Movies like The Spirit of '45 (2013)
The best movies like The Spirit of '45 (2013) are The Untold History Of The United States (2012), Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) and The Unknown Known (2013). If The Spirit of '45 hooked you with its documentary and history, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedTo End All War: Oppenheimer & the Atomic Bomb (2023)7.7/10 from 236 votes
- NewestFuite des nazis, la route des monastères (2025)Released 2025
The Untold History Of The United States (2012)
Oliver Stone charts the history of the United States from the Second World War to the present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisCapitalism: A Love Story (2009)
Michael Moore comes home to the issue he's been examining throughout his career: the disastrous impact of corporate dominance on the everyday lives of Americans (and by default, the rest of the world).
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Unknown Known (2013)
Former United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld discusses his career in Washington D.C. from his days as a congressman in the early 1960s to planning the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaking Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019)
The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRed Army (2015)
A documentary highlighting the Soviet Union's legendary and enigmatic hockey training culture and world-dominating team through the eyes of the team's Captain Slava Fetisov, following his shift from hockey star and celebrated national hero to political enemy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Princess (2022)
Decades after her untimely death, Princess Diana continues to evoke mystery, glamour, and the quintessential modern fairy tale gone wrong. As a symbol of both the widening fissures weakening the British monarchy and the destructive machinery of the press, the Princess of Wales navigated an unparalleled rise to fame and the corrosive challenges that came alongside it. Crafted entirely from immersive archival footage and free from the distraction of retrospective voices, this hypnotic and audaciously revealing documentary takes a distinctive formal approach, allowing the story of the People’s Princess to unfold before us like never before.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe War Room (1993)
A behind-the-scenes documentary about the Clinton for President campaign, focusing on the adventures of spin doctors James Carville and George Stephanopoulos.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTo End All War: Oppenheimer & the Atomic Bomb (2023)
Explore how one man's relentless drive and invention of the atomic bomb changed the nature of war forever, led to the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people and unleashed mass hysteria.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBest of Enemies (2015)
A documentary about the legendary series of nationally televised debates in 1968 between two great public intellectuals, the liberal Gore Vidal and the conservative William F. Buckley Jr. Intended as commentary on the issues of their day, these vitriolic and explosive encounters came to define the modern era of public discourse in the media, marking the big bang moment of our contemporary media landscape when spectacle trumped content and argument replaced substance. Best of Enemies delves into the entangled biographies of these two great thinkers, and luxuriates in the language and the theater of their debates, begging the question, "What has television done to the way we discuss politics in our democracy today?"
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSupersonic (2016)
Supersonic charts the meteoric rise of Oasis from the council estates of Manchester to some of the biggest concerts of all time in just three short years. This palpable, raw and moving film shines a light on one of the most genre and generation-defining British bands that has ever existed and features candid new interviews with Noel and Liam Gallagher, their mother, and members of the band and road crew.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisReel Injun (2010)
The evolution of the depiction of the various Native American peoples in cinema, from the silent era to the present day: how their image on the screen has changed the way to understand their history and culture.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSalinger (2013)
An in-depth investigation into the private world of the American writer J. D. Salinger (1919-2010), who lived most of his life behind the impenetrable wall of a self-imposed seclusion: how his dramatic experiences during World War II influenced his life and work, his relationships with very young women, his obsessive writing methods, his many literary secrets.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInside the Mind of a Dog (2024)
Embark on a delightful journey into the world of dogs in this documentary that reveals scientific and emotional insights about our lovable BFFs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWHAM! (2023)
Through archival interviews and footage, George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley relive the arc of their Wham! career, from 70s best buds to 80s pop icons.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Red Pill (2016)
When a feminist filmmaker sets out to document the mysterious and polarizing world of the Men’s Rights Movement, she begins to question her own beliefs. Chronicling Cassie Jaye’s journey exploring an alternate perspective on gender equality, power and privilege.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years (2016)
The Beatles stormed through Europe's music scene in 1963, and, in 1964, they conquered America. Their groundbreaking world tours changed global youth culture forever and, arguably, invented mass entertainment as we know it today. All the while, the group were composing and recording a series of extraordinarily successful singles and albums. However the relentless pressure of such unprecedented fame, that in 1966 became uncontrollable turmoil, led to the decision to stop touring. In the ensuing years The Beatles were then free to focus on a series of albums that changed the face of recorded music.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhy We Fight: Prelude to War (1942)
Prelude to War was the first film of Frank Capra's Why We Fight propaganda film series, commissioned by the Pentagon and George C. Marshall. It was made to convince American troops of the necessity of combating the Axis Powers during World War II. This film examines the differences between democratic and fascist states.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDavid Bowie: The Last Five Years (2017)
In the last five years of his life, David Bowie ended nearly a decade of silence to engage in an extraordinary burst of activity, producing two groundbreaking albums and a musical. David Bowie: The Last Five Years explores this unexpected end to a remarkable career. Made with remarkable access, Francis Whately’s documentary is a revelatory follow-up to his acclaimed 2013 documentary David Bowie: Five Years, which chronicled Bowie’s golden ‘70s and early-‘80s period.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHyperNormalisation (2016)
We live in a world where the powerful deceive us. We know they lie. They know we know they lie. They do not care. We say we care, but we do nothing, and nothing ever changes. It is normal. Welcome to the post-truth world. How we got to where we are now…
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDavid Lynch: The Art Life (2017)
An intimate journey through the formative years of David Lynch's life. From his idyllic upbringing in small town America to the dark streets of Philadelphia, we follow Lynch as he traces the events that have helped to shape one of cinema's most enigmatic directors.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFuite des nazis, la route des monastères (2025)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary & history
Buckingham : les princesses malheureuses (2023)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
School for Danger (1947)
Britain's Special Operations Executive (SOE) provides trained agents, arms and other assistance to the European resistance groups fighting against Hitler. British agents, Captain Harry Rée DSO, OBE, Croix De Guerre, Médaille de la Résistance, aka "Felix", and Jacqueline Nearne, MBE, aka "Cat", recreate some of their adventures in France.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Secret Order (2022)
Phil Comeau shines a spotlight on the Ordre de Jacques-Cartier, a powerful secret society that operated from 1926 to 1965, infiltrating every sector of Canadian society and forging the fate of French-language communities. Through never-before-heard testimony from former members of the Order, along with historically accurate dramatic reconstructions, this film paints a gripping portrait of the social and political struggles of Canadian francophone-minority communities.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Ukrainians in Exile (2022)
A documentary that follows Anya, a woman residing in Ukraine during the early stages of the war, who tells her story and contemplates how countries will treat her fellow Ukrainians who were forced to flee.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Inside My Heart (2018)
A documentary film by Canadian Director Debra Kellner, produced by Frank Giustra, Serge Lalou, and Richard Copans. Inside My Heart chronicles the plight of three refugee families fleeing their war torn countries over a period of nearly 3 years. Despite having lost everything and their harrowing stories about the atrocities of war, each family continues their fight to stay alive. Unable to return to their countries without the risk of being killed, today they are forced to live with the consequences of their broken dreams.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Vom Nazi zum englischen Fußballidol - Torwartlegende Bert Trautmann (2021)
How could a German Wehrmacht soldier become a celebrated soccer idol of the Britons in the post-war period? The documentary by Radio Bremen shows the moving life story of the soccer star of the 1950s in a torn Europe and how an enemy became a friend. With his legendary appearance in the English Cup Final 1956, in which he played until the end despite a broken neck, Bert Trautmann set up a memorial for himself in the history of sport. Already in the same year, he is chosen as England’s footballer of the year, and by his club Manchester City even as best player of all times. Bernhard “Bert” Trautmann is one of the most popular and best-known soccer players in England.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
When My Knife Strikes You (1968)
Shot in various villages throughout Yugoslavia, this is a disturbing document of a time when people were stabbing each other with knives without any real reason. Murderers, people who witness these murders and the families of victims all talk about the senseless violence and the human condition.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
« Je ne suis pas chinetoque » : Histoire du racisme anti-asiatique (2024)
Journalist Émilie Tran Nguyen invites the viewer to follow her in her quest and discover, at the same time as her, the historical origins of this anti-Asian racism. Told in the first person, alternating archive images, interviews with historians, sociologists and field sequences, this film traces the making of prejudices in the French imagination and pop culture, to twist the neck of stereotypes, deconstruct and act.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)
In the summer of 1941, the United States and Japan seem on the brink of war after constant embargos and failed diplomacy come to no end. "Tora! Tora! Tora!", named after the code words used by the lead Japanese pilot to indicate they had surprised the Americans, covers the days leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor, which plunged America into the Second World War.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Spirit of '45?
The closest matches to The Spirit of '45 are The Untold History Of The United States (2012), Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) and The Unknown Known (2013). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Spirit of '45?
Start with The Untold History Of The United States (2012), the closest match to The Spirit of '45.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Spirit of '45?
To End All War: Oppenheimer & the Atomic Bomb (2023), rated 7.7/10 by 236 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Spirit of '45?
Fuite des nazis, la route des monastères (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Spirit of '45?
Yes: The Untold History Of The United States (2012), Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) and The Unknown Known (2013).
How are movies similar to The Spirit of '45 chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Spirit of '45, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.