Movies like Look Back (2026)
The best movies like Look Back (2026) are Look Back (2024), From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) and My Broken Mariko (2022). If Look Back hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLook Back (2024)8.2/10 from 714 votes
- Newest100 METERS (2025)Released 2025
- In JapaneseLook Back (2024)Also in Japanese
Look Back (2024)
Popular, outgoing Fujino is celebrated by her classmates for her funny comics in the class newspaper. One day, her teacher asks her to share the space with Kyomoto, a truant recluse whose beautiful artwork sparks a competitive fervor in Fujino. What starts as jealousy transforms when Fujino realizes their shared passion for drawing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisFrom Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
Yokohama, 1963. Japan is picking itself up from the devastation of World War II and preparing to host the 1964 Olympics—and the mood is one of both optimism and conflict as the young generation struggles to throw off the shackles of a troubled past. Against this backdrop of hope and change, a friendship begins to blossom between high school students Umi and Shun—but a buried secret from their past emerges to cast a shadow on the future and pull them apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Broken Mariko (2022)
Shiino one day finds out that her best friend Mariko has committed suicide. After snatching Mariko's urn from her abusive father, Shiino heads to Marigaoka Cape, a place Mariko always wanted to go.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisanohana: The Flower We Saw That Day - The Movie (2013)
A year has passed since Menma's ghostly return to the Super Peace Busters. Although the time they spent together during that summer was short, the five members reminisce about what happened as they each write a letter to their lost friend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
When 17-year-old Makoto Konno gains the ability to 'leap' backwards through time, she immediately sets about improving her grades and preventing personal mishaps. However, she soon realises that changing the past isn't as simple as it seems, and eventually, will have to rely on her new powers to shape the future of herself and her friends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLonely Castle in the Mirror (2022)
Shy outcast Kokoro has been avoiding school for weeks when she discovers a portal in her bedroom mirror. She reaches through and finds herself transported to an enchanting castle where she is joined by six other students. When a girl in a wolf mask explains that they have been invited to play a game, the teens must work together to uncover the mysterious connection that unites them. However, anyone who breaks the rules will be eaten by a wolf.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLiz and the Blue Bird (2018)
In their last year of high school, two girls in the brass band club perform a song inspired by a fairy tale that parallels their friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTyphoon Club (1985)
Offering a caustic immersion into the lives of disaffected junior high students on the cusp of adulthood, the film takes place over the 5-day period before, during, and after a ferocious, seemingly liberating typhoon, which six of the students endure while marooned in their school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRascal Does Not Dream of a Sister Venturing Out (2023)
After a draining December, Sakuta is quickly nearing the end of his second year of high school. Since Mai is a third-year student, they don't have much time left together before graduation rolls around. Meanwhile, his sister, Kaede, is slowly but steadily venturing outdoors again. Just as she begins to find her footing, she announces her most ambitious goal yet—attending her brother's high school! Sakuta knows better than anyone how difficult this will be for Kaede, and he's ready to support her however he can. He's just not sure if that's what's best for her...or what she really wants...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMaborosi (1995)
A tragedy strikes a young woman's life without warning or reason. She continues living while searching for meaning in a lonely world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this100 METERS (2025)
A gifted runner trains a determined but unskilled classmate, unaware he's creating a rival who will challenge him on the track for years to come.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOur Little Sister (2015)
After the death of their estranged father, 3 adult sisters invite their teenaged half-sister to live with them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOnly Yesterday (1991)
In lyrical switches between the present and the past, Taeko contemplates the arc of her life, and wonders if she has been true to the dreams of her childhood self.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Boy and the Heron (2023)
While the Second World War rages, the teenage Mahito, haunted by his mother's tragic death, is relocated from Tokyo to the serene rural home of his new stepmother Natsuko, a woman who bears a striking resemblance to the boy's mother. As he tries to adjust, this strange new world grows even stranger following the appearance of a persistent gray heron, who perplexes and bedevils Mahito, dubbing him the "long-awaited one."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTime Traveller: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2010)
Akari Yoshiyama is graduating high school soon and is expected to lead new life after she passes the university entrance exam, while her mother is working as a pharmacologist. However, her mother has a car accident and the situation is totally changed. She decides to go to 1972 to fulfill her mother's wish.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBLUE LOCK THE MOVIE -EPISODE NAGI- (2024)
When apathetic gamer Nagi agrees to join his rich classmate Mikage in soccer, their partnership leads to the famous Blue Lock program — and to changes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Kirishima Thing (2012)
A story about the disappearance of Kirishima, a star athlete of the volleyball club, and how his disappearance affects every person in school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMr. Church (2016)
A unique friendship develops when a little girl and her dying mother inherit a cook - Mr. Church. What begins as an arrangement that should only last six months, instead spans fifteen years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEscaflowne: The Movie (2000)
Gaea is a mythical realm ruled by sword and sorcery and immersed in blood and violence. Thrust into a conflict she doesn't quite understand, Hitomi Kanzaki helps aid the young Prince Van as they embark upon a journey to fight the Black Dragon Clan. The battle over a legendary suit of dragon armor, Escaflowne, has begun.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonster (2023)
After an outburst at school involving her son, a concerned single mother demands answers, triggering a sequence of deepening suspicion and turmoil.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMy Last Summer (2017)
During a heat wave in Montreal, Tom, 11, meets Édith, who’s the same age. He soon discovers that Édith has a terrible secret.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004)
Cyborg detective Batou is assigned to investigate a series of murders committed by gynoids—doll-like cyborgs, which all malfunctioned, killed, then self-destructed afterwards. The brains of the gynoids initialize in order to protect their manufacturer's software, but in one gynoid, which Batou himself neutralized, one file remains: a voice speaking the phrase "Help me."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBad Lieutenant (1992)
While investigating a young nun's rape, a corrupt New York City police detective, with a serious drug and gambling addiction, tries to change his ways and find forgiveness.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisReprise (2006)
Fueled by literary aspirations and youthful exuberance, two competitive friends endure the pangs of love, depression, and burgeoning careers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhite Fang (1991)
Jack London's classic adventure story about the friendship developed between a Yukon gold hunter and the mixed dog-wolf he rescues from the hands of a man who mistreats him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPadayottam (1982)
Inspired by 'The Count of Monte Cristo', Padayottam was the first Indian movie to be shot in 70mm format. Prince Udayan (Nazir) is the successor to the Kolathiri kingdom. He is betrayed by his cousin Devan (Madhu) which forces him to go into exile. Years later Udayan returns to Kolathiri to take his revenge.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Maailma on suuri valintamyymälä (1987)
Recent graduate Repa Utriainen explores the world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Love You More (2008)
Two teenagers are drawn together by the Buzzcocks' single 'Love You More' during the summer of 1978.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Kannedhirey Thondrinal (1998)
Vasanth learns that the girl he is in love with is his close friend Shankar's sister. When Shankar shares his bitter past with Vasanth, he decides to sacrifice his love to protect his friendship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Matèl (2025)
A young man living a monotonous life finds his boredom interrupted when he encounters a group of boys while working at a pedalo rental place.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Look Back?
The closest matches to Look Back are Look Back (2024), From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) and My Broken Mariko (2022). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Look Back?
Start with Look Back (2024), the closest match to Look Back.
What is the highest-rated movie like Look Back?
Look Back (2024), rated 8.2/10 by 714 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Look Back?
100 METERS (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Look Back?
Yes: Look Back (2024), From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) and My Broken Mariko (2022).
How are movies similar to Look Back chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Look Back, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.