Movies like Manuel (1979)
The best movies like Manuel (1979) are Official Competition (2021), Therapy Done Right (2026) and Lady Windermere's Fan (1925). If Manuel hooked you with its comedy and drama, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedInstructions Not Included (2013)7.7/10 from 990 votes
- NewestTherapy Done Right (2026)Released 2026
- In SpanishOfficial Competition (2021)Also in Spanish
Official Competition (2021)
When a billionaire entrepreneur impulsively decides to create an iconic movie, he demands the best. Renowned filmmaker Lola Cuevas is recruited to mastermind this ambitious endeavour. Completing the all-star team are two actors with massive talent but even bigger egos: Hollywood heartthrob Félix Rivero and radical theatre actor Iván Torres. Both are legends, but not exactly best friends. Through a series of increasingly eccentric trials set by Lola, Félix and Iván must confront not only each other but also their own legacies. Who will be left when the cameras finally start rolling?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTherapy Done Right (2026)
A psychoanalyst who's lost faith in traditional therapy crosses every boundary to help a blocked novelist in this cutting Argentine dark comedy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLady Windermere's Fan (1925)
A society woman believes her husband is having an affair, a misconception which may have dire personal consequences for all involved.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGloria (2013)
Gloria is a 58-year-old divorcée. Her children have all left home but she has no desire to spend her days and nights alone. Determined to defy old age and loneliness, she rushes headlong into a whirl of singles’ parties on the hunt for instant gratification – which only leads to repeated disappointment and enduring emptiness. But when Gloria meets Rodolfo, an ex-naval officer seven years her senior, she begins to imagine the possibility of a permanent relationship.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe People Upstairs (2020)
Julio and Ana have been together for more than fifteen years. They have become a couple who no longer look at nor touch one another, and who have made daily fighting the essence of their relationship. This evening, Ana has invited their upstairs neighbors to come round, Salva and Laura, a couple younger than them, pleasant and friendly, but whose noises are now an annoyance for Julio and Ana... or perhaps a stimulus? The upstairs neighbors will make them an unusual and surprising proposal which will turn the evening into an exaggerated and cathartic experience for all four.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDown the Rabbit Hole (2024)
Raised in opulence and culture, a boy's life contrasts with the darkness that seeps in from his father's criminal activities in this dark comedy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCQ (2001)
A young filmmaker in 1960s Paris juggles directing a cheesy sci-fi debacle, directing his own personal art film, coping with his crumbling relationship with his girlfriend, and a new-found infatuation with the sci-fi film's starlet.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisMy Own Love Song (2010)
A wheelchair-bound singer and her best friend embark on a roadtrip to Memphis.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this¡Que viva México! (2023)
After his grandfather's death, a man travels with his wife and kids to his hometown, where chaos ensues with his relatives over the inheritance.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSomewhere in Queens (2023)
Leo and Angela Russo live a simple life in Queens, surrounded by their overbearing Italian-American family. When their son finds success on his high school basketball team, Leo tears the family apart trying to make it happen.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHooking Up (2020)
Bailey and Darla embark upon a misguided and mutually deceitful form of therapy, one in which they must drive across the country, re-enacting Darla's colorful history as a sex addict. As their true motivations for the road trip come to light, the unlikely pair force one another to confront their issues, discovering that there might actually be more to love than just sex.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVera and the Pleasure of Others (2024)
Seventeen-year-old Vera earns money by secretly renting out an apartment to teenagers seeking privacy, all while eavesdropping from behind a closed door. As she listens, her own desires awaken.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Poet (2025)
An aging poet finds purpose mentoring Yurlady, a talented teen, though exposing her to the poetry scene might be unwise. His own poetic pursuits led nowhere, leaving him a stereotypical obscure writer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe House of Tomorrow (2019)
The film tells futurist, architect, and inventor R. Buckminster Fuller's incredible story through two teens hoping to get laid, become punk gods, and survive high school.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOn Becoming a Guinea Fowl (2024)
On an empty road in the middle of the night, Shula stumbles across the body of her uncle. As funeral proceedings begin around them, she and her cousins bring to light the buried secrets of their middle-class Zambian family.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPuro Mula (2011)
Joel is a 28 year old slacker who gets up every morning to drink beer and play his guitar. His older sister interrupts his daily routine by asking him to take care of her 6 year old kid. Joel thinks he can handle it, but things get complicated when the kid disappears from the house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisSubUrbia (1997)
A group of suburban teenagers try to support each other through the difficult task of becoming adults.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFamily Weekend (2013)
A 16-year-old girl takes her parents hostage after they miss her big jump-roping competition.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPatricia, A Hidden Passion (2020)
Patricia is a successful couples therapist. Your marriage is going through a bad time. But when she meets a student, Pablo will transform her own beliefs about sex.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & comedy
SnoozefestMovies like thisInstructions Not Included (2013)
Valentin is Acapulco's resident playboy, until a former fling leaves a baby on his doorstep and him heading with her out of Mexico.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Manuel?
The closest matches to Manuel are Official Competition (2021), Therapy Done Right (2026) and Lady Windermere's Fan (1925). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Manuel?
Start with Official Competition (2021), the closest match to Manuel.
What is the highest-rated movie like Manuel?
Instructions Not Included (2013), rated 7.7/10 by 990 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Manuel?
Therapy Done Right (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Spanish movies like Manuel?
Yes: Official Competition (2021), Therapy Done Right (2026) and Gloria (2013).
How are movies similar to Manuel chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Manuel, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.