Movies like Ulterior Motive (2015)
The best movies like Ulterior Motive (2015) are Saving Mr. Wu (2015), Ransom for a Dead Man (1972) and Union Station (1950). If Ulterior Motive hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedCleveland Abduction (2015)7.3/10 from 453 votes
- NewestSaving Mr. Wu (2015)Released 2015
- In ChineseSaving Mr. Wu (2015)Also in Chinese
Saving Mr. Wu (2015)
Mr. Wu, a Hong Kong movie star, is kidnapped in Beijing by Zhang Hua's gang. The police quickly form a task force and begin the search, ignoring that detectives in charge have only twenty hours before the deadline.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRansom for a Dead Man (1972)
A brilliant attorney gets rid of her boring husband by faking his kidnapping and keeping the ransom. The FBI may be fooled, but not Columbo.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUnion Station (1950)
Police catch a break when suspected kidnappers are spotted on a train heading towards Union Station. Police, train station security and a witness try to piece together the crime and get back the blind daughter of a rich business man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCleveland Abduction (2015)
A single mother becomes Ariel Castro's first kidnapping victim, and finds herself trapped in his home with two other women for 11 years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Night of the Following Day (1969)
A gang of four professional criminals kidnaps a wealthy teenage girl from an airport in Paris in a meticulous plan to extort money from the girl's wealthy father. Holding her prisoner in an isolated beach house, the gang's scheme runs perfectly until their personal demons surface and lead to a series of betrayals.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisFamily Plot (1976)
Spiritualist Blanche Tyler and her cab-driving boyfriend encounter a pair of serial kidnappers while trailing a missing heir in California.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrapped (2002)
Held hostage in different cities after their daughter is kidnapped by a master extortionist, a desperate couple must find a way to outsmart a seemingly foolproof plot.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPalmetto (1998)
After being released from prison on a bum charge, Harry Barber is out for payback to regain his lost two years. He's hired by Mrs. Malroux to fake the kidnapping of her stepdaughter (the daughter of a dying millionaire). He discovers that he is being set up on multiple levels and will soon face a longer sentence if he doesn't prove the truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Bride Came C.O.D. (1941)
A financially-strapped charter pilot hires himself to an oil tycoon to kidnap his madcap daughter and prevent her from marrying a vapid band leader.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNight of the Juggler (1980)
When a twisted psychotic kidnaps a young girl, mistaking her for the daughter of a wealthy developer, her father, a hardened ex-cop, doggedly hunts them through New York's seamy streets.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShanghai Triad (1995)
Shanghai, China, 1930. When young Shuisheng arrives from the countryside, his uncle Liushu puts him at the service of Bijou, the mistress of Laoda, supreme boss of the Tang Triad, constantly threatened by his enemies, both those he knows and those lurking in the shadows.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRansom (1996)
When a rich man's son is kidnapped, he cooperates with the police at first but then tries a unique tactic against the criminals.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNon-Stop (2014)
Bill Marks is a Federal Air Marshall for whom every day is the same until this one. On this plane ride, he starts receiving text messages from someone claiming to be on the flight and threatening to kill passengers. In a race against the clock, he must identify and stop the killer to save everyone on board.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Betrayed (2008)
Kidnappers force a young mother to recover money stolen by her shady husband.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisObsession (1976)
A wealthy New Orleans businessman becomes obsessed with a young woman who resembles his late wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Protector (1985)
Billy Wong is a New York City cop whose partner is gunned down during a robbery. Billy and his new partner, Danny Garoni, are working security at a fashion show when a wealthy man's daughter, Laura Shapiro, is kidnapped. The Federal authorities suspect that Laura's father is involved with Mr. Ko, a Hong Kong drug kingpin, so the NYC police commissioner sends the two cops to Hong Kong to investigate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Last Tycoon (2012)
Cheng, a young man who is set up by the chief of police, must leave the life he knows and Qiu, the woman he loves, to start again. After escaping prison Cheng quickly and violently moves his way up the ladder of Shanghais criminal underworld to become on the most powerful mob bosses in Shanghais history. But fame and notoriety take their toll when Cheng finds himself stuck between the looming Japanese army and the scheming local secret service. Matters are only made worse when he bumps into the love of his life QIU, along with her writer husband. Will love re-kindle in the dusk of an era?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFirestorm (2013)
Hong Kong. When Cao Nan and his group of thieves rob an armored car in broad daylight, they don't hesitate to murder innocent people on the run. Lui Ming Chit, a veteran police inspector, is forced to use sinister tactics to catch them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuzhou River (2000)
After getting out of prison, small-time crook Mardar stumbles upon a woman who looks exactly like his long-lost lover, who he attempted to kidnap 3 years ago.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Disappearance of Alice Creed (2009)
A rich man's daughter is held captive in an abandoned apartment by two former convicts who abducted her and hold her ransom in exchange for her father's money.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ulterior Motive?
The closest matches to Ulterior Motive are Saving Mr. Wu (2015), Ransom for a Dead Man (1972) and Union Station (1950). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ulterior Motive?
Start with Saving Mr. Wu (2015), the closest match to Ulterior Motive.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ulterior Motive?
Cleveland Abduction (2015), rated 7.3/10 by 453 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ulterior Motive?
Saving Mr. Wu (2015) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Chinese movies like Ulterior Motive?
Yes: Saving Mr. Wu (2015), Shanghai Triad (1995) and The Last Tycoon (2012).
How are movies similar to Ulterior Motive chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ulterior Motive, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.