Movies like Ascension: The Story of Bill (1983)
The best movies like Ascension: The Story of Bill (1983) are Permanent Record (1988), Joe Bell (2020) and Before I Fall (2017). If Ascension: The Story of Bill hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Ascension: The Story of Bill
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMagnolia (1999)7.7/10 from 4,233 votes
- NewestDon't Say Good Luck (2026)Released 2026
Permanent Record (1988)
David Sinclair seems to have everything going for him: he's smart, musically talented, and very successful. To top off his senior year in high school, his band is trying to get a recording session. Therefore, David's suicide leaves everyone, especially his best friend and bandmate, Chris, with a lot of questions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJoe Bell (2020)
The true story of a small town, working class father who embarks on a solo walk across the U.S. to crusade against bullying after his son is tormented in high school for being gay.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBefore I Fall (2017)
Samantha Kingston has everything. Then, everything changes. After one fateful night, she wakes up with no future at all. Trapped into reliving the same day over and over, she begins to question just how perfect her life really was.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDeath of a Superhero (2011)
A dying 15-year-old boy draws stories of an invincible superhero as he struggles with his mortality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCoconut Hero (2015)
It's not easy being a teenager and Mike, a sixteen-year-old, has it espcially hard. He lives in the sticks with his mother, a non-stop nagger, in Faintville, a Canadian timber industry town. He has no father, no friends, not even a favorite meal. Basically, his sole wish is simply to vanish from the face of the earth. One day, Mike writes his own obituary and shoots himself. To his great disappointment he wakes up the in the local hospital. During a routine examination, the doctors discover a plum-sized tumor in his brain. Mike can scarcely believe his luck and keeps the illness to himself to avoid undergoing surgery that would save him. Staring death directly in the eyes, however, changes Mike's point of view and he re-evaluates his opinion of both enchanting and crazy Miranda. Somebody seems to understand him after all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTo Save a Life (2009)
Jake Taylor has everything. He has a beautiful girl, he's the champion in basketball and beer pong, and everyone loves him. Then, an old childhood friend of his commits suicide. Jake wonders what he could've done to save his friend's life. A youth minister tells him that Jake needs God. So Jake becomes a Christian. However, things begin to spin out of control. Jake is going to realize just what it means to be a Christian and how, to save a life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeathers (1989)
A girl who halfheartedly tries to be part of the "in crowd" of her school meets a rebel who teaches her a more devious way to play social politics: by killing the popular kids.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDear Evan Hansen (2021)
Evan Hansen, a high schooler with social anxiety, unintentionally gets caught up in a lie after the family of a classmate who committed suicide mistakes one of Hansen’s letters for their son’s suicide note.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPurple Rain (1984)
A victim of his own anger, the Kid is a Minneapolis musician on the rise with his band, the Revolution, escaping a tumultuous home life through music. While trying to avoid making the same mistakes as his truculent father, the Kid navigates the club scene and a rocky relationship with a captivating singer, Apollonia. But another musician, Morris, looks to steal the Kid's spotlight -- and his girl.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRaise Your Voice (2004)
A coming-of-age story centered around a small-town singer brokenhearted by the death of her brother in a car crash, who had secretly submitted her for a summer session at a performing arts academy in Los Angeles. In the academy, she experiences a whole new way of life in the big city, far from the small town lifestyle she's used to.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDon't Say Good Luck (2026)
Sophie Birenbaum is ready for the spotlight as the lead in her high school musical—until she's suddenly facing more drama at home than on the stage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCharlie Bartlett (2008)
Awkward teenager Charlie Bartlett has trouble fitting in at a new high school. Charlie needs some friends fast, and decides that the best way to find them is to appoint himself the resident psychiatrist. He becomes one of the most popular guys in school by doling out advice and, occasionally, medication, to the student body.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChemical Hearts (2020)
When a hopelessly romantic high school senior falls for a mysterious new classmate, it sets them both on an unexpected journey that teaches them about love, loss, and most importantly themselves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Miracle Season (2018)
After the tragic death of star volleyball player Caroline "Line" Found, a team of dispirited high school girls must band together under the guidance of their tough-love coach in hopes of winning the state championship!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHard Luck (1921)
A down on his luck young man makes several attempts at committing suicide but fails them too. He then finds himself becoming more confident through a series of petty adventures, to such an extent that this becomes his undoing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKeith (2008)
Natalie is high school royalty, but her queen bee status falls apart when she falls for the new guy at school. Although Keith ignores her at first, they soon become friends -- even though Natalie suspects that Keith has something to hide. As the free-spirited Keith shows Natalie how to embrace what life offers, they grow closer -- until a secret tests the bounds of their relationship
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMagnolia (1999)
On one random day in the San Fernando Valley, a dying father, a young wife, a male caretaker, a famous lost son, a police officer in love, a boy genius, an ex-boy genius, a game show host and an estranged daughter will each become part of a dazzling multiplicity of plots, but one story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Suicide (2009)
After declaring that he's going to film himself committing suicide for a school project, Archie videotapes his surprising interactions with worried family members, interested classmates, unreliable medical experts and the hottest girl in school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShe's All That (1999)
High school hotshot Zach Siler is the envy of his peers. But his popularity declines sharply when his cheerleader girlfriend, Taylor, leaves him for sleazy reality-television star Brock Hudson. Desperate to revive his fading reputation, Siler agrees to a seemingly impossible challenge. He has six weeks to gain the trust of nerdy outcast Laney Boggs -- and help her to become the school's next prom queen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLady Bird (2017)
Lady Bird McPherson, a strong willed, deeply opinionated, artistic 17 year old comes of age in Sacramento. Her relationship with her mother and her upbringing are questioned and tested as she plans to head off to college.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ascension: The Story of Bill?
The closest matches to Ascension: The Story of Bill are Permanent Record (1988), Joe Bell (2020) and Before I Fall (2017). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ascension: The Story of Bill?
Start with Permanent Record (1988), the closest match to Ascension: The Story of Bill.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ascension: The Story of Bill?
Magnolia (1999), rated 7.7/10 by 4,233 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ascension: The Story of Bill?
Don't Say Good Luck (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Ascension: The Story of Bill?
Yes: Permanent Record (1988), Joe Bell (2020) and Before I Fall (2017).
How are movies similar to Ascension: The Story of Bill chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ascension: The Story of Bill, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.