Movies like Style Wars (1984)
The best movies like Style Wars (1984) are The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988), Milli Vanilli (2023) and Matangi / Maya / M.I.A. (2018). If Style Wars hooked you with its music and documentary, these 27 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedStraight Outta Compton (2015)7.8/10 from 4,361 votes
- NewestL’Anonyme (2025)Released 2025
The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988)
An exploration of the heavy metal scene in Los Angeles, with particular emphasis on glam metal. It features concert footage and interviews of legendary heavy metal and hard rock bands and artists such as Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Kiss, Megadeth, Motörhead, Ozzy Osbourne and W.A.S.P..
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMilli Vanilli (2023)
The story of Robert Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, who became fast friends during their youth in Germany. With Rob coming from a broken home and Fabrice having left an abusive household, they shared a similar upbringing, as well as a future goal: to become famous superstars. In a few short years, their dreams came true. Rob and Fab, better known as Milli Vanilli, became the world's most popular pop duo in 1990 and won the GRAMMY for Best New Artist. However, their ascension to success came with a devastating price that ultimately led to their infamous undoing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both music & documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMatangi / Maya / M.I.A. (2018)
Drawn from a never before seen cache of personal footage spanning decades, this is an intimate portrait of the Sri Lankan artist and musician who continues to shatter conventions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both music & documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOne More Time with Feeling (2016)
Andrew Dominik's One More Time With Feeling is a remarkable black and white documentary which chronicles the creation of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds' album Skeleton Tree. Originally a performance based concept, the film evolved into something much more significant as Dominik delved into the tragic backdrop of the writing and recording of the album. The result is stark, fragile and raw, and a true testament to an artist trying to find his way through the darkness. It documents the writing, recording and performing of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ sixteenth studio album, Skeleton Tree.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & music
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWoodstock: Three Days That Defined a Generation (2019)
50 years after the legendary fest, Barak Goodman’s electric retelling of Woodstock, from the point of view of those who were on the ground, evokes the freedom, passion, community, and joy the three-day music festival created.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both music & documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHated: GG Allin and The Murder Junkies (1993)
An overview of the life of the most shocking, vile, and notorious of punk rock legends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDig! (2004)
A documentary on the once promising American rock bands The Brian Jonestown Massacre and The Dandy Warhols. The friendship between respective founders, Anton Newcombe and Courtney Taylor, escalated into bitter rivalry as the Dandy Warhols garnered major international success while the Brian Jonestown Massacre imploded in a haze of drugs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe New York Hardcore Chronicles Film (2017)
Director Drew Stone’s The New York Hardcore Chronicles Film is an incredible journey through the community and culture of the iconic New York hardcore scene. Not the typical history of a local music scene but so much more. Shot in an episodic format, the film contains over 60 interviews, never before seen footage, photos and a blazing soundtrack. With appearances by Roger Miret & Vinnie Stigma (Agnostic Front), Lou Koller, Craig Setari (Sick Of It All), Ray Cappo (Youth Of Today), Billy Graziadei (Biohazard), Billy Milano (S.O.D. / M.O.D.) and Mike Judge (Judge). The film addresses the community, culture, straight edge and DIY ethic of the hardcore scene in the greatest city in the world that is still vibrant, relevant and going strong to this day.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary & music
Don't Call It Road Rap - A Noisey Film (2017)
After 'Skepta: Top Boy' and 'Noisey Blackpool' comes our latest UK documentary - Don’t Call It Road Rap hosted by legend of UK music, Mike Skinner. 'Don’t Call It Road Rap' was filmed around London over a year, investigating the explosion of UK rap and follows some of the most important MCs as they try to focus on music and keep their lives on a positive track. The film features the likes of Section Boyz, C Biz, 67, Corleone, Potter Payper and Skore Beezy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary & music
Shine a Light (2008)
Martin Scorsese’s electrifying concert documentary captures The Rolling Stones live at New York’s Beacon Theatre during their A Bigger Bang tour. Filmed over two nights in 2006 with an all-star team of cinematographers, the film combines dynamic performances with archival footage and rare glimpses behind the scenes, offering a vibrant portrait of the band’s enduring energy and legacy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeath Metal Murders (2005)
Murder, rape, satanism and necrophilia is the staple diet of millions of teenagers who listen to the lyrics of extreme heavy metal music. This World investigates the potential links between "death metal" and a series of gruesome crimes around the world. In Italy a group of young death metal fans formed a satanic cult called the Beasts of Satan. At least four gruesome killings resulted. But death metal musicians deny that they have any responsibility for the actions of people who profess to be their fans. With exclusive access to the families, one of the killers and graphic police footage, the film tells the inside story for the first time. We hear from the musicians, the children and the parents from Oslo to California and ask just how far can music go in its ability to shock, and just how damaging might it be?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary & music
View on Boulevard, New York City (1896)
Taken in 1896 on the Boulevard (upper Broadway) on the occasion of a bicycle parade in the heyday of the wheeling craze. Old-fashioned horse cars lend interest to the scene.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
VERZUZ: The LOX vs. Dipset (2021)
The two heavyweight crews battle for Big Apple rap supremacy in an entertaining match-up that features questionable fits, merciless trash talk, proficient freestyling, the art of DJing, iced out chains, beach chairs and much more. In one night, an entire spiritual experience live from the Theater at Madison Square Garden and ultimately, a win for all of New York.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Hair (1979)
Upon receiving his draft notice and leaving his family ranch in Oklahoma, Claude heads to New York and befriends a tribe of long-haired hippies on his way to boot camp.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Worth the HypeMovies like thisArt as a Weapon (2014)
Street art, creativity and revolution collide in this beautifully shot film about art’s ability to create change. The story opens on the politically charged Thailand/Burma border at the first school teaching street art as a form of non-violent struggle. The film follows two young girls (Romi & Yi-Yi) who have escaped 50 years of civil war in Burma to pursue an arts education in Thailand. Under the threat of imprisonment and torture, the girls use spray paint and stencils to create images in public spaces to let people know the truth behind Burma's transition toward "artificial democracy." Eighty-two hundred miles away, artist Shepard Fairey is painting a 30’ mural of a Burmese monk for the same reasons and in support of the students' struggle in Burma. As these stories are inter-cut, the film connects these seemingly unrelated characters around the concept of using art as a weapon for change.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Abraham Obama (2009)
Artist Ron English travels across the country illegally putting up artwork of President Obama and Abraham Lincoln merged together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Straight Outta Compton (2015)
In 1987, five young men, using brutally honest rhymes and hardcore beats, put their frustration and anger about life in the most dangerous place in America into the most powerful weapon they had: their music. Taking us back to where it all began, Straight Outta Compton tells the true story of how these cultural rebels—armed only with their lyrics, swagger, bravado and raw talent—stood up to the authorities that meant to keep them down and formed the world’s most dangerous group, N.W.A. And as they spoke the truth that no one had before and exposed life in the hood, their voice ignited a social revolution that is still reverberating today.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBolletjes Blues (2006)
Spike, an aspiring rapper, gets sucked into a criminal environment and ends up in jail for smuggling drugs.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Paint Until Dawn: a documentary on art in the life of James Gahagan (2020)
Seeing is to painting what listening is to politics. Survival as an artist demands both. Paint Until Dawn is a documentary on art in the life of James Gahagan (1927-1999), who painted all night to push the limits of vision. His life and thought reveal a correlation between art and activism through an interesting angle: the creative process itself.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The 1969 World Series: New York Mets vs. Baltimore Orioles (1969)
Recalls the story of Major League Baseball’s 1969 World Series.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Days of Black and Yellow (2019)
New York cab and black car drivers are facing economic and emotional hardship in a city dominated by ride-share apps. As these long standing industries are decimated by economic and political forces, drivers are forced to cope or fight back.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down (2008)
Kermit the Frog sings "New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down" in New York City.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Berlin Utopiekadaver (2024)
A taxi drives through the city of Berlin. Its driver is a punk, left and a well-known figure in the autonomous scene. The stations of his trip are the most important places of the autonomous scene: all in the struggle for survival. The last evictions have not yet been processed and the next ones are coming right up.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Max Gimblett: Original Mind (2017)
Max Gimblett: Original Mind documents the life and process of eccentric, creative genius Max Gimblett. One of New Zealand’s most successful and internationally prominent living painters, Gimblett has been working in America since 1962. The filmmakers spent a week in Gimblett’s Soho loft where he and his devoted studio assistants generously revealed the techniques and philosophy behind his beautiful art.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
L’Anonyme (2025)
The life of a young man who is passionate about music (rap) and the problems of his family accepting what he wants to be.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both music
Like Style Wars and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Style Wars?
The closest matches to Style Wars are The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988), Milli Vanilli (2023) and Matangi / Maya / M.I.A. (2018). Below are 24 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Style Wars?
Start with The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988), the closest match to Style Wars.
What is the highest-rated movie like Style Wars?
Straight Outta Compton (2015), rated 7.8/10 by 4,361 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Style Wars?
L’Anonyme (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Style Wars?
Yes: The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988), Milli Vanilli (2023) and Matangi / Maya / M.I.A. (2018).
How are movies similar to Style Wars chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Style Wars, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.