Top 14 Inspirational Movies

Movies That Will Inspire You

By Douglas Howe

Back in 2008, the American Film Institute named its Top 100 Most Inspiring Films of All Time. While I'm happy that these films are being honored, it's still a shame that there's no Academy Award for the Most Inspiring Film of the year.

But this year at the 2010 Awards, one film made some major strides for inspirational movies everywhere. "The Blind Side"(2009) was nominated for Best Picture, with lead female actress Sandra Bullock winning the Academy Award for Best Actress. This motivational story is about a homeless African-American youngster from a broken home who is taken in by a well-to-do family who help him fulfill his potential as an All-American football player and first round NFL draft pick.

It's about time inspirational films with the ability to inspire us to higher ambitions are finally receiving more exposure on the Red Carpet. However, this doesn't make up for the many great films that didn't win awards the year they were released, but have had a lasting impact on their audience, in our culture, and in the world of cinema. Here are 14 of my favorite inspiring films of all time, in order of release date.

Douglas Howe is a blogger on Beliefnet's Idol Chatter.