and off the court.
Sofia Coppola's comedy-drama On the Rocks stars Bill Murray and Rashida Jones as the ultimate father-daughter duo as they attempt to find out whether or not her husband (Marlon Wayans) has been unfaithful on an adventure through New York.
What is so interesting about the film is how it captures the dynamic between both characters. While it is not necessarily among Coppola's best movies, it shines a beautiful light on the relationship between a more mature daughter and her, of course, much older father.
Considered one of the best family dramedies of all time, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris' Little Miss Sunshine is equal parts hilarious and moving. In this, a family attempts to get their young daughter, Olivia (Abigail Breslin), into the finals of a beauty pageant by taking a cross-country road trip on their bus.
There are several great things about Matt Ross' unforgettable film. Still, its most distinctive aspect is perhaps how it deals with its delicate themes, namely the difficulties of parenting, loss, and grief. Although Ben cares for all of his children equally, he shares a very caring bond with his daughters.
Based on the Pulitzer Prize Winner classic novel of the same name by Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird is a powerful tale of justice and prejudice starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch and Mary Badham as his daughter Scout. Peck plays a widowed lawyer and father of two who is currently defending Tom Robinson (Brock Peters), a Black man wrongly accused of raping a white woman.
Apart from shining a positive light on the kids who feel left out, EightGrade also depicts a strong father-daughter bond between Kayla and her father Mark (JoshHamilton). Although the two aren't very talkative around each other and rather quiet instead, viewers can tell that Mark actively makes an effort to be present and involved in his daughter's life. This heartwarming film pinpoints the unconventional ways some dads out there have of showing how much they care about their children.
In Leave No Trace, a military veteran father (Ben Foster) with post-traumatic stress disorder lives in almost total isolation in a vast urban park in Portland, Oregon, with his teenage daughter (Thomasin McKenzie). The lives of both characters take a wild turn when they are picked up by social services after living in total isolation for years.
Dealing with themes of individualism, mental health, and parental relationships, Debra Granik's heartfelt movie depicts a story of survival in the wild, escapism, and disconnection, while also showcasing a strong bond between a daughter and her father. In the meantime, the film also makes a statement on America's support systems for veterans and their families.
Deeply moving, this Marc Webb film touches on very sensitive topics, including suicide and parental abandonment, even if it mostly revolves around a second-grader. Nevertheless, Gifted showcases the importance of standing up for others all while translating a beautifully written and complex daughter-father relationship to the screen.
Train to Busan is perhaps one of the most well-known South Korean zombie movies, and it absolutely excels in the horror category. Arguably the best zombie film out there, it follows passengers who struggle to survive on the train from Seoul to Busan after a virus breaks out in South Korea. This Sang-ho Yeon flick is a highly innovative and captivating film, so much so that an American remake is reportedly in the works.
Gong Yoo's Seok-woo is a divorced parent who fully transforms post his amazing character development; he goes from a self-absorbed dad who doesn't give his daughter Soo-an (Su-an Kim) half of the attention she deserves, to one of the most selfless and caring fictional fathers out there, often putting his life at risk to guarantee his daughter's safety in a beautiful redemption arc.
Serving as an inspiration to the Turkish film of the same name released in 2019, Miracle in Cell No. 7 (South-Korean: 7-beon-bang-ui seon-mul) is a K-drama that follows a father living with intellectual disability, Yong-Goo (Seung-ryong Ryu), and his sweet daughter Ye-Seung (Kal So-won). Yong-Goo is wrongly accused of murder and locked up. He then slowly builds everlasting friendships with the criminals in the meantime, and in return, they smuggle his daughter into prison and help him see her again
Featuring Ryan O'Neal and the youngest person ever to win an Academy Award (his real-life child Tatum, who earned the Oscar at age 10 for her performance in this film), Paper Moon is a Peter Bogdanovich 1973 American road comedy-drama set during the Great Depression that focuses on an unlikely father-daughter relationship between a con-man and a child whose mother has just passed.
There are so many great things about Moses and Addie's relationship in the 1973 film, and part of what makes it so genuine and authentic is the fact that the incredible duo are actually father and daughter in real life. The most acclaimed father-daughter film out there, Paper Moon is an amazing watch and features one of the most ambiguous movie endings ever.
In one of the best Marvel movies out there, the mutant community has shrunk thanks to genetically modified plants designed with the intent to reduce mutant powers. Logan follows the significantly older titular character (Hugh Jackman in one of his best performances) who does his best to lead a quiet life away from trouble as he takes care of Professor X (Patrick Stewart), who has also aged significantly and is struggling with Alzheimer's disease. When a mutant child named Laura (Dafne Keen) comes to Logan for help, his once-peaceful life takes a big turn.
Logan makes it hard for the viewer to stay indifferent to the themes it tackles as its protagonist goes from unbothered and distrusting to a caring caretaker in this engaging modern Western. His relationship with Laura grows all throughout, and a beautiful father-daughter, highly protective relationship flourishes.
Relationships between dads and their daughters are exceptionally important. Fathers teach their daughters so many lessons and offer both comfort and protection. They also watch as their daughters become their own people and head into the world. For those times when quality time is an absolute must, we have created a list of movies that celebrates the unique dad/daughter dynamic and offers a chance for fathers and daughters to reconnect for a few hours in the comfort of their home.
aa06259810