Movies like Best Buns on the Beach (1987)
The best movies like Best Buns on the Beach (1987) are Smile (1975), Man's Favorite Sport? (1964) and Little Miss Sunshine (2006). If Best Buns on the Beach hooked you, these 23 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks
- Highest ratedLittle Miss Sunshine (2006)7.7/10 from 8,203 votes
- NewestBarbie: Skipper and the Big Babysitting Adventure (2023)Released 2023
Smile (1975)
It's time again for California's "Young American Miss" beauty pageant, the biggest event of the year for Big Bob Freelander and Brenda DiCarlo, who give their all to put on a successful pageant. But Brenda is having marital difficulties and Bob's son is up to some mischief. Could this year's pageant be in jeopardy?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMan's Favorite Sport? (1964)
Roger Willoughby is a renowned fishing expert, who, unbeknownst to his friends, co-workers, or boss, has never cast a line in his life. One day, he crosses paths with Abigail Paige, a sweetly annoying girl who has just badgered his boss into signing Roger up for an annual fishing tournament.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLittle Miss Sunshine (2006)
A family loaded with quirky, colorful characters piles into an old van and road trips to California for little Olive to compete in a beauty pageant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBirds of Paradise (2021)
Two dancers at an elite ballet academy in Paris must compete for a contract to join the highly coveted Opéra National de Paris as they confront their competitive nature, sexual awakenings and how far they would go to win.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShag (1989)
Summer of 1963. Carson is getting married to her boyfriend so her friends Melaina, Pudge and Luanne take her to Myrtle Beach for one last irresponsible weekend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAdoration (2013)
Lil and Roz are two lifelong friends, having grown up together as neighbors in an idyllic beach town. As adults, their sons have developed a friendship as strong as that which binds their mothers. One summer, all four are confronted by simmering emotions that have been mounting between them, and each find unexpected happiness in relationships that cross the bounds of convention.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThey Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969)
In the midst of the Great Depression, manipulative emcee Rocky enlists contestants for a dance marathon offering a $1,500 cash prize. Among them are a failed actress, a middle-aged sailor, a delusional blonde and a pregnant girl.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMiss Juneteenth (2020)
Turquoise, a former beauty queen turned hardworking single mother, prepares her rebellious teenage daughter for the “Miss Juneteenth” pageant, hoping to keep her from repeating the same mistakes in life that she did.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMiss Congeniality (2000)
When the local FBI office receives a letter from a terrorist known only as 'The Citizen', it's quickly determined that he's planning his next act at the Miss America beauty pageant. Because tough-as-nails Gracie Hart is the only female agent at the office, she's chosen to go undercover as the contestant from New Jersey.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAmerican Pie 2 (2001)
After a year apart - attending different schools, meeting different people - the guys rent a beach house and vow to make this the best summer ever. As it turns out, whether that will happen or not has a lot to do with the girls. Between the wild parties, outrageous revelations and yes, a trip to band camp, they discover that times change and people change, but in the end, it's all about sticking together.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005)
The Baker family, while on vacation, find themselves in competition with a rival family of eight children.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisChalet Girl (2011)
While working a job at an exclusive ski resort to support her Dad, Kim learns to snowboard and is so good at it that she enters a competition with a huge cash prize. She has to dig deep to overcome her fears, but her life gets more complicated through her spoken-for boss, Jonny.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt's a SpongeBob Christmas! (2012)
At Christmastime in Bikini Bottom, everyone's excited except Plankton, who always gets a lump of coal from Santa. But he vows this year he'll finally get his wish – the Krabby Patty formula! And it won't be by being good. He's gonna make everyone in Bikini Bottom bad!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeach Party (1963)
Anthropology Professor Robert Orwell Sutwell and his secretary Marianne are studying the sex habits of teenagers. The surfing teens led by Frankie and Dee Dee don't have much sex but they sing, battle the motorcycle rats and mice led by Eric Von Zipper and dance to Dick Dale and the Del Tones.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBarbie: Skipper and the Big Babysitting Adventure (2023)
When her babysitting business takes a hit, Skipper takes a summer job at the water park. Here she can quickly put her skills as a nanny to good use.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIt's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963)
A group of strangers come across a man dying after a car crash who proceeds to tell them about the $350,000 he buried in California. What follows is the madcap adventures of those strangers as each attempts to claim the prize for himself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMr. Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962)
Banker Roger Hobbs wants to spend his vacation alone with his wife, Peggy, but she insists on a family vacation at a California beach house that turns out to be ugly and broken down. Daughter Katey, embarrassed by her braces, refuses to go to the beach, as does TV-addicted son Danny. When the family is joined by Hobbs' two unhappily married daughters and their husbands, he must help everyone with their problems to get some peace.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCamp Rock 2: The Final Jam (2010)
Mitchie can't wait to go back to Camp Rock and spend the summer making new music with her friends and superstar Shane Gray. But the slick new camp across the lake, Camp Star, has drummed up some serious competition – featuring newcomers Luke and Dana. In a sensational battle of the bands, with Camp Rock's future at stake, will Camp Star's flashy production and over-the-top antics win out, or will Camp Rockers prove that music, teamwork, and spirit are what truly matter?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005)
Cheese-loving eccentric Wallace and his cunning canine pal Gromit run a business ridding the town of garden pests. Using only humane methods, which turns their home into a halfway house for evicted vermin, the pair stumble upon a mystery involving a voracious vegetarian monster that threatens to ruin the annual veggie-growing contest.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisYES DAY (2021)
A mom and dad who usually say no decide to say yes to their kids' wildest requests — with a few ground rules — on a whirlwind day of fun and adventure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRed Dress Massacre (TBA)
A bikini competition takes a tragic turn as a mysterious killer begins to eliminate the competition one by one leading up to the event.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Wet Water T's (1987)
This is the wildest wet T-shirt contest imaginable. Come on down to the beach at Ft. Lauderdale for a contest you've got to see to believe.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Bikini Open (2005)
Far from being a senseless parade of beautiful bodies, "Bikini Open," is a satire on the current state of broadcast journalism in the country. That does not mean there won't be hot bodies in sexy swimwear.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Best Buns on the Beach?
The closest matches to Best Buns on the Beach are Smile (1975), Man's Favorite Sport? (1964) and Little Miss Sunshine (2006). Below are 20 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Best Buns on the Beach?
Start with Smile (1975), the closest match to Best Buns on the Beach.
What is the highest-rated movie like Best Buns on the Beach?
Little Miss Sunshine (2006), rated 7.7/10 by 8,203 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Best Buns on the Beach?
Barbie: Skipper and the Big Babysitting Adventure (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Best Buns on the Beach?
Yes: Smile (1975), Man's Favorite Sport? (1964) and Little Miss Sunshine (2006).
How are movies similar to Best Buns on the Beach chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Best Buns on the Beach, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.





















