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Movies like Nia's Door (2015)

The best movies like Nia's Door (2015) are Buddha Mountain (2011), Upstream (2024) and The Young One (1960). If Nia's Door hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. Buddha Mountain (2011)

    In Chengdu, China, a retired female opera singer named Master Chang takes in a trio of young tenants into her boarding home. The tenants include a rock singer and a college student who has run away from home.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  2. Upstream (2024)

    A moment of impulsiveness turns Gao Zhilei into a "stay-at-home" individual, but he never expected his life to take a turn in the opposite direction. A series of changes compel him to take on his responsibilities as the head of the family. When life's burdens hit hard, he must confront himself and start anew.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  3. The Young One (1960)

    A jazz musician seeks refuge from a lynch mob on a remote island, where he meets a hostile game warden and the young object of his attentions.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  4. Lighting Up the Stars (2022)

    Having been released after serving his sentence, a funeral director accidentally crosses paths with a girl which brings about an unexpected change in his attitude towards life.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  5. The Piano in a Factory (2011)

    To fight for custody of his daughter who loves playing the piano, a steel factory worker decides to forge a piano from scratch.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  6. Salomé (2013)

    After the lewd and frenetic Dance of the Seven Veils, and with the solemn pledge from the very lips of Herod himself that she could have whatever her heart desires up to half his kingdom, wanton and proud young Salomé comes before her king with an unreasonable demand. Beguiled by John the Baptist, and then scorned for the sake of his god, lascivious Salomé—encouraged by her mother, the vindictive, Herodias—commands that John be executed and his head delivered on a silver platter.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  7. Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)

    A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as her last chance.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  8. The Nest (2020)

    Rory is an ambitious entrepreneur who brings his American wife and kids to his native country, England, to explore new business opportunities. After abandoning the sanctuary of their safe American suburban surroundings, the family is plunged into the despair of an archaic '80s Britain and their unaffordable new life in an English manor house threatens to destroy the family.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  9. Alex of Venice (2015)

    After her stay-at-home husband leaves her, a workaholic lawyer finds that she is not completely up to the tasks of caring for her young son, ailing father and household all by herself.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  10. Hands of Stone (2016)

    The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  11. Fast Girls (2012)

    A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  12. The Trials of Cate McCall (2013)

    In order to be reinstated to the bar and recover custody of her daughter, a hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and on probation, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  13. Caught by the Tides (2024)

    Years after her boyfriend left her for the big city and promised to bring her there after he’s settled down, a Chinese woman sets out on a journey to be reunited with him.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  14. What Time Is It There? (2001)

    A street vendor with a grim home-life forges a connection with a young woman on her way to Paris.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  15. Hounddog (2008)

    A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  16. One Second (2020)

    A movie fan escapes from a labour camp during the Chinese Cultural Revolution and strikes up a relationship with a homeless female vagabond.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  17. El Chicano (2019)

    A pair of twin brothers from East L.A. choose to live their lives differently and end up on opposite sides of the law.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  18. Nothing Personal (2009)

    Alone in her empty flat, from her window Anne observes the people passing by who nervously snatch up the personal belongings and pieces of furniture she has put out on the pavement. Her final gesture of taking a ring off her finger signals she is leaving her previous life in Holland behind. She goes to Ireland, where she chooses to lead a solitary, wandering existence, striding through the austere landscapes of Connemara. During her travels, she discovers a house that is home to a hermit, Martin.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  19. The Girl in the Book (2015)

    The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  20. Tigertail (2020)

    A man reflects on the lost love of his youth and his long-ago journey from Taiwan to America as he begins to reconnect with his estranged daughter.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  21. Call Me Dad (2025)

    Little Intan was used as collateral for a debt by her mother, who was forced to become a migrant worker and leave her behind. But from that moment, her life took a turn. Dedi, the debt collector — a stranger who initially just came to collect — ended up becoming an important figure in Intan’s life. Together with Tatang, they grew into an unusual kind of “family.”

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  22. Baaliyan (2025)

    A young migrant arrives in Delhi searching for work, clinging to phone calls with his mother as his only comfort in an unforgiving city. When betrayal and desperation push him toward a violent act, the fragile illusion holding him together begins to collapse. Baaliyan explores loneliness, grief, and the silent struggles of those who build cities while remaining unseen.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  23. Wild Harvest (1962)

    Melodrama about the inhuman treatment of migratory workers in California vineyards by the boss, and the formers' rebellion against him.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  24. The Ambassadors (1975)

    “Each of you is an ambassador, and we are sure that each of you will be the best ambassador of our country.” This is how the film begins; a speech to emigrant workers for France. Salah left his three sisters and his mother to become an ambassador, going to work on a Defense site, wading in the mud, he works with a jackhammer. Salah wanders in search of work and housing. Coming up against racism from the owners claiming the respectability of the building and the good neighborhood, he finds himself in a hotel in the Goutte d'Or district. The body of Mehdi, friend of Salah, was found in the Canal Saint-Martin, murdered by a fascist commando, and Ali died of a bullet, killed by a racist janitor. Faced with crimes that remain unpunished, Salah and his friends organize, unite with the French working class to defend their lives and their right to work.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  25. Kola Loompor (TBA)

    Naeem, a Bangladeshi migrant worker employed as a street sweeper, initially feels fearful and keeps his distance from the locals. However, his encounter with Zainab, a 20-year-old local woman living on the streets, slowly captures his attention. As their bond deepens, Naeem finds himself navigating unfamiliar emotions in a city that remains distant and indifferent.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  26. Lovers in the Blue Night (2026)

    Set against the margins of Mumbai, the film follows four migrants – a gay husband, his wife working in a bar, a thief, and a pimp – whose lives converge around love, survival, and longing

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  27. Terrain Vague (2017)

    A worker in a big city who feels uncomfortable around women meets a sex worker, and in an attempt to overcome his hesitations, he discovers his sexuality.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

  28. Of Mice and Men (1939)

    An intellectually disabled giant and his level headed guardian find work at a sadistic cowboy's ranch in depression era America.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  29. Solino (2002)

    The movie portrays the story of an Italian family emigrated in Germany in the 1970s. Romano (Gigi Savoia), the father, decides to open a pizzeria which, by mutual decision with the wife Rosa (Antonella Attili), will call Solino, leaving his sons Gigi and Giancarlo to work there. A hostile relationship comes to life between the father and his sons, which will end up in the escape of the boys from family.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

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  30. A Moment in the Reeds (2018)

    Having moved to Paris for university, Leevi returns to his native Finland for the summer to help his estranged father renovate the family lake house so it can be sold. Tareq, a recent asylum seeker from Syria, has been hired to help with the work, and when Leevi's father has to return to town on business, the two young men establish a connection and embark on a romance set against the idyllic Finnish summer. However, looming over this chance encounter, is the father's imminent return to the lake house, the continuation of Leevi's studies abroad as well as Tareq's complex relationship with his family in Syria.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama

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Like Nia's Door and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like Nia's Door?

The closest matches to Nia's Door are Buddha Mountain (2011), Upstream (2024) and The Young One (1960). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after Nia's Door?

Start with Buddha Mountain (2011), the closest match to Nia's Door.

What is the highest-rated movie like Nia's Door?

Hands of Stone (2016), rated 6.6/10 by 470 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like Nia's Door?

Lovers in the Blue Night (2026) is the most recent release on this list.

Are there Chinese movies like Nia's Door?

Yes: Buddha Mountain (2011), Upstream (2024) and Lighting Up the Stars (2022).

How are movies similar to Nia's Door chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Nia's Door, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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