Movies like Gieselmann (2021)
The best movies like Gieselmann (2021) are May December (2023), Mommie Dearest (1981) and Bombshell (2019). If Gieselmann hooked you with its drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedTo Kill a Mockingbird (1962)8.0/10 from 3,009 votes
- NewestMadame Favre's (2026)Released 2026
- In German3096 Days (2013)Also in German
May December (2023)
Twenty years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation, a married couple buckles under the pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film about their past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMommie Dearest (1981)
Renowned film star Joan Crawford's abuse towards Christina, her adopted daughter, intensifies as her professional and romantic relationships turn sour.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBombshell (2019)
Bombshell is a revealing look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time; and the explosive story of the women who brought down the infamous man who created it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBird (2024)
12-year-old Bailey lives with her single dad Bug and brother Hunter in a squat in North Kent. Bug doesn’t have much time for his kids, and Bailey, who is approaching puberty, seeks attention and adventure elsewhere.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Fabelmans (2022)
Growing up in post-World War II era Arizona, young Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker as he reaches adolescence, but soon discovers a shattering family secret and explores how the power of films can help him see the truth.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTest (2018)
Kurt Longson tries to avenge his daughters death. To succeed he has to battle with his conscience and morality to realize true love.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this3096 Days (2013)
A young Austrian girl is kidnapped and held in captivity for eight years. Based on the real-life case of Natascha Kampusch.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHard Candy (2006)
Hayley’s a smart, charming teenage girl. Jeff’s a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, an impromptu fashion shoot back at Jeff’s place. Jeff thinks it’s his lucky night. He’s in for a surprise.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisXiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998)
Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWhen We Leave (2010)
Umay is a young woman of Turkish descent, fighting for an independent and self-determined life in Germany against the resistance of her family. Her struggle initiates a dynamic, which results in a life-threatening situation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMoonrise (1948)
Stigmatized from infancy by the fate of his criminal father, a man is bruised and bullied until one night, in a fit of rage, he kills his most persistent tormentor. As the police close in around him, he makes a desperate bid for the love of the dead man’s girlfriend, a schoolteacher who sees the wounded soul behind his aggression.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSomebody Up There Likes Me (1956)
The story of boxer Rocky Graziano's rise from juvenile delinquent to world champ.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTo Kill a Mockingbird (1962)
Scout Finch, 6, and her older brother Jem live in sleepy Maycomb, Alabama, spending much of their time with their friend Dill and spying on their reclusive and mysterious neighbor, Boo Radley. When Atticus, their widowed father and a respected lawyer, defends a black man named Tom Robinson against fabricated rape charges, the trial and tangent events expose the children to evils of racism and stereotyping.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisOne Hour Photo (2002)
Sy Parrish has lovingly developed photographs for the Yorkin family since their son was a baby. But as the Yorkins' lives become fuller, Sy's only seems lonelier, until he eventually convinces himself he's part of their family. When Sy's picture-perfect fantasy collides with an ugly dose of reality, a bizarre and thrilling confrontation ensues.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBoyhood (2014)
The film tells a story of a divorced couple trying to raise their young son. The story follows the boy for twelve years, from first grade at age 6 through 12th grade at age 17-18, and examines his relationship with his parents as he grows.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Ted Kramer is a career man for whom his work comes before his family. His wife Joanna cannot take this anymore, so she decides to leave him. Ted is now faced with the tasks of housekeeping and taking care of himself and their young son Billy.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisShort Term 12 (2013)
Grace, a compassionate young supervisor at a foster care facility, helps at-risk teens. But when a new charge dredges up memories of her own troubled past, Grace's tough exterior begins eroding.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)
Three childhood friends, Martha, Walter and Sam, share a terrible secret. Over time, the ambitious Martha and the pusillanimous Walter have married. She is a cold businesswoman; he is the district attorney: a perfect combination to dominate the corrupt city of Iverstown at will. But the unexpected return of Sam, after years of absence, deeply disturbs the life of the odd couple.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDead Man's Shoes (2004)
A soldier returns to his small town and exacts a deadly revenge on the thugs who tormented his disabled brother while he was away.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNocturnal Animals (2016)
Susan Morrow receives a book manuscript from her ex-husband – a man she left 20 years earlier – asking for her opinion of his writing. As she reads, she is drawn into the fictional life of Tony Hastings, a mathematics professor whose family vacation turns violent.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Banger Sisters (2002)
In the late '60s, the self-proclaimed belles of the rock 'n' roll ball, rocked the worlds of every music legend whose pants they could take off -- and they have the pictures to prove it. But it's been more than two decades since the Banger Sisters earned their nickname -- or even laid eyes on each other. Their reunion is the collision of two women's worlds; one who's living in the past, and one who's hiding from it. Together they learn to live in the moment.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisDying Young (1991)
After she discovers that her boyfriend has betrayed her, Hilary O'Neil is looking for a new start and a new job. She begins to work as a private nurse for a young man suffering from blood cancer. Slowly, they fall in love, but they always know their love cannot last because he is destined to die.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisMadame Favre's (2026)
In a nursing home, a young man visits his grandmother. As she constantly repeats that she wants to go home, his grandson visits her now empty apartment, seeking to capture memories of a fading past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Posso Perder Os Beijos Mais Tristes Esta Noite (2026)
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Unforgettable (2024)
On Christmas Eve, a burglar is tasked with stealing a necklace from an old lady. Nothing is going to go as planned…
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Rewind (2017)
A mysterious natural phenomenon sets an end to the party night of a group of young adults. The morning after begins with far more than just a hangover.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Track (1970)
A successful doctor comes into conflict with his friends and family and is slowly driven towards suicide.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Wedding Banquet (1993)
A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisHager (2020)
After his colleague Schweitzer goes missing during a drug raid, undercover cop Till Hager is tasked with tracking down a mysterious new drug called "Abaddon" - a substance which supposedly drags it's users down the deepest depths of hell.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Involuntary (2008)
In several unrelated stories, the consequences of putting one's foot down – or failing to do so – are explored.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Gieselmann?
The closest matches to Gieselmann are May December (2023), Mommie Dearest (1981) and Bombshell (2019). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Gieselmann?
Start with May December (2023), the closest match to Gieselmann.
What is the highest-rated movie like Gieselmann?
To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), rated 8.0/10 by 3,009 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Gieselmann?
Madame Favre's (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there German movies like Gieselmann?
Yes: 3096 Days (2013), When We Leave (2010) and Rewind (2017).
How are movies similar to Gieselmann chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Gieselmann, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.