Movies like Liz and the Blue Bird (2018)
The best movies like Liz and the Blue Bird (2018) are The Colors Within (2024), Blue Giant (2023) and Sound! Euphonium the Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day (2019). If Liz and the Blue Bird hooked you with its animation and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLook Back (2024)8.2/10 from 718 votes
- NewestRunt (2024)Released 2024
- In JapaneseThe Colors Within (2024)Also in Japanese
The Colors Within (2024)
Totsuko is a high school student with the ability to see the 'colors' of others. Colors of bliss, excitement, and serenity, plus a color she treasures as her favorite. Kimi, a classmate at her school, gives off the most beautiful color of all. Although she doesn't play an instrument, Totsuko forms a band with Kimi and Rui, a quiet music enthusiast they meet at a used bookstore in a far corner of town. As they practice at an old church on a remote island, music brings them together, forming friendships and stirring affections.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlue Giant (2023)
High school student Dai Miyamoto has his life is turned upside down the day he discovers jazz. Picking up a saxophone and leaving his sleepy hometown for the bustling nightclubs of Tokyo, Dai will find that the life of a professional musician isn’t for the faint of heart, as he must confront what it truly means to be great.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSound! Euphonium the Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day (2019)
The next piece begins! Kumiko is now in her second year at Kitauji High School, and with a new year comes new problems. As if making it to Nationals wasn't hard enough, Kumiko is tasked with mentoring the concert band's troublesome first years – each with their own distinct personality and problems to solve. With Kumiko busy juggling both the concert band and her new role as senpai, how does her relationship with Shuuichi fit into the picture?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSing a Bit of Harmony (2021)
Satomi is fine being alone until an AI named Shion joins her class with a song and a promise to make her happy. While Shion’s musical numbers and princess gowns don’t quite pass as human, her antics bring Satomi closer to four other classmates. Together, they make memories worth saving, but even our most precious data can be erased.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRascal Does Not Dream of a Sister Venturing Out (2023)
After a draining December, Sakuta is quickly nearing the end of his second year of high school. Since Mai is a third-year student, they don't have much time left together before graduation rolls around. Meanwhile, his sister, Kaede, is slowly but steadily venturing outdoors again. Just as she begins to find her footing, she announces her most ambitious goal yet—attending her brother's high school! Sakuta knows better than anyone how difficult this will be for Kaede, and he's ready to support her however he can. He's just not sure if that's what's best for her...or what she really wants...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHaikyu!! The Movie: Battle of Concepts (2017)
A recap film depicting the match against Shiratorizawa Academy in the third season of the anime series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisLook Back (2024)
Popular, outgoing Fujino is celebrated by her classmates for her funny comics in the class newspaper. One day, her teacher asks her to share the space with Kyomoto, a truant recluse whose beautiful artwork sparks a competitive fervor in Fujino. What starts as jealousy transforms when Fujino realizes their shared passion for drawing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHaikyu!! the Movie: The End and the Beginning (2015)
Shouyou Hinata, after losing to Kitagawa Daiichi Junior High's setter Tobio Kageyama in his first official volleyball match, transfers to Karasuno High, intent on finally having a proper volleyball team and getting his revenge on Kageyama. Upon arrival at Karasuno, however, Hinata finds out Kageyama has also gone to Karasuno. Initially at odds with each other, the two form an oddball combination and fight together with the other members of the volleyball club. Karasuno reunites with a former rival school, Nekoma High, in a practice match and reignites their school rivalry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBECK (2010)
Yukio is your average high school student who spends his days going to class and avoiding bullies. That is until he meets Ryusuke, a guitar prodigy. Together with Taira, Chiba, and Saku they form the rock band BECK. As their popularity increases so does the danger as Ryusuke's past catches up with him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Little Pony: Equestria Girls – Rainbow Rocks (2014)
Music rules and rainbows rock as Twilight Sparkle and pals compete for the top spot in the Canterlot High "Mane Event" talent show. The girls must rock their way to the top, and outshine rival Adagio Dazzle and her band The Dazzlings, to restore harmony back to Canterlot High.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & music
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisFrom Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
Yokohama, 1963. Japan is picking itself up from the devastation of World War II and preparing to host the 1964 Olympics—and the mood is one of both optimism and conflict as the young generation struggles to throw off the shackles of a troubled past. Against this backdrop of hope and change, a friendship begins to blossom between high school students Umi and Shun—but a buried secret from their past emerges to cast a shadow on the future and pull them apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBarbie: Big City, Big Dreams (2021)
Barbie meets another Barbie Roberts, forming a close friendship, nicknaming each other Malibu and Brooklyn when they both attend the Handlers, Performing Art School in NYC, over the summer, competing for a spot at the spotlight solo.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy Little Pony: Equestria Girls - Friendship Games (2015)
Canterlot High meets its rival school, Crystal Prep Academy, in a competition that’s a long-standing tradition – The Friendship Games. Sunset Shimmer is tasked with keeping magic out of the games to avoid the appearance of impropriety while she and her friends compete against Crystal Prep’s top students led by someone with an equal amount of interest in Equestrian magic – this world’s TWILIGHT SPARKLE.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & music
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLu Over the Wall (2017)
In a small fishing village, a gloomy middle school student named Kai meets a mermaid named Lu.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & music
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStand by Me Doraemon (2014)
Sewashi and Doraemon find themselves way back in time and meet Nobita. It is up to Doraemon to take care of Nobita or else he will not return to the present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPretty Guardian Sailor Moon Eternal the Movie Part 2 (2021)
While under the care of the Outer Sailor Guardians, Hotaru begins to age rapidly. Then, the time comes for all the Sailor Guardians to reunite!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBLUE LOCK THE MOVIE -EPISODE NAGI- (2024)
When apathetic gamer Nagi agrees to join his rich classmate Mikage in soccer, their partnership leads to the famous Blue Lock program — and to changes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006)
When 17-year-old Makoto Konno gains the ability to 'leap' backwards through time, she immediately sets about improving her grades and preventing personal mishaps. However, she soon realises that changing the past isn't as simple as it seems, and eventually, will have to rely on her new powers to shape the future of herself and her friends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPoupelle of Chimney Town (2020)
The story is about a young boy named Lubicchi and a trashman named Poupelle who meet on a Halloween night in a city that is full of tall chimneys. The chimneys pour out black smoke and the true sky cannot be seen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhisper of the Heart (1995)
Shizuku lives a simple life, dominated by her love for stories and writing. One day she notices that all the library books she has have been previously checked out by the same person: "Seiji Amasawa."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHaikyu!! The Movie: Talent and Sense (2017)
A compilation film depicting the match against Aoba Johsai High School in the second season of the anime series. It will also include new scenes portraying what happened after the match.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation & drama
Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)
In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright, a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet, who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city's black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRunt (2024)
In the Australian town of Upson Downs, ten-year-old Annie and Runt, her stray dog, attempt to win the Agility Course Championship at the Krumpets Dog Show in London in order to save their family's farm from drought and misery.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Bringing Out the Dead (1999)
Once called "Father Frank" for his efforts to rescue lives, Frank Pierce sees the ghosts of those he failed to save around every turn. He has tried everything he can to get fired, calling in sick, delaying taking calls where he might have to face one more victim he couldn't help, yet cannot quit the job on his own.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRomance for Bugle (1967)
A lyrical story about first love, death and disappointment, based on a poem of the same title.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Thin Red Line (1998)
The story of a group of men, an Army Rifle company called C-for-Charlie, who change, suffer, and ultimately make essential discoveries about themselves during the fierce World War II battle of Guadalcanal. It follows their journey, from the surprise of an unopposed landing, through the bloody and exhausting battles that follow, to the ultimate departure of those who survived.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Life as a Dog (1985)
A boy, obsessed with comparing himself with those less fortunate, experiences a different life at the home of his aunt and uncle in 1959 Sweden.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this99 Francs (2007)
Paris, France, 2001. Octave Parango, a young advertiser working at the Ross & Witchcraft advertising agency, lives a suicidal existence, ruled by cynicism, irresponsibility and debauchery. The obstacles he will encounter in developing a campaign for a new yogurt brand will force him to face the meaning of his work and the way he manages his relationship with those who orbit around his egotistic lifestyle.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnne of Green Gables: The Continuing Story (2000)
Anne is persuaded to join her fiance, Gilbert, in New York City as he begins his tenure at a major hospital. However, any chance of lasting happiness is dashed when Gilbert enlists to serve in The Great War in Europe. Anne stays behind and takes up writing, but learns that contact has been lost with Gilbert. Seeing no other option, Anne decides to venture to Europe herself to find him. In doing so, she begins an adventure that will challenge her wits and imagination to the limit.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Hiroshima (1953)
Historical fiction about the aftermath of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, on 6 August 1945, and its effects on various civilians, especially children, of that city.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Liz and the Blue Bird?
The closest matches to Liz and the Blue Bird are The Colors Within (2024), Blue Giant (2023) and Sound! Euphonium the Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Liz and the Blue Bird?
Start with The Colors Within (2024), the closest match to Liz and the Blue Bird.
What is the highest-rated movie like Liz and the Blue Bird?
Look Back (2024), rated 8.2/10 by 718 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Liz and the Blue Bird?
Runt (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Liz and the Blue Bird?
Yes: The Colors Within (2024), Blue Giant (2023) and Sound! Euphonium the Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day (2019).
How are movies similar to Liz and the Blue Bird chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Liz and the Blue Bird, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.