Movies like Pulse (2018)
The best movies like Pulse (2018) are Addicted (2014), Adulterers (2016) and Butterfly on a Wheel (2007). If Pulse hooked you with its drama and thriller, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThree Colors: Red (1994)7.9/10 from 1,626 votes
- NewestMarty Supreme (2025)Released 2025
Addicted (2014)
A gallerist risks her family and flourishing career when she enters into an affair with a talented painter and slowly loses control of her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisAdulterers (2016)
On a steamy New Orleans afternoon, Sam Deuprey decides to surprise his beautiful wife, Ashley, for their anniversary and comes home early. But Ashley is not alone in the bedroom. She and her lover, Damien are about to learn how far a jealous husband will go.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisButterfly on a Wheel (2007)
A sociopathic kidnapper methodically pushes a desperate pair of parents to their absolute breaking point.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ledge (2011)
A thriller in which a battle of philosophies between a fundamentalist Christian and an atheist who shares an apartment with a gay friend escalates into a lethal battle of wills.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeep Water (2022)
A well-to-do husband who allows his wife to have affairs in order to avoid a divorce becomes a prime suspect in the disappearance of her lovers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisSeeking Justice (2011)
After his wife is assaulted, a husband enlists the services of a vigilante group to help him settle the score.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisLocke (2014)
Ivan Locke has worked hard to craft a good life for himself. Tonight, that life will collapse around him. On the eve of the biggest challenge of his career, Ivan receives a phone call that sets in motion a series of events that will unravel his family, job, and soul.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeatwave (2022)
A woman's life takes an unexpected turn when she falls for her boss's wife. She must soon defend herself as she becomes entangled in a web of malice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMarty Supreme (2025)
Marty Mauser, a young man with a dream no one respects, goes to hell and back in pursuit of greatness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRogue Agent (2022)
Conman Robert Freegard poses as an undercover MI5 agent and kidnaps countless victims amidst a high-stakes manhunt, until the woman who fell for him brings him to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCareful What You Wish For (2015)
A guy gets more than he bargained for after entering into an affair with the wife of an investment banker. Soon, a suspicious death and substantial life insurance policy embroil him in a scandal.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnd the Band Played On (1993)
The story of the discovery of the AIDS epidemic and the political infighting of the scientific community hampering the early fight with it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMax (2002)
In 1918, a young, disillusioned Adolf Hitler strikes up a friendship with a Jewish art dealer while weighing a life of passion for art vs. talent at politics
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Loft (2014)
For five men, the opportunity to share a penthouse in the city -- in which to carry on extramarital affairs -- is a dream come true, until the dead body of an unknown woman turns up. Realizing that her killer must be one of their group, the men are gripped by paranoia as each one suspects another.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeath of a Salesman (1985)
Willy Loman, an aging, failing salesman, struggles to accept reality and his failure to achieve the American Dream.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhat Doesn't Kill You (2008)
Two childhood friends from South Boston turn to crime as a way to get by, ultimately causing a strain in their personal lives and their friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFaces (1968)
Middle-aged suburban husband Richard abruptly tells his wife, Maria, that he wants a divorce. As Richard takes up with a younger woman, Maria enjoys a night on the town with her friends and meets a younger man. As the couple and those around them confront a seemingly futile search for what they've lost -- love, excitement, passion -- this classic American independent film explores themes of aging and alienation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIt's My Party (1996)
Nick, a gay, HIV-positive architect, begins to display severe symptoms of AIDS and makes preparations to kill himself before he is unable to function normally. He arranges a party to reconnect and say goodbye to his closest friends and his confused parents. But when his ex-partner, Brandon, a television director who left Nick when he was diagnosed with HIV, shows up, what was supposed to be a celebratory event becomes much more difficult for everyone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Only Living Boy in New York (2017)
When a young man learns that his overbearing father is having an affair, he tries to stop it, only to be seduced by the older woman as well.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sheltering Sky (1990)
An American couple drift toward emptiness in postwar North Africa.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBody of Evidence (1993)
When an elderly millionaire is found dead with cocaine in his system, his will leaves $8 million to Rebecca Carlson, who was having an affair with him. District attorney Robert Garrett decides to prosecute Rebecca, arguing that she deliberately engaged in wild sex with the old man to overexcite him and lead to his premature death. Defense attorney Frank Dulaney defends Rebecca in court while getting sucked into a dangerous affair with her.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisUnfaithful (2002)
A New York suburban couple's marriage goes dangerously awry when the wife indulges in an adulterous fling.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIliana (2020)
Iliana is a psychological thriller with elements of noir and black humor, the actions of which are rapidly unfolding within 24 hours. The plot of the film is tailored as an intricate puzzle with a lot of unexpected twists that will deceive even the most sophisticated viewer. Unpredictable plot moves will keep you in suspense and ignorance until the very last frame. Iliana - this is passion and self-interest, love and hate, revenge and betrayal in one bottle - all that can happen between a man and a woman.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & thriller
Bed and Board (1970)
Parisian everyman Antoine Doinel has married his sweetheart Christine Darbon, and the newlyweds have set up a cozy domestic life of selling flowers and giving violin lessons while Antoine fitfully works on his long-gestating novel. As Christine becomes pregnant with the couple's first child, Antoine finds himself enraptured with a young Japanese beauty. The complications change the course of their relationship forever.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFreaks (1932)
A circus' beautiful trapeze artist agrees to marry the leader of side-show performers, but his deformed friends discover she is only marrying him for his inheritance.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOther People's Bodies (2025)
A queer reimagining of the French classic "La Piscine," in which four former friends and lovers reunite on a hot summer weekend, reigniting long-simmering passions, grievances, and regrets.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Maybe... Maybe Not (1994)
The heterosexual man Axel is thrown out of his girlfriends home for cheating and ends up moving in with a gay man. Axel learns the advantages of living with gay men even though they are attracted to him and when his girlfriend wants him back he must make a tough decision.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCock o' the Walk (1930)
Carlos Lopez is a handsome Argentine sportsman. Many women love him and he toys with them all. His days are filled with romance and intrigue and he manages to get himself feared and hated by most of the married men in Buenos Aires.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Three Colors: Red (1994)
Part-time model Valentine unexpectedly befriends a retired judge after she runs over his dog. At first, the grumpy man shows no concern about the dog, and Valentine decides to keep it. But the two form a bond when she returns to his house and catches him listening to his neighbors’ phone calls.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Celebration (1998)
The family of a wealthy businessman gather to celebrate his 60th birthday. During the course of the party, his eldest son presents a speech that reveals a devastating secret that turns the night into a battle of truth and denial.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Pulse?
The closest matches to Pulse are Addicted (2014), Adulterers (2016) and Butterfly on a Wheel (2007). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Pulse?
Start with Addicted (2014), the closest match to Pulse.
What is the highest-rated movie like Pulse?
Three Colors: Red (1994), rated 7.9/10 by 1,626 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Pulse?
Marty Supreme (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like Pulse?
The closest matches are in other languages.
How are movies similar to Pulse chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Pulse, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.