Movies like Paint Me Like a French Boy (2024)
The best movies like Paint Me Like a French Boy (2024) are Final Portrait (2017), Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016) and A Brush with Love (2019). If Paint Me Like a French Boy hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Danish Girl (2015)7.5/10 from 6,046 votes
- NewestI Want Your Sex (2026)Released 2026
Final Portrait (2017)
Paris, 1964. The Swiss sculptor and painter Alberto Giacometti, one of the most accomplished and respected artists of his generation, asks his friend, the American writer James Lord, to sit for a portrait, assuring him that it will take no longer than two or three hours, an afternoon at the most.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016)
Nude men in rubber suits, close-ups of erections, objects shoved in the most intimate of places—these are photographs taken by Robert Mapplethorpe, known by many as the most controversial photographer of the twentieth century. Openly gay, Mapplethorpe took images of male sex, nudity, and fetish to extremes that resulted in his work still being labelled by some as pornography masquerading as art. But less talked about are the more serene, yet striking portraits of flowers, sculptures, and perfectly framed human forms that are equally pioneering and powerful.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Brush with Love (2019)
As she considers giving up on her artistic dreams, Jamie paints a vision board that brings her success and love—only to discover that the mystery man in her painting isn't who she thinks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisNightfall (1956)
An innocent man turns fugitive as he reconstructs events that implicate him for a murder and robbery he did not commit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBilly's Hollywood Screen Kiss (1998)
Billy Collier is a photographer working on a series of pictures featuring recreations of movie kisses, with drag queens playing the female roles. For his male model, he hires Gabriel, a young waiter on whom he has developed a serious crush. While Billy is openly gay, Gabriel says that he is straight and even claims to have a girlfriend. However, as they spend more time together and grow closer, Billy becomes increasingly unsure that this is true.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Danish Girl (2015)
When Gerda Wegener asks her husband Einar to fill in as a portrait model, Einar discovers the person she's meant to be and begins living her life as Lili Elbe. Having realized her true self and with Gerda's love and support, Lili embarks on a groundbreaking journey as a transgender pioneer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLove Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon (1998)
In the 1960s, British painter Francis Bacon surprises a burglar and invites him to share his bed. The burglar, a working class man named George Dyer, accepts. After the unique beginning to their love affair, the well-connected and volatile artist assimilates Dyer into his circle of eccentric friends, as Dyer's struggle with addiction strains their bond.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe World of Suzie Wong (1960)
A Hong Kong prostitute tries modeling and falls for the artist who's painting her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKing Cobra (2016)
It’s 2006, YouTube is in its infancy, and internet porn is still behind a paywall. Taking the stage name Brent Corrigan, a fresh-faced, wannabe adult video performer is molded into a star by Stephen, a closeted gay porn mogul who runs the skin flick empire Cobra Video from his seemingly ordinary suburban home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisI Want Your Sex (2026)
When a naive young man becomes the sexual muse for a renowned and provocative artist, his dream job quickly turns dangerous as he is drawn into an obsessive world of power, betrayal, and murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNude (2017)
NUDE explores perceptions of nudity in art by chronicling the creative process of photographer David Bellemere as he's commissioned by NU Muses founder Steve Shaw to shoot a fine art calendar of nude photographs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTulip Fever (2017)
An artist falls for a married young woman while he's commissioned to paint her portrait. The two invest in the risky tulip market in hopes to build a future together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisManiac (1980)
A psychotic man, troubled by his childhood abuse, kills and mutilates young women and local models on the streets of New York City.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPollock (2000)
In August of 1949, Life Magazine ran a banner headline that begged the question: "Jackson Pollock: Is he the greatest living painter in the United States?" The film is a look back into the life of an extraordinary man, a man who has fittingly been called "an artist dedicated to concealment, a celebrity who nobody knew." As he struggled with self-doubt, engaging in a lonely tug-of-war between needing to express himself and wanting to shut the world out, Pollock began a downward spiral.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisManiac (2012)
As he helps a young artist with her upcoming exhibition, the owner of a mannequin shop's deadly, suppressed desires come to the surface.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBUtterfield 8 (1960)
Gloria Wandrous, a promiscuous fashion model, falls in love with Weston Liggett, the hard drinking son of a working class family who has married into money.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZoolander (2001)
Clear the runway for Derek Zoolander, VH1's three-time male model of the year. His face falls when hippie-chic Hansel scooters in to steal this year's award. The evil fashion guru Mugatu seizes the opportunity to turn Derek into a killing machine. It's a well-designed conspiracy and only with the help of Hansel and a few well-chosen accessories like Matilda can Derek make the world safe for male models everywhere.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds (2006)
How far would you go to get the person of your dreams? With the help of Gwen and Tiffani, Kyle pretends to be heterosexual in order to land Troy, the new guy (and nude model) who's turning the heads of both men and women. He soon finds himself joining the campus ex-gay support group and nabbing a girlfriend! Kyle's ex-boyfriend Marc is horrified at the plan and decides to pursue the confused Troy with his own tactic -- being his "out" gay self. Who will win Troy first?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMade in Italy (2020)
A bohemian artist travels from London to Italy with his estranged son to sell the house they inherited from his late wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThey'll Love Me When I'm Dead (2018)
As his life comes to its end, famous Hollywood director Orson Welles puts it all on the line at the chance for renewed success with the film The Other Side of the Wind.
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 Paint Me Like a French Boy?
The closest matches to Paint Me Like a French Boy are Final Portrait (2017), Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016) and A Brush with Love (2019). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Paint Me Like a French Boy?
Start with Final Portrait (2017), the closest match to Paint Me Like a French Boy.
What is the highest-rated movie like Paint Me Like a French Boy?
The Danish Girl (2015), rated 7.5/10 by 6,046 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Paint Me Like a French Boy?
I Want Your Sex (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Paint Me Like a French Boy?
Yes: Final Portrait (2017), Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016) and A Brush with Love (2019).
How are movies similar to Paint Me Like a French Boy chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Paint Me Like a French Boy, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.