Movies like Once and Again (2017)
The best movies like Once and Again (2017) are The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (1996) and Looking for Richard (1996). If Once and Again hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Once and Again
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Unknown (1927)7.5/10 from 222 votes
- NewestThe One and Only Ivan (2020)Released 2020
The Greatest Show on Earth (1952)
To ensure a full profitable season, circus manager Brad Braden engages The Great Sebastian, though this moves his girlfriend Holly from her hard-won center trapeze spot. Holly and Sebastian begin a dangerous one-upmanship duel in the ring, while he pursues her on the ground.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (1996)
A 1968 event put together by The Rolling Stones. The film is comprised of two concerts on a circus stage and included such acts as The Who, Taj Mahal, Marianne Faithfull, and Jethro Tull. John Lennon and his fiancee Yoko Ono performed as part of a supergroup called The Dirty Mac, along with Eric Clapton, Mitch Mitchell, and Keith Richards.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLooking for Richard (1996)
Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnimal Crackers (2018)
A family must use a magical box of Animal Crackers to save a rundown circus from being taken over by their evil uncle Horatio P. Huntington.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrapeze (1956)
A pair of men try to perform the dangerous "triple" in their trapeze act. Problems arise when the duo is made into a trio following the addition of a sexy female performer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLili (1953)
Members of a circus troupe "adopt" Lili Daurier when she finds herself stranded in a strange town. The magician who first comes to her rescue already has romantic entanglements and thinks of her as a little girl. Who can she turn to but the puppets, singing to them her troubles, forgetting that there are puppeteers? A crowd gathers around Lili as she sings. The circus has a new act. She now has a job. Will she get her heart's desire?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne from the Heart (1982)
In a dazzling, dreamlike Las Vegas, longtime couple Hank and Frannie break up on their fifth anniversary and each pursue the fantasy of new love over one neon-soaked night—he with a free-spirited acrobat, she with a seductive musician. But as illusion and reality blur, both must decide whether passion or devotion truly defines the heart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisTowed in a Hole (1932)
Although they are successful fishmongers, Stan convinces Ollie that they should become fishermen too, but making a boat seaworthy isn't an easy task.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIn the Soup (1992)
An aspiring young filmmaker gets involved with an eccentric gangster for the financing of his first film.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOur Wife (1931)
Oliver is making plans to marry his sweetheart Dulcy with Stan as his best man, but the plans are thwarted when Dulcy's father sees a picture of Ollie and forbids the marriage. The couple plan to elope, and run away to a Justice of the Peace. After typical Laurel and Hardy blundering, they manage to sneak the girl away from her father's house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe One and Only Ivan (2020)
A gorilla named Ivan who’s living in a suburban shopping mall tries to piece together his past, with the help of other animals, as they hatch a plan to escape from captivity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeau Hunks (1931)
Stan and Ollie join the French Foreign Legion after Ollie's sweetheart rejects him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSarah Silverman: We Are Miracles (2013)
In her first-ever HBO solo special, Sarah Silverman takes the stage for an evening of adults-only stand-up comedy. Taped live in front of an intimate audience of 39 fans at Largo, a music and comedy club in Los Angeles, Sarah Silverman: We Are Miracles features Silverman taking aim at such subjects as cell-phone porn, crazy religions, specialty deodorants, terrible roommates, eyebrow waxing, her 19-year-old dog, Obama and Republicans, having babies, Pixar movies, the miracle of existence, and more.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this29th Street (1991)
After winning $6.2 million in the 1976 New York State Lottery, he is arrested for throwing rocks at a church. He then tells his story at the police station.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisArctic Dogs (2019)
Animals band together to save the day when the evil Otto Von Walrus hatches a sinister scheme to accelerate global warming and melt the Arctic Circle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisRed's Dream (1987)
Life as the sole sale item in the clearance corner of Eben's Bikes can get lonely. So Red, a unicycle, dreams up a clown owner and his own juggling act that steals the show. But all too soon, the applause turns into the sound of rainfall, as reality rushes back. Red must resign himself to sitting in the corner and await his fate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMe and My Pal (1933)
On the morning of his wedding to oil baron Peter Cucumber's daughter, Ollie receives a jigsaw puzzle from Stan as a wedding gift. The boys soon become absorbed in the puzzle. A taxi driver, butler, policeman and messenger boy join in as well.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Fixer Uppers (1935)
Stan and Ollie are greeting card salesmen who agree to help a woman put a spark in her loveless marriage by making her husband jealous.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRichard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982)
Richard Pryor's stand-up act includes his frank discussion about his freebasing addiction, as well as the infamous night on June 9, 1980 that he caught on fire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTyler Perry's Madea's Family Reunion - The Play (2002)
The fireworks begin when Madea’s family gathers for her granddaughter’s wedding. As usual, Madea rules the roost, as she and her neighbor, the wacky Mr. Brown, deliver nonstop laughs. Live, love, rejoice...it’s Madea’s Family Reunion!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHatching by Cirque du Soleil (2013)
A Documentary on the Creation of OVO, by Cirque du Soleil
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Cirque du Soleil - Tournée 1985 (1985)
A television broadcast of Cirque du Soleil's 1985 Canadian tour.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Cirque: An American Odyssey (1989)
In 1988, the Cirque du Soleil toured the United States and set up its big top in New York City - a grand three-ring circus in itself! - garnering rave reviews. Behind the scenes, artists working in the fledgling Quebec circus talk about what it means to them to be a part of this success, and also the price they pay for sharing the American Dream.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Circus Kid (1928)
In 'The Circus Kid', Buddy, an orphan who runs away from a a harsh orphanage, joins Cadwallader's Circus.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Nairu Pidicha Pulivalu (1958)
Chandran, a circus performer, and Thankam are in love. The circus team borrows some money from Thankam's father, Paithal Nair. When they are unable to repay, Paithal Nair takes away their animals.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Santa Sangre (1989)
A former circus artist escapes from a mental hospital to rejoin his armless, cult leader mother, and is forced to enact brutal murders in her name.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Unknown (1927)
On the lam, criminal Alonzo hides in the circus as The Armless Wonder—a performer who uses his feet to hurl knives. Alonzo keeps the arms he really has concealed to hide his identity. Meanwhile, ringmaster's daughter Nanon has a phobia of being touched by men, but is romantically pursued by not only Alonzo but the strongman Malabar. Alonzo's desperation to remain with Nanon will only end in tragedy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHe Who Gets Slapped (1924)
After a baron steals his scientific discoveries, runs away with his wife, and slaps him in public, a man joins a Parisian circus sideshow as a clown whose act consists of being slapped repeatedly and becomes infatuated with a showgirl colleague whose father intends to marry her off to the baron.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCirque du Soleil: Midnight Sun (2004)
On July 11 2004, over 200,000 spectators filled the downtown streets of Montreal to take part in a unique celebration, an incredible one-night-only special event! With more than 250 artists, Midnight Sun is a brilliant combination of music and circus - the perfect chemistry of sight and sound. An unforgettable viewing experience filmed in high definition!
Why it matches: Similar story and style
My Pal, the King (1932)
The king of a European country, who is a child, meets the cowboy star of a traveling circus.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Once and Again?
The closest matches to Once and Again are The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (1996) and Looking for Richard (1996). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Once and Again?
Start with The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), the closest match to Once and Again.
What is the highest-rated movie like Once and Again?
The Unknown (1927), rated 7.5/10 by 222 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Once and Again?
The One and Only Ivan (2020) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Once and Again?
Yes: The Greatest Show on Earth (1952), The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (1996) and Looking for Richard (1996).
How are movies similar to Once and Again chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Once and Again, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.





























