Skip to content

Movies like Goodbye to the Past (1961)

The best movies like Goodbye to the Past (1961) are Flashbacks of a Fool (2008), Hounddog (2008) and Mammal (2016). If Goodbye to the Past hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. Flashbacks of a Fool (2008)

    An aging Hollywood star, Joe Scott, lives a life of narcissistic hedonism, observed by his laconic personal assistant, Ophelia. The death of his childhood best friend, Boots, takes our protagonist, and the movie, into an extended flashback to a sea-side town in 1970s Britain.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  2. Hounddog (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 this
  3. Mammal (2016)

    After Margaret, a divorcée living in Dublin, loses her teenage son, she develops an unorthodox relationship with Joe, a homeless youth. Their tentative trust is threatened by his involvement with a violent gang and the escalation of her ex-husband's grieving rage.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  4. Eleanor 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 this
  5. Head Full of Honey (2018)

    A young girl tries to help her grandfather, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s, navigate his increasing forgetfulness, and ends up going on a remarkable adventure with him.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  6. The Girl in the Book (2015)

    The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  7. The Last Rifleman (2023)

    A WWII veteran escapes his care home in Northern Ireland and embarks on an arduous but inspirational journey to France to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, finding the courage to face the ghosts of his past.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  8. Omaha (2025)

    A young girl and her brother are awoken by their father and loaded into the car on an early morning in 2008. As they road trip across the American West, she discovers the truth about their seemingly spontaneous journey.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  9. Around the Bend (2004)

    A tale of four generations of men, all of whom have had their offspring at a young age: a great-grandfather, a grandfather, a father in his twenties and a son who is about 7 years old. When the oldest member passes away, the trio heads out on the road together in the Southwest to search out an old family secret that connects to their past.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  10. The Last Bus (2021)

    Widower Tom, on the recent passing of his wife Mary, uses his free bus pass to travel the length of Britain from John O'Groats in Caithness to Land's End in Cornwall, their shared birthplace, using only local buses. It's an incident-fuelled nostalgia trip and his encounters with local people make him a media phenomenon. Tom is totally unaware and to his surprise on arrival at Land’s End he’s greeted as a celebrity.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  11. I Believe in Unicorns (2015)

    Feeling awkward and isolated, an imaginative and strong-willed teenage girl runs away from home with an older punk rock drifter.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  12. Strange Weather (2016)

    Years after her son's suicide, a woman longs to confront both the past and a friend of his who took his business idea.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  13. The Safety of Objects (2002)

    In a suburban landscape, the lives of several families interlace with loss, despair and personal crisis. Esther Gold has lost focus on all but caring for her comatose son, Paul, and neglects her daughter and husband. Lawyer Jim Train is devoted to his career, not his family. Helen Christianson wants to find a new spark in life, while Annette Jennings tries to rebuild hers.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  14. Marjorie Prime (2017)

    A service which creates holographic projections of late family members allows an elderly woman to spend time with a younger version of her deceased husband.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  15. Starlet (2012)

    An unlikely friendship forms between 21 year-old Jane and the elderly Sadie after Jane discovers a hidden stash of money inside an object at Sadie's yard sale.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  16. The Congress (2013)

    An aging, out-of-work actress accepts one last job, though the consequences of her decision affect her in ways she didn't consider.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  17. 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
  18. What 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 this
  19. The Truth About Emanuel (2013)

    A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  20. Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)

    A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as her last chance.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  21. It Was Infidelity in the Beginning (1999)

    Annabelle is annoyed by family life. Most of all, she bothers her health-conscious, chain-smoking, know-it-all mother, Edda who visits regularly. When mother moves in her house for three months, because their house is being renovated, She enthusiastically takes the chance to go on a "relaxing weekend". On this occasion her girlfriend Doro, who was supposed to take care of the children, starts an affair with her husband, Friedrich. When she returns, she is appalled. She packs her things and leaves Friedrich and the family. Promptly she meets a young student at a party, who awakens the passion in her. Written by lament

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  22. The Door in the Floor (2004)

    A writer's young assistant becomes both pawn and catalyst in his boss's disintegrating household.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  23. In the Bedroom (2001)

    Summertime on the coast of Maine, "In the Bedroom" centers on the inner dynamics of a family in transition. Matt Fowler is a doctor practicing in his native Maine and is married to New York born Ruth Fowler, a music teacher. His son is involved in a love affair with a local single mother. As the beauty of Maine's brief and fleeting summer comes to an end, these characters find themselves in the midst of unimaginable tragedy.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  24. May December (2023)

    Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple buckles under the pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film about their past.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  25. My Tutor (1983)

    High school senior Bobby Chrystal fails his French class, which will block him from entering Yale. His rich, authoritarian father hires an attractive 29-year-old to tutor Bobby over the summer and help him pass a make-up exam. While Bobby's friends lead him away into strange excursions aimed at losing their virginity, Bobby finds all the extracurricular activities he needs with his new tutor.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  26. The Piano Teacher (2001)

    Erika Kohut, a sexually repressed piano teacher living with her domineering mother, meets a young man who starts romantically pursuing her.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  27. State of Grace (1990)

    Hell's Kitchen, New York. Terry Noonan returns home after a ten-year absence. He soon reconnects with Jackie, a childhood friend and member of the Irish mob, and rekindles his love affair with Jackie's sister Kathleen.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  28. Perhaps Love (1984)

    A teenage boy becomes infatuated with an older woman who he discovers to be a prostitute.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  29. Young Love (1987)

    While his parents are on holiday, Huey and his buddies borrow their car and go out. After pursuing a gang of girls, Huey crashes the car, and discovering that the repairs will cost a small fortune, the boys must get jobs to pay for the repairs before Huey's parents get home. The boys all land jobs as porters in the Beachfront Hotel, where their minds are taken off their problems by girls!!

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  30. Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

    Holly Golightly is an eccentric New York City playgirl determined to marry a Brazilian millionaire. But when young writer Paul Varjak moves into her apartment building, her past threatens to get in their way.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this

Like Goodbye to the Past and something else?

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

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like Goodbye to the Past?

The closest matches to Goodbye to the Past are Flashbacks of a Fool (2008), Hounddog (2008) and Mammal (2016). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after Goodbye to the Past?

Start with Flashbacks of a Fool (2008), the closest match to Goodbye to the Past.

What is the highest-rated movie like Goodbye to the Past?

Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), rated 7.6/10 by 4,627 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like Goodbye to the Past?

Omaha (2025) is the most recent release on this list.

How are movies similar to Goodbye to the Past chosen?

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

↑ ↓ to move · Enter to open · Full search page