Best movies like The Music Man
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Ali is son of a well-off family who plays the santoor (an Iranian instrument) and has earned some reputation through his concerts and teaching music but is rejected by his family because of this profession, which they despise. He falls for one of his music students but after a short blissful period, life doesn't treat him as well as before and also his addiction agonizes him in his numbered days before redemption.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Drama, Musical, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: realistic, psychological, atmospheric, captivating, islamic, serious, gloomy, interesting
Best tv shows and movies like The Music Man (2007):
Similar in 77%
Mum's Guest (2004)
Plot Summary:
A mother of a poor family, has guests coming over, yet doesn't know how to get the dinner party altogether with limited resources.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: islamic, black comedy, dark comedy
Similar in 81%
Mother (1990)
Plot Summary:
The film progresses along two distinct but interwoven series of events. The first series involves young members of a family who have gathered round their old mother and revive their common childhood memories. the second line focuses on the old woman's preparations for her last journey and her joyous cooperation in arranging for the ceremonies that are to be observed after her death.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: spiritual, islamic, interesting
Similar in 89%
M for Mother (2006)
Plot Summary:
What appears to be a grand love story turns sour when parents-to-be discover that their unborn child will likely be born with serious birth defects, as a result of the mother's exposure to chemical weapons during the Iran-Iraq war. The father does not want to have a disabled child, but the mother insists on going through with the pregnancy.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: sincere, captivating, sad, islamic, entertaining
Similar in 84%
The Glass Agency (1998)
Plot Summary:
The Glass Agency is the story of a war veteran living in post war Iran. It depicts veterans who are suffering from social problems after the war. Society does not understand them and the standard social norms are not in harmony with their personalities.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Action, Drama, Romance, Thriller, War
Country: Iran
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: islamic, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 86%
Leila (1997)
Plot Summary:
This film tells the story of a semi modern Iranian couple, who are trying to fight the old beliefs & old generation. This is a failing battle because the man is not strong enough.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, Family, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, islamic, tense, serious, emotional, realistic, biting, crying, suspense
Similar in 81%
Border Caf? (2005)
Plot Summary:
A young widow takes over her late husband’s truck stop café, keeping hidden in the kitchen so as not to cause a scandal in Iran’s conservative society. But her brother-in-law, out of familial obligation, wants to take her as a wife and also take over the café. Meanwhile a Greek trucker who is a frequent café customer is slowly entranced — at first by her sublime cooking ability, and then by her.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Iran, France
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: realistic, semi serious, captivating, islamic
Similar in 81%
Melbourne (2014)
Plot Summary:
Amir and Sara are a young couple on their way to Melbourne to continue their studies. However, just a few hours before the departure of their flight, they are unintentionally involved in a tragic event.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, psychological, emotional, sincere
Similar in 85%
Satin Rouge (2002)
Plot Summary:
After the death of her husband, Lilia's life revolves solely around her teenage daughter, Salma. Whilst looking for Salma late one night, Lilia stumbles upon a belly dance cabaret and though initially reserved and taken aback by the culture of the place, Lilia gets consistently drawn back to it. She befriends one of the belly dancers and is encouraged into dancing for the audience. Lilia also starts a romance with one of the cabaret's musicians, who unbeknown to both of them, is also romancing Salma.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 878
Genere: Drama, Musical, Romance
Country: Tunisia, France
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic, islamic
Similar in 84%
The Last Supper (2002)
Plot Summary:
Mrs. Mashreghi, who is a prominent university professor, is divorced from her husband. She leads a happy life for a while until one her students who is almost the same age of her daughter falls in love with her; a love which is completely rejected by society.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 882
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, touching, captivating, sexual, sexy
Similar in 84%
The Pear Tree (1998)
Plot Summary:
A man contemplates life and compares it to a pear tree in his yard which stops producing fruit.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: spiritual, islamic, atmospheric, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 90%
Beautiful City (2004)
Plot Summary:
Akbar has just turned eighteen. He has been held in a rehabilitation centre for committing murder at the age of sixteen when he was condemned to death. Legally speaking, he had to reach the age of eighteen so that the conviction could be carried out. Now, Akbar is transferred to prison to await the day of his execution. A'la, a friend of Akbar, who himself has undergone imprisonment for burglary, soon after his release tries desperately to gain the consent of Akbar's plaintiff so as to stop the execution.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: emotional, psychological, thought provoking, serious, realistic, sad, islamic, contemplative
Similar in 79%
The American Standards (2008)
Plot Summary:
At a crossroads in his life, Doc Jennings goes home to celebrate his mother's birthday and uncovers dramatic family secrets. Lies, affairs and afflictions bubble to the surface of his seemingly perfect family. Can they come back together or is it too late?.
IMDB Rating: 4.1
IMDB Votes: 654
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, psychological, captivating
Similar in 90%
Life and a Day (2016)
Plot Summary:
Somaieh, the youngest daughter of an indigent family, is getting married and fear is overwhelming each and every member of the family regarding how to overcome their difficulties after she's gone.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: captivating, suspense, beautiful
Similar in 86%
Two Women (1999)
Plot Summary:
A sensation when released in 1999 in Iran, Two Women charts the lives of two promising architecture students over the course of the first turbulent years of the Islamic Republic. Tahimine Milani creates this scathing portrait of those traditions - aided by official indifference - which conspire to trap women and stop them from realizing their full potential; the inclusion of frank depictions of domestic violence was hailed by many as a breakthrough in dealing with a long taboo subject.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: tense, sentimental, sincere, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 86%
Tales (2014)
Plot Summary:
Award-winning Iranian filmmaker Rakshan Banietemad ends her eight-year hiatus from feature filmmaking with this ingenious, mosaic-like narrative, which knits together the stories of seven characters to create a microcosm of Iranian working-class society.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: realistic, emotional, psychological, captivating, sincere, touching, bleak, serious, gloomy, surprise ending
Similar in 87%
The Cyclist (1989)
Plot Summary:
The wife of Nasim, an Afghan immigrant in Iran, is gravely ill. He needs money to pay for her care, but his day labor digging wells does not pay enough. A friend connects Nasim to a two-bit promoter who sells tickets to watch Nasim ride a bicycle continuously for a week. The promoter brings in sick and aged spectators, haranguing them to find hope in Nasim's strength. Aided by his son, who feeds him as he rides, Nasim grinds out the days and shivering nights. Local officials believe this may be a plot and Nasim may be a spy; they try to sabotage him as do those who bet he won't finish the week. Will desperation alone get Nasim the money? Is any triumph an illusion?.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: islamic, psychological, sincere, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 88%
The Hidden Half (2001)
Plot Summary:
An official is sent from his home in Tehran to hear the final appeal of a woman sentenced to death, a political prisoner. The official's wife of nearly 20 years, Fereshteh Samimi, writes him a letter to read when he reaches the hotel - the story of her student days during the revolution of 1978. We see the story in flashbacks as he reads: she leaves her province on scholarship, joins a Communist youth group, avoids arrest, and comes under the sway of a suave older man, Roozbeh Javid, a literary-magazine editor. As she tells her husband about the hidden half of her life, Fereshteh asks that he listen to the woman facing execution, a woman and therefore one of Iran's hidden half.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 866
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, serious, captivating, islamic, realistic, contemplative, intellectual
Similar in 79%
Fireworks Wednesday (2006)
Plot Summary:
On the day before their holiday trip to Dubai, a wife who believes her husband is unfaithful enlists the help of Roohi, a young woman sent by an agency to clean the house. She asks Roohi to make an appointment and gather information at the salon of the woman she suspects. Roohi is betrothed, innocent of marital discord. Over the course of the day, she, the couple, their small son, the wife's sister and husband, and the beautician engage in a series of exchanges, confrontations, and prevarications. Are the wife's suspicions unwarranted; is her behavior imperiling her marriage? Acts of kindness may go awry. And the trip to Dubai?.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Romance, Thriller
Country: Iran
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: sincere, touching, serious, realistic, suspense, social, art house, islamic, clever, contemplative
Similar in 83%
The Cow (1969)
Plot Summary:
An old villager deeply in love with his cow goes to the capital for a while. While he's there, the cow dies and now the villagers are afraid of his possible reaction to it when he returns.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: depressing, art house, islamic, psychological, atmospheric, touching, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 84%
Hamoun (1990)
Plot Summary:
Hamoon's wife is leaving him. He is also unsuccessfully trying to finish his Ph.D. thesis. He is forced to reexamine his life. In a series of flashbacks and dreams, Hamoon tries to figure out what he did wrong.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: existential, spiritual, islamic, cult classic, psychological, sentimental, sincere, serious, realistic, contemplative
Similar in 76%
About Elly (2009)
Plot Summary:
The mysterious disappearance of a kindergarten teacher during a picnic in the north of Iran is followed by a series of misadventures for her fellow travelers.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 56000
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: Iran, France
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, atmospheric, captivating, realistic, depressing, suspense, existential, inspirational, philosophical
Similar in 78%
Mainline (2006)
Plot Summary:
The uneasy relationship between a mother and daughter is made all the more turbulent by drug abuse in this downbeat drama from Iranian filmmakers Rakhshan Bani-Etemad and Mohsen Abdolvahab.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 889
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 77 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 85%
Sunday (1997)
Plot Summary:
This film concerns two mysterious characters who meet on a Sunday in Queens. Madeleine the most unsettling creature of that name since "Vertigo" is a middle-aged, moderately successful actress. Oliver/Matthew is either a homeless man or a famous film director or both. Madeleine hails him on the street as the latter, launching a bizarre chain of events that includes a conversation in a diner, a very unromantic sexual encounter, the arrival of Madeleine's odd husband and unsuspecting daughter, and a child's birthday party. The film also compassionately tracks the daily rounds of Oliver/Matthew's fellow denizens of the homeless shelter, some of whom will be recognizable to New York audiences.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 696
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, thought provoking, touching, serious, realistic, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 78%
Opium: Diary of a Madwoman (2007)
Plot Summary:
A drug-addicted doctor who works in an asylum discovers that one of his patients is a gifted writer.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Hungary, Germany, USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, realistic, captivating
Similar in 75%
Boutique (2004)
Plot Summary:
A clothing store worker (Jahan) meets a poor girl named Eti. Jahan tries to help the girl and solve her problems, but….
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: touching, sincere, serious, realistic, neo noir, islamic, emotional, gloomy
Similar in 80%
The Willow Tree (2005)
Plot Summary:
Youssef, a blind university professor, is suddenly diagnosed with a fatal disease and must undergo treatment in France. Back home, will he find the life he had before?.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: psychological, realistic, touching, captivating, inspirational, emotional, islamic, thought provoking, serious, beautiful
Similar in 90%
In My Pocket (2011)
Plot Summary:
A harrowing journey down the dark spiral of drug addiction. As Stephen Jameson's carefully constructed life slowly falls apart, his belief system is shattered when he discovers that he's no longer the functioning addict that he once was.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 234
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, psychological, atmospheric, captivating, independent film
Similar in 89%
Cafe Setareh (2006)
Plot Summary:
Filmmaker Saman Moghadam details the struggles of three women living in an antiquated district of Tehran in this emotionally resonant drama. Fabria's husband has been morally corrupted, and now it's up to her to take charge of the small café that proves the only source of income to the couple. Saloomeh is a beautiful young woman who dreams of marrying Ebi, but how will the couple survive on the salary of a simple mechanic? Lastly, middle aged Moluk has fallen for a much younger man, and her heart breaks when she discovers that her love is unrequited.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 899
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Iran
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: psychological, sentimental, sincere, touching, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 79%
Sweet Nothing (1995)
Plot Summary:
Angel celebrates the birth of his daughter by taking his first hit of crack cocaine. With the hesitant support of his wife, Monika, he joins a friend of his to deal drugs for a short time--enough time to get out of debt and buy some nice things for the family. Three years later, Angel is still dealing, and has not saved any money, instead spending it on crack. His addiction grows, straining his friendship and his family life, and he gradually loses control.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 580
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: melancholic, realistic, serious, independent film, crying, bleak, gloomy, weeping, light, road movie
Similar in 89%
Under the Skin of the City (2001)
Plot Summary:
Tuba works daily at a grueling textile factory in Iran, returning home every night to deal with the rest of her problematic family, which includes: a pregnant daughter whose husband beats her regularly; a teenage son, who's been getting into trouble due to his burgeoning career in radical politics; and an older son who goes to great lengths--such as attempting to sell the family's meager house--in order to get an engineering job in Japan as a means of getting out of Iran.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama
Country: Iran
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, emotional, suspenseful, exciting, suspense, islamic, masterpiece