Movies like General Spanky (1936)
The best movies like General Spanky (1936) are What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), Oh! What a Lovely War (1969) and Buck Privates (1941). If General Spanky hooked you with its comedy and war, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedDr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)8.1/10 from 6,470 votes
- NewestWolf Hound (2022)Released 2022
What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966)
A by-the-book Captain is ordered to capture a strategic village in Italy. The Italian soldiers are willing to surrender, if they can have a festival first. The lieutenant convinces the Captain this is the only way. Because of aerial reconnaissance, they must look like they are fighting. To sort this out an intelligence officer is sent in. Meanwhile the festival gets complicated with the Mayors daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
SnoozefestMovies like thisOh! What a Lovely War (1969)
The working-class Smiths change their initially sunny views on World War I after the five boys of the family witness the harsh reality of trench warfare.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBuck Privates (1941)
Petty con artists Slicker Smith and Herbie Brown mistakenly join the Army evading the cops. The cop chasing them winds up as their drill instructor. A rich young man and his former working class chauffeur are not only in the same unit, they're vying for a pretty girl who seems attracted to both.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCarry On Sergeant (1958)
Sergeant Grimshawe wants to retire in the flush of success by winning the Star Squad prize with his very last platoon of newly called-up National Servicemen. But a motley bunch they turn out to be, and it's up to Grimshawe to put the no-hopers through their paces.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
After the insane General Jack D. Ripper initiates a nuclear strike on the Soviet Union, a war room full of politicians, generals and a Russian diplomat all frantically try to stop it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Wackiest Ship in the Army (1960)
Lieutenant Rip Crandall is hoodwinked into taking command of the "Wackiest Ship in the Navy" – a real garbage scow with a crew of misfits who don't know a jib from a jigger. What none of them knows, including Crandall, is that this ship has a very important top-secret mission to complete in waters patrolled by the Japanese fleet. Their mission will save hundreds of allied lives – if only they can get there in one piece.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHot Shots! Part Deux (1993)
Topper Harley is found to be working as an odd-job-man in a monastery. The CIA want him to lead a rescue mission into Iraq, to rescue the last rescue team, who went in to rescue the last rescue team—who went in to rescue hostages left behind after Desert Storm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDuck Soup (1933)
Rufus T. Firefly is named president/dictator of bankrupt Freedonia and declares war on neighboring Sylvania over the love of wealthy Mrs. Teasdale.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Worth the HypeMovies like thisShoulder Arms (1918)
An American doughboy, stationed in France during the Great War, goes on a daring mission behind enemy lines and becomes a hero.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Devil's Disciple (1959)
In a small New England town during the American War of Independence, Dick Dudgeon, a revolutionary American Puritan, is mistaken for local minister Rev. Anthony Anderson and arrested by the British. Dick discovers himself incapable of accusing another human to suffer and continues to masquerade as the reverend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHot Shots! (1991)
The gang that created Airplane! and The Naked Gun sets its sights on Top Gun in this spoof. Topper Harley is a talented but unstable fighter pilot with an axe to grind: clearing the family name. His mission is to avenge his father and save a mission sabotaged by greedy weapons manufacturers. He also gets involved in a relationship with Ramada Thompson, a woman with an unusually talented stomach. Hot Shots! makes fun of a variety of other films, from Dances with Wolves to The Fabulous Baker Boys.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Secret War of Harry Frigg (1968)
When 5 allied generals are captured in Italy in WWII, it is a propaganda nightmare for the allies. The generals are all 1 star and refuse to take orders from each other in order to plan an escape. Harry Frigg is a private who has escaped from the guard house dozens of times. He is promoted to Major General and ordered to get the generals out once he is captured. Harry is willing to escape, but then he meets the countess...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFun with Dick and Jane (1977)
When an upwardly mobile couple find themselves unemployed and in debt, they turn to armed robbery in desperation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Mouse That Roared (1959)
The Duchy of Grand Fenwick decides that the only way to get out of their economic woes is to declare war on the United States, lose and accept foreign aid. They send an invasion force (in chain mail, armed with bows and arrows) to New York and they arrive during a nuclear drill that has cleared the streets.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBehind the Line: Escape to Dunkirk (2020)
Occupied France, 1940. A Nazi Commander discovers one of his prisoners, Danny is a champion boxer. He forces him to fight for his company's entertainment. But the POWs realise they can use these contests, as cover for an audacious breakout, before they re sent to Germany, where escape will be almost impossible. Their fate and freedom may all come down to how long Danny can keep fighting.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both war
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Onion Movie (2008)
Venerable newscaster Norm Archer reports the latest news in politics, health, culture and entertainment - such as an automotive recall of decapitation-inducing "Neckbelts" and a study finding that "depression hits losers hardest". This compilation of bogus news stories, celebrity profiles, movie trailers and skits come courtesy of the ace satirists at The Onion.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRock 'n' Roll High School (1979)
A group of rock-music-loving students, with the help of the Ramones, take over their school to combat its newly installed oppressive administration.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 thisCadet Kelly (2002)
Hyperactive teenager Kelly is enrolled into a military school when her new stepfather becomes the Commandant. At first she has problems fitting in and taking orders until she tries out for the drill team.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBritannia Hospital (1982)
Britannia Hospital, an esteemed English institution, is marking its gala anniversary with a visit by the Queen Mother herself. But when investigative reporter Mick Travis arrives to cover the celebration, he finds the hospital under siege by striking workers, ruthless unions, violent demonstrators, racist aristocrats, an African cannibal dictator, and sinister human experiments.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCome Back, Miss Pipps (1941)
On Mickey's birthday, Miss Pipps, the school teacher, serves cake and ice cream during school hours. Sour old Mr. Pratt, head of the school board, stumbles on the festivities and has Miss Pipps fired. The Our Gang conspire to save her job by inviting all the parents to a special meeting. There the gang stage a melodrama, with Mr. Pratt portrayed as Simon Legree. The parents react by demoting Mr. Pratt to janitor. They appoint kindly Mr. Swanson, the current janitor, to head the school board. And of course they reinstate Miss Pipps as school teacher. Sometime later, in an act of forgiveness, Miss Pipps and the gang hold a birthday party for Pratt who is then humbled by the experience.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Tiny Troubles (1939)
Alfalfa "trades in" his whining baby brother for another baby--who turns out to be a midget criminal.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Alfalfa's Double (1940)
Our Gang member Alfalfa comes face to face with his wealthy lookalike Cornelius.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Melodies Old and New (1942)
The gang prevails upon old-time minstrel impresario Walter Wills to help them stage a fund-raising musical show.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Family Troubles (1943)
Our Gang member Janet Burston believes that her family is neglecting her, so she decides to run away from home. The other gang members try to help Janet get adopted (or "adapted") by a more agreeable family, choosing a kindly elderly couple (Sarah Padden and Harry C. Bradley) for the honor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Dog Daze (1939)
The Gang owes 37 cents to Butch, so they try to raise money by rounding up stray dogs for the reward, but nearly get busted for dognapping.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
RajiniMurugan (2015)
Rajini Murugan locks horns with Yezharai Mookkan who tries to get a share of Murugan's ancestral property by defaming his grandfather.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Beginner's Luck (1935)
Spanky's mother pushes him to join a local theater amateur night.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Spooky Hooky (1936)
The gang puts a phony absent note on their teacher's desk so they can go to the circus, then have to get it back when they find out that the class was going on a field trip to the circus anyway.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
Second Childhood (1936)
A lonely, rich, hypochondriac is celebrating her 65th birthday in the same manner in which she observes the other 364 days of the year by complaining, berating her servants, taking her pills and grumping about everything around her, including the sunshine. A toy airplane comes flying through an open window and breaks a vase, and when its owner, Spanky, comes in search of it he is informed he will have to pay seventy-five cents for the broken vase. Spanly has never seen six-bit, much less having it in his pants, so he offers his and his friend's help in cleaning up the yard in exchange. Before the kids are through, they've given the old lady a new outlook on life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like General Spanky?
The closest matches to General Spanky are What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), Oh! What a Lovely War (1969) and Buck Privates (1941). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after General Spanky?
Start with What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), the closest match to General Spanky.
What is the highest-rated movie like General Spanky?
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), rated 8.1/10 by 6,470 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like General Spanky?
Wolf Hound (2022) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like General Spanky?
Yes: What Did You Do in the War, Daddy? (1966), Oh! What a Lovely War (1969) and Buck Privates (1941).
How are movies similar to General Spanky chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside General Spanky, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.