Movies like Drums of the Desert (1940)
The best movies like Drums of the Desert (1940) are Black Gold (2011), Road to Morocco (1942) and Nate and Hayes (1983). If Drums of the Desert hooked you with its adventure, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Adventures of Tintin (2011)6.9/10 from 6,073 votes
- NewestBalls Up (2026)Released 2026
Black Gold (2011)
On the Arabian Peninsula in the 1930s, two warring leaders come face to face. The victorious Nesib, Emir of Hobeika, lays down his peace terms to rival Amar, Sultan of Salmaah. The two men agree that neither can lay claim to the area of no man’s land between them called The Yellow Belt. In return, Nesib adopts Amar’s two boys Saleeh and Auda as a guarantee against invasion. Twelve years later, Saleeh and Auda have grown into young men. Saleeh, the warrior, itches to escape his gilded cage and return to his father’s land. Auda cares only for books and the pursuit of knowledge. One day, their adopted father Nesib is visited by an American from Texas. He tells the Emir that his land is blessed with oil and promises him riches beyond his wildest imagination. Nesib imagines a realm of infinite possibility, a kingdom with roads, schools and hospitals all paid for by the black gold beneath the barren sand. There is only one problem. The precious oil is located in the Yellow Belt.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRoad to Morocco (1942)
Two carefree castaways on a desert shore find an Arabian Nights city, where they compete for the luscious Princess Shalmar.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNate and Hayes (1983)
Nathaniel Williamsen is taken to an island mission with his fiancee Sophie. Their ship, the Rona, is captained by the roguish Bully Hayes, who also takes a liking to Sophie. When Sophie is kidnapped by slave trader Ben Pease "Nate" teams with Hayes in order to find her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJack Hunter and the Quest for Akhenaten's Tomb (2008)
Adventurer Jack Hunter sets off in pursuit of a legendary tomb, meeting dangerous old adversaries, and even more dangerous old flames, along the way.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChina Seas (1935)
Captain Alan Gaskell sails the perilous waters between Hong Kong and Singapore with a secret cargo: a fortune in British gold. That's not the only risky cargo he carries; both his fiery mistress and his refined fiancee are aboard!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Legion (2020)
Noreno, a half-Roman, is entrusted with the mission of crossing the snowy mountains of Armenia, swarming with Parthian patrols, to seek help for his slowly dying men.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSupercross (2005)
Faced with the suspicious death of their father, two brothers must motivate one another to get back on their bikes and take the Las Vegas Motocross Championships by storm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeized (2020)
Hiding out with his son Taylor on the Mexican coast, Nero hopes to put his violent Special Forces career behind him. But after Nero’s home is attacked and Taylor is abducted, the mysterious Mzamo orders Nero to slaughter the members of three rival crime syndicates. If he fails, Taylor will die. Now, with bullets flying and bodies dropping as Nero completes his mission, he races to find Mzamo’s hideout and seek revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Pirate (1948)
A girl is engaged to the local richman, but meanwhile she has dreams about the legendary pirate Macoco. A traveling singer falls in love with her and to impress her he poses as the pirate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNorth Sea Hijack (1980)
When terrorists take over two oil rigs, and threaten to blow them up if their demands are not met, an eccentric anti-terrorism expert volunteers his unique commando unit to stop them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTarzan and the Amazons (1945)
A group of archaeologists asks Tarzan to help them find an ancient city in a hidden valley of women. He refuses, but Boy is tricked into doing the job. The queen of the women asks Tarzan to help them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInterceptor (2022)
A U.S. Army Captain uses her years of tactical training to save humanity from sixteen nuclear missiles launched at the U.S. as a violent attack threatens her remote missile interceptor station.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDouble Threat (2022)
With ruthless mobsters on her tail, a young woman with a split personality becomes entangled with a man on a pilgrimage across the country to scatter his brother's ashes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBalls Up (2026)
Two marketing executives go "balls out" and pitch a bold full‑coverage condom sponsorship with the World Cup. After their drunken celebration in Brazil sparks a global scandal, they must outrun furious fans, criminals, and power-hungry officials to salvage their careers and make it home alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisSahara (1983)
Intent on winning a competition in place of her distinguished late father, beautiful young heiress Dale takes on the guise of a man and competes in his spot, embarking on a car race that crosses the unforgiving Sahara desert.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisFalcon Rising (2014)
Chapman is an ex-marine in Brazil's slums, battling the yakuza outfit who attacked his sister and left her for dead.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wind and the Lion (1975)
At the beginning of the 20th century an American woman is abducted in Morocco by Berbers, and the attempts to free her range from diplomatic pressure to military intervention.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRiver Wild (2023)
Follows a pair of siblings who love but distrust each other as they embark on a white-water rafting trip with a small group. One of their friends from childhood turns out to be more dangerous than he appears.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwashbuckler (1976)
A pirate and a hot-tempered noblewoman join forces to protect Jamaica from a tyrant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEnd of Sentence (2019)
Newly widowed Frank Fogle embarks on a journey to Ireland to scatter his late wife’s ashes. His estranged son, Sean, recently released from prison, agrees to join only when his father promises that they’ll never see each other again following the trip. After revelations surface about an old flame of Frank’s wife and a charming hitchhiker with plans of her own intervenes, father and son find themselves drawn together in unexpected ways.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWomen Everywhere (1930)
Charles Jackson, an American sea-captain and singing soldier-of-fortune, is arrested by the French Foreign Legion for running guns to the rebel forces in Morocco fighting against the rule of the French in north Africa. He is saved by Lili La Fleur, a singer/dance in a Morocco café and, through her, eventually becomes a hero to the Foreign Legion.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
The Black Stallion Returns (1983)
"Black" is a stunning fire-and-silk stallion celebrated the world over. But to his young American owner, Alec Ramsay, he's much more. So, when the amazing animal is stolen, Alec will stop at nothing to get him back. Alec finally unravels the mystery of Black's theft...only to discover that he must overcome even greater odds to reclaim his beloved horse.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLegionnaire (1998)
Alain Lefevre is a boxer paid by a Marseille mobster to take a dive. When he wins the fight he attempts to flee to America with the mobster's girlfriend Katrina. This plan fails and he seeks escape by joining the foreign legion. As part of the legion he tangles with abusive lieutenant Steinkampf and bonds with legionnaires Luther, Mackintosh and Rosetti.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisIshtar (1987)
Two terrible lounge singers get booked to play a gig in a Moroccan hotel but somehow become pawns in an international power play between the CIA, the Emir of Ishtar, and the rebels trying to overthrow his regime.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisAtoman (2025)
Hakim is a professional hacker and used to muscular interrogations. But his last encounter with the Moroccan secret service will change his life forever. He will discover that his genes give him extraordinary powers. And if they manifest themselves now, it is for a very simple reason: he is the only one who can prevent a global catastrophe…
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
Close (2019)
A counter-terrorism expert takes a job protecting a young heiress. After an attempted kidnapping puts both of their lives in danger, they must flee.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMarch or Die (1977)
Just after World War I, Major Foster is incorporating new recruits into his French Foreign Legion platoon when he is sent to his former remote outpost located in the French Morocco to protect an archaeological excavation from El Krim, a Rifian leader who intends to unite all local tribes to fight the colonial government…
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Adventures of Tintin (2011)
Intrepid young reporter, Tintin, and his loyal dog, Snowy, are thrust into a world of high adventure when they discover a ship carrying an explosive secret. As Tintin is drawn into a centuries-old mystery, Ivan Ivanovitch Sakharine suspects him of stealing a priceless treasure. Tintin and Snowy, with the help of salty, cantankerous Captain Haddock and bumbling detectives, Thompson and Thomson, travel half the world, one step ahead of their enemies, as Tintin endeavors to find the Unicorn, a sunken ship that may hold a vast fortune, but also an ancient curse.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHighlander III: The Sorcerer (1994)
Deceived that he had won the Prize, Connor MacLeod wanders through the world; however, he is awakened from his peaceful life when an entombed immortal magician, Kane, escapes and comes seeking the Highlander.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
SnoozefestMovies like thisBound in Morocco (1918)
A lost film. George Travelwell (Fairbanks), an American youth motoring in Morocco, discovers that the governor of El Harib (Frank Campeau) has seized a young American woman for his harem. Disguised as an inmate of the harem, George nearly wrecks the place while he rescues her. One thrilling incident follows upon the heels of another in their attempts to get away, and it ends with him setting one tribe against another, leaving them free to peacefully ride away.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both adventure
Like Drums of the Desert and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Drums of the Desert?
The closest matches to Drums of the Desert are Black Gold (2011), Road to Morocco (1942) and Nate and Hayes (1983). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Drums of the Desert?
Start with Black Gold (2011), the closest match to Drums of the Desert.
What is the highest-rated movie like Drums of the Desert?
The Adventures of Tintin (2011), rated 6.9/10 by 6,073 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Drums of the Desert?
Balls Up (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Drums of the Desert?
Yes: Black Gold (2011), Road to Morocco (1942) and Nate and Hayes (1983).
How are movies similar to Drums of the Desert chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Drums of the Desert, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.