Movies like The Leading Edge (1987)
The best movies like The Leading Edge (1987) are Indie Game: The Movie (2012), Step Into Liquid (2003) and Antarctica: A Year on Ice (2013). If The Leading Edge hooked you with its drama and documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFull Metal Jacket (1987)8.1/10 from 11,939 votes
- NewestBillie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D) (2026)Released 2026
Indie Game: The Movie (2012)
Follows the dramatic journeys of video game developers as they create and release their games to the world. It's about making video games, but at its core, it's about the creative process, and exposing yourself through your work.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStep Into Liquid (2003)
No special effects. No stuntmen. No stereotypes. No other feeling comes close. Surfers and secret spots from around the world are profiled in this documentary.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAntarctica: A Year on Ice (2013)
Filling the giant screen with stunning time-lapse vistas of Antarctica, and detailing year-round life at McMurdo and Scott Base, Anthony Powell’s documentary is a potent hymn to the icy continent and the heavens above.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDeliver Us from Evil (2006)
Documentary filmmaker Amy Berg investigates the life of 30-year pedophile Father Oliver O'Grady and exposes the corruption inside the Catholic Church that allowed him to abuse countless children. Victims' stories and a disturbing interview with O'Grady offer a view into the troubled mind of the spiritual leader who moved from parish to parish gaining trust ... all the while betraying so many.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAir Force Elite: Thunderbirds (2025)
The elite pilots of the Air Force Thunderbirds display exceptional skill, trust and courage during a high-stakes training season.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Mom Jayne (2025)
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHeart of a Dog (2015)
Musician and performance artist Laurie Anderson reflects on the deaths of her husband Lou Reed, her mother and her beloved dog.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Crystal Calls - Making The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (2019)
Go behind the scenes with stars, puppeteers and creators as they bring Jim Henson's magical world of Thra back to life in a sweeping fantasy series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this180° South (2010)
The film follows adventurer Jeff Johnson as he retraces the epic 1968 journey of his heroes Yvon Chouinard and Doug Tompkins to Patagonia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Eagle Huntress (2016)
Follow Aisholpan, a 13-year-old girl, as she trains to become the first female in twelve generations of her Kazakh family to become an eagle hunter, and rise to the pinnacle of a tradition that has been typically been handed down from father to son for centuries.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Crash Reel (2013)
An escalating rivalry between snowboarder Kevin Pearce and his nemesis Shaun White in the run-up to the 2010 Olympics leaves Shaun on top of the Olympic podium and Kevin in a coma following a training accident in Park City, Utah. Kevin's tight-knit Vermont family flies to his side and helps him rebuild his life as a brain injury survivor. But when he insists he wants to return to the sport he still loves, his family intervenes. Will Kevin defy them and insist on pursuing his passion? How much risk is too much?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOur Planet: Behind the Scenes (2019)
Years spent recording footage of creatures from every corner of the globe is bound to produce a bit of drama. Here's a behind-the-scenes look.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Captains (2011)
The Captains is a feature-length documentary film written and directed by William Shatner. The film follows Shatner as he interviews the other actors who have portrayed starship captains in the Star Trek franchise.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBillie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D) (2026)
Captured during Billie Eilish's sold-out world tour, a concert experience from one of the most celebrated and successful artists of her generation, presented in immersive 3D.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisEverest (1998)
An international team of climbers ascends Mt. Everest in the spring of 1996. The film depicts their lengthy preparations for the climb, their trek to the summit, and their successful return to Base Camp. It also shows many of the challenges the group faced, including avalanches, lack of oxygen, treacherous ice walls, and a deadly blizzard.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMountain (2017)
An epic cinematic and musical collaboration between SHERPA filmmaker Jennifer Peedom and the Australian Chamber Orchestra, that explores humankind's fascination with high places.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisElstree 1976 (2015)
A documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWestern Stars (2019)
The incomparable Bruce Springsteen performs his critically acclaimed latest album and muses on life, rock, and the American dream, in this intimate and personal concert film co-directed by Thom Zimny and Springsteen himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMaradona by Kusturica (2008)
A documentary on Argentinean soccer star Diego Maradona, regarded by many as the world's greatest modern player.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLemmy (2010)
Over four decades, Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister has registered an immeasurable impact on music history. Nearly 65, he remains the living embodiment of the rock and roll lifestyle, and this feature-length documentary tells his story, one of a hard-living rock icon who continues to enjoy the life of a man half his age.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisYour Chance to Live: Flood (1973)
Dramatizes the plight of a young adventure seeker whose canoe is capsized by a wall of water during a flood. Shows community flood preparations, pointing out that a flood's predictability usually allows ample warning time to save lives. Designed to stimulate discussion on civil preparedness for floods
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Crazy Canucks (2004)
Based on the book White Circus by Ken Read, this is the story of the Canadian skiing legends that became the first North Americans to crack the Euro dominated World Cup Circuit in 1975
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
TSANGAAN. (2025)
The Tsangaan people have lived ‘in the middle of nowhere’ since ancient times. Now, only one person remains to represent the entire nation. Word of the last Tsangaan reaches a young man in Tartu, who decides to venture into the unknown wilderness to find the final guardian of the vanishing people. Although at first, the young man feels like an outsider in the mystical world of the Tsangaan, he gradually discovers many layers within himself that connect him to this new environment. With each passing day, he grows closer to the last Tsangaan, leaving more and more of his previous life and identity behind. Reborn, the young man’s journey leads him to a place where he becomes the last person to have ever encountered a Tsangaan.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Lost Coast of Gabon: Sea Kayaking West Africa (2006)
Bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and stretching 40 miles into the jungled interior, we kayaked and portaged more than 200 miles around the park's perimeter, seeing this wild country from a new and different perspective. Along the way we encountered river-swimming elephants, manatees, tarpon, surfing hippos, gorillas and more. By trip's end it was hard to decide which were the most beautiful, and the most difficult, parts of the expedition, but it was eye opening, for us all.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Drop Everything (2017)
Matchstick Productions – the powerhouse that brought you award-winning classics like CLAIM, THE WAY I SEE IT, and DAYS OF MY YOUTH – is proud to introduce the funniest, most action-packed ski movie of 2017: DROP EVERYTHING, presented by Under Armour. Following an artful, narrative-driven 2016 film release, the team at Matchstick took a decidedly more lighthearted approach that returns the focus to the featured athletes and world-class action. DROP EVERYTHING features the world’s preeminent freeskiers along with quick-hitting comedy, stunning locations, a potent soundtrack, and stellar cinematography. DROP EVERYTHING is an unexpected, fun-filled adventure through the world of freeskiing – join Matchstick Productions for the ride along with Mark Abma, Markus Eder, Eric Hjorleifson, Michelle Parker, Sammy Carlson, Cody Townsend, Elyse Saugstad, Tanner Rainville, Chris Rubens, Aaron Blunck, Sander Hadley, Connery Lundin, and more!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Ski Bum (1971)
A ski instructor tries to teach a bunch of insanely eccentric people how to ski while dealing with everyone wanting his attention.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Passion for Snow (2013)
What do Daniel Webster, Dr. Seuss, C. Everett Koop, Robert Frost and 100+ Winter Olympians have in common? They all spent time at Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH where winters are long and snowy. Passion for Snow traces over 100 years of ski history in the United States with a focus on the many contributions of Dartmouth College and its alumni to the formation, growth and ongoing innovations in all aspects of snowsports. Passion for Snow combines firsthand accounts from early ski pioneers, veterans of the 10th Mountain Division, Olympians, members of the U.S. Ski Hall of Fame and top ski industry and resort executives, who explain how the most remotely located college in the Ivy League helped spawn a $25 billion industry, and continues to shape it today.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the U.S.-Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisEddie the Eagle (2016)
The feel-good story of Michael 'Eddie' Edwards, an unlikely but courageous British ski-jumper who never stopped believing in himself—even as an entire nation was counting him out. With the help of a rebellious and charismatic coach, Eddie takes on the establishment and wins the hearts of sports fans around the world by making an improbable and historic showing at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWinter People (1972)
Join Warren Miller for one of his most classic ski films to date. Meet the cast of skiers like Scott Brooksbank, Phil Davis, Lane Monroe, Hal O'Leary, John Truden, Skeeter Zoberski and many more as they ski around the world and show you why they are true Winter People. Journey to places like Chamonix, Bear Valley, Mammoth, Le Meuire, Sugarloaf, and tons of other great places to ski and see first hand where the great sport of skiing originated.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Like The Leading Edge and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Leading Edge?
The closest matches to The Leading Edge are Indie Game: The Movie (2012), Step Into Liquid (2003) and Antarctica: A Year on Ice (2013). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Leading Edge?
Start with Indie Game: The Movie (2012), the closest match to The Leading Edge.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Leading Edge?
Full Metal Jacket (1987), rated 8.1/10 by 11,939 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Leading Edge?
Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D) (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Leading Edge?
Yes: Indie Game: The Movie (2012), Step Into Liquid (2003) and Antarctica: A Year on Ice (2013).
How are movies similar to The Leading Edge chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Leading Edge, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.