Movies like The Big Squeeze (1996)
The best movies like The Big Squeeze (1996) are Bunraku (2010), The Grifters (1990) and Scarecrow (1973). If The Big Squeeze hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAmber Alert (2024)7.1/10 from 314 votes
- NewestPlay Dirty (2025)Released 2025
Bunraku (2010)
In a world with no guns, a mysterious drifter, a bartender and a young samurai plot revenge against a ruthless leader and his army of thugs, headed by nine diverse and deadly assassins.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Grifters (1990)
A small-time conman has his loyalties torn between his estranged mother and his new girlfriend, both of whom are high-stakes grifters with their own angles to play.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisScarecrow (1973)
Two drifters bum around, visit earthy women and discuss opening a car wash in Pittsburgh.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPimp (2018)
An urban love story set on the hard streets of the Bronx. A struggling female pimp, named Wednesday, grows up learning the game from her dad. Once he's gone she's left to look out for her prostitute mother and girlfriend Nikki.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSalomé (2013)
After the lewd and frenetic Dance of the Seven Veils, and with the solemn pledge from the very lips of Herod himself that she could have whatever her heart desires up to half his kingdom, wanton and proud young Salomé comes before her king with an unreasonable demand. Beguiled by John the Baptist, and then scorned for the sake of his god, lascivious Salomé—encouraged by her mother, the vindictive, Herodias—commands that John be executed and his head delivered on a silver platter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Drop (2014)
Bob Saginowski finds himself at the center of a robbery gone awry and entwined in an investigation that digs deep into the neighborhood's past where friends, families, and foes all work together to make a living - no matter the cost.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWanda (1970)
After a string of abusive relationships, Wanda abandons her family and seeks solace in the company of a petty criminal.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRogue Agent (2022)
Conman Robert Freegard poses as an undercover MI5 agent and kidnaps countless victims amidst a high-stakes manhunt, until the woman who fell for him brings him to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAmber Alert (2024)
A ride-share turns into a high-stakes game of cat and mouse after it follows a car fitting the description of an AMBER Alert.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Missouri Breaks (1976)
When vigilante land baron David Braxton hangs one of the best friends of cattle rustler Tom Logan, Logan's gang decides to get even by purchasing a small farm next to Braxton's ranch. From there the rustlers begin stealing horses, using the farm as a front for their operation. Determined to stop the thefts at any cost, Braxton retains the services of eccentric sharpshooter Robert E. Lee Clayton, who begins ruthlessly taking down Logan's gang.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Place Beyond the Pines (2013)
A motorcycle stunt rider considers committing a crime in order to provide for his wife and child, an act that puts him on a collision course with a cop-turned-politician.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Young One (1960)
A jazz musician seeks refuge from a lynch mob on a remote island, where he meets a hostile game warden and the young object of his attentions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHardball (2001)
An aimless young man who is scalping tickets, gambling and drinking, agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of getting a loan from a friend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMean Streets (1973)
A small-time hood must choose from among love, friendship and the chance to rise within the mob.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNightmare Alley (2021)
An ambitious carnival man with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychologist who is even more dangerous than he is.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Neighbor (2022)
A nightmarish evening unfolds for neighbors David and Robert when they accidentally hit a woman on her bike and flee the scene. While David is increasingly plagued by feelings of guilt, Robert shows no remorse and becomes overbearing and possessive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhat Doesn't Kill You (2008)
Two childhood friends from South Boston turn to crime as a way to get by, ultimately causing a strain in their personal lives and their friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNight Always Comes (2025)
Facing eviction in a city her family can no longer afford, a woman plunges into a desperate and increasingly dangerous all-night search to raise $25,000.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPlay Dirty (2025)
Expert thief Parker gets a shot at a major heist, but to pull it off he and his team must outsmart a South American dictator, the New York mob, and the world's richest man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDrink and Be Merry (2025)
At a struggling New York dive bar in the days leading up to Christmas 2019, Chet, a beleaguered bartender in a state of extended arrested development, must balance caring for his misanthropic, aging regulars — who have nowhere else to go, and rely on him for far more than pouring drinks — with his naive desires to muster some Christmas spirit.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
54 (1998)
When the mastermind behind New York's infamous Studio 54 disco plucks young Shane from the sea of faces clamoring to get inside his club, he not only gets his foot in the door, but lands a coveted job behind the bar — and a front-row ticket to the most legendary party on the planet!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisBarfly (1987)
Downtrodden writer Henry and distressed goddess Wanda aren't exactly husband and wife: they're wedded to their bar stools. But, they like each other's company—and Barfly captures their giddy, gin-soaked attempts to make a go of life on the skids.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFlesh and Bone (1993)
Haunted by memories of his father murdering a family, Arlis Sweeney prefers to keep to himself, focusing his energy on his work. One day, the traumatic past that eats away at him returns when he meets Kay Davies, a woman connected to the bloody event. Against all odds, Arlis and Kay fall in love; however, when his father, Roy, reappears in his life -- with the coldhearted Ginnie in tow -- Arlis must deal with his past demons.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisForelock (2026)
A naive fitness enthusiast looks for a fresh start in Los Angeles, but collides with a Hollywood Boulevard grifter who exploits his uncanny resemblance to the world's most famous superhero.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Coming SoonMovies like thisIntimacy (2001)
Failed musician Jay abandoned his family and now earns a living as head bartender in a trendy London pub. Every Wednesday afternoon, a woman comes to his house for graphic, almost wordless, sex. One day, Jay follows her and learns about her. This eventually disrupts their relationship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPresent Perfect (2014)
The movie centers on a young hipster girl who loves to party. One day, she has to deal with taking care of naughty niece that she has never met before and on top of it all, she is trying to sort out her past love that could somehow affect her future.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
She's in Portland (2020)
Two college friends, now in their thirties, admire each others' lives and feel trapped in their own. Wes, tied to a demanding career and responsibilities to family, extends a work trip to drag his dispirited artist friend Luke to find Luke's "one that got away."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Funeral (1996)
After the funeral of one of their own, a criminal family decides to embark on an emotionally unnerving journey in an attempt to exact bloody revenge.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlues Harp (1998)
Ambitious Yakuza Kenji befriends harmonica-playing bartender Chuji, who moonlights as a part-time drug-dealer for the opposing gang. Their friendship is threatened by Kenji's plans for advancement, as well as by his bodyguards' growing jealousy of Chuji.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Big Squeeze?
The closest matches to The Big Squeeze are Bunraku (2010), The Grifters (1990) and Scarecrow (1973). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Big Squeeze?
Start with Bunraku (2010), the closest match to The Big Squeeze.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Big Squeeze?
Amber Alert (2024), rated 7.1/10 by 314 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Big Squeeze?
Play Dirty (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Big Squeeze?
Yes: Bunraku (2010), The Grifters (1990) and Scarecrow (1973).
How are movies similar to The Big Squeeze chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Big Squeeze, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.