Movies like The Hanoi Hilton (1987)
The best movies like The Hanoi Hilton (1987) are Casualties of War (1989), Men in War (1957) and Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985). If The Hanoi Hilton hooked you with its war and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Deer Hunter (1978)8.0/10 from 4,473 votes
- NewestFrom Mexico to Vietnam: A Chicano Story (2022)Released 2022
Casualties of War (1989)
During the Vietnam War, a soldier finds himself the outsider of his own squad when they unnecessarily kidnap a female villager.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMen in War (1957)
In Korea, on 6 September 1950, Lieutenant Benson's platoon finds itself isolated in enemy-held territory after a retreat. Soon they are joined by Sergeant Montana, whose overriding concern is caring for his catatonic colonel. Benson and Montana can't stand each other, but together they must get the survivors to Hill 465, where they hope the division is waiting. It's a long, harrowing march, fraught with all the dangers the elusive enemy can summon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMissing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985)
Prequel to the first Missing In Action, set in the early 1980s it shows the capture of Colonel Braddock during the Vietnam war in the 1970s, and his captivity with other American POWs in a brutal prison camp, and his plans to escape.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisBorn on the Fourth of July (1989)
Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, Ron Kovic becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country he fought for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEscape from Sobibor (1987)
The true story of WWII's notorious Sobibor Nazi death camp, where a courageous inmate orchestrates and leads the escape of over 300 prisoners.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Deer Hunter (1978)
Three steelworkers enlist in the army and are sent to Vietnam, one leaving behind a rushed marriage, the others a shared love. What they encounter during the war changes their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisWalking with the Enemy (2014)
Regent Horthy is the leader of Hungary and a German ally, but his favorable standing with Hitler changes as the war comes to an end. Forced to cede Hungary’s power or else witness the execution of his son, Regent Horthy gives up control of his country to the Nazis, who quickly move Hungarians to ghettos and death camps, with no hope in sight. But the despair changes when a young man named Elek emerges. Separated from his family during the relocations and aided by the woman he loves , Elek defies the enemy by becoming one of them. In a race against time, disguised as a Nazi Officer he embarks on a mission to save his family and thousands of his countrymen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHamburger Hill (1987)
The men of Bravo Company are facing a battle that's all uphill… up Hamburger Hill. Fourteen war-weary soldiers are battling for a mud-covered mound of earth so named because it chews up soldiers like chopped meat. They are fighting for their country, their fellow soldiers and their lives. War is hell, but this is worse. Hamburger Hill tells it the way it was, the way it really was. It's a raw, gritty and totally unrelenting dramatic depiction of one of the fiercest battles of America's bloodiest war. This happened. Hamburger Hill - war at its worst, men at their best.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIke: Countdown to D-Day (2004)
The story of the senior-level preparations for the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944 from the time of Dwight D. Eisenhower's appointment as the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, to the establishment of the beachhead in Normandy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Devil's Double (2011)
A chilling vision of the House of Saddam Hussein comes to life through the eyes of the man who was forced to become the double of Hussein's sadistic son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMissing in Action (1984)
American servicemen are still being held captive in Vietnam and it's up to one man to bring them home in this blistering, fast-paced action/adventure starring martial arts superstar Chuck Norris. Following a daring escape from a Vietnamese POW camp, Special Forces Colonel James Braddock (Norris) is on a mission to locate and save remaining MIAs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Stanford Prison Experiment (2015)
In 1971, Stanford's Professor Philip Zimbardo conducts a controversial psychology experiment in which college students pretend to be either prisoners or guards, but the proceedings soon get out of hand. Based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlind Fury (1989)
A blind Vietnam vet, trained as a swordfighter, comes to America and helps to rescue the son of a fellow soldier.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLand of the Blind (2006)
A soldier recounts his relationship with a famous political prisoner attempting to overthrow their country's authoritarian government.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisHell Hath No Fury (2021)
Branded a traitor by her countrymen, French national Marie DuJardin is rescued by American soldiers on one condition: to survive, she must lead them to a cache of gold - before the Nazis return to claim it for themselves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn Hell (2003)
A man must survive a prison where hardened criminals battle to the death for the warden's entertainment.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisConvict (2014)
Set in the dark and old Parramatta prison built by the original convicts our lead character Ray a war veteran finds himself serving 18 months for manslaughter after defending his fiance. He soon realizes that the prison boss has it in for him and does everything possible to break Ray even going after his fiance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBronson (2009)
A young man who was sentenced to 7 years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending 30 years in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter ego, Charles Bronson.
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 thisWild Field (1979)
In Dong Thap Muoi during the days of the Vietnam War, Ba Do, Sau Xoa and their little child live in a small shack in the middle of an abandoned wetland zone. They are entrusted with the mission of maintaining Viet Minh's lines of communication in the area. Daily life goes on as the small family looks out for death from above.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war & drama
The Pentagon Wars (1998)
From the director of “Made In America” and “The Money Pit” comes a hilarious look at one of the most expensive blunders in military history. Over 17 years and almost as many billion dollars have gone into devising the BFV (Bradley Fighting Vehicle). There's only one problem. . . it doesn't work. (Spoiler alert: 25 years later ... it does work.)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Bright Shining Lie (1998)
Something in his past keeps career Army man John Paul Vann from advancing past colonel. He views being sent to Vietnam as part of the US military advisory force a stepping stone to promotion. However, he disagrees vocally (and on the record) with the way the war is being run and is forced to leave the military. Returning to Vietnam as a civilian working with the Army, he comes to despise some South Vietnamese officers while he takes charge of some of the U.S. forces and continues his liaisons with Vietnamese women.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Bat★21 (1988)
Lt. Col. Iceal "Ham" Hambleton is a weapons countermeasures expert and when his aircraft is shot over enemy territory the Air Force very much wants to get him back. Hambleton knows the area he's in is going to be carpet-bombed but a temporary shortage of helicopters causes a delay. Working with an Air Force reconnaissance pilot, Capt. Bartholomew Clark, he maps out an escape route.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLand of Plenty (2004)
After living abroad, Lana returns to the United States, and finds that her uncle is a reclusive vagabond with psychic wounds from the Vietnam War.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrust the Man (TBA)
During the Vietnam War, an ambitious Army Intelligence officer is assigned to investigate a decorated soldier with a mysterious past. As surveillance and interrogation deepen, the line between loyalty and obsession blurs, leading both men into a dangerous and uncontrollable connection.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
Obsessed (2014)
A secret, passionate affair happens in the summer of 1969 between Colonel Jin Pyeong, trapped in a loveless marriage with Soo Jin, and Jong Ga Heun, the Chinese-Korean wife of Captain Kyung Woo Jin.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDecision Before Dawn (1951)
WWII is entering its last phase: Germany is in ruins, but does not yield. The US army lacks crucial knowledge about the German units operating on the opposite side of the Rhine, and decides to send two German prisoners to gather information. The scheme is risky: the Gestapo retains a terribly efficient network to identify and capture spies and deserters. Moreover, it is not clear that "Tiger", who does not mind any dirty work as long as the price is right, and war-weary "Happy", who might be easily betrayed by his feelings, are dependable agents. After Tiger and another American agent are successfully infiltrated, Happy is parachuted in Bavaria. His duty: find out the whereabouts of a powerful German armored unit moving towards the western front.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFrom Mexico to Vietnam: A Chicano Story (2022)
"From Mexico to Vietnam: A Chicano Story" is an inspiring documentary that chronicles the life of Jesus S. Duran, a Mexican immigrant who became a decorated U.S. Army soldier during the Vietnam War. Born in Juarez, Mexico, Duran moved to the United States as a child and enlisted in the Army in 1968. On April 10, 1969, while serving as an M-60 machine gunner with Company E, 2nd Battalion, 5th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile), he displayed extraordinary bravery by rescuing several wounded comrades during an intense enemy ambush in Tay Ninh, Vietnam. His valorous actions led to a posthumous Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama. Directed by Andrés Gallegos, the film delves into Duran's personal journey, his family's migration from Mexico, and the broader impact of the Vietnam War on the Chicano and Latino communities.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
Across the Universe (2007)
When young dockworker Jude leaves Liverpool to find his estranged father in the United States, he is swept up by the waves of change that are re-shaping the nation. Jude falls in love with Lucy, who joins the growing anti-war movement. As the body count in Vietnam rises, political tensions at home spiral out of control and the star-crossed lovers find themselves in a psychedelic world gone mad.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Hanoi Hilton?
The closest matches to The Hanoi Hilton are Casualties of War (1989), Men in War (1957) and Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Hanoi Hilton?
Start with Casualties of War (1989), the closest match to The Hanoi Hilton.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Hanoi Hilton?
The Deer Hunter (1978), rated 8.0/10 by 4,473 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Hanoi Hilton?
From Mexico to Vietnam: A Chicano Story (2022) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Hanoi Hilton?
Yes: Casualties of War (1989), Men in War (1957) and Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985).
How are movies similar to The Hanoi Hilton chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Hanoi Hilton, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.