Movies like The Girl in the Lift (1991)
The best movies like The Girl in the Lift (1991) are Cocoon (2020), Aimée & Jaguar (1999) and London (2005). If The Girl in the Lift hooked you with its drama and romance, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedPurple Hearts (2022)8.0/10 from 2,979 votes
- NewestIf You had Stayed (2026)Released 2026
- In GermanCocoon (2020)Also in German
Cocoon (2020)
In the heat of a shimmering Berlin summer, Nora spends her days as a third wheel to her older sister Jule and her best friend Aylin. When Romy comes onto the scene, a friendship blossoms. Nora instantly falls for her, opening up a whole new world and unexpected summer of love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAimée & Jaguar (1999)
In 1943, while the Allies are bombing Berlin and the Gestapo is purging the capital of Jews, a dangerous love affair blossoms between two women – one a Jewish member of the underground, the other an exemplar of Nazi motherhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLondon (2005)
London is a drug laden adventure that centers on a party in a New York loft where a young man is trying to win back his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAli: Fear Eats the Soul (1974)
Emmi Kurowski, a cleaning lady, is lonely in her old age. Her husband died years ago, and her grown children offer little companionship. One night she goes to a bar frequented by Arab immigrants and strikes up a friendship with middle-aged mechanic Ali. Their relationship soon develops into something more, and Emmi's family and neighbors criticize their spontaneous marriage. Soon Emmi and Ali are forced to confront their own insecurities about their future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFalling in Love (1984)
During shopping for Christmas, Frank and Molly run into each other. This fleeting short moment will start to change their lives, when they recognize each other months later in the train home and have a good time together. Although both are married and Frank has two little kids, they meet more and more often, their friendship becoming the most precious thing in their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFabian: Going to the Dogs (2021)
In 1930s Berlin, Dr. Jakob Fabian, who works by day in advertising for a cigarette company and by night wanders the streets of the city, falls in love with an actress. As her career begins to blossom, prospects for his future begin to wane.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Magic of Ordinary Days (2005)
Pregnant out of wedlock, an educated young woman is pressured by her father into an arranged marriage with a lonely farmer in this drama set during WWII.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNot Easily Broken (2009)
A car accident and shifting affections test the bond between a married couple.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUndine (2020)
Undine is a historian and tour guide at the Berlin City Museum specializing in urban development, while Christoph is an industrial diver. Linked by a love of the water, the two form an intense bond, which can only do so much to help Undine overcome the considerable baggage of her former affair.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNine Lives (2005)
Captives of the very relationships that define and sustain them, nine women resiliently meet the travails and disappointments of life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Map That Leads to You (2025)
Heather is a young woman traveling Europe with friends before starting her perfectly planned life. A chance meeting with Jack sparks an unexpected romance that leads to deep emotional discovery. As secrets and life choices test their bond, her path changes forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLovely, Still (2009)
A holiday fable that tells the story of an elderly man discovering love for the first time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Time I Saw Paris (1954)
Reporter Charles Wills, in Paris to cover the end of World War II, falls for the beautiful Helen Ellswirth following a brief flirtation with her sister, Marion. After he and Helen marry, Charles pursues his novelistic ambition while supporting his new bride with a deadening job at a newspaper wire service. But when an old investment suddenly makes the family wealthy, their marriage begins to unravel — until a sudden tragedy changes everything.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between (2022)
Clare and Aidan make a pact to break up before college — no regrets, no broken hearts. But will one epic goodbye date offer them a last chance at love?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPurple Hearts (2022)
An aspiring musician agrees to a marriage of convenience with a soon-to-deploy Marine, but a tragedy soon turns their fake relationship all too real.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisArch of Triumph (1948)
In the winter of 1938, Paris is crowded with refugees from the Nazis, who live in the black shadows of night, trying to evade deportation. One such is Dr. Ravic, who practices medicine illegally and stalks his old Nazi enemy Haake with murder in mind. One rainy night, Ravic meets Joan Madou, a kept woman cast adrift by her lover's sudden death. Against Ravic's better judgment, they become involved in a doomed affair.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaria's Lovers (1984)
A World War II prisoner returns home to his childhood sweetheart. However, back home, he discovers that he has to compete to win her love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJerichow (2008)
In a small Northern German town, a dishonourably discharged Afghanistan veteran is offered a job as a deliveryman by an alcoholic Turkish entrepreneur, through which the former meets the latter's gorgeous wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSomeday We'll Tell Each Other Everything (2023)
Set in a warm summer in 1990 in former East Germany, it follows a young woman who begins a relationship with a charismatic farmer who is twice her age.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisLove in Thoughts (2004)
A posthumous look at the last days of Guenther's life as he, his best friend, and his sister let loose on a four-day binge of alcohol, drugs, and sex.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Walk to Remember (2002)
When the popular, restless Landon Carter is forced to participate in the school drama production, he falls in love with Jamie Sullivan, the daughter of the town's minister. Jamie has a "to-do" list for her life, as well as a very big secret she must keep from Landon.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIf You had Stayed (2026)
After a tragic choice leads him to the brink, a disillusioned artist named Michael awakens on a mysterious beach. a liminal space where lost souls come to confront their pasts. Guided by Bob, a charismatic yet enigmatic caretaker, Michael embarks on a surreal journey through the pivotal moments of his life: love, heartbreak, and devastating loss. As he confronts hidden truths and unspoken regrets, Michael is faced with one profound question: Was it worth it, and what would life be like if he had stayed?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance & drama
Chungking Express (1994)
Two melancholic Hong Kong policemen fall in love: one with a mysterious underworld figure, the other with a beautiful and ethereal server at a late-night restaurant.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTonight and Every Night (1958)
Orphan He Yongnian was brought up by Zheng Mu, the owner of a small shop, and he was childhood sweetheart with Zheng's daughter Jingqin. Yongnian and Jingqin's love roots have been planted early, Jingqin helps everywhere, and Yongnian is very grateful. After Yongnian graduated, he was appreciated by the boss of the trading company, Leung. Jingqin's mother and daughter supported him. Boss Leung's daughter Dai Ni is attracted by Yong Nian and starts pursuing him. Yongnian's heart is attached to Jingqin, but he is afraid of offending Dai Ni, so he reluctantly entertains. Seduced by Dai Ni, Yongnian gradually yearns for a higher life, ignoring Zheng's mother and daughter...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
La casa de las mil estrellas (2021)
Stine Olson is reunited with his childhood friend Jan and his brother Paul. Both want to sell a property inherited from their father and hire Stine to organize the demolition of the house.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Epitaph (TBA)
An ex-Army marksman's plan to avenge the murder of his parents brings him into business with a murder-for-hire organization and the C.I.A.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Bugsy (1991)
New York gangster Ben 'Bugsy' Siegel takes a brief business trip to Los Angeles. A sharp-dressing womanizer with a foul temper, Siegel doesn't hesitate to kill or maim anyone crossing him. In L.A. the life, the movies, and most of all strong-willed Virginia Hill detain him while his family wait back home. Then a trip to a run-down gambling joint at a spot in the desert known as Las Vegas gives him his big idea.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPrivate Parts (1997)
The life and career of shock-jock superstar Howard Stern is recounted from his humble beginnings to his view from the top. Possessing a desire to be an on-air personality since childhood, Stern meanders through the radio world, always with his supportive wife, Alison, by his side. Landing a gig in Washington, D.C., Stern meets Robin Quivers, who will become his long-time partner in crime. When the two move to New York, they face the wrath of NBC executives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSouth (1959)
A made-for-television play about an exiled Polish Army lieutenant faced with his darkest secret.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Badineries (2025)
While their couple is falling apart, Baptiste and Violette, two students, discover a new passion that may revive their relationship: murder. Yet, it is not sure that Gabriel and Madeleine, their Catholic and puritan friends, are going to approve this process...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Like The Girl in the Lift and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Girl in the Lift?
The closest matches to The Girl in the Lift are Cocoon (2020), Aimée & Jaguar (1999) and London (2005). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Girl in the Lift?
Start with Cocoon (2020), the closest match to The Girl in the Lift.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Girl in the Lift?
Purple Hearts (2022), rated 8.0/10 by 2,979 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Girl in the Lift?
If You had Stayed (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there German movies like The Girl in the Lift?
Yes: Cocoon (2020), Aimée & Jaguar (1999) and Ali: Fear Eats the Soul (1974).
How are movies similar to The Girl in the Lift chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Girl in the Lift, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.