Movies like Love of Sawako (1990)
The best movies like Love of Sawako (1990) are Intentions of Murder (1964), The Eel (1997) and Harmonium (2016). If Love of Sawako hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedWhat Maisie Knew (2013)7.1/10 from 466 votes
- NewestFree Hugs (2023)Released 2023
- In JapaneseIntentions of Murder (1964)Also in Japanese
Intentions of Murder (1964)
The neglected common-law wife of a Japanese librarian is repeatedly harassed by a young man with a heart condition who seduces her with the prospect of a better life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Eel (1997)
A businessman kills his adulterous wife and is sent to prison. After his release, he opens a barbershop and meets new people, talking to almost no one except for an eel he befriended while in prison.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarmonium (2016)
Toshio hires Yasaka to work in his workshop. But then this old acquaintance, who has just been released from prison, begins to meddle in Toshio's family life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFemale Yakuza Tale (1973)
Ocho is accidentally captured by a drug trafficking cartel who use Chinese women to smuggle drugs into Japan by hiding it in their vaginas. She is tortured, and manages to escape, fighting both the male yakuzas and a gang of female thieves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOne Million Yen Girl (2008)
A 21-year-old girl is released from prison, only to deal with the neighborhood gossip about her and family conflicts. She decides to save one million yen, move to where no one knows her and keep repeating the process.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHounddog (2008)
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Trials of Cate McCall (2013)
In order to be reinstated to the bar and recover custody of her daughter, a hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and on probation, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Visit (1964)
Carla Zachanassian had a child by Serge Miller as a teenager. When Serge refused to marry her, she was driven out of town. By her own wit and cunning, she has returned as a multi-millionaire for a visit. The town lays out the red carpet expecting big things from Carla, only to learn that her sole purpose is to see Serge Miller killed...
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTokyo Decadence (1992)
A submissive hooker goes about her trade, suffering abuse at the hands of Japanese salarymen and Yakuza types. She's unhappy about her work, and is apparently trying to find some sort of appeasement for the fact that her lover has married.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSakuran (2006)
Kiyoha rises from the lowly courtesan ranks to the high class position of Oiran in the steamy red-light district of Yoshiwara. She is determined to stand on her own two feet and live life as she pleased.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTrue Colors (1991)
Two law school friends find themselves at odds when one becomes a Justice Department lawyer and the other goes into politics.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEffie Gray (2014)
A look at the mysterious relationship between Victorian art critic John Ruskin and his teenage bride Effie Gray.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFast Girls (2012)
A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHardball (2001)
An aimless young man who is scalping tickets, gambling and drinking, agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of getting a loan from a friend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHungry Hearts (2015)
The relationship of a couple who meet by chance in New York City is put to the test when they encounter a life or death circumstance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Safety of Objects (2002)
In a suburban landscape, the lives of several families interlace with loss, despair and personal crisis. Esther Gold has lost focus on all but caring for her comatose son, Paul, and neglects her daughter and husband. Lawyer Jim Train is devoted to his career, not his family. Helen Christianson wants to find a new spark in life, while Annette Jennings tries to rebuild hers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhat Maisie Knew (2013)
In New York City, six-year-old Maisie is caught in the middle of a bitter custody battle between her self-absorbed parents—an aging rock singer mother and a distracted art dealer father. As both quickly marry new partners to strengthen their legal standing, Maisie is shuttled back and forth in an endless game of emotional point-scoring. Yet amid the chaos and upheaval, Maisie begins to find true comfort and affection in her new step-parents.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Girl in the Book (2015)
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisRainy Dog (1997)
A Japanese assassin stranded in Taiwan must take work from a local crime boss to make ends meet when suddenly a woman from his past delivers a son to him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Young One (1960)
A jazz musician seeks refuge from a lynch mob on a remote island, where he meets a hostile game warden and the young object of his attentions.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Water Flows to the Sea (2023)
High school student Naotatsu travels to live at his uncle's house. In the pouring rain, he is picked up at the nearest station by a strange adult woman named Sakaki who guides him to an unexpected share house where a life together begins.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Watashi no Makyou (2023)
Hana Yukawa is an ordinary office lady who can be found anywhere. She is tricked into joining a multi-level marketing company that hires people while hiding her true identity, and receives an unreasonable reprimand from her boss. She was deeply traumatized by a certain incident, but there was no one around her that she could talk to about it. Meanwhile, after seeing a popular YouTuber's introduction video, she becomes obsessed with the cult religion "Nirvana" in search of salvation for her soul.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Freeze Me (2000)
When a woman is harassed and threatened by one of the men who gang-raped her five years previously, she is pushed to take icy revenge against her attackers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisSex and the Central (2003)
May a recently recruited office worker finds she cannot fund her expensive lifestyle with her dismal paycheck. She later discovers her female work colleagues are playing strip poker or having sex with the management team. May soon learns she may have to indulge in carnal desires to make it in the Central district (the premier commercial district in Hong Kong).
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
I am Me ~ OL Yoko's Late Night Overtime (2018)
Yoko who works at the editorial department of a small publishing company is a weak OL that is not good at communicating with people. Recently, she felt suspicion of being physically attacked by an abnormal sleepiness, but she know that another person = Yoko enjoys a one – night relationship with men at midnight when she fell asleep. The existence of Yoko eventually begins to erode Yoko’s daily life. Yoko thought about trying to communicate with Yoko through the exchange diary.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Girl (2012)
"Girls" follows four beautiful women and depicts the troubles found in their love lives and work place. Yukiko Takigawa (Karina) works at a big advertising firm and has a good looking boyfriend. Seiko Takeda is married and has no children. She works at a large real estate company. Yoko Kosaka is a single woman working at a historic stationary company. Takako Hirai is a single mother who works for a car manufacturer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Inbi (1987)
Michiko Sakuraba (Mami Ogawa), a secretary at the Morio Kikuchi Law Office, located in a corner of the business district, takes out a concert ticket from her handbag and smiles. After her work is finished, she is going to go with Kikuchi. Then a woman around 20 years old appeared. Kikuchi introduced Michiko to her fiancé, who was surprised. That night, Michiko, deeply saddened, drank a glass alone at the cafe bar. The other guests were couples. Some men and women grope each other's bodies. Michiko returns to her room and comforts herself with a hot shower...
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Someone's Gaze (2013)
Aya Okamura has been working for two years and has begun living on her own for a job opportunity. With her mother working overseas as a doctor, her father is now living alone with the family's longtime pet cat Mii-san. One night, Aya returns from a long day at work, and as she rests on her bed, she reminiscences about the times the family had together. She remembers the sadness she felt when her mom went overseas, and the solace she felt when her father brought home Mii-san to give her comfort. Then, she receives a phone call.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFree Hugs (2023)
A jaded Office Lady’s perspective on life is thwarted when she runs into her ex, an Ah Beng giving out free hugs to strangers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Clover (2014)
Saya Suzuki is an ordinary employee working at a hotel. She falls in love with her elite boss Susumu Tsuge. Through their romance, Saya Suzuki grows as a person.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Love of Sawako?
The closest matches to Love of Sawako are Intentions of Murder (1964), The Eel (1997) and Harmonium (2016). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Love of Sawako?
Start with Intentions of Murder (1964), the closest match to Love of Sawako.
What is the highest-rated movie like Love of Sawako?
What Maisie Knew (2013), rated 7.1/10 by 466 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Love of Sawako?
Free Hugs (2023) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like Love of Sawako?
Yes: Intentions of Murder (1964), The Eel (1997) and Harmonium (2016).
How are movies similar to Love of Sawako chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Love of Sawako, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.