Movies like Via Okinawa (1989)
The best movies like Via Okinawa (1989) are Tokyo Family (2013), Sympathy for the Underdog (1971) and Intentions of Murder (1964). If Via Okinawa hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHacksaw Ridge (2016)8.2/10 from 15,512 votes
- Newestcocoon - One Summer of Girlhood (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseTokyo Family (2013)Also in Japanese
Tokyo Family (2013)
An elderly couple journey to Tokyo to visit their grown children, only to find them preoccupied and self-involved.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSympathy for the Underdog (1971)
A yakuza gang gets driven out of Yokohama by a big gang from Tokyo. They relocate to Okinawa to violently start over.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIntentions of Murder (1964)
The neglected common-law wife of a Japanese librarian is repeatedly harassed by a young man with a heart condition who seduces her with the prospect of a better life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004)
The story of golf icon and legend, Bobby Jones, who retired from competition at the tender age of 28.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisHouse of Bamboo (1955)
Eddie Kenner is given a special assignment by the Army to get the inside story on Sandy Dawson, a former GI who has formed a gang of fellow servicemen and Japanese locals.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCharm City Kings (2020)
Mouse desperately wants to join The Midnight Clique, the infamous Baltimore dirt bike riders who rule the summertime streets. When Midnight’s leader, Blax, takes 14-year-old Mouse under his wing, Mouse soon finds himself torn between the straight-and-narrow and a road filled with fast money and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTigertail (2020)
A man reflects on the lost love of his youth and his long-ago journey from Taiwan to America as he begins to reconnect with his estranged daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTokyo Fist (1995)
A businessman, Tsuda, runs into a childhood friend, Kojima, on the subway. Kojima is working as a semiprofessional boxer. Tsuda soon begins to suspect that Kojima might be having an affair with his fiancée Hizuru. After an altercation, Tsuda begins training rigorously himself, leading to an extremely bloody, violent confrontation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHands of Stone (2016)
The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFemale Yakuza Tale (1973)
Ocho is accidentally captured by a drug trafficking cartel who use Chinese women to smuggle drugs into Japan by hiding it in their vaginas. She is tortured, and manages to escape, fighting both the male yakuzas and a gang of female thieves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPassion (2008)
A young couple's announcement of their engagement to their friends is followed by a series of interactions and conflicts that forces everyone to reflect on their lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Young One (1960)
A jazz musician seeks refuge from a lynch mob on a remote island, where he meets a hostile game warden and the young object of his attentions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFast Girls (2012)
A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeast (2026)
MMA legend Patton James, now a commercial fisherman, is pulled back into the cage when his brother is in danger. Reuniting with his old coach Sammy, he commits to one final fight in one championship against the brutal champion Xavier Grau.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBattle of the Year (2013)
A down-on-his-luck coach is hired to prepare a team of the best American dancers for an international tournament that attracts all the best crews from around the world, but the Americans haven't won in fifteen years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlood on the Sun (1945)
Nick Condon, an American journalist in 20s Tokyo, publishes the Japanese master plan for world domination. Reaction from the understandably upset Japanese provides the action, but this is overshadowed by the propaganda of the time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisEl Chicano (2019)
A pair of twin brothers from East L.A. choose to live their lives differently and end up on opposite sides of the law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMindwalk (1991)
On the French island of Mont Saint-Michel, Jack, a failed presidential candidate, Tom, a poet and Sonia, a physicist, engage in an intellectual conversation about politics, philosophy and life over the course of a single day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSakuran (2006)
Kiyoha rises from the lowly courtesan ranks to the high class position of Oiran in the steamy red-light district of Yoshiwara. She is determined to stand on her own two feet and live life as she pleased.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLetters from Nirai Kanai (2005)
Fuki who lives with her grandfather Shoei in Taketomi Island, Okinawa, dreams of becoming a photographer. In her childhood, her mother Masami left Fuki to live in Tokyo. Although Masami has not come back, Fuki receives birthday cards from Masami every year on her birthday. On Fuki's fourteenth birthday, Masami promises to confess everything when Fuki becomes 20 years old. After her graduation from high school, Fuki moves to Tokyo to work as a camera assistant. Fuki starts off her hectic life in Tokyo, and soon, her nineteenth birthday comes. As usual, she receives a birthday card from Masami. A year later...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Breathe In, Breathe Out (2004)
Breathe In, Breathe Out centers on six, later seven, individuals who have gotten jobs harvesting sugarcane on a small Okinawa island. Each worker has their own unique personality as well as their own issues as they learn to work together...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
cocoon - One Summer of Girlhood (2026)
San and Mayu attend an all-girls school on a warm and tranquil island. When war reaches their shores, they are ordered to help nurse the wounded in a military hospital hidden away in a cave. Amidst escalating death and brutality, the friends struggle to find solace in their fragile lives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Star Sand (2017)
In the closing days of World War II, Japanese-American Hiromi, a girl age 16, encounters an American deserter, Bob, and a Japanese soldier, Iwabuchi, living together in a cave on a small island in Okinawa. The two men are deserters from their armies; yet both vow never to harm another human being again. Hiromi looks after the deserters until another soldier appears and the peace of the cave is shattered. It leads to the death of three of them and a fascinating mystery that isn't solved until the present day.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Check It Out, Yo! (2006)
Tomboy Yui (Mao Inoue) brings her 3 male friends along with her to see a live performance of local Okinawan rap group, “Workaholic”. Upon witnessing the crowd reaction, the boys decide to start a rap group of their own to impress chicks—while Toru (Hayato Ichihara) has the added motivation of impressing his older, more sophisticated love interest Nagisa (Ayumi Ito). With only 2 weeks to learn how to play instruments and prepare for their first show, the performance is predictably humiliating. In order to save pride they decide to give it another shot, but this time they ditch the instruments for a sampler and stay truer to themselves. Will Toru be able to capture Nagisa’s heart? Will Yui ever confess her love to Toru or will she just keep practicing her advanced pro wrestling techniques on him instead?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Happiness in August (2003)
Teru, a 17-year-old high school student, goes to live at a relative's house in Okinawa after the death of his mother. He becomes aware of a mysterious and powerful force within their family. Then, one day, he encounters a mysterious man with the soul of a tree?! The story of a mystical journey, against the backdrop of spirit-filled Okinawa Island.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
WWII American Army Medic Desmond T. Doss, who served during the Battle of Okinawa, refuses to kill people and becomes the first Conscientious Objector in American history to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisHero's Island (2025)
Set in post-war Okinawa, Japan, Gusuku had 3 close childhood friends: On, Yamako and On's younger brother Rei. On was the oldest of the group and he was like a leader to everybody else. He was also a heroic figure to them. On led his friends into the U.S. military base and they stole supplies to give away to the local residents. Everybody in the neighborhood praised On. One night, they entered the U.S. military based to steal supplies. During their raid, On was chased by U.S. soldiers and went missing. Years later, Gusuku now works as a police officer. Yamako is an elementary school teacher. Rei is a member of the yakuza. These three people are still unable to get over the disappearance of On. They chase after the truth behind On's disappearance and uncover a shocking answer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Tears for You (2006)
A love story about two step-siblings, Yota and Kaoru. Long ago, Yota's mother married Kaoru's jazz-playing father, effectively merging the two families. Unfortunately, Kaoru's father skipped town, and Yota's mother passed away, but not before imparting a dying wish to her young son to take care of Kaoru.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Tora-san's Tropical Fever (1980)
When cabaret singer Lily writes Toraya about her illness, Tora-san rushes to Okinawa to be by her side.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like Via Okinawa and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Via Okinawa?
The closest matches to Via Okinawa are Tokyo Family (2013), Sympathy for the Underdog (1971) and Intentions of Murder (1964). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Via Okinawa?
Start with Tokyo Family (2013), the closest match to Via Okinawa.
What is the highest-rated movie like Via Okinawa?
Hacksaw Ridge (2016), rated 8.2/10 by 15,512 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Via Okinawa?
cocoon - One Summer of Girlhood (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Via Okinawa?
Yes: Tokyo Family (2013), Sympathy for the Underdog (1971) and Intentions of Murder (1964).
How are movies similar to Via Okinawa chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Via Okinawa, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.