Movies like Barking Island (2010)
The best movies like Barking Island (2010) are The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024), Josep (2020) and The Cut (2014). If Barking Island hooked you with its history and animation, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (2022)8.2/10 from 788 votes
- NewestThe Most Precious of Cargoes (2024)Released 2024
- In FrenchThe Most Precious of Cargoes (2024)Also in French
The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024)
Once upon a time, a poor woodcutter and his wife lived in a great forest. Cold, hunger, poverty, and a war raging all around them meant their lives were very hard. One day, the woodcutter's wife rescues a baby. A baby girl thrown from one of the many trains that constantly pass through the forest. This baby, this "most precious of cargoes", will transform the lives of the poor woodcutter's wife and her husband, as well as those whose paths the child will cross—including the man who threw her from the train. And some will try to protect her, whatever the cost. Their story will reveal the worst and the best in the hearts of men.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJosep (2020)
February 1939. Overwhelmed by the flood of Republicans fleeing Franco's dictatorship, the French government's solution consists in confining the Spanish refugees in concentration camps where they have no other choice than to build their own shelters, feed off the horses which have carried them out of their country, and die by the hundred for lack of hygiene and water... In one of these camps, two men, separated by barbwire, will become friends. One is a guard the other is Josep Bartoli (Barcelona 1910 - New York 1995), a cartoonist who fights against the Franco regime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Cut (2014)
In 1915, a man survives the Armenian genocide in the Ottoman Empire, but loses his family, speech and faith. One night, he learns that his twin daughters may be alive, and goes on a quest to find them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both history & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Plague Dogs (1982)
Two dogs, Rowf and Snitter, struggle to survive in the countryside after escaping from an animal research laboratory. They're pursued by search parties and then the military after rumours spread that they could be carrying the bubonic plague.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKitbull (2019)
An unlikely connection sparks between two creatures: a fiercely independent stray kitten and a pit bull. Together, they experience friendship for the first time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMarona's Fantastic Tale (2020)
Marona, an innocent and empathetic little female dog, remembers the life she has shared with different masters, whom she has loved unconditionally.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisArarat (2002)
Interrogated by a customs officer, a young man recounts how his life was changed during the making of a film about the Armenian genocide.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Swallows of Kabul (2019)
Summer 1998—Kabul under Taliban rule. Zunaira and Mohsen are young and in love. Despite the daily violence and misery, they hope for a better future. One day, a foolish gesture causes life to take an irrevocable turn.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisQueen of the Desert (2015)
A chronicle of Gertrude Bell's life, a traveler, writer, archaeologist, explorer, cartographer, and political attaché for the British Empire in the Near and Middle East at the dawn of the twentieth century. Her knowledge of the tribal leaders is used by the British to establish the Kingdoms of Iraq, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Lighthorsemen (1987)
In 1917 when the British forces are bogged down in front of the Turkish and German lines in Palestine they rely on the Australian light horse regiment to break the deadlock.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSgt. Stubby: An American Hero (2018)
The true story of the most decorated dog in American military history - Sgt. Stubby - and the enduring bonds he forged with his brothers-in-arms in the trenches of World War I.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & history
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Zookeeper's Wife (2017)
The account of keepers of the Warsaw Zoo, Jan and Antonina Zabinski, who helped save hundreds of people and animals during the Nazi invasion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (2022)
The unlikely friendship of a boy, a mole, a fox and a horse traveling together in the boy's search for home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisWaiting for the Barbarians (2020)
At an isolated frontier outpost, a colonial magistrate suffers a crisis of conscience when an army colonel arrives looking to interrogate the locals about an impending uprising, using cruel tactics that horrify the magistrate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
SnoozefestMovies like thisFirebrand (2024)
Katherine Parr, the sixth wife of King Henry VIII, is named regent while the tyrant battles abroad. When the king returns, increasingly ill and paranoid, Katherine finds herself fighting for her own survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Miniaturist (2017)
A woman moves to live with her new husband in 17th century Amsterdam, but soon discovers that not everything is what it seems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both history & drama
Worth the HypeMovies 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 thisSpirit: Stallion of the Cimarron (2002)
Against impossible odds, Spirit, a young mustang, sets out across the majestic wilderness to regain his freedom and save his homeland. Along the way, he forms a friendship with a young Lakota brave, outwits a squadron of soldiers, and ultimately, finds love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPrizefighter: The Life of Jem Belcher (2022)
At the turn of the 19th century, Pugilism was the sport of kings and a gifted young boxer fought his way to becoming champion of England.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both history & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnimal Farm (1954)
Animals on a farm lead a revolution against the farmers to put their destiny in their own hands. However this revolution eats their own children and they cannot avoid corruption.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSurface Tension (1986)
Intercutting live action footage with animation, a depiction of the possible memories, repressions and fears of the leading character. The animated sections are monologues by a male figure drawn to highlight the tension between rigid and fluid body structures, skeleton and flesh.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & drama
Gallipoli (1981)
Two Australian sprinters face the brutal realities of war when they are sent to fight in the Gallipoli campaign in the Ottoman Empire during World War I.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisInvincible (2006)
Inspired by the true story of Vince Papale, a man with nothing to lose who ignored the staggering odds and made his dream come true. When the coach of Papale's beloved hometown football team hosted an unprecedented open tryout, the public consensus was that it was a waste of time – no one good enough to play professional football was going to be found this way.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOrfeo (2022)
After the death of his wife, Gabriel Barragán stays at the house of his in-laws. The decision of what to do with the ashes of the deceased generates conflict between Barragán and his father-in-law.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
True (2004)
While he's receiving an enigmatic phone call from his girlfriend Francine, Thomas remembers the milestones of their relationship, from the very moment they met in a really strange way. A segment of “Paris, je t'aime” (2006).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTouching the Void (2003)
The true story of Joe Simpson and Simon Yates' disastrous and nearly-fatal mountain climb of 6,344m Siula Grande in the Cordillera Huayhuash in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Ninth Day (2004)
During WWII, head priest Henri Kremer is mysteriously freed from Dachau. He learns that he can return home to Luxembourg, for only nine days, during which he'll have to face a persuasive Gestapo chief who will put his faith to the test.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Riding 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: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEden (2021)
Eden is the queer re-tale of Adam and Eve’s story in modern times. A visually striking story about first love situated in Berlin.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Devil's Instrument (1965)
A jazz bassist who surveys a beautiful girl at a gig decides to try to get her home. But the devil is getting into the game too.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Barking Island?
The closest matches to Barking Island are The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024), Josep (2020) and The Cut (2014). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Barking Island?
Start with The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024), the closest match to Barking Island.
What is the highest-rated movie like Barking Island?
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (2022), rated 8.2/10 by 788 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Barking Island?
The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there French movies like Barking Island?
Yes: The Most Precious of Cargoes (2024), Josep (2020) and Marona's Fantastic Tale (2020).
How are movies similar to Barking Island chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Barking Island, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.