Movies like Sensei's Pious Lie (2024)
The best movies like Sensei's Pious Lie (2024) are River's Edge (2018), Battle Royale (2000) and Confessions (2010). If Sensei's Pious Lie hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedSamurai Rebellion (1967)8.2/10 from 283 votes
- NewestThree Goodbyes (2025)Released 2025
- In JapaneseRiver's Edge (2018)Also in Japanese
River's Edge (2018)
High schooler Haruna befriends loner Yamada, then is drawn into the tangled relationship between him, a model and the girl who loves him unreasonably.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBattle Royale (2000)
In the future, the Japanese government captures a class of ninth-grade students and forces them to kill each other under the revolutionary "Battle Royale" act.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisConfessions (2010)
Devastated at the death of her four-year-old daughter, a grieving middle school teacher is horrified to discover that her students aren't as innocent as she thinks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMolly Maxwell (2013)
At Phoenix Progressive School, students take notes lying on parlor couches and are encouraged to explore their gifts through electives like break-dancing and graphic-novel writing. In the midst of all this liberal pedagogy and budding talent, Molly Maxwell feels unexceptional, until she falls for her attractive English teacher, Ben.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChild's Play (1972)
At an exclusive boys' school, a new gym teacher is drawn into a feud between two older instructors, and he discovers that everything at the school is not quite as staid, tranquil and harmless as it seems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTaboo (1999)
Set during Japan's Shogun era, this film looks at life in a samurai compound where young warriors are trained in swordfighting. A number of interpersonal conflicts are brewing in the training room, all centering on a handsome young samurai named Sozaburo Kano. The school's stern master can choose to intervene, or to let Kano decide his own path.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlame (2018)
A drama teacher's taboo relationship with an unstable student strikes a nerve in her jealous classmate, sparking a vengeful chain of events within their suburban high school that draws parallels to "The Crucible".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDirty Teacher (2013)
When a high school senior discovers her teacher is seducing her boyfriend, events turn deadly after the teacher tries to cover it up.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisBrave the Dark (2025)
When Mr. Deen discovers one of his students has been living out of his car and thrown into jail, he decides to bail him out. Determined to curb Nate’s self-destructive behavior, Deen quickly discovers a host of dark secrets slowly tearing Nate apart. What began as a good deed becomes a desperate fight to save Nate from his own demons. As Nate spirals deeper into despair, Deen must decide how far he’s willing to go to save a kid on the brink of losing everything—even himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSamurai Rebellion (1967)
The mother of a feudal lord's only heir is kidnapped by the lord. Her husband and his samurai father must decide whether to accept the unjust decision, or risk death to rescue her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLove & Pop (1998)
Tokyo schoolgirl Hiromi and her friends engage in a practice known as enjo kosai, or "compensated dating", where older men pay young girls for dates. Hiromi plunges deeper into this world to raise money for an expensive ring.
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 Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972)
After being used and betrayed by the detective she had fallen in love with, young Matsu is sent to a female prison full of sadistic guards and disobedient prisoners.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAir Doll (2009)
A life-size, inflatable sex doll suddenly comes to life one day. Without her owner knowing, she goes for a walk around town and falls in love with Junichi. She starts to date Junichi and gets a job at the same store where he works. Everything seems to be going perfectly for her until something unexpected happens.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHimizu (2012)
Two 14-year-olds from troubled, abusive homes come together sharing misery and pain. In the aftermath of an earthquake, the classmates learn how to survive while relying on one another for emotional and physical support.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMuseum (2016)
In Tokyo, Japan, several grotesque murders take place on rainy days. Detective Sawamura, who is in charge of the case, soon discovers that his own family is connected to the crimes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGANTZ:O (2016)
After being brutally murdered in a subway station, a teen boy awakens to find himself resurrected by a strange computer named Gantz, and forced to fight a large force of invading aliens in Osaka.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAsakusa Kid (2021)
Before he hit it big, Takeshi Kitano got his start apprenticing with comedy legend Fukami of Asakusa. But as his star rises, his mentor's declines.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSteve (2025)
Over one intense day, the devoted head teacher of a last-chance reform school strives to keep his students in line while facing pressures of his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEvangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo (2012)
Fourteen years after Third Impact, Shinji Ikari awakens to a world he does not remember. He hasn't aged. Much of Earth is laid in ruins, NERV has been dismantled, and people who he once protected have turned against him. Befriending the enigmatic Kaworu Nagisa, Shinji continues the fight against the angels and realizes the fighting is far from over, even when it could be against his former allies. The characters' struggles continue amidst the battles against the angels and each other, spiraling down to what could inevitably be the end of the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHimeyuri (2012)
The 30-minute film centers around a group of high school students who became nurses called Himeyuri and served during the Battle of Okinawa during World War II. The Himeyuri Alumnae Incorporated Foundation, which runs the Himeyuri Peace Museum in Okinawa, produced the film with the aim to convey the experiences of those high school students, many of whom lost their lives during the battle, to children.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Touch 5: Cross Road (2001)
Trying to find his own game of baseball, and not that of his brothers, Tatsuya moves to America and pitches for a poor, struggling minor league baseball team called the Emeralds. Meanwhile, Minami is still in Japan, trying to find her own path after quitting gymnastics. Inspired by a photograph of her final performance, she becomes the photographers assistant.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Yongsoon (2017)
Yong-soon is an 18-year-old high school student. She falls in love with her gym teacher, but she thinks her teacher might have a girlfriend. Yong-Soon and her friends try to find out whether he does have a girlfriend, but they can't find any clues. Making things worse, her father brings a new stepmother from Mongolia.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Three Goodbyes (2025)
After what seemed like an insignificant argument, Marta and Antonio separate. He, a promising chef, takes refuge in his kitchen; she, in her silence, begins to feel something more than sadness: she has lost her appetite… and not only because of heartbreak. When she discovers that there is a health problem behind it, everything takes an unexpected turn: food tastes better, music reaches her like never before, and desire awakens her will to live without fear.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRisky Business (1967)
A teenage girl accuses her primary schoolteacher, Jean Doucet (Jacques Brel), of trying to rape her. The police and the mayor investigate, but Doucet denies the charges. Two other students come forward to reveal more of Doucet's misconduct – one confessing to be his mistress. Doucet faces trial and hard labor if convicted.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)
After being dumped by her lover, Pepa finds her life and the lives of those around her spiraling out of control in a deliciously chaotic series of events.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCounterparts (2007)
Teacher Anne and policeman Georg are thought of as the perfect couple. However, appearances are deceptive: one of them is covered with scars and bruises. But which one is the abuser?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Hotel Very Welcome (2007)
Five young Europeans (German, English, and Irish) try to find answers to life's questions in India and Thailand.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Trap (2007)
Mladen and Marija are an ordinary and happy married couple of the "middle class" of the society in which they live as tenants. Mladen works as a civil engineer in a state company, and Marija is an English teacher in primary school. The couple finds joy in their only son, Nemanja. They discover that Nemanja has a rare heart disease and healing is possible with an operation in a foreign medical center, which costs €26,000.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Wren (1966)
Feride is a young girl who lost her family as a child and was educated in a French school. A fearless climber of trees and an endless source of pranks, Feride's mischievousness earns her the nickname "Çalıkuşu" (Wren). The sudden discovery of betrayal causes her to defy all social expectations. She runs away on her own to teach in the Anatolian backcountry. But it is not so easy to escape a broken heart.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Sensei's Pious Lie?
The closest matches to Sensei's Pious Lie are River's Edge (2018), Battle Royale (2000) and Confessions (2010). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Sensei's Pious Lie?
Start with River's Edge (2018), the closest match to Sensei's Pious Lie.
What is the highest-rated movie like Sensei's Pious Lie?
Samurai Rebellion (1967), rated 8.2/10 by 283 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Sensei's Pious Lie?
Three Goodbyes (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Sensei's Pious Lie?
Yes: River's Edge (2018), Battle Royale (2000) and Confessions (2010).
How are movies similar to Sensei's Pious Lie chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Sensei's Pious Lie, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.