Movies like The Spiral (1976)
The best movies like The Spiral (1976) are A Toxic Love Story (2026), After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News (2020) and Naqoyqatsi (2002). If The Spiral hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedUnknown Number: The High School Catfish (2025)6.7/10 from 259 votes
- NewestA Toxic Love Story (2026)Released 2026
- In FrenchFrom Atatürk to Erdoğan: Building a Nation (2019)Also in French
A Toxic Love Story (2026)
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAfter Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News (2020)
An investigation into the ongoing threat caused by the phenomenon of “fake news” in the U.S., focusing on the real-life consequences that disinformation, conspiracy theories and false news stories have on the average citizen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEx Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbove Majestic (2018)
A look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisComandante (2003)
Oliver Stone spends three days filming with Fidel Castro in Cuba, discussing an array of subjects with the president such as his rise to power, fellow revolutionary Che Guevara, the Cuban Missile crisis, and the present state of the country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Class of ‘92 (2013)
A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLionel Messi: Destiny (2023)
Behind-the-scenes documentary about how Lionel Messi succeeded in lifting the World Cup – the only trophy to have eluded him in an incredible career.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)
Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisUkraine on Fire (2016)
A Russian-backed conspiracy film produced by Oliver Stone, framing the Euromaidan protests and the ouster of Viktor Yanukovych as a Western-engineered coup.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Revolution Will Not Be Televised (2003)
Hugo Chavez was a colourful, unpredictable folk hero who was beloved by his nation’s working class. He was elected president of Venezuela in 1998, and proved to be a tough, quixotic opponent to the power structure that wanted to depose him. When he was forcibly removed from office on 11 April 2002, two independent filmmakers were inside the presidential palace.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Mole: Undercover in North Korea (2020)
A real-life undercover thriller about two ordinary men who embark on an outrageously dangerous ten-year mission to penetrate the world's most secretive and brutal dictatorship: North Korea.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTed Bundy: Mind of a Monster (2019)
New exclusive access and never before heard testimony gives a unique insight into the mind of America's most notorious serial killer, Ted Bundy. Breathtaking archive from the time and the voice of Bundy himself, reveals the monster inside the man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMemories of a Murderer: The Nilsen Tapes (2021)
Serial killer Dennis Nilsen narrates his life and horrific crimes via a series of chilling audiotapes recorded from his jail cell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGilbert (2017)
The life and career of one of comedy's most inimitable modern voices, Mr. Gilbert Gottfried.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUnknown Number: The High School Catfish (2025)
Vulgar, taunting texts blow up the phones of a teen and her boyfriend. Who's sending them — and why? This twisty documentary reveals the shocking answer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Crystal Calls - Making The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (2019)
Go behind the scenes with stars, puppeteers and creators as they bring Jim Henson's magical world of Thra back to life in a sweeping fantasy series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSouth of the Border (2009)
A road trip across five countries to explore the social and political movements as well as the mainstream media's misperception of South America while interviewing seven of its elected presidents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTo Kill a Tiger (2023)
Ranjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNo Half Measures: Creating the Final Season of Breaking Bad (2013)
A documentary about the making of season five of the acclaimed AMC series Breaking Bad.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBodies in Crisis (2025)
In the midst of a profound social conflict, the director, a blind activist based in Canada, returns to her native Chile to follow five activists who embark on a transformative process to dignify their lives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
American Coup (2010)
AMERICAN COUP tells the story of the first coup ever carried out by the CIA - Iran, 1953. Explores the blowback from this seminal event, as well as the coup's lingering effects on the present US-Iranian relationship. Includes a segment on the 1979 Iranian Hostage Crisis and its relation to the 1953 coup. Concludes with a section on the recent Iranian presidential election. Contains interviews with noted Middle East experts and historians and prominent public figures such as Stephen Kinzer (author, All The Shah's Men), Prof. Ervand Abrahamian, Trita Parsi, Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, Ted Koppel and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas. With Iranian cinematography by James Longley.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Víctor Jara in Live in Lima (1973)
Concert by Víctor Jara at Panamericana Televisión in Lima, Peru, on July 17, 1973. This is one of the last audiovisual records of Víctor Jara. Two months later he would be assassinated by the Chilean military dictatorship.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Doctors of the Dark Side (2011)
Doctors of the Dark Side is the first feature length documentary about the pivotal role of physicians and psychologists in detainee torture. The stories of four detainees and the doctors involved in their abuse demonstrate how US Army and CIA doctors implemented the Enhanced Interrogation Techniques and covered up signs of torture at Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. Interviews with medical, legal and intelligence experts and evidence from declassified government memos document what has been called the greatest scandal in American medical ethics. Based on four years of research by Producer/Director Martha Davis, written by Oscar winning Mark Jonathan Harris, and filmed in HD by Emmy winning DP Lisa Rinzler, the film shows how the torture of detainees could not continue without the assistance of the doctors.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
In the Shadow of the Condor (2002)
In the Shadow of the Condor documents an expedition in January of 2002 into the spectacular pristine Corcovado wilderness in Southern Chile.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
From Atatürk to Erdoğan: Building a Nation (2019)
Turkey's history has been shaped by two major political figures: Mustafa Kemal (1881-1934), known as Atatürk, the Father of the Turks, founder of the modern state, and the current president Recep Tayyıp Erdoğan, who apparently wants Turkey to regain the political and military pre-eminence it had as an empire under the Ottoman dynasty.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Remembrance Of Yusin (2012)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Known (2025)
A director raised on skewed history confronts two presidents in a battle to rewrite the past—can he change minds before it's too late?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Cybersocialism: Project Cybersyn & The CIA Coup in Chile (2021)
A documentary on the rise and fall of Project Cybersyn, an attempt at a computer-managed centralized economy undertaken in Chile during the presidency of Salvador Allende.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Valdivia 1960, El Gran Terremoto (1992)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Like The Spiral and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Spiral?
The closest matches to The Spiral are A Toxic Love Story (2026), After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News (2020) and Naqoyqatsi (2002). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Spiral?
Start with A Toxic Love Story (2026), the closest match to The Spiral.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Spiral?
Unknown Number: The High School Catfish (2025), rated 6.7/10 by 259 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Spiral?
A Toxic Love Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there French movies like The Spiral?
Yes: From Atatürk to Erdoğan: Building a Nation (2019).
How are movies similar to The Spiral chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Spiral, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.