Movies like Not Such a Pleasantville (2009)
The best movies like Not Such a Pleasantville (2009) are Extraordinary Tales (2015), Come Play (2020) and Lights Out (2016). If Not Such a Pleasantville hooked you with its horror and mystery, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Shining (1980)8.2/10 from 19,682 votes
- NewestlooksMAXXING (2026)Released 2026
Extraordinary Tales (2015)
Five tales by Edgar Allan Poe come to life thanks to a pictorical style animation, five tales that exude madness, pestilence, murder and torture.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCome Play (2020)
Oliver, a lonely autistic boy, seeks solace and refuge in his ever-present cell phone and tablet. When a mysterious creature uses the boy's devices against him, his parents must fight to save their son from the monster beyond the screen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLights Out (2016)
Rebecca must unlock the terror behind her little brother's experiences that once tested her sanity, bringing her face to face with a supernatural spirit attached to their mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGoodnight Mommy (2022)
When twin brothers arrive home to find their mother’s demeanor altered and face covered in surgical bandages, they begin to suspect the woman beneath the gauze might not be their mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDC Showcase - Constantine: The House of Mystery (2022)
John Constantine wakes up in the eerie House of Mystery with no recollection of how he got there. Fortunately, Zatanna and his friends are all there. Unfortunately, they have a bad habit of turning into demons and ripping him to shreds, over and over again!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonstrous (2022)
Laura, traumatized by an abusive relationship, runs away from her former husband with her seven-year-old son Cody. But in their new, idyllic and remote sanctuary, they find they have another, bigger and more terrifying monster to deal with…
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisLaura Hasn't Slept (2020)
Desperate to rid herself of a recurring nightmare, a young woman seeks the help of her therapist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWatcher (2022)
As a serial killer stalks the city, Julia — a young actress who just moved to town with her husband — notices a mysterious stranger watching her from across the street.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBarbarian (2022)
In town for a job interview, a young woman arrives at her Airbnb late at night only to find that it has been mistakenly double-booked and a strange man is already staying there. Against her better judgement, she decides to stay the night anyway.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Legend of Hell House (1973)
A team consisting of a physicist, his wife, a young female psychic, and the only survivor of the previous visit are sent to the notorious Hell House to prove or disprove survival after death. Previous visitors have either been killed or gone mad, and it is up to the team to survive a full week in isolation, and solve the mystery of the Hell House.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHide and Seek (2005)
David Callaway tries to piece together his life in the wake of his wife's suicide and has been left to raise his nine-year-old daughter, Emily on his own. David is at first amused to discover that Emily has created an imaginary friend named 'Charlie', but it isn't long before 'Charlie' develops a sinister and violent side, and as David struggles with his daughter's growing emotional problems, he comes to the frightening realisation that 'Charlie' isn't just a figment of Emily's imagination.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Christmas (1974)
As the residents of the Pi Kappa Sigma sorority house prepare for the festive season, a stranger begins to harass them with a series of obscene phone calls.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBone Lake (2025)
A couple’s romantic vacation at a secluded lakeside estate is upended when they are forced to share the mansion with a mysterious and attractive couple. In this darkly hilarious and seductive horror story, a dream getaway spirals into a nightmarish maze of sex, lies, and manipulation, bringing terrifying secrets to light and triggering a bloody battle for survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisDC Showcase: The Phantom Stranger (2020)
Jess joins her friends at a party in a dilapidated mansion hosted by the mysterious Seth. When odd things begin to happen to Jess and her friends, the Phantom Stranger intervenes to save her from a dreary fate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Old Mill (1937)
Night in an old mill is dramatically depicted in this Oscar-winning short in which the frightened occupants, including birds, timid mice, owls, and other creatures try to stay safe and dry as a storm approaches. As the thunderstorm worsens, the mill wheel begins to turn and the whole mill threatens to blow apart until at last the storm subsides.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlack Rainbow (1989)
Martha Travis is a medium who makes contact with spirits "on the other side" and connects them with their loved ones still alive, in public performances. Trouble begins when she gives a message to Mary Kuron from her husband, Tom. But Tom isn't dead... yet. And Martha not only knows he will die, she also knows who killed him. And the murderer knows she knows...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & horror
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Inhabitant (2022)
Like any other teenage girl, Tara is just surviving high school — yet her father and mother seem strangely distant. Amidst a nearby spree of gruesome ax murders, Tara has sightings of terrifying entities, forcing her to question her own sanity and shocking ancestry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisNocebo (2022)
A fashion designer suffers from a mysterious illness that puzzles her doctors and frustrates her husband until help arrives in the form of a Filipino caregiver who uses traditional folk healing to reveal a horrifying truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & horror
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCoraline (2009)
Wandering her rambling old house in her boring new town, 11-year-old Coraline discovers a hidden door to a strangely idealized version of her life. In order to stay in the fantasy, she must make a frighteningly real sacrifice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & horror
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisWhen a Stranger Calls Back (1993)
Jill Johnson, now a crisis center counselor, reunites with retired detective John Clifford to hunt a killer stalking a coed.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both horror & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Mothman Prophecies (2002)
Reporter John Klein is plunged into a world of impossible terror when fate draws him to the sleepy West Virginia town of Point Pleasant, whose residents are being visited by a great winged shape that sows hideous nightmares and fevered visions.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn the Mouth of Madness (1995)
An insurance investigator visits a small town while looking into the strange disappearance of a popular horror novelist. He soon finds that the impact of the author’s books is far more than inspirational.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThree Colors: Red (1994)
Part-time model Valentine unexpectedly befriends a retired judge after she runs over his dog. At first, the grumpy man shows no concern about the dog, and Valentine decides to keep it. But the two form a bond when she returns to his house and catches him listening to his neighbors’ phone calls.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTwelve Monkeys (1995)
In the year 2035, convict James Cole reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to discover the origin of a deadly virus that wiped out nearly all of the earth's population and forced the survivors into underground communities. But when Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990 instead of 1996, he's arrested and locked up in a mental hospital. There he meets psychiatrist Dr. Kathryn Railly and the son of a famous virus expert who may hold the key to the Army of the 12 Monkeys; thought to be responsible for unleashing the killer disease.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAllergic Overreaction (2019)
When Scott brings cookies to his friend's annual weekend long Freddy vs Jason fest, he unwittingly gives Dave an allergic reaction. And what was supposed to be a fun time, turns into a night of uncanny horror!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Shining (1980)
Jack Torrance accepts a caretaker job at the Overlook Hotel, where he, along with his wife Wendy and their son Danny, must live isolated from the rest of the world for the winter. But they aren't prepared for the madness that lurks within.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLost Highway (1997)
A tormented jazz musician finds himself lost in an enigmatic story involving murder, surveillance, gangsters, doppelgängers, and an impossible transformation inside a prison cell.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thislooksMAXXING (2026)
When a dopamine-depleted young man joins an online forum promising a better life through physical perfection, he descends on a destructive path.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both horror
The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
An American doctor and his wife, a former singing star, witness a murder while vacationing in Morocco, and are drawn into a twisting plot of international intrigue when their young son is kidnapped.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Conversation (1974)
A paranoid, secretive surveillance expert has a crisis of conscience when he suspects that the couple he is spying on will be murdered.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Not Such a Pleasantville?
The closest matches to Not Such a Pleasantville are Extraordinary Tales (2015), Come Play (2020) and Lights Out (2016). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Not Such a Pleasantville?
Start with Extraordinary Tales (2015), the closest match to Not Such a Pleasantville.
What is the highest-rated movie like Not Such a Pleasantville?
The Shining (1980), rated 8.2/10 by 19,682 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Not Such a Pleasantville?
looksMAXXING (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Not Such a Pleasantville?
Yes: Extraordinary Tales (2015), Come Play (2020) and Lights Out (2016).
How are movies similar to Not Such a Pleasantville chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Not Such a Pleasantville, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.