6 Best Addiction Recovery and Twelve-Step Movies

By Vlad Zakh · April 20, 2026

Getting sober is long, messy and rarely glamorous, and these films don’t pretend otherwise. Ben Is Back and Beautiful Boy look at it from the family’s side, with a son home for Christmas and a father fighting for his boy. 28 Days and Clean and Sober go inside rehab, while Days of Wine and Roses and The Lost Weekend are the harrowing old classics.

Ben Is Back (2018)

TMDB ★ 6.6

A recovering addict's surprise Christmas Eve visit home throws his family into anxious turmoil.

Directed by Peter Hedges · 1h 43m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel, Howdy Amazon Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Beautiful Boy (2018)

TMDB ★ 7.2

A father struggles to help his son beat a devastating methamphetamine addiction.

Directed by Felix van Groeningen · 2h 01m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

28 Days (2000)

TMDB ★ 6.2

A hard-partying writer is sent to rehab for a month after a destructive drunken accident.

Directed by Betty Thomas · 1h 43m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Clean and Sober (1988)

TMDB ★ 6.7

A cocaine-addicted real estate agent is forced into rehab after a woman overdoses in his apartment.

Directed by Glenn Gordon Caron · 2h 04m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Howdy Amazon Channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Days of Wine and Roses (1962)

TMDB ★ 7.9

A married couple's shared alcoholism spirals into addiction, destroying their family and careers.

Directed by Blake Edwards · 1h 57m

Where to watch

Stream: YouTube TV · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Lost Weekend (1945)

TMDB ★ 7.9

A desperate alcoholic writer spirals through one harrowing, drink-fuelled weekend in New York City.

Directed by Billy Wilder · 1h 41m · Rated NR

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.

6 Best Addiction Recovery and Twelve-Step Movies

Ben Is Back (2018)

Beautiful Boy (2018)

28 Days (2000)

Clean and Sober (1988)

Days of Wine and Roses (1962)

The Lost Weekend (1945)

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