Movies like Where the Light Gets In
The best movies like Where the Light Gets In are Children of a Lesser God (1986), The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968) and Mothers' Instinct (2024). If Where the Light Gets In hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Where the Light Gets In
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMy First Summer (2020)8.0/10 from 290 votes
- NewestThe Dreadful (2026)Released 2026
Children of a Lesser God (1986)
Starting his new job as an instructor at a New England school for the deaf, James Leeds meets Sarah Norman, a young deaf woman who works at the school as a member of the custodial staff. In spite of Sarah's withdrawn emotional state, a romance slowly develops between the pair.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968)
Singer is a deaf-mute whose small world brings him in contact with a young girl, Mick, who cherishes a seemingly hopeless dream of becoming a concert pianist. At first hostile, Mick soon becomes friends with Singer, hoping to enlarge his small world. Three other central characters come to Singer for help also, each of them seeing in him a powerful force.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMothers' Instinct (2024)
Housewives Alice and Celine are best friends and neighbours who seem to have it all. However, when a tragic accident shatters the harmony of their lives, guilt, suspicion and paranoia begin to unravel their sisterly bond.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFlora and Son (2023)
Single mom Flora is at a loss about what to do with her rebellious teenage son, Max. Her efforts to keep him out of trouble lead to a beat-up acoustic guitar, a washed-up LA musician, and harmony for this frayed Dublin family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJason's Lyric (1994)
The story of a young man who must confront his own fears about love as well as his relationships with family and friends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Dreadful (2026)
In medieval England, Anne and her domineering mother-in-law Morwen struggle to survive on the outskirts of society. But when a man from Anne's past returns from war, a curse begins to take shape through a mysterious knight and threatens to destroy them all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisDear Frankie (2004)
Nine-year-old Frankie and his single mum Lizzie have been on the move ever since Frankie can remember, most recently arriving in a seaside Scottish town. Wanting to protect her deaf son from the truth that they've run away from his father, Lizzie has invented a story that he is away at sea on the HMS Accra. Every few weeks, Lizzie writes Frankie a make-believe letter from his father, telling of his adventures in exotic lands. As Frankie tracks the ship's progress around the globe, he discovers that it is due to dock in his hometown. With the real HMS Accra arriving in only a fortnight, Lizzie must choose between telling Frankie the truth or finding the perfect stranger to play Frankie's father for just one day...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCowboys (2020)
Troy and his young transgender son Joe are on the run from his conservative mother in the Montana wilderness, with a detective in hot pursuit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Quiet (2006)
After her widowed father dies, deaf teenager Dot moves in with her godparents, Olivia and Paul Deer. The Deers' daughter, Nina, is openly hostile to Dot, but that does not prevent her from telling her secrets to her silent stepsister, including the fact that she wants to kill her lecherous father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSightless (2020)
After an attack renders her blind, Ellen withdraws from the world to recover. But soon she plunges into paranoia, unable to convince anyone that her assailant has returned to terrorize her by hiding in plain sight.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCODA (2021)
As a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults), Ruby is the only hearing person in her deaf family. When the family's fishing business is threatened, Ruby finds herself torn between pursuing her love of music and her fear of abandoning her parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisIt Feeds (2025)
A clairvoyant therapist confronts her own personal demons while trying to save a young girl who believes a malevolent entity is feeding on her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMiracle Run (2004)
Corinne is a single mother of twin 5-year-old boys, Steven and Phillip, who are diagnosed with autism. Public school officials threaten to remove them from school due to their behavior, but through therapy, the boys are able to make major strides in their capabilities. A decade later, teens Steven and Phillip seek to prove they can handle high school while still struggling with their disorder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSound of Metal (2020)
Metal drummer Ruben begins to lose his hearing. When a doctor tells him his condition will worsen, he thinks his career and life is over. His girlfriend Lou checks the former addict into a rehab for the deaf hoping it will prevent a relapse and help him adapt to his new life. After being welcomed and accepted just as he is, Ruben must choose between his new normal and the life he once knew.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJohnny Belinda (1948)
A small-town doctor helps a deaf-mute farm girl learn to communicate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStrange Weather (2016)
Years after her son's suicide, a woman longs to confront both the past and a friend of his who took his business idea.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisJack of the Red Hearts (2016)
A teenage con artist tricks a desperate mother into hiring her as a live-in companion for her autistic daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy First Summer (2020)
Isolated on a remote property, 16-year-old Claudia finds her world transformed when a spirited girl named Grace wanders into her garden.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Boy Who Could Fly (1986)
Milly and Louis, and their recently-widowed mom, Charlene, move to a new neighborhood. Once there, they all deal with a variety of personal problems, but Milly finds a friend in Eric, her autistic next door neighbor. Eric has a fascination with flight, and as the story progresses, he exerts an enthralling force of change on all those around him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOnly the Lonely (1991)
Danny Muldoon, a Chicago policeman, still lives with his overbearing mother Rose. He meets and falls in love with Theresa Luna, whose father owns the local funeral parlour. Naturally, his mother objects to the relationship, and Danny and Theresa must either overcome her objections or give up the romance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Where the Light Gets In?
The closest matches to Where the Light Gets In are Children of a Lesser God (1986), The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968) and Mothers' Instinct (2024). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Where the Light Gets In?
Start with Children of a Lesser God (1986), the closest match to Where the Light Gets In.
What is the highest-rated movie like Where the Light Gets In?
My First Summer (2020), rated 8.0/10 by 290 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Where the Light Gets In?
The Dreadful (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Where the Light Gets In?
Yes: Children of a Lesser God (1986), The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968) and Mothers' Instinct (2024).
How are movies similar to Where the Light Gets In chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Where the Light Gets In, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.