Movies like Lying to Mom (2018)
The best movies like Lying to Mom (2018) are Bastard Out of Carolina (1996), The Truth About Emanuel (2013) and Maborosi (1995). If Lying to Mom hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHarakiri (1962)8.5/10 from 1,323 votes
- NewestBlue Heron (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseMaborosi (1995)Also in Japanese
Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as her last chance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies 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 · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaborosi (1995)
A tragedy strikes a young woman's life without warning or reason. She continues living while searching for meaning in a lonely world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlue Heron (2026)
A family of six's fresh start on 1990s Vancouver Island unravels as their youngest child, Sasha, witnesses the increasingly dangerous behavior of her older brother, Jeremy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHereafter (2010)
Three people — a blue-collar American, a French journalist and a London school boy — are touched by death in different ways.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStrange Weather (2016)
Years after her son's suicide, a woman longs to confront both the past and a friend of his who took his business idea.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Trials of Cate McCall (2013)
In order to be reinstated to the bar and recover custody of her daughter, a hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and on probation, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Visit (1964)
Carla Zachanassian had a child by Serge Miller as a teenager. When Serge refused to marry her, she was driven out of town. By her own wit and cunning, she has returned as a multi-millionaire for a visit. The town lays out the red carpet expecting big things from Carla, only to learn that her sole purpose is to see Serge Miller killed...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Poker House (2008)
Agnes and her two sisters struggle through a day in a home overrun by gamblers, thieves, and johns.
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 thisThe Safety of Objects (2002)
In a suburban landscape, the lives of several families interlace with loss, despair and personal crisis. Esther Gold has lost focus on all but caring for her comatose son, Paul, and neglects her daughter and husband. Lawyer Jim Train is devoted to his career, not his family. Helen Christianson wants to find a new spark in life, while Annette Jennings tries to rebuild hers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBefore I Fall (2017)
Samantha Kingston has everything. Then, everything changes. After one fateful night, she wakes up with no future at all. Trapped into reliving the same day over and over, she begins to question just how perfect her life really was.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHarakiri (1962)
Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin’s resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Demon (1978)
When Sokichi stops providing his long-time lover Kikuyo enough money to pay for the care of their three young children, Kikuyo leaves the children with Sokichi - and his very surprised and angry wife Oume - and disappears.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Girl in the Book (2015)
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies 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 · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFemale Prisoner Scorpion: Jailhouse 41 (1972)
After being used and betrayed by the detective she had fallen in love with, young Matsu is sent to a female prison full of sadistic guards and disobedient prisoners.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEye for an Eye (1996)
It's fire and brimstone time as grieving mother Karen McCann takes justice into her own hands when a kangaroo court in Los Angeles fails to convict Robert Doob, the monster who raped and murdered her 17-year-old daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisErin Brockovich (2000)
A twice-divorced mother of three who sees an injustice, takes on the bad guy and wins -- with a little help from her push-up bra. Erin goes to work for an attorney and comes across medical records describing illnesses clustered in one nearby town. She starts investigating and soon exposes a monumental cover-up.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisInteriors (1978)
When Eve, an interior designer, is deserted by her husband of many years, Arthur, the emotionally glacial relationships of the three grown-up daughters are laid bare. Twisted by jealousy, insecurity and resentment, Renata, a successful writer; Joey, a woman crippled by indecision; and Flyn, a budding actress; struggle to communicate for the sake of their shattered mother. But when their father unexpectedly falls for another woman, his decision to remarry sets in motion a terrible twist of fate…
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Watched Her Grow (2024)
Seven years after the mysterious death of her mother, an isolated botanist meets an enigmatic, teenage runaway in a creek. Forming an unexpected bond, the two embark on a harrowing journey to confront their respective pasts, all while slowly realizing that they may not have to face their uncertain futures alone.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Winter Meeting (1948)
A repressed poetess and an embittered war hero help each other cope with their problems.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Sarah's Key (2010)
On the night of 16 July 1942, ten year old Sarah and her parents are being arrested and transported to the Velodrome d'Hiver in Paris where thousands of other jews are being sent to get deported. Sarah however managed to lock her little brother in a closet just before the police entered their apartment. Sixty years later, Julia Jarmond, an American journalist in Paris, gets the assignment to write an article about this raid, a black page in the history of France. She starts digging archives and through Sarah's file discovers a well kept secret about her own in-laws.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSurrender, Dorothy (2006)
When her daughter Sara unexpectedly passes away, Natalie retreats to the summer home where she and Sara used to visit. Time with her best friends and some of Sara's friends help her deal with her loss.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Man in the Glass Booth (1975)
Arthur Goldman is a rich Jewish industrialist, living in luxury in a Manhattan high-rise. He banters with his assistant Charlie, often shocking him with his outrageousness and irreverent musings on aspects of Jewish life. Nonetheless, Charlie is astonished one day when Israeli secret agents burst in and arrest Goldman for being a Nazi war criminal. Whisked to Israel for trial, Goldman forces his accusers to face, not only his presumed guilt, but their own.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Ordinary People (1980)
Beth, Calvin, and their son Conrad are living in the aftermath of the death of the other son. Conrad is overcome by grief and misplaced guilt to the extent of a suicide attempt. He is in therapy. Beth had always preferred his brother and is having difficulty being supportive to Conrad. Calvin is trapped between the two trying to hold the family together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOperation Dynamo (2024)
Two soldiers are thrown together and make their way through German-occupied Dunkirk. After several agonising close calls they make it within sight of safety. A split second decision gives only one of them a chance at survival.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Guilt (2024)
A car crash survivor is haunted by survivor's guilt after his friend dies in the crash.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Meeting (2025)
A first responder attends a survivor's guilt meeting in hopes of making sense of a recent tragedy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Solitaire (TBA)
A young track star is derailed from his social hopes after constant isolation and harassment from his new teammates. After enduring a devastating bus accident, he and his nemesis must learn to accept one another in order to fully recover.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Lying to Mom?
The closest matches to Lying to Mom are Bastard Out of Carolina (1996), The Truth About Emanuel (2013) and Maborosi (1995). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Lying to Mom?
Start with Bastard Out of Carolina (1996), the closest match to Lying to Mom.
What is the highest-rated movie like Lying to Mom?
Harakiri (1962), rated 8.5/10 by 1,323 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Lying to Mom?
Blue Heron (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Lying to Mom?
Yes: Maborosi (1995), Harakiri (1962) and The Demon (1978).
How are movies similar to Lying to Mom chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Lying to Mom, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.