Movies like A Plea to God (1991)
The best movies like A Plea to God (1991) are Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957), Novitiate (2017) and Fatima (2020). If A Plea to God hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBlack Narcissus (1947)7.5/10 from 591 votes
- NewestSmall Things Like These (2024)Released 2024
Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957)
A Roman Catholic nun and a hard-bitten US Marine are stranded together on a Japanese-occupied island in the South Pacific during World War II. Under constant threat of discovery by a ruthless enemy, they hide in a cave and forage for food together. Their forced companionship and the struggle for survival forge a powerful emotional bond between them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNovitiate (2017)
In the early 1960s, during the Vatican II era, a young woman training to become a nun struggles with issues of faith, sexuality and the changing church.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFatima (2020)
In 1917, outside the parish of Fátima, Portugal, a 10-year-old girl and her two younger cousins witness multiple visitations of the Virgin Mary, who tells them that only prayer and suffering will bring an end to World War I. As secularist government officials and Church leaders try to force the children to recant their story, word of the sighting spreads across the country, inspiring religious pilgrims to flock to the site in hopes of witnessing a miracle..
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWomen Talking (2022)
A group of women in an isolated religious colony struggle to reconcile their faith with a series of sexual assaults committed by the colony's men.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Narcissus (1947)
A group of Anglican nuns, led by Sister Clodagh, are sent to a mountain in the Himalayas. The climate in the region is hostile and the nuns are housed in an odd old palace. They work to establish a school and a hospital, but slowly their focus shifts. Sister Ruth falls for a government worker, Mr. Dean, and begins to question her vow of celibacy. As Sister Ruth obsesses over Mr. Dean, Sister Clodagh becomes immersed in her own memories of love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDead Man Walking (1995)
A death row inmate turns for spiritual guidance to a local nun in the days leading up to his scheduled execution for the murders of a young couple.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Baby of Mâcon (1993)
In 17th-century Tuscany, a church play is performed for the benefit of young aristocrat Cosimo. In the play, a grotesque old woman gives birth to a beautiful baby boy. The child's older sister is quick to exploit the situation, selling blessings from the baby, and even claiming she's the true mother by virgin birth. However, when she attempts to seduce the bishop's son, the Church exacts a terrible revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Nun's Story (1959)
After leaving a wealthy Belgian family to become a nun, Sister Luke struggles with her devotion to her vows during crisis, disappointment, and World War II.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIf These Walls Could Talk (1996)
A powerful, intimate portrait of three women living in the same house during different eras who all face unplanned pregnancies. The vignettes follow a recently widowed nurse struggling to take control of her life in the early 50s, a mother of four balancing raising a family and maintaining a career in the 70s, and a student making a difficult decision with the help of one woman that will change the course of both their lives in the 90s.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInsiang (1976)
A story about the life of a young girl living with her mother in the slums of Manila, which becomes unbearable when her mother's young boyfriend moves in with them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAgnes of God (1985)
When a dead newborn is found, wrapped in bloody sheets, in the bedroom wastebasket of a young novice, psychiatrist Martha Livingston is called in to determine if the seemingly innocent novice, who knows nothing of sex or birth, is competent enough to stand trial for the murder of the baby.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Boys of St. Vincent (1994)
The true story of boys being sexually abused at their orphanage, run by a religious community in Newfoundland.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCall Jane (2022)
A married woman with an unwanted pregnancy lives in a time in America where she can't get a legal abortion and works with a group of suburban women to find help.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeyond the Forest (1949)
Rosa, the self-serving wife of a small-town doctor, gets a better offer when a wealthy big-city man insists she get a divorce and marry him instead. Soon she demonstrates she is capable of rather deplorable acts -- including murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Magdalene Sisters (2002)
Three young Irish women struggle to maintain their spirits while they endure dehumanizing abuse as inmates of a Magdalene Sisters Asylum.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972)
Middle-aged widow Beatrice Hunsdorfer and her daughters Ruth and Matilda are struggling to survive in a society they barely understand. Beatrice dreams of opening an elegant tea room but does not have the wherewithal to achieve her lofty goal. Epileptic Ruth is a rebellious adolescent, while shy but highly intelligent and idealistic Matilda seeks solace in her pets and school projects, including one designed to show how small amounts of radium affect marigolds.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Cardinal (1963)
A young Catholic priest from Boston confronts bigotry, Nazism, and his own personal conflicts as he rises to the office of cardinal.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPhilomena (2013)
A woman searches for her adult son, who was taken away from her decades ago when she was forced to live in a convent.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhat Maisie Knew (2013)
In New York City, six-year-old Maisie is caught in the middle of a bitter custody battle between her self-absorbed parents—an aging rock singer mother and a distracted art dealer father. As both quickly marry new partners to strengthen their legal standing, Maisie is shuttled back and forth in an endless game of emotional point-scoring. Yet amid the chaos and upheaval, Maisie begins to find true comfort and affection in her new step-parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSmall Things Like These (2024)
In 1985, while working as a coal merchant to support his family, Bill Furlong discovers disturbing secrets kept by the local convent and uncovers truths of his own; forcing him to confront his past and the complicit silence of a small Irish town controlled by the Catholic Church.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBrother of Sleep (1995)
In the beginning of the 19th century, Johannes Elias Alder is born in a small village in the Austrian mountains. While growing up he is considered strange by the other villagers and discovers his love of music, especially rebuilding and playing the organ at the village church. After experiencing an "acoustic wonder", his eye color changes and he can hear even the most subtle sounds.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Sex and Lucía (2001)
Lucía is a young waitress in Madrid who seeks refuge on a quiet, secluded Mediterranean island after the loss of her longtime boyfriend. Amidst the fresh air, dazzling sun, and glistening deep blue water, Lucía begins to piece together the dark corners of her past relationship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Discovery of Heaven (2001)
Disappointed with humanity, God wants to revoke his contract with humanity and wants to take back the stone tablets containing the ten commandments. To this end an angel is sent out to affect the personal lives of three humans so an appropriate child may be conceived.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Junebug (2005)
On the way to meet with an independent artist in the South, newlywed art dealer Madeleine is convinced by her husband, George, that they should stop to meet his family in North Carolina. Madeleine's affluent lifestyle clashes with the family, but she befriends George's wide-eyed and pregnant sister-in-law, Ashley, who is nearing her due date. Through the family, Madeleine gains greater insight into George's character.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Mighty Heart (2007)
Based on Mariane Pearl's account of the terrifying and unforgettable story of her husband, Wall Street Journal reporter Danny Pearl's life and death.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNun Nancy (2021)
Nun Nancy follows the heartfelt ministry of a passionate woman of God that served the inner city of Baltimore, Maryland disguised as a bartender so that she could more effectively share God's love to the drunks and prostitutes.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Secret Sunshine (2007)
Shin-ae moves to her recently late husband’s hometown. Despite her efforts to settle in this unfamiliar and too-normal place, she finds that she can’t fit in. After a sudden tragedy, Shin-ae turns to Christianity to relieve her pain, but when even this is not permitted, she wages a war against God.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFools Rush In (1997)
After a one night stand with Alex, Isabel realizes that she is pregnant and they decide to get married. However, along with the marriage comes compromise of one's own cultural traditions.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhen the Waves Are Gone (2023)
One of the Philippines' top investigators, Lieutenant Hermes Papauran, faces a deep moral crossroads. As a firsthand witness of the murderous anti-drug campaign conducted by his force, his anxiety and guilt triggers a severe skin disease, and his healing process is fraught by his dark past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
2:37 (2006)
A contemporary, ensemble drama that tells the complex tale of six high school students whose lives are interwoven with situations that so many of today's youth are faced with. The story takes place during a normal school day. At precisely 2:37, a tragedy will occur affecting the lives of a group of students and their teachers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like A Plea to God?
The closest matches to A Plea to God are Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957), Novitiate (2017) and Fatima (2020). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after A Plea to God?
Start with Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison (1957), the closest match to A Plea to God.
What is the highest-rated movie like A Plea to God?
Black Narcissus (1947), rated 7.5/10 by 591 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like A Plea to God?
Small Things Like These (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to A Plea to God chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside A Plea to God, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.