Movies like A Letter to Elia (2010)
The best movies like A Letter to Elia (2010) are Public Speaking (2011), My Voyage to Italy (1999) and American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978). If A Letter to Elia hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLife Itself (2014)7.5/10 from 382 votes
- NewestThank You Very Much (2025)Released 2025
Public Speaking (2011)
Martin Scorsese’s portrait of writer and social commentator Fran Lebowitz, celebrated for her sharp wit and observations on modern life. Filmed at New York’s Waverly Inn and intercut with archival footage and interviews, the documentary captures Lebowitz’s distinctive worldview through her spontaneous monologues and public appearances.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMy Voyage to Italy (1999)
World-renowned director Martin Scorsese narrates this journey through his favorites in Italian cinema.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAmerican Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978)
Martin Scorsese spends an evening with larger-than-life raconteur Steven Prince—a former drug addict, road manager for Neil Diamond, and actor—as he recounts stories from his colorful life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisItalianamerican (1974)
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese interviews his mother and father about their life in New York and family history back in Sicily.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGeorge Stevens: A Filmmaker's Journey (1985)
Biography of the legendary filmmaker directed by his son.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)
Documentary about legendary Paramount producer Robert Evans, based on his famous 1994 autobiography.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStanley Kubrick - Ein Leben für den Film (2001)
With commentary from Hollywood stars, outtakes from his movies and footage from his youth, this documentary looks at Stanley Kubrick's life and films. Director Jan Harlan, Kubrick's brother-in-law and sometime collaborator, interviews heavyweights like Jack Nicholson, Woody Allen and Sydney Pollack, who explain the influence of Kubrick classics like "Dr. Strangelove" and "2001: A Space Odyssey," and how he absorbed visual clues from disposable culture such as television commercials.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThank You Very Much (2025)
Andy Kaufman's provocative comedy often outraged audiences, challenging them to confront their own presumptions. Through never-before-seen footage and intimate recollections, filmmaker Alex Braverman explores Kaufman’s brief but impactful life and career. As the lines between performance and reality blur in our present age, Kaufman’s genius resonates more than ever.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
The American Dreamer (1971)
A documentary about actor/director Dennis Hopper, showing him at his home and studio putting together his film "The Last Movie."
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Merchant Ivory (2024)
The first definitive feature documentary to lend new and compelling perspectives on the partnership, both professional and personal, of director James Ivory, producer Ismail Merchant, and their primary associates, writer Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and composer Richard Robbins. Footage from more than fifty interviews, clips, and archival material gives voice to the family of actors and technicians who helped define Merchant Ivory’s Academy Award-winning work of consummate quality and intelligence. With six Oscar winners among the notable artists participating, these close and often long-term collaborators intimately detail the transformational cinematic creativity and personal and professional drama of the wandering company that left an indelible impact on film culture.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Fellini: I'm a Born Liar (2003)
A look at Fellini's creative process. In extensive interviews, Fellini talks a bit about his background and then discusses how he works and how he creates. Several actors, a producer, a writer, and a production manager talk about working with Fellini. Archive footage of Fellini and others on the set plus clips from his films provide commentary and illustration for the points interviewees make. Fellini is fully in charge; actors call themselves puppets. He dismisses improvisation and calls for "availability." His sets and his films create images that look like reality but are not; we see the differences and the results.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
John Travolta: The Inside Story (2004)
In the seventies brushed glory, in the eighties met the failure and nineties resurfaced to become definitely a star. John Travolta is an actor undeterred.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Scorsese's GoodFellas (2015)
In this produced by Brett Ratner new retrospective documentary we hear from cast members and additional participants include Harvey Keitel, Leonardo DiCaprio and Terence Winter, creator of Boardwalk Empire and screenwriter of The Wolf of Wall Street. The program gives us thoughts about Scorsese's approach to the material, casting, characters, and performances, costumes and period details, photography, music, and retrospective thoughts about the film. It is filled with memorable stories and observations from a wide array of commentators.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
I Am Steve McQueen (2014)
A walk through the incredible personal and artistic history of legendary actor, race car driver and cultural icon Steve McQueen (1930-80).
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Woody Allen: A Documentary (2011)
An intense portrait of the iconic filmmaker, writer, actor, comedian and musician Woody Allen: his life, family and friends; his writing and directing habits, and his relationship with performers.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow (2006)
An exploration into the life and art of the renowned author of "Last Exit To Brooklyn" and "Requiem For A Dream." Hubert Selby Jr., a self-described "scream looking for a mouth," against all odds, reached international acclaim with his controversial novels. His is a classic story of the great American novelist, overcoming tuberculosis, drug addiction and financial ruin, Selby eventually triumphed in his life and penned seven of the most remarkable and distinctly American books ever written.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
His Way (2011)
A look at the professional, political and personal life of legendary movie producer Jerry Weintraub featuring interviews with friends, family and colleagues.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child (2010)
A thoughtful portrait of a renowned artist, this documentary shines the spotlight on New York City painter Jean-Michel Basquiat. Featuring extensive interviews conducted by Basquiat's friend, filmmaker Tamra Davis, the production reveals how he dealt with being a black artist in a predominantly white field. The film also explores Basquiat's rise in the art world, which led to a close relationship with Andy Warhol, and looks at how the young painter coped with acclaim, scrutiny and fame.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Everything Is Copy (2015)
A candid portrait of writer/director Nora Ephron, directed by her son, journalist Jacob Bernstein.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Life Itself (2014)
The surprising and entertaining life of renowned film critic and social commentator Roger Ebert (1942-2013): his early days as a freewheeling bachelor and Pulitzer Prize winner, his famously contentious partnership with Gene Siskel, his life-altering marriage, and his brave and transcendent battle with cancer.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSpielberg on Spielberg (2007)
Film critic Richard Schickel interviews Oscar-winning filmmaker Steven Spielberg about his craft, his body of work and the movie business.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Sergio Leone: The Italian Who Invented America (2022)
To mark the recent thirtieth anniversary of Sergio Leone’s death, this documentary sets out to pay tribute to one of the great legends of world cinema. The singular artistic vision of Sergio Leone has transcended national borders, creating the Spaghetti Western genre and transforming the international cinematic panorama forever with his innovative stylistic and narrative solutions, which have now become part of the language of the movies. The film, which is enriched with precious archive footage from the Cineteca di Bologna, including rare audio recordings and film clips shot behind the scenes, sees for the first time the direct participation of the Leone family and has interviews both with Leone’s longtime collaborators and with icons of Hollywood who have been profoundly influenced by his work.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Eyes of Orson Welles (2018)
A poetic journey into the visual world of the legendary filmmaker and actor Orson Welles (1915-85) that reveals a new portrait of a unique genius, both of his life and of his monumental work: through his own eyes, drawn by his own hand, painted with his own brush.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCaravaggio: The Soul and the Blood (2018)
An exciting and unsettling cinematic journey through the life, work and torments of Caravaggio.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSymbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take 2½ (2005)
A movie about making movies about making movies. In 1968, William Greaves shot several pairs of actors in a scene in which a woman confronts her husband and ends their relationship. In "Take 2 1/2," Greaves starts with 1968 takes of one of these pairs of actors plus footage of the crew discussing the film's progress. Then, 35 years later, Greaves brings back to Central Park those actors and some of the original crew (plus others) to film a reunion of the characters Alice and Freddie. We watch scenes of these characters and discussions among the actors and crew. Greaves explores and dramatizes the dialectic in the creative process.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Harry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction (2013)
An impressionistic portrait of the iconic actor Harry Dean Stanton comprised of intimate moments, film clips from some of his 250 films and his renditions of American folk songs.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDay of the Fight (1951)
Stanley Kubrick’s debut documentary, following Irish-American middleweight boxer Walter Cartier on April 17, 1950—the day of his bout with Bobby James. The film traces Cartier’s quiet morning rituals, training, and anxious hours before the match, culminating in his swift victory that night in Newark. Opening with a brief history of boxing, Kubrick’s tightly crafted short captures the discipline, isolation, and tension behind a fighter’s daily routine.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
SnoozefestMovies like thisBuy the Ticket, Take the Ride (2006)
A personal, intimate look at journalist Hunter S. Thompson with a special emphasis on his Hollywood relationships. It captures the legacy and "gonzo" spirit of one of this century's most notorious figures - a man whose life and work regularly intersected with some of the biggest names in the world of film, politics, journalism and sports.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger (2024)
Martin Scorsese presents this very personal and insightful new feature-length documentary about British filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
McQueen (2018)
Alexander McQueen's rags-to-riches story is a modern-day fairy tale, laced with the gothic. Mirroring the savage beauty, boldness and vivacity of his design, this documentary is an intimate revelation of McQueen's own world, both tortured and inspired, which celebrates a radical and mesmerizing genius of profound influence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like A Letter to Elia?
The closest matches to A Letter to Elia are Public Speaking (2011), My Voyage to Italy (1999) and American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after A Letter to Elia?
People who watched A Letter to Elia most often go on to Public Speaking (2011), My Voyage to Italy (1999) and American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978).
What is the highest-rated movie like A Letter to Elia?
Life Itself (2014), rated 7.5/10 by 382 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like A Letter to Elia?
Thank You Very Much (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like A Letter to Elia?
Yes: Public Speaking (2011), American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince (1978) and Italianamerican (1974).
How are movies similar to A Letter to Elia chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside A Letter to Elia, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.