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Movies like When I Was a Hodja

The best movies like When I Was a Hodja are The History of Love (2016), Every Time We Say Goodbye (1986) and Dear John (2010). If When I Was a Hodja hooked you with its war and drama, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. The History of Love (2016)

    The story of a long-lost book that mysteriously reappears and connects an old man searching for his son with a girl seeking a cure for her mother's loneliness.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  2. Every Time We Say Goodbye (1986)

    A Protestant World War II pilot and a Jewish girl fall in love in Jerusalem, even though their diverse backgrounds threaten to pull them apart.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  3. Dear John (2010)

    While Sergeant John Tyree is home on two weeks leave from Germany, he meets Savannah after he dives into the ocean to retrieve Savannah's purse that had fallen off a pier. John eventually falls in love with Savannah, who promises to write to him until he returns from overseas.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  4. Harrison's Flowers (2000)

    1991. Harrison Lloyd, a renowned photojournalist covering the war in Yugoslavia, is reported missing. Sarah, his wife, convinced that he is not dead, decides to go to Bosnia to find him.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  5. A Time to Love and a Time to Die (1958)

    A German soldier home on leave falls in love with a girl, then returns to World War II.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  6. The Kill Team (2019)

    When Andrew Briggman — a young soldier in the US Army during the invasion of Afghanistan — witnesses the murderous behavior of fellow soldiers, under the direction of a malevolent Sergeant, he faces a moral dilemma. His increasingly-violent platoon becomes suspicious that someone in their ranks has turned on them, and Andrew begins to fear for his safety. A fictionalized dramatization based on a true story.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  7. Maria's Lovers (1984)

    A World War II prisoner returns home to his childhood sweetheart. However, back home, he discovers that he has to compete to win her love.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  8. Battleground (1949)

    Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues, perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  9. Field of Lost Shoes (2015)

    A group of teenage cadets sheltered from war at the Virginia Military Institute must confront the horrors of an adult world when they are called upon to defend the Shenandoah Valley.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  10. An Ordinary Man (2017)

    A war criminal in hiding forms a relationship with his only connection to the outside world - his maid.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  11. Ashes in the Snow (2018)

    The coming-of-age tale of 16-year-old Lina Vilkas who is deported to Siberia amid Stalin's reign of terror in the Baltic region during WWII. An aspiring artist, she secretly documents her harrowing journey with her drawings.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  12. Walking with the Enemy (2014)

    Regent Horthy is the leader of Hungary and a German ally, but his favorable standing with Hitler changes as the war comes to an end. Forced to cede Hungary’s power or else witness the execution of his son, Regent Horthy gives up control of his country to the Nazis, who quickly move Hungarians to ghettos and death camps, with no hope in sight. But the despair changes when a young man named Elek emerges. Separated from his family during the relocations and aided by the woman he loves , Elek defies the enemy by becoming one of them. In a race against time, disguised as a Nazi Officer he embarks on a mission to save his family and thousands of his countrymen.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  13. Seal Team Eight: Behind Enemy Lines (2014)

    Seal Team Eight must fight their way deep into Africa's Congo, decommission a secret uranium mine, and stop our most dangerous enemy from smuggling weapon's grade yellow-cake out of the country.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  14. Purple Hearts (2022)

    An aspiring musician agrees to a marriage of convenience with a soon-to-deploy Marine, but a tragedy soon turns their fake relationship all too real.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama

    Absolute CinemaMovies like this
  15. Fire with Fire (1986)

    A tough, street-smart kid serving a sentence in a state youth reformatory meets a beautiful, innocent girl studying at a nearby convent. When forbidden love blossoms between them, they must fight the prison authorities, their parents and the law.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  16. In Secret (2014)

    In 1860s Paris, a young woman, Therese, is trapped in a loveless marriage to the sickly Camille by her domineering aunt, Madame Raquin. She spends her days behind the counter of a small shop and her evenings watching Madame play dominos with an eclectic group. After she meets her husband’s alluring friend, Laurent, she embarks on an illicit affair that leads to tragic consequences. Based on Emile Zola’s novel, Thérèse Raquin.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  17. Chinese Box (1997)

    The story of Hong Kong, from New Year's Day to June 30th, 1997, when the British left their colony and turned it over to the People's Republic of China.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

  18. Pure Country 2: The Gift (2010)

    Three angels bestow the gift of song to a young girl, who must follow a series of rules in order hold on to it during her rise to fame and fortune.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  19. 1 Mile To You (2017)

    After a teenager's friends die in an accident, he finds running allows him to remember them perfectly. Running, however, also brings him notoriety. He is caught between keeping the past alive and making new memories in the present.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  20. The Man from Elysian Fields (2001)

    A failed novelist's inability to pay the bills strains relations with his wife and leads him to work at an escort service, where he becomes entwined with a wealthy woman whose husband is a successful writer.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance

Like When I Was a Hodja and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like When I Was a Hodja?

The closest matches to When I Was a Hodja are The History of Love (2016), Every Time We Say Goodbye (1986) and Dear John (2010). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after When I Was a Hodja?

Start with The History of Love (2016), the closest match to When I Was a Hodja.

What is the highest-rated movie like When I Was a Hodja?

Purple Hearts (2022), rated 8.0/10 by 2,979 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like When I Was a Hodja?

Purple Hearts (2022) is the most recent release on this list.

How are movies similar to When I Was a Hodja chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside When I Was a Hodja, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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