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Movies like Sweet Release (2024)

The best movies like Sweet Release (2024) are Nymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013), Mammal (2016) and Lockdown (2000). If Sweet Release hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. Nymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013)

    The continuation of Joe's sexually dictated life delves into the darker aspects of her adult life and what led to her being in Seligman's care.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  2. Mammal (2016)

    After Margaret, a divorcée living in Dublin, loses her teenage son, she develops an unorthodox relationship with Joe, a homeless youth. Their tentative trust is threatened by his involvement with a violent gang and the escalation of her ex-husband's grieving rage.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  3. Lockdown (2000)

    Avery (Jones) returns to college as a competitive swimmer after getting his life back on track. But his life takes another unexpected turn when he and his two friends (Bonds, Casseus) are wrongly accused of murder and end up in prison.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  4. Pimp (2018)

    An urban love story set on the hard streets of the Bronx. A struggling female pimp, named Wednesday, grows up learning the game from her dad. Once he's gone she's left to look out for her prostitute mother and girlfriend Nikki.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  5. Jawbone (2017)

    A former youth boxing champion, Jimmy McCabe is a man in search of hope but looking in all the wrong places. When he hits rock bottom he turns to his childhood boxing club and the only family he has left: gym owner Bill corner man Eddie and promoter Joe. Back in training, years after anyone thought he was a contender, he risks his life, as he tries to stand tall and regain his place in the world.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  6. Pariah (2011)

    A Brooklyn teenager juggles conflicting identities and risks friendship, heartbreak, and family in a desperate search for sexual expression.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  7. Suburbia (1984)

    When household tensions and a sense of worthlessness overcome Evan, he finds escape when he clings with the orphans of a throw-away society. The runaways hold on to each other like a family until a tragedy tears them apart.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  8. Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998)

    Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  9. Shame (2011)

    Brandon, a thirty-something man living in New York, eludes intimacy with women but feeds his deepest desires with a compulsive addiction to sex. When his younger sister temporarily moves into his apartment, stirring up bitter memories of their shared painful past, Brandon's life, like his fragile mind, gets out of control.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  10. Crash (1996)

    A car crash victim inexplicably finds himself aroused by car accidents and becomes involved with an underground subculture of like-minded souls.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  11. Convict (2014)

    Set in the dark and old Parramatta prison built by the original convicts our lead character Ray a war veteran finds himself serving 18 months for manslaughter after defending his fiance. He soon realizes that the prison boss has it in for him and does everything possible to break Ray even going after his fiance.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  12. The Doors (1991)

    The story of the famous and influential 1960s rock band and its lead singer and composer, Jim Morrison.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  13. Mexicali (2026)

    A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  14. Auto Focus (2002)

    A successful TV star during the 1960s, former "Hogan's Heroes" actor Bob Crane projects a wholesome family-man image, but this front masks his persona as a sex addict who records and photographs his many encounters with women, often with the help of his seedy friend, John Henry Carpenter. This biographical drama reveals how Crane's double life takes its toll on him and his family, and ultimately contributes to his death.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  15. Al Capone (1959)

    In this unusually accurate biography, small-time hood Al Capone comes to Chicago at the dawn of Prohibition to be the bodyguard of racketeer Johnny Torrio. Capone's rise in Chicago gangdom is followed through murder, extortion, and political fraud. He becomes head of Chicago's biggest "business," but moves inexorably toward his downfall and ignominious end.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  16. Saturday Night Fever (1977)

    Tony spends his Saturdays at a disco where his stylish moves raise his popularity among the patrons. But his life outside the disco is not easy and things change when he gets attracted to Stephanie.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  17. Foxfire (1996)

    The story of five teenage girls who form an unlikely bond after beating up a teacher who has sexually harassed them. They build a solid friendship but their wild ways begin to get out of control.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  18. National Champions (2021)

    A star quarterback ignites a players’ strike hours before the biggest game of the year in order to fight for fair compensation, equality, and respect for the athletes who put their bodies and health on the line for their schools.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  19. The Born Losers (1967)

    A biker gang incites a reign of terror in a California coastal town that culminates in four teenage girls being raped. Vietnam veteran Billy Jack has had enough, however, and takes on the depraved bikers single-handedly. He rescues young Vicky Barrington from their clutches, but then has to contend with not only the thugs, but also the ineffectual and racist local lawmen, who have it out for the half-Native American Billy.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  20. The Outrage (1964)

    At a disused railway station, three men -- a con artist, a preacher, and a prospector -- discuss the recent trial and sentencing of the outlaw Juan Carrasco for the murder of a man and the rape of his wife. In their recounting, the three explore the conflicting testimonies of the parties involved in the crimes. Disconcerting new questions arise with each different version of the event.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  21. Johnny Minotaur (1971)

    Johnny Minotaur is a lyrical explosion of taboos: incest, intergenerational desire, pansexuality and autoeroticism are a few of the issues Charles Henri Ford grapples with through mythopoeic, sensual imagery, recitations of his diaries and a philosophical debate featuring an impressive narration by such artists as Salvador Dali, Allen Ginsberg, Warren Sonbert and Lynne Tillman.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  22. All About My Mother (1999)

    Following the tragic death of her teenage son, Manuela travels from Madrid to Barcelona in an attempt to contact the long-estranged father the boy never knew. She reunites with an old friend, an outspoken transgender sex worker, and befriends a troubled actress and a pregnant, HIV-positive nun.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  23. Brokeback Mountain (2005)

    In 1960s Wyoming, two men develop a strong emotional and sexual relationship that endures as a lifelong connection complicating their lives as they get married and start families of their own.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  24. Apollo (2016)

    Apollon is a teenager hung up by the social ideals of masculinity. He fantasizes about having the perfect body - complete with big beefy muscles and a big banana.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  25. Beautiful Thing (2013)

    This 20th anniversary production of Jonathan Harvey's play about two working class teenage boys falling in love on a south east London council estate was captured by Digital Theatre live at the Arts Theatre in London's Leicester Square.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  26. Styx (2004)

    Long-term partners Marc and Adrien live a seemingly perfect existence close to Lake Constance. Only whilst Marc is content to spend his days working for the local ferry service, Adrien yearns for the bright lights of Berlin and the clubs in which he hopes to realize his dream of becoming a musician. Yet life has a way of turning out not as you expect and here events culminate on a lengthy ferry crossing, one that sees Marc soon to spot Adrien onboard, complete with a one-way ticket and a car packed full of his belongings. Suffice to say that the stage is set for a traumatic farewell.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  27. Mario (2018)

    Mario is a promising young footballer in Switzerland on his way to the top, closing in on the success he and his father always dreamed of. But when the talented striker Leon joins the team, they'll get caught up between the politics of the game and the politics of love, as rumours and prejudice threaten their careers and everything they've managed to build.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  28. Duck Butter (2018)

    Dissatisfied with the dishonesty they see in dating, strangers Naima and Sergio make a pact to spend 24 straight hours together in an attempt to fast forward their relationship.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  29. Goodbye, Columbus (1969)

    A Jewish man and a Jewish woman meet, and while attracted to each other, find that their worlds are very different. She is the archetypal Jewish American Princess — very emotionally involved with her parents' world and the world they have created for her, while he is much less dependent on his family. They begin an affair which brings more differences to the surface.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  30. The Detective (1968)

    New York City Police detective Joe Leland investigates the grisly murder of Teddy Leikman, the gay son of a politically influential department store owner. While investigating, he discovers links to official corruption in NYC in this drama that delves into a world of sex and drugs, homophobia, homosexuality and bisexuality.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

Like Sweet Release and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like Sweet Release?

The closest matches to Sweet Release are Nymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013), Mammal (2016) and Lockdown (2000). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after Sweet Release?

Start with Nymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013), the closest match to Sweet Release.

What is the highest-rated movie like Sweet Release?

Brokeback Mountain (2005), rated 7.8/10 by 7,814 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like Sweet Release?

Mexicali (2026) is the most recent release on this list.

How are movies similar to Sweet Release chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Sweet Release, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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