Movies like Shadow of Chinatown (1936)
The best movies like Shadow of Chinatown (1936) are The Man They Could Not Hang (1939), Maniac (1963) and The Medusa Touch (1978). If Shadow of Chinatown hooked you with its horror and science fiction, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedChinatown (1974)7.9/10 from 4,490 votes
- NewestFree Chol Soo Lee (2022)Released 2022
The Man They Could Not Hang (1939)
Dr. Henryk Savaard is a scientist working on experiments to restore life to the dead. When he is unjustly hanged for murder, he is brought back to life by his trusted assistant. Re-animated he turns decidedly nasty and sets about murdering the jury that convicted him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisManiac (1963)
When a stranger enters a quiet, country town and is seduced by a sensuous married woman he unwittingly finds himself at the centre of a storm of sexual guilt and murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Medusa Touch (1978)
A French detective in London reconstructs the life of a man lying in hospital with severe injuries with the help of journals and a psychiatrist. He realises that the man had powerful telekinetic abilities.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInvasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
A small-town doctor learns that the population of his community is being replaced by emotionless alien duplicates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Earth Dies Screaming (1964)
A crack test pilot lands to find the planet has been devastated by unknown forces. There are a few survivors, so he organizes them in a plan to ward off control by a group of killer robots.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCranston Academy: Monster Zone (2020)
An intelligent 15-year-old high school student is unexpectedly transferred to a boarding school where he opens a portal of monsters from another dimension.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDead of Night (1977)
This anthology tells three stories: a man buys a car that takes him back and forth through time; a tale of vampires; and a distraught mother asks for her drowned son to come back to life and gets more than she bargained for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)
When a nobleman is threatened by a family curse on his newly inherited estate, detective Sherlock Holmes is hired to investigate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Invisible Man (1933)
After experimenting on himself and becoming invisible, scientist Jack Griffin, now aggressive due to the drug's effects, seeks a way to reverse the experiment at any cost.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBride of Frankenstein (1935)
After recovering from injuries sustained in the mob attack upon himself and his creation, Dr. Henry Frankenstein falls under control of his former mentor, Dr. Pretorius, who insists the now-chastened doctor resume his experiments in creating new life. Meanwhile, the Monster remains on the run from those who wish to destroy him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGigantis, the Fire Monster (1959)
A prehistoric monster called Gigantis emerges alongside another creature named Angurus.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCreature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
When scientists exploring the Amazon River stumble on a “missing link” connecting humans and fish, they plan to capture it for later study. But the Creature has plans of his own, and has set his sights on the lead scientist's beautiful fiancée, Kay.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFrankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943)
After being resurrected by grave robbers, Larry Talbot searches for Dr. Frankenstein in the hopes of being cured of his lycanthropy. The mad scientist may turn out to be dead, but his monster is just waiting to be found…
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Night Strangler (1973)
After being run out of Las Vegas, reporter Carl Kolchak heads for Seattle and another reporting job with the local paper. It's not long before he’s on the trail of another string of bizarre murders. It seems that every 21 years, for the past century, a killer murders a certain number of people, drains them of their blood, and then disappears into the night. Kolchak is on his trail, but can he stop him?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInvaders from Mars (1953)
A boy tries to stop aliens that have taken over his town and are brainwashing its inhabitants.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both science fiction & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Ghost of Frankenstein (1942)
Frankenstein's unscrupulous colleague, Dr. Bohmer, plans to transplant Ygor's brain so he can rule the world using the monster's body, but the plan goes sour when he turns malevolent and goes on a rampage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
SnoozefestMovies like thisCircle (2015)
In a massive, mysterious chamber, fifty strangers awaken to find themselves trapped with no memory of how they got there. Organized in an inward-facing circle and unable to move, they quickly learn that every two minutes, one of them must die…executed by a strange device in the center of the room.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Damned (1962)
An American tourist and a troubled young woman are chased by her gang leader brother to a top secret British government facility that conducts experiments on children.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSon of Frankenstein (1939)
One of the sons of late Dr. Henry Frankenstein finds his father's ghoulish creation in a coma and revives him, only to find out the monster is controlled by Ygor who is bent on revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & science fiction
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHouse of Horrors (1946)
An unsuccessful sculptor saves a madman named "The Creeper" from drowning. Seeing an opportunity for revenge, he tricks the psycho into murdering his critics.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShadow of Chinatown (1936)
A madman sets out to destroy a group of Chinatown merchants.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & science fiction
A Crime (2006)
Vincent's life is on hold until he finds his wife's killer. Alice, his neighbor, is convinced she can make him happy. She decides to invent a culprit, so that Vincent can find revenge and leave the past behind. But there is no ideal culprit and no perfect crime.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Dead Pool (1988)
Dirty Harry Callahan returns for his final film adventure. Together with his partner Al Quan, he must investigate the systematic murder of prominent figures. By the time Harry learns that the murders are part of a sick game to predict such deaths, it may be too late.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYear of the Dragon (1985)
In New York, racist Capt. Stanley White becomes obsessed with destroying a Chinese-American drug ring run by Joey Tai, an up-and-coming young gangster as ambitious as he is ruthless. While pursuing an unauthorized investigation, White grows increasingly willing to violate police protocol, resorting to progressively violent measures -- even as his concerned wife, Connie, and his superiors beg him to consider the consequences of his actions.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChinatown (1974)
Private eye Jake Gittes lives off of the murky moral climate of sunbaked, pre-World War II Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair, Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits, uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Replacement Killers (1998)
Hired assassin John Lee is asked by Chinatown crime boss Terence Wei to murder the young son of policeman Stan Zedkov. Lee has the boy in his sights, but his conscience gets the better of him, and he spares the child's life. Afraid that Wei will take revenge on his family in China, Lee seeks out expert forger Meg Coburn to obtain the passport he needs to get out of the country, but a band of replacement killers is soon on his trail.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Secrets of Wu Sin (1932)
A murder mystery about the smuggling of illegal Chinese aliens into America through Chinatown.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Chinatown Cowboy (TBA)
A Cantonese Neo-noir western set in New York City's Chinatown.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Free Chol Soo Lee (2022)
On June 3, 1973, a man was murdered in a busy intersection of San Francisco’s Chinatown as part of an ongoing gang war. Chol Soo Lee, a 20-year-old Korean immigrant who had previous run-ins with the law, was arrested and convicted based on flimsy evidence and the eyewitness accounts of white tourists who couldn’t distinguish between Asian features. Sentenced to life in prison, Chol Soo Lee would spend years fighting to survive behind bars before journalist K.W. Lee took an interest in his case. The intrepid reporter’s investigation would galvanize a first-of-its-kind pan-Asian American grassroots movement to fight for Chol Soo Lee’s freedom, ultimately inspiring a new generation of social justice activists.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Daughter of Shanghai (1937)
A Chinese-American woman tries to expose an illegal alien smuggling ring.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Shadow of Chinatown?
The closest matches to Shadow of Chinatown are The Man They Could Not Hang (1939), Maniac (1963) and The Medusa Touch (1978). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Shadow of Chinatown?
Start with The Man They Could Not Hang (1939), the closest match to Shadow of Chinatown.
What is the highest-rated movie like Shadow of Chinatown?
Chinatown (1974), rated 7.9/10 by 4,490 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Shadow of Chinatown?
Free Chol Soo Lee (2022) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Shadow of Chinatown?
Yes: The Man They Could Not Hang (1939), Maniac (1963) and The Medusa Touch (1978).
How are movies similar to Shadow of Chinatown chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Shadow of Chinatown, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.