Movies like Carnal Highways (1980)
The best movies like Carnal Highways (1980) are Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998), Pimp (2018) and Mexicali (2026). If Carnal Highways hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedUncut Gems (2019)7.2/10 from 5,694 votes
- NewestCHERRY AND VIRGIN (2026)Released 2026
Xiu 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 thisPimp (2018)
An urban love story set on the hard streets of the Bronx. A struggling female pimp, named Wednesday, grows up learning the game from her dad. Once he's gone she's left to look out for her prostitute mother and girlfriend Nikki.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMexicali (2026)
A former special forces contractor is forced out of retirement as an avocado farmer in Mexico when local gangsters try to force him and his family off their farm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Outrage (1964)
At a disused railway station, three men -- a con artist, a preacher, and a prospector -- discuss the recent trial and sentencing of the outlaw Juan Carrasco for the murder of a man and the rape of his wife. In their recounting, the three explore the conflicting testimonies of the parties involved in the crimes. Disconcerting new questions arise with each different version of the event.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisCrimes of Passion (1984)
Fashion designer Joanna Crane leads a double life. By night she is China Blue, a prostitute who's attracted the attention of a sexually frustrated private detective, and a psychopathic priest in possession of a murderous sex toy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSuburbia (1984)
When household tensions and a sense of worthlessness overcome Evan, he finds escape when he clings with the orphans of a throw-away society. The runaways hold on to each other like a family until a tragedy tears them apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Warrior (2001)
In feudal India, a warrior who renounces his role as the longtime enforcer to a local lord becomes the prey in a murderous hunt through the Himalayan mountains.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDon't Make Me Go (2022)
A terminally ill man and his teenage daughter embark on a road trip from California to New Orleans for his 20th college reunion. While there, he secretly hopes she can reunite with the mother who left them long ago.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Walk the Line (1970)
Henry Tawes, a middle-aged sheriff in a rural Tennessee town, is usually the first man to criticize others for their bad behavior. Miserable in his marriage, Henry falls in love with teenage seductress Alma, who is the daughter of local criminal and moonshiner Carl McCain. Henry's moral character comes further into question when he is tempted to conceal Carl's crimes in order to prolong his relationship with Alma.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisFanny Lye Deliver'd (2019)
On an isolated English farm in 1657, Fanny lives a quiet life with her oppressive husband John and their young son. One day their life is rocked with the arrival of young couple Thomas and Rebecca who claim to have been robbed and need a place to stay. But are these strangers really who they say they are?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrash (1996)
A car crash victim inexplicably finds himself aroused by car accidents and becomes involved with an underground subculture of like-minded souls.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne Night in Bangkok (2020)
A hit man named Kai flies into Bangkok, gets a gun, and orders a cab. He offers a professional female driver big money to be his all-night driver. But when she realizes Kai is committing brutal murders at each stop, it's too late to walk away. Meanwhile, an offbeat police detective races to decode the string of slayings before more blood is spilled.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWalking Tall: Lone Justice (2007)
In Dallas, witnesses against a drug-lord are murdered in a safe-house.The testimony of FBI agents becomes the only chance to keep him in prison. They are lodged in another safe-house, but the place is invaded and the agents are executed. However, Kate is only wounded, and her boyfriend Nick believes there is a traitor in the agency and takes her to his ranch to protect her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisKing Cobra (2016)
It’s 2006, YouTube is in its infancy, and internet porn is still behind a paywall. Taking the stage name Brent Corrigan, a fresh-faced, wannabe adult video performer is molded into a star by Stephen, a closeted gay porn mogul who runs the skin flick empire Cobra Video from his seemingly ordinary suburban home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisLockdown (2000)
Avery (Jones) returns to college as a competitive swimmer after getting his life back on track. But his life takes another unexpected turn when he and his two friends (Bonds, Casseus) are wrongly accused of murder and end up in prison.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEl padrino: The Latin Godfather (2004)
In the streets of East Los Angeles, Manny is a formidable drug dealer. Impressed by his extravagant lifestyle and prowess, his young son, Kilo, yearns to follow in his footsteps. Kilo resolves to learn how to prosper in the drug world, and his new life as a dealer begins. In a world where a man wants everything, he may end up with nothing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBrimstone (2016)
In the menacing inferno of the old North-American West, Liz is a genuine survivor who is hunted by a vengeful preacher for a crime she didn’t commit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAuto Focus (2002)
A successful TV star during the 1960s, former "Hogan's Heroes" actor Bob Crane projects a wholesome family-man image, but this front masks his persona as a sex addict who records and photographs his many encounters with women, often with the help of his seedy friend, John Henry Carpenter. This biographical drama reveals how Crane's double life takes its toll on him and his family, and ultimately contributes to his death.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShame (2011)
Brandon, a thirty-something man living in New York, eludes intimacy with women but feeds his deepest desires with a compulsive addiction to sex. When his younger sister temporarily moves into his apartment, stirring up bitter memories of their shared painful past, Brandon's life, like his fragile mind, gets out of control.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJawbone (2017)
A former youth boxing champion, Jimmy McCabe is a man in search of hope but looking in all the wrong places. When he hits rock bottom he turns to his childhood boxing club and the only family he has left: gym owner Bill corner man Eddie and promoter Joe. Back in training, years after anyone thought he was a contender, he risks his life, as he tries to stand tall and regain his place in the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHardcore (2016)
A German tourist solicits two Israeli men for kinky sex. The Israelis feel pressure to fulfill the German's violent sexual fantasies.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Uncut Gems (2019)
A charismatic New York City jeweler always on the lookout for the next big score makes a series of high-stakes bets that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime. Howard must perform a precarious high-wire act, balancing business, family, and encroaching adversaries on all sides in his relentless pursuit of the ultimate win.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPlayground (2023)
When Uri arrives at a rave in Montjuic, he can’t quite find his place. It’s his first time… but he’ll end up finding a way. A short film about integration at a hardcore rhythm.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Night (2016)
Martin moves around Buenos Aires at night, picking up guys, going to clubs, scoring drugs and having sex. Sometimes he’s paying and sometimes his trans sex-worker friend or another woman takes him along for a threesome.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Pretty Sisters-in-law 2018 (2018)
Newlyweds in their second year of marriage face the ordeal of their husband's erectile dysfunction. But the moment she sees her wife's college junior, her husband's body heats up! The couple realizes that the secret help of a college junior is the only way to solve their problems
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Sex of the Angels (1977)
A fantasia on the inner lives of gay teenagers in '70s France.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
CHERRY AND VIRGIN (2026)
Erotic manga artist Ryo knows a lot about drawing sex, but when it comes to real life, he hasn't had much luck. Ami, a talented commercial illustrator who draws "boys' love" manga on the side, is in much the same predicament. The two cynical, 30-ish virgins have all but given up on romance, until they connect through a dating app and share a tentatively promising first date.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Temptation of Kimono (2009)
Mikage will get married to Youiti next year, she agrees to live with Youiti's parents. One day, Youiti's father disrobed Mikage's Kimono and raped her. To her astonishment, her fiancé Youiti whom Mikage considers true love has an affair with his young stepmother. Shocked and devastated, what will Mikage do?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Gritando! (2021)
The story of Gritando HC, a Brazilian hardcore band from its beginnings in 1994, the death of its founder, Donald, and how they remained active and relevant in the scene to this day.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Traffic Control: The People's War on Internet Porn (2007)
A documentary that follows a new piece of legislation on its way to Capitol Hill. The Internet Community Port Act, also known as CP80 or Community Port 80, asks that adult content be placed on separate channels (ports) on the Internet so that parents can keep it out of their homes and schools. What ensues is a ferocious debate between parents, pornographers, doctors, technologists, addicts, business owners and children. But one voice is missing: our political leaders.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Like Carnal Highways and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Carnal Highways?
The closest matches to Carnal Highways are Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998), Pimp (2018) and Mexicali (2026). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Carnal Highways?
Start with Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998), the closest match to Carnal Highways.
What is the highest-rated movie like Carnal Highways?
Uncut Gems (2019), rated 7.2/10 by 5,694 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Carnal Highways?
CHERRY AND VIRGIN (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Carnal Highways?
Yes: Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998), Pimp (2018) and Mexicali (2026).
How are movies similar to Carnal Highways chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Carnal Highways, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.