Movies like Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press (2008)
The best movies like Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press (2008) are Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016), Art & Copy (2009) and Citizen Jane: Battle for the City (2017). If Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press hooked you with its documentary, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedI Am Heath Ledger (2017)7.4/10 from 233 votes
- NewestS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)Released 2026
Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016)
Nude men in rubber suits, close-ups of erections, objects shoved in the most intimate of places—these are photographs taken by Robert Mapplethorpe, known by many as the most controversial photographer of the twentieth century. Openly gay, Mapplethorpe took images of male sex, nudity, and fetish to extremes that resulted in his work still being labelled by some as pornography masquerading as art. But less talked about are the more serene, yet striking portraits of flowers, sculptures, and perfectly framed human forms that are equally pioneering and powerful.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisArt & Copy (2009)
The personal odysseys of some of the most influential advertising visionaries of all time and the stories behind their campaigns.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCitizen Jane: Battle for the City (2017)
Writer and urban activist Jane Jacobs fights to save historic New York City during the ruthless redevelopment era of urban planner Robert Moses in the 1960s.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Art Spiegelman: Disaster Is My Muse (2025)
Explores the life and career of cartoonist Art Spiegelman including the creation and ground-breaking impact of his Pulitzer Prize-winning graphic novel MAUS.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
The Booksellers (2020)
What once seemed like an esoteric world now seems essential to our culture: the community of rare book dealers and collectors who, in their love of the delicacy and tactility of books, are helping to keep the printed word alive. D.W. Young’s elegant and entertaining documentary, executive produced by Parker Posey, is a lively tour of New York’s book world, past and present, from the Park Avenue Armory’s annual Antiquarian Book Fair, where original editions can fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars; to the Strand and Argosy book stores, still standing against all odds; to the beautifully crammed apartments of collectors and buyers. The film features a litany of special guests, including Fran Lebowitz, Susan Orlean, Gay Talese, and a community of dedicated book dealers who strongly believe in the wonder of the object and the everlasting importance of what’s inside.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Salinger (2013)
An in-depth investigation into the private world of the American writer J. D. Salinger (1919-2010), who lived most of his life behind the impenetrable wall of a self-imposed seclusion: how his dramatic experiences during World War II influenced his life and work, his relationships with very young women, his obsessive writing methods, his many literary secrets.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLaerte-se (2017)
In this film, Laerte conjugates the body in the feminine, and scrutinizes concepts and prejudices. Not in search of an identity, but in search of un-identities. Laerte creates and sends creatures to face reality in the fictional world of comic strips as a vanguard of the self. And, on the streets, the one who becomes the fiction of a real character. Laerte, of all the bodies, and of none, complicates all binaries. In following Laerte, this documentary chooses to clothe the nudity beyond the skin we inhabit.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOther Music (2019)
A documentary highlighting the 20 year history of influential indie record store Other Music in Manhattan's East Village.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Everything Is Copy (2015)
A candid portrait of writer/director Nora Ephron, directed by her son, journalist Jacob Bernstein.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Orlando, My Political Biography (2023)
Virginia Woolf's 1928 novel "Orlando: A Biography" follows the centuries-spanning life of a young nobleman who awakens to find that they are a woman. Almost a century after its publication, Paul B. Preciado claims that fiction has become reality and Orlando's story lies at the root of all contemporary trans and non-binary life.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Always at The Carlyle (2018)
The iconic Carlyle hotel has been an international destination for a particular jet set as well as a favorite haunt of the most discernible New Yorkers.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists (2018)
Directors Jonathan Alter, John Block and Steve McCarthy bring New York columnists Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill’s courageous writing to life, celebrating the acclaimed journalists and the city they loved.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Breakdown: 1975 (2025)
In 1975, as America faced social and political upheaval, filmmakers turned chaos into art.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks (2021)
This documentary chronicles renaissance man Gordon Parks’ stellar career from staff photographer for LIFE magazine, through his artistic development photographing everyday Americans, through his evolution as a novelist and groundbreaking filmmaker.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Oliver Sacks: His Own Life (2021)
Oliver Sacks: His Own Life explores the life and work of the legendary neurologist and storyteller, as he shares intimate details of his battles with drug addiction, homophobia, and a medical establishment that accepted his work only decades after the fact. Sacks was a fearless explorer of unknown mental worlds who helped redefine our understanding of the brain and mind, the diversity of human experience, and our shared humanity.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
American Anarchist (2016)
The story of one of the most infamous books ever written, "The Anarchist Cookbook," and the role it's played in the life of its author, now 65, who wrote it at 19 in the midst of the counterculture upheaval of the late '60s and early '70s.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin (2017)
The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin celebrates one of the world’s most beloved storytellers, following his evolution from a conservative son of the Old South into a gay rights pioneer whose novels inspired millions to reclaim their lives.
Why it matches: Fans watch both · both documentary
Come 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 thisI Am Heath Ledger (2017)
The life and career of an actor, artist, and icon. His own journey through his own camera.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisS4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026)
Over 35 years after Bob Lazar's revelations, this documentary exposes secrets of a facility the government still denies. Featuring Lazar's testimony, recreations, and new evidence, it reopens a case that continues to spark global curiosity
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisMy Mom Jayne (2025)
Through deeply personal interviews with her siblings and an examination of the photographs, letters, and belongings left behind, Mariska assembles a new portrait of her mother Jayne Mansfield, an extraordinary and complex woman.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies 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 thisEx Libris: The New York Public Library (2017)
A documentary about how a dominant cultural and demographic institution both sustains their traditional activities and adapts to the digital revolution.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSeduced and Abandoned (2013)
SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Decade Under the Influence (2003)
A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of today's best filmmakers interview the influential directors of that time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisTo Kill a Tiger (2023)
Ranjit, a farmer in India, takes on the fight of his life when he demands justice for his 13-year-old daughter, the victim of a brutal gang rape. His decision to support his daughter is virtually unheard of, and his journey unprecedented.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Curious Birth of Benjamin Button (2009)
A documentary about the making of David Fincher's 2008 film THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON. Virtually every element in the evolution of the Fincher's film is documented here, from the project's attachment to numerous other directors during the 1990s, to its shoot in 2006 and 2007 in New Orleans, to its complex, CGI-intensive postproduction process.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCharlie: The Life and Art of Charles Chaplin (2003)
Brilliant, long in-the-works story of the life and art of the world's greatest comedian and the cinema's first genius, Charlie Chaplin. Produced, written and directed by renowned film critic Richard Schickel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSidney (2022)
This revealing documentary honors the legendary Sidney Poitier—iconic actor, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. Featuring interviews with Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Halle Berry, and more.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHarry Dean Stanton: Partly Fiction (2013)
An impressionistic portrait of the iconic actor Harry Dean Stanton comprised of intimate moments, film clips from some of his 250 films and his renditions of American folk songs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both documentary
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press?
The closest matches to Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press are Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016), Art & Copy (2009) and Citizen Jane: Battle for the City (2017). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press?
People who watched Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press most often go on to Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016), Art & Copy (2009) and Citizen Jane: Battle for the City (2017).
What is the highest-rated movie like Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press?
I Am Heath Ledger (2017), rated 7.4/10 by 233 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press?
S4: The Bob Lazar Story (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press?
Yes: Mapplethorpe: Look at the Pictures (2016), Art & Copy (2009) and Citizen Jane: Battle for the City (2017).
How are movies similar to Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Obscene: A Portrait of Barney Rosset and Grove Press, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.