The term midlife crisis comes from Elliot Jacques, a psychoanalyst who observed patients as young as mid-30s experiencing signs of an identity crisis, who, in turn, were taking big risks in their personal and professional lives. That said, a midlife crisis is more likely to happen between the years of 40 and 60 as people begin to confront their own mortality. Famed psychologist Erik Erikson gives a psychosocial perspective on aging and the many crises we confront throughout our lives. According to Simply Psychology, Erikson’s eight crises encompass birth to death. In the seventh stage, referred to as the Generativity vs. Stagnation crisis, individuals between ages 40 and 65 begin to take account of their successes and failures. Depending on where they fall, they can either be content or try to grasp at whatever straws are available to reclaim their youth. While a midlife crisis is non-discriminatory, many films focus on men going through a midlife crisis negatively while a woman-centric midlife crisis film is depicted more positively. All in all, these are some of the best movies about having a midlife crisis, ranked.
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9 Bad Boys for Life
The third installment of the Bad Boys saga Bad Boys for Life occurs practically 30 years after its predecessor. Mike (Will Smith) and Marcus (Martin Lawrence) have since been promoted to Detective Lieutenants in Miami. As Marcus begins feeling his age and the demands of the job, he retires, which causes Mike to spin. He tries to prove he’s still youthful and the weight of police work is not affecting him. Though both men may be viewing their age differently, the attempt to recapture their youth is put to the test when a former crime lord tries to murder Marcus.
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8 Father of the Bride
Touchstone Pictures
Annie Banks has finished her studies abroad in Europe and is engaged to her boyfriend of three months, Bryan. Though in the midst of premarital bliss, her father George (Steve Martin) is not ready to let go of his little girl. In an attempt to hold onto his daughter, he tries to drive wedges between Annie and Bryan, only for them to backfire. Though George acts rashly in Father of the Bride, his behaviors are somewhat common. According to Psychology Today, tension between a father and his to-be-wed daughter is rooted in a difference in value. George, as he battles with his daughter getting married, is also taking account of where he was at her age and what her marriage means to their relationship.
7 Tag
New Line Cinema
Based on true events, Tag is the story of five childhood friends who played tag well into their adult lives for a month each year. Jerry (Jeremy Renner) is the only friend who has never been tagged. The friends are now 40 years old and facing the dilemma of what they’ve kept important and what needs to change. While the idea of playing tag well after elementary school seems immature and is ridiculed by peers and adults, these five friends kept their youthful spirits and, more significantly, their friendship because of it.
6 Under the Eiffel Tower
The Orchard
In Under the Eiffel Tower, Stuart has become smitten with someone half his age and decides to propose to her under the famed Eiffel Tower in Paris. After being denied, he meets a stranger who invites him to travel around France to get his mind off the heartache. Throughout the trip, Stuart is faced with the idea of his age and being alone. Yet despite his age, he spends his trip doing things a younger person might do in a film: make a risky deal to win his job back, have a one-night stand, and engage in a physical altercation with a stranger.
5 Another Round
Zentropa Productions
In Another Round, a quartet of colleagues decides to do an experiment by drinking alcohol every day to see how this affects their professional and personal lives. Their reason isn’t scientific, but due to a lack of fun in their lives. In an article from Medium, the film is based on a scientific study reporting that a blood alcohol content of 0.05% every day can improve creativity and relaxation. Yet when Martin (Mads Mikkelsen) loses his marriage and best friend, the crushing waves of the denial of his depression and failures as a husband quickly come to light.
4 Last Vegas
CBS Films
When Billy becomes engaged to Lisa, who is half his age, his friends plan a trip to the ultimate bachelor destination: Las Vegas. Through Last Vegas, each friend is facing something they wish to ignore as it means they have to face their mortality. Billy even admits the reason he wanted to marry Lisa was due to self-denial of his age and a fear of being alone.
3 This is 40
Apatow Productions
Based on a joke from Knocked Up, which featured Leslie Mann as Debbie and Paul Rudd as Pete, a married couple who hated each other, This is 40 explores the comedy and tragedy of marriage. Writer Judd Apatow revealed to Post and Courier that the film plays around with the challenges of marriage, like spending too much time in the bathroom.
2 Crazy, Stupid, Love
Carousel Productions
After Cal’s wife asks for a divorce in Crazy, Stupid, Love, he becomes depressed and purposeless. Until he meets Jacob, a smooth younger man who easily picks up women. He trains Cal in the art of seduction, but Cal feels empty. When Jacob is revealed to be Cal’s daughter’s boyfriend, all hell breaks loose.
1 Book Club
June Productions
Book Club stars an ensemble cast of women characters played by Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen, and Mary Steenburgen. They are four life-long friends who, part of a book club, have recently read 50 Shades of Gray. As they embark on new chapters in their lives — or, in some cases, revisit old ones — the four women effectively prove that life doesn’t stop once you reach 60.
