Movies like El retorno (2014)
The best movies like El retorno (2014) are The Scarlet and the Black (1983), Behold a Pale Horse (1964) and Jacknife (1989). If El retorno hooked you with its drama and war, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBraveheart (1995)7.9/10 from 11,622 votes
- NewestPozos (2026)Released 2026
- In SpanishThe Children of the War (1984)Also in Spanish
The Scarlet and the Black (1983)
Fr. Hugh O'Flaherty is a Vatican official in 1943-45 who has been hiding downed pilots, escaped prisoners of war, and Italian resistance families. His activities become so large that the Nazis decide to assassinate him the next time he leaves the Vatican.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBehold a Pale Horse (1964)
Manuel Artiguez, a famous bandit during the Spanish civil war, has lived in French exile for 20 years. When his mother is dying he considers visiting her secretly in his Spanish home town. But his biggest enemy, the Spanish police officer Vinolas, prepared a trap at the hospital as a chance to finally catch Artiguez.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJacknife (1989)
A conflict develops between a troubled Vietnam veteran and the sister he lives with when she becomes involved romantically with the army buddy who reminds him of the tragic battle they both survived.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Rifleman (2023)
A WWII veteran escapes his care home in Northern Ireland and embarks on an arduous but inspirational journey to France to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, finding the courage to face the ghosts of his past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWaiting for Anya (2020)
During the harrows of WWII, Jo, a young shepherd along with the help of the widow Horcada, helps to smuggle Jewish children across the border from southern France into Spain.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCast a Giant Shadow (1966)
An American Army officer is recruited by the yet to exist Israel to help them form an army. He is disturbed by this sudden appeal to his Jewish heritage. Each of Israel's Arab neighbors has vowed to invade the poorly prepared country as soon as partition is granted. He is made commander of the Israeli forces just before the war begins.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOutlaws - For Greater Glory (2012)
A chronicle of the Cristeros War (1926-1929), which was touched off by a rebellion against the Mexican government's attempt to secularize the country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955)
A dramatization of the American general and his court martial for publically complaining about High Command's dismissal and neglect of the aerial fighting forces.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Kill Team (2019)
When Andrew Briggman — a young soldier in the US Army during the invasion of Afghanistan — witnesses the murderous behavior of fellow soldiers, under the direction of a malevolent Sergeant, he faces a moral dilemma. His increasingly-violent platoon becomes suspicious that someone in their ranks has turned on them, and Andrew begins to fear for his safety. A fictionalized dramatization based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKing Rat (1965)
When Singapore surrendered to the Japanese in 1942, the Allied POWs, mostly British but including a few Americans, were incarcerated in Changi prison. Among the American prisoners is Cpl. King, a wheeler-dealer who has managed to establish a pretty good life for himself in the camp. King soon forms a friendship with an upper-class British officer who is fascinated with King's enthusiastic approach to life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBattleground (1949)
Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues, perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMen in War (1957)
In Korea, on 6 September 1950, Lieutenant Benson's platoon finds itself isolated in enemy-held territory after a retreat. Soon they are joined by Sergeant Montana, whose overriding concern is caring for his catatonic colonel. Benson and Montana can't stand each other, but together they must get the survivors to Hill 465, where they hope the division is waiting. It's a long, harrowing march, fraught with all the dangers the elusive enemy can summon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCloak and Dagger (1946)
Italian partisans help a professor sent by the OSS to find an atomic scientist held by Nazis.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMacbeth (2015)
Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis, receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders his king and takes the throne for himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Midnight Clear (1992)
In 1944 France, an American Intelligence Squad locates a German Platoon wishing to surrender rather than die in Germany's final war offensive. The two groups of men, isolated from the war at present, put aside their differences and spend Christmas together before the surrender plan turns bad and both sides are forced to fight the other.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBraveheart (1995)
Enraged at the slaughter of Murron, his new bride and childhood love, Scottish warrior William Wallace slays a platoon of the local English lord's soldiers. This leads the village to revolt and, eventually, the entire country to rise up against English rule.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Beast of War (1988)
During the war in Afghanistan a Soviet tank crew commanded by a tyrannical officer find themselves lost and in a struggle against a band of Mujahadeen guerrillas in the mountains.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUnder Fire (1983)
Three U.S. journalists get too close to one another and their work in 1979 Nicaragua.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBoudica (2023)
Inspired by events in A.D. 60, Boudica follows the eponymous Celtic warrior who rules the Iceni people alongside her husband Prasutagus. When he dies at the hands of Roman soldiers, Boudica’s kingdom is left without a male heir and the Romans seize her land and property. Driven to the edge of madness and determined to avenge her husband’s death, Boudica rallies the various tribes from the region and wages an epic war against the mighty Roman empire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
SnoozefestMovies like thisHornblower: The Examination for Lieutenant (1998)
Acting Lieutenant Hornblower attempts to study for his promotion examination, but becomes distracted by the serious supply problems that face his crew.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Children of the War (1984)
Based on the lives of four boys, all of different social classes and psychological makeup, this film tries to reflect through them the political history of Argentina during the years leading up to the Malvinas War.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war & drama
Blessed by Fire (2005)
A war veteran, haunted by the horrors of war and the experiences he shared with fellow soldiers drafted to the battlefront as an 18-year-old conscript, is forced to confront the memories of his past after a former comrade attempts suicide. 20 years after the war, he finally attempts to reconnect with his past to begin to heal his old wounds.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Underlying Silence (2023)
An ex-combatant is admitted to a psychiatric facility due to what happened in the Falklands War. During his stay in that institution, he will find a purpose to fight against the treatments that tend to harm him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Thousand Yard Stare (2023)
Victor, a retired Argentine lieutenant from the Falklands War, is hospitalized as a result of catatonia. Through a dreamlike and dark journey, he goes into the darkness of his mind, where different ghosts from his past won't leave until they are satisfied.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Resurrected (1989)
A Falklands War soldier missing, believed dead, turns up claiming amnesia.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
Frecuencia 82: Malvinas Argentinas (2026)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Saudade (2022)
Aurora and Bernardo are experiencing moments of happiness, but their joy is interrupted by the onset of war.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Pozos (2026)
A former combatant of the Malvinas war reviews historical events of his life while Alzheimer's progresses little by little inside of him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Tras un Manto de Neblinas (2023)
The documentary tells the first-person story of what seven veterans experienced during the Malvinas War through their childhood and adolescence, sharing life in a town in the interior of Córdoba. The military service, the landing, the waiting, the cold, the hunger, the fear, the battles, and the return to their village. "I want them to know about my war," says Jorge, taking off his beret as a sign of respect for those who lost their lives in the Malvinas. Today, more than 40 years after the war, they recount what those 74 days were like that marked their lives forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like El retorno?
The closest matches to El retorno are The Scarlet and the Black (1983), Behold a Pale Horse (1964) and Jacknife (1989). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after El retorno?
Start with The Scarlet and the Black (1983), the closest match to El retorno.
What is the highest-rated movie like El retorno?
Braveheart (1995), rated 7.9/10 by 11,622 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like El retorno?
Pozos (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like El retorno?
Yes: The Children of the War (1984), Blessed by Fire (2005) and Underlying Silence (2023).
How are movies similar to El retorno chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside El retorno, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.