Movies like Mending the Line (2023)
The best movies like Mending the Line (2023) are Jacknife (1989), Birdy (1984) and The Kill Team (2019). If Mending the Line hooked you with its drama and war, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBirdy (1984)7.1/10 from 607 votes
- NewestOperation Kabul (2025)Released 2025
Jacknife (1989)
A conflict develops between a troubled Vietnam veteran and the sister he lives with when she becomes involved romantically with the army buddy who reminds him of the tragic battle they both survived.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBirdy (1984)
Two young men are seriously affected by the Vietnam War. One of them has always been obsessed with birds - but now believes he really is a bird, and has been sent to a mental hospital. Can his friend help him pull through?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Kill Team (2019)
When Andrew Briggman — a young soldier in the US Army during the invasion of Afghanistan — witnesses the murderous behavior of fellow soldiers, under the direction of a malevolent Sergeant, he faces a moral dilemma. His increasingly-violent platoon becomes suspicious that someone in their ranks has turned on them, and Andrew begins to fear for his safety. A fictionalized dramatization based on a true story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBat★21 (1988)
Lt. Col. Iceal "Ham" Hambleton is a weapons countermeasures expert and when his aircraft is shot over enemy territory the Air Force very much wants to get him back. Hambleton knows the area he's in is going to be carpet-bombed but a temporary shortage of helicopters causes a delay. Working with an Air Force reconnaissance pilot, Capt. Bartholomew Clark, he maps out an escape route.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Outpost (2020)
A small unit of U.S. soldiers, alone at the remote Combat Outpost Keating, located deep in the valley of three mountains in Afghanistan, battles to defend against an overwhelming force of Taliban fighters in a coordinated attack. The Battle of Kamdesh, as it was known, was the bloodiest American engagement of the Afghan War in 2009 and Bravo Troop 3-61 CAV became one of the most decorated units of the 19-year conflict.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMen in War (1957)
In Korea, on 6 September 1950, Lieutenant Benson's platoon finds itself isolated in enemy-held territory after a retreat. Soon they are joined by Sergeant Montana, whose overriding concern is caring for his catatonic colonel. Benson and Montana can't stand each other, but together they must get the survivors to Hill 465, where they hope the division is waiting. It's a long, harrowing march, fraught with all the dangers the elusive enemy can summon.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisField of Lost Shoes (2015)
A group of teenage cadets sheltered from war at the Virginia Military Institute must confront the horrors of an adult world when they are called upon to defend the Shenandoah Valley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeal Team Eight: Behind Enemy Lines (2014)
Seal Team Eight must fight their way deep into Africa's Congo, decommission a secret uranium mine, and stop our most dangerous enemy from smuggling weapon's grade yellow-cake out of the country.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAn Ordinary Man (2017)
A war criminal in hiding forms a relationship with his only connection to the outside world - his maid.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Beast of War (1988)
During the war in Afghanistan a Soviet tank crew commanded by a tyrannical officer find themselves lost and in a struggle against a band of Mujahadeen guerrillas in the mountains.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBehold a Pale Horse (1964)
Manuel Artiguez, a famous bandit during the Spanish civil war, has lived in French exile for 20 years. When his mother is dying he considers visiting her secretly in his Spanish home town. But his biggest enemy, the Spanish police officer Vinolas, prepared a trap at the hospital as a chance to finally catch Artiguez.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStop-Loss (2008)
A veteran soldier returns from his completed tour of duty in Iraq, only to find his life turned upside down when he is arbitrarily ordered to return to field duty by the Army.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThank You for Your Service (2017)
A group of U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq struggle to integrate back into family and civilian life, while living with the memory of a war that threatens to destroy them long after they've left the battlefield.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne of Our Aircraft Is Missing (1942)
During a raid on Germany, a British bomber crew is forced to bail out after their plane is damaged. They land in Holland, where they're aided by Dutch civilians.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKing Rat (1965)
When Singapore surrendered to the Japanese in 1942, the Allied POWs, mostly British but including a few Americans, were incarcerated in Changi prison. Among the American prisoners is Cpl. King, a wheeler-dealer who has managed to establish a pretty good life for himself in the camp. King soon forms a friendship with an upper-class British officer who is fascinated with King's enthusiastic approach to life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Yellow Birds (2018)
Two young soldiers, Bartle and Murph, navigate the terrors of the Iraq war under the command of the older, troubled Sergeant Sterling. All the while, Bartle is tortured by a promise he made to Murph's mother before their deployment.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBoudica (2023)
Inspired by events in A.D. 60, Boudica follows the eponymous Celtic warrior who rules the Iceni people alongside her husband Prasutagus. When he dies at the hands of Roman soldiers, Boudica’s kingdom is left without a male heir and the Romans seize her land and property. Driven to the edge of madness and determined to avenge her husband’s death, Boudica rallies the various tribes from the region and wages an epic war against the mighty Roman empire.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
SnoozefestMovies like thisWolf Hound (2022)
Inspired by the real-life German special operations unit KG 200 that shot down, repaired, and flew Allied aircraft as Trojan horses, "Wolf Hound" takes place in 1944 German-occupied France and follows the daring exploits of Jewish-American fighter pilot Captain David Holden. Ambushed behind enemy lines, Holden must rescue a captured B-17 Flying Fortress crew, evade a ruthless enemy stalking him at every turn, and foil a plot that could completely alter the outcome of World War II.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJarhead: Law of Return (2019)
Major Ronan Jackson, an accomplished fighter pilot for the Israel Defense Forces and son of a U.S. Senator, is shot down while flying through Syrian airspace. After miraculously surviving the crash, Jackson is taken captive by a group of Hezbollah militiamen. A squad of elite soldiers, led by Gunnery Sergeant Dave Torres, risk their own lives in the hopes of saving an ally they've never met.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Secrets We Keep (2020)
In post-World War II America, a woman, rebuilding her life in the suburbs with her husband, kidnaps her neighbor and seeks vengeance for the heinous war crimes she believes he committed against her.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Soldier's Star (2006)
A Russian guitarist was enlisted in 1984 in the Afghan war. Imprisoned, he will meet an Afghan musician and a French journalist.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war & drama
No Way Out (TBA)
Chronicles British Major Adam Jowett’s command of Easy Company, a unit of Paras and Royal Irish Rangers tasked with holding the District Centre of Musa Qala in Afghanistan in July 2006.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war & drama
Operation Kabul (2025)
A Hungarian doctor's story intertwines with soldiers' sacrificial fight and desperate refugees' escape from a war-torn city.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016)
Stuck in a rut, reporter Kim Baker decides to shake things up by leaving her desk job in New York and taking a dangerous assignment in Afghanistan. Far from home and completely out of her comfort zone, a culture-shocked Kim befriends an adventurous reporter Tanya Vanderpoel, a stern Colonel, and a charming photojournalist to help her navigate this crazy new world.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAmerican Desert (2021)
Recently returned combat veteran Matt Benning (Will Brandt) finds himself entangled in a dangerous web of drugs, violence, and toxic love that eventually has him running-and hiding-for his life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
No Greater Love (2017)
No Greater Love explores a combat deployment through the eyes of an Army chaplain, as he and his men fight their way through a hellish tour in one of the most dangerous places in Afghanistan and then as they struggle to reintegrate home.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
Kabul Express (2006)
Five people - two Indian journalists, an American photojournalist, an Afghan guide and a Taliban soldier who takes them all hostage - are taken on a 48-hour journey into Afghanistan in a jeep called the Kabul Express, a special and unlikely bond developing between them along the way.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
13 Days, 13 Nights (2025)
Kabul, August 15, 2021. US troops are preparing to withdraw from Afghanistan, while the Taliban are marching on the capital to seize power. Amid the chaos, Commander Mohamed Bida and his men are in charge of security at the French embassy, the last Western mission to remain open. Trapped along with 500 people, left to their own devices, the team must reach the airport at all costs. A perilous mission with no guarantee of success to flee the hell of Kabul and rescue what remains of humanity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTorbaaz (2020)
At an Afghanistan refugee camp, an ex-army doctor seeks to bring children joy through cricket and soon realizes that the stakes go beyond the sport.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Mending the Line?
The closest matches to Mending the Line are Jacknife (1989), Birdy (1984) and The Kill Team (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Mending the Line?
Start with Jacknife (1989), the closest match to Mending the Line.
What is the highest-rated movie like Mending the Line?
Birdy (1984), rated 7.1/10 by 607 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Mending the Line?
Operation Kabul (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Mending the Line?
Yes: Jacknife (1989), Birdy (1984) and The Kill Team (2019).
How are movies similar to Mending the Line chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Mending the Line, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.