Movies like Muddy Hands (1988)
The best movies like Muddy Hands (1988) are Before I Wake (2016), Possum (2018) and The Keeping Hours (2017). If Muddy Hands hooked you with its drama and horror, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Sixth Sense (1999)8.0/10 from 13,594 votes
- NewestThe Surrender (2025)Released 2025
Before I Wake (2016)
An orphaned child's dreams—and nightmares—manifest physically as he sleeps.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPossum (2018)
A disgraced children's puppeteer returns to his childhood home and is forced to confront his wicked stepfather and the secrets that have tortured him his entire life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Keeping Hours (2017)
A supernatural love story that centers on two parents whose life together falls apart after their son dies. The man, now a successful lawyer, and the woman, now married and an author, get a chance at reconciliation ten years later.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCelia (1989)
In 1950s Australia, young Celia is growing up with a sense of isolation and mistrust of the world that surrounds her. Her mother and father won't let her play with the kids next door because their parents are communists. Then her pet bunny is taken away because of rabbit overpopulation. And, more traumatizing yet, when her grandmother dies, she's the one to discover the corpse. To cope, she retreats into elaborate fantasies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGerald's Game (2017)
When her husband's sex game goes wrong, Jessie (who is handcuffed to a bed in a remote lake house) faces warped visions, dark secrets and a dire choice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Bad Seed (1956)
Air Force Colonel Kenneth Penmark and his wife, Christine, adore their daughter Rhoda, despite her secret tendency for selfishness. Christine keeps her knowledge of her daughter's darker side to herself, but when a schoolmate of Rhoda's dies mysteriously, her self-deception unravels.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSometimes They Come Back (1991)
Desperate for a job to help him support his family, Jim Norman takes a position teaching high school in the town where his brother was murdered in front of him by teenage bullies twenty-seven years before. The teens who committed the crime are long dead, but now the kids in Jim's new class keep dying and being replaced by new students who look like the deceased hoodlums.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisHereditary (2018)
When the matriarch of the Graham family passes away, her daughter begins to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about her ancestry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCarrie (1976)
Withdrawn and sensitive teenager Carrie White faces bullying from her classmates and abuse from her fanatically pious mother. When she begins to suspect that she has supernatural powers, things take a dark and violent turn.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAnna (2013)
A man with the ability to enter peoples' memories takes on the case of a brilliant, troubled sixteen-year-old girl to determine whether she is a sociopath or a victim of trauma.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBagman (2024)
For centuries and across cultures, parents have warned their children of the legendary Bagman, who snatches innocent children and stuffs them into his vile, rotting bag—never to be seen again. Patrick McKee narrowly escaped such an encounter as a boy, which left him with lasting scars throughout his adulthood. Now, Patrick’s childhood tormentor has returned, threatening the safety of his wife Karina and son Jake.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Haunting in Connecticut (2009)
When the Campbell family moves to upstate Connecticut, they soon learn that their charming Victorian home has a disturbing history: not only was the house a transformed funeral parlor where inconceivable acts occurred, but the owner's clairvoyant son Jonah served as a demonic messenger, providing a gateway for spiritual entities to crossover.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sixth Sense (1999)
Following an unexpected tragedy, child psychologist Malcolm Crowe meets a nine year old boy named Cole Sear, who is hiding a dark secret.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHis House (2020)
After making a harrowing escape from war-torn South Sudan, a young refugee couple struggle to adjust to their new life in a small English town that has an unspeakable evil lurking beneath the surface.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDonnie Darko (2001)
After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Entity (1982)
A single mom is raped by an invisible force. Her psychiatrist believes the experience stems from childhood trauma, while she knows something supernatural is at play.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Surrender (2025)
A fraught mother-daughter relationship is put to a terrifying test when the family patriarch dies, and the grieving mother hires a mysterious stranger to bring her husband back from the dead.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisYou're Not Alone (2020)
After the premature death of her estranged husband, Emma (Winter) regains custody of their young daughter Isla (Jones) and hopes to rebuild their relationship after many years apart. But when an evil entity begins to torment them, mother and daughter are forced to face the inexplicable presence that inhabits the walls of their new home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Truth About Emanuel (2013)
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCase 39 (2009)
In her many years as a social worker, Emily Jenkins believes she has seen it all, until she meets 10-year-old Lilith and the girl's cruel parents. Emily's worst fears are confirmed when the parents try to harm the child, and so Emily assumes custody of Lilith while she looks for a foster family. However, Emily soon finds that dark forces surround the seemingly innocent girl, and the more she tries to protect Lilith, the more horrors she encounters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSosok Ketiga: Lintrik (2025)
After six months of marriage, Andin begins to notice many oddities in her marriage. From the beginning, Uncle Bagyo suspected the marriage was rushed, and together with Amara—Andin's younger sister who also inherited the mystical arts—he often noticed disturbing, odd signs. Their suspicions were proven correct when it was revealed that Ario, Andin's husband, had been having a special relationship with Naura, a wealthy woman in their town who was trying to steal Ario completely from Andin using the Lintrik love spell, a dangerous mystical power that dragged Andin and her family into endless supernatural terror. What will happen to Andin and Ario's marriage going forward?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & horror
Don't Look Back (2009)
Panic attacks and memory loss signal the plight of a writer whose body is inexplicably being taken over by another woman.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Spiral Staircase (1946)
On a stormy night, the mute servant to an ailing matriarch is stalked by a serial killer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLyvia's House (2024)
When a young journalist suspects the disappearance of a beautiful artist is connected to murders that took place 20 years earlier, she uncovers a reality she never could have imagined. Inspired by true events.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & fantasy
The Card Counter (2021)
William Tell just wants to play cards. His spartan existence on the casino trail is shattered when he is approached by Cirk, a vulnerable and angry young man seeking help to execute his plan for revenge on a military colonel. Tell sees a chance at redemption through his relationship with Cirk.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & thriller
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 & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTeddy Bear Motel (2022)
A young woman travels to the Teddy Bear Motel after seeing it in her dreams. Between the allure of the motel’s portal into childhood and the realities of adulthood, she inevitably needs to make her choice.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & drama
Bloody Reunion (2006)
Mi-ja, who has been taking care of a retired teacher, Ms. Park, invites several of her former students to her house 16 years after their graduation. Since the end of her teaching career, Park has been residing in the countryside, suffering from an illness while an ex-student, the kind and pretty Mi-ja cares for her.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTenebre (1982)
A razor-wielding serial killer is on the loose, murdering those around Peter Neal, an American mystery author in Italy to promote his newest novel.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPortrait of Jennie (1948)
In Depression-era New York, painter Eben Adams despairs at his lack of success. One cold winter evening in Central Park, he meets enigmatic, old-fashioned Jennie Appleton, who captures his fancy when she asks him to wait for her to grow up. Soon after, Eben sells a sketch of Jennie to kindly art dealer Miss Spinny and, as he meets the oddly mutable Jennie in fleeting moments, begins to realize they share a special destiny.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Muddy Hands?
The closest matches to Muddy Hands are Before I Wake (2016), Possum (2018) and The Keeping Hours (2017). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Muddy Hands?
Start with Before I Wake (2016), the closest match to Muddy Hands.
What is the highest-rated movie like Muddy Hands?
The Sixth Sense (1999), rated 8.0/10 by 13,594 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Muddy Hands?
The Surrender (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Muddy Hands?
Yes: Before I Wake (2016), Possum (2018) and The Keeping Hours (2017).
How are movies similar to Muddy Hands chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Muddy Hands, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.