Movies like Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution (2015)
The best movies like Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution (2015) are The Untold History Of The United States (2012), 9/11: Inside the President's War Room (2021) and Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019). If Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution hooked you with its documentary and history, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBuena Vista Social Club (1999)7.5/10 from 394 votes
- NewestS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)Released 2026
The Untold History Of The United States (2012)
Oliver Stone charts the history of the United States from the Second World War to the present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Absolute CinemaMovies like this9/11: Inside the President's War Room (2021)
Experience the events of September 11, 2001 through the eyes of President Bush and his closest advisors as they personally detail the crucial hours and key decisions from that historic day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaking Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019)
The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRed Army (2015)
A documentary highlighting the Soviet Union's legendary and enigmatic hockey training culture and world-dominating team through the eyes of the team's Captain Slava Fetisov, following his shift from hockey star and celebrated national hero to political enemy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Princess (2022)
Decades after her untimely death, Princess Diana continues to evoke mystery, glamour, and the quintessential modern fairy tale gone wrong. As a symbol of both the widening fissures weakening the British monarchy and the destructive machinery of the press, the Princess of Wales navigated an unparalleled rise to fame and the corrosive challenges that came alongside it. Crafted entirely from immersive archival footage and free from the distraction of retrospective voices, this hypnotic and audaciously revealing documentary takes a distinctive formal approach, allowing the story of the People’s Princess to unfold before us like never before.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Unknown Known (2013)
Former United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld discusses his career in Washington D.C. from his days as a congressman in the early 1960s to planning the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Mystery of D.B. Cooper (2020)
This documentary brings to life the stories of four people believed by their family and friends to be “DB Cooper,” a man who hijacked a 727 flying out of Seattle and jumped from the plane over the wilds of Washington State with a parachute and $200,000, never to be heard from again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVisions of Light (1992)
Cameramen and women discuss the craft and art of cinematography and of the "DP" (the director of photography), illustrating their points with clips from 100 films, from Birth of a Nation to Do the Right Thing. Themes: the DP tells people where to look; changes in movies (the arrival of sound, color, and wide screens) required creative responses from DPs; and, these artisans constantly invent new equipment and try new things, with wonderful results. The narration takes us through the identifiable studio styles of the 30s, the emergence of noir, the New York look, and the impact of Europeans. Citizen Kane, The Conformist, and Gordon Willis get special attention.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBuena Vista Social Club (1999)
In this fascinating Oscar-nominated documentary, American guitarist Ry Cooder brings together a group of legendary Cuban folk musicians (some in their 90s) to record a Grammy-winning CD in their native city of Havana. The result is a spectacular compilation of concert footage from the group's gigs in Amsterdam and New York City's famed Carnegie Hall, with director Wim Wenders capturing not only the music -- but also the musicians' life stories.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCuba and the Cameraman (2017)
This revealing portrait of Cuba follows the lives of Fidel Castro and three Cuban families affected by his policies over the last four decades.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCome See Me in the Good Light (2025)
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies 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 · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisEx Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFuck (2006)
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDownloaded (2013)
A documentary that explores the downloading revolution; the kids that created it, the bands and the businesses that were affected by it, and its impact on the world at large.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFather Soldier Son (2020)
When Sgt. First Class Brian Eisch is critically wounded in Afghanistan, it sets him and his sons on a journey of love, loss, redemption and legacy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006)
A documentary on the life of John Lennon, with a focus on the time in his life when he transformed from a musician into an antiwar activist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)
Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisComandante (2003)
Oliver Stone spends three days filming with Fidel Castro in Cuba, discussing an array of subjects with the president such as his rise to power, fellow revolutionary Che Guevara, the Cuban Missile crisis, and the present state of the country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Other Francisco (1977)
Based on the novel Francisco by Anselmo Suárez y Romero, "The Other Francisco" is a socio-economic analysis of slavery and class struggle through the retelling of the original novel. The film contrasts the romantic conceptions of plantation life found in Suárez Romero's novel with a realistic expose of the actual historical conditions of slavery throughout the Americas. It offers a critical analysis of the novel, showing how the author's social background led to his use of particular dramatic structures to convey his liberal, humanitarian viewpoint.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history
8A (1993)
The Kafkaesque world of Cuba under Castro's rule is brought to light in this reconstruction of the 1989 trial and execution of General Arnaldo Ochoa Sanchez, the highest-ranking general and hero of the revolution, and commander of the Angolan and Ethiopian campaigns.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Amistad (1997)
In 1839, the slave ship Amistad set sail from Cuba to America. During the long trip, Cinque leads the slaves in an unprecedented uprising. They are then held prisoner in Connecticut, and their release becomes the subject of heated debate. Freed slave Theodore Joadson wants Cinque and the others exonerated and recruits property lawyer Roger Baldwin to help his case. Eventually, John Quincy Adams also becomes an ally.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFredens port (1996)
In a culture where cremation is unusual, cemeteries fill up rapidly. In Latin America and in some other places, to solve the problem, remains are frequently exhumed. In Cuba, two year after interment. Relatives are invited to observe the little ritual. The music of the film is drawn from requiems from different periods. Twelve pieces by seven different composers are quoted. Together, they make up a traditional requiem, although only a few passages from the "dies irae" have been included, and other sections are slightly abbreviated.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Cuba va! (1971)
"Cuba va!" is a 1971 color documentary directed by Felix Greene that records social, economic, and cultural life in Cuba more than a decade after the 1959 revolution. Filmed over an extended period, the documentary presents scenes of education, agriculture, industry, healthcare, and the arts, alongside historical footage used for comparison, and includes appearances by Fidel Castro and contemporary Cuban musicians and performers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Balseros (2002)
In the summer of 1994, a team of public television reporters filmed and interviewed seven Cubans a few days before their risky venture of setting out to sea in homemade rafts to reach the coast of the United States. Six made it far enough to be picked up at sea by the U.S. Coast Guard. When these balseros (rafters) were finally allowed to go to the United States, the film crew went with them to a string of several cities. Seven years later, the film crew visits them again, to discover that their destiny has been in the United States. Theirs is a true story about some of the authentic survivors of our times, the human adventure of people who are shipwrecked between two worlds.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Tania (TBA)
GDR 1961: Tamara Bunke, daughter of Jewish exiles from Argentina, not only falls for the political goals of the rousing revolutionary Che Guevara during a state visit. She also meets Ulises Estrada, the commandant of Che's team. Ignited by the fire of the revolution, she gets involved in a diabolical espionage deal with the Stasi in order to cheat her way out of Cuba. In Cuba, she ends up caught between all fronts: under the watchful eye of the Stasi, which expects results from her, but in reality solely dedicated to Che's revolution, Tamara allows herself to be trained as a double spy by Che's troops. At the same time, her honest love grows for Commandante Ulises, who eventually gives her the choice of following her personal happiness and going into hiding rather than following Che's plans to liberate South America, which by now he considers a suicide mission. An unresolvable, deeply tragic conflict that ends fatally for Tamara in the battle of Bolivia's Rio Grande..
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both history
Gold of Cuba (1965)
"Gold of Cuba" is a documentary by Argentine filmmaker Alejandro Saderman that shows the development of Cuba through the promotion of its main industry: sugar. From the discovery of America to the figure of Reinaldo Castro, National Hero of Labor as a sugarcane cutter, the film discusses the introduction of mechanical harvesters, including the African slave labor that would later be replaced, with the abolition of slavery, by Chinese sugarcane cutters.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Seguridad (2024)
In her feature documentary Seguridad, Newfoundland-based filmmaker Tamara Segura—once named “Cuba’s youngest soldier” in a militia publicity stunt—portrays her troubled relationship with her father in the context of the Cuban Revolution. When Segura accepts a scholarship to study film in Canada, the move offers crucial distance from her alcoholic father. After four years, she returns to Cuba hoping to make amends. But her father’s sudden death just days after her arrival forces Segura to explore his troubled past and the role Cuba’s highly militarized system played in his downfall. Through a series of deeply personal on-camera interviews with her immediate family, Segura unearths long-held secrets that ultimately tell a story of resilience and profound love between family members. Seguridad artfully weaves a lifetime’s worth of still photographs into its intimate narrative, which offers a rare glimpse into the inner lives of Cubans in the post-revolutionary era.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Cuban Food Stories (2018)
After ten years living as an expat in the United States, Asori Soto decides to return to his homeland of Cuba to search for the missing flavors of his childhood. This is a journey to discover culinary traditions long thought lost due to the hardship that Cuba survived after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution?
The closest matches to Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution are The Untold History Of The United States (2012), 9/11: Inside the President's War Room (2021) and Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution?
Start with The Untold History Of The United States (2012), the closest match to Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution.
What is the highest-rated movie like Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution?
Buena Vista Social Club (1999), rated 7.5/10 by 394 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution?
S4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution?
Yes: The Untold History Of The United States (2012), 9/11: Inside the President's War Room (2021) and Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound (2019).
How are movies similar to Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Cuba: The Forgotten Revolution, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.