Movies like The Big Ashtray (2026)
The best movies like The Big Ashtray (2026) are Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), The Caveman's Valentine (2001) and The Deep End of the Ocean (1999). If The Big Ashtray hooked you with its drama and mystery, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedRemember (2015)7.3/10 from 785 votes
- NewestDear Diary (2026)Released 2026
Brand Upon the Brain! (2007)
After returning home to his long-estranged mother upon a request from her deathbed, a man raised by his parents in an orphanage has to confront the childhood memories that have long haunted him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Caveman's Valentine (2001)
Romulus, a misunderstood musician turned recluse hiding from personal demons in a New York City cave, finds the frozen body of a young drifter in a tree. The authorities, including his police officer daughter, claim the death is accidental. Romulus is convinced the man was murdered by a prominent art photographer but how can he prove he's right when everyone thinks he's insane?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Deep End of the Ocean (1999)
A three-year-old boy disappears during his mother's high school reunion. Nine years later, by chance, he turns up in the town in which the family has just relocated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRemember (2015)
With the aid of a fellow Auschwitz survivor and a hand-written letter, an elderly man with dementia goes in search of the person responsible for the death of his family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDonovan's Echo (2011)
A series of uncanny déjà vu events force a man to re-examine his tragic past, memory, instinct, and future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInseparable (2012)
A troubled engineer faces pressure at work and problems at home with his moody wife. American expat Chuck, rescues him from the brink of despair and becomes an unlikely mentor.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTriage (2009)
The wife of a photojournalist sets out to discover why he came home from a recent assignment without his colleague.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFedora (1978)
Down-on-his-luck Hollywood producer Barry 'Dutch' Detweiler attempts to lure Fedora, a famous but reclusive film actress, out of retirement, only to discover the horrifying truth behind her success.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Doctor (2011)
Dr. Martin Blake, who has spent his life looking for respect, meets an 18-year-old patient named Diane, suffering from a kidney infection, and gets a much-needed boost of self-esteem. However, when her health starts improving, Martin fears losing her, so he begins tampering with her treatment, keeping Diane sick and in the hospital right next to him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDoctor Who: Dark Water / Death in Heaven (2014)
In this epic two-part finale, the Doctor comes face to face with the mysterious Missy, and an impossible choice is looming. With Cybermen on the streets of London, old friends unite against old enemies, and the Doctor takes to the air in a startling new role.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & mystery
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisCome Sunday (2018)
Evangelist Carlton Pearson is ostracized by his church for preaching that there is no Hell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisIntroducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999)
An acclaimed stage performer, Dorothy still struggled with the challenge of her color, in a time that wouldn't let some stars in by the front door. Yet against the odds she beat out many more famous rivals for the role of "Carmen Jones", becoming the first black woman ever nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award. Marriages and affairs would break her heart, but her heart was strong. Seductive and easily seduced, she was born to be a star - with all the glory and all the pain of being loved, abused, cheated, glorified, undermined and undefeated. Here was a woman who wouldn't wait in the wings. Halle Berry stars as Dorothy Dandrige.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Truth About Emanuel (2013)
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMan with No Past (2025)
Waking up in an unfamiliar city, a man with no memory must confront the mysteries of his own identity. However, his desperate search to uncover the past pits him against a powerful enemy, leading to a showdown that ultimately reveals the truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Dry White Season (1989)
During the 1976 Soweto uprising, a white school teacher's life and values are threatened when he asks questions about the death of a young black boy who died in police custody.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNine Days (2021)
A bureaucrat interviews five souls to decide which of them will be given a life on Earth. But he soon faces an existential challenge of his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLast Man Down (2021)
After civilization succumbs to a deadly pandemic and his wife is murdered, a special forces soldier abandons his duty and becomes a hermit in the Nordic wilderness. Years later, a wounded woman appears on his doorstep. She's escaped from a lab and her pursuers believe her blood is the key to a worldwide cure. He's hesitant to get involved, but all doubts are cast aside when he discovers her pursuer is none other than Commander Stone, the man that murdered his wife some years ago.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTuesday (2024)
A mother and her teenage daughter must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTalhotBlond (2012)
Thomas Montgomery, a married father of two young daughters, gets seduced by the world of online gambling and chat rooms where a virtual romance and sexual obsession ultimately leads to the murder of an innocent man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisForest Movie (2017)
A woman gets lost in the woods.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & mystery
A Little Bird Told Me (2025)
Seeking evidence of an afterlife for her seriously ill father, a Dublin teenager attempts to contact the spirit of late Irish rockstar Phil Lynott.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Where do I go from Here? (2026)
Where do I go from here is a performance arthouse-style film exploring the nostalgia of the concept of home in terms of home as a feeling rather than the architectural structure. Inspired by multiple factors resonating the concept of home, including diaspora, belonging and longing, the artist questions the idea of home through and through, along with the constant search for the idea of "home".
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Last Cinema (2022)
Cinema clerks Silva and Felix work the final night before their beloved cinema is demolished by private investors. An empty final screening allows them to reflect on the meaning of cinema in an age wherein art no longer occupies physical space.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Gbre gundan (2025)
"After a freak accident leaves him deaf, a young man enters therapy, only to discover that losing his hearing has granted him a deeper understanding of his fractured family and inner turmoil. ግብረ ጉንዳን/Gbre gundan is a psychological drama that blurs the line between perception and reality, questioning whether true healing comes from what we hear or what we choose to ignore."
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Traces of Grief (2024)
Shell-shocked Barbara must face up to the loss of a dear companion after a tragic accident. Her best friend Klara and husband Torsten devise a plan to thaw Barbara's heart, after she reminisces about the incident, the funeral, and happier times. Will she agree to the suggestions of her nearest and dearest? Can grief turn into hope?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Nonexistent (TBA)
Dominique attempts to process her grief through a memory, a nightmare and a fantasy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Dear Diary (2026)
The innocent lines of a young girl’s diary recount the visit of her father’s colleagues, the games played in the garden, and the weight of the summer heat through her naïve perspective. Yet, when a “snowflake” falls onto her notebook, it slowly begins to reveal traces of another, unseen reality. What starts with childhood innocence and joy gradually touches upon a far heavier truth of our time.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Turning Turtle (2021)
A young man performs 'pranayama' sitting against a bleak wall. We observe him through a frame that seems to be connected to him in some way. As we go on to witness the nature of the frame, will the images presented to us be able to convey his intentions, thoughts, and ultimately, his fate? This experimental feature film is comprised of 7 parts of black and white imagery with no sound at all.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Ali Ali (2025)
In a quiet Rajasthani village, young Ali clings to his cricket bat as his friends chase it. What starts as playful mischief reveals a film crew struggling to finish their shoot, blurring childhood and the fragile magic of cinema.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Big Ashtray?
The closest matches to The Big Ashtray are Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), The Caveman's Valentine (2001) and The Deep End of the Ocean (1999). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Big Ashtray?
Start with Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), the closest match to The Big Ashtray.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Big Ashtray?
Remember (2015), rated 7.3/10 by 785 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Big Ashtray?
Dear Diary (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Big Ashtray?
Yes: Brand Upon the Brain! (2007), The Caveman's Valentine (2001) and The Deep End of the Ocean (1999).
How are movies similar to The Big Ashtray chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Big Ashtray, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.