Movies like Wake Up the Dawn (1990)
The best movies like Wake Up the Dawn (1990) are Beyond Utopia (2023), Machine Gun Preacher (2011) and The Spitfire Grill (1996). If Wake Up the Dawn hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Wake Up the Dawn
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHeathers (1989)7.3/10 from 1,989 votes
- NewestBrave the Dark (2025)Released 2025
- In KoreanNew Trial (2017)Also in Korean
Beyond Utopia (2023)
A courageous pastor uses his underground network to rescue and aid North Korean families as they risk their lives to embrace freedom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMachine Gun Preacher (2011)
The true story of Sam Childers, a former drug-dealing biker who finds God and became a crusader for hundreds of Sudanese children who've been kidnapped and pressed into duty as soldiers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Spitfire Grill (1996)
Percy, upon being released from prison, goes to the small town of Gillead, to find a place where she can start over again. She is taken in by Hannah, to help out at her place, the Spitfire Grill. Percy brings change to the small town, stirring resentment and fear in some, and growth in others.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDogma (1999)
An abortion clinic worker with a special heritage is called upon to save the existence of humanity from being negated by two renegade angels trying to exploit a loophole and re-enter Heaven.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSilence (2016)
In the 17th century, two Portuguese Jesuit priests travel to Japan in an attempt to locate their mentor, who is rumored to have committed apostasy, and to propagate Catholicism.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Life Less Ordinary (1997)
Upon being fired, a desperate guy kidnaps a daughter of his former boss. Two angels are sent to Earth to check if love is possible in this case.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI'm Not Ashamed (2016)
Based on the journal entries of Rachel Joy Scott, the first student killed in the Columbine High School shooting in 1999.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFather Stu (2022)
The true-life story of boxer-turned-priest. When an injury ends his amateur boxing career, Stuart Long moves to Los Angeles to find money and fame. While scraping by as a supermarket clerk, he meets Carmen, a Sunday school teacher who seems immune to his bad-boy charm. Determined to win her over, the longtime agnostic starts going to church to impress her. However, a motorcycle accident leaves him wondering if he can use his second chance to help others, leading to the surprising realization that he's meant to be a Catholic priest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKnock at the Cabin (2023)
While vacationing at a remote cabin, a young girl and her two fathers are taken hostage by four armed strangers who demand that the family make an unthinkable choice to avert the apocalypse. With limited access to the outside world, the family must decide what they believe before all is lost.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Clique (2008)
A young girl tries to fit in with a clique of popular middle school girls after moving into the guest house of one of their homes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisBrave the Dark (2025)
When Mr. Deen discovers one of his students has been living out of his car and thrown into jail, he decides to bail him out. Determined to curb Nate’s self-destructive behavior, Deen quickly discovers a host of dark secrets slowly tearing Nate apart. What began as a good deed becomes a desperate fight to save Nate from his own demons. As Nate spirals deeper into despair, Deen must decide how far he’s willing to go to save a kid on the brink of losing everything—even himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTyrannosaur (2011)
The story of Joseph, a man plagued by violence and a rage that is driving him to self-destruction. As Joseph's life spirals into turmoil a chance of redemption appears in the form of Hannah, a Christian charity shop worker. Their relationship develops to reveal that Hannah is hiding a secret of her own with devastating results on both of their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLevel 16 (2018)
The teenage girls of Vestalis Academy are meticulously trained in the art of being “clean girls,” practicing the virtues of perfect femininity. But what exactly are they being trained for? Vivien intends to find out.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisThe Matrix Revolutions (2003)
The human city of Zion defends itself against the massive invasion of the machines as Neo fights to end the war at another front while also opposing the rogue Agent Smith.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHere Comes Mr. Jordan (1941)
Boxer Joe Pendleton, flying to his next fight, crashes...because a Heavenly Messenger, new on the job, snatched Joe's spirit prematurely from his body. Before the matter can be rectified, Joe's body is cremated; so the celestial Mr. Jordan grants him the use of the body of wealthy Bruce Farnsworth, who's just been murdered by his wife. Joe tries to remake Farnsworth's unworthy life in his own clean-cut image, but then falls in love; and what about that murderous wife?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNew Trial (2017)
A taxi driver is found dead, and Hyun-woo, the only witness, charged with a murder and serves 10 years in prison. While offering pro bono services, a lawyer Junyoung meets Hyun-woo, and they begin their journey to prove his innocence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrimes of Passion (1984)
Fashion designer Joanna Crane leads a double life. By night she is China Blue, a prostitute who's attracted the attention of a sexually frustrated private detective, and a psychopathic priest in possession of a murderous sex toy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeathers (1989)
A girl who halfheartedly tries to be part of the "in crowd" of her school meets a rebel who teaches her a more devious way to play social politics: by killing the popular kids.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSlate (2020)
Yeon-hee always had dreams of becoming a heroine. Now in her late 20s, she is transported from a movie set to a parallel world where she gets the chance to live her dream.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Wake Up the Dawn?
The closest matches to Wake Up the Dawn are Beyond Utopia (2023), Machine Gun Preacher (2011) and The Spitfire Grill (1996). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Wake Up the Dawn?
Start with Beyond Utopia (2023), the closest match to Wake Up the Dawn.
What is the highest-rated movie like Wake Up the Dawn?
Heathers (1989), rated 7.3/10 by 1,989 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Wake Up the Dawn?
Brave the Dark (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Korean movies like Wake Up the Dawn?
Yes: New Trial (2017) and Slate (2020).
How are movies similar to Wake Up the Dawn chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Wake Up the Dawn, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.