Movies like Blue Birds on the Desk (2009)
The best movies like Blue Birds on the Desk (2009) are Chemical Hearts (2020), Spontaneous (2020) and Once Upon a Time in High School (2004). If Blue Birds on the Desk hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedChemical Hearts (2020)7.3/10 from 1,177 votes
- NewestYou Are the Apple of My Eye (2025)Released 2025
- In KoreanOnce Upon a Time in High School (2004)Also in Korean
Chemical 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 thisSpontaneous (2020)
When students in their high school begin inexplicably exploding (literally), seniors Mara and Dylan struggle to survive in a world where each moment may be their last.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOnce Upon a Time in High School (2004)
A model student transfers to the notorious Jungmoon High School known for its severe corporal punishment by teachers and power struggles between school gangs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDarby and the Dead (2022)
After Darby Harper suffered a near-death experience as a child, she gained the ability to see ghosts. To combat the existential boredom of high school, she runs a side business counseling local spirits in her spare time. When an unexpected occurrence happens between Darby and Capri, the most popular girl at her high school, Darby reluctantly agrees to help her and in the process learns how to fit in with the living world again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisNocturne (2020)
Inside the halls of an elite arts academy, a timid music student begins to outshine her more accomplished and outgoing twin sister when she discovers a mysterious notebook belonging to a recently deceased classmate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisSome Kind of Wonderful (1987)
Keith Nelson, an artsy high school outcast, tries to land a date with popular girl Amanda Jones with some help from his tomboy best friend, Watts. However, Watts realizes she likes Keith as more than just a friend and tries to convince him to stop pursuing Amanda. Matters are further complicated when Keith's invitation draws the ire of Amanda's rich yet snobby ex-boyfriend, Hardy Jenns, who makes plans to get even.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Silenced (2015)
A sickly girl Ju-ran transfers to a new sanitorium boarding school to regain health. But she discovers that students are disappearing and notices abnormal changes happening to her body. She suspects the school for what's happening and tries to discover what secret is hidden.
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 thisFrequencies (2013)
The story of the forbidden relationship between a 'low born' boy and a 'high born' girl in an alternate reality where every person's relationships and life worth are determined by their innate 'frequencies'.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDo Revenge (2022)
A dethroned queen bee at a posh private high school strikes a secret deal with an unassuming new student to enact revenge on one another’s enemies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGhost World (2001)
Two quirky, cynical, teenaged girls try to figure out what to do with their lives following high school graduation. After they play a prank on an eccentric, middle-aged record collector, one of them befriends him, which causes a rift in the girls’ friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLook Away (2018)
A timid and socially alienated 17-year-old high school student's life is turned upside down when she switches places with her sinister mirror image.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this...ing (2003)
Follows the life of a young woman who has become reserved and indifferent to the world as a result of her chronic illness deformed hand and quietly portrays the unconventional, yet endearing relationship between mother and daughter as well as the development of Min-ah as she is befriended by the high spirited and carefree photographer Young-jae who moves into their apartment complex.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTall Girl (2019)
Jodi, the tallest girl in her high school, has always felt uncomfortable in her own skin. But after years of slouching, being made fun of, and avoiding attention at all costs, Jodi finally decides to find the confidence to stand tall.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Dude in Me (2019)
Dong-hyun is a high school student. One day, he falls from the rooftop and bumps into Pan-soo who is a passerby. Pan-soo is a member of a criminal organization. When the two men wake up in the hospital, they discover that they have switched bodies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisI Never Promised You a Rose Garden (1977)
A disturbed and institutionalized 16-year-old girl struggles between fantasy and reality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisGood Advice (2001)
An investment banker loses everything and must discover what's really important in life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisYou Are the Apple of My Eye (2025)
A group of close friends who attend a private school all have a debilitating crush on the sunny star pupil, Sun-ah. The only member of the group who claims not to is Jin-woo, but he ends up loving her as well.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHan Gong-ju (2014)
After being involved in a traumatic incident, 17-year-old Gong-ju is forced to change schools. Uncared for by her parents, her previous teacher arranges for her to hide away at his mother's place. It takes time for her past to catch up with her, but when it does the revelation is devastating.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThread of Lies (2014)
Cheon-ji's unexpected suicide causes her mother Hyeon-sook and older sister Man-ji to be moved into another apartment. Tracking down clues from school, Man-ji discovers that Cheon-ji's best friend Hwa-yeon is behind everything.
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 Blue Birds on the Desk?
The closest matches to Blue Birds on the Desk are Chemical Hearts (2020), Spontaneous (2020) and Once Upon a Time in High School (2004). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Blue Birds on the Desk?
Start with Chemical Hearts (2020), the closest match to Blue Birds on the Desk.
What is the highest-rated movie like Blue Birds on the Desk?
Chemical Hearts (2020), rated 7.3/10 by 1,177 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Blue Birds on the Desk?
You Are the Apple of My Eye (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Korean movies like Blue Birds on the Desk?
Yes: Once Upon a Time in High School (2004), The Silenced (2015) and ...ing (2003).
How are movies similar to Blue Birds on the Desk chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Blue Birds on the Desk, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.