Movies like Candy Candy (1981)
The best movies like Candy Candy (1981) are Maria's Lovers (1984), Fire with Fire (1986) and Life in a Year (2020). If Candy Candy hooked you with its drama and romance, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks
- Highest ratedLife in a Year (2020)8.2/10 from 2,027 votes
- NewestLife in a Year (2020)Released 2020
- In KoreanUnforgettable (2016)Also in Korean
Maria's Lovers (1984)
A World War II prisoner returns home to his childhood sweetheart. However, back home, he discovers that he has to compete to win her love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFire with Fire (1986)
A tough, street-smart kid serving a sentence in a state youth reformatory meets a beautiful, innocent girl studying at a nearby convent. When forbidden love blossoms between them, they must fight the prison authorities, their parents and the law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLife in a Year (2020)
A 17 year old finds out that his girlfriend is dying, so he sets out to give her an entire life, in the last year she has left.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisUnforgettable (2016)
On a live music radio show, a letter arrives from twenty-three years in the past. Through the letter, the first love and friendships of five friends are revealed.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMan in Love (2014)
Tae-il lives a fast life as low level thug. He then learns that he has a terminal illness and not much time left to live. Then, for the first time in his life, he falls in love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlind (2017)
A novelist is blinded in a car crash that killed his wife and several years later rediscovers his passion for life and writing when he embarks on an affair with the neglected wife of an indicted businessman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTwo for the Seesaw (1962)
After leaving his wife, lawyer Jerry Ryan moves from Omaha, Nebraska to New York City to start a new life. While studying for the New York Bar Examination and working to finalize his divorce, Ryan meets dancer Gittel Mosca, and the two begin a cautious courtship. However, Ryan feels that he must come to terms with his failed marriage and overcome his lingering attachment to his ex-wife before he can redefine himself and embrace his budding romance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI'm in Love with a Church Girl (2013)
Miles Montego has it all - cars, boats, good looks, mansion, money, women, but more importantly, he has a past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisNot Easily Broken (2009)
A car accident and shifting affections test the bond between a married couple.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRacing with the Moon (1984)
In a small coastal California town, Henry and Nicky are pals from blue collar families with only a short time before they ship off to World War II. Henry begins romancing new-to-town Caddie Winger, believing her to be wealthy. Mischievous and irresponsible, Nicky gets into trouble which forces the other two to become involved, testing their relationship, as well as the friendship between the boys.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove Everlasting (2016)
Bridger is a young outsider who's always wanted more. He and his mother flee an abusive home, eventually finding a small town in the middle of nowhere. Once there, Bridger finds true acceptance with another misfit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Golden Bowl (2000)
Wealthy American widower Adam Verver and his daughter Maggie live a refined life in Europe, surrounded by art. Maggie marries impoverished Italian Prince Amerigo, while Adam marries Maggie's friend Charlotte Stant. The Prince and Charlotte are having an affair, which Maggie discovers and navigates through a silent, psychological battle of wills, ultimately using her cunning to preserve her marriage and protect her father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLovers' Concerto (2002)
A college student befriends two cute girls his age. He loses contact with them. He tries to find them years later.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisApril Snow (2005)
A man and a woman are brought together after their spouses, who were having an affair, are hospitalized after a car crash.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Secret: Dare to Dream (2020)
A widow with three children hires a handyman to fix her house during a major storm. When not doing home repairs, he shares his philosophy of believing in the power of the universe to deliver what we want.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAshes in the Snow (2018)
The coming-of-age tale of 16-year-old Lina Vilkas who is deported to Siberia amid Stalin's reign of terror in the Baltic region during WWII. An aspiring artist, she secretly documents her harrowing journey with her drawings.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMore Than Blue (2009)
A terminally ill man tries to find a suitable husband for the friend he has loved since childhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisR-Rated Idol Seung-ha's Sex Scandal (2020)
When they were young, Min-joo and Seo-yeon cared for each other and were closer than brothers and sisters. However, she accidentally learns about Seo-yeon's tutor, Woo-hyeon, and because of this man, their 10-year friendship starts to become shaky. Meanwhile, Jeong-soo is hurt in seeing Min-joo like that, and so he distanced himself from Min-joo. Because of Min-joo and Seo-yeon's misunderstanding, Jeong-soo who couldn't care much might just leave so Min-joo tries to break up with the help of Seo-yeon. While in the process of breaking up, Min-joo and Seo-yeon went back to their close relationship. The love of women who have been separated because of man, and the two men's friendship is comically drawn.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNine Lives (2005)
Captives of the very relationships that define and sustain them, nine women resiliently meet the travails and disappointments of life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaundy Thursday (2006)
Yu-jeong is suicidal, yet she reluctantly goes to prison for volunteer work. There, she meets a prisoner who is waiting for death penalty. The two quickly fall in love despite their differences, yet they do not have much time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Candy Candy?
The closest matches to Candy Candy are Maria's Lovers (1984), Fire with Fire (1986) and Life in a Year (2020). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Candy Candy?
Start with Maria's Lovers (1984), the closest match to Candy Candy.
What is the highest-rated movie like Candy Candy?
Life in a Year (2020), rated 8.2/10 by 2,027 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Candy Candy?
Life in a Year (2020) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Korean movies like Candy Candy?
Yes: Unforgettable (2016), Man in Love (2014) and Lovers' Concerto (2002).
How are movies similar to Candy Candy chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Candy Candy, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.



















