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Movies like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing (1987)

The best movies like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing (1987) are Sarafina! (1992), Detour (1945) and The Glenn Miller Story (1954). If Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. Sarafina! (1992)

    A Soweto schoolgirl named Sarafina is galvanized to protest apartheid after her teacher is arrested for her activism, leading her to join the student resistance movement.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  2. Detour (1945)

    The life of Al Roberts, a pianist in a New York nightclub, turns into a nightmare when he decides to hitchhike to Los Angeles to visit his girlfriend.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  3. The Glenn Miller Story (1954)

    A vibrant tribute to one of America's legendary bandleaders, charting Glenn Miller's rise from obscurity and poverty to fame and wealth in the early 1940s.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  4. Escape from Pretoria (2020)

    South Africa, 1978. Tim Jenkin and Stephen Lee, two white political activists from the African National Congress imprisoned by the apartheid regime, put a plan in motion to escape from the infamous Pretoria Prison.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  5. All Eyez on Me (2017)

    All Eyez on Me chronicles the life and legacy of Tupac Shakur, including his rise to superstardom as a hip-hop artist, actor, poet and activist, as well as his imprisonment and prolific, controversial time at Death Row Records. Against insurmountable odds, Tupac rose to become a cultural icon whose career and persona both continue to grow long after his passing.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  6. 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

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  7. They Shot the Piano Player (2023)

    New York, 2010. Jeff Harris, a music journalist, sets out to uncover the truth about Francisco Tenório Júnior, a young Brazilian samba-jazz pianist who disappeared in Buenos Aires on March 18, 1976.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  8. In My Country (2004)

    An American reporter and an Afrikaans poet meet and fall in love while covering South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission hearings.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  9. Bob Marley: One Love (2024)

    Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley overcomes adversity to become the most famous reggae musician in the world.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  10. It's All Gone Pete Tong (2004)

    A comedy following the tragic life of the legendary Frankie Wilde. The story takes us through Frankie's life from being one of the best DJs alive, through a subsequent battle with a hearing disorder, culminating in his mysterious disappearance from the scene.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  11. I Am Not Your Negro (2017)

    Working from the text of James Baldwin’s unfinished final novel, director Raoul Peck creates a meditation on what it means to be Black in the United States.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  12. Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool (2019)

    An immersive look at the eventful life and brilliant artistic career of visionary American jazz trumpeter Miles Davis (1926-1991).

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  13. Whiplash (2014)

    Under the direction of a ruthless instructor, a talented young drummer begins to pursue perfection at any cost, even his humanity.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Absolute CinemaMovies like this
  14. When We Were Kings (1996)

    It's 1974. Muhammad Ali is 32 and thought by many to be past his prime. George Foreman is ten years younger and the heavyweight champion of the world. Promoter Don King wants to make a name for himself and offers both fighters five million dollars apiece to fight one another, and when they accept, King has only to come up with the money. He finds a willing backer in Mobutu Sese Suko, the dictator of Zaire, and the "Rumble in the Jungle" is set, including a musical festival featuring some of America's top black performers, like James Brown and B.B. King.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  15. Disgrace (2008)

    Disgrace is the story of a South African professor of English who loses everything: his reputation, his job, his peace of mind, his good looks, his dreams of artistic success, and finally even his ability to protect his cherished daughter. After having an affair with a student, he moves to the Eastern Cape, where he gets caught up in a mess of post-apartheid politics.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  16. Shirley (2024)

    Shirley Chisholm makes a trailblazing run for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination after becoming the first Black woman elected to Congress.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  17. The Rainmaker (1997)

    Fresh out of law school and desperate for work, idealistic rookie Rudy Baylor takes on a powerful insurance company accused of denying a dying boy’s claim. Teaming up with a scrappy, unlicensed paralegal, he finds himself in a David-versus-Goliath courtroom battle that tests his ethics, courage, and belief in justice.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  18. The Great Debaters (2007)

    The true story of a brilliant but politically radical debate team coach who uses the power of words to transform a group of underdog African-American college students into a historical powerhouse that took on the Harvard elite.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  19. Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013)

    A chronicle of Nelson Mandela's life journey from his childhood in a rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  20. Born to Be Blue (2015)

    Jazz legend Chet Baker finds love and redemption when he stars in a movie about his own troubled life to mount a comeback.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this

Like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing and something else?

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Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing?

The closest matches to Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing are Sarafina! (1992), Detour (1945) and The Glenn Miller Story (1954). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing?

Start with Sarafina! (1992), the closest match to Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing.

What is the highest-rated movie like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing?

Whiplash (2014), rated 8.4/10 by 17,386 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing?

Shirley (2024) is the most recent release on this list.

Are there English movies like Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing?

Yes: Sarafina! (1992), Detour (1945) and The Glenn Miller Story (1954).

How are movies similar to Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Abdullah Ibrahim: A Brother with Perfect Timing, 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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