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Movies like The Starving Village (2010)

The best movies like The Starving Village (2010) are Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023), Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017) and Fuck (2006). If The Starving Village hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023)

    From the heights of her modeling fame to her tragic death, this documentary reveals Anna Nicole Smith through the eyes of the people closest to her.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  2. Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)

    A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  3. Fuck (2006)

    A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  4. Capital in the Twenty-First Century (2019)

    Film adaptation of French economist Thomas Piketty's ground-breaking global bestseller of the same name: an eye-opening journey through wealth and power.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  5. Nothing Like a Dame (2018)

    BBC Arena's documentary on the Dames of British Theatre and film featuring Maggie Smith, Eileen Atkins, Judi Dench and Joan Plowright on screen together for the first time as they reminisce over a long summer weekend in a house Joan once shared with Sir Laurence Olivier.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

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  6. Directed by John Ford (1971)

    A documentary about the life and films of director John Ford.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  7. As I Was Moving Ahead Occasionally I Saw Brief Glimpses of Beauty (2000)

    A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  8. A Decade Under the Influence (2003)

    A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of today's best filmmakers interview the influential directors of that time.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Absolute CinemaMovies like this
  9. The U.S. vs. John Lennon (2006)

    A documentary on the life of John Lennon, with a focus on the time in his life when he transformed from a musician into an antiwar activist.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  10. 35 Up (1991)

    Director Michael Apted revisits the same group of British-born adults after a 7 year wait. The subjects are interviewed as to the changes that have occurred in their lives during the last seven years.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  11. Naqoyqatsi (2002)

    A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  12. The Curious Birth of Benjamin Button (2009)

    A documentary about the making of David Fincher's 2008 film THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON. Virtually every element in the evolution of the Fincher's film is documented here, from the project's attachment to numerous other directors during the 1990s, to its shoot in 2006 and 2007 in New Orleans, to its complex, CGI-intensive postproduction process.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  13. Public Speaking (2011)

    Martin Scorsese’s portrait of writer and social commentator Fran Lebowitz, celebrated for her sharp wit and observations on modern life. Filmed at New York’s Waverly Inn and intercut with archival footage and interviews, the documentary captures Lebowitz’s distinctive worldview through her spontaneous monologues and public appearances.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  14. Come See Me in the Good Light (2025)

    In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  15. Halloween: 25 Years of Terror (2006)

    Follow the evolution of the 'Halloween' movies over the past twenty-five years. It examines why the films are so popular and revisits many of the original locations used in the films - seeing the effects on the local community. For the first time, cast, crew, critics and fans join together in the ultimate 'Halloween' retrospective.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  16. Downloaded (2013)

    A documentary that explores the downloading revolution; the kids that created it, the bands and the businesses that were affected by it, and its impact on the world at large.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  17. 28 Up (1985)

    Just two years away from turning 30, participants in Michael Apted's documentary series are facing serious questions of identity and purpose, wondering whether they've found their place in the world.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  18. S4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)

    Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Absolute CinemaMovies like this
  19. McQueen (2018)

    Alexander McQueen's rags-to-riches story is a modern-day fairy tale, laced with the gothic. Mirroring the savage beauty, boldness and vivacity of his design, this documentary is an intimate revelation of McQueen's own world, both tortured and inspired, which celebrates a radical and mesmerizing genius of profound influence.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Worth the HypeMovies like this
  20. My Mom Jayne (2025)

    Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary

    Absolute CinemaMovies like this
  21. Go Grandriders (2012)

    17 riders with avarage age 81 decide to follow the dream of their youth and start their journey to ride around Taiwan island.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary & documentary

  22. China. The Arts – The People (1985)

    China marks the beginning of the extensive Asian theme in Ottinger’s filmography and is her first travelogue. Her observant eye is interested in anything from Sichuan opera and the Beijing Film Studio to the production of candy and sounds of bicycle bells.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  23. Twenty Two (2017)

    Follow the lives of the elderly survivors who were forced into sex slavery as “Comfort Women” by the Japanese during World War II. At the time of filming, only 22 of these women were still alive to tell their story. Through their own personal histories and perspectives, they tell a tale that should never be forgotten to generations unaware of the brutalization that occurred.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  24. Village Diary (2013)

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  25. The Last Moose Of Ao Lu Gu Ya (2013)

    Documentary about a tribe of indigenous people in northern China.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  26. A Young Patriot (2015)

    A documentary chronicling the coming of age of a young chinese man.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  27. Shanghai Youth (2015)

    As a special generation born in the New China, the hundreds of thousands of educated youth from Shanghai went through enormous hardship during their work in Xinjiang from 1963 to 1966. Because of the specific historical conditions and context, they have been strikingly stamped with the mark of the times and have had to struggle to understand the relationship between themselves and the nation.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  28. All's Right With The World (2007)

    The film explores the hidden face of poverty in one of the world's most affluent and capitalistic cities. Directed by CHEUNG King Wai (KJ: Music and Life), the film follows five Hong Kong families of different backgrounds that receive government subsidies. How do the poor get by in a glossy city that flaunts conspicuous consumption and hides poverty in cavernous public housing estates? All's Right With The World shares the different stories of these low-income families, their daily living conditions, and their ways of celebrating Chinese New Year.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  29. The Yellow Bank (2010)

    A short documentary that captures the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, The Yellow Bank takes you on a contemplative boat ride across the Huangpu River in Shanghai, China. Filmmaker J.P. Sniadecki, who lived and worked in Shanghai nine years earlier, uses the eclipse as a catalyst to explore the way weather, light, and sound affect the urban architectural environment during this extremely rare phenomenon.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

  30. Demolition (2008)

    "If the old doesn't go, the new never comes" recites a teenager hanging out near a demolition site in the center of Chengdu, the Sichuan capital in western China. In Demolition, filmmaker J.P. Sniadecki deconstructs the transforming cityscape by befriending the migrant laborers on the site and documenting the honest, often unobserved, human interactions, yielding a wonderfully patient and revealing portrait of work and life in the shadow of progress and economic development.

    Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary

Like The Starving Village and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like The Starving Village?

The closest matches to The Starving Village are Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023), Ex Libris: The New York Public Library (2017) and Fuck (2006). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after The Starving Village?

Start with Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me (2023), the closest match to The Starving Village.

What is the newest movie like The Starving Village?

S4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.

Are there Chinese movies like The Starving Village?

Yes: Go Grandriders (2012), Twenty Two (2017) and Village Diary (2013).

How are movies similar to The Starving Village chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Starving Village, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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