Movies like Based on the Novel (1999)
The best movies like Based on the Novel (1999) are In the Soup (1992), CQ (2001) and The House of Tomorrow (2019). If Based on the Novel hooked you with its drama and comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBARDO, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (2022)6.8/10 from 282 votes
- NewestOut of Focus (2025)Released 2025
In the Soup (1992)
An aspiring young filmmaker gets involved with an eccentric gangster for the financing of his first film.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCQ (2001)
A young filmmaker in 1960s Paris juggles directing a cheesy sci-fi debacle, directing his own personal art film, coping with his crumbling relationship with his girlfriend, and a new-found infatuation with the sci-fi film's starlet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe House of Tomorrow (2019)
The film tells futurist, architect, and inventor R. Buckminster Fuller's incredible story through two teens hoping to get laid, become punk gods, and survive high school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSomewhere in Queens (2023)
Leo and Angela Russo live a simple life in Queens, surrounded by their overbearing Italian-American family. When their son finds success on his high school basketball team, Leo tears the family apart trying to make it happen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlmost Friends (2017)
A man in his mid-20s, still living at home with his mother and stepfather, puts all his eggs in one basket: the girl who works at his local coffee shop. The problem is, she has a serious boyfriend. As they become closer, the line between friendship and intimacy is blurred, and the situation forces both to examine where they are in their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDon't Think Twice (2016)
An improv group deals with several crises, including the loss of their lease and one member hitting the big time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOn Becoming a Guinea Fowl (2024)
On an empty road in the middle of the night, Shula stumbles across the body of her uncle. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Joneses (2010)
A seemingly perfect family moves into a suburban neighborhood, but when it comes to the truth as to why they're living there, they don't exactly come clean with their neighbors.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLandline (2017)
A teenager living with her sister and parents in Manhattan during the 1990s discovers that her father is having an affair.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFamily Weekend (2013)
A 16-year-old girl takes her parents hostage after they miss her big jump-roping competition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Own Love Song (2010)
A wheelchair-bound singer and her best friend embark on a roadtrip to Memphis.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbout Alex (2014)
When a group of old college friends reunite over a long weekend after one of them attempts suicide, old crushes and resentments shine light on their life decisions, and ultimately push friendships and relationships to the brink.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLady Windermere's Fan (1925)
A society woman believes her husband is having an affair, a misconception which may have dire personal consequences for all involved.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUncorked (2020)
Elijah must balance his dream of becoming a master sommelier with his father's expectations that he carry on the family's Memphis BBQ joint.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt Runs in the Family (2003)
This is the story of a dysfunctional New York family, and their attempts to reconcile
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSmall Apartments (2012)
When a clumsy deadbeat accidentally kills his landlord, he must do everything in his power to hide the body, only to find that the distractions of lust, the death of his beloved brother, and a crew of misfit characters force him on a journey where a fortune awaits him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisMatch (2014)
A Seattle couple travel to New York to interview colorful former dancer Tobi for research on a dissertation about dance. But soon, common niceties and social graces erode when the questions turn personal and the true nature of the interview is called into question.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisHooking Up (2020)
Bailey and Darla embark upon a misguided and mutually deceitful form of therapy, one in which they must drive across the country, re-enacting Darla's colorful history as a sex addict. As their true motivations for the road trip come to light, the unlikely pair force one another to confront their issues, discovering that there might actually be more to love than just sex.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSubUrbia (1997)
A group of suburban teenagers try to support each other through the difficult task of becoming adults.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTreasure (2024)
A music journalist accompanies her father, a charmingly stubborn Holocaust survivor, on a journey to his homeland. While she's eager to make sense of her family's past, her dad has an agenda of his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBARDO, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (2022)
A renowned Mexican journalist and documentary filmmaker living in Los Angeles, after being named the recipient of a prestigious international award, is compelled to return to his native country, unaware that this simple trip will push him to an existential limit.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOut of Focus (2025)
Film students are pushed to their limits by the chaotic nature of a film set. As their film goes from pitch to production, they find out what it means to create something meaningful.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & comedy
Beware of a Holy Whore (1971)
Film director Jeff and his lead actor are taking their time getting to set. In their absence, the crew lack a purposeful way to spend their time waiting, so they drink heavily. However, as booze is downed and frustration sets in, morale hits rock bottom.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlex in Wonderland (1970)
Bohemian Alex Morrison has just finished directing his first feature length movie. In its previews, the movie is considered a critical, artistic and surefire commercial success. As such, Alex seemingly has his choice of what his next project will be. As he makes the rounds both in the Hollywood community and European movie centers for ideas, he fantasizes about movie scenarios of those everyday situations he is in.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Man of a Thousand Faces (1957)
The turbulent life and professional career of vaudeville actor and silent screen horror star Lon Chaney (1883-1930), the man of a thousand faces; bearer of many personal misfortunes that even his great success could not mitigate.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFranny vs. J. Daughter (2022)
Twenty years after the release of Freddy vs. Jason, a XXX Films director gears up for a remake with no clue how to create a family-friendly flick.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Real Life (1979)
A pushy, narcissistic filmmaker persuades a Phoenix family to let him and his crew film their everyday lives, in the manner of the ground-breaking PBS series "An American Family".
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLone Rider (2007)
A portrait of an independent filmmaker and the lengths he will go to fulfill his celluloid dream.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Plump Fiction (1997)
Four stories intersect in this violent film parody. Exterminators dress as hit men and try to protect the wife of their boss, Montello. Meanwhile, the strippers at Montello's strip club, dressed as nuns, attempt to rob him. Tag-team wrestlers steal Montello's briefcase, thinking its contents are valuable. Finally, Bumpkin, running to deliver a script, loses a lot of the pages.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisBehind, Behind The Scenes: How To Take A Shoot? (2024)
As a film director works on his submission for a film festival, the mounting issues during production reveal what truly unfolds behind (the scenes) what we've seen.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Based on the Novel?
The closest matches to Based on the Novel are In the Soup (1992), CQ (2001) and The House of Tomorrow (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Based on the Novel?
Start with In the Soup (1992), the closest match to Based on the Novel.
What is the highest-rated movie like Based on the Novel?
BARDO, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (2022), rated 6.8/10 by 282 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Based on the Novel?
Out of Focus (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to Based on the Novel chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Based on the Novel, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.