Movies like Fairy Tale (2012)
The best movies like Fairy Tale (2012) are Mammal (2016), Resurrecting the Champ (2007) and Passion (2008). If Fairy Tale hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Fairy Tale
Quick picks
- Highest ratedInside I'm Dancing (2004)7.4/10 from 243 votes
- Newestthe flower she left me (2026)Released 2026
- In JapanesePassion (2008)Also in Japanese
Mammal (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 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 thisPassion (2008)
A young couple's announcement of their engagement to their friends is followed by a series of interactions and conflicts that forces everyone to reflect on their lives.
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 thisAdopt a Highway (2019)
Russ Millings has just been released from prison after serving 21 years for a 3rd strike conviction for possessing an ounce of marijuana. As he tries to adapt to a world he doesn’t recognize – including trying to learn how to use the internet – he finds an abandoned baby in a dumpster behind the fast food restaurant where he works as a dishwasher. Unsure of what to do, and caught between impulses of kindness and panic, Russ soon realizes this could be his chance at redemption.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 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 thisHands of Stone (2016)
The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLorelei (2020)
A man is released from prison after 15 years. He reunites with his high school girlfriend, now a single mother of three. What follows is a lyrical take on love, regret and second chances.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCardboard Boxer (2016)
Gentle and broken, a homeless man fights others on video for money but soon finds comfort in an unlikely friend and the lost diary of a young girl.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Pumpkin Eater (1964)
Jo, the mother of seven children, divorces her second husband in order to marry Jake, a successful but promiscuous screenwriter. Though they are physically and emotionally compatible, they are slowly torn apart.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTigertail (2020)
A man reflects on the lost love of his youth and his long-ago journey from Taiwan to America as he begins to reconnect with his estranged daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this1 Chance 2 Dance (2014)
When a 17-year old aspiring dancer is uprooted in her high school senior year, she finds herself divided between two boys, and she will have one last shot at making her dream a reality.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFast Girls (2012)
A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJungleland (2020)
Stanley manages his boxer brother Lion but when a devastating loss in the ring leaves the pair in debt, an opportunity to recoup the cash leads to a series of misadventures that threaten to break the bond between them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIce Castles (2010)
Young, beautiful, talented Alexis Winston comes from nowhere to become a figure skating superstar. But her rise to stardom isn’t easy. She has to push herself, reinvent herself, and most painfully of all, leave her hometown boyfriend behind. When a tragic fall leaves her blind, she needs someone to believe in her, to love her; someone to convince her she has the strength to skate and dream again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisInside I'm Dancing (2004)
Michael is a 24-year-old who has cerebral palsy and long-term resident of the Carrigmore Residential Home for the Disabled, run by the formidable Eileen. His life is transformed when the maverick Rory O'Shea moves in.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Cut (2025)
A retired boxer intends to return to the ring for one last shot at the title, but first he must make the weight. Holed up in a room in Las Vegas with an unscrupulous trainer, he embarks on an intensive and illegal weight-cutting program.
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 thisBobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004)
The story of golf icon and legend, Bobby Jones, who retired from competition at the tender age of 28.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisUna canción sobre lo que sea (2023)
Elena wants to record her song in a good studio. Desperate, she reconnects with an old privileged friend to ask for the money.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
What We Don't Heal (2022)
Trapped in a toxic relationship, Marcos discovers the effort it takes to heal and move forward.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Un/Happy for You (2024)
Two years after their breakup, a Bicolano chef on the rise reunites with his ex- girlfriend who is back in the province for a brief work visit. Still feeling bitter about their breakup, he tries to seduce her to ruin her engagement, only to find himself falling for her once more.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Distance We Drift (2026)
After nearly a decade apart, two former lovers from Hong Kong unexpectedly meet again in the UK, where they have each built a different life. Their reunion brings back memories they have tried to move on from, as they slowly reconnect and begin to see how much has changed. Now living far from home, they are forced to face the distance between who they were and who they have become. Set within the everyday reality of immigrant life, The Distance We Drift is a quiet and intimate story about love, memory, and the way time reshapes people in ways they don’t always realise.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Friends with Money (2006)
As she reaches her mid-thirties and quits her lucrative job, singleton Olivia finds herself unsure about her future and her relationships with her successful and wealthy friends. She begins to envy the security of her richer friends and, although their lives may seem easier, Olivia's friends have their problems too: screenwriters Christine and Patrick are unable to collaborate on their latest project, Jane and Aaron have lost the romance in their relationship, and Franny and Matt have difficulties handling the demands of parenthood.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisREMNIRA (2025)
After discovering a mysterious camera that transports him into fleeting moments of the past, a grieving photography student attempts to rewrite a painful history—only to uncover the blurred line between memory, art, and reality.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
A Woman's Gaze (2016)
'A Woman's Gaze' is a story about the struggle and growth of a lesbian tomboy. It realistically explores the bittersweet between a popular lesbian and a previously straight girl. A genuine story spanning across 6 years about finding our identity and discovering the courage to love. (Story Chen)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Almost Finished (2025)
An artist's perception of his relationship is called into question as he struggles to finish his work.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Common Law (1931)
When a woman models for an artist they fall in love. Can the artist overcome the beauty's recent past as another man's mistress?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
the flower she left me (2026)
Saira visits her ex Shahad’s play rehearsal. The play and the night they share stir memories of a beautiful past and dreams of what once was, yet with no place in their present or future.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Fairy Tale?
The closest matches to Fairy Tale are Mammal (2016), Resurrecting the Champ (2007) and Passion (2008). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Fairy Tale?
Start with Mammal (2016), the closest match to Fairy Tale.
What is the highest-rated movie like Fairy Tale?
Inside I'm Dancing (2004), rated 7.4/10 by 243 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Fairy Tale?
the flower she left me (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Fairy Tale?
Yes: Passion (2008).
How are movies similar to Fairy Tale chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Fairy Tale, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.