Movies like Paternal Rites (2018)
The best movies like Paternal Rites (2018) are Elton John: Never Too Late (2024), The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011) and Father Mother Sister Brother (2025). If Paternal Rites hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (2008)8.1/10 from 619 votes
- NewestEvil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story (2025)Released 2025
Elton John: Never Too Late (2024)
Sir Elton John looks back on his life and the astonishing early days of his 50-year career in this emotionally charged, full-circle journey. As he prepares for his final concert in North America at Dodger Stadium, Elton takes us back in time and recounts his struggles with adversity, abuse, and addiction, and how he overcame them to become the icon he is today.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011)
A suburban father gets trapped in a one-sided incestuous relationship with his abusive son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFather Mother Sister Brother (2025)
Estranged siblings reunite after years apart, forced to confront unresolved tensions and reevaluate their strained relationships with their emotionally distant parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Chronology of Water (2025)
Plagued by an abusive childhood, a woman finds escape in competitive swimming, sexual experimentation, toxic relationships, and addiction before ultimately finding her voice through writing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCobain: Montage of Heck (2015)
Hailed as one of the most innovative and intimate documentaries of all time, experience Kurt Cobain like never before in the only ever fully authorized portrait of the famed music icon. Academy Award nominated filmmaker Brett Morgen expertly blends Cobain's personal archive of art, music, never seen before movies, animation and revelatory interviews from his family and closest friends.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Own Private Idaho (1991)
Mike Waters is a hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor is the rebellious son of a mayor. Together, the two travel from Portland, Oregon to Idaho and finally to the coast of Italy in a quest to find Mike's estranged mother. Along the way they turn tricks for money and drugs, eventually attracting the attention of a wealthy benefactor and sexual deviant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (2008)
In 2001, Andrew Bagby, a medical resident, is murdered not long after breaking up with his girlfriend. Soon after, when she announces she's pregnant, one of Andrew's many close friends, Kurt Kuenne, begins this film, a gift to the child.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisGoing Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief (2015)
The film profiles eight former members of the Church of Scientology, shining a light on how they attract true believers and the things they do in the name of religion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAntichrist (2009)
A grieving couple retreats to their cabin 'Eden' in the woods, hoping to repair their broken hearts and troubled marriage. But nature takes its course and things go from bad to worse.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaria by Callas (2017)
Told through performances, TV interviews, home movies, family photographs, private letters and unpublished memoirs, the film reveals the essence of an extraordinary woman who rose from humble beginnings in New York City to become a glamorous international superstar and one of the greatest artists of all time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMoonage Daydream (2022)
A cinematic odyssey featuring never-before-seen footage exploring David Bowie's creative and musical journey.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTest (2018)
Kurt Longson tries to avenge his daughters death. To succeed he has to battle with his conscience and morality to realize true love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBoyhood (2014)
The film tells a story of a divorced couple trying to raise their young son. The story follows the boy for twelve years, from first grade at age 6 through 12th grade at age 17-18, and examines his relationship with his parents as he grows.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEvil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story (2025)
Unravel the case of Utah therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, whose child abuse arrest with parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke exposed a twisted tale of manipulation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn Unfinished Life (2005)
Stoic and heartbroken, Einar Gilkyson quietly lives in the rugged Wyoming ranchlands alongside his only trusted friend, Mitch Bradley. One day, the woman he blames for the death of his only son arrives at his door broke, desperate, and with a granddaughter he's never known. But even as buried anger and accusations resurface, the way is opened for unexpected connection, adventure, and forgiveness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Girl Next Door (2007)
In a quiet suburban town in the summer of 1958, two recently orphaned sisters are placed in the care of their mentally unstable Aunt Ruth. But Ruth's depraved sense of discipline will soon lead to unspeakable acts of abuse and torture that involve her young sons, the neighborhood children, and one 12-year-old boy whose life will be changed forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies 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
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBoy A (2008)
Freed after a lengthy term in a juvenile detention center, convicted child killer Jack Burridge finds work as a deliveryman and begins dating co-worker Michelle. While out on the road one day, Jack notices a distressed child, and, after reuniting the girl with her family, becomes a local celebrity. But when a local newspaper unearths his past, Jack must cope with the anger of citizens who fear for the safety of their children.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHoney Boy (2019)
The story of a child star attempting to mend his relationship with his law-breaking, alcohol-abusing father over the course of a decade, loosely based on Shia LaBeouf’s life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAftersun (2022)
Sophie reflects on the shared joy and private melancholy of a holiday she took with her father twenty years earlier. Memories fill the gaps between camcorder footages as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the troubled man she didn't.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Paternal Rites?
The closest matches to Paternal Rites are Elton John: Never Too Late (2024), The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011) and Father Mother Sister Brother (2025). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Paternal Rites?
Start with Elton John: Never Too Late (2024), the closest match to Paternal Rites.
What is the highest-rated movie like Paternal Rites?
Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father (2008), rated 8.1/10 by 619 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Paternal Rites?
Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Paternal Rites?
Yes: Elton John: Never Too Late (2024), The Strange Thing About the Johnsons (2011) and Father Mother Sister Brother (2025).
How are movies similar to Paternal Rites chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Paternal Rites, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.