Movies like Piano for Quitters (1997)
The best movies like Piano for Quitters (1997) are Shine (1996), A Ghost Story (2017) and National Geographic: Journey to the Edge of the Universe (2008). If Piano for Quitters hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Piano for Quitters
Quick picks
- Highest ratedProject Hail Mary (2026)8.6/10 from 8,848 votes
- NewestTuner (2026)Released 2026
Shine (1996)
Pianist David Helfgott, driven by his father and teachers, has a breakdown. Years later he returns to the piano, to popular if not critical acclaim.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Ghost Story (2017)
Recently deceased, a white-sheeted ghost returns to his suburban home to console his bereft wife, only to find that in his spectral state he has become unstuck in time, forced to watch passively as the life he knew and the woman he loves slowly slip away.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNational Geographic: Journey to the Edge of the Universe (2008)
In one single, epic camera move we journey from Earth's surface to the outermost reaches of the universe on a grand tour of the cosmos, to explore newborn stars, distant planets, black holes and beyond.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. (1953)
Young Bart Collins lives with his widowed mother Heloise. The major blight on Bart's existence is the hated piano lessons he is forced to endure under the tutelage of the autocratic Dr. Terwilliker. Bart feels that his mother has fallen under Terwilliker's sinister influence, and gripes to visiting plumber August Zabladowski, without much result. While grimly hammering away at his lessons, Bart dozes off and enters a fantastical musical dream.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKiss Me, Stupid (1964)
While traveling home from Vegas, an amorous lounge singer named Dino gets conned by a local mechanic/songwriter into staying in town for the night. The mechanic's songwriting partner, Orville, offers Dino his home for overnight lodging and enlists a local waitress/call girl to pose as his wife in order to placate Dino's urges.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSolo Mio (2026)
After Matt's dreams of a picturesque Italian wedding are shattered when his fiancée leaves him at the altar, he embarks on his planned honeymoon across Italy alone, immersing himself in the country's vibrant culture, food, and beauty, meeting Gia along the way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOut of My Mind (2024)
Melody Brooks, a sixth grader with cerebral palsy, has a quick wit and a sharp mind, but because she is non-verbal and uses a wheelchair, she is not given the same opportunities as her classmates. When a young educator notices her student's untapped potential and Melody starts to participate in mainstream education, Melody shows that what she has to say is more important than how she says it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlack or White (2015)
A grieving widower is drawn into a custody battle over his granddaughter, whom he helped raise her entire life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarold and Maude (1971)
A deadpan young man obsessed with death meets an eccentric septuagenarian who teaches him to live life to the fullest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014)
Programming prodigy and information activist Aaron Swartz achieved groundbreaking work in social justice and political organizing. His passion for open access ensnared him in a legal nightmare that ended with the taking of his own life at the age of 26.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTuner (2026)
A gifted piano tuner's meticulous skills for tuning pianos lead him to discover an unexpected aptitude for cracking safes, turning his life upside down.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGood Kids (2016)
Four high school students look to redefine themselves after graduation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt Might Get Loud (2008)
A documentary on the electric guitar from the point of view of three significant rock musicians: the Edge, Jimmy Page and Jack White.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003)
Lizzie McGuire has graduated from middle school and takes a trip to Rome, Italy with her class. And what was supposed to be only a normal trip, becomes a teenager's dream come true.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSoul (2020)
Joe Gardner is a middle school teacher with a love for jazz music. After a successful audition at the Half Note Club, he suddenly gets into an accident that separates his soul from his body and is transported to the You Seminar, a center in which souls develop and gain passions before being transported to a newborn child. Joe must enlist help from the other souls-in-training, like 22, a soul who has spent eons in the You Seminar, in order to get back to Earth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAddicted to Love (1997)
Good-natured astronomer Sam is devastated when the love of his life leaves him for a suave Frenchman. He therefore does what every other normal dumpee would do — go to New York and set up home in the abandoned building opposite his ex-girlfriend's apartment, wait until she decides to leave her current lover, and then win her back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Evening Star (1996)
Continuing the story of Aurora Greenway in her latter years. After the death of her daughter, Aurora struggled to keep her family together, but has one grandson in jail, a rebellious granddaughter, and another grandson living just above the poverty line.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOnly You (1994)
Two childhood paranormal incidents have convinced schoolteacher Faith Corvatch that her true love is a guy named 'Damon Bradley', but she has yet to meet him. Preparing to marry podiatrist Dwayne in ten days, Faith receives a phone call from Dwayne's old classmate Damon Bradley, who is on his way to Venice. She impulsively decides to fly to Italy with the hope of finally encountering the man of her dreams. Accompanying her on the trip is her sister-in-law and best friend Kate, who has just left her husband, Faith's brother Larry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisProject Hail Mary (2026)
Science teacher Ryland Grace wakes up on a spaceship light years from home with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory returns, he begins to uncover his mission: solve the riddle of the mysterious substance causing the sun to die out. He must call on his scientific knowledge and unorthodox ideas to save everything on Earth from extinction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisCan't Hardly Wait (1998)
It's graduation day at Huntington Hills High, and you know what that means - time to party. And not just any party, either. This one will be a night to remember, as the nerds become studs, the jocks are humiliated, and freshman crushes blossom into grown-up romance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMusical Multiplication (1986)
Join Video Dan Ranger and his friends Harmony Heart, Eddie Eagle, and Bouncy the Bouncing Ball for an installment of Learn-a-Long, where we learn our times tables with occasional interspecials of public domain cartoons (putting the "fun" in "Fun Learning").
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Wild Child (1970)
The true story of Victor of Aveyron. In a French forest circa 1798, an abandoned child — feral, filthy and mentally impaired — is found. Dr Jean Marc Gaspard Itard becomes interested in the case and patiently attempts to civilise the boy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAppointment in Bray (1971)
In 1917, the First World War is raging. Julien is from Luxemburg, so instead of having to go to war he studies piano in Paris. One day his friend Jacques, also a musician and now a fighter pilot on the front, invites him to spend a few days in his family's empty house in Bray. The housekeeper, a beautiful stoic woman lets Julien in, but his friend is late and he is obliged to wait. In the meantime, he starts reminiscing of the pre-war days spent with his friend and Jacques' girlfriend Odile.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
IRA (2021)
A documentary-short on the life of Ira Sanders, a commodity trader turned educator whose first-hand experiences on 9/11 greatly influence his life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Living Like the Rest of Us (1982)
A young non-conformist enrolls at the music academy in Belgrade. There he faces a lot of existential, as well as emotional problems.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Concert (1954)
Celebrating the end of World War II and liberation of their city, a group of students is set on holding a cultural evening. They invite Ema, a reclusive piano teacher from the same building, to play for them. Ema declines, but starts reminscing back on her own life and the historical events that have seemingly overshadowed it.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
I Am Sam (2001)
Sam, a neurodivergent man, has a daughter with a homeless woman who abandons them when they leave the hospital, leaving Sam to raise Lucy on his own. But as Lucy grows up, Sam's limitations as a parent start to become a problem and the authorities take her away. Sam convinces high-priced lawyer Rita to take his case pro bono and in turn teaches her the value of love and family.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLeapFrog: Math Adventure to the Moon (2009)
Join Tad and Lily a they blast off on an exciting educational adventure! Tad and Lily need the perfect collection of things to take to school for their math assignment. When they finally decide on moon rocks, there's just one problem - how will they get them? With some magical help from their firefly friend, Edison, they board a rocket to start their quest. Soon the twins learn that math is everywhere, even in outer space!
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Michel Petrucciani (2011)
A documentary on the late French jazz pianist.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Aria the Crepuscolo (2021)
The season is fall and the city of Neo-Venezia is covered in fallen leaves. Something is bothering Anya, who works at Orange Planet. Her senior colleagues Alice and Athena haven't seen each other due to their busy schedules, which is making Athena feel sad. But for some reason, Alice seems to be avoiding her altogether. With her friends Ai and Azusa's help, Anya tries to find a definitive way for Alice and Athena to get together. But during this time, Anya learns of a situation that only she can see because of where she stands.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Piano for Quitters?
The closest matches to Piano for Quitters are Shine (1996), A Ghost Story (2017) and National Geographic: Journey to the Edge of the Universe (2008). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Piano for Quitters?
Start with Shine (1996), the closest match to Piano for Quitters.
What is the highest-rated movie like Piano for Quitters?
Project Hail Mary (2026), rated 8.6/10 by 8,848 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Piano for Quitters?
Tuner (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Piano for Quitters?
Yes: Shine (1996), A Ghost Story (2017) and National Geographic: Journey to the Edge of the Universe (2008).
How are movies similar to Piano for Quitters chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Piano for Quitters, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.