Movies like On Returning (1989–2019) (2019)
The best movies like On Returning (1989–2019) (2019) are Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014), My One and Only (2009) and Kodachrome (2017). If On Returning (1989–2019) hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
On Returning (1989–2019)
Quick picks
- Highest ratedI, Daniel Blake (2016)7.7/10 from 1,592 votes
- NewestGuillermo del Toro's Pinocchio: Handcarved Cinema (2022)Released 2022
Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014)
The story of the insane scandals related to the remake of “Island of Dr. Moreau” —originally a novel by H. G. Wells—, which was brought to the big screen in 1996. How director Richard Stanley spent four years developing the project just to find an abrupt end to his work while leading actor Marlon Brando pulled the strings in the shadows. Now for the first time, the living key players recount what really happened and why it all went so spectacularly wrong.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMy One and Only (2009)
A mother takes her two sons on an unusual road trip from New York to Pittsburgh, St. Louis and eventually Hollywood in her quest to find a man to take care of them all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKodachrome (2017)
Matt Ryder is convinced to drive his estranged and dying father Benjamin Ryder cross country to deliver four old rolls of Kodachrome film to the last lab in the world that can develop them before it shuts down for good. Along with Ben's nurse Zooey, the three navigate a world changing from analogue to digital while trying to put the past behind them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPeople Like Us (2012)
After flying home to L.A. for the funeral of his estranged record-producer father, a struggling man discovers that the will stipulates that he must deliver $150,000 in cash to a 30-year-old alcoholic sister he never knew existed, and her troubled 12-year-old son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (2013)
86-year-old Irving Zisman is on a journey across America with the most unlikely companion: his 8 year-old grandson, Billy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGus (1976)
The California Atoms are in last place with no hope of moving up. But by switching the mule from team mascot to team member, (He can kick 100 yard field goals!) they start winning, and move up in the rankings, Hurrah! The competition isn't so happy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisGuillermo del Toro's Pinocchio: Handcarved Cinema (2022)
With mesmerizing footage and time lapses of animators at work, this behind-the-scenes special captures the artistry of a unique tale years in the making.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlackbird (2019)
A terminally ill mother invites her family to their country house for one final gathering, but tensions quickly boil over between her two daughters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJingle All the Way (1996)
Howard Langston, a salesman for a mattress company, is constantly kept busy at his job, disappointing his son. After he misses his son's karate exposition, Howard vows to make it up to him by buying an action figure of his son's favorite television hero for Christmas. Unfortunately for Howard, it is Christmas Eve, and every store is sold out of Turbo Man. Now, Howard must travel all over town and compete with everybody else to find a Turbo Man action figure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMiss Stevens (2016)
Stuck at a crossroads in her personal life, it falls on high school English teacher Miss Stevens to chaperone three of her students — Billy, Margot and Sam — on a weekend trip to a drama competition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMagnificent Obsession (1954)
Reckless playboy Bob Merrick crashes his speedboat, requiring emergency attention from the town’s only resuscitator while a local hero, Dr. Phillips, dies waiting for the life-saving device. Merrick then tries to right his wrongs with the doctor’s widow, Helen, falling in love with her in the process.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAmerican Reunion (2012)
The characters we met a little more than a decade ago return to East Great Falls for their high school reunion. In one long-overdue weekend, they will discover what has changed, who hasn’t, and that time and distance can’t break the bonds of friendship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisI, Daniel Blake (2016)
A 59-year-old carpenter recovering from a heart attack befriends a single mother and her two kids as they navigate the impersonal, Kafkaesque benefits system. With equal amounts of humour, warmth and despair, the journey is heartfelt and emotional until the end.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Last Bus (2021)
Widower Tom, on the recent passing of his wife Mary, uses his free bus pass to travel the length of Britain from John O'Groats in Caithness to Land's End in Cornwall, their shared birthplace, using only local buses. It's an incident-fuelled nostalgia trip and his encounters with local people make him a media phenomenon. Tom is totally unaware and to his surprise on arrival at Land’s End he’s greeted as a celebrity.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Movie Star (2018)
An aging screen icon gets lured into accepting an award at a rinky-dink film festival in Nashville, Tenn., sending him on a hilarious fish-out-of-water adventure and an unexpectedly poignant journey into his past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSunshine State (2002)
A woman and her new husband returns to her hometown roots in coastal northern Florida, and must deal with family, business, and encroaching real estate development.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHogfather (2007)
It's the night before Hogswatch, usually a time of joy on Discworld, but there are suspicious going-on and the criminal underworld is abuzz. The beloved Hogfather - the jolly bearer of glee and pork-related gifts for children everywhere - has vanished. Suddenly, Discworld's entire mythical system is under threat. The fate of this magical time rests in the hands of a very motley group: A band of wizards headed up by a mystical university president named Mustrum Ridcully (Joss Ackland), a loyal manservant called Albert (David Jason), a level-headed governess called Susan Sto Heilt (Michelle Dockery), and her grandfather, who happens to be - Death (Marnix van den Broeke).
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWalking Tall (2004)
A former U.S. soldier returns to his hometown to find it overrun by crime and corruption, which prompts him to clean house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHead Full of Honey (2018)
A young girl tries to help her grandfather, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s, navigate his increasing forgetfulness, and ends up going on a remarkable adventure with him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCome Sunday (2018)
Evangelist Carlton Pearson is ostracized by his church for preaching that there is no Hell.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like On Returning (1989–2019)?
The closest matches to On Returning (1989–2019) are Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014), My One and Only (2009) and Kodachrome (2017). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after On Returning (1989–2019)?
Start with Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014), the closest match to On Returning (1989–2019).
What is the highest-rated movie like On Returning (1989–2019)?
I, Daniel Blake (2016), rated 7.7/10 by 1,592 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like On Returning (1989–2019)?
Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio: Handcarved Cinema (2022) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like On Returning (1989–2019)?
Yes: Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014), My One and Only (2009) and Kodachrome (2017).
How are movies similar to On Returning (1989–2019) chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside On Returning (1989–2019), then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.