Movies like The World of Geisha (1973)
The best movies like The World of Geisha (1973) are Glory to the Filmmaker! (2007), The Notorious Bettie Page (2006) and Almost Friends (2017). If The World of Geisha hooked you with its drama and comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAntiporno (2017)6.6/10 from 462 votes
- NewestYes, God, Yes (2020)Released 2020
- In JapaneseGlory to the Filmmaker! (2007)Also in Japanese
Glory to the Filmmaker! (2007)
Takeshi Kitano plays a version of himself in which he's a struggling director cycling through a number of different genres in an effort to complete his latest project.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Notorious Bettie Page (2006)
Bettie Page grew up in a conservative religious family in Tennessee and became a photo model sensation in 1950s New York. Bettie's legendary pin-up photos made her the target of a Senate investigation into pornography, and transformed her into an erotic icon who continues to enthrall fans to this day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlmost Friends (2017)
A man in his mid-20s, still living at home with his mother and stepfather, puts all his eggs in one basket: the girl who works at his local coffee shop. The problem is, she has a serious boyfriend. As they become closer, the line between friendship and intimacy is blurred, and the situation forces both to examine where they are in their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLandline (2017)
A teenager living with her sister and parents in Manhattan during the 1990s discovers that her father is having an affair.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPreaching to the Perverted (1997)
A computer wizard infiltrates a London sex club to get evidence for a shutdown, but falls for the proprietress.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwing Vote (2008)
In a remarkable turn of events, the result of the presidential election comes down to one man's vote.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisGiants and Toys (1958)
Nishi is an advertising executive for a caramel company that is planning to launch a new product, in fierce competition with two other companies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisYes, God, Yes (2020)
Alice, a young innocent Catholic girl, is tempted into masturbating after an AOL chat suddenly turns sexual, however is conflicted as the act would be considered a sin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAchilles and the Tortoise (2008)
Machisu is a painter. He never had the success he thinks he is entitled to. Regardless of this, he always remains trying to be successful. His wife Sachiko keeps supporting him, despite all setbacks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTokyo Decadence (1992)
A submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of appeasement for the fact that her lover has married.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSakuran (2006)
Kiyoha rises from the lowly courtesan ranks to the high class position of Oiran in the steamy red-light district of Yoshiwara. She is determined to stand on her own two feet and live life as she pleased.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Sun-Tribe Myth from the Bakumatsu Era (1957)
Saheji, a man-about-town, gets stuck at a high-class brothel when he can’t pay the bill. He makes the best of his situation by performing various tasks amidst the tumult of the end of the shogunate—but always by making sure to get a “commission” for his troubles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSisters of the Gion (1936)
A geisha in the Gion district of Kyoto feels obliged to help her lover when he asks to stay with her after going bankrupt and leaving his wife. However, her younger sister opposes this, thinking that they should both find wealthy patrons to support them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAntiporno (2017)
Kyôko, a traumatized young Japanese girl, finds herself struggling with her self-confidence in her adult life. Growing up in a family without her mother and her sister, she constantly questions the rationale of sex and the notion of liberty in modern Japanese society.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFemale Yakuza Tale (1973)
Ocho is accidentally captured by a drug trafficking cartel who use Chinese women to smuggle drugs into Japan by hiding it in their vaginas. She is tortured, and manages to escape, fighting both the male yakuzas and a gang of female thieves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGate of Flesh (1964)
In the shady black markets and bombed-out hovels of post–World War II Tokyo, a tough band of prostitutes eke out a dog-eat-dog existence, maintaining tenuous friendships and a semblance of order in a world of chaos. But when a renegade ex-soldier stumbles into their midst, lusts and loyalties clash, with tragic results. With Gate of Flesh, visionary director Seijun Suzuki delivers a whirlwind of social critique and pulp drama, shot through with brilliant colors and raw emotions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIrezumi (1966)
Otsuya, the daughter of a rich merchant, elopes with her lover Shinsuke, an employee of her father's. During their flight, Otsuya's beauty attracts the gaze of Seikichi, a mysterious master tattooist who sees her pristine white skin as the perfect canvas for his art. The image of the large demonic spider that he emblazons across Otsuya's back marks her as the property of another man, radically altering her relationships with all around her as her personality seems to transform under its influence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIntentions of Murder (1964)
The neglected common-law wife of a Japanese librarian is repeatedly harassed by a young man with a heart condition who seduces her with the prospect of a better life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLey Lines (1999)
The story follows a trio of Japanese youths of Chinese descent who escape their semi-rural upbringing and relocate to Shinjuku, Tokyo, where they befriend a troubled Shanghai prostitute and fall foul of a local crime syndicate. Like many of Miike's works, the film examines the underbelly of respectable Japanese society and the problems of assimilation faced by non-ethnically Japanese people in Japan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStreet of Shame (1956)
Follows five prostitutes employed at a Japanese brothel while the nation debates the passage of an anti-prostitution law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPlatonic Sex (2001)
When Aoi is gang-raped by her classmates and kicked out of her home by her own parents she sees no reason to continue living. Before she commits suicide, however, she receives an email on her cellphone from a man named Toshi addressed to a girl named Ai. The message simply thanks the girl for being alive, but this specific message has an effect on Aoi and she decides to keep on living. Without many options, Aoi resorts to everything from paid dating to porn to earn money and meets a lot of less than reputable characters. Throughout it all though she looks toward Toshi as her hope for happiness and the two form a relationship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Sometimes... Like a Prostitute (1978)
A man with a medical condition and a guilty past becomes obsessed with a simple minded girl he finds in a park. His wife is not thrilled when he brings her home.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Bathhouse 911: Jellyfish Bliss (1978)
A young woman and her boyfriend are recruited to work in a bathhouse but find their relationship falling apart when she falls for a dangerous gangster.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
RoboGeisha (2009)
Sisters Yoshie and Kikue are two Geisha who are abducted by a mysterious organization to be transformed into murderous cyborg assassins.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisBeautiful Wrestler: Down for the Count (1984)
Two good friends entering different women's colleges, joining the wrestling club, and fighting as rivals.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Off Limits (1988)
McGriff and Albaby are probably doing the worst law enforcement job in the world - they are plain clothes U.S. military policemen on duty in war-time Saigon. However, their job becomes even harder when they start investigating the serial killings of local prostitutes. Their prime suspect is high ranking U.S. Army officer which brings their lives in danger.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Beginning at Fifteen (1978)
A story of the sexual adventures of three fifteen year old girls: Elisa, Marian and Susi.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Sekkusumeido: Osouji no Atode (1984)
Ding dong. Who’s that! Why its the new maid. She cooks and cleans and gives extra special sexual service to members of the household. But the poor girl can’t seem to get any satisfaction.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Angels of the Sun (2006)
In Northeastern Brazil, twelve-year-old Maria is sold to have a better life as a housemaid. However, Maria is resold and sent to a brothel in the Amazon gold fields and put to work by the despicable Saraiva.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEcstasy of the Angels (1972)
A militant revolutionary group is torn apart by betrayal as its members descend into paranoia and sexual decadence.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The World of Geisha?
The closest matches to The World of Geisha are Glory to the Filmmaker! (2007), The Notorious Bettie Page (2006) and Almost Friends (2017). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The World of Geisha?
Start with Glory to the Filmmaker! (2007), the closest match to The World of Geisha.
What is the highest-rated movie like The World of Geisha?
Antiporno (2017), rated 6.6/10 by 462 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The World of Geisha?
Yes, God, Yes (2020) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like The World of Geisha?
Yes: Glory to the Filmmaker! (2007), Giants and Toys (1958) and Achilles and the Tortoise (2008).
How are movies similar to The World of Geisha chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The World of Geisha, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.