Movies like I Am David (2003)
The best movies like I Am David (2003) are The Way Back (2010), Cave Rescue (2019) and Miracle at Midnight (1998). If I Am David hooked you with its drama and adventure, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019)7.9/10 from 1,942 votes
- NewestArthur the King (2024)Released 2024
The Way Back (2010)
A small band of multicultural convicts stages a daring escape from a WWII-era Siberian gulag, and embarks on a treacherous journey across five countries in a desperate race for freedom and survival.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCave Rescue (2019)
When a youth football team of 12 boys, aged 11-16, and their 25-year-old coach is trapped deep inside a cave in Northern Thailand, thousands of volunteers and soldiers from around the world unite in a race against time to find them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMiracle at Midnight (1998)
Gripping historical drama presents a triumphant celebration of the human spirit. The true-life story of how one Danish family risked their lives in a remarkable effort to save thousands of their Jewish countrymen from the horror of Nazi concentration camps. Hendrik and his doctor father undertake the dangerous task of deceiving the Nazis and hiding Jewish families. When the Koster men must themselves go into hiding, Henrik's sister and mother are left to face capture by the suspicious Gestapo.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
The Other Side of Heaven (2001)
John H. Groberg, a middle class kid from Idaho Falls, crosses the Pacific to become a Mormon missionary in the remote and exotic Tongan island kingdom during the 1950's. He leaves behind a loving family and the true love of his life, Jean. Through letters and musings across the miles, John shares his humbling and sometimes hilarious adventures with "the girl back home", and her letters buoy up his spirits in difficult times. John must struggle to overcome language barriers, physical hardship and deep-rooted suspicion to earn the trust and love of the Tongan people he has come to serve. Throughout his adventure-filled three years on the islands, he discovers friends and wisdom in the most unlikely places. John H. Groberg's Tongan odyssey will change his life forever.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Mercy (2018)
In 1968, Donald Crowhurst, an amateur sailor, endangers the fate of his family and business, and his own life, blinded by his ambition to compete in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, attempting to become the first person in history to single-handedly circumnavigate the world without making any stopover.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisWhite Squall (1996)
In 1960, a hardy group of prep school students boards an old-fashioned sailing ship. With Capt. Christopher Sheldon at the helm, the oceangoing voyage is intended to teach the boys fortitude and discipline. But the youthful crew are about to get some unexpected instruction in survival when they get caught in the clutches of a white squall storm.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrue Spirit (2023)
When the tenacious young sailor Jessica Watson sets out to be the youngest person to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the world, many expect her to fail. With the support of her sailing coach and mentor Ben Bryant and her parents, Jessica is determined to accomplish what was thought to be impossible, navigating some of the world’s most challenging stretches of ocean over the course of 210 days.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDear Eleanor (2016)
Two teenage girls travel across the U.S. in 1962, during the chaos of the Cuban missile crisis, in search of Eleanor Roosevelt.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Other Side of Heaven 2: Fire of Faith (2019)
Missionary John H. Groberg returns to Tonga in the 1960s with his wife and their five young daughters. When their sixth child is born with a serious illness, the Grobergs face their ultimate test of faith, only to find themselves surrounded by the love and prayers of thousands of Tongans. Barriers of inter religious strife are soon broken down as all unite in hopes of a miracle that will save the baby's life, as well as the life of a Tongan minister's son.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
Arthur the King (2024)
Over the course of ten days and 435 miles, an unbreakable bond is forged between pro adventure racer Michael Light and a scrappy street dog companion dubbed Arthur. As the team is pushed to their outer limits of endurance in the race, Arthur redefines what victory, loyalty and friendship truly mean.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRobinson Crusoe (1997)
Robinson Crusoe flees Britain on a ship after killing his friend over the love of Mary. A fierce ocean storm wrecks his ship and leaves him stranded by himself on an uncharted island. Left to fend for himself, Crusoe seeks out a tentative survival on the island, until he meets Friday, a tribesman whom he saves from being sacrificed. Initially, Crusoe is thrilled to finally have a friend, but he has to defend himself against the tribe who uses the island to sacrifice tribesman to their gods. During time their relationship changes from master-slave to a mutual respected friendship despite their difference in culture and religion.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI'll Remember April (1999)
Four young boys find a shipwrecked Japanese sailor during World War II and struggle with the decision to save him.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Rockaway (2019)
Inspired by true events, a man recounts the summer of '94, when he and his brother plotted revenge against their abusive father.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
End of the Spear (2005)
"End of the Spear" is the story of Mincayani, a Waodani tribesman from the jungles of Ecuador. When five young missionaries, among them Jim Elliot and Nate Saint, are speared to death by the Waodani in 1956, a series of events unfold to change the lives of not only the slain missionaries' families, but also Mincayani and his people.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957)
A Roman Catholic nun and a hard-bitten US Marine are stranded together on a Japanese-occupied island in the South Pacific during World War II. Under constant threat of discovery by a ruthless enemy, they hide in a cave and forage for food together. Their forced companionship and the struggle for survival forge a powerful emotional bond between them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVanished (2016)
When millions of people begin to disappear, Gabby, his sister, and their other companies will have to stick together for survival and to figure out what happened behind of an indescribable occurrence.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019)
Against all the odds, a thirteen year old boy in Malawi invents an unconventional way to save his family and village from famine.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLife of Pi (2012)
The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCast Away (2000)
Chuck Noland, a top international manager for FedEx, and Kelly, a Ph.D. student, are in love and heading towards marriage. Then Chuck's plane to Malaysia crashes at sea during a terrible storm. He's the only survivor, and finds himself marooned on a desolate island. With no way to escape, Chuck must find ways to survive in his new home.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNicholas Nickleby (2002)
Nicholas Nickleby, a young boy in search of a better life, struggles to save his family and friends from the abusive exploitation of his coldheartedly grasping uncle.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRobinson Crusoe (2003)
The classical story of Robinson Crusoe, a man who is dragged to a desert island after a shipwreck.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNorth West Frontier (1959)
In the rebellious northern frontier province of colonial India, British Army Captain Scott, a young prince and the boy's governess escape by an obsolete train as they are relentlessly pursued by Muslim rebels intent on assassinating the prince.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFaith Like Potatoes (2006)
Frank Rautenbach leads a strong cast as Angus Buchan, a Zambian farmer of Scottish heritage, who leaves his farm in the midst of political unrest and racially charged land reclaims and travels south with his family to start a better life in KwaZulu Natal,South Africa.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Cry in the Wild (1990)
13-year-old Brian is the sole survivor of an unreported plane crash. Alone in the Yukon wilderness, Brian must learn to survive by his wits, find food and shelter, and brave wild, hungry animals until or if he is found.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
George and the Dragon (2004)
In 12th century England, the handsome and noble knight, George, has left the Crusades behind to follow his dream of a peaceful life on his own piece of land. However, in order to obtain his land from the ruling King Edgaar, he must help find the King's missing daughter, Princess Lunna, a quest which sees George drawn into an unexpected battle with the kingdom's last surviving dragon.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisWhat the Deaf Man Heard (1997)
In 1945, a young boy arrives in a small Georgia town on a bus from which his mother was abducted and murdered. Alone he sits quietly and everyone becomes convinced that he is deaf and mute. Deciding that silence offers some power and protection, the boy decides to remain mute and just listens to all that is being said around him by people who think that he cannot hear.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Stranded (2002)
A retelling of the classic Swiss Family Robinson story.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both adventure & drama
Edges of the Lord (2001)
A 12-year-old Jewish boy hides with a family of Catholic peasant farmers to escape the Nazis.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Scapegoat (2012)
In 1952, as England prepares for the coronation, two very different men have one thing in common—a face.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Call of the Wild: Dog of the Yukon (1997)
Jack London's classic story from 1903 about Buck, a dog kidnapped from his home in California and taken to the Yukon where he is mistreated until a prospector discovers him and relates to his situation. Although the two are bonded, Buck yearns to run free with the wild dogs in the wilderness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like I Am David?
The closest matches to I Am David are The Way Back (2010), Cave Rescue (2019) and Miracle at Midnight (1998). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after I Am David?
People who watched I Am David most often go on to The Way Back (2010), Cave Rescue (2019) and Miracle at Midnight (1998).
What is the highest-rated movie like I Am David?
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019), rated 7.9/10 by 1,942 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like I Am David?
Arthur the King (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like I Am David?
Yes: The Way Back (2010), Cave Rescue (2019) and Miracle at Midnight (1998).
How are movies similar to I Am David chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside I Am David, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.