Movies like Colorful (2010)
The best movies like Colorful (2010) are The Boy and the Beast (2015), A Christmas Carol (1997) and Bleach the Movie: Fade to Black (2008). If Colorful hooked you with its animation and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedMaquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018)8.1/10 from 749 votes
- NewestScarlet (2025)Released 2025
- In JapaneseThe Boy and the Beast (2015)Also in Japanese
The Boy and the Beast (2015)
Kyuta, a boy living in Shibuya, and Kumatetsu, a lonesome beast from Jutengai, an imaginary world. One day, Kyuta forays into the imaginary world and, as he's looking for his way back, meets Kumatetsu who becomes his spirit guide. That encounter leads them to many adventures.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisA Christmas Carol (1997)
Miser Ebenezer Scrooge is awakened on Christmas Eve by spirits who reveal to him his own miserable existence, what opportunities he wasted in his youth, his current cruelties, and the dire fate that awaits him if he does not change his ways. Scrooge is faced with his own story of growing bitterness and meanness, and must decide what his own future will hold: death or redemption.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBleach the Movie: Fade to Black (2008)
A strange disturbance in the World of the Living sends Ichigo and Kon to the Soul Society, where the Seireitei has been devastated by an explosion of reishi and Rukia is missing. Stranger still, none of the Soul Reapers remember Ichigo, and they think he’s the one responsible for the destruction. Now on the run, Ichigo is forced into a lonely battle in order to find Rukia and stop the real culprits!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRascal Does Not Dream of a Knapsack Kid (2023)
Finally, the day of Mai's high school graduation has arrived. While Sakuta eagerly waits for his girlfriend, an elementary schooler who looks exactly like her appears before him. Suspicious, and for all the wrong reasons... Meanwhile, Sakuta and Kaede's father suddenly calls, saying that their mother wants to see her daughter. She was hospitalized because Kaede's condition had been too much for her to bear, so what could she possibly want now?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Wind Named Amnesia (1990)
A wind has swept the Earth taking all the memories from everyone. No one knows who they are, how to speak, or how to use the tools of modern civilization. Two years later, a young man who has been re-educated travels across America on a mysterious journey.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPatema Inverted (2013)
A young girl, from a civilization that resides in deep underground tunnels, finds herself trapped in an inverted world and teams up with a resident to escape and return home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSing a Bit of Harmony (2021)
Satomi is fine being alone until an AI named Shion joins her class with a song and a promise to make her happy. While Shion’s musical numbers and princess gowns don’t quite pass as human, her antics bring Satomi closer to four other classmates. Together, they make memories worth saving, but even our most precious data can be erased.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEscaflowne: The Movie (2000)
Gaea is a mythical realm ruled by sword and sorcery and immersed in blood and violence. Thrust into a conflict she doesn't quite understand, Hitomi Kanzaki helps aid the young Prince Van as they embark upon a journey to fight the Black Dragon Clan. The battle over a legendary suit of dragon armor, Escaflowne, has begun.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (2010)
A week before Christmas, Kyon wakes up in a world where the SOS Brigade doesn't exist. Mikuru and Yuki don't recognize him, and Haruhi and Itsuki seem to have vanished.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBlack Jack: The Movie (1996)
Black Jack is a master surgeon who possesses impeccable skills, enabling him to perform operations that are impossible for even the finest surgeons. He now is faced with his most difficult task to date and must challenge the limits of medical science...before it's too late!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMaquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018)
Fleeing the war, the immortal Maquia, graced with eternal youth, finds a baby abandoned in the forest and decides to raise it as her own child, sparking a moving story between a mortal and a being who does not age.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBionicle 2: Legends of Metru Nui (2004)
In the time before time, six unlikely Matoran find themselves transformed into mighty Toa. The new Toa Metru must prove themselves as true heroes, find the missing Toa Lhikan, and uncover a plot that threatens the heart of Metru Nui.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
SnoozefestMovies like thisFist of the North Star: The Legend of Yuria (2007)
Second part of the new Fist of the North Star movie pentalogy presenting the story from Yuria's perspective, spanning from her childhood, including the day she first met Kenshiro.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDetective Conan: Dimensional Sniper (2014)
A rash of sniper attacks leaves the streets of Tokyo empty and the public terrified to go outside. It’s up to Conan and his friends to find the culprit, but the case goes deeper than it seems. Military cover-ups, conspiracies and murder abound in this fast-paced, thrilling mystery!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSteins;Gate: The Movie - Load Region of Déjà Vu (2013)
One year after the events of the anime, Rintarou begins to feel the repercussions of extensive time travel, and eventually completely fades from reality. Kurisu, being the only companion to remember him, now must find a way to bring him back.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisScarlet (2025)
After failing to avenge her father's murder, Princess Scarlet, wakes up in the "Land of the Dead." In this world filled with madness, if she does not achieve her revenge against her nemesis and reach the "No End Place," she will become "Void" and cease to exist. Can Scarlet find a way to live at the end of her endless journey?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSlugTerra: Return of the Elementals (2014)
A new member has joined Eli and the Shane Gang! Junjie, once the protector of the Eastern Caverns, is a master of the slugslinging art of Slug Fu! But even with the power of five slingers, the Shane Gang find themselves in over their heads as they race across The 99 Caverns in search of the Legendary Elemental Slugs. The five Elementals are ancient slugs of great power, and the forbearers of all slugs found in SlugTerra today. In the wrong hands, they could bring Slugterra to the brink of destruction. So when an evil alliance starts hunting down the Elementals, Eli and his friends — old and new — take off in pursuit of the greatest threat their world has ever faced!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both family & animation
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFirebreather (2010)
It's not easy being a teen like Duncan. His mom wants him to pay more attention to his homework, while his dad - a 120-foot-tall monster known as a Kaiju - wants him to become the next King of All Monsters. When these worlds collide, Duncan must use his human wits and his Kaiju powers - including super strength, agility and the ability to breathe fire - to protect his family and friends from a giant monster rampage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Deer King (2021)
Following a brutal war, former soldier Van toils in a mine controlled by the ruling empire. One day, his solitary existence is upended when a pack of wild dogs carrying a deadly and incurable disease attack, leaving only Van and a young girl named Yuna as survivors. Finally free, the pair seek out a simple existence in the countryside but are pursued by nefarious forces. Intent on protecting Yuna at all costs, Van must uncover the true cause of the plague ravaging the kingdom—and its possible cure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDetective Conan: Captured in Her Eyes (2000)
Police officers around Tokyo are being murdered by an unknown assailant. When Ran witnesses an attempt on the life of one of her friends in the police, she loses her memory. Now, Conan and Inspector Megure must find the murderer while Ran attempts to regain her lost memories.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both animation & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Secret Garden (1993)
A young British girl born and reared in India loses her neglectful parents in an earthquake. She is returned to England to live at her uncle's castle. Her uncle is very distant due to the loss of his wife ten years before. Neglected once again, she begins exploring the estate and discovers a garden that has been locked and forgotten. Aided by one of the servants' boys, she begins restoring the garden, and eventually discovers some other secrets of the manor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEureka Seven Hi-Evolution 1 (2017)
It all begins with the story that was left untold—the earth-shattering incident where Renton's father disappeared. With the mysterious pilot Eureka by his side, only Adroc Thurston could undo his own mistake, sparking the event that changed everything and earned him the title of a hero. Now, ten years later, Eureka lies in critical condition as Renton leaves the crew of the Gekko. But when he finds himself in the care of his father's old friends, he has a choice to make. Either stay with the loving family he's always wanted, or earn the love he seeks.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & animation
Pelle the Conqueror (1987)
In the late 19th century, two Swedish emigrants, Lasse Karlsson and his son Pelle, arrive on the Danish island of Bornholm hoping to find work on a farm and save enough money to travel to the United States of America.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTouching the Void (2003)
The true story of Joe Simpson and Simon Yates' disastrous and nearly-fatal mountain climb of 6,344m Siula Grande in the Cordillera Huayhuash in the Peruvian Andes in 1985.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEvil (2003)
Stockholm, in the 1950s. Erik is expelled from the local school for getting into one brawl too many. To protect Erik from his violent stepfather’s reaction to his expulsion, Erik's mother arranges for Erik to spend a year at Stjärnsberg Boarding School, the only school willing to accept him. This is Erik's last chance to graduate to Upper School and he promises his mother, for his and her sake, to do all he can to stay out of trouble.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeneath the Surface (TBA)
Beneath the Surface introduces readers to the story of the wealthy Kingsley family of Southern California. At the center of the action are the power-hungry children of an aging billionaire, who prove unprepared for a storm of deceptions and ruthless family ambition, while out on a weekend voyage.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Bloody Crayons (2017)
A group of friends goes to an island for a short film project when they are attacked by a mysterious killer after playing a game of bloody crayons.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dragon Ball Z Side Story: Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans (1993)
Dr. Raichi is one of the only survivors of the Tuffles, a race that once lived on Planet Plant before the coming of the Saiyans. The Saiyans not only massacred the entire Tuffle race, but also stole their technology and conquered the planet, renaming it Planet Vegeta in honor of their king. Raichi managed to escape with a capsule and found refuge on the Dark Planet, a world at the end of the universe. His only wish is to eradicate the last remaining Saiyans.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both animation
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Omega Man (1971)
Due to an experimental vaccine, Dr. Robert Neville is the only human survivor of an apocalyptic war waged with biological weapons. Besides him, only a few hundred deformed, nocturnal people remain; sensitive to light, and homicidally psychotic.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZnásilnění (2001)
A career woman's struggle and fight against a male dominated society.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Colorful?
The closest matches to Colorful are The Boy and the Beast (2015), A Christmas Carol (1997) and Bleach the Movie: Fade to Black (2008). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Colorful?
Start with The Boy and the Beast (2015), the closest match to Colorful.
What is the highest-rated movie like Colorful?
Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms (2018), rated 8.1/10 by 749 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Colorful?
Scarlet (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Colorful?
Yes: The Boy and the Beast (2015), Bleach the Movie: Fade to Black (2008) and Rascal Does Not Dream of a Knapsack Kid (2023).
How are movies similar to Colorful chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Colorful, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.