Movies like School of Thought (2008)
The best movies like School of Thought (2008) are Summer School (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989) and Old Boys (2018). If School of Thought hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDead Poets Society (1989)8.3/10 from 13,177 votes
- NewestBad Apples (2026)Released 2026
Summer School (1987)
A high-school gym teacher has big plans for the summer, but is forced to cancel them to teach a "bonehead" English class for misfit goof-off students. Fortunately, his unconventional brand of teaching fun field trips begins to connect with them, and even inspires ardor in some.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDead Poets Society (1989)
At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his students to rebel against convention and seize the potential of every day, courting the disdain of the stern headmaster.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisOld Boys (2018)
In the school-set re-working of Cyrano, an awkward but imaginative pupil helps the handsome but spectacularly dim school-hero pursue the fiery daughter of a visiting French teacher.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeyond the Blackboard (2011)
Inspired by a true story, “Beyond the Blackboard” is about a 24-year-old first-time teacher who makes a difference in the lives of the homeless children she teaches in a shelter’s makeshift classroom. Set in 1987 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, this movie tells the story a brand-new teacher and Mom who is given a tougher than expected teaching job and winds up teaching homeless children in a school that is housed in a room and called, literally, The School with No Name. She has some personal prejudicial hurdles to cross before she is able to be a true teacher for these children and of course there are hurdles like the lack of books and supplies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMolly Maxwell (2013)
At Phoenix Progressive School, students take notes lying on parlor couches and are encouraged to explore their gifts through electives like break-dancing and graphic-novel writing. In the midst of all this liberal pedagogy and budding talent, Molly Maxwell feels unexceptional, until she falls for her attractive English teacher, Ben.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGoodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)
Academy Award-honoree Peter O'Toole stars in this musical classic about a prim English schoolmaster who learns to show his compassion through the help of an outgoing showgirl. O'Toole, who received his fourth Oscar-nomination for this performance, is joined by '60s pop star Petula Clark and fellow Oscar-nominee Michael Redgrave.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBad Apples (2026)
A struggling primary school teacher is forced to take drastic action because of a foul-mouthed, violent student, and uncovers how her community will turn a blind eye to the most outrageous events to preserve harmony and their sense of safety.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Color of Rain (2014)
After cancer claims Matt Kell's life on Christmas Day 2005, his widow, Gina and two young boys are left to cope with the pain of his loss while their close church community gathers around them for support.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFallen (2016)
Lucinda Price is sent to a reform academy under the assumption that she has killed a boy. There, she meets two mysterious boys, Cam and Daniel, to whom she feels drawn to both. But as the love triangle unfurls, it is Daniel that Luce cannot keep herself away from, and things begin to take a darker turn when she finds out his true identity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Sheep (1996)
When dignified Albert Donnelly runs for Governor, his team moves to keep his slow-witted and klutzy younger brother, Mike, out of the eye of the media. To baby-sit Mike, the campaign assigns sarcastic Steve, who gets the experience of a lifetime when he tries to take Mike out of town during the election.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSnoopy Presents: Lucy's School (2022)
The Peanuts gang is anxious about starting at a new school in the fall, inspiring Lucy to start her own school instead. She soon learns that teaching isn't as easy as it sounds and that change can be a good thing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Sweet East (2023)
A picaresque journey through contemporary America, undertaken by a young woman granted access to the strange sects and cults that proliferate in this country by a series of gatekeepers eager to win her over.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOzzy: No Escape from Now (2025)
Ozzy Osbourne faces his identity and mortality after his world stops. Dealing with health issues and Parkinson's, he questions if he can perform again while music remains his life's cornerstone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisDavid Bowie: Five Years (2013)
Featuring a wealth of previously unseen archive, this film looks at how Bowie continually evolved: from Ziggy Stardust to the Soul Star of Young Americans, to the ‘Thin White Duke’. It explores his regeneration in Berlin with the critically acclaimed album Heroes, his triumph with Scary Monsters and his global success with Let’s Dance. With interviews with all his closest collaborators, David Bowie - Five Years presents a unique account of why Bowie has become an ‘icon of our times’.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Ron Clark Story (2006)
Passionate and innovative teacher Ron Clark leaves his small hometown to teach in one of Harlem's toughest schools. But to break through to the students, he must use unconventional methods, including his ground-breaking classroom rules, to help them reach their potential. Based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Invisible (2007)
After an attack leaves him in limbo -- invisible to the living and also near death -- a teenager discovers the only person who might be able help him is his attacker.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBilly Jack (1971)
A Euro-Indigenous American Ex-Green Beret hapkido expert saves wild horses from being slaughtered for dog food and helps protect a desert "freedom school" for runaways.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJessica Darling's It List (2016)
Jessica Darling – a smart, witty, opinionated girl heading into 7th grade – was never too concerned about where she'd fit in the middle school hierarchy. But before her first day of school, her older sister — the super popular Bethany, now in college—decides to help out by giving her the “It List”—a cheat sheet on how to navigate the middle school maze and rise to the top of the popularity chain. The instructions appear simple enough to follow, but, like life, nothing is as easy as it seems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisScooby Goes Hollywood (1979)
Shaggy and Scooby-Doo quit their Saturday morning TV series in pursuit of Hollywood stardom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like School of Thought?
The closest matches to School of Thought are Summer School (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989) and Old Boys (2018). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after School of Thought?
Start with Summer School (1987), the closest match to School of Thought.
What is the highest-rated movie like School of Thought?
Dead Poets Society (1989), rated 8.3/10 by 13,177 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like School of Thought?
Bad Apples (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like School of Thought?
Yes: Summer School (1987), Dead Poets Society (1989) and Old Boys (2018).
How are movies similar to School of Thought chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside School of Thought, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.