Movies like The Story of a Strange Friendship (1979)
The best movies like The Story of a Strange Friendship (1979) are Ploey: You Never Fly Alone (2018), PAW Patrol: Jet to the Rescue (2020) and Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Scroll (2016). If The Story of a Strange Friendship hooked you with its animation and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFar from the Tree (2021)8.1/10 from 395 votes
- NewestSnoopy Presents: There's No Place Like Home, Snoopy (2026)Released 2026
Ploey: You Never Fly Alone (2018)
A plover chick has not learned to fly when his family migrates in the fall. He must survive the arctic winter, vicious enemies and himself in order to be reunited with his beloved one next spring.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPAW Patrol: Jet to the Rescue (2020)
A royal relative steals a gem with the power to make things fly, the Paw Patrol takes to the skies to stop him and save Barkingburg.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Scroll (2016)
As Po looks for his lost action figures, the story of how the panda inadvertently helped create the Furious Five is told.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonster High: Friday Night Frights (2012)
After Monster High’s roller skating team is defeated at the Skulltimate Roller Maze tournament, the ghouls team up to face an all-boys league, with the hope of winning back the school crest and restoring school spirit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSnoopy Presents: There's No Place Like Home, Snoopy (2026)
When Snoopy's beloved doghouse goes missing, he tries to track it down, and learns what makes a house feel like home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisWinnie the Pooh: A Valentine for You (1999)
After Pooh, Piglet, Tigger, and Rabbit see Christopher Robin making a valentine for -- gasp! -- a girl, they find he's been bitten by a "Smitten" and is lovesick! Worried that he'll no longer have time for them, and hoping a second bite from the love bug will cure him, they set out on a wild adventure to capture the Smitten. This wonderful story, filled with magic and whimsy, and sweetened with three new songs, reminds us all that the heart is big and always has plenty of room for friends -- old and new.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Masters (2011)
Po and the Furious Five uncover the legend of three of kung fu's greatest heroes: Master Thundering Rhino, Master Storming Ox, and Master Croc.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFar from the Tree (2021)
On an idyllic beach in the Pacific Northwest, curiosity gets the better of a young raccoon whose frustrated parent attempts to keep them both safe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMonster High: Ghouls Rule (2012)
Monster High: Ghouls Rule unearths an old conflict between "Normies" and monsters - and things are about to get scary! For years, students at Monster High were warned that Halloween was a night to stay inside and avoid conflict at all costs. But Frankie and her friends discover that ghouls and "Normies" once loved to spend the holiday together! The ghouls decide to turn back the clock and use the night to celebrate their individuality and show that it's okay to "Be Yourself. Be Unique. Be a Monster!"
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse: Steamboat Silly (2023)
Mickey and gang must stop hundreds of old film reel versions of Mickey from wreaking havoc all over town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPooh's Heffalump Halloween Movie (2005)
It's Halloween in the Hundred Acre Wood, and Roo's best new friend, Lumpy, is looking forward to his first time trick-or-treating. That is, until Tigger warns them about the scary Gobloon, who'll turn them into jack-o'-lanterns if he catches them. But if Roo and Lumpy turn the tables on the Gobloon, they get to make a wish! Lumpy and Roo decide to be "brave together, brave forever" and catch the Gobloon so they can make their wishes come true.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRevolting Rhymes (2017)
Two half-hour animated films based on the much-loved rhymes written by Roald Dahl and illustrated by Quentin Blake.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCat Pack: A PAW Patrol Exclusive Event (2022)
When Mayor Humdinger transforms his robot cat Meow-Meow into a tiger-sized metal-eating menace, the PAW Patrol calls in the Cat Pack for help in the stopping the creature.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMinions & More Volume 1 (2022)
This collection of 10 short films produced by Illumination includes: From the "Despicable Me" franchise: Puppy (2013); Minion Scouts (2019); Training Wheels (2013); The Secret Life of Kyle (2017); Santa's Little Helpers (2019). From the "Grinch" franchise: The Dog Days of Winter (2019). From the "Secret Life of Pets" franchise: Norman Television (2016); Weenie (2016). From the "Sing" franchise: Love at First Sight (2017). From the "Lorax" franchise: Forces of Nature (2012).
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & the Island of Misfit Toys (2001)
When the mysterious Toy Taker grabs all of Santa's toys, it looks like the children will miss out on Christmas. But everyone's favorite reindeer, Rudolph, comes to the rescue with his lovable friends: Hermey the elf, Yukon Cornelius the grizzly prospector, the abominable snow monster Bumbles and Rudolph's very special friend Clarice. Together, they promise Santa they'll track down Toy Taker and rescue Santa's toy. Their incredible quest takes them on a wild adventure with Rudolph's red nose leading the way!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisDay & Night (2010)
When Day, a sunny fellow, encounters Night, a stranger of distinctly darker moods, sparks fly! Day and Night are frightened and suspicious of each other at first, and quickly get off on the wrong foot. But as they discover each other's unique qualities--and come to realize that each of them offers a different window onto the same world-the friendship helps both to gain a new perspective.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLOL Surprise: The Movie (2021)
Dazzling doll sisters Queen Bee and Royal Bee make their first movie with help from their fashionable friends in this one-of-a-kind magical adventure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Twits (2025)
When the meanest, nastiest villains pull a trick to take over their town, two brave children team up with a family of magical animals to bring them down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisPhineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (2020)
Phineas and Ferb travel across the galaxy to rescue their older sister Candace, who has been abducted by aliens and taken to a utopia in a far-off planet, free of her pesky little brothers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Tidal Zone: SpongeBob Universe Special (2023)
GrandPat travels through alternate dimensions and timelines to get home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Rainbow Fish (2026)
The rainbow fish, an outsider obsessed with his glittering scales, learns the power of friendship on an adventurous sea voyage with the little blue fish. He finds his place in a colorful fish community—and realizes that sharing brings people together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & animation
Coming SoonMovies like thisPokrovo-Pokrivonko… (1997)
The girl Hanusya and her younger brother Andriyko lived in the village, whose mother was taken captive by the Horde, and whose father, who went to free her, also disappeared. The Cossack Stepan is courting Hanusya, but she promised to marry only after the return of her parents. All three find themselves in danger, because they are pursued by the devil, who was driven out of hell by Satan himself, having ordered to harm at least one human soul.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & family
Pumpkin Walks Around the Garden (1997)
A humorous story-musical about a pumpkin, the host of a vegetable garden, his wife and many relatives and friends. They all live nearby and often solve some of their living problems. Cucumbers want to play, and the carrot-girls are waiting for worthy suitors. Here there are festivals and folk rituals and the work around which life revolves of vegetable villagers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & family
Seraphim on the Go! (2021)
a life size stop motion child puppet races through memories and daydreams reflecting on the cyclical nature of life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Poplar Tree (1996)
A beautiful and hard-working girl lived in a Ukrainian village. She fell in love with a guy, but he was destined to die, and the girl has to hide from courtship and matchmaking of bothersome suitors. Her heart did not lie to any of them, and she decided to turn to a healer for help. What will be the fate of a young Ukrainian woman? The film is based on the poem by Taras Shevchenko.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
A Christmas Tale (1993)
On the eve of Christmas, the tears of the poor girl Marusia melted the cold and indifferent heart of the wealthy landlord. Based on the fairy tale “Tear” by the Ukrainian writer Marko Cheremshyna.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
2:30 (2025)
In a dark and cramped attic, Luna, a moth with dreams of becoming a dentist, sets up her first professional practice from home. As she works, she discovers an intoxicating euphoria in the glow of her dental light, forming an obsession that fuels her craft and enhances her skills. As the days blur together, her fixation deepens and her artistry decays along with her sanity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
grammatical bathroom (2023)
A mixed-media animated short film following a pig man through a hallucinatory, manic experience in his bathroom.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
The Girl And The Star (1970)
A fairy tale about how the girl, Lola, became friends with the star.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
TV Dinner (2018)
Stop motion by Maya Galluzzi.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Like The Story of a Strange Friendship and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Story of a Strange Friendship?
The closest matches to The Story of a Strange Friendship are Ploey: You Never Fly Alone (2018), PAW Patrol: Jet to the Rescue (2020) and Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Scroll (2016). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Story of a Strange Friendship?
Start with Ploey: You Never Fly Alone (2018), the closest match to The Story of a Strange Friendship.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Story of a Strange Friendship?
Far from the Tree (2021), rated 8.1/10 by 395 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Story of a Strange Friendship?
Snoopy Presents: There's No Place Like Home, Snoopy (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to The Story of a Strange Friendship chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Story of a Strange Friendship, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.