Movies like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle (1986)
The best movies like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle (1986) are House of Boys (2009), Working Girls (1987) and Walk on the Wild Side (1962). If Doin' the Harlem Shuffle hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedLolita (1962)7.3/10 from 2,343 votes
- NewestGood Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022)Released 2022
House of Boys (2009)
It is 1984. Frank is a determined English teenager who runs away from high school to find an alternative gay lifestyle in Amsterdam. He finds a home and a job at the "House of Boys", a bar-cum-brothel run by a strict Madame who has an eye for what his punters crave. Frank works his way up from barman to on-stage dancer and falls in love with some of his housemates, Jake. The first intimations of what is described as 'the gay cancer', casts a long shadow over Frank's tight-knit group of friends. Yet despite the troubles that cloud the hopes and dreams of young Frank, his perseverance, along with support from a willing doctor, will carry him through.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWorking Girls (1987)
A lesbian college graduate, trying to bankroll her own photography business, works as a high-priced New York City escort.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWalk on the Wild Side (1962)
At a 1930s New Orleans bordello, Hallie is the main attraction for both clients and the shrewd madam. The arrival of Dove Linkhorn, her lovesick sweetheart from three years ago, disrupts the normal and triggers a chain of events involving a number of people, including the young woman he travelled with, who is now the Doll House's newest employee.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNight Shift (1982)
A nebbish of a morgue attendant gets shunted back to the night shift where he is shackled with an obnoxious neophyte partner who dreams of the "one great idea" for success. His life takes a bizarre turn when a prostitute neighbor complains about the loss of her pimp. His partner, upon hearing the situation, suggests that they fill that opening themselves using the morgue at night.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHead Over Heels (2001)
Ordinary single girl Amanda Pierce unexpectedly finds herself sharing an awesome Manhattan apartment with four sexy supermodels. Determined to bring Amanda into their world, the models give her the ultimate makeover. The plan works fabulously as Amanda connects with next door charmer Jim Winston. That is, until one night while spying on him, Amanda thinks she sees the man of her dreams committing a cold blooded crime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisPretty Baby (1978)
In 1917 New Orleans, a 12-year-old girl is raised in a brothel by her prostitute mother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKiller's Kiss (1955)
Davey Gordon, a New York City boxer at the end of his career, falls for dancer Gloria Price. However, their budding relationship is interrupted by Gloria's violent boss, Vincent Rapallo, who has eyes for Gloria. The two decide to skip town, but before they can, Vincent and his thugs abduct Gloria, and Davey is forced to search for her among the most squalid corners of the city, with his enemy hiding in the shadows.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTootsie (1982)
When struggling, out of work actor Michael Dorsey secretly adopts a female alter ego—Dorothy Michaels—in order to land a part in a daytime drama, he unwittingly becomes a feminist icon and ends up in a romantic pickle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisUnfaithful (2002)
A New York suburban couple's marriage goes dangerously awry when the wife indulges in an adulterous fling.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNine 1/2 Weeks (1986)
An erotic story about a woman, the assistant of an art gallery, who gets involved in an impersonal affair with a man. She barely knows about his life, only about the sex games they play, so the relationship begins to get complicated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPassing (2021)
In 1920s New York City, a Black woman finds her world upended when her life becomes intertwined with a former childhood friend who's passing as white.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGood Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022)
Nancy Stokes, a retired schoolteacher, is pretty sure she has never had good sex. Now that her husband has died, she is determined to take a tour of sexual vistas that until now she has only imagined. She even has a plan; it involves an anonymous hotel room, and a sex worker who calls himself Leo Grande.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLolita (1962)
Humbert Humbert is a middle-aged British novelist who is both appalled by and attracted to the vulgarity of American culture. When he comes to stay at the boarding house run by Charlotte Haze, he soon becomes obsessed with Lolita, the woman's teenaged daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Age of Innocence (1993)
In 19th century New York high society, a young lawyer falls in love with a woman separated from her husband, while he is engaged to the woman's cousin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPersonal Services (1987)
Fed up with working hard just to scrape by, Christine Painter comes up with a bold plan to become the madam of a brothel and earn her financial freedom: she opens a house of spanking to fabulous reviews.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNew York Stories (1989)
Three tales of love, ambition, and neurosis unfold in the city that never sleeps. In "Life Lessons" (Martin Scorsese), a tormented painter channels heartbreak into his art. In "Life Without Zoë" (Francis Ford Coppola), a precocious 12-year-old navigates privilege and loneliness in a Manhattan hotel. And in "Oedipus Wrecks" (Woody Allen), a man’s domineering mother literally becomes a looming presence over New York.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this9 Dead Gay Guys (2002)
The story of two lads from Belfast as they stumble their way through the London gay underworld in search of 'gainful employment'. This being the offering of sexual favours to older gay men in order to subsidise their respective giros. 9 Dead Gay Guys is a high-camp send-up of gay stereotypes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisHoodlum (1997)
In 1934, the second most lucrative business in New York City was running 'the numbers'. When Madam Queen—the powerful woman who runs the scam in Harlem—is arrested, Ellsworth 'Bumpy' Johnson takes over the business and must resist an invasion from a merciless mobster.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTwo Moon Junction (1988)
A young Southern débutante temporarily abandons her posh lifestyle and upcoming, semi-arranged marriage to have a lustful and erotic fling with a rugged drifter who works at a local carnival.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMean Streets (1973)
A small-time hood must choose from among love, friendship and the chance to rise within the mob.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
Like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle?
The closest matches to Doin' the Harlem Shuffle are House of Boys (2009), Working Girls (1987) and Walk on the Wild Side (1962). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Doin' the Harlem Shuffle?
Start with House of Boys (2009), the closest match to Doin' the Harlem Shuffle.
What is the highest-rated movie like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle?
Lolita (1962), rated 7.3/10 by 2,343 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle?
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (2022) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Doin' the Harlem Shuffle?
Yes: House of Boys (2009), Working Girls (1987) and Walk on the Wild Side (1962).
How are movies similar to Doin' the Harlem Shuffle chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Doin' the Harlem Shuffle, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.