Movies like A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich (1977)
The best movies like A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich (1977) are A Safe Place (1971), Pets (1973) and Flesh (1968). If A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBound by Honor (1993)8.2/10 from 1,673 votes
- NewestUrchin (2025)Released 2025
A Safe Place (1971)
Noah, a young woman who lives alone in New York, is dating two very different men, Fred and Mitch, at the same time. However, she realises that neither man can totally fulfil her needs.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Pets (1973)
Naive, but brash and sultry teenage runaway Bonnie finds herself lost and adrift in America. The lovely young lass runs afoul of a colorful array of evil oddballs who all treat her like an object.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Flesh (1968)
A heroin junkie works as a prostitute to support his habit and fund an abortion needed by the girlfriend of his lesbian wife. His seedy encounters with delusional and damaged clients, and dates with drag queens and hustlers are heavy on sex, drugs and decadence.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisI Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977)
A disturbed and institutionalized 16-year-old girl struggles between fantasy and reality.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisTrash (1970)
The movie follows Joe, a heroin addict, throughout his quest to score more drugs. The episodic plot occurs over a single day and centers on Joe's problematic relationship with his on-off, sexually frustrated girlfriend. During the course of the day, Joe overdoses in front of an upper-class couple, attempts to fool Welfare into approving his methadone treatment by having Holly fake a pregnancy, and frustrates the women in his life with his drug-induced impotence.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisLorna (1964)
Lorna and Jim have been married for a year but Lorna remains sexually unsatisfied. While he's at work, she is raped by an escaped convict, then becomes lustfully involved with him.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Education of Sonny Carson (1974)
A 1974 film based on the best-selling autobiography of Sonny Carson who joined a gang and committed petty crime before being sent to prison. After his release from prison he changes his life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
The Baker (2023)
A quiet, stoic man, lives a monk-like existence in self-imposed exile. When his estranged son is killed in a drug deal gone bad, he is left to look after a granddaughter he never knew existed, and he is forced back into a life he tried to put behind him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeautiful Boy (2018)
After he and his first wife separate, journalist David Sheff struggles to help their teenage son, who goes from experimenting with drugs to becoming devastatingly addicted to methamphetamine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Principal (1987)
Burglary. Drugs. Assault. Rape. The students at Brandel High are more than new Principal Rick Latimer bargained for. Gangs fight to control the school using knives - even guns - when they have to. When Latimer and the head of security try to clean up the school and stop the narcotics trade, they run up against a teenage mafia. A violent confrontation on the campus leads to a deadly showdown with the drug dealer's gang, and one last chance for Latimer to save his career... and his life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGet Rich or Die Tryin' (2005)
A tale of an inner city drug dealer who turns away from crime to pursue his passion, rap music.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThings We Lost in the Fire (2007)
A recent widow invites her husband's troubled best friend to live with her and her two children. As he gradually turns his life around, he helps the family cope and confront their loss.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBen Is Back (2018)
19-year-old Ben Burns unexpectedly returns home to his family's suburban home on Christmas Eve morning. Ben's mother, Holly, is relieved and welcoming but wary of her son staying clean. Over a turbulent 24 hours, new truths are revealed, and a mother's undying love for her son is tested as she does everything in her power to keep him safe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRequiem for a Dream (2000)
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island residents are shattered when their addictions run deep.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMenace II Society (1993)
A young street hustler attempts to escape the rigors and temptations of the ghetto in a quest for a better life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOut of the Blue (1981)
A young girl whose father is an ex-convict and whose mother is a junkie finds it difficult to conform and tries to find comfort in a quirky combination of Elvis and the punk scene.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBraven (2018)
A logger defends his family from a group of dangerous drug runners.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEcho Valley (2025)
Kate lives a secluded life—until her troubled daughter shows up, frightened and covered in someone else's blood. As Kate unravels the shocking truth, she learns just how far a mother will go to try to save her child.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Basketball Diaries (1995)
A high school basketball player’s life turns upside down after free-falling into the harrowing world of drug addiction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHillbilly Elegy (2020)
An urgent phone call pulls a Yale Law student back to his Ohio hometown, where he reflects on three generations of family history and his own future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBound by Honor (1993)
Based on the true life experiences of poet Jimmy Santiago Baca, the film focuses on half-brothers Paco and Cruz, and their bi-racial cousin Miklo. It opens in 1972, as the three are members of an East L.A. gang known as the "Vatos Locos", and the story focuses on how a violent crime and the influence of narcotics alter their lives. Miklo is incarcerated and sent to San Quentin, where he makes a "home" for himself. Cruz becomes an exceptional artist, but a heroin addiction overcomes him with tragic results. Paco becomes a cop and an enemy to his "carnal", Miklo.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHeaven Knows What (2015)
A young heroin addict roams the streets of New York to panhandle and get her next fix, while her unstable boyfriend drifts in and out of her life at random.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUrchin (2025)
Mike, a rough sleeper in London, is trapped in a cycle of self-destruction as he attempts to turn his life around. Along the way, he encounters unexpected chances for a fresh start.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWe Die Young (2019)
Lucas, a 14-year-old boy inducted into the gang life in Washington D.C., is determined that his 10-year-old brother won't follow the same path. When an Afghanistan war veteran comes into the neighborhood, an opportunity arises.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAdulthood (2008)
After serving six years for killing his schoolmate, a young man learns that someone is out for revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSmall Engine Repair (2021)
The seemingly casual reunion of three old friends at an out-of-the-way repair shop masks a hidden agenda fuelled by the arrival of a privileged young yuppie.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPure (2002)
A young boy trying to deal with his mother's heroin addiction befriends a waitress who helps him cope with the tough situation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGully Boy (2019)
Murad, an underdog, struggles to convey his views on social issues and life in Dharavi through rapping. His life changes drastically when he meets a local rapper, Shrikant alias MC Sher.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTake Me Drunk I'm Home (2025)
It's 5 o'clock here. As a town descends deeper into their cups, one man tries desperately to ascend his stairs to bed.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Check-Up (TBA)
Two brothers united by the game, and broken by the passion
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich?
The closest matches to A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich are A Safe Place (1971), Pets (1973) and Flesh (1968). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich?
People who watched A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich most often go on to A Safe Place (1971), Pets (1973) and Flesh (1968).
What is the highest-rated movie like A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich?
Bound by Honor (1993), rated 8.2/10 by 1,673 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich?
Urchin (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich?
Yes: A Safe Place (1971), Pets (1973) and Flesh (1968).
How are movies similar to A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.