Movies like California Dreaming (1979)
The best movies like California Dreaming (1979) are The Best You Can (2025), Enemies, a Love Story (1989) and Delirious (2007). If California Dreaming hooked you with its comedy and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedVoicemails for Isabelle (2026)8.3/10 from 1,048 votes
- NewestWhy Did I Get Married Again? (2026)Released 2026
The Best You Can (2025)
Cynthia Rand is a buttoned-up New Yorker married to a brilliant professor 25 years her senior. She begins feeling the effects of her husband’s advancing age on their relationship, just as her world is turned upside down by the arrival of sharp but chronically underachieving security guard Stan Olszewski in this smart rom-com that reunites Bacon and Sedgwick on screen for the first time in 20 years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisEnemies, a Love Story (1989)
A ghostwriter finds himself romantically involved with his current wife, a married woman and his long-vanished wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDelirious (2007)
Les, a small-time celebrity photographer desperate to make it big, befriends Toby, a homeless young man with no direction except a vague desire to become an actor. When by chance, Toby becomes romantically involved with K'Harma Leeds, the hottest pop star of the moment, Les grows jealous and plots revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWe Are Your Friends (2015)
Young Cole Carter dreams of hitting the big time as a Hollywood disc jockey, spending his days and nights hanging with buddies and working on the one track that will set the world on fire. Opportunity comes knocking when he meets James Reed, a charismatic DJ who takes the 23-year-old under his wing. Soon, his seemingly clear path to success gets complicated when he starts falling for his mentor's girlfriend, jeopardizing his new friendship and the future he seems destined to fulfill.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhy Did I Get Married Again? (2026)
The couples reunite for the destination wedding of Marcus and Angela's daughter, bringing drama old and new as they ask, "Why did we get married again?"
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLove Don't Co$t a Thing (2003)
A high school outcast pays a cheerleader to pose as his girlfriend so he can be considered cool.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSideways (2004)
Two middle-aged men embark on a spiritual journey through Californian wine country. One is an unpublished novelist suffering from depression, and the other is only days away from walking down the aisle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMumford (1999)
When a would-be psychologist, curiously named Dr. Mumford, comes to the idyllic town of the same name and offers his talent for listening and a disarming frankness, the town's quirkiest citizens scramble for a seat on his couch. As he lightens hearts darkened by old secrets no one realizes he's hiding a whopper of his own, or that he's fallen head over heels for one of his patients!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExtracurricular Activities (2019)
The outrageous life of Reagan Collins, a model high school student with a "killer" after-school job that involves arranging “accidents” for his classmates' parents. When seasoned police detective Cliff Dawkins starts putting the pieces together, it's a battle of wits to see if Reagan can keep business booming.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNumb (2007)
Hudson Milbank is a successful Hollywood screenwriter who suddenly and strangely finds himself without any emotional feelings. He tries doctor after doctor and shrink after shrink, but nothing works. The Golf Channel, lesbian exercise classes and a dizzying variety of pills get him through the day, but don't quite solve his problem. His writing partner tries everything to get him back to normal, but it's not until Hudson meets Sara that he finds a real motivation to get better and to actually start feeling again. From the writer of Deuce Bigalow, comes NUMB, a romantic comedy following an unusual man looking for strange love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Giant Mechanical Man (2012)
An offbeat romantic comedy about a silver-painted street performer and the soft spoken zoo worker who falls for him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNothing Like the Holidays (2008)
It’s Christmastime and the far-flung members of the Rodriguez family are converging at their parents’ home in Chicago to celebrate the season and rejoice in their youngest brother’s safe return from combat overseas.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVoicemails for Isabelle (2026)
A young woman's hilariously confessional voicemails to her late sister are unknowingly redirected to a stranger, who begins to fall in love from afar.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisATL (2006)
As four friends prepare for life after high school, different challenges bring about turning points in each of their lives. The dramas unfold and resolve at their local rollerskating rink, Cascade.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCyrus (2010)
With John's social life at a standstill and his ex-wife about to get remarried, a down on his luck divorcée finally meets the woman of his dreams, only to discover she has another man in her life - her son. Before long, the two are locked in a battle of wits for the woman they both love-and it appears only one man can be left standing when it's over.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisBreaking & Exiting (2018)
Harry, a charming house thief, gets more than he bargains for during an attempted burglary when he stumbles upon Daisy and decides to save her from herself, sending both of them into a darkly comedic journey of self discovery and love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Summer (2019)
Standing on the precipice of adulthood, a group of friends navigate new relationships, while reexamining others, during their final summer before college.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNewness (2017)
In contemporary Los Angeles, two millennials navigating a social media–driven hookup culture begin a relationship that pushes both emotional and physical boundaries.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both romance & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAll About Nina (2018)
Nina Geld's passion and talent have made her a rising star in the comedy scene, but she's an emotional mess offstage. When a new professional opportunity coincides with a romantic one, she is forced to confront her own deeply troubled past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisPlaying It Cool (2014)
A young man meets and instantly falls in love with an engaged woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & romance
SnoozefestMovies like thisYouth in Revolt (2009)
As a fan of Albert Camus and Jean-Luc Godard, teenage Nick Twisp is definitely out of his element when his mother and her boyfriend move the family to a trailer park. When a pretty neighbor named Sheeni plays records by French crooners, it's love at first sight for frustrated and inexperienced Nick. Learning that she is dating someone, Nick launches a hilarious quest to find his way into Sheeni's heart -- and bed.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAmerican Pie 2 (2001)
After a year apart - attending different schools, meeting different people - the guys rent a beach house and vow to make this the best summer ever. As it turns out, whether that will happen or not has a lot to do with the girls. Between the wild parties, outrageous revelations and yes, a trip to band camp, they discover that times change and people change, but in the end, it's all about sticking together.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn July (2000)
Daniel’s drab existence as a physics teacher takes an adventurous turn when he falls in love with a Turkish girl named Melek. He spontaneously decides to follow her to Instanbul by car. On the road across Europe, he picks up his free-spirited friend Juli, who is secretly in love with him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Color of Milk (2004)
Selma's mother died giving birth to her, and Selma's step aunt is living proof that men only cause trouble. So the 11 year old girl makes a deal with her best friends that they will stay away from boys and dedicate their lives to science. And by the way, Selma was probably born on another planet and not meant to fall in love with anyone. But what happens when her friends break the pact, and she actually meets a boy who's not like the rest?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
One Summer Night (2020)
Before heading off to college, an overthinking teenager asks out a former girlfriend in an effort to reconnect and hold on to his past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & romance
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)
A revenge-seeking gold digger marries a womanizing Beverly Hills lawyer with the intention of making a killing in the divorce.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFremont (2023)
Donya, a lonely Afghan refugee and former translator, spends her twenties drifting through a meager existence in Fremont, California. Shuttling between her job writing fortunes for a fortune cookie factory and sessions with her eccentric therapist, Donya suffers from insomnia and survivor's guilt over those still left behind in Kabul as she desperately searches for love.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHot Wave (1975)
A taiwanese romance set during the summer starring Brigitte Lin.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
Kisses and Caroms (2006)
In California, Zack owns the "Breakingtime Billiards", a store that sells pool tables and game room supplies. He works with his girlfriend Jennifer; the sexy seller Tara; the installer of pool tables and best friend, the wolf David, and his idiot assistant Eddie. After having a threesome arranged by Jen with Tara, Zach breaks up his relationship with Jen, in spite of her bringing him up all the time. He tells his sexual experience to David while Jen asks for an advice to her psychologist Dr. Bob Johnson in his radio show. Along the day and after the visit of many peculiar clients, Zack concludes that Jen is his dream girl.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & romance
The Candidate (1972)
Bill McKay is a candidate for the U.S. Senate from California. He has no hope of winning, so he is willing to tweak the establishment.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like California Dreaming?
The closest matches to California Dreaming are The Best You Can (2025), Enemies, a Love Story (1989) and Delirious (2007). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after California Dreaming?
Start with The Best You Can (2025), the closest match to California Dreaming.
What is the highest-rated movie like California Dreaming?
Voicemails for Isabelle (2026), rated 8.3/10 by 1,048 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like California Dreaming?
Why Did I Get Married Again? (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like California Dreaming?
Yes: The Best You Can (2025), Enemies, a Love Story (1989) and Delirious (2007).
How are movies similar to California Dreaming chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside California Dreaming, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.