Movies like The Great Buddha Arrival (1934)
The best movies like The Great Buddha Arrival (1934) are Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island (2004), If Cats Disappeared from the World (2016) and Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody (2006). If The Great Buddha Arrival hooked you with its fantasy, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedOVERLORD: The Sacred Kingdom (2024)7.8/10 from 223 votes
- NewestCosmic Princess Kaguya! (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseInuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island (2004)Also in Japanese
Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island (2004)
The mysterious island of Houraijima has reappeared after 50 years, and with its reappearance has brought the attack of four gods, the Shitoushin, who have their eyes set on the powers that protect and sustain the island. Now it's up to Inuyasha and his friends, along with Sesshoumaru, to find a way to defeat the powerful Shitoushin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIf Cats Disappeared from the World (2016)
A postman learns that he doesn't have much time left to live due to a terminal illness. A devil then appears in front of him and offers to extend his life if he picks something in the world that will disappear. The man thinks about his relationships with ex-friends, ex-lovers, relatives and colleagues who will be sincerely sad when he dies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody (2006)
In Karakura Town, unidentifiable spirits begin appearing en mases. While attempting to deal with these strange souls, Ichigo Kurosaki and Rukia Kuchiki meet Senna, a mysterious shinigami who wipes out most of them. Senna refuses to answer any questions, so Ichigo is forced to follow her while Rukia tries to find out what's going on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisK: Missing Kings (2014)
The "Academy Island Incident" in which four "kings" cross paths... Since then, Silver Clansmen Kuroh Yatogami and Neko have been searching for their master, Shiro. Without finding any clues to Shiro's whereabouts, the two became disheartened. However, one day, they see HOMRA members Rikio Kamamoto and Anna Kushina being chased by someone.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHideaways (2011)
The elder one of each generation in the Furlong family is equipped with an extraordinary capacity. James discovers the nature of his at the time of an accident which causes the death of his father and his grandmother. Haunted by this mysterious evil he hides in a forest not to harm anybody. A few years later, Mae also takes refuge it in the forest and meets James.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInuyasha the Movie 2: The Castle Beyond the Looking Glass (2002)
With their most formidable foe vanquished, Inuyasha and his comrades begin returning to their everyday lives. But their peace is fleeting as another adversary emerges: Kaguya, the self-proclaimed princess from the Moon of Legend, hatches a plot to plunge the world into an eternal night of the full moon. Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, Sango and Shippou must reunite to confront the new menace.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGamera 3: Revenge of Iris (1999)
With the Gyaos re-emerging, Gamera's ties to humanity have been severed with his bond to Asagi broken. Nagamine and Asagi investigate while an orphaned girl named Ayana discovers a new creature she names Iris. Nagamine and Asagi must reach Ayana before she takes her revenge on Gamera, who she blames for the death of her family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisInuyasha the Movie 3: Swords of an Honorable Ruler (2003)
Inuyasha and his brother, Sesshomaru, each inherited a sword from their father after his death. However, their father had a third sword, named Sounga, that he sealed away. Seven hundreds years after his death, Sounga awakens and threatens mankind's very existence. How will the children of the Great Dog Demon stop this unimaginable power?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCardcaptor Sakura: The Movie (1999)
Sakura Kinomoto, a Card Captor, wins a game of chance and is awarded a trip to Hong Kong, along with her best friend Tomoyo and her rival, Syaoran Li. It turns out that the ancient rival of Clow Reed, the creator of the mysterious and powerful Clow Cards, summoned them, and she's out for revenge. A battle ensues, and secrets are revealed about Clow Reed's shady past and Sakura's connection to him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPastoral: To Die in the Country (1974)
A director faces creative block while working on his latest film – a reimagination of his adolescence growing up in a mountain village in rural Japan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisX (1996)
It's the year of destiny, and 15 year old Kamui Shiro, a powerful psychic, has returned to Toyko after a 6 year absence, having left when he was very young. He wants to be with his childhood friends, Fuma (his best friend) and Kotori, Fuma's little sister (and Kamui's possible girlfriend). He wants to protect them from all dangers, but destiny and fate are haunting Kamui and pulling in himself and his beloved childhood friends. It is his destiny and his sole decision to decide the fate of the world, no matter if he wants the role or not. Now it is a matter of if he will join the side of the Seven Seals and become the Dragon of Heaven to save mankind or join the Seven Angels and become the Dragon of Earth to destroy all civilization so the earth can heal itself from man's destruction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLone Samurai (2025)
A violent and reckless samurai is shipwrecked on a remote island left without an avenue for his rage. After undertaking a spiritual journey to appease his aggressive thoughts, he finds himself abducted by external demons taking the form of cannibals, putting his sense of reality and deadly talents to the test.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonsters 103 Mercies Dragon Damnation (2024)
A samurai's path leads him to a young waitress whose hometown was destroyed by a dragon. He doesn't want any trouble — but it finds them anyway.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCosmic Princess Kaguya! (2026)
Iroha's life gets knocked off its orbit when Kaguya, a carefree runaway from the Moon, moves in and convinces her to perform in a virtual world together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Pagemaster (1994)
Rich knows a lot about accidents. So much so, he is scared to do anything that might endanger him, like riding his bike, or climbing into his treehouse. While in an old library, he is mystically transported into the unknown world of books, and he has to try and get home again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGodzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2001)
Godzilla has become a distant memory for Japan when the destruction of a US submarine raises alarms for Admiral Tachibana. His estranged daughter Yuri investigates the legend of the guardian monsters, who must rise to protect Japan against the vengeful spirits within Godzilla that seek to destroy both the nation and its people for the suffering they inflicted in the Pacific conflict.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNaruto the Movie: Legend of the Stone of Gelel (2005)
Naruto, Shikamaru, and Sakura are executing their mission of delivering a lost pet to a certain village. However, right in the midst of things, troops led by the mysterious knight, Temujin, attack them. In the violent battle, the three become separated. Temujin challenges Naruto to a fight and at the end of the fierce battle, both fall together from a high cliff...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGodzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. (2003)
Mothra and her fairies return to Japan to warn mankind that they must return Kiryu to the sea, for the dead must not be disturbed. However Godzilla has survived to menace Japan leaving Kiryu as the nation's only defense.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGamera 2: Advent of Legion (1996)
A strange meteor lands in Japan and unleashes hundreds of insect-like "Legion" creatures bent on colonizing the Earth. When the military fails to control the situation, Gamera shows up to deal with the ever-evolving space adversary. However the battle may result in Gamera losing his bond with both Asagi and humanity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOVERLORD: The Sacred Kingdom (2024)
Facing possible annihilation by the Demon Emperor's demi-human army, the Sacred Kingdom reluctantly seeks aid from the feared, undead Sorcerer King Ainz.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGhidorah, the Three-Headed Monster (1964)
After a meteorite unleashes a three-headed beast upon Tokyo, Mothra tries to unite with Godzilla and Rodan to battle the extraterrestrial threat.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGodzilla: Final Wars (2004)
Humanity finally rids themselves of Godzilla, imprisoning him in an icy tomb in the South Pole. All is peaceful until various monsters emerge to lay waste to Earth's cities. Overwhelmed, humanity is seemingly saved by a race of benevolent aliens known as Xiliens. But not all is what it seems with these bizarre visitors. If humanity wishes to survive, they must reluctantly resurrect their most hated enemy, Godzilla.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPacific Rim: Uprising (2018)
It has been ten years since The Battle of the Breach and the oceans are still, but restless. Vindicated by the victory at the Breach, the Jaeger program has evolved into the most powerful global defense force in human history. The PPDC now calls upon the best and brightest to rise up and become the next generation of heroes when the Kaiju threat returns.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKing Kong vs. Godzilla (1962)
The advertising director of Pacific Pharmaceuticals, frustrated with the low ratings of their sponsored TV program, seeks a more sensationalist approach. He orders his staff to Faro Island to capture King Kong for exploitation. As Godzilla re-emerges, a media frenzy generates with Pacific looking to capitalize off of the ultimate battle.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Adventures of Ultraman (1981)
VHS Description - "Come join in the thrilling outer space adventures of Ultraman, as he battles to save all of mankind. The starlord Barock has command of all the evil powers of the universe, and Ultraman must use the Ultramind, the force of the universal family of man, to fight Barock's deadly invasion. But Barock has captured Mentor, the keeper of the Ultramind and the com-mon life force of the planet Ultara, and will use this power to overthrow all good in the universe. Will Ultraman be able to save Mentor and destroy the cruel Barock in time, and by himself? See this action-packed adventure to find the startling conclusion!!" A film produced by Tsuburaya Productions and Based on Episodes 47 through 50 and 19 through 21.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Son of Godzilla (1967)
Reporter Goro Maki stumbles upon scientists conducting weather experiments on Sollgel Island in the South Seas. He discovers the island is inhabited by giant mantis and a woman named Saeko who's been cast away since the death of her father. The pair soon find a helpless infant monster that Godzilla must adopt and learn to raise as one of his own.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKaiju Bunraku (2017)
The Japanese art of bunraku puppetry dramatizes the existential crisis of a despondent denizen of a Kaiju-infested region of Japan; a rigorous theatrical tradition soaked in profound absurdism.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
The Brave Little Toaster (1987)
A group of dated appliances, finding themselves stranded in a summer home that their family had just sold, decide to seek out their eight year old 'master'.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHoshi 35 (2023)
Aki lived her young life with a baby monster, but got separated from it for some reason. Thirty-five years later, a big earthquake hits her home. As the shaking grows stronger, a giant monster emerges… no longer a baby kaiju, the creature has grown…
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Daimajin (1966)
A giant stone statue comes to life to protect the residents of a small town against the depradations of an evil warlord.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both fantasy
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Great Buddha Arrival?
The closest matches to The Great Buddha Arrival are Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island (2004), If Cats Disappeared from the World (2016) and Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody (2006). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Great Buddha Arrival?
Start with Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island (2004), the closest match to The Great Buddha Arrival.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Great Buddha Arrival?
OVERLORD: The Sacred Kingdom (2024), rated 7.8/10 by 223 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Great Buddha Arrival?
Cosmic Princess Kaguya! (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like The Great Buddha Arrival?
Yes: Inuyasha the Movie 4: Fire on the Mystic Island (2004), If Cats Disappeared from the World (2016) and Bleach the Movie: Memories of Nobody (2006).
How are movies similar to The Great Buddha Arrival chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Great Buddha Arrival, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.