Movies like What Can I Do? (1993)
The best movies like What Can I Do? (1993) are Elsa & Fred (2014), The Humans (2021) and The Dead (1987). If What Can I Do? hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
What Can I Do?
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Heiress (1949)7.8/10 from 294 votes
- NewestPsycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer (2025)Released 2025
Elsa & Fred (2014)
After his daughter persuades him to move into a new apartment, aged widower Fred strikes up a friendship with his eccentric 74-year-old neighbour Elsa, who convinces him it's never too late to keep enjoying life. Although he seemed resigned to a miserable bedridden existence, Fred embraces Elsa's youthful enthusiasm as she introduces him to the path of life and entertains him with outlandish stories about her past life. But when he discovers Elsa's terminally ill, Fred decides to accompany her on the trip of her dreams to the eternal city of Rome to help her fulfil a lifelong ambition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Humans (2021)
Erik Blake has gathered three generations of his Pennsylvania family to celebrate Thanksgiving at his daughter’s apartment in lower Manhattan. As darkness falls outside and eerie things start to go bump in the night, the group’s deepest fears are laid bare.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Dead (1987)
After a convivial holiday dinner party, things begin to unravel when a husband and wife address some prickly issues concerning their marriage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDuplex (2003)
When a young couple buys their dream home, they have no idea what the sweet little old lady upstairs is going to put them through!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPieces of April (2003)
Quirky and rebellious April Burns lives with her boyfriend in a low-rent New York City apartment miles away from her emotionally distant family. But when she discovers that her mother has a fatal form of breast cancer, she invites the clan to her place for Thanksgiving. While her father struggles to drive her family into the city, April -- an inexperienced cook -- runs into kitchen trouble and must ask a neighbor for help.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this200 Cigarettes (1999)
In 1981 New York City, a collection of twentysomethings try to cope with relationships, loneliness, desire and their individual neuroses on New Years Eve.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisCabrini (2024)
Italian immigrant Francesca Cabrini arrives in 1889 New York City and is greeted by disease, crime, and impoverished children. Cabrini sets off on a daring mission to convince the hostile mayor to secure housing and healthcare for society's most vulnerable. With broken English and poor health, Cabrini uses her entrepreneurial mind to build an empire of hope unlike anything the world had ever seen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEveryone Says I Love You (1996)
A New York girl sets her father up with a beautiful woman in a shaky marriage while her half sister gets engaged.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt Runs in the Family (2003)
This is the story of a dysfunctional New York family, and their attempts to reconcile
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Truth About Emanuel (2013)
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn Unmarried Woman (1978)
A wealthy woman from Manhattan's Upper East Side struggles to deal with her new identity and her sexuality after her husband of 16 years leaves her for a younger woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDreamchild (1985)
80-year-old Alice Hargreaves is about to visit Columbia University to attend a reception in honour of author Lewis Carroll. As a child, Alice's close friendship with the writer was the creative catalyst for Carroll's most beloved work. However, as Alice reflects on her experiences with the author, she slowly realises the complexity of their bond has had lasting, deeply felt ramifications.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Heiress (1949)
In 1840s New York, the uneventful and boring days of the daughter of a wealthy doctor come to an end when she meets a dashing poorer man — who may or may not be after her inheritance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThirteen Conversations About One Thing (2001)
In New York City, the lives of a lawyer, an actuary, a house-cleaner, a professor, and the people around them intersect as they ponder order and happiness in the face of life's cold unpredictability.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTwo Lovers (2008)
A depressed man moves back in with his parents following a recent heartbreak and finds himself with two women.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisUptown Girls (2003)
Molly Gunn, the freewheeling daughter of a deceased rock legend, is forced to get a job when her manager steals her money. As nanny to Ray - the precocious, oft-ignored daughter of a music executive - she learns what it means to be an adult while teaching Ray how to be a child.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe House of Mirth (2000)
In early 20th century New York City, an impoverished socialite desperately seeks a suitable husband as she gradually finds herself betrayed by her friends and exiled from high society.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPsycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer (2025)
A struggling writer in the midst of a divorce befriends a retired serial killer who incidentally becomes his marriage counselor by day, and killing counselor for his next book by night.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRoom for Rent (2019)
Lonely widow Joyce rents out a room in her house and becomes dangerously obsessed with one of her guests.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOnce Around (1991)
A struggling woman finds unexpected love with a charismatic older salesman at a real estate seminar. Their passionate relationship clashes with the values of her family, particularly her father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like What Can I Do??
The closest matches to What Can I Do? are Elsa & Fred (2014), The Humans (2021) and The Dead (1987). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after What Can I Do??
Start with Elsa & Fred (2014), the closest match to What Can I Do?.
What is the highest-rated movie like What Can I Do??
The Heiress (1949), rated 7.8/10 by 294 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like What Can I Do??
Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like What Can I Do??
Yes: Elsa & Fred (2014), The Humans (2021) and The Dead (1987).
How are movies similar to What Can I Do? chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside What Can I Do?, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.