Movies like Illumination (2003)
The best movies like Illumination (2003) are Poor Things (2023), Below Her Mouth (2017) and Original Sin (2001). If Illumination hooked you, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFight Club (1999)8.4/10 from 33,300 votes
- NewestLove of Your Life (2026)Released 2026
Poor 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 thisBelow Her Mouth (2017)
An unexpected affair quickly escalates into a heart-stopping reality for two women whose passionate connection changes their lives forever.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOriginal Sin (2001)
A young man is plunged into a life of subterfuge, deceit and mistaken identity in pursuit of a femme fatale whose heart is never quite within his grasp.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJust Before I Go (2015)
Ted Morgan has been treading water for most of his life. After his wife leaves him, Ted realizes he has nothing left to live for. Summoning the courage for one last act, Ted decides to go home and face the people he feels are responsible for creating the shell of a person he has become. But life is tricky. The more determined Ted is to confront his demons, to get closure, and to withdraw from his family, the more Ted is yanked into the chaos of their lives. So, when Ted Morgan decides to kill himself, he finds a reason to live.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPetulia (1968)
Dr. Archie Bollen is having a midlife crisis. He's just divorced his wife and is establishing a new life for himself. One night, he catches the eye of Petulia Danner, a charming, free-spirited young woman. Petulia's vibrant personality hides her fear of her abusive husband, David, whose father is a powerful society figure. As Petulia and Archie's feelings for each other grow, they must decide what it is they truly want.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTime Is Up (2021)
Vivien, an accomplished student with a passion for physics, and Roy, a troubled young man, are involved in an accident that forces them to reclaim their lives one minute at the time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSouthbound (2015)
On a desolate stretch of desert highway, weary travelers — two men on the run from their past, a band on their way to the next gig, a man struggling to get home, a brother in search of his long-lost sister and a family on vacation — are forced to confront their worst fears and darkest secrets in these interwoven tales of terror and remorse on the open road.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Last Time I Saw Paris (1954)
Reporter Charles Wills, in Paris to cover the end of World War II, falls for the beautiful Helen Ellswirth following a brief flirtation with her sister, Marion. After he and Helen marry, Charles pursues his novelistic ambition while supporting his new bride with a deadening job at a newspaper wire service. But when an old investment suddenly makes the family wealthy, their marriage begins to unravel — until a sudden tragedy changes everything.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 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
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisMountains of the Moon (1990)
The story of Captain Richard Francis Burton's and Lt. John Hanning Speke's expedition to find the source of the Nile river in the name of Queen Victoria's British Empire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMonday (2021)
A spark on a Friday can lead to a sizzling weekend fling, but what happens when you get to the inevitable Monday?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisO Lucky Man! (1973)
An ambitious coffee salesman has a series of improbable and ironic adventures seemingly designed to challenge his naive idealism.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlood Punch (2014)
Milton, a college dropout, was only supposed to cook meth for one day. Broken out of rehab by a brash young woman and her trigger-happy ("ex") boyfriend and driven to a remote cabin the woods, Milton finds himself drawn into a dangerous love triangle gone haywire. The couple's deadpan half-truths spin around Milton like a song on repeat. They seem to read him like an open book, until a mysterious message opens his eyes to his cursed existence. With unlimited ammunition, any hunting tool they could desire, and an ever-growing body count, for what did Milton really sign up?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFight Club (1999)
A ticking-time-bomb insomniac and a slippery soap salesman channel primal male aggression into a shocking new form of therapy. Their concept catches on, with underground "fight clubs" forming in every town, until an eccentric gets in the way and ignites an out-of-control spiral toward oblivion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisPorno (2019)
When a group of naive teens working at a movie theater in a small Christian town discover a mysterious film hidden in its basement, they unleash an alluring succubus who gives them a sex education…written in blood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove of Your Life (2026)
After a chance encounter sparks a sweeping romance, Maya's future is suddenly upended, sending her on an unexpected journey to love and live again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFritz the Cat (1972)
In late 1960s New York City, fed up with monotonous college life and police repression, free-spirited Fritz, an impenitent seducer and unrestrained party-animal, decides to explore the world. And just like that, as he flees NYC, heading to San Francisco, Fritz embarks on an endless adventure of illumination. Immersed in a world surrounded by drugs and sex, Fritz participates in mad orgies, brings about a revolution, incites mass urban riots, and crosses paths with drug-addled Nazi bikers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAfro-Ken (2001)
Afro-Ken, a dog with a rainbow-colored afro, is a happy dog that does not speak. He likes things that look like him, such as cotton candy. There are different types of Afro-Ken, with different hairstyles, such as a mohawk (called Mohican-Ken), curls (Curly-Ken), and no hair (Normal-Ken).
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Monsters (2010)
Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life forms began to appear and half of Mexico was quarantined as an infected zone. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain "the creatures," while a journalist agrees to escort a shaken tourist through the infected zone in Mexico to the safety of the U.S. border.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSpriggan (2019)
The Ironlands is an unforgiving place; a fanatic cult plagues the kingdom of Annistiem, who in turn have resorted to begging adventurers to venture into the woods and cleanse their realm of the threat. Unbeknownst to them, something far more sinister guides the cult, and plots the destruction of Annistiem. Warriors, miscreants, and opportunists venture forth into the wood to slay the degenerate creatures, each having their own reasons and rationale. Some for gold, some for purity, and some for the hunt. But deep in the forest, only the trust of an ally, and the cold steel of sword and axe can save oneself from the terrors that lurk within.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Schirkoa: In Lies We Trust (2024)
In a sophisticated near perfect society, citizens live with paper bags on heads to dissolve differences. Tensions rise when the whispers of a mythical land without the bags start to float and a fresh council member sparks an accidental revolution.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Gandahar (1987)
On the planet Gandahar where peace reigns and poverty is unknown, this utopian lifestyle is upset by reports of people at the outlying frontiers being turned to stone. Sylvain is sent to investigate this mysterious threat.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbuelita / Granny (2019)
A tale about clichés, grandmothers, superheroines and villains.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Demon (2015)
A bridegroom is possessed by an unquiet spirit in the midst of his own wedding celebration, in this clever take on the Jewish legend of the dybbuk.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
SnoozefestMovies like thisNon Plus One (2010)
A young writer struggling to create a good story meets a cute waitress and imagination and fantasy blossom.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
The Machine-Men (1977)
Predecessor of the movie Gandahar released 10 years later, only time will tell us what unfolds in this mysterious utopic universe.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Fate/Grand Order Final Singularity – Grand Temple of Time: Solomon (2021)
After battling their way through all seven Singularities, the Chaldea Security Organization has finally arrived at the endpoint of the Grand Order: The Final Singularity, Grand Temple of Time: Solomon. Now is the time to defeat the root of all evil, Solomon, the King of Mages. Now is the time to reclaim the future. With the final operation looming large, Romani Archaman considers the choices he will soon have to make, Mash Kyrielight dwells on life's limitations, and Fujimaru prepares to receive a new Mystic Code. All their many encounters have led to this moment as Fujimaru and Mash at last embark on their final operation...
Why it matches: Similar story and style
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Illumination?
The closest matches to Illumination are Poor Things (2023), Below Her Mouth (2017) and Original Sin (2001). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Illumination?
Start with Poor Things (2023), the closest match to Illumination.
What is the highest-rated movie like Illumination?
Fight Club (1999), rated 8.4/10 by 33,300 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Illumination?
Love of Your Life (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Illumination?
Yes: Poor Things (2023), Below Her Mouth (2017) and Original Sin (2001).
How are movies similar to Illumination chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Illumination, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.