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Movies like Heart of the Stag (1984)

The best movies like Heart of the Stag (1984) are Heatwave (2022), If There Be Thorns (2015) and Light of My Life (2019). If Heart of the Stag hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. Heatwave (2022)

    A woman's life takes an unexpected turn when she falls for her boss's wife. She must soon defend herself as she becomes entangled in a web of malice.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  2. If There Be Thorns (2015)

    Christopher and Cathy Dollanganger live together as man and wife with Cathy's two sons who are unaware of the incestuous nature of their parents' relationship. But when a mysterious woman moves in next door and befriends the younger boy, Bart, he begins a strange transformation and displays accusatory behavior towards Cathy and Christopher. When Christopher discovers their mysterious neighbor is, in fact, his mother Corrine Dollanganger, all of the family's long-hidden secrets are revealed in a tragic climax.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  3. Light of My Life (2019)

    Years after a pandemic wipes out most of the female population, a father struggles to shield his daughter from a dangerous and predatory world.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  4. Addicted (2014)

    A gallerist risks her family and flourishing career when she enters into an affair with a talented painter and slowly loses control of her life.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  5. Rogue Agent (2022)

    Conman Robert Freegard poses as an undercover MI5 agent and kidnaps countless victims amidst a high-stakes manhunt, until the woman who fell for him brings him to justice.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  6. Pimp (2018)

    An urban love story set on the hard streets of the Bronx. A struggling female pimp, named Wednesday, grows up learning the game from her dad. Once he's gone she's left to look out for her prostitute mother and girlfriend Nikki.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  7. The Only Living Boy in New York (2017)

    When a young man learns that his overbearing father is having an affair, he tries to stop it, only to be seduced by the older woman as well.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  8. One & Two (2015)

    In an isolated farmhouse, located in the middle of nowhere and surrounded by a mysterious wooden wall, Zac and Eva, two siblings gifted with extraordinary abilities, endure every day the wrath of their strict father while witnessing how a cruel sickness lurks their beloved mother.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  9. Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998)

    Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  10. The War Zone (1999)

    An alienated teenager, saddened that he has moved away from London, must find a way to deal with a dark family secret.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  11. Come 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

  12. The Sound of Silence (2019)

    A successful "house tuner" in New York City, who calibrates the sound in people's homes in order to adjust their moods, meets a client with a problem he can't solve.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  13. The Visit (1964)

    Carla Zachanassian had a child by Serge Miller as a teenager. When Serge refused to marry her, she was driven out of town. By her own wit and cunning, she has returned as a multi-millionaire for a visit. The town lays out the red carpet expecting big things from Carla, only to learn that her sole purpose is to see Serge Miller killed...

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  14. The River (1984)

    Tom and Mae Garvey are a Tennessee farming couple battling violent floods to save their land. In addition to natural disasters, the Garveys fight to stop a selfish land developer and a local corporation from foreclosing on their farm. While Mae stays at home to care for their children and tend to the crops, Tom finds work as a scab at a steel mill to preserve his family's property.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  15. Hands 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

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  16. Girl 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 this
  17. Shame (2011)

    Brandon, a thirty-something man living in New York, eludes intimacy with women but feeds his deepest desires with a compulsive addiction to sex. When his younger sister temporarily moves into his apartment, stirring up bitter memories of their shared painful past, Brandon's life, like his fragile mind, gets out of control.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  18. The Pumpkin Eater (1964)

    Jo, the mother of seven children, divorces her second husband in order to marry Jake, a successful but promiscuous screenwriter. Though they are physically and emotionally compatible, they are slowly torn apart.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  19. Bobby 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

  20. Holy Lands (2019)

    When lapsed Jew and former cardiologist Harry suddenly decides to spend his retirement as a pig farmer in Nazareth, Israel, the move deeply shocks his family and his new neighbours. Back in New York, Harry’s ex-wife Monica is trying to manage the lives of their adult children, Annabelle and David, as well as her own.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  21. My Lover, My Son (1970)

    A woman deals with an unhappy marriage, the death of her lover, and her son's involvement in a crime.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  22. Denko (1993)

    An African mother will do just about anything to protect her child. Bilaly is a simple peasant who is blind. He wants to “know” a woman before he dies, but try as his mother might, she cannot find someone to oblige. She finally gets an idea – an idea that completely stuns the village.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  23. Visitor Q (2001)

    In a dysfunctional family where the mother is a heroin addict and prostitute, beaten by her son, and the father is an ex-TV reporter, sleeping with his daughter and filming his son being beaten up, ‘Q’, a complete stranger enters the bizarre family, changing their lives for the better, finding a balance in their disturbing natures.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  24. Leaving (2014)

    The story of three brothers. Blood of the same blood, that fate wanted to bring together since the day they were conceived. Their mother died seven years ago and since then, they had to be each others cornerstone. And when all seemed to make sense, someone decides to leave.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  25. My Own Private Idaho (1991)

    Mike Waters is a hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor is the rebellious son of a mayor. Together, the two travel from Portland, Oregon to Idaho and finally to the coast of Italy in a quest to find Mike's estranged mother. Along the way they turn tricks for money and drugs, eventually attracting the attention of a wealthy benefactor and sexual deviant.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  26. Once Were Warriors (1994)

    In a violent relationship, it takes a mother’s strength to save herself and her children from the man she loved. Once Were Warriors is a violent love story set against a contemporary urban backdrop.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  27. Rieke's Love (2001)

    A young figure-skater becomes jealous when her brother, also a young figure-skater, falls for another young female figure-skater. She thought she was all that he needs.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  28. Ghosts (1915)

    Helen Alving leads an outwardly contented life. On the eve of the 10th anniversary of her husband's death, she is about to open an orphanage as a memorial to him. To mark this occasion, her bohemian painter son Oswald has returned from Paris. Helen plans to take the opportunity to tell Oswald the truth about his father. But ghosts of the past erupt during an eventful evening, bringing the facade of civilised family life crashing down.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  29. Madame and Her Niece (1969)

    Michelle De Winter lives the good life, wining and dining with only the richest men who are fortunate to cross her path. Her daughter Yvette, whom Michelle insists on introducing as her 'niece', is a fashion model. She is saving herself for the right man, despite the fact that she is part of the free love generation and lives with a group of promiscuous creative types. While Michelle is searching for a new millionaire playboy, Yvette falls for the handsome Peter Von Hallstein. She asks the fatherly Dr. Fink to help her come up with a scheme to get Peter to propose to he

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  30. Vixen! (1968)

    In a Canadian mountain resort, Vixen Palmer resides with her naive pilot husband Tom. While he's away flying in tourists, she sleeps with practically everybody including a husband and his wife, and even her biker brother. However, the only one she won't bed is her brother's friend... who is Black.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

Like Heart of the Stag and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like Heart of the Stag?

The closest matches to Heart of the Stag are Heatwave (2022), If There Be Thorns (2015) and Light of My Life (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after Heart of the Stag?

Start with Heatwave (2022), the closest match to Heart of the Stag.

What is the highest-rated movie like Heart of the Stag?

Once Were Warriors (1994), rated 7.4/10 by 521 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like Heart of the Stag?

Rogue Agent (2022) is the most recent release on this list.

Are there English movies like Heart of the Stag?

Yes: Heatwave (2022), If There Be Thorns (2015) and Light of My Life (2019).

How are movies similar to Heart of the Stag chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Heart of the Stag, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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