Movies like What for? (1926)
The best movies like What for? (1926) are Parade (1974), Heartbeat (1938) and One Hundred and One Nights (1995). If What for? hooked you with its comedy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Kid (1921)8.1/10 from 2,484 votes
- NewestComédie-Française (2026)Released 2026
- In FrenchParade (1974)Also in French
Parade (1974)
The story of a big party during which Jacques Tati brings together audience members, performers, clowns, children, and himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisHeartbeat (1938)
A pompous grocer’s assistant in Marseille annoys a visiting film crew so much that they prank him with a phony acting contract; believing it to be real, the “schpountz” heads to Paris for his new career.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne Hundred and One Nights (1995)
Monsieur Cinema, a hundred years old, lives alone in a large villa. His memories fade away, so he engages a young woman to tell him stories about all the movies ever made.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVery Happy Alexander (1968)
Alexandre, a young and honest farmer, is oppressed by an authoritarian wife, who makes him work like a dog. When she dies in a car crash, he decides to stay in bed, absolutely free and inactive. Just a dog is occupied to carry food and newspapers to him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLiving in Oblivion (1995)
Low-budget independent filmmaker Nick Reve tries to keep everything together as his production is plagued with an insecure actress, a megalomaniac star, a pretentious beret-wearing director of photography, and lousy catering.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDead Tired (1994)
Stressed and overworked, famous French movie star Michel Blanc is beginning to wear down, physically and mentally, from the pressure and demands of fame. Already in a fragile state of mind, strange events start to transpire all around him, and he gradually loses his grip. Taking the advice of a psychiatrist, Blanc retreats to the countryside with his friend Carole Bouquet, but Blanc still has not managed to escape all of his problems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDie, Mommie, Die! (2003)
Angela Arden is a washed up, has-been singing star who is trapped in a hateful marriage to film producer Sol Sussman. In an attempt to escape her marriage so that she can be with a hunky layabout, she poisons her husband. However, Angela's manipulative daughter, gay son and alcoholic maid are not going to make it easy for her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Wild Goose Chase (1975)
The whole intrigue is centered around carte-blanche documents kept in a vault. Whoever fills in the blank becomes the owner of a revue. Big money is involved. The nephew of the owner of the vault is trying to cheat his uncle and have his name in the documents. Everything is even more complicated because the manager of the bank has a finger in the pie, too. Who but a humble bank-teller (Pierre Richard) will ruin the scheme?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlter Ego (2026)
A quiet, middle-aged man spirals into obsession and paranoia when a charismatic look-alike moves in next door, featuring the exact same face—and a full head of hair.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHold-up (1985)
Dressed as a clown, the clever rascal Grimm holds up the most secure bank of Montreal and takes 30 hostages. While confusing and ridiculing the police with his strange behavior, he calmly manages to rid the bank of a fortune. But then an unsatisfied companion arouses trouble...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSketch (2025)
When a young girl’s sketchbook falls into a strange pond, her drawings come to life—chaotic, real, and on the loose. As the town descends into chaos, her family must reunite and stop the monsters they never meant to unleash.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIt Boy (2013)
38-year-old Alice has everything to become the next editor-in-chief of Rebelle magazine except for her uptight image. But when the young and charming Balthazar, barely 20, crosses Alice's path, she realizes that he holds the key to her promotion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Nannies (2022)
Angèle, a thirty-something from Ivory Coast, always cope thanks to the gift of gab and audacity. To escape from a bunch of dangerous criminals, she becomes a nanny in the uptown Paris, hired by Hélène, the single mom of eight years old Arthur. Discovering the work conditions of her colleagues, she decides to stand up for their rights, thanks to a young lawyer who will quickly fall for her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisComédie-Française (2026)
At the Comédie-Française, there is one golden rule: the play is never canceled. Unfortunately for Nina, everything else is—just three hours before the premiere of her first staging. An actor is stuck on a train, tensions explode, equipment breaks down, egos clash, and panic sets in. With no way out and time slipping away, Nina must hold the show together at all costs. Will she make it until the curtain rises?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Perfume of the Lady in Black (2005)
Newly married, Mathilde and Robert are honeymooning at a resort owned by their friends Edith and Arthur, the Chateau d'Hercule. But an unpleasant shock is in store for them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuperwho? (2022)
A struggling actor seems doomed to live life as a loser. When he finally snatches a lead role as a superhero named “Badman,” he feels like everything is possible, but fate strikes again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBrain Donors (1992)
Three manic idiots—a lawyer, a cab driver and a handyman—team up to run a ballet company to fulfil the will of a millionaire. Stooge-like antics result as the trio try to outwit the rich widow and her scheming big-shot lawyer, who also wants to run the ballet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDie Hart (2023)
Kevin Hart - playing a version of himself - is on a death-defying quest to become an action star. And with a little help from John Travolta, Nathalie Emmanuel, and Josh Hartnett - he just might pull it off.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisGuess Who's Calling! (2025)
Baptiste, a talented imitator, is unable to make a living from his art. One day, he is approached by Pierre Chozène, a famous but discreet novelist, constantly disturbed by incessant calls from his publisher, his daughter, his ex-wife... Pierre, who needs peace and quiet to write his most ambitious text, then suggests that Baptiste become his 'answering machine' by pretending to be him on the phone... Little by little, Baptiste doesn't just imitate the writer: he develops his character!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGrandma's Boy (1922)
A meek young man must find the courage within when a rogue tramp menaces his hometown.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Kid (1921)
A tramp cares for a boy after he's abandoned as a newborn by his mother. Later the mother has a change of heart and aches to be reunited with her son.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisGoing Ga-Ga (1929)
Anita and Marion realize that an abandoned baby they sneaked into an orphanage was kidnapped from a millionaire. For the reward, they proceed to break into the institution at night, dressed as men to beat curfew, to get the kid out again. This film survives only in very fragmentary form.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Look Pleasant, Please (1918)
A photo studio operator seems only interested in flirting with women. Hilarity ensues.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Rigadin No Longer Loves Cinema (1916)
Rigadin and his rival use camera/projector systems to reach their objectives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Air Bud (1997)
A lonely boy befriends a stray dog who has a natural talent for basketball and together they experience the highs and lows of life as their friendship remains solid through a series of escapades.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisFlying Luck (1927)
A naive young man joins the Army in order to become a pilot.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Tricicle: Manicomic (1987)
Tricicle brings together in a single theatrical show their best gags, created during their first three years of life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Boxing Fever (1909)
Fairground boxing booth where visitors try to knock out the champion and win five pounds, the first contestants is knocked out but the very eager (and possibly drunk) third man knocks out the champion and overcome with "boxing fever" rushes out punching at everybody and everything he meets. (britishpathe.com)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Like What for? and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like What for??
The closest matches to What for? are Parade (1974), Heartbeat (1938) and One Hundred and One Nights (1995). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after What for??
Start with Parade (1974), the closest match to What for?.
What is the highest-rated movie like What for??
The Kid (1921), rated 8.1/10 by 2,484 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like What for??
Comédie-Française (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there French movies like What for??
Yes: Parade (1974), Heartbeat (1938) and One Hundred and One Nights (1995).
How are movies similar to What for? chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside What for?, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.