How to find movies by genre

Last updated 7 November 2026

To find movies by genre, pick one genre, then narrow it with a second genre, a language, a decade or a mood, and sort by rating instead of popularity. On Reelipse, every genre has its own page of popular films and a ranked best-of list, and Discover lets you stack genre, mood, language, decade and runtime filters at once. It’s free and there’s no sign-up.

1. Start with one genre

Pick the genre closest to what you want tonight. Each page lists the most popular films in it right now, with a verdict for each one.

2. Combine two genres

One genre is usually too broad. Pick two genres on Discover and you only see films that are both. A few pairs that work well:

Science Fiction + Thriller: tense, idea-driven science fiction
Romance + Comedy: romcoms
Crime + Comedy: heist and caper comedies
Horror + Mystery: slow-burn, puzzle-box horror
Animation + Family: films for a family movie night
Action + History: historical epics

3. Add a mood, language or decade

Genre says what a film is; mood says how it feels. “Thriller” covers both cosy whodunits and films that leave you shaken, so add a filter that matches how you feel:

Mood: browse by mood (mind-bending, edge of your seat, feel-good and more), or let the Mood Matcher pick from how you feel.
Language: pick a genre on Discover and set the language, or start from a language page such as Hindi movies or Tamil movies.
Decade: set a decade on Discover, or open a ranked list such as the best movies of the 1990s.
Runtime: set a maximum runtime on Discover, or see great movies under two hours.

4. Sort by rating, not popularity

Popular means a lot of people are watching it this week, not that it’s good. To find the best films in a genre, use its ranked list. Each one is ordered by viewer score and only includes films with at least 1,000 votes:

See all ranked lists for the other genres, languages and decades.

5. Switch from a genre to a film you loved

Genre lists stop working once you know what you liked. Two films can share a genre and still feel nothing alike. Start from the film instead:

Movies Like: search any film to get up to 30 similar movies, each with the reason it matches.
Movie Map: see the film in the middle of an interactive map, with the films its viewers watch next around it. Click any one to move from movie to movie.
Blend: pick two favourites in different genres and get the films in between.

Genres people often mix up

Thriller, mystery or crime? A thriller is about suspense: will they get out? A mystery is about a question: who did it? A crime film is about the people who break the law, or catch those who do. Many films are tagged with two of the three.
Science fiction or fantasy? Science fiction explains its world with technology or science, even made-up science. Fantasy uses magic and myth, and doesn’t need to explain it.
Drama or romance? In a romance, the love story is the plot. In a drama, the love story is part of a wider story about the characters.
Family or animation? Animation is how a film is made, not who it’s for. Plenty of animated films are made for adults, so pick both genres if you want an animated film for children.

On streaming apps

Netflix, Prime Video and other streaming apps have genre rows too, but they only show their own catalogue and usually let you pick one genre at a time. Find the film here first, then open its page to see where it’s streaming.

Questions about finding movies by genre

What are the main movie genres?

The genres most film sites use are action, adventure, animation, comedy, crime, documentary, drama, family, fantasy, history, horror, music, mystery, romance, science fiction, thriller, war and western. Reelipse has a page for each, with the most popular films first and a ranked best-of list.

How do I find movies that are two genres at once?

Open Discover and pick both genres. It then shows only films tagged with both, for example science fiction and thriller. Most streaming apps only let you browse one genre at a time.

How do I find good movies in a genre, not just popular ones?

Sort by rating instead of popularity. Each genre has a “best of all time” list, such as the best horror movies, ranked by viewer score and limited to films with at least 1,000 votes, so a handful of fans can’t push a film up.

Can I find Hindi, Tamil or Telugu movies by genre?

Yes. On Discover, pick a genre and set the language, for example thriller in Hindi. Each language also has its own page of popular films.

Why do genre lists feel too broad?

A genre is a wide label: drama covers both courtroom films and coming-of-age stories. If you already know a film you loved, Movies Like and Movie Map find films close to that one film, which is usually a better fit than any genre list.