Movies like For a Son (2016)
The best movies like For a Son (2016) are The Nest (2019), Bread and Tulips (2000) and Alex of Venice (2015). If For a Son hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedCall Me by Your Name (2017)8.1/10 from 13,042 votes
- NewestDoing Life (2026)Released 2026
- In ItalianThe Nest (2019)Also in Italian
The Nest (2019)
Samuel, a boy who lives with his mother Elena in Villa dei Laghi, an isolated manor surrounded by woods, feels trapped in the family routine, growing up seemingly protected, but unsatisfied and restless.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBread and Tulips (2000)
An endearing light comedy about a woman who spontaneously becomes a resident of Venice after her family left her behind. While enjoying the wonderful people she meets she achieves a new life and the first time independent of her family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAlex of Venice (2015)
After her stay-at-home husband leaves her, a workaholic lawyer finds that she is not completely up to the tasks of caring for her young son, ailing father and household all by herself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisAn Autumn Romance (2021)
When librarian Taylor Harris suddenly loses her job, she decides to visit her brother in a small town in Montana. There, she gets involved in the fight to help save her brother's hotel from tycoon Joel Sheenan, who wants to renovate it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Girl with a Pistol (1968)
A Sicilian woman is dishonored by her lover, then goes to London with a pistol intending to murder him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRed Desert (1964)
In an industrializing Italian town, a married woman, rendered mentally unstable after a traffic accident, drifts into an affair with a friend of her husband.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFlora and Son (2023)
Single mom Flora is at a loss about what to do with her rebellious teenage son, Max. Her efforts to keep him out of trouble lead to a beat-up acoustic guitar, a washed-up LA musician, and harmony for this frayed Dublin family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThings We Don't Say (2026)
Carlo and Elisa are a successful couple. He’s a university professor and writer facing a creative block; she’s a brilliant, sharp-witted journalist, known for her internationally published editorials. They live in Rome, moving between accomplishments and routine, affection and something that might be fading. In search of new energy, they travel to Morocco with their lifelong friends, Anna and Paolo, and their thirteen-year-old daughter Vittoria—bright, curious, a little eccentric. Tensions soon rise.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMambo Italiano (2003)
When an Italian man comes out of the closet, it affects both his life and his crazy family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWasp (2003)
Zoë is a single mother who lives with her four children in Dartford. She is poor and can't afford to buy food. One day her old flame drives by and asks her to go on a date with him. Scared that he doesn't want to go out with her, she lies and tells him that she is just babysitting the kids. This will be her first date in years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWander Darkly (2020)
New parents Adrienne and Matteo are forced to reckon with trauma amidst their troubled relationship. They must revisit the memories of their past and unravel haunting truths in order to face their uncertain future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Consequences of Love (2004)
Lugano, Switzerland. Titta Di Girolamo is a discreet and sullen man who has been living for almost a decade in a modest hotel room, a prisoner of an atrocious routine, apparently without purpose. His past is a mystery, nobody knows what he does for a living, he answers indiscreet questions evasively. What secrets does this enigmatic man hide?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSweetheart (2025)
A reluctant summer together transforms into an enchanting adventure when a young boy discovers his aunt's mysterious Sicilian house holds secrets and, perhaps, ancient spirits lurking within its walls.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove Me Love Me (2026)
After her brother's death, June moves to Milan for a fresh start, finding comfort in Will, the perfect honor student at her new international school. But when his troubled best friend James—hiding a dangerous life in clandestine MMA fights—sparks a rivalry that quickly turns into irresistible attraction, June must choose between safety and a love that upends everything she thought she wanted.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCall Me by Your Name (2017)
In the summer of 1983, a 17-year-old Elio spends his days in his family's villa in Italy. One day Oliver, a graduate student, arrives to assist Elio's father, a professor of Greco-Roman culture. Soon, Elio and Oliver discover a summer that will alter their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisDoing Life (2026)
A single mother and an incarcerated man forge an unlikely bond through heartfelt letters, unlocking a door to redemption, hope and love against all odds.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMoonstruck (1987)
37-year-old Italian-American widow Loretta Castorini believes she is unlucky in love, and so accepts a marriage proposal from her boyfriend Johnny, even though she doesn't love him. When she meets his estranged younger brother Ronny, an emotional and passionate man, she finds herself drawn to him. She tries to resist, but Ronny, who blames his brother for the loss of his hand, has no scruples about aggressively pursuing her while Johnny is out of the country. As Loretta falls for Ronny, she learns that she's not the only one in her family with a secret romance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOnly the Lonely (1991)
Danny Muldoon, a Chicago policeman, still lives with his overbearing mother Rose. He meets and falls in love with Theresa Luna, whose father owns the local funeral parlour. Naturally, his mother objects to the relationship, and Danny and Theresa must either overcome her objections or give up the romance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like For a Son?
The closest matches to For a Son are The Nest (2019), Bread and Tulips (2000) and Alex of Venice (2015). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after For a Son?
Start with The Nest (2019), the closest match to For a Son.
What is the highest-rated movie like For a Son?
Call Me by Your Name (2017), rated 8.1/10 by 13,042 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like For a Son?
Doing Life (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Italian movies like For a Son?
Yes: The Nest (2019), Bread and Tulips (2000) and The Girl with a Pistol (1968).
How are movies similar to For a Son chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside For a Son, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.