Movies like The Chess Player (1927)
The best movies like The Chess Player (1927) are The Wakhan Front (2015), Austerlitz (1960) and The Scarlet and the Black (1983). If The Chess Player hooked you with its fantasy and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Seventh Seal (1957)8.1/10 from 3,512 votes
- NewestDe Gaulle: Liberté (2026)Released 2026
- In FrenchThe Wakhan Front (2015)Also in French
The Wakhan Front (2015)
Afghanistan, 2014. As the withdrawal of troops approaches, Captain Antarès Bonassieu and his squad have been assigned a surveillance mission in a remote valley of Wakhan, on the border of Pakistan. Despite Antarès and his men’s determination, control of the secluded valley will slowly fall out of their hands. One dark night, soldiers begin to mysteriously disappear in the valley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAusterlitz (1960)
A return to the life of the Little Corporal with a dramatisation of the decisive 1805 conflict between French forces and the armies of Austria and Russia. An epic reconstruction of the battle of Austerlitz, where Bonaparte had the greatest victory of his career.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Scarlet and the Black (1983)
Fr. Hugh O'Flaherty is a Vatican official in 1943-45 who has been hiding downed pilots, escaped prisoners of war, and Italian resistance families. His activities become so large that the Nazis decide to assassinate him the next time he leaves the Vatican.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBattleground (1949)
Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues, perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDe Gaulle: Liberté (2026)
While World War II is raging, General De Gaulle seeks to convince the world that the battle for France not lost. Reality seems determined to prove him wrong. Yet, little by little, resistance fighters, rebellious students and determined soldiers rise up. Their faith, audacity and thirst for freedom defy what history seemed to have written in advance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Kill Team (2019)
When Andrew Briggman — a young soldier in the US Army during the invasion of Afghanistan — witnesses the murderous behavior of fellow soldiers, under the direction of a malevolent Sergeant, he faces a moral dilemma. His increasingly-violent platoon becomes suspicious that someone in their ranks has turned on them, and Andrew begins to fear for his safety. A fictionalized dramatization based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJacknife (1989)
A conflict develops between a troubled Vietnam veteran and the sister he lives with when she becomes involved romantically with the army buddy who reminds him of the tragic battle they both survived.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOnoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle (2021)
Japan, 1944. Trained for intelligence work, Hiroo Onoda, 22 years old, discovers a philosophy contrary to the official line: no suicide; stay alive whatever happens; the mission is more important than anything else. Sent to Lubang, a small island in the Philippines where the Americans are about to land, this role will be to wage a guerrilla war until the return of the Japanese troops. The Empire will surrender soon after; Onoda, 10,000 days later.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChouans ! (1988)
Directed by Philippe de Broca, the film recounts a bloody episode of the French Revolution. 1793, the Terror . In Vendée and in Bretagne, the chouans are revolting against the young Republic and fight for the monarchy restauration. The civil war divides also the family of the Count Savinien de Kerfadec, a liberal and generous noble and a flying machines inventor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
SnoozefestMovies like thisWalking with the Enemy (2014)
Regent Horthy is the leader of Hungary and a German ally, but his favorable standing with Hitler changes as the war comes to an end. Forced to cede Hungary’s power or else witness the execution of his son, Regent Horthy gives up control of his country to the Nazis, who quickly move Hungarians to ghettos and death camps, with no hope in sight. But the despair changes when a young man named Elek emerges. Separated from his family during the relocations and aided by the woman he loves , Elek defies the enemy by becoming one of them. In a race against time, disguised as a Nazi Officer he embarks on a mission to save his family and thousands of his countrymen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBehold a Pale Horse (1964)
Manuel Artiguez, a famous bandit during the Spanish civil war, has lived in French exile for 20 years. When his mother is dying he considers visiting her secretly in his Spanish home town. But his biggest enemy, the Spanish police officer Vinolas, prepared a trap at the hospital as a chance to finally catch Artiguez.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisField of Lost Shoes (2015)
A group of teenage cadets sheltered from war at the Virginia Military Institute must confront the horrors of an adult world when they are called upon to defend the Shenandoah Valley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Devil's Double (2011)
A chilling vision of the House of Saddam Hussein comes to life through the eyes of the man who was forced to become the double of Hussein's sadistic son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSarah's Key (2010)
On the night of 16 July 1942, ten year old Sarah and her parents are being arrested and transported to the Velodrome d'Hiver in Paris where thousands of other jews are being sent to get deported. Sarah however managed to lock her little brother in a closet just before the police entered their apartment. Sixty years later, Julia Jarmond, an American journalist in Paris, gets the assignment to write an article about this raid, a black page in the history of France. She starts digging archives and through Sarah's file discovers a well kept secret about her own in-laws.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisArarat (2002)
Interrogated by a customs officer, a young man recounts how his life was changed during the making of a film about the Armenian genocide.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe One That Got Away (1957)
Based on the true story of Oberleutnant Franz von Werra, the only German prisoner of war captured in Britain to escape back to Germany during the Second World War.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWaiting for Anya (2020)
During the harrows of WWII, Jo, a young shepherd along with the help of the widow Horcada, helps to smuggle Jewish children across the border from southern France into Spain.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Patience Stone (2013)
In a war-ridden country, a woman watches over her husband, comatose from a bullet in the neck and abandoned by Jihad companions and brothers. One day, the woman decides to say things to him she could never have done before.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOutlaws - For Greater Glory (2012)
A chronicle of the Cristeros War (1926-1929), which was touched off by a rebellion against the Mexican government's attempt to secularize the country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGirls of the Sun (2018)
Bahar, the commanding officer of the Daughters of the Sun, a battalion made up entirely of Kurdish female soldiers, is on the cusp of liberating their town, which has been overrun by ISIS extremists.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStalag 17 (1953)
After two American prisoners are killed by guards in the act of escaping from a German POW camp in World War II, barracks black marketeer J.J. Sefton is suspected of being an informer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCheckmate! (1967)
Short TV film upon the story of Ludwik Niemojski of the same title, which was a part of his "Incredible Stories". It tells about Bartolomeo, brilliant chess player, who had ruined his private life because of his passion for chess.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & fantasy
The Seventh Seal (1957)
When disillusioned Swedish knight Antonius Block returns home from the Crusades to find his country in the grips of the Black Death, he challenges Death to a chess match for his life. Tormented by the belief that God does not exist, Block sets off on a journey, meeting up with traveling players Jof and his wife, Mia, and becoming determined to evade Death long enough to commit one redemptive act while he still lives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like this8×8 (2024)
Bagus (10) felt disappointed when his friends left him while playing. His sad feelings changed when he met the village head who invited him to play chess.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
God Help Us (2024)
In the gripping drama "God Help Us", a desperate man stands on the edge of self-destruction caught in a supernatural game of life and death. An Angel and a Demon engage in an otherworldly game of chess to determine the man's fate. Tension rises as the dual between the two extraterrestrial beings mirrors the man's internal struggle with each move on the chessboard propelling the man closer to either salvation or despair. Will Angel's divine strategy prevail or will Demon's conniving manoeuvres let him leave? "God Help Us" is a thought-provoking journey as it challenges viewers about the fragility of the human soul exploring themes of faith, resilience and morality
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
En passant (2015)
Andor is a young chess player, who even calls his pet turtle Kasparov. “Do you think I will succeed? - the boy asks her before the decisive tournament. "If I win, he will never come back." Who is Andor talking about and why is he either afraid of this return, or wants it?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993)
A seven-year-old chess prodigy refuses to harden himself in order to become a champion like the famous but unlikable Bobby Fischer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAlice Through the Looking Glass (1998)
A modern adaptation of the classic children's story 'Alice through the Looking Glass', which continued on from the popular 'Alice in Wonderland' story. This time Alice is played by the mother, who falls asleep while reading the the bedtime story to her daughter. Walking through the Looking Glass, Alice finds herself in Chessland, a magical and fun world. There she meets the Red and White Queens, as well as many other amusing friends on her journey across the chessboard countryside onto become a crowned queen.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
SnoozefestMovies like thisKing of Endings (1987)
Branko Kralj is an alienated businessman and avid chess fan. He is married to the attractive Visnja and they have a son. Their marriage is weak and Branko feels much closer to his mistress than to his wife. One day Kralj and Visnja travel on a half empty train. Kralj goes to a far away compartment for a game of chess, and leaves Visnja alone. Three men take advantage of the lone woman in her compartment and rape her.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Chess Player?
The closest matches to The Chess Player are The Wakhan Front (2015), Austerlitz (1960) and The Scarlet and the Black (1983). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Chess Player?
Start with The Wakhan Front (2015), the closest match to The Chess Player.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Chess Player?
The Seventh Seal (1957), rated 8.1/10 by 3,512 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Chess Player?
De Gaulle: Liberté (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there French movies like The Chess Player?
Yes: The Wakhan Front (2015), Austerlitz (1960) and De Gaulle: Liberté (2026).
How are movies similar to The Chess Player chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Chess Player, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.