Movies like Straight Up: Helicopters in Action (2002)
The best movies like Straight Up: Helicopters in Action (2002) are Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds (2025), One Soldier's Story: The Journey of American Sniper (2015) and Embrace the Panda: Making Turning Red (2022). If Straight Up: Helicopters in Action hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat (1896)7.1/10 from 564 votes
- NewestA Toxic Love Story (2026)Released 2026
Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds (2025)
The elite pilots of the Air Force Thunderbirds display exceptional skill, trust and courage during a high-stakes training season.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne Soldier's Story: The Journey of American Sniper (2015)
Join director Clint Eastwood and his creative team, along with Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller, as they overcome enormous creative and logistic obstacles to make a film that brings the truth of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle's story to the screen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
SnoozefestMovies like thisEmbrace the Panda: Making Turning Red (2022)
A feature length documentary about the all-women team at the helm of Pixar's original feature, Turning Red. With unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to Director Domee Shi and her core leadership crew, this story shines a light on the powerful professional and personal journeys that brought this incredibly comical, utterly relatable, and deeply heartfelt story to the screen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInterstellar: Nolan's Odyssey (2014)
A look behind the lens of Christopher Nolan's space epic.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJoker: Put on a Happy Face (2020)
Featuring interviews with filmmakers and industry legends, discover the origins and evolution of The Joker, and learn why The Clown Prince of Crime is universally hailed as the greatest comic-book supervillain of all time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisVoyage of Time: The IMAX Experience (2016)
A celebration of the universe, displaying the whole of time, from its start to its final collapse. This film examines all that occurred to prepare the world that stands before us now: science and spirit, birth and death, the grand cosmos and the minute life systems of our planet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCome See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisExtremis (2016)
A purely observational non-fiction film that takes viewers into the ethically murky world of end-of-life decision making in a public hospital.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMarvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Hawkeye (2022)
Join the likes of Jeremy Renner, Hailee Steinfeld, Florence Pugh, and Vincent D’Onofrio as they reveal how Marvel Studios’ “Hawkeye” was conceived and created. Witness firsthand what it took to pull off the show’s pulse-pounding action set pieces, and discover how iconic characters from the pages of Marvel Comics such as Kate Bishop were adapted and brought to life for the six-episode series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeing James Bond (2021)
Daniel Craig candidly reflects on his 15 year adventure as James Bond. Including never-before-seen archival footage from Casino Royale to the upcoming 25th film No Time To Die, Craig shares his personal memories in conversation with 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHalloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006)
Follow the evolution of the 'Halloween' movies over the past twenty-five years. It examines why the films are so popular and revisits many of the original locations used in the films - seeing the effects on the local community. For the first time, cast, crew, critics and fans join together in the ultimate 'Halloween' retrospective.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSpider-Man: All Roads Lead to No Way Home (2022)
JB Smoove and Martin Starr host a celebration of 20 years of "Spider-Man" movies, from the Sam Raimi trilogy to Marc Webb's movies and the trio from Jon Watts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEnd Game (2018)
Filmed and edited in intimate vérité style, this movie follows visionary medical practitioners who are working on the cutting edge of life and death and are dedicated to changing our thinking about both.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006)
A documentary on the life of John Lennon, with a focus on the time in his life when he transformed from a musician into an antiwar activist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Irishman: In Conversation (2019)
Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Al Pacino in conversation about The Irishman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisElstree 1976 (2015)
A documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Toxic Love Story (2026)
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023)
From the heights of her modeling fame to her tragic death, this documentary reveals Anna Nicole Smith through the eyes of the people closest to her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRailway Station (1980)
Warsaw's Central Railway Station. 'Someone has fallen asleep, someone's waiting for somebody else. Maybe they'll come, maybe they won't. The film is about people looking for something.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
En Rang Par Deux (2020)
The idea for this film comes from the encounter with two African boys who live in Rome, and is based on their music. Tunisian Afif and Senegalese Aliou tell their different stories, talk about friendship, immigration, freedom and, above all, about the fundamental value of making music together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Dear Chantal (2021)
Pereda returns with a small, mysterious and moving tribute to Chantal Akerman, conceived as a series of joyful impossible letters addressed to the great disappeared from the cinema, to answer her fictional question about renting her bright apartment in Coyoacán.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Terror in Times Square: A Guide To Nightmare's Grindhouse Kingdom (2015)
2015 featurette documentary behind the experience of Nightmare and grindhouse cinema.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Tehran Is the Capital of Iran (1966)
Tehran Is the Capital of Iran (1966-79) documents life in a deprived district in the south of Tehran. The images of destitution in Tehran's poor areas is accompanied by a variety of spoken accounts: the official viewpoint on the district's living conditions, what the inhabitants have to say, and occasional extracts read out of school manuals. The key element in Shirdel's film is the counterpoint effect he creates with image and sound. His impressively powerful portrayal of social unease helps reinforce the impact of his astonishing documentary images and social themes.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat (1896)
A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCassini's Grand Finale (2017)
To help visualize the dramatic final chapter in Cassini's remarkable story, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory produced this short film that features beautiful computer-generated animation, thoughtful narration and a rousing score. Producers at JPL worked with filmmaker Erik Wernquist, known for his 2014 short film "Wanderers," to create a stirring finale video befitting one of NASA's most successful missions of exploration.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Hollywood - The Second Step (1936)
This short follows the early career of actress Jane Barnes. She starts by doing extra work. After several months she is offered a studio contract (the "first step"). However, her work consists mostly of fashion shoots and bit parts that end up on the cutting room floor. She is even used as a stand-in for Maureen O'Sullivan on the set of a Tarzan movie when camera angles and lighting must be set up.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Big Swim (1964)
This short documentary shows Canada's top swimmers in training for the 1964 Olympic Games. Under the critical eye of coach Ed Healy, they practice long hours in the gym and in the pool to build strength and stamina.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
We Live in Prague (1934)
A 13-minute documentary film depicting life in Prague.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Straight Up: Helicopters in Action?
The closest matches to Straight Up: Helicopters in Action are Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds (2025), One Soldier's Story: The Journey of American Sniper (2015) and Embrace the Panda: Making Turning Red (2022). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Straight Up: Helicopters in Action?
Start with Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds (2025), the closest match to Straight Up: Helicopters in Action.
What is the highest-rated movie like Straight Up: Helicopters in Action?
The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat (1896), rated 7.1/10 by 564 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Straight Up: Helicopters in Action?
A Toxic Love Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Straight Up: Helicopters in Action?
Yes: Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds (2025), One Soldier's Story: The Journey of American Sniper (2015) and Embrace the Panda: Making Turning Red (2022).
How are movies similar to Straight Up: Helicopters in Action chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Straight Up: Helicopters in Action, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.