Movies like The Children are Watching (1999)
The best movies like The Children are Watching (1999) are A Toxic Love Story (2026), As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000) and Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20 (2022). If The Children are Watching hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The Children are Watching
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDeliver Us from Evil (2006)7.2/10 from 216 votes
- NewestNot Alone (2026)Released 2026
A 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 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 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 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 thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
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 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 thisDeliver Us from Evil (2006)
Documentary filmmaker Amy Berg investigates the life of 30-year pedophile Father Oliver O'Grady and exposes the corruption inside the Catholic Church that allowed him to abuse countless children. Victims' stories and a disturbing interview with O'Grady offer a view into the troubled mind of the spiritual leader who moved from parish to parish gaining trust ... all the while betraying so many.
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 thisNo Half Measures: Creating the Final Season of Breaking Bad (2013)
A documentary about the making of season five of the acclaimed AMC series Breaking Bad.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 thisSeven Up! (1985)
A group of British children aged 7 from widely ranging backgrounds are interviewed about a range of subjects. The filmmakers plan to re-interview them at 7 year intervals to track how their lives and attitudes change as they age.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds (2016)
An intimate portrait of Hollywood royalty featuring Debbie Reynolds, Todd Fisher, and Carrie Fisher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCome 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 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 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 this21 Up (1977)
After another 7 year wait, director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born children from Seven Up! and 7 Plus Seven. 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 thisUnknown Number: The High School Catfish (2025)
Vulgar, taunting texts blow up the phones of a teen and her boyfriend. Who's sending them — and why? This twisty documentary reveals the shocking answer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like this42 Up (1999)
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 thisAnna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023)
From the heights of her modeling fame to her tragic death, this documentary reveals Anna Nicole Smith through the eyes of the people closest to her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNot Alone (2026)
Mothers and fathers of gay, lesbian, and trans children from Georgia, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine travel to Berlin to walk together in the Pride parade. Living under one roof, they prepare for the march — painting signs, cooking borscht, and reflecting on how their relationships with their queer children have evolved over the years.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Sages et rebelles (2023)
A look at the daily life of midwives across Quebec.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Moon Child (2018)
A movie about two women who are mothers to the same child, and a child who belongs to two different worlds.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Prison, My Parents & Me (2016)
Nearly 10,000 children in Britain visit a parent in prison every week, BAFTA-nominated filmmaker Catey Sexton gives a humane and sensitive insight into their lives in this documentary made for Children in Need (1980).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
If We Knew (TBA)
If We Knew is a documentary about paediatricians in an intensive-care unit for newborns. A film about the compassion needed to heal the sick and occasionally needed to hasten the death of a child.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Chris and Bernie (1975)
The story of two young single mothers who join forces to make a new kind of family unit for themselves and their children.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
What's the Film About? (2024)
During a camping weekend, Indian filmmaker Poorva Bhat tries to find the right way to discuss consent with her two children. In the intimacy of the tent, the three find the safe space needed to explore together the innocence or otherwise of looks and gestures, both in everyday life and in the cinema.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
May I Quit Being A Mom!? (2020)
A child is a blessing. You love the child. And it’s sometimes therefore that you feel suffocated. The film is a collection of real-life moments of moms and their partners struggling, stumbling, and fighting to make it work.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Papa Terrible (2026)
Musician Thijs embodies everything filmmaker Jeroen, by now a burnt-out father, seems to have lost: freedom, courage, and unconditional love. When Thijs announces that he is going to be a father, Jeroen decides to follow him during his preparation for fatherhood. As he observes Thijs, he also begins to re-examine his own life and get a grip on what fatherhood entails.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Children are Watching?
The closest matches to The Children are Watching are A Toxic Love Story (2026), As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000) and Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20 (2022). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Children are Watching?
Start with A Toxic Love Story (2026), the closest match to The Children are Watching.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Children are Watching?
Deliver Us from Evil (2006), rated 7.2/10 by 216 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Children are Watching?
Not Alone (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Children are Watching?
Yes: A Toxic Love Story (2026), As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000) and Avatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20 (2022).
How are movies similar to The Children are Watching chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Children are Watching, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.