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Movies like The Dancer & the Drummer (1984)

The best movies like The Dancer & the Drummer (1984) are 1 Chance 2 Dance (2014), What Maisie Knew (2013) and Tigertail (2020). If The Dancer & the Drummer hooked you with its drama, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. 1 Chance 2 Dance (2014)

    When a 17-year old aspiring dancer is uprooted in her high school senior year, she finds herself divided between two boys, and she will have one last shot at making her dream a reality.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  2. What Maisie Knew (2013)

    In New York City, six-year-old Maisie is caught in the middle of a bitter custody battle between her self-absorbed parents—an aging rock singer mother and a distracted art dealer father. As both quickly marry new partners to strengthen their legal standing, Maisie is shuttled back and forth in an endless game of emotional point-scoring. Yet amid the chaos and upheaval, Maisie begins to find true comfort and affection in her new step-parents.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  3. 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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  4. 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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  5. 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
  6. Inside I'm Dancing (2004)

    Michael is a 24-year-old who has cerebral palsy and long-term resident of the Carrigmore Residential Home for the Disabled, run by the formidable Eileen. His life is transformed when the maverick Rory O'Shea moves in.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  7. Skin (2009)

    Based on the true story of a black girl who was born to two white Afrikaner parents in South Africa during the apartheid era.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  8. Imperial Dreams (2014)

    A 21-year-old reformed gangster's devotion to his family and his future is put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his old stomping grounds in Watts, Los Angeles.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  9. Take the Lead (2006)

    A former professional dancer volunteers to teach dance in the New York public school system and, while his background first clashes with his students' tastes, together they create a completely new style of dance. Based on the story of ballroom dancer, Pierre Dulane.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  10. The Color of Friendship (2000)

    Mahree Bok lives on a farm in South Africa. Her father is a policeman who cannot hide his joy when activist Steve Biko is caught by the South African authorities. Piper Dellums is the daughter of a US congressman from California and who lives in a nice home in Washington DC. When Mahree is chosen to spend a semester at the Dellums' house, she doesn't expect that her host family would be black. Nor do her hosts suspect that she is not a black South African.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  11. Girl in the Box (2016)

    The true story of 20-year-old Colleen Stan, a hitchhiking woman abducted by a young couple and held captive for seven years, during which time she's tortured and forced to live as a slave to her captors.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  12. The Kindness of Strangers (2019)

    Clara and her two sons escape from her abusive husband with little more than their car and plan to start over in New York. After the car towed away, the family meets Alice, who gets them into an emergency shelter. While stealing food at a Russian restaurant called ‘Winter Palace’, Clara meets Marc, who has been given the chance to help the old eatery regain its former glory. The ‘Winter Palace’ soon becomes a place of unexpected encounters between people who are all undergoing some sort of crisis and whom fate has now brought together.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  13. The Sound of Silence (2019)

    A successful "house tuner" in New York City, who calibrates the sound in people's homes in order to adjust their moods, meets a client with a problem he can't solve.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

  14. The House on Carroll Street (1988)

    A reporter, fired after refusing to give names to a 1951 House Un-American Activities Committee, takes a part-time job as companion to an old lady. While working she overhears a noisy argument in the neighboring house, being conducted largely in German and involving her HUAC prosecutor. She begins to investigate, enlisting the help of the FBI Agent initially detailed to surveil her.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  15. A Dry White Season (1989)

    During the 1976 Soweto uprising, a white school teacher's life and values are threatened when he asks questions about the death of a young black boy who died in police custody.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  16. Ice Castles (2010)

    Young, beautiful, talented Alexis Winston comes from nowhere to become a figure skating superstar. But her rise to stardom isn’t easy. She has to push herself, reinvent herself, and most painfully of all, leave her hometown boyfriend behind. When a tragic fall leaves her blind, she needs someone to believe in her, to love her; someone to convince her she has the strength to skate and dream again.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  17. The Truth About Emanuel (2013)

    A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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  18. 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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  19. Skater Girl (2021)

    Prerna, a teenager growing up in rural India, comes of age when she’s introduced to the sport of skateboarding. As a result, she has to fight the odds to follow her dreams and compete in the national championship.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  20. Farming (2018)

    Based on the writer/director's childhood, FARMING tells the story of a young Nigerian boy, 'farmed out' by his parents to a white British family in the hope of a better future. Instead, he becomes the feared leader of a white skinhead gang.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama

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Like The Dancer & the Drummer and something else?

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

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like The Dancer & the Drummer?

The closest matches to The Dancer & the Drummer are 1 Chance 2 Dance (2014), What Maisie Knew (2013) and Tigertail (2020). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after The Dancer & the Drummer?

Start with 1 Chance 2 Dance (2014), the closest match to The Dancer & the Drummer.

What is the highest-rated movie like The Dancer & the Drummer?

Inside I'm Dancing (2004), rated 7.4/10 by 243 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like The Dancer & the Drummer?

Skater Girl (2021) is the most recent release on this list.

How are movies similar to The Dancer & the Drummer chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Dancer & the Drummer, 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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