10 Movies So Sad You Can Only Watch Them Once

3. Leaving Las Vegas (1995)

Leaving Las Vegas is the story of two people with troubled lives who find comfort in each other but promise not interfere in each other's life decisions.

For screenwriter Ben (Nicolas Cage), that decision is to drink himself to death in Las Vegas after his career and personal life crumbles. For sex worker Sera (Elisabeth Shue), that decision is not to allow Ben to criticise her profession.

There's a dark but hopeful addition to this that suggests we're all just looking for someone to accept us body and soul, flaws and virtues, but this is massively overshadowed as the film wears on and Ben's quest for death becomes more and more real and troubling.

Thanks to Cage's career-best performance, the film never slips into melodrama despite its subject matter, but does come with several scenes designed to break even the most hardened of viewers to the core. It's a beautiful, challenging depiction of love and loss, but not one you'll want to seek out for a re-watch.