Movies like Son (2023)
The best movies like Son (2023) are And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007), Mass (2021) and Beautiful Boy (2011). If Son hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMagnolia (1999)7.7/10 from 4,233 votes
- NewestFather Mother Sister Brother (2025)Released 2025
And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007)
The story of a son's conflicting memories of his dying father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMass (2021)
Two couples meet for a painful and raw conversation in the aftermath of a violent tragedy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeautiful Boy (2011)
A married couple on the verge of separation are leveled by the news their 18-year-old son committed a mass-shooting at his college, then took his own life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Son (2022)
A successful lawyer, with a new wife and infant, agrees to care for his teenage son from a previous marriage after his ex-wife becomes concerned about the boy's wayward behavior.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Music Never Stopped (2011)
Henry struggles to bond with his estranged son, Gabriel, who suffers from a brain tumor that prevents him from forming new memories. With Gabriel unable to shed the beliefs and interests that caused their physical and emotional distance, Henry must learn to embrace his son's choices and try to connect with him through music.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDad (1989)
A busy executive learns during a meeting that his mother may be dying and rushes home to her side. He ends up being his father's caretaker and becomes closer to him than ever before. Estranged from his own son, the executive comes to realize what has been missing in his own life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Etruscan Smile (2018)
Rory MacNeil, a rugged old Scotsman, reluctantly leaves his beloved isolated Hebridean island and travels to San Francisco to seek medical treatment. Moving in with his estranged son, Rory sees his life transformed through a newly found bond with his baby grandson.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMagnolia (1999)
On one random day in the San Fernando Valley, a dying father, a young wife, a male caretaker, a famous lost son, a police officer in love, a boy genius, an ex-boy genius, a game show host and an estranged daughter will each become part of a dazzling multiplicity of plots, but one story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDaddy Longlegs (2010)
After months of living a solitary existence, Lenny, 34, picks up his kids from school. Every year he spends a couple of weeks with his sons Sage, 9, and Frey, 7. Lenny hosts his kids within a midtown studio apartment in New York. During these two weeks, he must figure out if he wants to act as their father or be their friend. Ultimately, their trip upstate results in complete lawlessness taking over their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFather Mother Sister Brother (2025)
Estranged siblings reunite after years apart, forced to confront unresolved tensions and reevaluate their strained relationships with their emotionally distant parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)
An alcoholic ex-football player drinks his days away, having failed to come to terms with his sexuality and his real feelings for his football buddy who died after an ambiguous accident. His wife is crucified by her desperation to make him desire her: but he resists the affections of his wife. His reunion with his father—who is dying of cancer—jogs a host of memories and revelations for both father and son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIf Anything Happens I Love You (2020)
Grieving parents journey through an emotional void as they mourn the loss of a child after a tragic school shooting.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRabbit Hole (2010)
Life for a happy couple is turned upside down after their young son dies in an accident.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCourageous (2011)
Law enforcement officers Adam Mitchell, Nathan Hayes, and their partners stand up to the worst the streets have to offer with confidence and focus. Yet at the end of the day, they face a challenge that none of them are truly prepared to tackle: fatherhood. They know that God desires to turn the hearts of fathers to their children, but their children are beginning to drift further and further away from them. When tragedy hits home, these men are left wrestling with their hopes, their fears, their faith, and their fathering. Can a newfound urgency help these dads draw closer to God... and to their children?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAn Unfinished Life (2005)
Stoic and heartbroken, Einar Gilkyson quietly lives in the rugged Wyoming ranchlands alongside his only trusted friend, Mitch Bradley. One day, the woman he blames for the death of his only son arrives at his door broke, desperate, and with a granddaughter he's never known. But even as buried anger and accusations resurface, the way is opened for unexpected connection, adventure, and forgiveness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJulien Donkey-Boy (1999)
Undiagnosed, untreated and generally untethered schizophrenic Julien lives with his pregnant younger sister, anorexic aspiring wrestler brother, sympathetic grandmother, and severely depressed and abusive German father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Book of Henry (2017)
Susan, a single mother of two, works as a waitress in a small town. Her son, Henry, is an 11-year-old genius who not only manages the family finances but acts as emotional support for his mother and younger brother. When Henry discovers that the girl next door has a terrible secret, he implores Susan to take matters into her own hands.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCowboys (2020)
Troy and his young transgender son Joe are on the run from his conservative mother in the Montana wilderness, with a detective in hot pursuit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHe Got Game (1998)
A basketball player's father must try to convince him to go to a college so he can get a shorter prison sentence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBoyhood (2014)
The film tells a story of a divorced couple trying to raise their young son. The story follows the boy for twelve years, from first grade at age 6 through 12th grade at age 17-18, and examines his relationship with his parents as he grows.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLittle Voice (1998)
After the death of her father, Little Voice or LV becomes a virtual recluse, never going out and hardly ever saying a word. She just sits in her bedroom listening to her father's collection of old records of Shirley Bassey, Marilyn Monroe and various other famous female singers. But at night time, LV sings, imitating these great singers with surprising accuracy. One night she is overheard by one of her mother's boyfriends, who happens to be a talent agent. He manages to convince her that her talent is special and arranges for her to perform at the local night club, but several problems arise.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSerpico (1973)
New York cop Frank Serpico blows the whistle on the rampant corruption in the force only to have his comrades turn against him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDear Frankie (2004)
Nine-year-old Frankie and his single mum Lizzie have been on the move ever since Frankie can remember, most recently arriving in a seaside Scottish town. Wanting to protect her deaf son from the truth that they've run away from his father, Lizzie has invented a story that he is away at sea on the HMS Accra. Every few weeks, Lizzie writes Frankie a make-believe letter from his father, telling of his adventures in exotic lands. As Frankie tracks the ship's progress around the globe, he discovers that it is due to dock in his hometown. With the real HMS Accra arriving in only a fortnight, Lizzie must choose between telling Frankie the truth or finding the perfect stranger to play Frankie's father for just one day...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNegative Space (2017)
Even though Sam's father is hardly ever home because he is often away on business trips, he is able to connect with his son by teaching him how to pack a suitcase.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBentley's Will (2019)
A mother and son are forced to confront a strained relationship and begin the slow journey of healing while searching for their missing dog.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Straight Story (1999)
Retired farmer and widower Alvin Straight learns one day that his estranged brother Lyle has suffered a severe stroke. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver's license. He then has the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMomo and the Seven Papagenos (2022)
Twenty-five-year-old Momo has friends. Her parents live some distance away, but they sometimes get together to dine out. She dates an acceptable guy, and they share drinks at home. She apologizes to unreasonable clients over the phone at work and hones her ability to keep things civil with coworkers at drinks after work. This perfectly ordinary life means Momo doesn't immediately notice a nagging feeling: "I want to die." For her, it's a phrase she must never say aloud. One summer, unable to bear the thought of the coming Monday, Momo takes a day off from work. She begins to visit other people who struggle with thoughts of suicide, but have discovered alternatives and choose to live instead. She connects with these "Papagenos" through social media. Over the course of her difficult journey, Momo herself begins to discover other choices beyond death.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Hanging Up (2000)
Three sisters - Georgia, Eve, and Maddy - do what they do best with life, love, and lunacy on the telephone lines that bind - when their curmudgeonly father, Lou, is admitted to a Los Angeles Hospital. After years of wild living, intermittent affection, and constant phoning, he is finally threatening to die.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisGangster No. 1 (2000)
An old gangster is advised that Freddie Mays would leave jail after thirty years in prison. His mood changes and he recalls when he was a young punk and who joined Freddie's gang—a man he both envied and ultimately betrayed.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHoffa (1992)
A portrait of union leader James R. Hoffa, as seen through the eyes of his friend, Bobby Ciaro. The film follows Hoffa through his countless battles with the RTA and President Roosevelt.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Son?
The closest matches to Son are And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007), Mass (2021) and Beautiful Boy (2011). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Son?
Start with And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007), the closest match to Son.
What is the highest-rated movie like Son?
Magnolia (1999), rated 7.7/10 by 4,233 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Son?
Father Mother Sister Brother (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Son?
Yes: And When Did You Last See Your Father? (2007), Mass (2021) and Beautiful Boy (2011).
How are movies similar to Son chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Son, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.