Movies like Ordinary Things (2001)
The best movies like Ordinary Things (2001) are Baraka (1992), Girl Rising (2013) and Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017). If Ordinary Things hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBaraka (1992)8.2/10 from 733 votes
- NewestOne Last Adventure: The Making of Stranger Things 5 (2026)Released 2026
Baraka (1992)
A paralysingly beautiful documentary with a global vision—an odyssey through landscape and time—that attempts to capture the essence of life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisGirl Rising (2013)
Nine filmmakers each profile a young girl from a different part of the world to weave a global tapestry of youth in the 21st century.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEx Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Irishman: In Conversation (2019)
Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Al Pacino in conversation about The Irishman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFuck (2006)
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGod Grew Tired of Us (2006)
Filmmaker Christopher Quinn observes the ordeal of three Sudanese refugees -- Jon Bul Dau, Daniel Abul Pach and Panther Bior -- as they try to come to terms with the horrors they experienced in their homeland, while adjusting to their new lives in the United States.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChadwick Boseman: A Tribute for a King (2020)
A tribute to Chadwick Boseman, celebrating his life and legacy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Biggest Little Farm (2019)
The successes and failures of a couple determined to live in harmony with nature on a farm outside of Los Angeles are lovingly chronicled by filmmaking farmer John Chester, in this inspiring documentary.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Last Repair Shop (2024)
In a warehouse in the heart of Los Angeles, a dwindling handful of devoted craftspeople maintain more than 80,000 student musical instruments, the largest remaining workshop in America of its kind. Meet four unforgettable characters whose broken-and-repaired lives have been dedicated to bringing so much more than music to the schoolchildren of this city.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCome See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Mom Jayne (2025)
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisDavid Byrne's American Utopia (2020)
A filmed version of David Byrne's Broadway show, a unifying musical celebration that inspires audiences to connect to each other and to the global community.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRoad (2014)
Brothers addicted to speed at any price. Documentary following the motorcycle road racing careers, and fate, of the Dunlop family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHale County This Morning, This Evening (2018)
Composed of intimate and unencumbered moments of people in a community, this film is constructed in a form that allows the viewer an emotive impression of the Historic South - trumpeting the beauty of life and consequences of the social construction of race, while simultaneously a testament to dreaming.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Class of ‘92 (2013)
A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisConor McGregor: Notorious (2017)
Conor McGregor is the biggest star in the history of Mixed Martial Arts. Filmed over the course of 4 years, Notorious is the exclusive, all-access account of Conor’s meteoric rise from claiming benefits and living in his parents' spare room in Dublin to claiming multiple championship UFC belts and seven figure pay-packets in Las Vegas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Am Heath Ledger (2017)
The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOne Last Adventure: The Making of Stranger Things 5 (2026)
An inside look at the years of effort and craft that went into the final installment of the Duffer Brothers' generation-defining series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisComitiva Esperança (1985)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Last of the Sea Women (2024)
On the shores of Jeju Island, a fierce group of South Korean divers fight to save their vanishing culture from looming threats.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
T.G. (2025)
A short documentary about a man, his legacy and his impact on the world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
My Village in Nunavik (1999)
Shot during three seasons, Kenuajuak's documentary tenderly portrays village life and the elements that forge the character of his people: their history, the great open spaces and their unflagging humour. Though Kenuajuak appreciates the amenities of southern civilization that have made their way north, he remains attached to the traditional way of life and the land: its vast tundra, the sea teeming with Arctic char, the sky full of Canada geese. My Village in Nunavik is an unsentimental film by a young Inuk who is open to the outside world but clearly loves his village. With subtitles.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
I Am Ireland (1959)
Inspired by Patrick Pearse’s poem Mise Éire (“I Am Ireland”), this documentary assembles archival footage from across Europe to trace the rise of Irish nationalism from the 1890s through the 1916 Easter Rising. Directed by George Morrison, the film chronicles key figures and events of the independence movement, with Irish-language narration and a score by Seán Ó Riada.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back (2019)
Maurice Hines -- actor, director, singer, and choreographer -- navigates the complications of show business while grieving the loss of his more famous, often estranged younger brother, tap dance legend Gregory Hines.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Return of the Islander (1970)
Through economic necessity, an Aran Islander is forced to travel to England to work on building sites so that he can earn money to support his family back on the Islands.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Geografía personal (TBA)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Night That Changed Rock (2019)
Forty years later, rock legends Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey sat down for first-of-a-kind, exclusive interviews with WCPO Anchor Tanya O’Rourke. Their candid revelations about the horrific night of Dec. 3, 1979 in Cincinnati form the basis for O'Rourke's historical documentary, "The Who: The Night That Changed Rock."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Paddy Whacked: The Irish Mob (2006)
Long before the Mafia, Murder Inc., and the African-American gangster, "Paddy" was plundering and pilfering the stars and stripes. Once called the "National Scourge", "The Shame of the Cities", and "The White Man's Burden", the Irish rose from hellish beginnings riddled with disease, vice, and death. The Potato Famine or "Ireland's Genocide" had wiped out a third of their population--America offered hope. They arrived in swarms, starving and destitute, with their notorious Celtic stubbornness and toughness. In a land where man had to fight for his piece of the pie and fight harder to keep it, "Paddy" was almost unbeatable. From the 19th century gang wars to the 20th century wars with the Italians, "Paddy" whacked their way to a mythical status. We trace the legacy of the Irish Mob, deeply rooted in the diabolical power trio of "Gangster, Politician, and Lawman" feeding and festering off one another.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ordinary Things?
The closest matches to Ordinary Things are Baraka (1992), Girl Rising (2013) and Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ordinary Things?
Start with Baraka (1992), the closest match to Ordinary Things.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ordinary Things?
Baraka (1992), rated 8.2/10 by 733 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ordinary Things?
One Last Adventure: The Making of Stranger Things 5 (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Ordinary Things?
Yes: Baraka (1992), Girl Rising (2013) and Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017).
How are movies similar to Ordinary Things chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ordinary Things, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.