Movies like Tenchu! (1969)

11 Rebels (2024)

When the brutal Boshin War breaks out in Japan, a group of inmates on death row unite to defend a fortress against the Imperial army.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

Samurai Assassin (1965)

Japan, 1860. The men of the Mito clan, victims of the Ansei purge, anxiously prowl around the Sakurada Gate of Edo Castle with the intention of assassinating Naosuke Ii of Hikone, tairō of the Tokugawa shogunate and responsible for their misfortune.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Rurouni Kenshin: The Final (2021)

In 1879, Kenshin and his allies face their strongest enemy yet: his former brother-in-law Enishi Yukishiro and his minions, who've vowed their revenge.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & history

Chûshingura (1962)

After their lord is tricked into committing ritual suicide, forty-seven samurai warriors await the chance to avenge their master and reclaim their honor.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both history & drama

Harakiri (1962)

Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

Ran (1985)

Shakespeare's King Lear is reimagined as a singular historical epic set in sixteenth-century Japan where an aging warlord divides his kingdom between his three sons.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

Lone Wolf and Cub: Sword of Vengeance (1972)

Official Shogunate executioner Ogami Itto has been framed for disloyalty to the Shogunate by the Yagyu clan, against whom he now is waging a one-man war, along with his infant son, Daigoro.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Rurouni Kenshin Part I: Origins (2012)

In 1868, after the Bakumatsu war ends, the ex-assassin Kenshin Himura traverses Japan with an inverted sword, to defend the needy without killing.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & history

13 Assassins (2010)

A bravado period action film set at the end of Japan's feudal era in which a group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a war-torn future.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

13 Assassins (1963)

A sadistic Daimyo (feudal lord) rapes a woman and murders both her and her husband, but even when one of his own vassals commits suicide to bring attention to the crime, the matter is quickly hushed up. Not only will there be no punishment, but because the Daimyo is the Shogun's younger brother, he will soon be appointed to a high political position from which he could wreak even more havoc. Convinced that the fate of the Shogunate hangs in the balance, a plot is hatched to assassinate the Daimyo. The two most brilliant strategic minds of their generation find themselves pitted against each other; one is tasked to defend a man he despises, and has a small army at his disposal. The other is given a suicide mission, and has 12 brave men. They are the 13 Assassins.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Rurouni Kenshin Part II: Kyoto Inferno (2014)

Kenshin has settled into his new life with Kaoru and his other friends when he is approached with a request from the Meiji government. Makoto Shishio, a former assassin like Kenshin, was betrayed, set on fire and left for dead. He survived, and is now in Kyoto, plotting with his gathered warriors to overthrow the new government. Against Kaoru's wishes, Kenshin reluctantly agrees to go to Kyoto and help keep his country from falling back into civil war.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

Killing (2018)

In mid-19th century Edo period, a masterless rōnin named Mokunoshin Tsuzuki resides in a peaceful village among those he helps. However, as the prevalent peace and tranquility are sure to be replaced by war and conflict across the land, the swordsman feels restlessness creeping upon him.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Lady Snowblood (1973)

A strikingly beautiful young woman is trained from birth to be a deadly instrument of revenge against the swindlers who destroyed her family.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

The Sword of Doom (1966)

Ryunosuke, a gifted swordsman plying his trade during the turbulent final days of Shogunate rule, has no moral code and kills without remorse. It’s a way of life that leads to madness.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple (1955)

After years on the road establishing his reputation as Japan's greatest fencer, Takezo returns to Kyoto. Otsu waits for him, yet he has come not for her but to challenge the leader of the region's finest school of fencing. To prove his valor and skill, he walks deliberately into ambushes set up by the school's followers.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Lady Snowblood 2: Love Song of Vengeance (1974)

Lady Snowblood is caught by the police and sentenced to death for her crimes. As she is sent to the gallows she is rescued by the secret police who offer her a deal to assassinate some revolutionaries.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

Blade of the Immortal (2017)

Manji, a highly skilled samurai, becomes cursed with immortality after a legendary battle. Haunted by the brutal murder of his sister, Manji knows that only fighting evil will regain his soul. He promises to help a young girl named Rin avenge her parents, who were killed by a group of master swordsmen led by ruthless warrior Anotsu. The mission will change Manji in ways he could never imagine.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & drama

Bushido (2024)

Kakunoshin, renowned for his skills with a sword and in the game of go, embodies the samurai code. Falsely accused of a theft, he is forced to become a lowly ronin. Years later, when a case of missing gold pulls him into a new web of intrigue, Kakunoshin uncovers the truth behind his downfall. With the real culprit exposed, the go board flips, and a hellstorm of righteous vengeance follows.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history

Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto (1954)

Struggling to elevate himself from his low caste in 17th century Japan, Miyamoto trains to become a mighty samurai warrior.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

47 Ronin (2013)

Kai—an outcast—joins Oishi, the leader of 47 outcast samurai. Together they seek vengeance upon the treacherous overlord who killed their master and banished their kind. To restore honour to their homeland, the warriors embark upon a quest that challenges them with a series of trials that would destroy ordinary warriors.

Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & action

Kagemusha (1980)

A feudal epic presenting the tale of a petty thief who is recruited to impersonate Shingen, an aging warlord, in order to avoid attacks by competing clans. The impostor becomes comfortable living his life among nobility, but his responsibilities to his station grow more demanding the longer he occupies it.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama

Me and Orson Welles (2008)

New York, 1937. A teenager hired to star in Orson Welles' production of Julius Caesar becomes attracted to a career-driven production assistant.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history

Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)

As played out by a theatre troupe, the last days of Jesus Christ are depicted from the perspective of Judas Iscariot, his betrayer. As Jesus' following increases, Judas begins to worry that Jesus is falling for his own hype, forgetting the principles of his teachings and growing too close to the prostitute Mary Magdalene.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history

Izo (2004)

Izo is an assassin in the service of a Tosa lord and Imperial supporter. After killing dozens of the Shogun's men, Izo is captured and crucified. Instead of being extinguished, his rage propels him through the space-time continuum to present-day Tokyo. Here Izo transforms himself into a new, improved killing machine.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama

Les Misérables (2026)

After enduring 19 years in prison for stealing a loaf of bread, Jean Valjean emerges a hardened man. He seeks redemption by reinventing himself as a respected dignitary under a new identity. He promises Fantine, a dying factory worker, to rescue and protect her daughter Cosette, who is being exploited and mistreated by the deceitful Thénardier family. As Valjean raises Cosette as his own, he is relentlessly pursued by Inspector Javert. Admist the social unrest shaking France, the fates of Valjean, Cosette, her lover Marius, and Javert become intertwined in a turbulent, revolutionary Paris. Through struggles, sacrifices, and a deep yearning for justice, Valjean strives to complete his journey of redemption and offer Cosette a future of love and freedom.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history & drama

Záchvěv strachu (1984)

Getting out of prison doesn't mean being free. After the bloody suppression of the Prague Revolution in 1848, one of its participants, the writer František Vinický, spent eight years in prison. Returning to Prague in 1857, he tries to make contact with his former friends. The main one is his former comrade-in-arms Antoš. Of course, the man's steps also lead him to his former love Ida, who has been married to the councillor Mayer for several years. Vinicky is followed at practically every turn by the secret police, who will not allow him to get a decent job, let alone publish his new book. Police Councillor Berger makes it clear to the writer that a lot could be arranged if Vinicky would commit to cooperating...

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history

Vampire Wars (2017)

In the wake of the American Civil War, two vampires rise and fight to reclaim their land from the inhabitants of a sleepy Southern town.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama

Spoločník pána veľkomožného (1988)

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history

Max Payne (2008)

A DEA agent whose family was slain as part of a conspiracy, and an assassin out to avenge her sister's death, join forces to solve a series of murders in New York City.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & drama

Tombstone (1993)

Legendary marshal Wyatt Earp, now a weary gunfighter, joins his brothers Morgan and Virgil to pursue their collective fortune in the thriving mining town of Tombstone. But Earp is forced to don a badge again and get help from his notorious pal Doc Holliday when a gang of renegade brigands and rustlers begins terrorizing the town.

Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action