Movies like Light Years (2013)
The best movies like Light Years (2013) are Hot Milk (2025), Saint Catherine (2024) and Fatima (2020). If Light Years hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDescendants 2 (2017)7.4/10 from 1,842 votes
- NewestHot Milk (2025)Released 2025
- In SpanishSchoolgirls (2020)Also in Spanish
Hot Milk (2025)
Rose and her daughter Sofia travel to the Spanish seaside town of Almería to consult with the shamanic Dr. Gomez, a physician who could possibly hold the cure to Rose’s mystery illness, which has left her bound to a wheelchair. But in the sultry atmosphere of this sun-bleached town Sofia, who has been trapped by her mother’s illness all her life, finally starts to shed her inhibitions, enticed by the persuasive charms of enigmatic traveller Ingrid.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisSaint Catherine (2024)
An orphaned girl is rescued from a satanic ritual and taken to Saint Catherine Institute for homeless youth. There she will learn new skills while facing demons that stalk her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFatima (2020)
In 1917, outside the parish of Fátima, Portugal, a 10-year-old girl and her two younger cousins witness multiple visitations of the Virgin Mary, who tells them that only prayer and suffering will bring an end to World War I. As secularist government officials and Church leaders try to force the children to recant their story, word of the sighting spreads across the country, inspiring religious pilgrims to flock to the site in hopes of witnessing a miracle..
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTwins of Evil (1971)
While dabbling in Satanism, Count Karstein resurrects Mircalla Karnstein who initiates him into vampirism. As a rash of deaths afflicts the village, Gustav the head of Puritan group leads his men to seek out and destroy the pestilence. One of his twin nieces has become inflicted with the witchcraft but Gustav's zeal and venom has trapped the innocent Maria, threatening her with a tortuous execution, whilst Frieda remains free to continue her orgy of evil.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSchoolgirls (2020)
In early 1990s Spain, eleven-year-old Celia lives with her mother and studies at a convent school in Zaragoza. When Brisa, a confident new classmate from Barcelona, arrives, Celia is drawn into a world that challenges the strict religious teachings and sheltered life she has known. Their friendship pushes her to confront hidden truths at home and the uncertainties of adolescence, leading her to explore questions of identity, independence, and belonging.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998)
Through good times and bad, Stella and Delilah have always had each other. Now, Stella's so busy building a life that she's forgotten how to really live. But Delilah is about to change all that. What starts as a quick trip to Jamaica, ends as an exhilarating voyage of self discovery as Stella learns to open her heart and find love – even if it's with a man 20 years her junior.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisReturn to Nim's Island (2013)
Fourteen year old Nim, more determined than ever to protect her island and all the wildlife that call it home, faces off against resort developers and animal poachers. Soon she realizes she can’t depend on her animal cohorts alone and must make her first human friend – Edmund, who’s run away to the island from the mainland – to save her home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies 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
SnoozefestMovies like thisLuciferina (2018)
After receiving bad news, Natalia, a young novice, returns home, where her sister Ángela asks her to travel with her and her friends to a mysterious place.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisDescendants 2 (2017)
When the pressure to be royal becomes too much for Mal, she returns to the Isle of the Lost where her archenemy Uma, Ursula's daughter, has taken her spot as self-proclaimed queen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLittle Women (1994)
Four sisters come of age in America in the aftermath of the Civil War.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMary Magdalene (2018)
In the first century, free-spirited Mary Magdalene flees the marriage her family has arranged for her, finding refuge and a sense of purpose in a radical new movement led by the charismatic, rabble-rousing preacher named Jesus.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParadise (1982)
After their caravan is attacked and their respective families butchered by Arab marauders, teenagers David and Sarah flee across the desert. But the desert is filled with danger from the elements, animals and the unwholesome appetite of the Jackal, a sheik who wants Sarah for himself. However, the desert also holds temptation and love. David and Sarah hide out in an oasis and build a life for themselves, discovering each other in new ways.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Black Swan (1942)
When notorious pirate Henry Morgan is made governor of Jamaica, he enlists the help of some of his former partners in ridding the Caribbean of buccaneers. When one of them apparently abducts the previous governor's pretty daughter and joins up with the rebels, things are set for a fight.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDespite Everything (2019)
Sara, Lucía, Sofía and Claudia are sisters, 4 modern women with very different personalities, who come together at their mother's funeral, after which they discover the man they've all called "dad" throughout their lives is not really their father. They embark on a quest to discover who their real fathers are, discovering more about themselves, their mother, and their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrue Spirit (2023)
When the tenacious young sailor Jessica Watson sets out to be the youngest person to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the world, many expect her to fail. With the support of her sailing coach and mentor Ben Bryant and her parents, Jessica is determined to accomplish what was thought to be impossible, navigating some of the world’s most challenging stretches of ocean over the course of 210 days.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisResurrected (2023)
In a dystopian future, the Vatican knows how to resurrect people. A priest discovers a conspiracy behind the resurrections and their possible link to a series of murders.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSnow White and Her 7 Lovers (1980)
An undercover policewoman tracks seven escaped convicts to the deserted island where they've set up a camp.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSmall Things Like These (2024)
In 1985, while working as a coal merchant to support his family, Bill Furlong discovers disturbing secrets kept by the local convent and uncovers truths of his own; forcing him to confront his past and the complicit silence of a small Irish town controlled by the Catholic Church.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this12 Feet Deep (2018)
Two sisters are trapped under the fiberglass cover of an Olympic sized public pool and must brave the cold and each other to survive the harrowing night.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbout the Living (2001)
A Mexican upper-class family suffers a great loss. After a while everyone seems to go on with their lives. But after 11 years, everyone will start to remember that tragedy and start the road to depression and self-pity, and possible self-destruction.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
De ida y vuelta (2001)
After working for three years in the USA, Filiberto returns to his home town in Mexico. A proud man, he is searching for the recognition that will give him a new position in life. However, he finds that things have changed. His mother is dead, and Luis, his best friend, is married to his ex-girlfriend. Filiberto gets involved in the town’s disputes over a water spring.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Seven Moments (2008)
Is the story of women that were guerrilleras in Uruguay at the beginning of the 70's. Under an intimate focus, the film shows the moments of decision and the personal crossroads that it involve. The documentary search the experience and the look of common individuals in exceptional situations and goes to the bottom of the load of tensions, fears, contradictions and personal costs that those labor instants of the History have.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
1973 (2006)
“1973” Is the tale on the life of three people who were born in Mexico City in the year of 1973, it starts since their first memory until today. The three of them want to be someone they can’t achieve, they share the dream of running away from the city, but finally they fail and find three different ways of personal destruction.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Pulque Song (2003)
Portrait of daily life and its inhabitants at the pulquería “La Pirata”. A homage to all those who drink pulque, to ranchera music, to the “barrio” and to pulque.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Pachito Rex: I'm Leaving but Not for Good (2001)
The attack on a popular singer known as Pachito -who becomes the favorite candidate to win the presidential election in an imaginary Latin American country- is the starting point of several stories, including: the alleged murderer, a police officer investigating the disappearance of the murdered body and an architect hired to design the mausoleum to the memory of the possible dictator.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Carina (2014)
Carina is 8 and likes rock & roll. Her life changes completely when she believes that her new teacher is the same woman she saw in a her father’s erotic magazine.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Esta canción de amor es para Fátima (2014)
Domingo is in love with his classmate, Fatima. To conquer her, he is determined to buy a mp3 player; a difficult task in the middle of Mexico´s Zapotec mountain side. On his quest he meets 'Charal', an alcoholic homeless man that decides to help him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Desterrados (2014)
Andrés returns home on the occasion of his mother’s death. As he is reunited with his family, he discovers a new conflict which, once revealed, will force him to decide if he will stay and face it or run away again in order to save himself.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Sleepwalker (2014)
Simón, Jorgito and Paula, do nothing but wait for a hard breakup to end to get on with their lives. Paula’s ex-husband wants to come back home, but something opens their eyes to a brand new day.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Like Light Years and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Light Years?
The closest matches to Light Years are Hot Milk (2025), Saint Catherine (2024) and Fatima (2020). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Light Years?
Start with Hot Milk (2025), the closest match to Light Years.
What is the highest-rated movie like Light Years?
Descendants 2 (2017), rated 7.4/10 by 1,842 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Light Years?
Hot Milk (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like Light Years?
Yes: Schoolgirls (2020), Luciferina (2018) and Despite Everything (2019).
How are movies similar to Light Years chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Light Years, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.