Movies like Napoleon and Wellington (1997)
The best movies like Napoleon and Wellington (1997) are South of the Border (2009), Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1972) and American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978). If Napoleon and Wellington hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- NewestA Toxic Love Story (2026)Released 2026
South of the Border (2009)
A road trip across five countries to explore the social and political movements as well as the mainstream media's misperception of South America while interviewing seven of its elected presidents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisReminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1972)
Jonas Mekas weaves an elegiac diary film from his 1971–72 return to Lithuania, chronicling a visit to his birthplace of Semeniškiai after decades in exile. Blending personal memory with documentary observation, the film becomes both a portrait of homecoming and a meditation on displacement, family, and the passage of time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAmerican Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978)
Martin Scorsese spends an evening with larger-than-life raconteur Steven Prince—a former drug addict, road manager for Neil Diamond, and actor—as he recounts stories from his colorful life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTo Kill a Tiger (2023)
Ranjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGirl Rising (2013)
Nine filmmakers each profile a young girl from a different part of the world to weave a global tapestry of youth in the 21st century.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Class of ‘92 (2013)
A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Toxic Love Story (2026)
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Battered Bastards of Baseball (2014)
Hollywood veteran Bing Russell creates the only independent baseball team in the country—alarming the baseball establishment and sparking the meteoric rise of the 1970s Portland Mavericks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThis Place Rules (2022)
Acclaimed for his unfiltered reporting and deadpan humor, Andrew Callaghan brings his gonzo style reporting to the undercurrents that led to the January 6 Capitol Riot. As one of the best-known and hardest working journalists of his generation, the 25-year-old ventures on a wild RV journey through America to take the pulse of a divided nation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCapital in the Twenty-First Century (2019)
Film adaptation of French economist Thomas Piketty's ground-breaking global bestseller of the same name: an eye-opening journey through wealth and power.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCome See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAnother Day of Life (2018)
In 1975, Ryszard Kapuściński, a veteran Polish journalist, embarked on a seemingly suicidal road trip into the heart of the Angola's civil war. There, he witnessed once again the dirty reality of war and discovered a sense of helplessness previously unknown to him. Angola changed him forever: it was a reporter who left Poland, but it was a writer who returned…
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Final: Attack on Wembley (2024)
As England reach the final of the Euros at last, 6,000 ticketless football fans storm Wembley stadium, leaving destruction in their wake.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSherman's March (1986)
Documentarian Ross McElwee originally set out to make a travelogue of sorts tracing General William T. Sherman's infamous scorched-earth march through the Confederacy in the latter stages of the Civil War. Instead, haunted by a recent breakup with a girlfriend, McElwee ends up documenting his progress -- or lack thereof -- in starting a new relationship. His journey then becomes one of self-reflection and self-discovery rather than a historical/sociological exploration.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like this35 Up (1991)
Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCharlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin (2003)
Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHalloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006)
Follow the evolution of the 'Halloween' movies over the past twenty-five years. It examines why the films are so popular and revisits many of the original locations used in the films - seeing the effects on the local community. For the first time, cast, crew, critics and fans join together in the ultimate 'Halloween' retrospective.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEx Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeing James Bond (2021)
Daniel Craig candidly reflects on his 15 year adventure as James Bond. Including never-before-seen archival footage from Casino Royale to the upcoming 25th film No Time To Die, Craig shares his personal memories in conversation with 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisI Am Vanessa Guillen (2022)
Vanessa Guillen was 20 years old when she was found murdered at a US Army base. Rather than submit to silence, her family fought for justice and change.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Battle of New Orleans: A Meaningful Victory (2015)
The Battle of New Orleans: A Meaningful Victory explores how the British misjudged their opponent and miscalculated the complexities of the battle ground. It also describes why the multi-cultural population of New Orleans proved the naysayers wrong about their loyalties to a young nation. WYES Community Projects Producer Marcia Kavanaugh and Tom Gregory hosted and produced this documentary.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Grundtvigs steder (1983)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Tea War: The Adventures of Robert Fortune (2016)
In the 19th century, China held the monopoly on tea, which was dear and fashionable in the West, and the British Empire exchanged poppies, produced in its Indian colonies and transformed into opium, for Chinese tea. Inundated by the drugs, China was forced to open up its market, and the British consolidated their commercial dominance. In 1839, the Middle Empire introduced prohibition. The Opium War was declared… Great Britain emerged as the winner, but the warning was heeded: it could no longer depend on Chinese tea. The only alternative possible was to produce its own tea. The East India Company therefore entrusted one man with finding the secrets of the precious beverage. His mission was to develop the first plantations in Britain’s Indian colonies. This latter-day James Bond was called Robert Fortune – a botanist. After overcoming innumerable ordeals in the heart of imperial China, he brought back the plants and techniques that gave rise to Darjeeling tea.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West (2002)
Explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark lead a U.S. expedition to the Pacific Ocean and back.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Tasmanian Tiger: Natural History Meets Mystery (1996)
Recorded by pioneers as far back as 1805, the Tasmanian tiger has become an intensely mystifying Australian icon, whose entire existence has become the stuff of both fable and legend. This program investigates a chequered past and puts the speculation into perspective, taking into account the tragic culling and ‘bounty era’ where the carnivorous creatures were thought to be solely responsible for a considerable loss of farmers’ livestock. Balancing the facts with personal reflections from Tasmanian locals, scientists and other informed practitioners, The Tasmanian Tiger is a thought-provoking and revealing look at the extraordinary life and death of one of Australia’s most mysterious marsupials.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché (2018)
The epic life story of Alice Guy-Blaché (1873–1968), a French screenwriter, director and producer, true pioneer of cinema, the first person who made a narrative fiction film; author of hundreds of movies, but banished from history books. Ignored and forgotten. At last remembered.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLord Roberts Leaving For South Africa (1899)
An actuality and reportage film. This film captures Lord Frederick Roberts (British Army rank Field Marshal) departing England for South Africa on 23rd December 1899, where he commanded British forces for a year in the Second Boer War. The ship in this film is the RMS Dunottar Castle. Going with Roberts is his chief of staff, Lord Kitchener, whose future role as Secretary Of State for War during World War One awaits him. This film was produced and distributed by the Warwick Trading Company, a London based company at its peak at this time, involved in the majority of British films.The Warwick Trading Company specialised in travel, reportage and actuality films and had substantial catalogues. Charles Urban had taken over as managing director in 1897 and was in that role when this film was produced. According to the BFI programme entry, the company had a large amount of resources already in South Africa. This meant they could capture historic moments as part of its Boer War coverage.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Proteus: A Nineteenth Century Vision (2004)
The animated documentary Proteus explores the nineteenth century's engagement with the undersea world through science, technology, painting, poetry and myth. The central figure of the film is biologist and artist Ernst Haeckel, who found in the depths of the sea an ecstatic and visionary fusion of science and art.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Der Reichstag (2017)
Docudrama telling the story of a building with a breath taking career that began in the empire, flourished in the Weimar Republic, perished in the Nazi dictatorship, and was rebuilt after its partial destruction.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Tom Merry, Lightning Cartoonist, Sketching Kaiser Wilhelm II (1895)
A tiny fragment of an actuality film of Tom Merry (William Mechem), a 'lightning sketch' caricaturist performing his act for the camera and producing a large profile caricature of Kaiser Wilhelm II. The loss of the rest of the film has bequeathed us 6 seconds that are of Mechem standing next to the completed portrait and sadly, that is all there is. An early film made by Birt Acres for R.W. Paul. (see release information for further detail).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Napoleon and Wellington?
The closest matches to Napoleon and Wellington are South of the Border (2009), Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1972) and American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Napoleon and Wellington?
Start with South of the Border (2009), the closest match to Napoleon and Wellington.
What is the newest movie like Napoleon and Wellington?
A Toxic Love Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Napoleon and Wellington?
Yes: South of the Border (2009), Reminiscences of a Journey to Lithuania (1972) and American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978).
How are movies similar to Napoleon and Wellington chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Napoleon and Wellington, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.