Movies like American Jihad (2017)
The best movies like American Jihad (2017) are Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), Fuck (2006) and The U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006). If American Jihad hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFahrenheit 9/11 (2004)7.1/10 from 1,596 votes
- NewestA Toxic Love Story (2026)Released 2026
Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFuck (2006)
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006)
A documentary on the life of John Lennon, with a focus on the time in his life when he transformed from a musician into an antiwar activist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Toxic Love Story (2026)
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbove Majestic (2018)
A look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAvatar: The Deep Dive - A Special Edition of 20/20 (2022)
An inside look at one of the most anticipated movie sequels ever with James Cameron and cast.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this35 Up (1991)
Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCome See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Class of ‘92 (2013)
A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Mole: Undercover in North Korea (2020)
A real-life undercover thriller about two ordinary men who embark on an outrageously dangerous ten-year mission to penetrate the world's most secretive and brutal dictatorship: North Korea.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Mom Jayne (2025)
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Crystal Calls - Making The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance (2019)
Go behind the scenes with stars, puppeteers and creators as they bring Jim Henson's magical world of Thra back to life in a sweeping fantasy series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Summers of It - Chapter Two: It Ends (2019)
This documentary focuses on the actors and their journey over two summers to create the remake to the original IT, by Stephen King. The documentary originally released as bonus material, bundled with IT: Chapter Two.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDrew: The Man Behind the Poster (2013)
A documentary on legendary movie-poster artist Drew Struzan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Curse of the Dragon (1993)
A 1993 documentary film about Bruce Lee. The film includes interviews from some of his fellow students and opponents who worked alongside him in his movies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHarmontown (2014)
A comedic, brutally honest documentary following self-destructive TV writer Dan Harmon as he takes his live podcast on a national tour.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisElstree 1976 (2015)
A documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMarvel's Behind the Mask (2021)
A documentary special that explores the power of identity behind the iconic superheroes we know and love today. These legendary Marvel creations and stories have not only reflected the world outside our window – they have become a reflection of our own identities and who we truly are.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFahrenheit 9/11 (2004)
Michael Moore's view on how the Bush administration allegedly used the tragic events on 9/11 to push forward its agenda for unjust wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAlso Known as Jihadi (2017)
Also Known as Jihadi follows the progress of a young man's journey from France to Syria, and back to France, where he is incarcerated for allegedly joining Daesh. Based on real events, and drawn from thousands of pages of judicial documents, the work employs the so-called landscape theory (fukeiron in Japanese). The character's paths to radicalism are rendered purely through a series of landscape shots filmed at the locations traversed by the subject: a biography determined not by what the subject did, but by what the subject saw, and one that questions how these landscapes reflect the social and political structures that are the backdrop for a journey of alienation and return.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Syria: the Legions of Holy War (2015)
A camera crew follows a Jihadi group for a week in Syria
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Among the Believers (2015)
An unsettling and eye opening exploration into the spread of the radical Islamic school Red Mosque, which trains legions of children to devote their lives to jihad, or holy war, from a very young age. With incredible access and chilling footage, Among the Believers is a timely and relevant look into the causes that have led to the growth of radical Islam in Pakistan and around the world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Birth of a Monster (2017)
For the past 12 years, journalist Paul Moreira has travelled extensively in Iraq. In this film, he goes in search of the men he filmed back in 2003 at the very beginning of the American occupation. Through their stories, and by tracing the roots of ISIS to the arrival of Abu Mousab Al-Zarqawi and America's handling of the resistance, he tells the story of how Iraq became such a fractured nation.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Witness Special - Inside the Red Mosque (2007)
In the days leading up to the storming of the Red Mosque, Al Jazeera's Rageh Omaar gained exclusive access. He and his team were the last TV crew inside the mosque before the siege began and filmed the last interview with Abdul Rashid Ghazi, one of the mosque's leaders, before his death.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Isis in Afghanistan (2015)
Witness the rise of ISIS in Afghanistan and how they're training the next generation of jihadists. With rare access to ISIS, correspondent Najibullah Quraishi sees first-hand their spreading power. Also, Pakistan's police fight against the Taliban.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
It Happened But Nobody Noticed (2009)
A document of Connecticut's Punk and New Wave scene captured through raw and rare archival footage and interviews with the musicians and punk scenesters who lived it as witnessed through immortal clubs like Ron's, The Grotto, and Toad's Place.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Computational Compost (2023)
“Computational Compost” addresses the environmental impact of data storage and proposes a synergy between technology and ecology. Humans and artificial intelligence produce so much data that soon there will be no capacity to store it; we are accumulating infinite information with finite resources. The film invites reconsideration on the relationship between data storage and collective memory, highlighting the urgency of critically rethinking narratives of the digital future.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Brent Houzenga: Hybrid Pioneer (2010)
A documentary about an Iowa artist who made his career from two antique photo albums that he found in the trash. It has been four years since he originally found the two photo albums and since then he has had featured exhibits around the country. This is the first film in the MADE IN IOWA documentary series.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like American Jihad?
The closest matches to American Jihad are Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), Fuck (2006) and The U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after American Jihad?
Start with Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), the closest match to American Jihad.
What is the highest-rated movie like American Jihad?
Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004), rated 7.1/10 by 1,596 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like American Jihad?
A Toxic Love Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like American Jihad?
Yes: Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017), Fuck (2006) and The U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006).
How are movies similar to American Jihad chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside American Jihad, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.