Movies like Joy (2015)
The best movies like Joy (2015) are Higher Ground (2011), The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019) and Light of My Life (2019). If Joy hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Joy
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019)7.9/10 from 1,942 votes
- NewestTuesday (2024)Released 2024
Higher Ground (2011)
Inspired by screenwriter Carolyn S. Briggs' memoir This Dark World, a tight-knit spiritual community is thrown off-kilter when one of their own begins to question her faith, love, and trust - in human relationships as well as in God.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019)
Against all the odds, a thirteen year old boy in Malawi invents an unconventional way to save his family and village from famine.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLight of My Life (2019)
Years after a pandemic wipes out most of the female population, a father struggles to shield his daughter from a dangerous and predatory world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAre You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023)
When her family moves from New York City to New Jersey, an 11-year-old girl navigates new friends, feelings, and the beginning of adolescence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Hill (2023)
The story of Rickey Hill, who overcomes his physical disability and repairs his relationship with his father in a quest to become a major league baseball (MLB) player.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTuesday (2024)
A mother and her teenage daughter must confront Death when it arrives in the form of an astonishing talking bird.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAmina (2021)
In 16th-century Zazzau, now Zaria, Nigeria, Amina must utilize her military skills and tactics to defend her family's kingdom. Based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRiding in Cars with Boys (2001)
In 1965, a young woman with dreams of becoming a writer has a son at the age of 15 and struggles to make things work with the drug-addicted father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Woman's Face (1941)
A female blackmailer with a disfiguring facial scar meets a plastic surgeon who offers her the possibility of looking like a normal woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSwitch (1991)
Steve Brooks, a sexist womanizer, is killed by a group of his angry former lovers. In heaven, he makes a bargain with God for redemption and agrees to return to Earth. Once there, he must have a sincere relationship with a female and make her fall in love with him. If not, Steve's soul will become the property of the devil. But the devil hedges his bet, and Steve is reincarnated as a woman named Amanda Brooks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisMadame X (1966)
Holly Parker, the wife of a wealthy diplomat, is compromised by the accidental death of a man who has been romantically pursuing her. She is forced by her mother-in-law to assume a new identity in order to save the reputation of her husband and infant son. She wanders the world, trying to forget her heartbreak with the aid of alcohol and unsavory men. Eventually returning to the city of her downfall, she murders a blackmailer who threatens to expose her past. Amazingly, Holly is represented at her murder trial by her now adult son, who has become a public defender. In the hope of protecting her family, she refuses to reveal her real name and is known to the court as "Madame X".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFireproof (2008)
A heroic fire captain values dedication and service to others above all else, but the most important partnership in his life, his marriage, is about to go up in smoke.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGrandma (2015)
Self-described misanthrope Elle Reid has her protective bubble burst when her 18-year-old granddaughter, Sage, shows up needing help. The two of them go on a day-long journey that causes Elle to come to terms with her past and Sage to confront her future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAway We Go (2009)
Verona and Burt have moved to Colorado to be close to Burt's parents but, with Verona expecting their first child, Burt's parents inexplicably decide to move to Belgium, now leaving them in a place they hate and without a support structure in place. They set off on a whirlwind tour of of disparate locations where they have friends or relatives, sampling not only different cities and climates but also different families. Along the way they realize that the journey is less about discovering where they want to live and more about figuring out what type of parents they want to be.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMcLintock! (1963)
Aging rancher and self-made man, George Washington McLintock is forced to deal with numerous personal and professional problems. Seemingly everyone wants a piece of his enormous farmstead, including high-ranking government men and nearby Native Americans. As McLintock tries to juggle his various adversaries, his wife—who left him two years previously—suddenly returns. But she isn't interested in George; she wants custody of their daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMandingo (1975)
Warren Maxwell, the owner of a run-down plantation, pressures his son, Hammond, to marry and produce an heir to inherit the plantation. Hammond settles on his own cousin, Blanche, but purchases a sex slave when he returns from the honeymoon. He also buys his father a new Mandingo slave named Mede to breed and train as a prize-fighter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRumble Through the Dark (2023)
In the dark landscape of the Mississippi Delta, a former bare-knuckle fighter must win one last fight to pay off his debts to the local mob boss and save his childhood home—the stakes nothing less than life or death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFor Keeps (1988)
Young high school couple Darcy Elliot and Stan Bobrucz are one year from graduation, with promising futures ahead of them. But their paths take a drastic turn when Darcy becomes pregnant. Unwilling to go through an abortion or an adoption — despite their parents' pleas — Darcy and Stan decide to sacrifice their college experiences and degrees in order to keep and raise the baby. After a quick marriage, the two realize it won't be as easy as they thought.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWar Room (2015)
The family-friendly movie explores the transformational role prayer plays in the lives of the Jordan family. Tony and Elizabeth Jordan, a middle-class couple who seemingly have it all – great jobs, a beautiful daughter, their dream home. But appearances can be deceiving. In reality, the Jordan’s marriage has become a war zone and their daughter is collateral damage. With the help of Miss Clara, an older, wiser woman, Elizabeth discovers she can start fighting for her family instead of against them. Through a newly energized faith, Elizabeth and Tony’s real enemy doesn’t have a prayer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAuthor! Author! (1982)
While facing the stress of his original play being produced on Broadway, playwright Ivan Travalian deals with having to raise his son, his stepdaughters, and his stepsons.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Joy?
The closest matches to Joy are Higher Ground (2011), The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019) and Light of My Life (2019). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Joy?
Start with Higher Ground (2011), the closest match to Joy.
What is the highest-rated movie like Joy?
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019), rated 7.9/10 by 1,942 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Joy?
Tuesday (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Joy?
Yes: Higher Ground (2011), The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019) and Light of My Life (2019).
How are movies similar to Joy chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Joy, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.