Movies like Be Extremely Numb (1973)
The best movies like Be Extremely Numb (1973) are Tokyo Decadence (1992), Wasp (2003) and Lockdown (2000). If Be Extremely Numb hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBelladonna of Sadness (1973)7.4/10 from 385 votes
- NewestMexicali (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseTokyo Decadence (1992)Also in Japanese
Tokyo 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 thisWasp (2003)
Zoë is a single mother who lives with her four children in Dartford. She is poor and can't afford to buy food. One day her old flame drives by and asks her to go on a date with him. Scared that he doesn't want to go out with her, she lies and tells him that she is just babysitting the kids. This will be her first date in years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies 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 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 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 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 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 thisCheaters (2000)
In the fall of 1994, a teacher at Chicago's run-down Steinmetz High conspires with the school's academic decathlon team to cheat on an academic competition.
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 thisCleveland Abduction (2015)
A single mother becomes Ariel Castro's first kidnapping victim, and finds herself trapped in his home with two other women for 11 years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCoffy (1973)
After her younger sister gets involved in drugs and is severely injured by contaminated heroin, a nurse sets out on a mission of vengeance and vigilante justice, killing drug dealers, pimps, and mobsters who cross her path.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStarlet (2012)
An unlikely friendship forms between 21 year-old Jane and the elderly Sadie after Jane discovers a hidden stash of money inside an object at Sadie's yard sale.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBelladonna of Sadness (1973)
An evil feudal lord rapes a village girl on her wedding night and proceeds to ruin her and her husband's lives. After she's eventually banished from her village, the girl makes a pact with the devil to gain magical ability and take revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMammal (2016)
After Margaret, a divorcée living in Dublin, loses her teenage son, she develops an unorthodox relationship with Joe, a homeless youth. Their tentative trust is threatened by his involvement with a violent gang and the escalation of her ex-husband's grieving rage.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI Smile Back (2015)
Laney is an attractive, intelligent suburban wife and devoted mother of two adorable children. She has the perfect husband who plays basketball with the kids in the driveway, a pristine house, and a shiny SUV for carting the children to their next activity. However, just beneath the façade lie depression and disillusionment that send her careening into a secret world of reckless compulsion. Only very real danger will force her to face the painful root of her destructiveness and its crumbling effect on those she loves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNo Retreat, No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers (1990)
Two feuding brothers of differing political views, one a policeman, the other a martial artist, join forces to avenge the death of their father, a retired agent who was brutally murdered by the mafia.
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 thisTo Write Love on Her Arms (2015)
The story follows 19-year-old Renee who has always loved fairy tales: the idea of a princess, a hero and a happily ever after. But Renee’s life is that of a darker tale: she’s a young woman battling addiction, depression and self-injury. In a creative blend of artistic fantasy balanced with harsh reality, the movie follows Renee on her courageous journey towards recovery.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Memory Keeper's Daughter (2008)
During a blizzard in 1964, Dr. David Henry delivers his son Paul with the help of nurse Caroline. But when Henry realizes his wife is also carrying a girl with Down syndrome, he hands the second child over to Caroline without his wife's knowledge. Henry's fateful decision yields grave consequences for his family over the next 20 years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Garden of Sinners: Remaining Sense of Pain (2008)
July 1998 - After a group of delinquents is found dead in their hangout place with all their limbs twisted and torn off, Aozaki Touko receives a request to find the murderer and asks Shiki for help. The main suspect is Asagami Fujino; a girl who was the boys' plaything until recently, who Shiki believes to be "one of her kind".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUnfaithful Wife: In Front of Her Husband's Eyes (1994)
Mayumi Hirose lived with her husband Yasuhiro and younger sister Miki. Her girlfriend Yasuhiro, who was in the prime of his career, was busy every day, had many business trips overseas, and often returned home late at night. One day, my cousin Tadao came to Tokyo from his hometown. Tadao, who lost his family, ends up staying at Mayumi's house.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Forced Indecency Sisters (1994)
Mai Kuraishi was attacked by two young men on the banks of the Chikuma River. They see her face and try to strangle her to death, but she is saved by Ota, who was just passing by in his car, and takes her home. When Mai's helpers jump out at Mai's strange behavior, she takes her in their arms. When Ota is surprised at how big Mai's house is, the people come out and thank her and ask her name, so Ota gives her his business card.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Black Erogenous Zone: Mourning Wife's Thighs (1995)
Noriko Murakami's vermilion-stained body welcomed Toshio Kuze's cock. Kuze moves violently as if fascinated by Noriko's body. The two had just gotten engaged and were planning to hold their wedding in three months. The north wind blew against Kimiko Sakuraba's cheek as she stood in front of her grave.
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
Kôshoku danjo: Sex no kisetsu (2019)
Nana, who aims to be an actress, has no buds. Nagasaki calls out to Nana as she walks through her town. She is curtly treated by her, but invites her to a nearby cafe and asks for her Nana and Yori back. But Nana has another target. He even threatened to break up with her wife, but she insisted she wasn't interested. Unable to allow her Nagasaki to treat her unkindly and in the end be taken away by her other man, he hit her from behind. Nana is photographed naked by female photographer Chigusa. She was her next target. While teaching Nana, who has a poor expression, Chigusa inadvertently kisses her. Nana accepts Chigusa and she embraces him. She said after the fact that Nana wanted her to lend money to Chigusa. She was being chased by her apartment landlord because she was behind on her rent. Chigusa said she would send the pictures together when they were done and she said she would also introduce the producer of the film.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Jun Marumo's Slut Legend (1984)
A woman frustrated by her fiancé's reluctance for premarital sex sends her on a round of boozing and remembrances of bad sexual encounters. Meanwhile someone is drugging young men late at night and doing unspeakable things to them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
I Carry You with Me (2021)
An epic love story spanning decades is sparked by a chance encounter between two men in provincial Mexico. Based on a true story, ambition and societal pressure propel an aspiring chef to leave his soulmate and make the treacherous journey to New York, where life will never be the same.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPeople of Twilight (1984)
A woman runs a “mistress service” and interviews young women for “dates” with men. Various couples get together but someone is following and watching them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Siren the Ghost Story (1993)
Minayo plays the legendary "Siren," a ghost who lives forever by sucking men's life force. She skillfully seduces men using her body as bait, and those who fall prey to her turn into mummified corpses.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Be Extremely Numb?
The closest matches to Be Extremely Numb are Tokyo Decadence (1992), Wasp (2003) and Lockdown (2000). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Be Extremely Numb?
Start with Tokyo Decadence (1992), the closest match to Be Extremely Numb.
What is the highest-rated movie like Be Extremely Numb?
Belladonna of Sadness (1973), rated 7.4/10 by 385 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Be Extremely Numb?
Mexicali (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Be Extremely Numb?
Yes: Tokyo Decadence (1992), Female Yakuza Tale (1973) and Belladonna of Sadness (1973).
How are movies similar to Be Extremely Numb chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Be Extremely Numb, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.