Movies like Little Polar Bear (1990)
The best movies like Little Polar Bear (1990) are Tom Sawyer (2000), Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! (2009) and The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild (2022). If Little Polar Bear hooked you with its animation and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Wild Robot (2024)8.3/10 from 6,849 votes
- NewestThe Wild Robot (2024)Released 2024
Tom Sawyer (2000)
Tom Sawyer and his best buddy Huck Finn love going fishing, daydreaming about pirates and stolen gold, and thinking about Becky Thatcher - the pretty new girl at school. But when these pals set out on a quest for buried treasure, they end up face to face with the town's most "grizzly" bear, Injurin' Joe. Giving Joe the slip, they find themselves in the middle of a fantastic adventure that takes them from the mighty Mississippi to the mysterious caverns of a secret hideout where they discover fun, excitement... and a fortune beyond their wildest dreams!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCurious George 2: Follow That Monkey! (2009)
The film chronicles George's adventures as he befriends Kayla, a baby elephant, at a magic circus show and helps her travel across the country to be reunited with her family.Accompanied by his friend, the Man with the Yellow Hat, George travels by foot, train, and truck to reach Kayla's brother and sister in California, only to be accused of elephant-napping and brought all the way back to New York.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild (2022)
The fearless one-eyed weasel Buck teams up with mischievous possum brothers Crash & Eddie as they head off on a new adventure into Buck's home: The Dinosaur World.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKhumba (2013)
A half-striped zebra is blamed for the drought and leaves his herd in search of his missing stripes. He is joined on his quest by an overprotective wildebeest and a flamboyant ostrich; they defeat the tyrannical leopard and save his herd.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPhineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (2020)
Phineas and Ferb travel across the galaxy to rescue their older sister Candace, who has been abducted by aliens and taken to a utopia in a far-off planet, free of her pesky little brothers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Jungle Book (1967)
The boy Mowgli makes his way to the man-village with Bagheera, the wise panther. Along the way he meets jazzy King Louie, the hypnotic snake Kaa and the lovable, happy-go-lucky bear Baloo, who teaches Mowgli "The Bare Necessities" of life and the true meaning of friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Wild Robot (2024)
After a shipwreck, an intelligent robot called Roz is stranded on an uninhabited island. To survive the harsh environment, Roz bonds with the island's animals and cares for an orphaned baby goose.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisOoops! Noah Is Gone... (2015)
It's the end of the world. A flood is coming. Luckily for Dave and his son Finny, a couple of clumsy Nestrians, an Ark has been built to save all animals. But as it turns out, Nestrians aren't allowed. Sneaking on board with the involuntary help of Hazel and her daughter Leah, two Grymps, they think they're safe. Until the curious kids fall off the Ark. Now Finny and Leah struggle to survive the flood and hungry predators and attempt to reach the top of a mountain, while Dave and Hazel must put aside their differences, turn the Ark around and save their kids. It's definitely not going to be smooth sailing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: The Movie (1998)
Young Rudolph suffers a childhood accident that sees his nose turn from the publicly accepted norm of black to a glowing red colour. His parents worry about him getting teased, and indeed he does in the end. When he is beaten in the reindeer games by his rival for a doe he fancies, Rudolph runs away and moves into a cave with Slyly the Fox. However can he overcome his fear and reach his true potential?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMadagascar (2005)
Four animal friends get a taste of the wild life when they break out of captivity at the Central Park Zoo and wash ashore on the island of Madagascar.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHappy Feet (2006)
Into the world of the Emperor Penguins, who find their soul mates through song, a penguin is born who cannot sing. But he can tap dance something fierce!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPAW Patrol: Jet to the Rescue (2020)
A royal relative steals a gem with the power to make things fly, the Paw Patrol takes to the skies to stop him and save Barkingburg.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (2022)
The unlikely friendship of a boy, a mole, a fox and a horse traveling together in the boy's search for home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMy Father's Dragon (2022)
Struggling to cope after a move to the city with his mother, Elmer runs away in search of Wild Island and a young dragon who waits to be rescued. Elmer’s adventures introduce him to ferocious beasts, a mysterious island and the friendship of a lifetime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPloey: You Never Fly Alone (2018)
A plover chick has not learned to fly when his family migrates in the fall. He must survive the arctic winter, vicious enemies and himself in order to be reunited with his beloved one next spring.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Jungle Book (1994)
Raised by wild animals since childhood, Mowgli is drawn away from the jungle by the beautiful Kitty. But Mowgli must eventually face corrupt Capt. Boone, who wants both Kitty's hand and the treasures of Monkey City – a place only Mowgli can find.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTimmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made (2020)
An 11-year old boy believes that he is the best detective in town and runs the agency Total Failures with his best friend, an imaginary 1,200 pound polar bear.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPaddington (2014)
A young Peruvian bear travels to London in search of a home. Finding himself lost and alone at Paddington Station, he meets the kindly Brown family, who offer him a temporary haven.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMidnight Sun (2014)
In northern Canada, a young boy sets a goal for himself to to reunite an abandoned polar bear cub with its mother. Goran Visnjic joins the cast as Muktuk, a half Inuit and half Canadian, who knows the terrain where the polar bears live and who agrees to help the boy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
SnoozefestMovies like thisPolar Bear (2022)
A new mother’s memories of her own youth prepare her to navigate motherhood in the increasingly challenging world that polar bears face today.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Unicorn That Said No (2027)
In the Forest of Hearts, a little, sweepity, swoopity, swappity, sweet unicorn is born. But even though everyone is very lilacly-loving to it and constantly feeds it with sweet lucky clover, the little critter does not behave unicorn-like at all. It just keeps saying no, so soon its family just calls it uNOcorn. One day, the uNOcorn breaks out of its cotton candy world and sets off to NOWHERE. On the way, he unexpectedly meets a raccoon that refuses to listen (HUHcoon), a watchdog that doesn‘t seem to care about anything (SOWHATchdog), and princess that always talks back (PrinceYES). The four of them make a pretty good team. Because even being stubborn is much more fun together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & family
Coming SoonMovies like thisMadagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008)
Alex, Marty, and other zoo animals find a way to escape from Madagascar when the penguins reassemble a wrecked airplane. The precariously repaired craft stays airborne just long enough to make it to the African continent. There the New Yorkers encounter members of their own species for the first time. Africa proves to be a wild place, but Alex and company wonder if it is better than their Central Park home.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJames and the Giant Peach (1996)
When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGarfield and Friends: Dreams & Schemes (2007)
After eating a pound of pasta, Garfield sometimes falls asleep and has some pretty wild dreams -- like the one where he's so huge he can climb tall buildings, or where Odie gets his own cartoon, leaving Garfield to just keep sleeping! And this kitty's not so cool he can't get a little scared, like when he, Jon and Odie discover that a closed-down haunted house is really open, or that leftovers occasionally ran rampant in the fridge. Garfield has a big imagination, too, as you'll see when he imagines himself as a fish or a werewolf, or even Jon for a day! There's much more to the fat cat's story, so grab some pasta, flop on the couch and tune in for some cat-toon fun with Garfield!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & family
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
When eccentric candy man Willy Wonka promises a lifetime supply of sweets and a tour of his chocolate factory to five lucky kids, penniless Charlie Bucket seeks the golden ticket that will make him a winner.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHow a Dog And a Cat Washed The Floor (1951)
One day, a dog and a cat saw how filthy their house was. They decided to clean her up. It was quite a cleaning, until their heads were spinning and their paws hurt! And how did they do it? See for yourself...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Ronia: The Robber's Daughter (1984)
Ronia lives happily in her father's castle until she comes across a new playmate, Birk, in the nearby dark forest. The two explore the wilderness, braving dangerous Witchbirds and Rump-Gnomes. But when their families find out Birk and Ronia have been playing together, they forbid them to see each other again. Indeed, their fathers are competing robber chieftains and bitter enemies. Now the two spunky children must try to tear down the barriers that have kept their families apart for so long.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
Four kids travel through a wardrobe to the land of Narnia and learn of their destiny to free it with the guidance of a mystical lion.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAsterix & Obelix: Mission Cleopatra (2002)
History's favorite Gauls assist Queen Cleopatra when she wagers that the Egyptian people can build a palace for Julius Caesar in just three months.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Borrowers (1997)
The four-inch-tall Clock family secretly share a house with the normal-sized Lender family, "borrowing" such items as thread, safety pins, batteries and scraps of food. However, their peaceful co-existence is disturbed when evil lawyer Ocious P. Potter steals the will granting title to the house, which he plans to demolish in order to build apartments. The Lenders are forced to move, and the Clocks face the risk of being exposed to the normal-sized world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Little Polar Bear?
The closest matches to Little Polar Bear are Tom Sawyer (2000), Curious George 2: Follow That Monkey! (2009) and The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild (2022). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Little Polar Bear?
Start with Tom Sawyer (2000), the closest match to Little Polar Bear.
What is the highest-rated movie like Little Polar Bear?
The Wild Robot (2024), rated 8.3/10 by 6,849 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Little Polar Bear?
The Wild Robot (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Little Polar Bear?
The closest matches are in other languages.
How are movies similar to Little Polar Bear chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Little Polar Bear, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.