Movies like Vartha (1986)
The best movies like Vartha (1986) are Lucifer (2019), Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004) and Fast Girls (2012). If Vartha hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAn Adventure in Space and Time (2013)7.7/10 from 222 votes
- NewestEleanor the Great (2025)Released 2025
- In MalayalamLucifer (2019)Also in Malayalam
Lucifer (2019)
In God's own country, the supreme leader of the ruling party dies, leaving a huge vacuum, not only in the electoral and leadership sphere of the party but also that of the state. In the inevitable succession squabble and the power struggle that ensues, the thin line that separates good and bad becomes irrecoverably blurred and out of this seemingly endless mayhem, emerge forces that are hitherto unheard of.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBobby 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
SnoozefestMovies like thisFast Girls (2012)
A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe One That Got Away (1957)
Based on the true story of Oberleutnant Franz von Werra, the only German prisoner of war captured in Britain to escape back to Germany during the Second World War.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHungry Hearts (2015)
The relationship of a couple who meet by chance in New York City is put to the test when they encounter a life or death circumstance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBirth of the Dragon (2017)
Set against the backdrop of San Francisco’s Chinatown, this cross-cultural biopic chronicles Bruce Lee’s emergence as a martial-arts superstar after his legendary secret showdown with fellow martial artist Wong Jack Man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisEleanor 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 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
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe 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 thisThe Color of Friendship (2000)
Mahree Bok lives on a farm in South Africa. Her father is a policeman who cannot hide his joy when activist Steve Biko is caught by the South African authorities. Piper Dellums is the daughter of a US congressman from California and who lives in a nice home in Washington DC. When Mahree is chosen to spend a semester at the Dellums' house, she doesn't expect that her host family would be black. Nor do her hosts suspect that she is not a black South African.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJonathan (2018)
Jonathan is a young man with a strange condition that only his brother understands. But when he begins to yearn for a different life, their unique bond becomes increasingly tested.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisBattleground (1949)
Members of the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division are fighting for their country amidst the rugged terrain of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Holley and his American compatriots have already seen one of their own, Roderigues, perish under enemy fire. The men try to rebuff another series of Nazi attacks, but what they really need is a change in the weather. Without clear skies, they'll never get the air support they need.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWaiting for Anya (2020)
During the harrows of WWII, Jo, a young shepherd along with the help of the widow Horcada, helps to smuggle Jewish children across the border from southern France into Spain.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWon't Back Down (2012)
Jamie Fitzpatrick and Nona Alberts are two women from opposites sides of the social and economic track, but they have one thing in common: a mission to fix their community's broken school and ensure a bright future for their children. The two women refuse to let any obstacles stand in their way as they battle a bureaucracy that's hopelessly mired in traditional thinking, and they seek to re-energize a faculty that has lost its passion for teaching.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVanya on 42nd Street (1994)
An uninterrupted rehearsal of Chekhov's 'Uncle Vanya' plays out by a company of actors. The setting: their run-down theater with an unusable stage and crumbling ceiling. The play is shown act by act with the briefest of breaks to move props or for refreshments. The lack of costumes, real props and scenery is soon forgotten.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlood on the Sun (1945)
Nick Condon, an American journalist in 20s Tokyo, publishes the Japanese master plan for world domination. Reaction from the understandably upset Japanese provides the action, but this is overshadowed by the propaganda of the time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisAll Together Now (2020)
An optimistic, talented teen clings to a huge secret: she's homeless and living on a school bus. When tragedy strikes, can she learn to accept a helping hand?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHere (2024)
An odyssey through time and memory, centered on a place in New Jersey where—from wilderness, and then, later, from a home—love, loss, struggle, hope and legacy play out between couples and families over generations.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn Adventure in Space and Time (2013)
Actor William Hartnell felt trapped by a succession of hard-man roles while wannabe producer Verity Lambert was frustrated by the TV industry's glass ceiling. Both of them were to find unlikely hope and unexpected challenges in the form of a Saturday tea-time drama. Allied with a team of unusual but brilliant people, they went on to create the longest running science fiction series ever made.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHouse of Bamboo (1955)
Eddie Kenner is given a special assignment by the Army to get the inside story on Sandy Dawson, a former GI who has formed a gang of fellow servicemen and Japanese locals.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSindoora Sandhyakku Mounam (1982)
Siblings Deepthi and Ravi are separated after their parents' divorce. After many years, Deepthi faces many challenges when she goes in search of Ravi.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Saravarsham (1982)
Sumesh is depressed due to the fact that he is impotent and cannot have children. However, he learns that he has an illegitimate half-sister and soon tries to form a bond with her and her family.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Enthino Pookunna Pookal (1982)
Embedded with charged emotion and social relevance, this family-oriented relationship drama follows the fluctuating fortunes in the life of a beautiful young woman from an impoverished family, who is forced to become a maid in a wealthy household. When the owner's son gets her pregnant, she becomes ostracised by one and all. Will someone come to her rescue? How will her future unfold?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Postmortem (1982)
Post Mortem is a 1982 Indian Malayalam film, directed by J. Sasikumar and produced by Pushparajan. The film stars Prem Nazir, Mammootty, Sukumaran and Balan K Nair in lead roles.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Ahimsa (1981)
Talks about the Hindu-Muslim politics and conflicts in Kerala which are connected to some of the feudal lords who incite the tension.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Thrishna (1981)
The film tells the story of Das (Mammootty), who is a rich playboy and his relationships with his callgirl, Jaysree (Swapna) and his love interest, Sridevi (Rajyalakshmi).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Vilkkanundu Swapnangal (1980)
Rajgopal decides to go to Dubai as an illegal immigrant hoping to find a secure job. There, he makes friends with others who are in a similar position.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Vartha?
The closest matches to Vartha are Lucifer (2019), Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004) and Fast Girls (2012). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Vartha?
Start with Lucifer (2019), the closest match to Vartha.
What is the highest-rated movie like Vartha?
An Adventure in Space and Time (2013), rated 7.7/10 by 222 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Vartha?
Eleanor the Great (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Malayalam movies like Vartha?
Yes: Lucifer (2019), Ponnum Poovum (1982) and Sindoora Sandhyakku Mounam (1982).
How are movies similar to Vartha chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Vartha, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.