Movies like Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins (2008)
The best movies like Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins (2008) are The Meerkats (2008), Elephant (2020) and Dolphin Reef (2018). If Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins hooked you with its documentary and family, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedEarth (2007)7.7/10 from 388 votes
- NewestWolves Up Close with Bertie Gregory (2026)Released 2026
The Meerkats (2008)
A coming of age story following a young meerkat pup, Kolo, growing up in the Kalahari desert; and an inspiring look at how one family's connection to each other and their surroundings is a model of resilience and fortitude for us all. Shot using ground-breaking techniques, this dramatised documentary is a one-of-a-kind presentation from The Weinstein Company and the BBC, featuring narration by Paul Newman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisElephant (2020)
Disneynature’s Elephant follows African elephant Shani and her spirited son Jomo as their herd make an epic journey hundreds of miles across the vast Kalahari Desert. Led by their great matriarch, Gaia, the family faces brutal heat, dwindling resources and persistent predators, as they follow in their ancestors’ footsteps on a quest to reach a lush, green paradise.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDolphin Reef (2018)
Echo is a youngster who can't quite decide if it's time to grow up and take on new responsibilities-or give in to her silly side and just have fun. Dolphin society is tricky, and the coral reef that Echo and his family call home depends on all of its inhabitants to keep it healthy. But Echo has a tough time resisting the many adventures the ocean has to offer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & family
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne Life (2011)
One Life captures unprecedented and beautiful sequences of animal behaviour guaranteed to bring you closer to nature than ever before, as well as a second disc packed full of never before seen extras including an exclusive making of featurette narrated by Daniel Craig.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Elephant Queen (2019)
Embark on an epic journey of family, courage, and coming home in this feature-length documentary. Join Athena, the majestic matriarch, as she leads her elephant herd across an unforgiving African landscape filled with vibrant wildlife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary & family
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSurviving Paradise: A Family Tale (2022)
In this wildlife drama, a worsening dry season in the Kalahari Desert leaves prides, packs and herds to rely on the power of family to survive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAfrican Cats (2011)
African Cats captures the real-life love, humor and determination of the majestic kings of the savanna. The story features Mara, an endearing lion cub who strives to grow up with her mother’s strength, spirit and wisdom; Sita, a fearless cheetah and single mother of five mischievous newborns; and Fang, a proud leader of the pride who must defend his family from a once banished lion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos (2008)
In the remote and forgotten wilderness of Lake Natron, in northern Tanzania, one of nature's last great mysteries unfolds: the birth, life and death of a million crimson-winged flamingos.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEarth (2007)
An epic story of adventure, starring some of the most magnificent and courageous creatures alive, awaits you in EARTH. Disneynature brings you a remarkable story of three animal families on a journey across our planet – polar bears, elephants and humpback whales.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBorn to Be Wild (2011)
Born to Be Wild observes various orphaned jungle animals and their day-to-day behavioural interactions with the individuals who rescue them and raise them to adulthood. The film unfurls in two separate geographic spheres. Half of it takes place in the rain forests of Borneo, where celebrated primatologist Dr. Birute Galdikas assists baby orangutans; the other half takes place on the arid savannahs of Kenya, where zoologist Dame Daphne Sheldrick works with baby elephant calves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWolves Up Close with Bertie Gregory (2026)
Reconnecting with a pack of wolves he has followed for seven years, Bertie sets out to capture one of the Arctic's most dangerous and rarely filmed hunts: wolves taking on a bull moose, prey roughly ten times their size. Led by Kona, a striking white breeding male, the pack faces a critical winter as dwindling food supplies, an encroaching rival wolf and an aging leader threaten its survival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLiving with Leopards (2024)
A film crew follows two leopard cubs as they make the fascinating journey from infancy into adulthood in this up-close-and-personal nature documentary.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPuff: Wonders of the Reef (2021)
A baby pufferfish travels through a wondrous microworld full of fantastical creatures as he searches for a home on the Great Barrier Reef.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNaqoyqatsi (2002)
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOur Planet: Behind the Scenes (2019)
Years spent recording footage of creatures from every corner of the globe is bound to produce a bit of drama. Here's a behind-the-scenes look.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough (2026)
Veteran naturalist Sir David Attenborough tells the story of a remarkable group of gorillas, from his first encounter in the '70s to the present day.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like this14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible (2021)
In 2019, Nepalese mountain climber Nirmal “Nims” Purja set out to do the unthinkable by climbing the world’s fourteen highest summits in less than seven months. (The previous record was eight years). He called the effort “Project Possible 14/7” and saw it as a way to inspire others to strive for greater heights in any pursuit. The film follows his team as they seek to defy naysayers and push the limits of human endurance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFuck (2006)
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLouis Theroux: Twilight of the Porn Stars (2012)
In 1997, Louis Theroux made a documentary about the world of male porn performers in Los Angeles. 15 years later, he returns to find a business struggling with the deluge of free porn on the internet. Louis revisits some of the original programme's contributors as well as meeting the latest crop of porn performers dreaming of porn stardom.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAs I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTears in the Amazon (2010)
A documentary about environment destruction in the Amazon and the tribes living there. Produced for the 48th anniversary of MBC, Korea. A brilliant records of the itinerary for 250 days through the Amazon.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Fire in the Forest (2019)
The film shows the daily life of indigenous village Piyulaga, home of Waurá tribe --an ethnicity of 560 people who live at Xingu Park in Mato Grosso, Brazil. It also reveals how the indigenous community keeps its traditional culture while incorporating habits and technologies from the “white”.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Wild Women (2022)
At the beginning of winter, a filmmaker retires for six months to a hermit's cabin in the middle of the forest, cut off from the world and its means of communication. Through the words of four women she has filmed previously, all of whom have dedicated their lives to different forms of spirituality, she embarks on a mysterious inner adventure, on the edge of solitude and nature. A journey that invites us to connect with the world in a different way.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Elm-Chanted Forest (1986)
A painter falls asleep beneath a magical elm tree and awakens with magical powers that allow him to communicate with the creatures of the forest. In the limited time that he possesses these powers, he must help save the forest from the threat of the evil Cactus King.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
Marmaduke (2022)
Great Dane Marmaduke epitomizes the overgrown lapdog, with an irascible streak and a penchant for mischief that is tempered with a deep sense of love and responsibility for his human family, the Winslows. The new animation is set in the world of elite dog shows, rife divas, rivalries and slapstick comedy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both family
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Private Life of Plants (1995)
David Attenborough takes us on a guided tour through the secret world of plants, to see things no unaided eye could witness. Each episode in this six-part series focuses on one of the critical stages through which every plant must pass if it is to survive:- travelling, growing, and flowering; struggling with one another; creating alliances with other organisms both plant and animal; and evolving complex ways of surviving in the earth's most ferociously hostile environments.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Beavers (1988)
A story about several beaver families in their wild surroundings. The interesting process of building a dam can be watched as well as the dangers arising from hungry bears and other influences on the new-built home.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
5 Times Chico: The San Francisco River and His People (2019)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
78 days: A Tree Planting Documentary (2014)
Tree planting is one of the most physically and mentally demanding jobs in Canada. Working long days in the baking sun of desolate clear cuts, you can expect rain storms and snow covered tents: that's tree planting in Northern Alberta. In this documentary, veteran planters share their experiences as they struggle through each day of what has become the longest and most difficult season ever!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Yanuni (2026)
Indigenous chief Juma Xipaia fights to protect tribal lands despite assassination attempts. Her struggle intensifies after learning she's pregnant, while her husband, Special Forces ranger Hugo Loss, stands by her side.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins?
The closest matches to Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins are The Meerkats (2008), Elephant (2020) and Dolphin Reef (2018). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins?
Start with The Meerkats (2008), the closest match to Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins.
What is the highest-rated movie like Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins?
Earth (2007), rated 7.7/10 by 388 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins?
Wolves Up Close with Bertie Gregory (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins?
Yes: The Meerkats (2008), Elephant (2020) and Dolphin Reef (2018).
How are movies similar to Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Meerkat Manor: The Story Begins, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.