Movies like The First Time (2013)
The best movies like The First Time (2013) are Anuja (2024), Hands of Stone (2016) and A Corner in Wheat (1909). If The First Time hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The First Time
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAntoine and Colette (1962)7.2/10 from 292 votes
- NewestNot Without Hope (2025)Released 2025
Anuja (2024)
When a brilliant nine-year-old working in a sweatshop gets a chance to attend school, she must make a difficult choice for her and her sister's future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHands of Stone (2016)
The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Corner in Wheat (1909)
On a whim, a greedy tycoon decides to corner the world market in wheat. This doubles the price of bread, forcing grain producers into charity lines and others further into poverty. The film contrasts the differences between the lives of those who work to grow the wheat and the life of the man who dabbles in its sale for profit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEleanor the Great (2025)
94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein tries to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAfter the Rehearsal (1984)
Rational, exacting, and self-controlled theater director, Henrik Vogler, often stays after rehearsal to think and plan. On this day, Anna comes back, ostensibly looking for a bracelet. She is the lead in his new production of Strindberg's A Dream Play. She talks of her hatred for her mother, now dead, an alcoholic actress, who was Vogler's star and lover.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Enforcer (2022)
A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to save the young girl from the deadly organization he’s spent his life building.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004)
The story of golf icon and legend, Bobby Jones, who retired from competition at the tender age of 28.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisTyson's Run (2022)
When fifteen-year-old Tyson attends public school for the first time, his life is changed forever. While helping his father clean up after the football team, Tyson befriends champion marathon runner Aklilu. Never letting his autism hold him back, Tyson becomes determined to run his first marathon in hopes of winning his father's approval. With the help of an unlikely friend and his parents, Tyson learns that with faith in yourself and the courage to take the first step, anything is possible.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEmbattled (2020)
The eldest son of a ruthlessly tough MMA champion must fight his way out of the abusive cycle his father has continued.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHome Run (2013)
A pro ball player with a substance abuse problem is forced into rehab in his hometown, finding new hope when he gets honest about his checkered past, and takes on coaching duties for a misfit Little League team
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJawbone (2017)
A former youth boxing champion, Jimmy McCabe is a man in search of hope but looking in all the wrong places. When he hits rock bottom he turns to his childhood boxing club and the only family he has left: gym owner Bill corner man Eddie and promoter Joe. Back in training, years after anyone thought he was a contender, he risks his life, as he tries to stand tall and regain his place in the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Locket (1946)
A dark personal secret drives a young woman to use every man she encounters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShirley (2020)
A famous horror writer finds inspiration for her next book after she and her husband take in a young couple.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNot Without Hope (2025)
A group of friends' fishing boat capsizes off the coast of Mexico and they're left alone stranded at sea and struggling for survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHungry Hearts (2015)
The relationship of a couple who meet by chance in New York City is put to the test when they encounter a life or death circumstance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLockdown (2000)
Avery (Jones) returns to college as a competitive swimmer after getting his life back on track. But his life takes another unexpected turn when he and his two friends (Bonds, Casseus) are wrongly accused of murder and end up in prison.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Dinner with Hervé (2018)
An unlikely friendship evolves over one wild night in LA between a struggling journalist and actor Hervé Villechaize, the world's most famous gun-toting dwarf, resulting in life-changing consequences for both.
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 thisGirl in the Box (2016)
The true story of 20-year-old Colleen Stan, a hitchhiking woman abducted by a young couple and held captive for seven years, during which time she's tortured and forced to live as a slave to her captors.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Perfect Cheerleader (2019)
When college freshman Cassie earns a spot on the cheerleading squad, she is overjoyed about the new friendships, status, and access to social events that come along with being on the team. When she meets Terry, the charismatic President of the Alumni Association, at an event, Cassie finds herself falling for this older man despite their age difference. Terry even helps her out by paying part of her tuition when she falls on hard times. But all is not as it seems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAntoine and Colette (1962)
Now aged 17, Antoine Doinel works in a factory which makes records. At a music concert, he meets a girl his own age, Colette, and falls in love with her. Later, Antoine goes to extraordinary lengths to please his new girlfriend and her parents, but Colette still only regards him as a casual friend. First segment of “Love at Twenty” (1962).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSee Me Live (2018)
Student Bex is thrust into a difficult situation after a one-night stand leads to an online altercation that will change her life forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Swans (2016)
By living his entire life fearing the prejudice of others, Aksel inadvertently made himself the source of true bias. Now, the real victims of prejudice will be revealed, as his secret is laid out for the world to see.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Xavier (2018)
April 20, 2017 - Avenue des Champs-Elysées. During an attack, police officer Xavier, among his injured fellow-officers, was shot dead. There are broken dreams and unanswered expectations of peace. But there is no place for hate, dialogue and tolerance being the only possible solutions.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SIN-SFO (2018)
As they drive to San Francisco, married couple Angie and Danny debate a decision which will change their lives forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Zinzan (2017)
After his son insists on bringing his boyfriend to practice, a rugby-mad father fears for his son’s chances of getting onto the national team.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
It's Nice When People Take the Time to Say Goodbye (2023)
Three siblings return to their hometown for the funeral of their beloved uncle Bernard with one hope - to get through the day without any mention of their estranged mother.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Dog with the Woman (2017)
A family drama telling the story of Alice Wilson and her stepdaughter Katherine, through the cynical eyes of her pet dog Charlie.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Marooned? (2009)
A middle-aged science fiction nerd role-plays as his favorite space hero out in the desert when he hits his head and becomes convinced he is a space hero for real. When he starts to suspect his role-playing buddy of being an enemy alien, what started as a ridiculous fantasy game becomes a matter of life and death.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like The First Time and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The First Time?
The closest matches to The First Time are Anuja (2024), Hands of Stone (2016) and A Corner in Wheat (1909). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The First Time?
Start with Anuja (2024), the closest match to The First Time.
What is the highest-rated movie like The First Time?
Antoine and Colette (1962), rated 7.2/10 by 292 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The First Time?
Not Without Hope (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to The First Time chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The First Time, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.