Movies like Shine (1980)
The best movies like Shine (1980) are 2073 (2024), Cold in July (2014) and Border Hunters (2025). If Shine hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedRaya and the Last Dragon (2021)7.8/10 from 7,516 votes
- NewestBorder Hunters (2025)Released 2025
2073 (2024)
Inspired by Chris Marker's iconic 1962 featurette La Jetée; the year is 2073—a not-so-distant dystopian future—and the setting is New San Francisco, the scorched-earth tech-dominant police state where democracy and personal freedom have been well and truly obliterated.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCold in July (2014)
While investigating noises in his house one balmy Texas night in 1989, Richard Dane puts a bullet in the brain of a low-life burglar. Although he’s hailed as a small-town hero, Dane soon finds himself fearing for his family’s safety when Freddy’s ex-con father rolls into town, hell-bent on revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBorder Hunters (2025)
After his police officer brother is killed by a drug dealer who flees to the protection of his cartel-connected uncle in Mexico, an American man with a diverse law enforcement/military background goes south of the border to get revenge
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Running Man (1987)
By 2017, the global economy has collapsed and U.S. society has become a totalitarian police state, censoring all cultural activity. The government pacifies the populace by broadcasting a number of game shows in which convicted criminals fight for their lives, including the gladiator-style The Running Man, hosted by the ruthless Damon Killian, where “runners” attempt to evade “stalkers” and certain death for a chance to be pardoned and set free.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSinister (2012)
True-crime writer Ellison Oswalt is in a slump; he hasn't had a best seller in more than 10 years and is becoming increasingly desperate for a hit. So, when he discovers the existence of a snuff film showing the deaths of a family, he vows to solve the mystery. He moves his own family into the victims' home and gets to work. However, when old film footage and other clues hint at the presence of a supernatural force, Ellison learns that living in the house may be fatal.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe House of the Spirits (1993)
A rancher, his clairvoyant wife and their family face turbulent years in South America.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Vagrant (1992)
A business man buys a house, but he has a hard time trying to get rid of its previous tenant, a dirty bum.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisMiller's Girl (2024)
A talented young writer embarks on a creative odyssey when her teacher assigns a project that entangles them both.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMarvel Studios: Assembling a Universe (2014)
A look at the story behind Marvel Studios and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, featuring interviews and behind-the-scenes footage from all of the Marvel films, the Marvel One-Shots and "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEverything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save what's important to her by connecting with the lives she could have led in other universes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRogue Agent (2022)
Conman Robert Freegard poses as an undercover MI5 agent and kidnaps countless victims amidst a high-stakes manhunt, until the woman who fell for him brings him to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAfterburn (2025)
Set against the backdrop of a postapocalyptic Earth whose Eastern Hemisphere was destroyed by a massive solar flare, leaving what life remains mutated from radiation and fallout. The story revolves around a group of treasure hunters who extract such objects as the Mona Lisa, the Rosetta Stone and the Crown Jewels while facing rival hunters, mutants and pirates.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYu-Gi-Oh! The Movie (2004)
After the conclusion of the Battle City Tournament, deep below the sands of Egypt, an ancient evil has awakened. Anubis, who was defeated centuries ago by Yugi’s mysterious alter ego – the ancient Pharaoh – has returned for revenge. Wielding the power of the Eighth Millennium Item, Anubis is determined to destroy Yugi and take over the world.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this40 Acres (2025)
Hailey Freeman and her family are the last descendants of African American farmers who settled in rural Canada after the Civil War. In a famine-decimated near future, they now struggle to safeguard their farm, as they make one last stand against a vicious militia hell-bent on taking their 40 Acres.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLeave the World Behind (2023)
A family's getaway to a luxurious rental home takes an ominous turn when a cyberattack knocks out their devices—and two strangers appear at their door.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisReady Player One (2018)
When the creator of a popular video game system dies, a virtual contest is created to compete for his fortune.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Red House (1947)
An old man and his sister are concealing a terrible secret from their adopted teen daughter, concerning a hidden abandoned farmhouse, located deep in the woods.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOverdrive (2017)
Master car thieves square off against French gangsters in the South of France with money, women and lives all on the line.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Inhabitant (2022)
Like any other teenage girl, Tara is just surviving high school — yet her father and mother seem strangely distant. Amidst a nearby spree of gruesome ax murders, Tara has sightings of terrifying entities, forcing her to question her own sanity and shocking ancestry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisRaya and the Last Dragon (2021)
Long ago, in the fantasy world of Kumandra, humans and dragons lived together in harmony. But when an evil force threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, that same evil has returned and it’s up to a lone warrior, Raya, to track down the legendary last dragon to restore the fractured land and its divided people.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like this
Like Shine and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Shine?
The closest matches to Shine are 2073 (2024), Cold in July (2014) and Border Hunters (2025). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Shine?
Start with 2073 (2024), the closest match to Shine.
What is the highest-rated movie like Shine?
Raya and the Last Dragon (2021), rated 7.8/10 by 7,516 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Shine?
Border Hunters (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Shine?
Yes: 2073 (2024), Cold in July (2014) and Border Hunters (2025).
How are movies similar to Shine chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Shine, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.