Movies like Polywood (2023)
The best movies like Polywood (2023) are Alex Strangelove (2018), Benjamin (2019) and Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds (2006). If Polywood hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAll Too Well: The Short Film (2021)8.0/10 from 303 votes
- NewestHeartstopper Forever (2026)Released 2026
Alex Strangelove (2018)
Alex Truelove is on a quest to lose his virginity, an event eagerly awaited by his patient girlfriend and cheered on with welcome advice by his rowdy friends. But Alex, a super gregarious dude, is oddly unmotivated. A magical house party throws Alex into the presence of Elliot, a hunky college guy, who pegs Alex as gay and flirts hard. Alex is taken aback but after a series of setbacks on the girlfriend front he takes the plunge and learns some interesting new facts about himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBenjamin (2019)
Benjamin, a rising star filmmaker, is on the brink of premiering his difficult second film No Self at the London Film Festival when Billie, his hard drinking publicist, introduces him to a mesmeric French musician called Noah.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds (2006)
How far would you go to get the person of your dreams? With the help of Gwen and Tiffani, Kyle pretends to be heterosexual in order to land Troy, the new guy (and nude model) who's turning the heads of both men and women. He soon finds himself joining the campus ex-gay support group and nabbing a girlfriend! Kyle's ex-boyfriend Marc is horrified at the plan and decides to pursue the confused Troy with his own tactic -- being his "out" gay self. Who will win Troy first?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Friend of Dorothy (2025)
Dorothy is a lonely widow whose body is failing, but her mind remains as bright as ever. When 17-year-old JJ accidentally kicks his football into her garden, he upends Dorothy's daily routine of pills, prunes, and crosswords, and an unlikely friendship blossoms. Despite being worlds apart in every way, the two come to find they have more in common than they could ever imagine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBros (2022)
Two gay men are possibly, probably, stumbling towards love. Maybe. They're both very busy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZack and Miri Make a Porno (2008)
Lifelong platonic friends Zack and Miri look to solve their respective cash-flow problems by making an adult film together. As the cameras roll, however, the duo begin to sense that they may have more feelings for each other than they previously thought.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTotally F***ed Up (1994)
Gay, alienated Los Angeles teens have a hard time as their parents kick them out of their homes, they don’t have money, their lovers cheat, and they are harassed by gay-bashers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPalm Trees and Power Lines (2023)
Seventeen-year-old Lea spends her summer break tanning in her backyard, and drifting between tiptoeing around her needy mother, and aimlessly trailing her best friend and boys from school. This monotony is interrupted by a chance encounter with Tom, a seductive man twice her age who promises an alternative to Lea's unsatisfying adolescent life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Repair Shop (2024)
In a warehouse in the heart of Los Angeles, a dwindling handful of devoted craftspeople maintain more than 80,000 student musical instruments, the largest remaining workshop in America of its kind. Meet four unforgettable characters whose broken-and-repaired lives have been dedicated to bringing so much more than music to the schoolchildren of this city.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000)
A close-knit group of gay friends share the emotional roller coster of life, relationships, the death of friends, new beginnings, jealousy, fatherhood and professional success. At various stages of life's disarray, these young men share humorous and tragic relationships and always have each other to rely on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Brother the Devil (2012)
Fourteen-year-old Mo is a lonely, sensitive boy whose hunger for the rant and banter of buddies makes him prone to tread dangerous territories. He idolizes his handsome older brother, Rashid, a charismatic, well-respected member of a local gang, whose drug dealing enables “Rash” to provide for his family. Aching to be seen as a tough guy himself, Mo takes a job that unlocks a fateful turn of events and forces the brothers to confront their inner demons. It turns out that hate is easy. It is love and understanding that take real courage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThreesome (1994)
At a sizable public college, high-minded student Eddy is forced to room with the slovenly Stuart, but the pair strike up a surprising friendship. When attractive co-ed Alex is assigned to live with the two male students because of her gender-neutral name, a roundabout love triangle ensues. Eddy secretly yearns for Stuart, who wants Alex, but she prefers Eddy. The complex situation leads to sexual experimentation and strained relationships.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAll Over the Guy (2001)
A contemporary romantic comedy exploring the unlikely pairing of two 20-somethings thrown together by their respective best friends in hopes of igniting their own romance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisAll Too Well: The Short Film (2021)
Short film featuring the extended version of the song “All Too Well” by Taylor Swift. A troubled couple's romance blossoms before it eventually falls apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBanana Split (2018)
After a messy breakup with her high school boyfriend, April strikes up an unexpected platonic friendship with his new girlfriend, Clara.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYour Friends & Neighbors (1998)
Restless and unhappy, two couples get caught up in infidelity and deception. Barry is a sullen businessman married to Mary, a writer who is unsatisfied with their relationship. Mary begins an affair with Jerry, a smug theater professor and husband of her friend, Terri, who is also a writer. Adding to the adulterous mix are Cary, a callous doctor, and Cheri, an art-gallery assistant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisHeartstopper Forever (2026)
It's a new school year for the Truham-Higgs gang. As Nick and Charlie's relationship deepens, their thoughts turn to life after the last bell rings.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHeavy Traffic (1973)
A white dropout struggles to become a cartoonist and filmmaker, drawing inspiration from the harsh, gritty world around him. Still sharing his rundown apartment with his middle-aged parents, an oafish slob of an Italian father and a ditzy nutcase of a Jewish mother, he's ridiculed and looked down upon by his friends, hypocrites who run with violent gangs and the Italian Mafia, and a shallow Black girl who makes her living downtown with the pimps and pushers. The cartoonist gets a chance to pitch a film idea to a movie mogul, but the story proves too outrageous: a far-future Earth, depleted by war and pollution, where a mutant antihero challenges and kills God.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShe's Gotta Have It (1986)
The story of Nola Darling's simultaneous sexual relationships with three different men is told by her and by her partners and other friends. All three men wanted her to commit solely to them; Nola resists being "owned" by a single partner.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMater and the Ghostlight (2006)
Mater, the rusty but trusty tow truck from Cars, spends a day in Radiator Springs playing scary pranks on his fellow townsfolk. That night at Flo's V8 Café, the Sheriff tells the story of the legend of the Ghostlight, and as everyone races home Mater is left alone primed for a good old-fashioned scare.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSchool Safari (2005)
In this film, we meet Jack who is inspired by his Uncle Bob - who he believes to be an explorer in Africa. Jack starts to see the world around him and all those in it, just as if he were out on safari in the Serengeti!
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Playhouse (2005)
The Playhouse follows the story of a young orphan who is picked on by a group of girls at her new school. She then decides to go adventuring off on her own in an abandoned house, but who or what will she find lurking in the shadows of The Playhouse...
Why it matches: Similar story and style
A Night On The Tiles (2005)
The film follows the shenanigans of the goings on in the male and female toilets of a local nightclub. We meet the two young toilet attendants who have more interest in each other than the events of the evening.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Cachorro (2014)
Two days in the life of a rent boy in Alameda Central, Mexico.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The House That Jack Built (1976)
Story about the cow with the crumpled horn that tossed the dog that worried the cat that killed the rat that ate the malt that lay in the house that Jack built.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The First Wave (2014)
Following the outbreak of an aggressive virus, a young woman awakes in a hospital bed. As the horrifying events that led her there are revealed, it becomes clear that the cure is just the beginning. This short film is a prequel for the feature film, The Third Wave, which was written at the Binger FilmLab 2012. The project also won the Best Story Pitch award at the Edinburgh Film Festival, June 2012.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
STRIKE (An Epic Superhero Short Film) (2013)
John Eckert just broke up with his dream girl, and feels like his life isn't amounting to anything. But all of this is about to change when a freak lightning storm gives him the ability to control electricity. When the town becomes the target of a super villain, he must hone his abilities and save the day.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Joke (2010)
A bunch of friends are celebrating the birthday of one of them when they decide to play a joke on him. None of them could imagine the consequences that would befall them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Child Support (2018)
Monica, a middle school student, is forced to play survival of the fittest with bullies at school and compete with her younger sister for emotional support at home.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Polywood?
The closest matches to Polywood are Alex Strangelove (2018), Benjamin (2019) and Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds (2006). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Polywood?
Start with Alex Strangelove (2018), the closest match to Polywood.
What is the highest-rated movie like Polywood?
All Too Well: The Short Film (2021), rated 8.0/10 by 303 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Polywood?
Heartstopper Forever (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Polywood?
Yes: Alex Strangelove (2018), Benjamin (2019) and Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds (2006).
How are movies similar to Polywood chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Polywood, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.