Movies like The Beauty Academy of Kabul (2004)
The best movies like The Beauty Academy of Kabul (2004) are I Am Ali (2014), Girl Model (2011) and The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004). If The Beauty Academy of Kabul hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
The Beauty Academy of Kabul
Quick picks
- Highest ratedFor Sama (2019)8.2/10 from 323 votes
- NewestLes échappées de Kaboul (2026)Released 2026
I Am Ali (2014)
Unprecedented access to Muhammad Ali's personal archive of "audio journals" as well as interviews and testimonials from his inner circle of family and friends are used to tell the legend's life story.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGirl Model (2011)
A documentary on the modeling industry's 'supply chain' between Siberia, Japan, and the U.S., told through the experiences of the scouts, agencies, and a 13-year-old model.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004)
Documentary about the art of film editing. Clips are shown from many groundbreaking films with innovative editing styles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHe Named Me Malala (2015)
A look at the events leading up to the Taliban's attack on the young Pakistani school girl, Malala Yousafzai, for speaking out on girls' education and the aftermath, including her speech to the United Nations.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnna 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 thisAudrey (2020)
An unprecedented and intimate look at the life, work and enduring legacy of British actress Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993).
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMaking 'The Shining' (1980)
Directed and edited by Stanley Kubrick's daughter Vivian Kubrick, this film offers a look behind the scenes during the making of The Shining.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFeminists: What Were They Thinking? (2018)
In 1977, a book of photographs captured an awakening - women shedding the cultural restrictions of their childhoods and embracing their full humanity. This documentary revisits those photos, those women and those times and takes aim at our culture today that alarmingly shows the need for continued change.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Last Repair Shop (2024)
In a warehouse in the heart of Los Angeles, a dwindling handful of devoted craftspeople maintain more than 80,000 student musical instruments, the largest remaining workshop in America of its kind. Meet four unforgettable characters whose broken-and-repaired lives have been dedicated to bringing so much more than music to the schoolchildren of this city.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeing James Bond (2021)
Daniel Craig candidly reflects on his 15 year adventure as James Bond. Including never-before-seen archival footage from Casino Royale to the upcoming 25th film No Time To Die, Craig shares his personal memories in conversation with 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCome 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 thisGame of Thrones: The Last Watch (2019)
For a year, acclaimed British filmmaker Jeanie Finlay was embedded on the set of the hit HBO series “Game of Thrones,” chronicling the creation of the show’s most ambitious and complicated season. Debuting one week after the series 8 finale, GAME OF THRONES: THE LAST WATCH delves deep into the mud and blood to reveal the tears and triumphs involved in the challenge of bringing the fantasy world of Westeros to life in the very real studios, fields and car-parks of Northern Ireland. Made with unprecedented access, GAME OF THRONES: THE LAST WATCH is an up-close and personal portrait from the trenches of production, following the crew and the cast as they contend with extreme weather, punishing deadlines and an ever-excited fandom hungry for spoilers. Much more than a “making of” documentary, this is a funny, heartbreaking story, told with wit and intimacy, about the bittersweet pleasures of what it means to create a world – and then have to say goodbye to it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKaty Perry: Part of Me (2012)
Giving fans unprecedented access to the real life of the music sensation, Katy Perry: Part of Me exposes the hard work, dedication and phenomenal talent of a girl who remained true to herself and her vision in order to achieve her dreams. Featuring rare behind-the-scenes interviews, personal moments between Katy and her friends, and all-access footage of rehearsals, choreography, Katy’s signature style and more, Katy Perry: Part of Me reveals the singer’s unwavering belief that if you can be yourself, then you can be anything.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFor Sama (2019)
A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab’s life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her. Her camera captures incredible stories of loss, laughter and survival as Waad wrestles with an impossible choice– whether or not to flee the city to protect her daughter’s life, when leaving means abandoning the struggle for freedom for which she has already sacrificed so much.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe 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 thisThe Decline of Western Civilization Part III (1998)
A musical study of Los Angeles in the late 90s, where homeless teens roam the streets and profess to live a punk lifestyle of music, drugs, and flouting authority.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNothing 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness (2015)
A woman in Pakistan sentenced to death for falling in love becomes a rare survivor of the country's harsh judicial system.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMarvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Hawkeye (2022)
Join the likes of Jeremy Renner, Hailee Steinfeld, Florence Pugh, and Vincent D’Onofrio as they reveal how Marvel Studios’ “Hawkeye” was conceived and created. Witness firsthand what it took to pull off the show’s pulse-pounding action set pieces, and discover how iconic characters from the pages of Marvel Comics such as Kate Bishop were adapted and brought to life for the six-episode series.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHeart of a Dog (2015)
Musician and performance artist Laurie Anderson reflects on the deaths of her husband Lou Reed, her mother and her beloved dog.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPetey & Ginger (2012)
When the global economy collapses the only true victors are those that weren't invited to the boom. Petey plays in a band and works in a pornography warehouse; Ginger works the night shift in a bar. From opposite coasts of the country, the two provide their personal takes on individual vs. collective crisis, together weaving a narrative that exposes a wasteland of shattered economic dreams, unfulfilled social promises and a bleak reality that only music and friendship can float freely above.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Mountain (2017)
An epic cinematic and musical collaboration between SHERPA filmmaker Jennifer Peedom and the Australian Chamber Orchestra, that explores humankind's fascination with high places.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBuddha Wild: Monk in a Hut (2008)
Buddhist monks open up about the joys and challenges of living out the precepts of the Buddha as a full-time vocation. Controversies swirling within modern monastic Buddhism are examined, from celibacy and the role of women to racism and concerns about the environment.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Mavericks (2019)
In this posthumous film, shot in Montreal in 2013 and completed by Michka Saäl’s colleagues and friends, the filmmaker salutes the beauty of Montreal and its people. From the back alleys of the Plateau to artists’ apartments, from a passionate recycling advocate to a queen of the night, everyday heroes are the subject of this final film. They are humble folk, faithful to their personal ethical sense, determined to make the world more beautiful. They are true adventurers, especially as seen by Michka Saäl.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Declutter (2017)
One Saturday morning, filmmaker Madison Thomas has a revelation: she’s just like her mother. As she thinks about a friend going through tough times, she feels the sudden urge to clean. Through the scrubbing and wiping and rinsing, Madison's thoughts drift to her mother — and her obsessive need to tidy. Madison’s mother survived a traumatic childhood: her own mother never reconciled what she went through at residential school. Cleaning offers moments of control that she didn’t have as a child. She’s fought hard, against all odds, to become a strong woman. They say trauma is in the genes, that it’s passed from one generation to the next. But strength is inherited too. Through rituals as simple as spending time together and smudging, Madison and her mother are beginning to mend the cycle of pain in their family. Declutter is an intimate look into a private moment between mother and daughter and the strength that carries them both.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Attacking the Devil: Harold Evans and the Last Nazi War Crime (2014)
Before the internet. Before social media. Before breaking news. The victims of Thalidomide had to rely on something even more extraordinary to fight their corner: Investigative journalism. This is the story of how Harold Evans fought and won the battle of his and many other lives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Les échappées de Kaboul (2026)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Homestretch (2014)
Three homeless teenagers brave Chicago winters, the pressures of high school, and life alone on the streets to build a brighter future.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
The Bridge (2014)
A funeral procession pushes across the florid stillness of a deserted Romanian village.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
Quiet Riot: Well Now You're Here, There's No Way Back (2014)
An inspiring documentary chronicling the rise, fall and resurrection of '80s metal band Quiet Riot. The career of Frankie Banali, the band's drummer, reached a serious crossroads when his best friend and bandmate died in 2007. Years later, Banali realizes he must forge ahead and make a new life for himself and his daughter and he goes on a quest to reunite the band and fill the immense void left by his bandmate.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both documentary
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Beauty Academy of Kabul?
The closest matches to The Beauty Academy of Kabul are I Am Ali (2014), Girl Model (2011) and The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Beauty Academy of Kabul?
Start with I Am Ali (2014), the closest match to The Beauty Academy of Kabul.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Beauty Academy of Kabul?
For Sama (2019), rated 8.2/10 by 323 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Beauty Academy of Kabul?
Les échappées de Kaboul (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like The Beauty Academy of Kabul?
Yes: I Am Ali (2014), Girl Model (2011) and The Cutting Edge: The Magic of Movie Editing (2004).
How are movies similar to The Beauty Academy of Kabul chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Beauty Academy of Kabul, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.