Movies like Sins of Sister Lucia (1978)
The best movies like Sins of Sister Lucia (1978) are One Million Yen Girl (2008), Tokyo Decadence (1992) and The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972). If Sins of Sister Lucia hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Ballad of Narayama (1983)7.5/10 from 213 votes
- NewestEleanor the Great (2025)Released 2025
- In JapaneseOne Million Yen Girl (2008)Also in Japanese
One Million Yen Girl (2008)
A 21-year-old girl is released from prison, only to deal with the neighborhood gossip about her and family conflicts. She decides to save one million yen, move to where no one knows her and keep repeating the process.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTokyo Decadence (1992)
A submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of appeasement for the fact that her lover has married.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972)
Middle-aged widow Beatrice Hunsdorfer and her daughters Ruth and Matilda are struggling to survive in a society they barely understand. Beatrice dreams of opening an elegant tea room but does not have the wherewithal to achieve her lofty goal. Epileptic Ruth is a rebellious adolescent, while shy but highly intelligent and idealistic Matilda seeks solace in her pets and school projects, including one designed to show how small amounts of radium affect marigolds.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Young One (1960)
A jazz musician seeks refuge from a lynch mob on a remote island, where he meets a hostile game warden and the young object of his attentions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Enforcer (2022)
A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to save the young girl from the deadly organization he’s spent his life building.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Congress (2013)
An aging, out-of-work actress accepts one last job, though the consequences of her decision affect her in ways she didn't consider.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Ballad of Narayama (1983)
In a small village in a valley everyone who reaches the age of 70 must leave the village and go to a certain mountain top to die. If anyone should refuse they would disgrace their family. Old Orin is 69. This winter it is her turn to go to the mountain. But first she must make sure that her eldest son Tatsuhei finds a wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAnuja (2024)
When a brilliant nine-year-old working in a sweatshop gets a chance to attend school, she must make a difficult choice for her and her sister's future.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisXiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998)
Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAll Day and a Night (2020)
While serving life in prison, a young man looks back at the people, the circumstances and the system that set him on the path toward his crime.
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 thisBastard 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 thisAnimal Crossing: The Movie (2006)
Ai, a self-reliant girl who moves to Animal Village and works at Nook's Cranny, gradually becomes part of the community with guidance from its residents and embarks on a quest to plant pine trees for a Winter Festival miracle after finding a message in a bottle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHoly Lands (2019)
When lapsed Jew and former cardiologist Harry suddenly decides to spend his retirement as a pig farmer in Nazareth, Israel, the move deeply shocks his family and his new neighbours. Back in New York, Harry’s ex-wife Monica is trying to manage the lives of their adult children, Annabelle and David, as well as her own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFemale Yakuza Tale (1973)
Ocho is accidentally captured by a drug trafficking cartel who use Chinese women to smuggle drugs into Japan by hiding it in their vaginas. She is tortured, and manages to escape, fighting both the male yakuzas and a gang of female thieves.
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 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 thisEleanor the Great (2025)
94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein tries to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHeidi (2005)
Swiss girl Adelheid 'Heidi' is orphaned young. Aunt Detie brings her to grandpa Alp and his wife, who live isolated in the Alps since his murder charge. Heidi soon takes to the wild country, especially accompanying young goatherd Peter. Grandpa refuses to send her to school in the city, but aunt Detie returns and forces him to give in. She's sent to a posh lady in Frankfurt, where she'll be a companion for crippled daughter Clara after school hours.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSalomé (2013)
After the lewd and frenetic Dance of the Seven Veils, and with the solemn pledge from the very lips of Herod himself that she could have whatever her heart desires up to half his kingdom, wanton and proud young Salomé comes before her king with an unreasonable demand. Beguiled by John the Baptist, and then scorned for the sake of his god, lascivious Salomé—encouraged by her mother, the vindictive, Herodias—commands that John be executed and his head delivered on a silver platter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeduction of the White Angel (1972)
A young woman is troubled by vivid sexual dreams triggered by her experiences as a trainee nurse.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
At the End of Love (1996)
Keiichi is a serious office worker. His only hobby was cross-dressing, but he stopped doing that after getting married. He thought that was fine. I was happy. However, one day, he meets a beautiful young man at a gay bar where his boss forcefully takes him. After having a fateful and dazzling sex with the young man, he finally abandons his family and work and falls into a sensual daily life with the young man. However, those days of pleasure came to an abrupt end...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dandy with Twisted Fingers (1992)
We are a group of thieves called Gokurakudan. A thief is different from your average thief. It frustrates the bullish and helps the bearish. However, the only drawback is that all the members are gay, and they have a strong weakness for good men. Some cracks began to appear in our iron bond...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Kuro to Kuro: Out of This World (1998)
A boy from a group of gay men hanging out in the town of Ueno started dating a man, at first just for fun, but more like he was trying to play dumb with him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Zankoku! Shōjo tarento (1984)
After appearing on a TV program a young woman is recruited to be an advertising idol much to the dismay of her boyfriend.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Showtime (1977)
A stripper contends with bad boyfriends, a demanding boss and the yakuza while entertaining a nightly crowd of horny spectators.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dosukebe okusan: Kanjiru soriato (1995)
Kenichi, a leading figure in the world of Japanese literature, accepts an essay on the recent popularity of shaved pubic hair, but never made any progress. Instead, he indulges in affairs during his breaks from writing, such as arranging sashimi on the female body of his mistress, or pursuing his dictating scribe...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Oda Kaoru: Kifujin O-jô no etsuraku (1995)
Manako, the intelligent and elegant president's wife, is exhausted, although she doesn't show it on the surface. Her husband, a one-man company president and an energetic man, makes his secretary and club hostess his mistress. There was Kusaka, a subordinate of hers, who had feelings for Manako, but Manako's pride would not allow her to have a cheap affair. Her Manako had a twin sister, Mimiko, but this was her family's secret that even her husband didn't know about. Mimiko is a congenital infomaniac (nymphomaniac), and she is imprisoned in a villa near the sea...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Hitozuma furin: Nokezoru (1996)
Kyoko wants to have a child with her husband but he is infertile. This leads her to other men...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Rose Youth (1992)
Takeo is a university student struggling to pay off his loans and lives a tight life while working part-time as a male escort. For him, sex is just about money or pleasure. After picking up a female university student, Takeo catches a sexually transmitted disease and his debts and medical expenses pile up, putting him in a desperate situation. Then another man called Shinji comes up with a brilliant idea.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like Sins of Sister Lucia and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Sins of Sister Lucia?
The closest matches to Sins of Sister Lucia are One Million Yen Girl (2008), Tokyo Decadence (1992) and The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds (1972). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Sins of Sister Lucia?
Start with One Million Yen Girl (2008), the closest match to Sins of Sister Lucia.
What is the highest-rated movie like Sins of Sister Lucia?
The Ballad of Narayama (1983), rated 7.5/10 by 213 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Sins of Sister Lucia?
Eleanor the Great (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Sins of Sister Lucia?
Yes: One Million Yen Girl (2008), Tokyo Decadence (1992) and The Ballad of Narayama (1983).
How are movies similar to Sins of Sister Lucia chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Sins of Sister Lucia, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.