Movies like Little Friends (1954)
The best movies like Little Friends (1954) are A Million Minutes (2024), Heidi (2005) and Skater Girl (2021). If Little Friends hooked you with its drama and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks
- Highest ratedMagnolia (1999)7.7/10 from 4,232 votes
- NewestA Million Minutes (2024)Released 2024
- In GermanA Million Minutes (2024)Also in German
A Million Minutes (2024)
Vera and Wolf Küper live in Berlin with their 5-year-old daughter Nina and their one-year-old son Simon. Vera takes care of the children and the household alongside a part-time job, while Wolf works as a scientific advisor to the UN, trying to raise awareness of the seriousness of the coming climate catastrophe. The stressful everyday life in a system that is not exactly family-friendly puts increasing strain on the young family and the couple's relationship. The Küper family's way of life is finally shaken to the core when little Nina is diagnosed with a fine motor and coordination disorder. At this moment, Wolf remembers a wish that his daughter expressed shortly before going to bed. Nina would like to have a million minutes, just for the really nice things.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeidi (2005)
Swiss girl Adelheid 'Heidi' is orphaned young. Aunt Detie brings her to grandpa Alp and his wife, who live isolated in the Alps since his murder charge. Heidi soon takes to the wild country, especially accompanying young goatherd Peter. Grandpa refuses to send her to school in the city, but aunt Detie returns and forces him to give in. She's sent to a posh lady in Frankfurt, where she'll be a companion for crippled daughter Clara after school hours.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSkater Girl (2021)
Prerna, a teenager growing up in rural India, comes of age when she’s introduced to the sport of skateboarding. As a result, she has to fight the odds to follow her dreams and compete in the national championship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhere the Red Fern Grows (1974)
Billy Coleman works hard and saves his earnings for two years to achieve his dream of buying two red-bone coonhound pups. He develops a new trust in life as he faces overwhelming challenges in adventure and tragedy roaming the river bottoms of Cherokee country with his dogs, Old Dan and Little Ann.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhere the Red Fern Grows (2003)
Set in the Ozark Mountains during the Great Depression, Billy Coleman works hard and saves his earnings for 2 years to achieve his dream of buying two coonhound pups. He develops a new trust in God as he faces overwhelming challenges in adventure and tragedy roaming the river bottoms of Cherokee country with "Old Dan" and "Little Ann."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnne of Green Gables (2016)
Anne Shirley, an orphan, is fostered by farmer Matthew Cuthbert and his sister Marilla, who were expecting a boy to be sent them to help with their farm work. They accept Anne, who quickly endears herself to them and to the local villagers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisI Believe (2019)
A 9 year old boy experiences God's power in a supernatural way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGreyfriars Bobby (1961)
In Scotland 1865, An old shepherd and his little Skye terrier go to Edinburgh. But when the shepherd dies of pneumonia, the dog remains faithful to his master, refuses to be adopted by anyone, and takes to sleeping on his master's grave in the Greyfriars kirkyard, despite a caretaker with a "no dogs" rule. And when Bobby is taken up for being unlicensed, it's up to the children of Edinburgh and the Lord Provost to decide what's to be done.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBallet Shoes (2008)
An unusual explorer named Gum and his kindly niece adopt three orphans -- Pauline, Petrova and Posy -- and raise them as sisters in 1930s London. But the girls must fend for themselves when Gum doesn't return from one of his adventures. Together, they nurture their passions for acting, aviation and ballet in this charming TV adaptation of Noel Streatfield's novel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhen We Leave (2010)
Umay is a young woman of Turkish descent, fighting for an independent and self-determined life in Germany against the resistance of her family. Her struggle initiates a dynamic, which results in a life-threatening situation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Lord Fauntleroy (1980)
Young Cedric Errol and his widowed mother live in genteel poverty in 1880s Brooklyn after the death of his father. Cedric's grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt, has long ago disowned his son for marrying an American. But after the death of the Earl's remaining son, he decides to accept Cedric as his heir.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Little Princess (1939)
A little girl goes in search of her father who is reported missing by the military during the Second Boer War.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Good Witch's Destiny (2013)
As Cassie's birthday approaches, Lori discovers disturbing parallels between Cassie and her great aunt, who disappeared years before on her birthday. When signs of a curse appear, Cassie conjures up a little magic to make things right again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Second Chance (2011)
A young girl and her coach overcome adversity to make their way into the National Australian Gymnastics Squad.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Second Chance: Rivals! (2019)
As Maddy takes on coaching a team of young twelve-year-old gymnasts, she faces up to intense city versus country rivalry, racism, cyberbullying and her own self-doubt but eventually takes the challenge head on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHeidi (2015)
Heidi, is an eight-year-old Swiss orphan who is given by her aunt to her mountain-dwelling grandfather. She is then stolen back by her aunt from her grandfather to live in the wealthy Sesemann household in Frankfurt, Germany as a companion to Klara, a sheltered, disabled girl in a wheelchair. Heidi is unhappy but makes the best of the situation, always longing for her grandfather.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFlicka (2006)
Katy McLaughlin desires to work on her family's mountainside horse ranch, although her father insists she finish boarding school. Katy finds a mustang in the hills near her ranch. The headstrong 16 year old then sets her mind to tame a mustang and prove to her father she can run the ranch. But when tragedy happens, it will take all the love and strength the family can muster to restore hope.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFlicka: Country Pride (2012)
Flicka and Toby help out a struggling stable owner and her teenage daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVitus (2006)
Vitus tells the story of a highly-gifted boy (played by real-life piano prodigy Teo Gheorghiu) whose parents have demanding and ambitious plans for him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking (1988)
After her father's ship is carried off by a sudden storm, the spunky Pippi Longstocking is stranded with her horse, Alfonso,and her pet monkey, Mr. Neilson, and takes up residence in the old family home, which is thought by neighborhood children to be haunted. Soon, two children, Tommy and his sister Anika, venture into the house only to meet up with Pippi. The three soon become friends and get into various adventures together, including cleaning the floor with scrubbing shoes, dodging the "splunks", going down a waterfall in barrels, and helping Pippi with the problem of having to go to an orphanage. Older children will probably get the most out of this movie.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family
SnoozefestMovies like thisBuddy (1997)
In the 1930s, eccentric animal lover Trudy adopts a sickly baby gorilla named Buddy and raises him alongside chimpanzees as if they were her human children. As Buddy grows into an 800-pound adult, his immense strength and unpredictable behavior lead to trouble, culminating in a chaotic incident at an exhibition.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisAnnie (1982)
An orphan in a facility run by the mean Miss Hannigan, Annie believes that her parents left her there by mistake. When a rich man named Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks decides to let an orphan live at his home to promote his image, Annie is selected. While Annie gets accustomed to living in Warbucks' mansion, she still longs to meet her parents. So Warbucks announces a search for them and a reward, which brings out many frauds.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFree Willy (1993)
When maladjusted orphan Jesse vandalizes a theme park, he is placed with foster parents and must work at the park to make amends. There he meets Willy, a young Orca whale who has been separated from his family. Sensing kinship, they form a bond and, with the help of kindly whale trainer Rae Lindley, develop a routine of tricks. However, greedy park owner Dial soon catches wind of the duo and makes plans to profit from them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Circus Kid (1928)
In 'The Circus Kid', Buddy, an orphan who runs away from a a harsh orphanage, joins Cadwallader's Circus.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family & drama
Chain Kulii Ki Main Kulii (2007)
An orphan boy with dreams of finding a family and fame as a cricketer, finds a bat with magical powers and lands a spot in the Indian cricket team.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & family
Brute (1997)
Shipped off to a Romanian orphanage to finish his sentence, a British criminal finds romance but also discovers corruption inside the facility.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Magnolia (1999)
On one random day in the San Fernando Valley, a dying father, a young wife, a male caretaker, a famous lost son, a police officer in love, a boy genius, an ex-boy genius, a game show host and an estranged daughter will each become part of a dazzling multiplicity of plots, but one story.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChop Shop (2008)
Alejandro, a tough and ambitious Latino street orphan on the verge of adolescence, lives and works in an auto-body repair shop in a sprawling junkyard on the outskirts of Queens, New York. In this chaotic world of adults, young Alejandro struggles to make a better life for himself and his 16-year-old sister, Isamar.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJohnny (2003)
A martial arts coach struggles to earn money through fights in order to save his wife suffering from blood cancer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Another Cinderella Story (2008)
A guy who danced with what could be the girl of his dreams at a costume ball only has one hint at her identity: the Zune she left behind as she rushed home in order to make her curfew. And with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in front of him, he sets out to find his masked beauty.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Worth the HypeMovies like this
Like Little Friends and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Little Friends?
The closest matches to Little Friends are A Million Minutes (2024), Heidi (2005) and Skater Girl (2021). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Little Friends?
Start with A Million Minutes (2024), the closest match to Little Friends.
What is the highest-rated movie like Little Friends?
Magnolia (1999), rated 7.7/10 by 4,232 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Little Friends?
A Million Minutes (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there German movies like Little Friends?
Yes: A Million Minutes (2024), When We Leave (2010) and Heidi (2015).
How are movies similar to Little Friends chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Little Friends, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.





























