Movies like Navel and A-Bomb (1960)
The best movies like Navel and A-Bomb (1960) are Anima (2019), Footloose (1984) and Nirvana: Live at the Paramount (2011). If Navel and A-Bomb hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLimelight (1952)7.9/10 from 627 votes
- NewestSweet Cherries Ahead (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseLupin the Third: Tokyo Crisis (1998)Also in Japanese
Anima (2019)
In a short musical film directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, Thom Yorke of Radiohead stars in a mind-bending visual piece. Best played loud.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFootloose (1984)
When teenager Ren and his family move from big-city Chicago to a small town in the West, he's in for a real case of culture shock after discovering he's living in a place where music and dancing are illegal.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNirvana: Live at the Paramount (2011)
Recorded in Seattle, WA on Halloween Night, 1991, Live at the Paramount is the only known Nirvana live show recorded on 16mm film. Now released to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the release of Nirvana's watershed album.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisNude (2017)
NUDE explores perceptions of nudity in art by chronicling the creative process of photographer David Bellemere as he's commissioned by NU Muses founder Steve Shaw to shoot a fine art calendar of nude photographs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisFlashdance (1983)
Alex Owens, a young woman juggling between two odd jobs, aspires to become a successful ballet dancer. Nick, who is her boss and lover, supports and encourages her to fulfil her dream.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEl Cantante (2006)
The rise and fall of salsa singer, Héctor Lavoe (1946-1993), as told from the perspective of his wife Puchi, who looks back from 2002.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLupin the Third: Tokyo Crisis (1998)
Lupin's plans to intercept two old glass photographic plates from being delivered to a mysterious art dealer named Mr. Suzuki misfires, and it doesn't help matters that Goemon and Jigen are suffering from... efficiency problems. Meanwhile, Inspector Zenigata has a new tag-along in the Lupin chase: the beautiful young reporter Maria. But what is Maria's connection to the mysterious Mr. Suzuki?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHoney 3: Dare to Dance (2016)
While attending college in Cape Town, Melea Martin feels constrained by the school's strict policies, and decides to set out on her own. Searching for a way to use her talents as a dancer and inspire the community around her, Melea rents a failing theater in order to put on a Hip-Hop Romeo and Juliet performance. But much like the Capulets and Montagues, conflicts between cast members threaten to bring the whole performance to a halt...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Love to Singa (1936)
A stern classical music teacher becomes a father of four musically-inclined sons, but when one of them demonstrates a preference for jazz music, his father kicks him out of the house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDance with Me (2019)
Suzuki Shizuka is an office lady at a conglomerate who is hypnotized at a local amusement park and left under the spell. Now she is compelled to sing and dance whenever she hears any melody whatsoever. She heads back to the hypnotist for relief, but he is nowhere to be found. So Shizuka sets off on a journey around Japan to find him and break the spell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFlamingo Road (1949)
A stranded carnival dancer takes on a corrupt political boss when she marries into small-town society.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeyond the Mat (1999)
A heartfelt documentary focusing on the day-to-day lives of professional wrestlers, some on the rise, some on the wane, and others fighting for their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLimelight (1952)
A fading music hall comedian tries to help a despondent ballet dancer learn to walk and to again feel confident about life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSalomé (2013)
After the lewd and frenetic Dance of the Seven Veils, and with the solemn pledge from the very lips of Herod himself that she could have whatever her heart desires up to half his kingdom, wanton and proud young Salomé comes before her king with an unreasonable demand. Beguiled by John the Baptist, and then scorned for the sake of his god, lascivious Salomé—encouraged by her mother, the vindictive, Herodias—commands that John be executed and his head delivered on a silver platter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGenius Party Beyond (2008)
Five stories, five maestros, five styles and one common denominator: maximum creativity. Studio 4°C, the coolest label on the planet, invites us for the second time to an exclusive reunion of a talents with a group film, full of freedom and ingenuity, that goes from Mahiro Maeda's classic anime, to Kazuto Nakazawa's intricate urban sketches, Shinya Ohira's bedlam of color and Tatsuyuki Tanaka's animated cyberpunk. And as if that wasn't enough, Koji Morimoto, the studio big boss, is charge of putting the icing on the cake with fantafabulous piece of abstract poetry that would make a VJ die of ecstasy. The party of the year.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe American (2023)
American ballet dancer Joy Womack is accepted into Moscow's infamously tough Bolshoi Ballet Academy, with the dream of becoming a great ballerina.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisArlo the Alligator Boy (2021)
Upon learning that he is from New York City, a wide-eyed boy, who is half human and half alligator, decides to leave his sheltered life in the swamp and search for his long lost father. A musical adventure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove & Pop (1998)
Tokyo schoolgirl Hiromi and her friends engage in a practice known as enjo kosai, or "compensated dating", where older men pay young girls for dates. Hiromi plunges deeper into this world to raise money for an expensive ring.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPompo the Cinephile (2021)
Operating out of the movie capital "Nyallywood," Pompo has been shooting one B-grade entertainment flick after another that anyone would enjoy. One day, Pompo's "movie buff" assistant Gene spots a new script written by Pompo and is moved by its exquisite story. In a fit of passion, he proclaims, "I want to see this as a finished work in theaters as soon as possible!" However, Pompo tells him, "So you shoot this film." Thus, Gene takes on his first directing gig. Meanwhile, Natalie, an ordinary girl who just arrived in town with movie actress dreams, has been discovered by Pompo...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFunny Face (1957)
A shy Greenwich Village book clerk is discovered by a fashion photographer and whisked off to Paris where she becomes a reluctant model.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTaken Too Far (2017)
A jealous dance mom takes extreme measures to ensure her daughter wins a scholarship to an exclusive dance academy. But the victim's mother will do whatever necessary to protect her own daughter from the rival mom's evil scheme.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
National Gallery (2014)
A portrait of the day-to-day operations of the National Gallery of London, that reveals the role of the employees and the experiences of the Gallery's visitors. The film portrays the role of the curators and conservators; the education, scientific, and conservation departments; and the audience of all kinds of people who come to experience it.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDesert Dancer (2014)
Inspirational true story of Iranian dancer Afshin Ghaffarian, who risked his life for his dream to become a dancer despite a nationwide dancing ban.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Irreplaceables: Dance Movie (2019)
Join Dance Moms stars, Kendall Vertes, Chloe Lukasiak, and Kalani Hilliker as they perform on The Irreplaceables Tour. Watch along as the girls tour around Peru and perform their world-famous dances for eager fans.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Antonio Gades, la ética de la danza (2007)
Documentary that reconstructs the professional life of the dancer through the thread of his own voice. A work that travels to the fundamental landscapes of the personal history of Gades with unpublished documents and the testimony of those who shared with him many pages of the book of his life and the history of Spanish dance in recent decades.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Breaking Legs (2017)
It's 'Footloose' meets 'Mean Girls' as high school freshman Bloom moves to a town where there's no place to dance - except the school dance team! But when the boyfriend of the team's lead girl falls for her, she'll have to fight to win her place amongst these venomous girls. Breaking Legs is sure one to kick your boots off and pull up your heels, as these kids dance the field away to compete for the homecoming crown at R. Murray High School. Will it be newbie Bloom, or her arch nemesis and Dance Team leader, Harmony? Watch as the two square off in this fun but odd match to the finish. Someone is doomed to 'Break a Leg' on the dance floor, or rather, the football field!
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Different (2004)
In the homogenous world of Liberty High School, Justin Meyers has a dark secret: he's straight. In this parallel universe where gay is the norm, Homecoming is only day's away. Bobby, the most popular guy in school, wants Justin to be his date. But will Joanne, a quiet beauty from Biology class, out Justin's true feelings before the dance?
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Ballerina Boys (2021)
Discover Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo (The Trocks), an all-male company that for 45 years has offered audiences their passion for ballet classics mixed with exuberant comedy. With every step they poke fun at their strictly gendered art form.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Sweet Cherries Ahead (2026)
While hitchhiking through the countryside two girls, Dove and Helen, are drawn into a mysterious and unsettling underground world. What begins as a search for freedom spirals into a nightmare descent where trust fractures, reality blurs, and survival demands hard choices.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Busby Berkeley: A Journey with a Star (2007)
Profile of famed dance director Busby Berkeley's career, in particular "The Gang's All Here"
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Navel and A-Bomb?
The closest matches to Navel and A-Bomb are Anima (2019), Footloose (1984) and Nirvana: Live at the Paramount (2011). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Navel and A-Bomb?
Start with Anima (2019), the closest match to Navel and A-Bomb.
What is the highest-rated movie like Navel and A-Bomb?
Limelight (1952), rated 7.9/10 by 627 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Navel and A-Bomb?
Sweet Cherries Ahead (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Navel and A-Bomb?
Yes: Lupin the Third: Tokyo Crisis (1998), Dance with Me (2019) and Genius Party Beyond (2008).
How are movies similar to Navel and A-Bomb chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Navel and A-Bomb, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.