Movies like Ziarah (2016)
The best movies like Ziarah (2016) are The Sleeping Dictionary (2003), The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) and A Walk in the Clouds (1995). If Ziarah 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 ratedCasablanca (1943)8.1/10 from 6,326 votes
- NewestMexicali (2026)Released 2026
The Sleeping Dictionary (2003)
In the 1930s, British officer John Truscott journeys to a remote village in colonial Malaysia to educate and Westernize the local Iban population. There, he's introduced to the lovely Selima. In keeping with tradition, Selima is assigned to sleep with Truscott and teach him the native language and customs. But when they fall in love, both colonists and natives object to their plans to marry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Year of Living Dangerously (1982)
A young Australian reporter tries to navigate the political turmoil of Indonesia during the rule of President Sukarno with the help of a diminutive photographer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Walk in the Clouds (1995)
World War II vet Paul Sutton falls for a pregnant and unwed woman who persuades him -- during their first encounter -- to pose as her husband so she can face her family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies 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 thisBlind (2017)
A novelist is blinded in a car crash that killed his wife and several years later rediscovers his passion for life and writing when he embarks on an affair with the neglected wife of an indicted businessman.
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 thisThe Face of Love (2013)
A widow falls for a guy who bears a striking resemblance to her late husband.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Fugitive Kind (1960)
Val Xavier, a drifter of obscure origins, arrives at a small town and gets a job in a store run by Lady Torrence. Her husband, Jabe M. Torrance, is dying of cancer. Val is pursued by Carol Cutere, the enigmatic local tramp-of-good-family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Week with Marilyn (2011)
London, 1956. Genius actor and film director Laurence Olivier is about to begin the shooting of his upcoming movie, premiered in 1957 as The Prince and the Showgirl, starring Marilyn Monroe. Young Colin Clark, who dreams on having a career in movie business, manages to get a job on the set as third assistant director.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCasablanca (1943)
In Casablanca, Morocco in December 1941, a cynical American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 thisA Love Song (2022)
Two childhood sweethearts, now both widowed, share a night by a lake in the mountains.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
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 thisThe Lost Husband (2020)
Trying to put her life back together after the death of her husband, Libby and her children move to her estranged Aunt's goat farm in central Texas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCairo Time (2009)
In Cairo on her own as she waits for her husband, Juliette finds herself caught in a whirlwind romance with his friend Tareq, a retired cop. As Tareq escorts Juliette around the city, they find themselves in the middle of a brief affair that catches them both unawares.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Lucky One (2012)
A Marine travels to Louisiana after serving three tours in Iraq and searches for the unknown woman he believes was his good luck charm during the war.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAn Officer and a Gentleman (1982)
Zack Mayo is an aloof, taciturn man who aspires to be a navy pilot. Once he arrives at training camp for his 13-week officer's course, Mayo runs afoul of abrasive, no-nonsense drill Sergeant Emil Foley. Mayo is an excellent cadet, but a little cold around the heart, so Foley rides him mercilessly, sensing that the young man would be prime officer material if he weren't so self-involved. Zack's affair with a working girl is likewise compromised by his unwillingness to give of himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSahara (1983)
Intent on winning a competition in place of her distinguished late father, beautiful young heiress Dale takes on the guise of a man and competes in his spot, embarking on a car race that crosses the unforgiving Sahara desert.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisMexicali (2026)
A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThere Will Be Spring (2020)
Late 40’s after the war. Strange languaged and religioned immigrants fleeing from Karelia region are hated by Finns in the countryside. 19-year old Anni is living her life wanting to forget the war and hostility surrounding her. Falling in love with a man who hasn’t left fighting, threatens Anni’s whole family’s future and hope for mutual forgiveness..
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Daisy Kenyon (1947)
Daisy Kenyon is a Manhattan commercial artist having an affair with an arrogant and overbearing but successful lawyer and family man named Dan O'Mara. Daisy meets a single man, a war veteran named Peter Lapham, and after a brief and hesitant courtship decides to marry him, although she is still in love with Dan.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLand of Hope (2018)
Anni, a daughter of a wealthy family and used to secure life, falls in love with Veikko, a war invalid of the Continuation War. Anni leaves her past behind her and starts leading the life of a pioneer, in the wild forests of northern Karelia, in a settlement farm. After a rosy start, the fate crushes Anni’s dreams and her love for Veikko is put to a test.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCourage Under Fire (1996)
A US Army officer, who made a "friendly fire" mistake that was covered up, has been reassigned to a desk job. He is tasked to investigate a female chopper commander's worthiness to be awarded the Medal of Honor. At first all seems in order. But then he begins to notice inconsistencies between the testimonies of the witnesses...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMen Don't Cry (2017)
The armed conflicts of the 1990s not only visibly destroyed the land of the former Yugoslavia, but also left the deepest wounds in the memory of each of its belligerent nations. There are as many different interpretations of that bleak past as there are countries affected. It is therefore hard to expect absolute harmony when, less than two decades since the war ended, a diverse group of veterans gathers at a remote mountain hotel for a therapy session over several days. On the contrary, such a dangerously volatile situation can suddenly ignite by just one thoughtless word, or a seemingly dirty look. That’s because the former soldiers, obstinately holding on to their fundamental masculinity and their prejudices, refusing to expose the inhumanity of the atrocities perpetrated. However, this quietness is just about to be broken and hidden emotions are to be faced.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Soldier (1998)
Sergeant Todd is a veteran soldier for an elite group of the armed forces. After being defeated by a new breed of genetically engineered soldiers, he is dumped on a waste planet and left for dead. He soon interacts with a group of crash survivors who lead out a peaceful existence. The peace is broken as the new soldiers land on the planet to eliminate the colony, which Sergeant Todd must defend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUttarayan (1963)
Prabir goes to war where he meets his doppelganger, Rataneshwar, who eventually dies in combat. Prabir decides to visit Rataneshwar's family to inform them about his death but the family mistake him for Rataneshwar.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle (1939)
In 1911, minor stage comic, Vernon Castle meets the stage-struck Irene Foote. A few misadventures later, they marry and then abandon comedy to attempt a dancing career together. While they're performing in Paris, an agent sees them rehearse and starts them on their brilliant career as the world's foremost ballroom dancers. However, at the height of their fame, World War I begins.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBoomerang! (1947)
When a kindly priest is murdered while waiting at a street corner in a quiet Connecticut town, the citizens are horrified and demand action from the police. All of the witnesses identify John Waldron, a nervous out-of-towner, as the killer. District Attorney Henry Harvey is then put on the case and faces political opposition in his attempt to prove Waldron's innocence.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMagnum Opus (2017)
This spy thriller pits veteran-turned-artist, Daniel Cliff, against US intelligence, and secrets from his past lead to hellish journey of lies, betrayal, and government retribution.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like Ziarah and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ziarah?
The closest matches to Ziarah are The Sleeping Dictionary (2003), The Year of Living Dangerously (1982) and A Walk in the Clouds (1995). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ziarah?
Start with The Sleeping Dictionary (2003), the closest match to Ziarah.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ziarah?
Casablanca (1943), rated 8.1/10 by 6,326 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ziarah?
Mexicali (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to Ziarah chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ziarah, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.