Movies like Brief Encounter (1945)
The best movies like Brief Encounter (1945) are Two for the Road (1967), Coup de chance (2023) and Anna Karenina (1935). If Brief Encounter hooked you with its drama and romance, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedScenes from a Marriage (1974)8.1/10 from 415 votes
- NewestAlong Came Love (2023)Released 2023
Two for the Road (1967)
Architect Mark Wallace and his wife, Joanna, travel to France to meet with an affluent client. While there, they reflect on their first decade of marriage -- memories of when they first met, of courtship, and of road trips through the French countryside. As flirtation and playful quarreling turn to boredom with the banality of married life, the Wallaces struggle to rekindle their passion, while mutual infidelity threatens to tear them apart.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCoup de chance (2023)
Fanny and Jean have everything of an ideal couple: fulfilled professionally, they live in a magnificent apartment in the beautiful districts of Paris, and seem to be in love as on the first day. But when Fanny crosses, by chance, former classmate Alain, she's immediately capsized. They see each other again very quickly and grow closer.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnna Karenina (1935)
In Imperial Russia, Anna, wife of the officer Karenin, goes to Moscow to visit her brother. On the way, she meets charming cavalry officer Vronsky, to whom she's immediately attracted. But in St. Petersburg’s high society, a relationship like this could destroy a woman’s reputation.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Bridges of Madison County (1995)
Photographer Robert Kincaid wanders into the life of housewife Francesca Johnson for four days in the 1960s.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Painted Veil (2006)
A British medical doctor fights a cholera outbreak in a small Chinese village, while also being trapped at home in a loveless marriage to an unfaithful wife.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both romance & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Earrings of Madame de... (1953)
In late 19th century France, the Countess Louise, wife of a wealthy general, sells the earrings her husband gave her on their wedding day to pay off her secret debts, then claims to have lost them. Her husband quickly learns of the deceit, which is the beginning of many tragic misunderstandings, all involving the earrings, the general, the countess, and her new lover, the Italian Baron Donati.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIndiscretion of an American Wife (1953)
While on vacation in Rome, married American Mary Forbes becomes entangled in an affair with an Italian man, Giovanni Doria. As she prepares to leave Italy, Giovanni confesses his love for her; he doesn't want her to go. Together they wander the railroad station where Mary is to take the train to Paris, then ultimately reunite with her husband and daughter in Philadelphia. Will she throw away her old life for this passionate new romance?
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe End of the Affair (1999)
On a rainy London night in 1946, novelist Maurice Bendrix has a chance meeting with Henry Miles, husband of his ex-mistress Sarah, who abruptly ended their affair two years before. Bendrix's obsession with Sarah is rekindled; he succumbs to his own jealousy and arranges to have her followed.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisImmortal Love (1961)
A young woman is forced by circumstance into a loveless marriage while still in love with another. This episodic tale follows their story through three decades of bitter conflict which engulfs their children and those around them.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Revolutionary Road (2008)
A young couple living in a Connecticut suburb during the mid-1950s struggle to come to terms with their personal problems while trying to raise their two children. Based on a novel by Richard Yates.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAn Affair to Remember (1957)
A couple falls in love and agrees to meet in six months at the Empire State Building - but will it happen?
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDodsworth (1936)
A retired auto manufacturer and his wife take a long-planned European vacation only to find that they want very different things from life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Age of Innocence (1993)
In 19th century New York high society, a young lawyer falls in love with a woman separated from her husband, while he is engaged to the woman's cousin.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNow, Voyager (1942)
A woman suffers a nervous breakdown and from an oppressive mother before being freed by the love of a man she meets on a cruise.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both romance & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAlong Came Love (2023)
1947. On a beach, Madeleine, a waitress in a hotel restaurant, mother of a little boy, meets François, a rich and cultivated student. The force of attraction that pushes them towards each other is commensurate with the secrecy that each carries. If we know what Madeleine wants to leave behind by following this young man, we discover over time, what François is desperately trying to flee by mixing Madeleine's fate with his.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJules and Jim (1962)
In the carefree days before World War I, introverted Austrian author Jules strikes up a friendship with the exuberant Frenchman Jim and both men fall for the impulsive and beautiful Catherine.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisJourney to Italy (1954)
Married for eight years with no children, Brits Katherine and Alex Joyce are driving to Italy, their ultimate destination just outside of Naples to sell the villa they have just inherited from his uncle, the villa where they will be staying during their time there. On the drive, they come to the realization that this trip marks the first time that they have truly been alone together, and as such don't really know one another in the true sense.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLove Affair (1939)
A French playboy and an American former nightclub singer fall in love aboard a ship. They arrange to reunite six months later, if neither has changed their mind.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisScenes from a Marriage (1974)
Johan and Marianne are married and seem to have it all. Their happiness, however, is a façade for a troubled relationship, which becomes even rockier when Johan admits that he's having an affair. Before long, the spouses separate and move towards finalizing their divorce, but they make attempts at reconciling. Even as they pursue other relationships, Johan and Marianne realize that they have a significant bond, but also many issues that hinder that connection.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisCasablanca (1943)
In Casablanca, Morocco in December 1941, a cynical American expatriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisIn the Mood for Love (2000)
In 1960s Hong Kong, two neighbors form an intimate bond after making a discovery about their spouses in this visually stunning tale of unrequited love.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisWhen Tomorrow Comes (1939)
A waitress destined for a better life falls in love with a handsome stranger, only to find that he is already married.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
A Woman of Paris: A Drama of Fate (1923)
When Marie St. Clair believes she has been jilted by her artist fiance Jean, she decides to leave for Paris on her own. After spending a year in the city as a mistress of the wealthy Pierre Revel, she is reunited with Jean by chance. This leaves her with the choice between a glamorous life in Paris, and the true love she left behind.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEcstasy (1933)
Eva has just gotten married to an older gentleman, but discovers that he is obsessed with order in his life and doesn't have much room for passion. She becomes despondent and leaves him, returning to her father's house. One day while bathing in the lake, she meets a young man and they fall in love. The husband has become grief stricken at the loss of his young bride, and fate brings him together with the young lover that has taken Eva from him.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Heiress (1949)
In 1840s New York, the uneventful and boring days of the daughter of a wealthy doctor come to an end when she meets a dashing poorer man — who may or may not be after her inheritance.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988)
Successful surgeon Tomas leaves Prague for an operation, meets a young photographer named Tereza, and brings her back with him. Tereza is surprised to learn that Tomas is already having an affair with the bohemian Sabina, but when the Soviet invasion occurs, all three flee to Switzerland. Sabina begins an affair, Tom continues womanizing, and Tereza, disgusted, returns to Czechoslovakia. Realizing his mistake, Tomas decides to chase after her.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Room with a View (1986)
When Lucy Honeychurch and chaperon Charlotte Bartlett find themselves in Florence with rooms without views, fellow guests Mr Emerson and son George step in to remedy the situation. Meeting the Emersons could change Lucy's life forever but, once back in England, how will her experiences in Tuscany affect her marriage plans?
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIntersection (1994)
During a car accident, Vincent Eastman watches his whole life flash before his eyes, and he doesn't like what he sees. While maintaining the semblance of a marriage with his wife, Sally, Vincent has been carrying on with a mistress, Olivia. She's everything Sally isn't -- warm, passionate, carefree. So why can't he choose between the two, especially when his indecision is taking its toll on his daughter?
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisCherry Blossoms (2008)
After finding out that her husband, Rudi, has a fatal illness, Trudi Angermeier arranges a trip to Berlin so they can see their children. Of course, the kids don't know the real reason they're visiting -- and the catch is, neither does Rudi...
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLove Is a Many-Splendored Thing (1955)
A widowed doctor of both Chinese and European descent falls in love with a married American correspondent in Hong Kong during China's Communist revolution.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Brief Encounter?
The closest matches to Brief Encounter are Two for the Road (1967), Coup de chance (2023) and Anna Karenina (1935). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Brief Encounter?
People who watched Brief Encounter most often go on to Two for the Road (1967), Coup de chance (2023) and Anna Karenina (1935).
What is the highest-rated movie like Brief Encounter?
Scenes from a Marriage (1974), rated 8.1/10 by 415 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Brief Encounter?
Along Came Love (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Brief Encounter?
Yes: Two for the Road (1967), Anna Karenina (1935) and The Bridges of Madison County (1995).
How are movies similar to Brief Encounter chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Brief Encounter, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.