Movies like Ken (1964)
The best movies like Ken (1964) are All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001), F.I.S.T. (1978) and The Girl in the Book (2015). If Ken hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedAll About Lily Chou-Chou (2001)7.5/10 from 330 votes
- NewestIron Mask (2023)Released 2023
- In JapaneseAll About Lily Chou-Chou (2001)Also in Japanese
All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001)
Charts the troubled teenage years of students Yūichi Hasumi and Shūsuke Hoshino, exploring the shifting and complex power dynamics of their relationship against the backdrop of Yūichi's love for the dreamy and abstract music of pop star Lily Chou-Chou.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisF.I.S.T. (1978)
Johnny Kovak joins the Teamsters trade-union in a local chapter in the 1930s and works his way up in the organization. As he climbs higher and higher his methods become more ruthless and finally senator Madison starts a campaign to find the truth about the alleged connections with the Mob.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Girl in the Book (2015)
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisWhat Maisie Knew (2013)
In New York City, six-year-old Maisie is caught in the middle of a bitter custody battle between her self-absorbed parents—an aging rock singer mother and a distracted art dealer father. As both quickly marry new partners to strengthen their legal standing, Maisie is shuttled back and forth in an endless game of emotional point-scoring. Yet amid the chaos and upheaval, Maisie begins to find true comfort and affection in her new step-parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisResurrecting the Champ (2007)
Up-and-coming sports reporter rescues a homeless man ("Champ") only to discover that he is, in fact, a boxing legend believed to have passed away. What begins as an opportunity to resurrect Champ's story and escape the shadow of his father's success becomes a personal journey as the ambitious reporter reexamines his own life and his relationship with his family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this47 Ronin (2013)
Kai—an outcast—joins Oishi, the leader of 47 outcast samurai. Together they seek vengeance upon the treacherous overlord who killed their master and banished their kind. To restore honour to their homeland, the warriors embark upon a quest that challenges them with a series of trials that would destroy ordinary warriors.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGigi & Nate (2022)
A young man with a bright future suffers a near-fatal accident and recreates his new life with the help of an unlikely animal friend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBirth of the Dragon (2017)
Set against the backdrop of San Francisco’s Chinatown, this cross-cultural biopic chronicles Bruce Lee’s emergence as a martial-arts superstar after his legendary secret showdown with fellow martial artist Wong Jack Man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisMy Dinner with Hervé (2018)
An unlikely friendship evolves over one wild night in LA between a struggling journalist and actor Hervé Villechaize, the world's most famous gun-toting dwarf, resulting in life-changing consequences for both.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe River (1984)
Tom and Mae Garvey are a Tennessee farming couple battling violent floods to save their land. In addition to natural disasters, the Garveys fight to stop a selfish land developer and a local corporation from foreclosing on their farm. While Mae stays at home to care for their children and tend to the crops, Tom finds work as a scab at a steel mill to preserve his family's property.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGoal II: Living the Dream (2007)
Tempted away from Newcastle United to join Real Madrid, rising star Santiago Munez finds this latest change of fortune the greatest challenge yet - personally as well as professionally. He is reunited with Gavin Harris, though they must compete to be on the team, and estranged from fiancee Roz, whose nursing career keeps her back home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisHome (2021)
An ex-felon returns home from prison and must confront the demons of his past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Visit (1964)
Carla Zachanassian had a child by Serge Miller as a teenager. When Serge refused to marry her, she was driven out of town. By her own wit and cunning, she has returned as a multi-millionaire for a visit. The town lays out the red carpet expecting big things from Carla, only to learn that her sole purpose is to see Serge Miller killed...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe House on Carroll Street (1988)
A reporter, fired after refusing to give names to a 1951 House Un-American Activities Committee, takes a part-time job as companion to an old lady. While working she overhears a noisy argument in the neighboring house, being conducted largely in German and involving her HUAC prosecutor. She begins to investigate, enlisting the help of the FBI Agent initially detailed to surveil her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisAll Together Now (2020)
An optimistic, talented teen clings to a huge secret: she's homeless and living on a school bus. When tragedy strikes, can she learn to accept a helping hand?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKid Galahad (1962)
After completing military service, Walter Gulick takes a job as a sparring partner at a gym, the owner of which sees potential in Walter as a professional fighter—and takes him under his wing.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTalhotBlond (2012)
Thomas Montgomery, a married father of two young daughters, gets seduced by the world of online gambling and chat rooms where a virtual romance and sexual obsession ultimately leads to the murder of an innocent man.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDirt (2018)
In search of a lifeline for his struggling off road racing team, a man takes on a young car thief looking for a second chance, but as their worlds collide, they must struggle to forge a successful alliance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCall Me Crazy: A Five Film (2013)
A psychotherapist helps a law student cope with schizophrenia in one of five interconnected tales dealing with mental illness.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this90 Minutes in Heaven (2015)
A man involved in a horrific car crash is pronounced dead, only to come back to life an hour and a half later, claiming to have seen Heaven.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisStreet Wars (2011)
When Officer Elijah Kane and his team of undercover cops discover a new lab drug flooding through the nightclubs of Seattle, they struggle to eliminate it from the streets immediately. As if dealing with a dozen dead ravers isn't enough, the cops begin to act as security guards for an obnoxious documentarian. They quickly become privy to the filmmaker's arrogance as he attempts to make a film regarding Seattle's underbelly.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Naked Rashomon (1973)
A marquis' mistress becomes pregnant with fraternal twins. He keeps the boy, but sends his bodyguard to dispose of the mother and the girl. Years later…
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Dead Drop (2013)
Elijah Kane is not your average cop. As leader of an elite, undercover police unit he has dedicated his entire life to the relentless pursuit of truth and justice. And he will stop at nothing in bringing down an enemy of the law. But someone has put a price on Kane’s head and wants him and his team of crime fighters brought down. Could it be the mysterious crime boss known only as the ghost? Could it be the Russian gangsters connected to a missing suitcase of deadly nukes? Or is it a double agent informant working within the CIA? One thing’s for sure, when Elijah Kane finds out they better start saying their prayers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Wushu (2008)
A group of Wushu students stumble into a child kidnapping ring run by an alumnus.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Iron Mask (2023)
When young Jae-woo reaches the upper ranks of South Korea's national kendo team selection, he is shocked to learn his main competition is the man who accidentally killed his older brother.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Angel of Death (2013)
Steven Seagal reprises his role as Seattle undercover cop Elijah Kane in this action thriller from the True Justice series. Responding to fresh intel, Kane and his team have to intercept and neutralise the threat from terrorists attempting to offload nuclear bombs hidden in two smuggled suitcases. If that wasn't bad enough, Kane is convinced that 'The Ghost' is trying to lay his hands on them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Blood Alley (2012)
Elijah Kane Is on a new mission for the government after being promised that the CIA will provide information about who put out a hit on his previous team. Kane and the new team have to take down a high level gang boss involved in human smuggling but under investigation uncovers a larger conspiracy involving organ trafficking.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Urban Warfare (2012)
Elijah Kane's knowledge of espionage tactics reconnaissance equipment and counter terrorism comes from years of being deep undercover in the war against terrorism. Kane's history is now causing uncertainty in the team's future as Mason and Radner members of Kane's Special Investigation Unit are badly beaten by masked military-trained men. Working through the confusion that Kane's military past is causing, Sarah and Juliet are after yet another serial rapist in Seattle.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Vengeance is Mine (2012)
Following the attack on his precinct, Kane buries his friends and sets his sights on avenging their deaths. He assembles a new team and follows the trail across the border to Vancouver.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Daigaku no kengō: Keiraku no abarenbō (1956)
Japanese youth film about kendo.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Ken?
The closest matches to Ken are All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001), F.I.S.T. (1978) and The Girl in the Book (2015). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Ken?
Start with All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001), the closest match to Ken.
What is the highest-rated movie like Ken?
All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001), rated 7.5/10 by 330 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Ken?
Iron Mask (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Ken?
Yes: All About Lily Chou-Chou (2001), Naked Rashomon (1973) and Daigaku no kengō: Keiraku no abarenbō (1956).
How are movies similar to Ken chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Ken, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.