Movies like The Old Man and the Sea (1999)
The best movies like The Old Man and the Sea (1999) are Kensuke's Kingdom (2024), Watership Down (1978) and Strings (2004). If The Old Man and the Sea hooked you with its animation and adventure, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMy Penguin Friend (2024)7.4/10 from 208 votes
- NewestRunt (2024)Released 2024
Kensuke's Kingdom (2024)
A young boy and his family set off on a sailing trip of a lifetime until a violent storm erupts, sweeping Michael and his dog overboard. After washing up on a remote island, terrified, they struggle to survive and adjust to life alone, One day, Michael discovers he is not alone when he is confronted by a mysterious Japanese man who has lived there secretly since World War II, angry that Michael has arrived. However, as dangerous invaders threaten their fragile island paradise, Michael and the old man, Kensuke, join forces to save their secret world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWatership Down (1978)
When the warren belonging to a community of rabbits is threatened, a brave group led by Fiver, Bigwig, Blackberry and Hazel leave their homeland in a search of a safe new haven.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStrings (2004)
The story of Prince Hal who sets out to avenge his dead father against the city's rivals, the Zeriths, little knowing it was his wicked uncle Nezo who is the real killer, with his own designs on the throne.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Old Man and the Sea (1958)
Santiago is an aging, down-on-his-luck, Cuban fisherman who, after catching nothing for nearly 3 months, hooks a huge Marlin and struggles to land it far out in the Gulf Stream.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sea Beast (2022)
When a young girl stows away on the ship of a legendary sea monster hunter, they launch an epic journey into uncharted waters — and make history to boot.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCurious George 3: Back to the Jungle (2015)
When Curious George is offered a special space mission, Ted (The Man in the Yellow Hat) can't deny his little friend this exciting journey, especially after Curious George completes the training. But when he crash-lands in Africa, a worried Ted goes searching, expecting the worst, only to have it turn out to be the best.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas (2003)
The sailor of legend is framed by the goddess Eris for the theft of the Book of Peace, and must travel to her realm at the end of the world to retrieve it and save the life of his childhood friend Prince Proteus.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMatriculated (2003)
The human resistance works to convert a sentinel to their side. Part of the Animatrix collection of animated shorts set in the Matrix universe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Penguin Friend (2024)
A lost penguin rescued from an oil spill transforms the life of a heartbroken fisherman. They become unlikely friends, so bonded that even the vast ocean cannot divide them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTom Sawyer (2000)
Tom Sawyer and his best buddy Huck Finn love going fishing, daydreaming about pirates and stolen gold, and thinking about Becky Thatcher - the pretty new girl at school. But when these pals set out on a quest for buried treasure, they end up face to face with the town's most "grizzly" bear, Injurin' Joe. Giving Joe the slip, they find themselves in the middle of a fantastic adventure that takes them from the mighty Mississippi to the mysterious caverns of a secret hideout where they discover fun, excitement... and a fortune beyond their wildest dreams!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZog (2018)
Zog is a keen young dragon who wants to learn to fly, roar, and breathe fire, so he studies at the Dragon School. He is desperate to impress his teacher and win a golden star, but he is prone to accidents and he has to be helped by a kind young girl who patches up his bumps and bruises.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMoby Dick (1956)
In 1841, young Ishmael signs up for service aboard the Pequod, a whaler sailing out of New Bedford. The ship is under the command of Captain Ahab, a strict disciplinarian who exhorts his men to find Moby Dick, the great white whale. Ahab lost his leg to that creature and is desperate for revenge. As the crew soon learns, he will stop at nothing to gain satisfaction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStrange World (2022)
A journey deep into an uncharted and treacherous land, where fantastical creatures await the legendary Clades—a family of explorers whose differences threaten to topple their latest, and by far most crucial, mission.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCanvas (2020)
After a heartbreaking loss, a grandfather struggling to reclaim his passion for painting finds the inspiration to create again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Little Matchgirl (2006)
An animated short based on Hans Christian Andersen's tale about a poor young girl with a burning desire to find comfort and happiness in her life. Desperate to keep warm, the girl lights the matches she sells, and envisions a very different life for herself in the fiery flames filled with images of loving relatives, bountiful food, and a place to call home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBarbie: Dolphin Magic (2017)
Barbie and her sisters take off on another exciting, global adventure to visit their friend Ken at his summer internship at a beautiful and exotic coral reef.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhere the Wild Things Are (2009)
Max imagines running away from his mom and sailing to a far-off land where large talking beasts—Ira, Carol, Douglas, the Bull, Judith and Alexander—crown him as their king, play rumpus, build forts and discover secret hideaways.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Gruffalo's Child (2011)
A follow up to the 2009 animated feature and adapted from the childrens' book by Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler. The Gruffalo's child explores the deep dark wood in search of the big bad mouse and meets the Snake, Owl and Fox in the process. She eventually finds the mouse, who manages to outwit her like the Gruffalo before!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Pagemaster (1994)
Rich knows a lot about accidents. So much so, he is scared to do anything that might endanger him, like riding his bike, or climbing into his treehouse. While in an old library, he is mystically transported into the unknown world of books, and he has to try and get home again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLife of Pi (2012)
The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRunt (2024)
In the Australian town of Upson Downs, ten-year-old Annie and Runt, her stray dog, attempt to win the Agility Course Championship at the Krumpets Dog Show in London in order to save their family's farm from drought and misery.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure & drama
The Cutlass (1954)
The teenager Misha Polyakov, being with his mother in a Ukrainian village on vacation with his grandmother and about to return home to Petrograd, offers his best friend Genka to go with him. Suddenly, a white gang of Nikitsky bursts into the village and attacks Misha’s house, where Commissioner Polevoy lives. The purpose of Nikitskiy (aka Nikolskiy) is a dagger located at Polevoy. Saving the commissioner, Misha learns from him the history and secret of the weapon, and receives it for storage with a request to solve the secret. Having returned with adventures to Petrograd, Misha Polyakov with friends begins to unravel the riddle of the dagger, in the handle of which is encrypted text.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
VeggieTales: King George and the Ducky (2000)
King George, unlike most kings, spends most of his time in the bathtub, playing with his favorite toy - a rubber ducky. But George isn't satisfied with just his rubber ducky - he wants all the duckies! The king learns a lesson in humility from his brave soldier Thomas, whose ducky George had stolen. Eventually, George faces his sin and learns that it's always important to share with others.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Piss (2010)
Kurtis Conner and his friends embark on a pissy adventure through the piss forest to find Prague and Lucifer to see how particular he actually is about his cheese.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)
In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright, a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet, who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city's black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrue North (2007)
The crew of a bankrupt Scottish trawler turn to smuggling illegal immigrants over the stormy waters of the North Sea.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Daydreaming So Vividly About Our Spanish Holidays (2022)
Hungry for sun, light and warmth, a group of teenagers embark on a dream trip to the Balearic Islands.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Annalyn (2012)
Agnes is not satisfied with her life. She wants a change, but her relationship with her single parent father and dominant girlfriend inhibit her to do something about it. When the father introduces his new wife, Annalyn, everything changes. The same-aged Filipino stepmother helps Agnes see a new path. Soon emerges something that no one could have foreseen.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Bringing Out the Dead (1999)
Once called "Father Frank" for his efforts to rescue lives, Frank Pierce sees the ghosts of those he failed to save around every turn. He has tried everything he can to get fired, calling in sick, delaying taking calls where he might have to face one more victim he couldn't help, yet cannot quit the job on his own.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Thin Red Line (1998)
The story of a group of men, an Army Rifle company called C-for-Charlie, who change, suffer, and ultimately make essential discoveries about themselves during the fierce World War II battle of Guadalcanal. It follows their journey, from the surprise of an unopposed landing, through the bloody and exhausting battles that follow, to the ultimate departure of those who survived.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Old Man and the Sea?
The closest matches to The Old Man and the Sea are Kensuke's Kingdom (2024), Watership Down (1978) and Strings (2004). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Old Man and the Sea?
Start with Kensuke's Kingdom (2024), the closest match to The Old Man and the Sea.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Old Man and the Sea?
My Penguin Friend (2024), rated 7.4/10 by 208 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Old Man and the Sea?
Runt (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to The Old Man and the Sea chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Old Man and the Sea, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.