Movies like Insanity (2022)
The best movies like Insanity (2022) are One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Deconstructing Harry (1997) and Titicut Follies (1967). If Insanity hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedOne Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)8.4/10 from 11,956 votes
- NewestBeau Is Afraid (2023)Released 2023
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)
A petty criminal fakes insanity to serve his sentence in a mental ward rather than prison. He soon finds himself as a leader to the other patients—and an enemy to the cruel, domineering nurse who runs the ward.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisDeconstructing Harry (1997)
Writer Harry Block draws inspiration from people he knows, and from events that happened to him, sometimes causing these people to become alienated from him as a result.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTiticut Follies (1967)
Employing methods of direct cinema–observation, limited stylization, and non-intervention–this stark look into the State Prison for the Criminally Insane in Bridgewater, Massachusetts shows its denizens, who were often kept in barren cells and infrequently bathed, forced to strip naked publicly, force feeding, and the indifference and bullying by many of the hospital's staff.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTwelve Monkeys (1995)
In the year 2035, convict James Cole reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to discover the origin of a deadly virus that wiped out nearly all of the earth's population and forced the survivors into underground communities. But when Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990 instead of 1996, he's arrested and locked up in a mental hospital. There he meets psychiatrist Dr. Kathryn Railly and the son of a famous virus expert who may hold the key to the Army of the 12 Monkeys; thought to be responsible for unleashing the killer disease.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAsylum (1972)
A young psychiatrist applies for a job at a mental asylum and must pass a test by interviewing four patients. He must figure out which of the patients, is in fact, the doctor that he would be replacing if hired.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJoker (2019)
During the 1980s, a failed stand-up comedian is driven insane and turns to a life of crime and chaos in Gotham City while becoming an infamous psychopathic crime figure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisGhostland (2018)
A mother of two inherits a home from her aunt. On the first night in the new home she is confronted with murderous intruders and fights for her daughters’ lives. Sixteen years later the daughters reunite at the house, and that is when things get strange...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAn Angel at My Table (1990)
Based on the autobiographical work of New Zealand writer Janet Frame, this production depicts the author at various stage of her life. Afflicted with mental and emotional issues, Frame grows up in an impoverished family and experiences numerous tragedies while still in her youth, including the deaths of two of her siblings. Portrayed as an adult by Kerry Fox, Frame finds acclaim for her writing while still in a mental institution, and her success helps her move on with her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWords on Bathroom Walls (2020)
Diagnosed with a mental illness halfway through his senior year of high school, a witty, introspective teen struggles to keep it a secret while falling in love with a brilliant classmate who inspires him to open his heart and not be defined by his condition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeau Is Afraid (2023)
Following the sudden death of his mother, a mild-mannered but anxiety-ridden man confronts his darkest fears as he embarks on an epic odyssey back home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Invisible Man Returns (1940)
The owner of a coal mining operation, falsely imprisoned for fratricide, takes a drug to make him invisible, despite its side effect: gradual madness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStonehearst Asylum (2014)
An Oxford Medical School graduate takes a position at a mental institution and soon becomes obsessed with a female mental patient, but he has no idea of a recent and horrifying staffing change.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDisturbing Behavior (1998)
Steve Clark is a newcomer in the town of Cradle Bay, and he quickly realizes that there's something odd about his high school classmates. The clique known as the "Blue Ribbons" are the eerie embodiment of academic excellence and clean living. But, like the rest of the town, they're a little too perfect. When Steve's rebellious friend Gavin mysteriously joins their ranks, Steve searches for the truth with fellow misfit Rachel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisCaveat (2021)
A lone drifter suffering from partial memory loss accepts a job to look after a psychologically troubled woman in an abandoned house on an isolated island.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Snake Pit (1948)
Virginia Cunningham is confused upon finding herself in a mental hospital, with no memory of her arrival at the institution. Tormented by delusions and unable to even recognize her husband, Robert, she is treated by Dr. Mark Kik, who is determined to get to the root of her mental illness. As her treatment progresses, flashbacks depict events in Virginia's life that may have contributed to her instability.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSpellbound (1945)
When Dr. Anthony Edwardes arrives at a Vermont mental hospital to replace the outgoing hospital director, Dr. Constance Peterson, a psychoanalyst, discovers Edwardes is actually an impostor. The man confesses that the real Dr. Edwardes is dead and fears he may have killed him, but cannot recall anything. Dr. Peterson, however is convinced his impostor is innocent of the man's murder, and joins him on a quest to unravel his amnesia through psychoanalysis.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSaint Maud (2020)
Having recently found God, self-effacing young nurse Maud arrives at a plush home to care for Amanda, a hedonistic dancer left frail from a chronic illness. When a chance encounter with a former colleague throws up hints of a dark past, it becomes clear there is more to sweet Maud than meets the eye.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGirl, Interrupted (1999)
Set in the changing world of the late 1960s, Susanna Kaysen's prescribed "short rest" from a psychiatrist she had met only once becomes a strange, unknown journey into Alice's Wonderland, where she struggles with the thin line between normal and crazy. Susanna soon realizes how hard it is to get out once she has been committed, and she ultimately has to choose between the world of people who belong inside or the difficult world of reality outside.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Haunting (1963)
Dr. John Markway recruits three strangers for a sleep-disorder study at the eerie and isolated Hill House. It soon becomes clear his real interest lies in the mansion itself and its sinister history, as they are forced to confront the nature of its horror…
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAlong for the Ride (2022)
The summer before college, Auden meets the mysterious Eli, a fellow insomniac. While the seaside town of Colby sleeps, the two embark on nightly quests to help Auden experience the fun, carefree teen life she never knew she wanted.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
Like Insanity and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Insanity?
The closest matches to Insanity are One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Deconstructing Harry (1997) and Titicut Follies (1967). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Insanity?
Start with One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), the closest match to Insanity.
What is the highest-rated movie like Insanity?
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), rated 8.4/10 by 11,956 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Insanity?
Beau Is Afraid (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Insanity?
Yes: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Deconstructing Harry (1997) and Titicut Follies (1967).
How are movies similar to Insanity chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Insanity, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.