History Woobie / Film

* Creator/DomhnallGleeson has had a successful career thus far playing a variety of woobies, including jerkass ones (''Film/{{Frank}}'') baddass ones (''Film/{{HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows}}'') and heartrendingly cute ones (''Film/{{Dredd}}''). The pattern makes his casting as General Hux feel like the odd one out.

* Lars of LarsAndTheRealGirl is this trope personified. Mother died giving birth to him, father pretty much blamed him for it and became emotionally distant, older brother (probably the only stable person in his life) skipped town for several years and left him behind. He's so traumatized from his past that he feels ''physical pain'' when touched by others. He cannot have a normal relationship with the opposite sex (despite a co-worker practically throwing herself at him) and is so self conscious that the only one he can bring himself to connect with is a rubber sex toy. Yet, despite all that, he's still the sweetest, most innocuous guy ever.

* Brandon Teena in BoysDontCry. 'Nuff said.

* Jamal, from SlumdogMillionaire. And every non-villainous character associated with him.

* RequiemForADream. Seriously, try to watch the final scene without wanting to give every character a big squishy hug.

* TheBoyInThePlasticBubble Todd growing up in [[BubbleBoy incubator]] doesn't really build social skills.
* Michael from ''TheBlindSide'' is so much the Woobie that the Tuohys take him in and [[spoiler: eventually adopt him]].

* It's practically a job requirement in ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse''.
** Edward Norton as Dr Bruce Banner in 2008 ''Film/TheIncredibleHulk''. Continued with Mark Ruffalo in ''Film/TheAvengers''. He's been at the mercy of the government, SHIELD, and Loki. The poor guy never catches a break.
** Steve Rogers at the beginning of ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger''. He's desperate to help in the war effort, but his terrible health blocks him from entering the military.
** Loki from ''Film/Thor''. Sure, he's the villain and we're supposed to be rooting against him, but the fact that he constantly looks like he's about to cry and has spent his whole life trying to get out of the shadow of his big ([[spoiler:adoptive]]) brother and please his father doesn't help things.
** [[spoiler:[[Film/CaptainAmericaTheWinterSoldier The Winter Soldier]] AKA Bucky [[BrainwashedAndCrazy brainfried]] Barnes. He was [[NeverFoundTheBody thought]] dead after he fell from a Hydra train. He survived and was captured by Hydra, who brainwashed him and programmed him to be an assassin. For the next 70 years he was either [[HumanPopsicle in cold storage]] or defrosted to kill Hydra's enemies. He was so thoroughly brainfried that it takes his old friend saying his name to send him into a BSOD. When he returns to base and begins to breakdown, [[BullyingADragon he is slapped]] and told to undergo a mindwipe: which he doesn't fight despite being able to destroy dozens of SHIELD agents at once. When he fights Steve again, he's completely falling apart.]]

** Sandman from ''Film/SpiderMan3''. He just wants to cure his daughter from some mysterious illness but since he doesn't has the money for medical care, he was in desperation forced to do crime in order to get them. In one of his robberings, he [[spoiler:accidentally killed Uncle Ben]], a mistake that would hunt him with much remorse and guilt. When he got his super powers, he decided to use them in order to get the money, but not before visting his daughter, giving her the post cards he had written for her but wasn't allowed to send. After the final battle with Spider-Man, in which both [[spoiler:Harry and Eddie]] died, he's obviously in deep regret of the situation he played part off that went out of hand and the last scene has him asking Spider-Man for forgiveness for the pain he had caused him.

* Loki from ''Film/{{Thor}}''. Sure, he's the villain and we're supposed to be rooting against him, but the fact that he constantly looks like he's about to cry and has spent his whole life trying to get out of the shadow of his big ([[spoiler: adoptive]]) brother and please his father doesn't help things.

* Marky from HarryBrown is pretty close to being TheWoobie. [[spoiler: While he is admittedly a bit of a dick, it seems to be mostly an attempt to blend in with the other chavs, who are far more inclined to savagery than he seems to be. Considering that he gets sexually abused by his uncle, kidnapped and tortured by Harry and then used as bait by Harry before getting shot in the head by one of his own mates, it's hard not to feel at least a little bit sorry for him.]]

* 85% of Creator/CharlieChaplin's movies feature a lonely tramp, who doesn't only looks pathetic, but is also a very kind and polite man who commits petty crimes (such as stealing food) only out of hunger and despair, as you see him doing his best to be accepted by society. Apart from TheGoldRush, he rarely gets out of his misery, but shows so much determination that you would love to give him a bowl of soup.

** [[FridgeBrilliance You could consider that scene]] to be {{foreshadowing}} for the end of the movie, [[spoiler:when Colin and his dad run off through the garden and leave Mary alone. That's what finally drives her to tears]].

* Clark in ''ManOfSteel''. Traumatized by his emerging powers and regarded as a freak by his peers, frightens his classmates when he saves their lives, learns that he's not just adopted, he's an alien, has a You'reNotMyRealDad argument with his adoptive father Jonathan Kent and then minutes later watches Jonathan Kent die because he insisted that Clark not expose himself to save him. That's all ''before'' he turns eighteen. As an adult, he discovers that he is the last survivor of his home planet, only to soon learn that there are other survivors - and they're a bunch of bad guys who want to rebuild Krypton by wiping out humanity. He is able to stop their plan but only after [[spoiler: half a city is destroyed, Zod forces Clark to kill him]]. He needs every hug he gets in this movie.

* "Heroin" Bob from SLCPunk. Although he doesn't get as much attention in the movie as Stevo, his story unfolds piece by piece until the end. When he and Stevo were kids, they were both [[spoiler:geeks, getting picked on]]. However, while Stevo was from a fairly normal family, Bob [[spoiler:had no mom and was living with his alchoholic, insane father]]. Later, he tries to visit [[spoiler:his father for his birthday and brings him a present, but the old man chases him out with a gun, after not recognising his own son. After Bob falls in love with Trish, he admits to Stevo that he actually feels happy with her and he's willing to give the city they both hated for so long another chance]]. Finally, in the end he spills his guts to Stevo, saying he [[spoiler:wants to marry Trish and revealing that all this time he's had doubts whether he's ever been a good son and if he hadn't let his father down]]. And to top it all, he [[spoiler:dies the next morning]]. If that doesn't make you tear up and want to hug the guy, nothing will.

* Norman Bates, from ''Film/{{Psycho}}''. His mother isolated him from the outside world, making him totally dependent on her, and then mentally abused him. No wonder poor Norman goes a little mad sometimes. He practically exudes neediness and awkward sweetness. Plus, he's played with boyish charm by the handsome Anthony Perkins. He's in even more need of a hug in [[PsychoII the sequel]], where the vulnerable Norman has to tolerate {{gaslighting}}.

* ''Film/KingsmanTheSecretService'':
** Harry Hart. He may be a very well-to-do, smooth badass who [[SharpDressedMan gets to wear cool suits]], but let’s take a good look at what happens to him throughout the course of the movie. At the very start of the film, he loses his protégé, and instead of getting any particular sympathy from his colleagues, he’s mostly shown getting flack for “making a poor choice.” Then he tries to comfort the dead man’s family with little success, and has to deal with the widow sobbing and yelling at him. All of this is of course made worse by his guilt for having missed the grenade that killed Lancelot. Seventeen years later, [[spoiler: the new Lancelot dies, so he loses another colleague,]] is reminded of his grief and failure, and if that weren’t enough, his boss is ''still'' giving him crap over “picking the wrong sort of guy” for the previous Lancelot ''seventeen years ago''. As he puts it in the bar, he’d “had a rather emotional day.” He then is able to take Eggsy under his wing, which must give him some happiness, but shortly afterwards he goes to investigate [[spoiler: Professor Arnold and is drugged with an unknown substance and nearly blown up for his trouble. He spends weeks in a coma, and when he finally wakes up]] he then almost immediately goes back to work, which is apparently his entire life, as he is never shown to have any sort of relationship outside of the Kingsmen – no friends, no family members, no significant other, nothing. Granted, none of the other Kingsmen are shown in relationships either, but Harry seems to be a bit of a misfit among them, given his progressive attitude and lack of snobbery, so he’s isolated even at work. Indeed, his best friend appears to be [[spoiler: his deceased and stuffed pet.]] ''Then'' he has to deal with [[spoiler: Eggsy failing his final test]], [[HopeSpot just when he’d been so close]], and his very next act is to visit the church, where [[spoiler: Valentine’s device drives him into a [[UnstoppableRage killing frenzy along with everyone else]], and when he comes out of it [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone he reacts with horror to what he just did]] right before he ''dies''.]] To top it all off, even if he didn’t know it, his [[spoiler: ''boss'' was one of the people behind his death!]] Does this guy need a hug, or what?
** His protégé Eggsy didn't fare any better, either. He lost his dad while he was still a kindergartner, and it messed up his and his mother's lives so bad that his mother had no choice but to marry a bastard like Dean who's constantly making their everyday life a living hell. He has skills and talents that could allow him to become a world-class gymnastic champion or a member of the Royal Marines, but had to let them all go because he didn't want to make his mother worry. Sure, he has a few friends, but his loyalty to them got him into trouble with police several times, and the last time he did that, he almost get jail-time that could last ''years''. If Harry didn't show up in his life when he did, his future would be looking ''very'' grim. Even when he was offered the chance to become a Kingsman, he had to compete with most candidates who are high-class bigots who like to pick on him because of his social status. Against all odds, [[spoiler: he still failed in the end]], disappointing Harry who he came to look up to as his father-figure, just before Harry went on the mission that [[spoiler: killed him!]] Even if Eggsy managed to [[spoiler: save the day and finally become a Kingsman and give his mother a new life in the end, he would have to live with the fact that Harry would never get to see the Kingsman he become.]]

* Seita and his little sister Setsuko, in the animated film ''GraveOfTheFireflies''. The two young children, living in WWII Japan, lose their father to battle and their mother to the Kobe firebombings. Their aunt takes them in until, unable to scrounge enough food to feed them and her own children, she turns them out, [[FromBadToWorse and their problems really begin.]] Nothing good befalls those poor kids until after [[spoiler: they both starve to death.]] Perhaps the worst aspect is that it's based on real events; the movie is an adaptation of a semi-autobiographical novel by Akiyuki Nosaka.

* [[IllGirl Michelle]] from ''OnceUponAForest'' loses her parents and is nearly killed herself by a deadly gas spill.

* Despite him not really having major problems, lots of people want to hug Chekov every time he's on screen in the latest 2009 ''Film/StarTrek'' movie. It's probably the facial expressions, especially when [[spoiler:he fails to save Spock's mom]]. And the big, sad eyes... the accent tips him over right into MoeMoe territory, though.

* Hiccup from ''Film/HowToTrainYourDragon''. An outcast in his village, [[WellDoneSonGuy even his dad thinks he's a failure]], he thinks the only way anyone will respect him is if he kills a dragon, and at the end, even after he's gotten all the respect, love, and friendship he'd wanted for the whole movie. [[spoiler: He loses his left leg saving pretty much his entire tribe and a whole lot of dragons from a massive Green Death dragon]].

* Some of Gerard Butler's character from the more recent films are this to SOME extent, even if just a little. ie: Gamer, P.S. I love you, The Ugly Truth, Law Abiding Citizen, heck even Stoick from ''Film/HowToTrainYourDragon'' was slightly woobie-ish when you try to see it from HIS point of view

** Harry Hart. He may be a very well-to-do, smooth badass who [[SharpDressedMan gets to wear cool suits]], but let’s take a good look at what happens to him throughout the course of the movie. At the very start of the film, he loses his protégé, and instead of getting any particular sympathy from his colleagues, he’s mostly shown getting flack for “making a poor choice.” Then he tries to comfort the dead man’s family with little success, and has to deal with the widow sobbing and yelling at him. All of this is of course made worse by his guilt for having missed the grenade that killed Lancelot. Seventeen years later, [[spoiler: the new Lancelot dies, so he loses another colleague,]] is reminded of his grief and failure, and if that weren’t enough, his boss is ''still'' giving him crap over “picking the wrong sort of guy” for the previous Lancelot ''seventeen years ago''. As he puts it in the bar, he’d “had a rather emotional day.” He then is able to take Eggsy under his wing, which must give him some happiness, but shortly afterwards he goes to investigate [[spoiler: Professor Arnold and is drugged with an unknown substance and nearly blown up for his trouble. He spends weeks in a coma, and when he finally wakes up]] he then almost immediately goes back to work, which is apparently his entire life, as he is never shown to have any sort of relationship outside of the Kingsmen – no friends, no family members, no significant other, nothing. Granted, none of the other Kingsmen are shown in relationships either, but Harry seems to be a bit of a misfit among them, given his progressive attitude and lack of snobbery, so he’s isolated even at work. Indeed, his best friend appears to be [[spoiler: his deceased and stuffed pet.]] ''Then'' he has to deal with [[spoiler: Eggsy failing his final test]], [[HopeSpot just when he’d been so close]], and his very next act is to visit the church, where [[spoiler: Valentine’s device drives him into a [[UnstoppableRage killing frenzy along with everyone else]], and when he comes out of it [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone he reacts with horror to what he just did]] right before he ''dies''.]] To top it all off, even if he didn’t know it, his [[spoiler: ''boss'' was one of the people behind his death!]] Does this guy need a hug, or what?

* Bill the malt shop owner in ''Film/{{Pleasantville}}''. If you don't want to hug him and tell him it's gonna be all right [[spoiler: when the B&W mob destroys his diner and his art]], you ain't human.

* Barbra from ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead'' remake. Especially in the scene when zombies eat a corpse, she is pretty disgusted, horrified, and with a realization of {{Squick}}, enough to feel sorry for her.

* ''Film/KingKong'' may well be the tropesetter in film. In production, they literally cut out less flattering footage of the monster's monstrosity when preview audiences cheered Kong's swatting a plane down on the Empire State pinnacle. It's rare to see attention to public opinion that strong, so not only is the mythic megagorilla possibly film's first Woobie, he's likely the first ''official'' Woobie.
** In the [[Creator/PeterJackson 2005 film]], we can also add Ann Darrow onto the list. To paraphrase Carl Denham, she's the saddest girl ever.

** His protégé Eggsy didn't fare any better, either. He lost his dad while he was still a kindergartner, and it messed up his and his mother's lives so bad that his mother had no choice but to marry a bastard like Dean who's constantly making their everyday life a living hell. He has skills and talents that could allow him to become a world-class gymnastic champion or a member of the Royal Marines, but had to let them all go because he had to take care of his mother and sister. He's also been constantly getting into trouble with police, and the last time he did that, he almost get jail-time that could last ''years''. If Harry didn't show up in his life when he did, his future would be looking ''very'' grim. Even when he was offered the chance to become a Kingsman, he had to compete with most candidates who are high-class bigots who constantly pick on him because of his social status. Against all odds, [[spoiler: he still failed in the end]], disappointing Harry who he came to look up upon as his father-figure, just before Harry went on the mission that [[spoiler: killed him!]] Even if Eggsy managed to [[spoiler: save the day and finally become a Kingsman and give his mother a new life, he would have to live with the fact that Harry will never get to see the man he became]].

** His protégé Eggsy didn't fare any better, too. He lost his dad while he's still a kindergartner, and it messed up his and his mother's lives so bad that his mother had no choice but to marry a bastard like Dean who's constantly making their everyday life a living hell. He has skills and talents that could allow him to become a world-class gymnastic champion or a member of the Royal Marines, but had to let them all go because he had to take care of his mother and sister. He's also been constantly getting into trouble with police, and the last time he did that, he almost get jail-time that could last ''years''. If Harry didn't show up in his life when he did, his future would be looking ''very'' grim. Even when he was offered the chance to become a Kingsman, he had to compete with most candidates who are high-class bigots who constantly pick on him because of his social status. Against all odds, [[spoiler: he still failed in the end]], disappointing Harry who he came to look up upon as his father-figure, just before Harry went on the mission that [[spoiler: killed him!]] Even if Eggsy managed to [[spoiler: save the day and finally become a Kingsman and give his mother a new life, he would have to live with the fact that Harry will never get to see the man he become]].

* Harry Hart from ''Film/KingsmanTheSecretService''. He may be a very well-to-do, smooth badass who [[SharpDressedMan gets to wear cool suits]], but let’s take a good look at what happens to him throughout the course of the movie. At the very start of the film, he loses his protégé, and instead of getting any particular sympathy from his colleagues, he’s mostly shown getting flack for “making a poor choice.” Then he tries to comfort the dead man’s family with little success, and has to deal with the widow sobbing and yelling at him. All of this is of course made worse by his guilt for having missed the grenade that killed Lancelot. Seventeen years later, [[spoiler: the new Lancelot dies, so he loses another colleague,]] is reminded of his grief and failure, and if that weren’t enough, his boss is ''still'' giving him crap over “picking the wrong sort of guy” for the previous Lancelot ''seventeen years ago''. As he puts it in the bar, he’d “had a rather emotional day.” He then is able to take Eggsy under his wing, which must give him some happiness, but shortly afterwards he goes to investigate [[spoiler: Professor Arnold and is drugged with an unknown substance and nearly blown up for his trouble. He spends weeks in a coma, and when he finally wakes up]] he then almost immediately goes back to work, which is apparently his entire life, as he is never shown to have any sort of relationship outside of the Kingsmen – no friends, no family members, no significant other, nothing. Granted, none of the other Kingsmen are shown in relationships either, but Harry seems to be a bit of a misfit among them, given his progressive attitude and lack of snobbery, so he’s isolated even at work. Indeed, his best friend appears to be [[spoiler: his deceased and stuffed pet.]] ''Then'' he has to deal with [[spoiler: Eggsy failing his final test]], [[HopeSpot just when he’d been so close]], and his very next act is to visit the church, where [[spoiler: Valentine’s device drives him into a [[UnstoppableRage killing frenzy along with everyone else]], and when he comes out of it [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone he reacts with horror to what he just did]] right before he ''dies''.]] To top it all off, even if he didn’t know it, his [[spoiler: ''boss'' was one of the people behind his death!]] Does this guy need a hug, or what?