Movies like The Pulse (2020)
The best movies like The Pulse (2020) are A Farewell to Arms (1932), Patrick (1978) and Nightmare Cinema (2018). If The Pulse hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedPoor Things (2023)7.6/10 from 5,915 votes
- NewestFriends Like Us (2026)Released 2026
A Farewell to Arms (1932)
A tale of the World War I love affair, begun in Italy, between American ambulance driver Lt. Frederic Henry and British nurse Catherine Barkley. Eventually separated by Frederic's transfer, tremendous challenges and difficult decisions face each as the war rages on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPatrick (1978)
A comatose hospital patient harasses and kills through his powers of telekinesis to claim his private nurse as his own.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNightmare Cinema (2018)
A series of down-on-their-luck individuals enter the decrepit and spine-chilling Rialto theater, only to have their deepest and darkest fears brought to life on the silver screen by The Projectionist – a mysterious, ghostly figure who holds the nightmarish futures of all who attend his screenings.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisPoor Things (2023)
Brought back to life by an unorthodox scientist, a young woman runs off with a lawyer on a whirlwind adventure across the continents. Free from the prejudices of her times, she grows steadfast in her purpose to stand for equality and liberation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSuper (2010)
After his wife falls under the influence of a drug dealer, an everyday guy transforms himself into Crimson Bolt, a superhero with the best intentions, though he lacks for heroic skills.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBordello of Blood (1996)
A seedy private eye gets more than he ever bargained for when a missing persons case leads him to a brothel overseen by the mother of vampires and her lusty army of the undead.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)
Now confined to a mental hospital, young Kirsty insists her supposedly dead father is actually stuck in Hell following his wife’s betrayal. Few believe the young woman’s lurid stories aside from the thrill-seeking Dr. Channard. Kirsty is undeterred and, with the help of a fellow patient, heads to Hell for a rescue.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJarhead: Law of Return (2019)
Major Ronan Jackson, an accomplished fighter pilot for the Israel Defense Forces and son of a U.S. Senator, is shot down while flying through Syrian airspace. After miraculously surviving the crash, Jackson is taken captive by a group of Hezbollah militiamen. A squad of elite soldiers, led by Gunnery Sergeant Dave Torres, risk their own lives in the hopes of saving an ally they've never met.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDead Ringers (1988)
Elliot, a successful gynecologist, works at the same practice as his identical twin, Beverly. Elliot is attracted to many of his patients and has affairs with them. When he inevitably loses interest, he will give the woman over to Beverly, the meeker of the two, without the woman knowing the difference. Beverly falls hard for one of the patients, Claire, but when she inadvertently deceives him, he slips into a state of madness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Grey Zone (2001)
The story of Auschwitz's twelfth Sonderkommando — one of the thirteen consecutive "Special Squads" of Jewish prisoners placed by the Nazis in the excruciating moral dilemma of assisting in the extermination of fellow Jews in exchange for a few more months of life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIdle Hands (1999)
Anton is a cheerful but exceedingly non-ambitious 17-year-old stoner who lives to stay buzzed, watch TV, and moon over Molly, the beautiful girl who lives next door. However, it turns out that the old cliché about idle hands being the devil's playground has a kernel of truth after all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Clique (2008)
A young girl tries to fit in with a clique of popular middle school girls after moving into the guest house of one of their homes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Devils (1971)
In 1634 France, charismatic Father Urbain Grandier becomes the target of sexually depraved Sister Jeanne's accusations of witchcraft, which corrupt officials of church and state are all too happy to exploit.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHard to Die (1990)
While doing the inventory for a lingerie outlet in a high rise office building, five attractive women are terrorized by a series of bizarre killings. They suspect that the strange janitor, who witnessed another series of killings six months previously, is at the bottom of the whole thing. Little do they know the real horror that they face in the end.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Overnight (2015)
Alex, Emily, and their son, RJ, are new to Los Angeles. A chance meeting at the park introduces them to the mysterious Kurt, Charlotte, and Max. A family “playdate” becomes increasingly interesting as the night goes on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisNymphomaniac: Vol. II (2013)
The continuation of Joe's sexually dictated life delves into the darker aspects of her adult life and what led to her being in Seligman's care.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Honorary Consul (1983)
Set in a small politically unstable Latin American country, the story follows the half English and half Latino Dr. Eduardo Plarr, who left his home to find a better life. Along the way he meets an array of people, including British Consul Charley Fortnum, a representative in Latin America who is trying to keep Revolution from occurring. He is also a remorseful alcoholic. Another person the doctor meets is Clara, whom he immediately falls in love with, but there is a problem: Clara is Charley's wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Little Death (2014)
A comedy film that looks into the loosely connected lives of people with strange sexual fantasies.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)
After returning to Los Angeles from a group therapy session, documentary filmmaker Bob Sanders and his wife, Carol, find themselves becoming vigilante couples counselors, offering unsolicited advice to their best friends, Ted and Alice Henderson. Not wanting to be rude, the Hendersons play along, but some latent sexual tension among the four soon comes bubbling to the surface, and long-buried desires don't stay buried for long.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeath Wish 3 (1985)
Architect/vigilante Paul Kersey arrives back in New York City and is forcibly recruited by a crooked police chief to fight street crime caused by a large gang terrorizing the neighborhoods.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFriends Like Us (2026)
A dark comedic thriller where two sitcom actors have to reenact a new version of their show’s series finale after a crazed fan keeps them hostage.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Open Hearts (2002)
Cecilie and Joachim are about to get married when a freak car accident leaves Joachim disabled, throwing their lives into a spin. The driver of the other car, Marie, and her family don’t get off lightly, either. Her husband Niels works in the hospital where he meets Cecilie and falls madly in love with her.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Presentation - Literature Work (2023)
"THE COMPUTER WAS ON FIRE" An animated short film made for a literature assignment in a high school class. In a metalanguage, a group of young people try to present their work to the class, but a harsh teacher and other problems get in their way.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Dr. Cabbie (2014)
An unemployed doctor turned cab driver becomes a local hero when he converts his taxi into a mobile clinic.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Talk to Her (2002)
Two men share an odd friendship while they care for two women who are both in deep comas.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWilbur Wants to Kill Himself (2002)
The strange comedy film of two close brothers; one, Wilbur, who wants to kill himself, and the other, Harbour, who tries to prevent this. When their father dies leaving them his bookstore they meet a woman who makes their lives a bit better yet with a bit more trouble as well.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisK-PAX (2001)
Prot is a patient at a mental hospital who claims to be from a far away planet. His psychiatrist tries to help him, only to begin to doubt his own explanations.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSaw (2004)
Two men wake up to find themselves shackled in a grimy, abandoned bathroom. As they struggle to comprehend their predicament, they discover a disturbing tape left behind by the sadistic mastermind known as Jigsaw. With a chilling voice and cryptic instructions, Jigsaw informs them that they must partake in a gruesome game in order to secure their freedom.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like this
Like The Pulse and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Pulse?
The closest matches to The Pulse are A Farewell to Arms (1932), Patrick (1978) and Nightmare Cinema (2018). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Pulse?
Start with A Farewell to Arms (1932), the closest match to The Pulse.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Pulse?
Poor Things (2023), rated 7.6/10 by 5,915 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Pulse?
Friends Like Us (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Pulse?
Yes: A Farewell to Arms (1932), Patrick (1978) and Nightmare Cinema (2018).
How are movies similar to The Pulse chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Pulse, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.