Movies like Smilin' Through (1941)
The best movies like Smilin' Through (1941) are The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021), Modern Life Is Rubbish (2018) and Heavy Metal (1981). If Smilin' Through hooked you with its music and fantasy, these 26 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedIn a Heartbeat (2017)8.0/10 from 1,039 votes
- NewestMain Vaapas Aaunga (2026)Released 2026
The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021)
Two teenagers trapped in an endless time loop set out to find all the tiny things that make that one day perfect.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisModern Life Is Rubbish (2018)
Brought together by their shared love of music, Liam and Natalie reach a breaking point after ten years together, but as they attempt to separate and divide their prized record collection, the very soundtrack of their relationship continually draws them back to one another.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & music
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHeavy Metal (1981)
The embodiment of ultimate evil, a glowing orb terrorizes a young girl with bizarre stories of dark fantasy, eroticism and horror.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarmony (2018)
Born with an energetic power to absorb fear from others, a young woman must find love to balance the fears of her own and fight an ever growing storm of negative energy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIf I Can't Have Love, I Want Power (2021)
Featuring music from her fourth studio album produced by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, this evocative film experience stars Halsey as the young and pregnant Queen Lila, who wrestles with the manipulative chokehold of love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both music & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLost Horizon (1937)
British diplomat Robert Conway and a small group of civilians crash-land in the Himalayas, where they are rescued by the inhabitants of the hidden, idyllic valley of Shangri-La. Protected by the mountains from the world outside, where the clouds of World War II are gathering, Shangri-La provides a seductive escape for the world-weary Conway.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStranger Than Fiction (2006)
Harold Crick is a lonely IRS agent whose mundane existence is transformed when he hears a mysterious voice narrating his life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUntil Death (2024)
Alex and Chiara die in a car crash just after getting married. In the purgatory where they are now trapped, they are asked to make a decision : stay together or split up for good, as they are slyly advised in the afterlife.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & romance
Lucid Love (2024)
Juno, an ordinary man, always feels insecure because he has a beautiful girlfriend, while Trish, a beautiful woman, is always played by men. They never expected to meet in a place full of wonders, a place that would determine their love lives, in a lucid dream.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance & fantasy
In a Heartbeat (2017)
A closeted boy runs the risk of being outed by his own heart after it pops out of his chest to chase down the boy of his dreams.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLove Like Honey (2024)
Majka and Agata have as much in common as they divide. They are both over fifty, going through menopause and do not believe that anything in their lives will change for the better. One lives on the Baltic Sea, the other in the Tatra Mountains. One runs a confectionery shop, the other is a successful interior designer. One is a widow, the other is just left by her partner for a younger woman. One devotes herself to her children and grandchildren, completely forgetting about herself, the other has no family and cares about her spiritual development. One day, the friends meet at the funeral of a high school friend. Agata encourages Majka to spontaneously go to the mountains, and she takes her place. The unexpected role reversal brings a number of complications, funny twists and challenges that the women will have to face.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Notes on a Scandal (2006)
A veteran high school teacher befriends a younger art teacher, who is having an affair with one of her 15-year-old students. However, her intentions with this new "friend" also go well beyond platonic friendship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Return of the King (1980)
Two Hobbits struggle to destroy the Ring in Mount Doom while their friends desperately fight evil Lord Sauron's forces in a final battle.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Discovery of Heaven (2001)
Disappointed with humanity, God wants to revoke his contract with humanity and wants to take back the stone tablets containing the ten commandments. To this end an angel is sent out to affect the personal lives of three humans so an appropriate child may be conceived.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Tere Bin : Brain Overpowering Heart (TBA)
In a near-future world where emotions can be scientifically altered, a young man is confronted with a revolutionary neural technology designed to suppress emotional pain. As love, memory, and logic collide, he must decide whether a life free from heartbreak is worth the cost of losing genuine human emotion.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
En una playa junto al mar (1971)
In the midst of many songs, the young musician misunderstood by his father, the studious and hardworking girl and the family reunion.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Estrada on the Screen (1968)
A comedy from the stage troupe of Tiranë and Shkodër. A collection of sketches, songs and humorous numbers performed by well-known Albanian pop artists. With a combination of humor and satirical situations, the film aims to bring entertainment to the audience, reflecting diverse characters of everyday life and addressing social themes of the time.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Ask the Dust (2006)
Mexican beauty Camilla hopes to rise above her station by marrying a wealthy American. That is complicated by meeting Arturo Bandini, a first-generation Italian hoping to land a writing career and a blue-eyed blonde on his arm.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisMain Vaapas Aaunga (2026)
Haunted by a childhood romance and recollections of love lost during the 1947 Partition of India, 95-year-old Ishar Singh Grewal shares his story with his grandson Nirvair, the past unfolding through memories of migration, longing, and a romance that endures across generations.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Addicted to Love (1997)
Good-natured astronomer Sam is devastated when the love of his life leaves him for a suave Frenchman. He therefore does what every other normal dumpee would do — go to New York and set up home in the abandoned building opposite his ex-girlfriend's apartment, wait until she decides to leave her current lover, and then win her back.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhile You Were Sleeping (1995)
A transit worker pulls commuter Peter off railway tracks after he's mugged, but—while he's in a coma—his family mistakenly thinks she's Peter's fiancée, and she doesn't correct them. Things get more complicated when she falls for his brother, who's not quite sure that she's who she claims to be.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEarth, Wind & Fire (2004)
One of the hottest R&B groups of all time, the legendary Earth, Wind & Fire in concert define excitement. Captured live on their remarkable 1994 sell-out tour of Japan, this performance showcases the band's distinctive style and raw energy and marks Maurice White's last taped appearance with the group in concert. Always dynamite on stage with their unmistakable sound and electrifying showmanship, Earth, Wind & Fire combine all the greatest elements of rock and soul! 1. September 2. Let Your Feelings Show 3. Let's Groove 4. Runnin' 5. Boogie Wonderland 6. Can't Hide Love 7. Fantasy 8. Kalimba Interlude 9. Evil 10. Shining Star 11. Keep Your Head To The Sky 12. Reasons 13. Sing A Song 14. That's The Way Of The World 15. Wouldn't Change A Thing About You 16. After The Love Is Gone 17. System Of Survival
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Wattstax (1973)
A documentary film about the Afro-American Woodstock concert held in Los Angeles seven years after the Watts riots. Director Mel Stuart mixes footage from the concert with footage of the living conditions in the current-day Watts neighborhood.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Monster High 2 (2023)
As they enter sophomore year at Monster High, Clawdeen Wolf, Draculaura and Frankie Stein face new students, new powers, and an even bigger threat that could not only tear their friendship apart but could change the world forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Nothing Factory (2017)
One night, a group of workers realises that the administration is stealing machines and raw materials from their own factory. As they organize to survey the equipment and block the relocation of production, they are forced to stand at their posts with no work to do, as a form of retaliation, while negotiations over general lay-offs take place. The pressure leads to a breakdown of the workers along with the world around them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
The Burden (2017)
A shopping center along a large highway is the scene of an apocalyptic musical. Animation with a strong sense of form set to auto-tuned music by Klungan. About liberation through great catastrophy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Like Smilin' Through and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Smilin' Through?
The closest matches to Smilin' Through are The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021), Modern Life Is Rubbish (2018) and Heavy Metal (1981). Below are 23 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Smilin' Through?
Start with The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021), the closest match to Smilin' Through.
What is the highest-rated movie like Smilin' Through?
In a Heartbeat (2017), rated 8.0/10 by 1,039 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Smilin' Through?
Main Vaapas Aaunga (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Smilin' Through?
Yes: The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (2021), Modern Life Is Rubbish (2018) and Heavy Metal (1981).
How are movies similar to Smilin' Through chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Smilin' Through, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.