Movies like Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls (2016)
The best movies like Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls (2016) are The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), Nightmare Alley (1947) and Hogfather (2007). If Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act (2026)8.8/10 from 312 votes
- NewestThe Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act (2026)Released 2026
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009)
After a carnival troupe saves his life, a man agrees to help its immortal leader collect five souls and win a bet with the devil.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNightmare Alley (1947)
A roustabout joins a traveling carny and schemes to figure out the mind-reading act of Mademoiselle Zeena and her alcoholic husband.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHogfather (2007)
It's the night before Hogswatch, usually a time of joy on Discworld, but there are suspicious going-on and the criminal underworld is abuzz. The beloved Hogfather - the jolly bearer of glee and pork-related gifts for children everywhere - has vanished. Suddenly, Discworld's entire mythical system is under threat. The fate of this magical time rests in the hands of a very motley group: A band of wizards headed up by a mystical university president named Mustrum Ridcully (Joss Ackland), a loyal manservant called Albert (David Jason), a level-headed governess called Susan Sto Heilt (Michelle Dockery), and her grandfather, who happens to be - Death (Marnix van den Broeke).
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last House on the Left (1972)
On the eve of her 17th birthday, Mari and her friend Phyllis set off from the family home to attend a rock concert in the city. Attempting to score some drugs along the way, the pair run afoul of a group of vicious crooks, headed up by the sadistic Krug.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLed Zeppelin - The Song Remains the Same (1976)
The best of Led Zeppelin's legendary 1973 appearances at Madison Square Garden. Interspersed throughout the concert footage are behind-the-scenes moments with the band. The Song Remains the Same is Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden in NYC concert footage colorfully enhanced by sequences which are supposed to reflect each band member's individual fantasies and hallucinations. Includes blistering live renditions of "Black Dog," "Dazed and Confused," "Stairway to Heaven," "Whole Lotta Love," "The Song Remains the Same," and "Rain Song" among others.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLate Night with the Devil (2024)
A live broadcast of a late-night talk show in 1977 goes horribly wrong, unleashing evil into the nation's living rooms.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act (2026)
With Caine gone and the circus dark, the cast are left with only the mistakes and traumas of their pasts to keep them company. As the prospect of eternity closes in around them, they discover the truth about the Digital Circus and its history. Will they come to terms with what they uncover, or will they make... the other choice? Also, presumably at some point someone says something funny, because this ending can’t be THAT depressing, can it? A theatrical screening of episode 8 and the all new, hour-long episode 9.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisRite Here Rite Now (2024)
Whether you’re a devoted disciple looking to relive treasured memories of the GHOST live spectacle or among the curious uninitiated, RITE HERE RITE NOW will put you right there: putting your phones down and living in the moment—as a shadow of uncertainty looms—completely spellbound and in the thrall of this bombastic yet intimate cinematic portrait of GHOST.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisNightmare Alley (2021)
An ambitious carnival man with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychologist who is even more dangerous than he is.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne from the Heart (1982)
In a dazzling, dreamlike Las Vegas, longtime couple Hank and Frannie break up on their fifth anniversary and each pursue the fantasy of new love over one neon-soaked night—he with a free-spirited acrobat, she with a seductive musician. But as illusion and reality blur, both must decide whether passion or devotion truly defines the heart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010)
Balthazar Blake is a master sorcerer in modern-day Manhattan trying to defend the city from his arch-nemesis, Maxim Horvath. Balthazar can't do it alone, so he recruits Dave Stutler, a seemingly average guy who demonstrates hidden potential, as his reluctant protégé. The sorcerer gives his unwilling accomplice a crash course in the art and science of magic, and together, these unlikely partners work to stop the forces of darkness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSalem's Lot (2024)
Author Ben Mears returns to his childhood home of Jerusalem's Lot only to discover his hometown is being preyed upon by a bloodthirsty vampire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisAC/DC: Live at River Plate (2009)
A definitive live concert film documenting AC/DC’s massive Black Ice World Tour. Shot in December of 2009, AC/DC Live at River Plate marks AC/DC’s triumphant return to Buenos Aires where nearly 200,000 fans, and 3 sold-out shows, welcomed the band back after a 13 year absence from Argentina. This stunning live footage of AC/DC underscores what Argentina’s Pagina 12 newspaper reported by saying “no one is on the same level when it comes to pure and clear Rock ‘n Roll.”
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisAngel Heart (1987)
A down-and-out Brooklyn detective is hired to track down a singer on an odyssey that will take him through the desperate streets of Harlem, the smoke-filled jazz clubs of New Orleans, and the swamps of Louisiana and its seedy underworld of voodoo.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNirvana: Unplugged In New York (1993)
A live album by American rock band Nirvana, the album features an acoustic performance recorded at Sony Music Studios in New York City on 18 November 1993, for the television series MTV Unplugged.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSanta Sangre (1989)
A former circus artist escapes from a mental hospital to rejoin his armless, cult leader mother, and is forced to enact brutal murders in her name.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDracula: Prince of Darkness (1966)
Whilst vacationing in the Carpathian Mountain, two couples stumble across the remains of Count Dracula's castle. The Count's trusted servant kills one of the men, suspending the body over the Count's ashes so that the blood drips from the corpse and saturates the blackened remains. The ritual is completed, the Count revived and his attentions focus on the dead man's wife who is to become his partner; devoted to an existence of depravity and evil.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParanormal Activity: Next of Kin (2021)
Margot is a documentary filmmaker looking to meet her long-lost mother and extended family in a secluded Amish community. She and her film crew soon realize the family that welcomes them into their home might be hiding a sinister secret.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVideodrome (1983)
As the president of a trashy TV channel, Max Renn is desperate for new programming to attract viewers. When he happens upon "Videodrome," a TV show dedicated to gratuitous torture and punishment, Max sees a potential hit and broadcasts the show on his channel. However, after his girlfriend auditions for the show and never returns, Max investigates the truth behind Videodrome and discovers that the graphic violence may not be as fake as he thought.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Funhouse (1981)
Rebellious teen Amy defies her parents by going to a trashy carnival that has pulled into town. In tow are her boyfriend, Buzz, and their friends Liz and Richie. Thinking it would be fun to spend the night in the campy "Funhouse" horror ride, the teens witness a murder by a deformed worker wearing a mask. Locked in, Amy and her friends must evade the murderous carnival workers and escape before it leaves town the next day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls?
The closest matches to Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls are The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), Nightmare Alley (1947) and Hogfather (2007). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls?
Start with The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), the closest match to Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls.
What is the highest-rated movie like Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls?
The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act (2026), rated 8.8/10 by 312 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls?
The Amazing Digital Circus: The Last Act (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls?
Yes: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), Nightmare Alley (1947) and Hogfather (2007).
How are movies similar to Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Rifftrax Live: Carnival of Souls, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.