20 best movies like Cinema Paradiso (1988)

List of the best movies like Cinema Paradiso (1988): My Cousin Rachel, Tito and Me, Happy New Year, Swept from the Sea, Being 17, Anthropoid, Mysteries of Lisbon, Frantz, Rainbow: A Private Affair, The Ciambra.

Tags: movies similar to Cinema Paradiso (1988) - full list

Markimdb: 6
Genrethriller, melodrama, drama, detective
CountryUnited Kingdom, USA
Duration02:46

A young Englishman plots revenge against his mysterious, beautiful cousin, believing that she murdered his guardian. But his feelings become complicated as he finds himself falling under the beguiling spell of her charms.

Markimdb: 8
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryYugoslavia
Duration01:44

At his school, 10-year-old Zoran wins the competition for the best essay about Tito. His reward is participation in the march "Revolutionary trails" to Tito's hometown of Kumrovec.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, crime
CountryFrance, Italy

Gangster with his accomplice prepares to take part in the "first psychological hold-up in the history of crime". Next door to the jewellers of Van Cleef & Arpels, on the Croisette, in Cannes, the find the shop of a beautiful antiques dealer who befriends the group. The driver and the antiques dealer fall in love. He is friendly but unrefined, she is cultivated and independent, but discovers that talking with Simon shows up her vanity, and she desires a simple and clean love. The hold-up which had been planned for a long time by the driver is shown to be more sophisticated than his methods of seduction.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genremelodrama, drama, detective
CountryUnited Kingdom, USA
Duration01:55

The film tells the story of Russian emigree and the only survivor from ship crash Yanko Goorall and servant Amy Foster in the end of 19th century. When Yanko enters a farm sick and hungry after the shipwreck, everyone is afraid of him, except for Amy, who is very kind and helps him. Soon he becomes like a son for Dr. James Kennedy and romance between Yanko and Amy follows.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryFrance
Duration01:55

Set in the beautiful high Pyrenees in south-west France, Damien lives with his mother Marianne, a doctor, while his father, a pilot, is on a tour of duty abroad with the French military. At school, Damien is bullied by Thomas, who lives in the farming community up in the mountains, nut learns to fight back. The boys find themselves living together when Marianne invites Thomas to come and stay with them while his mother is ill in hospital. Damien must learn to live with the boy who terrorised him.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genreaction, thriller, melodrama, drama, military, biography, history
CountryCzech Republic, United Kingdom, USA, France
Duration02:24

In December 1941, Czech soldier Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš parachute into their occupied homeland to assassinate Nazi officer Reinhard Heydrich

Markimdb: 7.4
Genremelodrama, drama, detective
CountryPortugal, France
Duration04:32

The tragic story of the many lives of Father Dinis, his dark origins and his pious works, and the different fates of all those who, trapped in a sinister web of love, hate and crime, cross paths with him through years of adventure and misfortune in the convulsed Europe of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genremelodrama, drama, military, history
CountryFrance, Germany
Duration02:05

In the aftermath of WWI, a young German who grieves the death of her fiancé in France meets a mysterious French man who visits the fiance’s grave to lay flowers.

Markimdb: 5.9
Genremelodrama, drama, military
CountryItaly, France

Summer 1943, Piedmont, Italy. Milton loves Fulvia who plays with his love: she only likes the depth of his thought and the letters he writes to her. One year later, Milton has joined the Resistance and fights beside other partisans. He learns during a conversation that Fulvia was secretly in love with his best friend Giorgio, a partisan like him. Milton decides to go find Giorgio in the Langhe region of Italy with all its misty hills...But Giorgio has just been arrested by the Fascists.

Markimdb: 6.9
Genredrama, crime
CountryItaly, Brazil, Germany, France, Sweden, USA

Pio Amato, a 14 year-old member of a small Romani community in southern Italian town of Gioia Tauro in Calabria, is in a hurry to grow up. Pio follows his older brother Cosimo everywhere and from him he learns how to hustle and how to navigate the streets of his hometown. One night Pio sets out to prove to his brother that he is as good or better than him but, when things go wrong, a series of events will forever change the way he sees the world.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryUSA

Kitty Vane, Alan Trent, and Gerald Shannon have been inseparable friends since childhood. Kitty has always known she would marry one of them, but has waited until the beginning of World War I before finally choosing Alan. Gerald graciously gives them his blessing. Then, Gerald and Alan go to war. Angered over a misunderstanding involving Alan and Kitty, Gerald sends Alan on a dangerous mission that will change all their lives forever.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genremelodrama, drama
CountryFrance

Mona Bergeron is dead, her frozen body found in a ditch in the French countryside. From this, the film flashes back to the weeks leading up to her death. Through these flashbacks, Mona gradually declines as she travels from place to place, taking odd jobs and staying with whomever will offer her a place to sleep. Mona is fiercely independent, craving freedom over comfort, but it is this desire to be free that will eventually lead to her demise.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genremelodrama, drama, military
CountryWest Germany
Duration01:41

In the winter of 1942-43, a Jewish family leaps from a train going through Silesia. They are separated in the woods, and Leon, a local peasant who's now a farmer of some wealth, discovers the woman, Rosa, and hides her in his cellar. Leon's a middle-aged Catholic bachelor, tormented by his sexual drive. He doesn't tell Rosa he's seen signs her husband is alive, and he begs her to love him. Rosa offers herself to Leon if he'll help a local Jew in hiding who needs money. Leon pays, and love between Rosa and him does develop, but then Leon's peasant subservience and his limited empathy lead to tragedy. At the war's end, a ray of sunshine comes from an unexpected place.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genremelodrama, drama, military, biography
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:10

From his childhood in Poland to his adolescence in Nice to his years as a student in Paris and his tough training as a pilot during World War II, this tragi-comedy tells the romantic story of Romain Gary, one of the most famous French novelists and sole writer to have won the Goncourt Prize for French literature two times.

Markimdb: 8
Genrecomedy, drama
CountryItaly, France
Duration02:18

With 8 ½ Frederico Fellini leaves a self-portrait where dreams and reality are a mix. With help from a most excellent cast and unique scenery this self reflecting film is one of his master works.

Markimdb: 6.8
Genremelodrama, drama, military
CountryUnited Kingdom

Fictionalized story of British aerospace engineers solving the problem of supersonic flight.

Markimdb: 4.6
Genrethriller, fantasy, melodrama, drama, detective
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:02

Follows the journey of sisters who are believed to possess the supernatural ability to connect with ghosts. They cross paths with a visionary French producer while performing in Paris.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, military
CountryUnited Kingdom, Sweden, France
Duration02:21

During the Blitz of World War II, a female screenwriter (Gemma Arterton) works on a film celebrating England's resilience as a way to buoy a weary populace's spirits. Her efforts to dramatise the true story of two sisters (Lily Knight and Francesca Knight) who undertook their own maritime mission to rescue wounded soldiers are met with mixed feelings by a dismissive all-male staff.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genremelodrama, drama, military
CountryFrance, Italy

In World War II, the widow Barny sees the Italian soldiers arriving in occupied Saint Bernard while walking to her job. Barny lives with her daughter and works correcting tests and feels a great attraction toward her boss Sabine. When the Germans arrive, Barny sends her half-Jewish daughter to live in a farm in the countryside and finds that Sabine's brother has been arrested and sent to a concentration camp. The atheist Barny decides to baptize her daughter to protect her and chooses priest Léon Morin to discuss with him themes related to religion and Catholicism and Léon lends books to her. Barny converts to the Catholicism and becomes closer to Léon, feeling an unrequited desire for him.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genrefantastic, melodrama, drama, family
CountryFrance, Belgium

Simon, a young orphan, has an extraordinary power : he can take on the appearance of people he’s already touched. When his best friend dies in an accident, there is no witness. Simon decides to steal his place in his family. Ten years later, the truth will get more and more difficult to bear and to hide...

Markimdb: 6
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryFrance
Duration01:47

Mona, a prisoner on work release, meets Clément, a shy actor. Desperate to impress Mona, Clément recruits his extroverted friend, Abel, to help. When Mona becomes more interested in Abel, it sets off a conflict between the two friends. Meanwhile, Mona attempts to keep her past hidden.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genremelodrama, drama, military, history
CountryUnited Kingdom, France, USA
Duration02:33

Free-spirited writer Juliet Ashton forms a life-changing bond with the delightful and eccentric Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, when she decides to write about the book club they formed during the occupation of Guernsey in WWII.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, history
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration01:52

Paris, France, December 1897. The young playwright Edmond Rostand feels like a failure. Inspiration has abandoned him. Married and father of two children, desperate and penniless, he persuades the great actor Constant Coquelin to perform the main role in his new play. But there is a problem: Coquelin wants to premiere it at Christmas and Edmond has not written a single word.

Markimdb: 5.4
Genredrama, military
CountryUSA

In a small town in California's San Joaquin Valley, 14-year-old Homer Macauley is determined to be the best and fastest bicycle telegraph messenger anyone has ever seen. His older brother has gone to war, leaving Homer to look after his widowed mother, his older sister and his 4-year-old brother, Ulysses. And so it is that as spring turns to summer, 1942, Homer Macauley delivers messages of love, hope, pain... and death... to the good people of Ithaca. And Homer Macauley will grapple with one message that will change him forever - from a boy into a man. Based on Pulitzer Prize-winning author William Saroyan's 1943 novel, The Human Comedy, ITHACA is the quintessential wartime tale of the Home Front. It is a coming-of-age story about the exuberance of youth, the sweetness of life, the sting of death and the modesty and sheer goodness that lives in each and every one of us.

Markimdb: 6.9
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryUSA
Duration01:30

A manic-depressive mess of a father tries to win back his wife by attempting to take full responsibility of their two young, spirited daughters, who don't make the overwhelming task any easier.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, crime
CountryFrance
Duration02:12

Detective Yvonne is the widow of police chief Santi, a local hero in a town on the French Riviera. When she learns he was in fact a crooked cop, she tries to right his wrongs. Crossing paths with Antoine, a victim of Santi, sets off a series of wild events.

Markimdb: 7
Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
CountryRussia
Duration02:08

Three different persons, three different lives are connected in a mysterious way. 15 year old teenager suffering of misunderstanding, his glamorous and arrogant stepmother and the young untalented but full of optimism actress. Their destinies aren’t predetermined and their lives are very fragile.

Markimdb: 6.9
Genremelodrama, drama, biography
CountryFrance, Belgium
Duration02:19

Born out of wedlock early in the last century, Violette Leduc meets Simone de Beauvoir in postwar Saint-Germain-des-Près. An intense lifelong relationship develops between the two women authors, based on Violette's quest for freedom through writing and on Simone's conviction that she holds in her hands the destiny of an extraordinary writer.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genrefantastic, thriller, comedy, melodrama, drama
CountryRepublic of Ireland, United Kingdom, Greece, France, Netherlands, USA
Duration01:36

    In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.

    Markimdb: 8
    Genrecomedy, drama, military
    CountryFrance

    Orphaned after a Nazi air raid, Paulette, a young Parisian girl, runs into Michel, an older peasant boy, and the two quickly become close. Together, they try to make sense of the chaotic and crumbling world around them, attempting to cope with death as they create a burial ground for Paulette's deceased pet dog. Eventually, however, Paulette's stay with Michel's family is threatened by the harsh realities of wartime.

    Markimdb: 8.1
    Genremelodrama, drama, music
    CountryItaly
    Duration02:00

    The story of a virtuoso piano player who lives his entire life aboard an ocean liner. Born and raised on the ship, 1900 (Tim Roth) learned about the outside world through interactions with passengers, never setting foot on land, even for the love of his life. Years later, the ship may be destroyed, and a former band member fears that 1900 may still be aboard, willing to go down with the ship.

    Markimdb: 7.2
    Genreaction, melodrama, drama, military
    CountryCzech Republic, United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, Italy, France, USA
    Duration01:52

    Lt. Franta Slama is a top pilot in the Czech Air Force who is assigned to train a promising young flier, Karel Vojtisek, and they soon become friends. When Nazi Germany invades Czechoslovakia in 1939, they both reject the authority of their new leaders and escape to England where they join other Czech exiles in the RAF. While flying a mission over England, Karel crash lands and happens upon the farmhouse of Susan, a young woman whose husband is in the Navy. Karel soon falls head over heels for Susan but, while they enjoy a brief fling, in time Susan decides she prefers the company of the older and more worldly Franta. As Franta and Karel struggle to maintain their friendship despite their romantic rivalry.

    Markimdb: 7
    Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
    CountryRepublic of Ireland

    "Mad" Mary McArdle returns to Drogheda after a short spell in prison for something she'd rather forget. Back home, everything and everyone has changed. Her best friend, Charlene, is about to get married and Mary is maid of honor. When Charlene refuses Mary a 'plus one' on the grounds that she probably couldn't find a date, Mary becomes determined to prove her wrong.

    Markimdb: 7.6
    Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, adventure, biography
    CountryFrance

    My Mother's Castle (Le chateau de ma mere) is a sequel and companion piece to My Father's Glory (La Gloire de Mon Pere), both based on the childhood recollections of Marcel Pagnol. Like its predecessor, the movie explores the adventures of the young Marcel (Julien Ciamaca) during his summers at the family summer home in Provence.

    Markimdb: 5.8
    Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
    CountryUSA
    Duration02:33

    Life for a single mom in Los Angeles takes an unexpected turn when she allows three young guys to move in with her.

    Markimdb: 6.9
    Genremelodrama, drama
    CountryChina, France, Japan
    Duration02:07

    The life of Tao, and those close to her, is explored in three different time periods: 1999, 2014, and 2025.

    Markimdb: 7
    Genrefantastic, fantasy, melodrama, drama, family
    CountryCanada

    WWII has ended and Hanna is still grieving over her husband's disappearance. When the Christmas Comet appears for the first time in 70 years, Hanna is caught in a terrible storm and knocked unconscious. When she wakes up, she's in 2016.

    Markimdb: 6.6
    Genremelodrama, drama, military, history
    CountryFrance
    Duration01:39

    In Paris during WWII, an Algerian immigrant is inspired to join the resistance by his unexpected friendship with a Jewish man. Based on not very known facts about the Muslim community in Paris during WWII, when the Paris Mosque and its dynamic leader played a pivotal role in supporting the resistance and rescuing Jews.

    Markimdb: 6.4
    Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama
    CountryFrance

    A "normal" guy who is married to a hot actress gets worried that she is involved with her costar. This worry turns into jealousy and causes problems in their relationship. This is a story about trust and a comedy about the actions between men and women.

    Markimdb: 4.8
    Genremelodrama, drama
    CountryUSA

    A story about the rich McCulloch Family, their overbearing father and the children's misguided blaming him for everything that doesn't go right.

    Markimdb: 6.7
    Genrethriller, comedy, melodrama, drama, detective, military
    CountryFrance
    Duration01:54

    Isabelle Adjani and Gerard Depardieu star in director Jean-Paul Rappenau's amusing farce set on the eve of World War II, which follows the intersecting lives of four Parisians as they cope with the impending invasion of their city by German forces. As the French government braces for impact, the lives of a young writer, a vain movie star, a French politician and a young scientist are examined as they attempt to deal with war and evade German spies.

    Markimdb: 6.6
    Genremelodrama, drama, biography
    CountryUSA, United Kingdom, France
    Duration02:39

    New Jersey car mechanic Stacie Andree and her police detective girlfriend Laurel Hester both battle to secure Hester's pension benefits after she was diagnosed with a terminal illness.

    Markimdb: 6.7
    Genremelodrama, drama, detective
    CountryFrance, Senegal, Belgium

    Along the Atlantic coast, a soon-to-be-inaugurated futuristic tower looms over a suburb of Dakar. Ada, 17, is in love with Souleiman, a young construction worker. But she has been promised to another man. One night, Souleiman and his co-workers leave the country by sea, in hope of a better future. Several days later, a fire ruins Ada’s wedding and a mysterious fever starts to spread. Little does Ada know that Souleiman has returned.

    Markimdb: 7.6
    Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, military
    CountryCzechoslovakia

    In a small town still occupied by the Germans as World War II's tide is turning toward the Allies, apprentice train-watcher Milos is oblivious to the war. Instead, he is obsessed with having his first sexual experience. Despite the favors of train conductor Masa, Milos has no luck. His quest leads him to a female Resistance fighter who, in passing, recruits him to the cause. As Milos finally finds love, danger draws closer.

    Markimdb: 6.6
    Genrethriller, drama, adventure, military
    CountryUnited Kingdom, Israel, France

    Beirut, 1982: a young Palestinian refugee and an Israeli fighter pilot form a tentative bond in their attempt to make their way across war-torn Lebanon back to their home.

    Markimdb: 7.1
    Genremelodrama, drama
    CountryTaiwan

    Three high school students experience the perks and pitfalls of love in director Leste Chen’s sensitive tale of friendship and yearning.

    Markimdb: 7.9
    Genremelodrama, drama
    CountryFrance, Italy
    Duration01:45

    In France of the late 19th century, the wife of a wealthy general, the Countess Louise, sells the earrings her husband gave her on their wedding day to pay off debts; she claims to have lost them. Her husband quickly learns of the deceit, which is the beginning of many tragic misunderstandings, all involving the earrings, the general, the countess, & her new lover, the Italian Baron Donati.

    Markimdb: 6.4
    Genrefantasy, melodrama, drama, crime, detective
    CountryItaly, France, Luxembourg

    In a little Sicilian village at the edge of a forest, Giuseppe, a boy of 13, vanishes. Luna, his classmate who loves him, refuses to accept his mysterious disappearance. She rebels against the silence and complicity that surround her, and to find him she descends into the dark world which has swallowed him up and which has a lake as its mysterious entrance.

    Markimdb: 6.2
    Genrecomedy, melodrama, drama, adventure, family
    CountryUSA

    The love story between a pampered Cocker Spaniel named Lady and a streetwise mongrel named Tramp. Lady finds herself out on the street after her owners have a baby and is saved from a pack by Tramp, who tries to show her to live her life footloose and collar-free.

    Markimdb: 6.5
    Genremelodrama, drama, military
    CountryRepublic of Ireland, United Kingdom, France, USA
    Duration01:41

    The quirky story of a young boy's adventures growing up with his stunningly beautiful mother and the two very different men who love her.




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