Movies like Whole Family (2023)
The best movies like Whole Family (2023) are Come See Me in the Good Light (2025), My Mom Jayne (2025) and As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000). If Whole Family hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedI Am Heath Ledger (2017)7.4/10 from 233 votes
- NewestA Toxic Love Story (2026)Released 2026
Come See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Mom Jayne (2025)
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHeart of a Dog (2015)
Musician and performance artist Laurie Anderson reflects on the deaths of her husband Lou Reed, her mother and her beloved dog.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAvatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20 (2022)
An inside look at one of the most anticipated movie sequels ever with James Cameron and cast.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisReminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1972)
Jonas Mekas weaves an elegiac diary film from his 1971–72 return to Lithuania, chronicling a visit to his birthplace of Semeniškiai after decades in exile. Blending personal memory with documentary observation, the film becomes both a portrait of homecoming and a meditation on displacement, family, and the passage of time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGilbert (2017)
The life and career of one of comedy's most inimitable modern voices, Mr. Gilbert Gottfried.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHalloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006)
Follow the evolution of the 'Halloween' movies over the past twenty-five years. It examines why the films are so popular and revisits many of the original locations used in the films - seeing the effects on the local community. For the first time, cast, crew, critics and fans join together in the ultimate 'Halloween' retrospective.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn the Same Breath (2021)
This documentary recounts the experiences of people on the ground in the earliest days of the novel coronavirus and the way two countries dealt with its initial spread, from the first days of the outbreak in Wuhan to its rampage across the United States.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this35 Up (1991)
Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDownloaded (2013)
A documentary that explores the downloading revolution; the kids that created it, the bands and the businesses that were affected by it, and its impact on the world at large.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Crystal Calls - Making The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (2019)
Go behind the scenes with stars, puppeteers and creators as they bring Jim Henson's magical world of Thra back to life in a sweeping fantasy series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAvatar: Creating the World of Pandora (2010)
The Making-of James Cameron's Avatar. It shows interesting parts of the work on the set.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCharlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin (2003)
Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLooking for Richard (1996)
Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeduced and Abandoned (2013)
SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Toxic Love Story (2026)
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God (2012)
Alex Gibney explores the charged issue of pedophilia in the Catholic Church, following a trail from the first known protest against clerical sexual abuse in the United States and all way to the Vatican.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHarmontown (2014)
A comedic, brutally honest documentary following self-destructive TV writer Dan Harmon as he takes his live podcast on a national tour.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Am Heath Ledger (2017)
The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUndocumented in the Pandemic (2020)
With The Marshall Project and the Pulitzer Center, a look at one immigrant mother’s struggle to keep her children safe and housed, with her husband detained by ICE in a facility where COVID is spreading. Also in this two-part hour, Love, Life & the Virus.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Hipoxemia (2020)
Wilfredo Morales, a man whose daughter is a bachelor of medicine, is infected while working in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, having to face a poor health system, he starts a race against the clock: Wilfredo only has 2 hours to Find an oxygen balloon and a mechanical ventilator before it's too late.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Abdzé Wede´Õ – Vírus não tem cura? (2021)
The documentary reveals the impact of the Coronavirus on one of the indigenous but affected by the disease in the country. Narrated in first person by Divino, which highlights the desperate struggle of his village, Sangradouro, east of Mato Grosso, to survive the most tragic epidemic known by the Xavante nation. Crossed with archival material and images captured during a pandemic, the film seeks to relate a traumatic past with the reality of Covid-19.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
This Is Closest to How the Last Weeks of March Felt Like (2020)
A personal account of the COVID-19 pandemic in America and its effects on an immigrant family as seen through the eyes of a student quarantined at his barren university.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Lost and Found (2022)
An inspiring feature documentary film about overcoming homelessness and addiction in the City of Los Angeles.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Songs About Fucking (2023)
Artist, showman, and robe-clad raconteur Marc Rebillet embarks on one of the first live music tours after COVID-19 lockdown.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Berättelser från frontlinjen (2020)
Over the past few months, SVT’s Oskar Jönsson and Emil Larsson have followed those on the front lines fighting the coronavirus pandemic in Sweden. The documentary offers a unique glimpse into the new daily reality at one of the country’s largest hospitals, portraying the people who save lives while the virus ravages the nation. At the same time, it captures the efforts of other professional groups in the fight against the virus, as well as the unfolding events in society during the historic spring of 2020.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Islands in the City (2021)
Like ghosts, the temporarily shut down cruise ships lie in the port of Hamburg. A young man comes into town and is stranded on the riverbank, waiting for a message. He watches couples strolling along in the sunset and gets himself some sweets. In a moment of collective pause, ISLANDS IN THE CITY captures a fragile romance. There is a departure in the air, the destination of which no one seems to know.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Chef en pandémie (2020)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
We Met in Virtual Reality (2022)
Filmed entirely inside the world of virtual reality (VR), this immersive and revealing documentary roots itself in several unique communities within VR Chat, a burgeoning virtual reality platform. Through observational scenes captured in real-time, in true documentary style, the film reveals the growing power and intimacy of several relationships formed in the virtual world, many of which began during the COVID-19 lockdown, while so many in the physical world were facing intense isolation.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Whole Family?
The closest matches to Whole Family are Come See Me in the Good Light (2025), My Mom Jayne (2025) and As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Whole Family?
Start with Come See Me in the Good Light (2025), the closest match to Whole Family.
What is the highest-rated movie like Whole Family?
I Am Heath Ledger (2017), rated 7.4/10 by 233 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Whole Family?
A Toxic Love Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to Whole Family chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Whole Family, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.