Movies like The Dawnsayer (2020)
The best movies like The Dawnsayer (2020) are The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014), The Making of The Walking Dead (2010) and WeWork: or The Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn (2021). If The Dawnsayer hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The Dawnsayer
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014)7.9/10 from 481 votes
- NewestA Toxic Love Story (2026)Released 2026
The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014)
Programming prodigy and information activist Aaron Swartz achieved groundbreaking work in social justice and political organizing. His passion for open access ensnared him in a legal nightmare that ended with the taking of his own life at the age of 26.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Making of The Walking Dead (2010)
The Making of the TV Series The Walking Dead.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWeWork: or The Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn (2021)
Explore the rise and fall of one of the biggest corporate flameouts and venture capitalist bubbles in recent years – the story of WeWork, and its hippie-messianic leader Adam Neumann.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Age of Stupid (2009)
Pete Postlethwaite stars as a man living alone in the devastated future world of 2055, looking at old footage from 2008 and asking: why didn’t we stop climate change when we had the chance?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisZero Days (2016)
Alex Gibney explores the phenomenon of Stuxnet, a self-replicating computer virus discovered in 2010 by international IT experts. Evidently commissioned by the US and Israeli governments, this malware was designed to specifically sabotage Iran’s nuclear programme. However, the complex computer worm ended up not only infecting its intended target but also spreading uncontrollably.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTrainwreck: Balloon Boy (2025)
A homemade flying saucer lifts off, and a 6-year-old boy might be inside. National panic ensues — but what truly happened? This documentary investigates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
SnoozefestMovies like thisSteve Jobs: The Man in the Machine (2015)
When Steve Jobs died the world wept. But what accounted for the grief of millions of people who didn’t know him? This evocative film navigates Jobs' path from a small house in the suburbs, to zen temples in Japan, to the CEO's office of the world's richest company, exploring how Jobs’ life and work shaped our relationship with the computer. The Man in the Machine is a provocative and sometimes startling re-evaluation of the legacy of an icon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power (2017)
A decade after An Inconvenient Truth brought climate change into the heart of popular culture comes the riveting and rousing follow-up that shows just how close we are to a real energy revolution. Vice President Al Gore continues his tireless fight, traveling around the world training an army of climate champions and influencing international climate policy. Cameras follow him behind the scenes—in moments private and public, funny and poignant—as he pursues the empowering notion that while the stakes have never been higher, the perils of climate change can be overcome with human ingenuity and passion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist (2026)
A father-to-be tries to figure out what is happening with all this AI insanity, and explores the most powerful technology humanity has ever created... and what's at stake if we get it wrong.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Toxic Love Story (2026)
A string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCharlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin (2003)
Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhat We Left Behind: Looking Back at Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (2018)
A documentary exploring the legacy of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the reasons it went from the black sheep of Star Trek to a beloved mainstay of the franchise, and a brainstorm with the original writers on what a theoretical eighth season of the show could look like.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Battered Bastards of Baseball (2014)
Hollywood veteran Bing Russell creates the only independent baseball team in the country—alarming the baseball establishment and sparking the meteoric rise of the 1970s Portland Mavericks.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFor the Love of Spock (2016)
The life of Mr. Spock, as well as that of Leonard Nimoy, the actor who played him for almost fifty years, written and directed by his son: Adam.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows (1998)
This documentary follows superstar Bret Hart during his last year in the WWF. The film documents the tensions that resulted in The Montreal Screwjob, one of the most controversial events in the history of professional wrestling, in which Vince McMahon, Shawn Micheals, and others, legitimately conspired behind the scenes to go against the script and remove Bret Hart as champion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMarvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Hawkeye (2022)
Join the likes of Jeremy Renner, Hailee Steinfeld, Florence Pugh, and Vincent D’Onofrio as they reveal how Marvel Studios’ “Hawkeye” was conceived and created. Witness firsthand what it took to pull off the show’s pulse-pounding action set pieces, and discover how iconic characters from the pages of Marvel Comics such as Kate Bishop were adapted and brought to life for the six-episode series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisStruggle: The Life and Lost Art of Szukalski (2018)
Artists in LA discover the work of forgotten Polish sculptor Stanislav Szukalski, a mad genius whose true story unfolds chapter by astounding chapter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like this49 Up (2006)
49 Up is the seventh film in a series of landmark documentaries that began 42 years ago when UK-based Granada's World in Action team, inspired by the Jesuit maxim "Give me the child until he is seven and I will give you the man," interviewed a diverse group of seven-year-old children from all over England, asking them about their lives and their dreams for the future. Michael Apted, a researcher for the original film, has returned to interview the "children" every seven years since, at ages 14, 21, 28, 35, 42 and now again at age 49.In this latest chapter, more life-changing decisions are revealed, more shocking announcements made and more of the original group take part than ever before, speaking out on a variety of subjects including love, marriage, career, class and prejudice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAbove Majestic (2018)
A look at the origins, history and conspiracies behind the "Majestic 12", a clandestine group of military and corporate figureheads charged with reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeyond Utopia (2023)
A courageous pastor uses his underground network to rescue and aid North Korean families as they risk their lives to embrace freedom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Outer Circle: Melbourne's Forgotten Railway (2014)
In the 1870s Victorian politicians debated the virtues of constructing a 20km-long railway through Melbourne's east, simply to circumvent a privately-owned railway from South Yarra to Flinders Street Station. By 1878 the private railway had been purchased by the Victorian Government and there was no longer a need to build the orbital railway. But greedy politicians pushed legislation through parliament, authorising the construction of the railway through their own private land holdings. This is the story of Melbourne's Outer Circle Railway.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Last Hours of Pompeii (2020)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
National Geographic: Lost Kingdoms of the Maya (1993)
Long before Columbus, the Maya established one of the most highly developed civilizations of their time in the jungles of Mexico and Central America. Yet this advanced society of priests, astronomers, artisans, and farmers suddenly and mysteriously collapsed more than a thousand years ago. Accompany archaeologists to Copan, Dos Pilas, and other spectacular Classic Maya ruins as they unearth artifacts and huge temples of incredible beauty. Recently deciphered hieroglyphics and other new discoveries offer astounding clues to the lives of these ancient people. You'll hear the startling story of one kingdom's downfall and its final desperate hours of violent warfare. Through spine-tingling recreations, witness ancient rituals reenacted on sites where they originally occured. And meet the enduring Maya who still maintain many of their ancestor's traditions. You'll hear the voices of a magnificent civilization as you uncover LOST KINGDOMS OF THE MAYA.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Revolution, Riot Grrrl Style (2014)
Today, we see a new style of feminism springing up everywhere - young, provocative and radical. To get their message across, these women have decided to rely on rock music! While the Pussy Riot shock Russia and fascinate the West, the concerts of Peaches or Grimes are sold out, while artists such as Kathleen Hanna make their comeback to remind us that it all began in 1990 in some backwater of the United States. The RIOT GRRRLS revolutionized rock and inspired entire generations of young artists around the world. This film will explore today s feminist scene while revisiting the little known history of this revolution that shook the early 90s.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Battle of the Somme (1916)
A documentary and propaganda film which shows the British Army's preparations for, and the early stages of, the battle of the Somme.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Art of the Possible (1978)
This feature documentary offers a behind-the-scenes look at political decision-making in Ontario, the most populated Canadian province. A candid study of Ontario Premier Bill Davis and his Cabinet profiles the political process—a daily round of committee meetings, budget tabling, and media relations initiatives. Born into a political dynasty, Davis has the power and resources of the “big blue machine” behind him as he initiates political manoeuvres that tackle everything from unemployment to provincial-federal relations. The film reveals key aspects of Davis's political philosophy, one that kept the Conservatives in power in Ontario for 36 consecutive years.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Before Stonewall (1984)
New York City's Stonewall Inn is regarded by many as the site of gay and lesbian liberation since it was at this bar that drag queens fought back against police June 27-28, 1969. This documentary uses extensive archival film, movie clips and personal recollections to construct an audiovisual history of the gay community before the Stonewall riots.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Trotsky: Rise and Fall of a Revolutionary (2009)
This film examines Trotsky, the revolutionary; venerated and reviled, loved, hated, feared. Archive material compiled from all over the world, citations and new shoots create an electrifying proximity to the historical person and to the man Leo Trotsky. Stages in his life and eventual flight are carefully examined, from St. Petersburg, to Mexico City. This is the riveting political biography of the Revolution's onetime hero.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
La Plata Yvyguy - Enterros e Guardados (2016)
The Legend of the Paraguay War Legend tells that during the Paraguay War (1864-1870), families that lived near the border and soldiers who were leaving for battle used to hide their valuable belongings by burying them in secret spots, in order to safely recover them after the war. In several cases, though, the only people who knew about the secret spots of those personal treasures died before they could go back to recover them. According to inhabitants of that region, the spirits of those tormented men would reveal the location of those "buried and hidden" treasures to chosen people in their dreams, visions or by haunting them. "The Legend of the Paraguay War" approaches local legends in a historic and literary way. Those legends were born from within the biggest conflict in South America, and were developed and influenced by the local imaginary view of the world and which can be considered a relevant part of those people's identity up to this day
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Vasulka Effect (2020)
The opening of The Vasulka Effect couldn’t be more apt: Steina Vasulka addresses her husband Woody through various TV screens. He does the same and replies. A perfect image of the relationship between the free-spirited, groundbreaking pioneers of video art. After meeting in Prague in the early 1960s, they relocated from Czechoslovakia to New York, where they later founded The Kitchen, their legendary art and performance gallery.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Dawnsayer?
The closest matches to The Dawnsayer are The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014), The Making of The Walking Dead (2010) and WeWork: or The Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn (2021). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Dawnsayer?
Start with The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014), the closest match to The Dawnsayer.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Dawnsayer?
The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014), rated 7.9/10 by 481 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Dawnsayer?
A Toxic Love Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Dawnsayer?
Yes: The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014), The Making of The Walking Dead (2010) and WeWork: or The Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn (2021).
How are movies similar to The Dawnsayer chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Dawnsayer, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.