Best movies like M. Butterfly
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
In 1960s China, French diplomat Rene Gallimard falls in love with an opera singer, Song Liling - but Song is not at all who Gallimard thinks.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: erotic, neo noir, mysterious, independent film, metafiction, cult classic, serious, realistic, psychological, romantic
Best tv shows and movies like M. Butterfly (1993):
Similar in 80%
Sun Kissed (2006)
Plot Summary:
Teddy, a young writer, ventures to an isolated desert house to complete his first novel, where he meets and seduces the mysterious caretaker, Leo. Layers of memory and hallucination unfold that intertwine the two men.
IMDB Rating: 4.2
IMDB Votes: 479
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: psychological, atmospheric, realistic, surreal, sexy, serious, sexual, experimental, queer cinema
Similar in 86%
Bishonen (1998)
Plot Summary:
Stephen Fung and Daniel Wu play a male prostitute and policeman who fall in love with tragic consequences. Partly inspired by a notorious real-life scandal in which porn photos of Hong Kong policemen - in (and out of) uniform - were found in the home of a wealthy member of the city's elite society.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: erotic, atmospheric, serious, realistic, contemplative, gloomy, sexual, sexy, gay cinema, queer cinema
Similar in 80%
Swann in Love (1984)
Plot Summary:
Swann (Jeremy Irons), an eligible bachelor in the best circles of fin-de-siècle Paris, has also some more vulgar but rich friends, the Verdurins. Through them he meets Odette (Ornella Muti), a courtesan, with whom he falls hopelessly in love. She seems to enjoy his company, for which he pays, but considers herself free to socialise and sleep where she pleases, particularly with a rival called de Forcheville. Swann’s passion turns to consuming jealousy, which leads him eventually to accept the social stigma of marrying her. One old friend, the overtly gay Charlus (Alain Delon), stays sympathetic.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: France, West Germany
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, contemplative, gloomy, sexual, neurotic, sexy, period drama
Similar in 89%
Blood and Sand (1989)
Plot Summary:
Remake of the tale of an acclaimed matador who finds himself involved with a beautiful woman, jeopardizing both his marriage and career.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Spain, USA
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: erotic, sentimental, atmospheric, serious, realistic, sexual, sexy, hot
Similar in 90%
Hollywood, je t'aime (2009)
Plot Summary:
Recently broken up and barely enduring a dreary winter, gay Parisian Jérôme Beaunez impulsively books a solo Christmas vacation to Los Angeles. While there he meets some colorful locals and pursues a dormant desire to become a movie star - but never can quite put the past behind him. In this meditation on love and narcissism across continents, Jérôme goes far in the sun-drenched City of Angels but ultimately arrives at an old Hollywood maxim: there's no place like home. Written by anonymous.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 468
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, realistic, semi serious, sexy, offbeat, sexual, queer cinema
Similar in 81%
Just Say Love (2009)
Plot Summary:
Physical attractions appear to be the obvious explanation for two people to become a pair. But are they really the reflection of something sublime, everlasting or dare we say, spiritual? Do relationships start in the bedroom or in the heart? In this male love story, the bliss described by Joseph Campbell and sages throughout the millennia is a practical option for finding happiness. As the camera delves into the character’s minds and actions we find fulfillment on both a physical and spiritual level.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 579
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 75 min
Plot tags: touching, contemplative, serious, realistic, crying, double entendre, queer cinema
Similar in 89%
Between Love & Goodbye (2008)
Plot Summary:
A modern gay drama about falling in and out of love, and the rocky road in between.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Music, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, sexy, independent film, sincere, sexual, queer cinema
Similar in 90%
Second Skin (1999)
Plot Summary:
Diego is a doctor who has fallen in love with a married man with a son. Against the advice of his boss and best friend, he continues his affair with Alberto. The consequences of this affair profoundly alter not only the two men's lives, but also that of Alberto's wife.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Spain
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, sentimental, psychological, erotic, eros, gloomy, homoerotic, gay cinema, queer cinema
Similar in 76%
Torch Song Trilogy (1988)
Plot Summary:
A very personal story that is both funny and poignant, TORCH SONG TRILOGY chronicles a New Yorker's search for love, respect and tradition in a world that seems not especially made for him.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: independent film, sentimental, touching, humorous, talky, sad, thinking, cult classic, clever, realistic
Similar in 85%
Soldier's Girl (2003)
Plot Summary:
The true story of Soldier’s Girl, which takes place in Fort Campbell, KY, tells the heart-wrenching story of the life and tragic death of soldier Barry Winchell. His love for Calpernia Addams, a beautiful transgendered nightclub performer was misunderstood by fellow soldiers and eventually leads to his brutal death.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Biography, Crime, Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: sincere, emotional, realistic, erotic, motivational, depressing, heartbreaking, sad, dramatic, multicultural
Similar in 86%
The French Lieutenant's Woman (1981)
Plot Summary:
In this story-within-a-story, Anna is an actress starring opposite Mike in a period piece about the forbidden love between their respective characters, Sarah and Charles. Both actors are involved in serious relationships, but the passionate nature of the script leads to an off-camera love affair as well. While attempting to maintain their composure and professionalism, Anna and Mike struggle to come to terms with their infidelity.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: UK
Duration: 124 min
Plot tags: romantic, emotional, costume drama, scenic, stylized, atmospheric, clever, postmodern, erotic, retro
Similar in 82%
Eros (2004)
Plot Summary:
A three-part anthology film about love and sexuality: a menage-a-trois between a couple and a young woman on the coast of Tuscany; an advertising executive under enormous pressure at work, who, during visits to his psychiatrist, is pulled to delve into the possible reasons why his stress seems to manifest itself in a recurring erotic dream; and a story of unrequited love about a beautiful, 1960s high-end call girl in an impossible affair with her young tailor.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: UK, France, Italy, Hong Kong, Luxembourg, USA
Duration: 104 min
Plot tags: sexy, erotic, anthology, atmospheric, stylized, sexual, poetic, erotic drama, realistic, serious
Similar in 79%
Inescapable (2003)
Plot Summary:
Jessie and Susan, and Chloe and Beth, who spend the weekend together and realize they are with the wrong partner. Susan and Beth were college roommates who are having a reunion at their former school. Susan travels up to Oregon with her current partner Jessie. Jessie is jealous of Susan's relationship with Beth. However, when Jessie meets Beth's partner Chloe, she is overwhelmed by her instant attraction to her. For Chloe, the feeling is mutual. It's a drama that doesn't take itself too seriously. When Jesse and Chloe are left alone together, their physical attraction overwhelms their better judgment and makes for some entertaining viewing.
IMDB Rating: 4.1
IMDB Votes: 382
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: sexy, serious, erotic, realistic, sexual, crying
Similar in 81%
Chinese Box (1997)
Plot Summary:
The story of Hong Kong, from New Year's Day to June 30th, 1997, when the British left their colony and turned it over to the People's Republic of China.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: France, Japan, USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, independent film, sentimental, serious, realistic, contemplative, gloomy, philosophical, sexy, thought provoking
Similar in 86%
Different for Girls (1996)
Plot Summary:
Karl Foyle and Paul Prentice were best mates at school in the Seventies. But when they meet again in present-day London things are definitely not the same. Karl is now Kim, a transsexual, and she has no desire to stir up the past while she's busy forging a neat and orderly new life. Prentice, on the other hand, has charm but is a social disaster stuck in a dead-end job. His main talent is for getting them both into trouble. Amid the squabbles, they start to fall in love. One night, Kim invites Prentice to a romantic dinner at her flat. Prentice, finding the seduction unexpectedly effective, freaks out. He proceeds to make a public display of both of them and winds up in court. Humiliated and angry, Kim runs away. Only she can save Prentice now, but will true love triumph for a new made woman and an aging punk?.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: UK, France
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: sexy, touching, sentimental, clever, humorous, realistic, semi serious, independent film, romantic, thought provoking
Similar in 87%
Running on Empty Dreams (2009)
Plot Summary:
Young and athletic Sydney Harris finds out that she has six months to live unless she and her husband can come up with the money for her medical treatment. Sounds simple enough; get the money, save her life. But her underpaid, working class husband can't afford the treatment. And time is ticking away. As Sydney begins to seek out a means to save her life, she begins to question her existence and does some soul searching, only to find herself falling in love with a single mom in the neighborhood that Sydney and her family have just moved into. Sydney is then forced to choose between her religious upbringing, her husband and son, and a love that she hides, all while fighting a losing battle to save her own life.
IMDB Rating: 4.4
IMDB Votes: 816
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing, erotic, independent film
Similar in 78%
Claire of the Moon (1992)
Plot Summary:
Claire of the Moon is set in the 1990s in the Pacific Northwest. Claire Jabrowski, a famous heterosexual author, decides to attend a retreat for all-female writers. Claire's rommate at the retreat is Dr. Noel Benedict, author of a book called The Naked Truth. The movie culminates in a sexual encounter between the two authors.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: sexual, independent film, erotic, serious, realistic, contemplative, talky, sexy, queer cinema
Similar in 86%
The Affair (1995)
Plot Summary:
A black soldier in World War II England begins an affair with a white woman whose husband is a soldier currently overseas in battle and in doubts of her relationship with him as she discovered he had been having an affair with his secretary.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 436
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: erotic, sex comedy, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 82%
One Night Stand (1997)
Plot Summary:
In Los Angeles, Max Carlyle makes a good living directing commercials and has a happy home life with his wife, Mimi, and two children. When Carlyle travels to New York City to visit his friend Charlie, who has been diagnosed with AIDS, he has repeat run-ins with a beautiful woman, Karen, and eventually sleeps with her. Though he goes home the next day and doesn't return until a year later, Carlyle's infidelity still lingers.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: sexy, melancholic, light, intense, touching, serious, realistic, erotic, clever, romantic
Similar in 76%
Anatomy of a Love Seen (2014)
Plot Summary:
From Writer/Director Marina Rice Bader (Executive Producer Elena Undone, A Perfect Ending) comes this film within a film that explores love in all its painful and messy glory. Six months ago Zoe and Mal fell for each other while filming a love scene, which led to an intense, whirlwind affair, followed by a devastating breakup. Soon after their split, things get complicated when the two have to meet on set once more to re-shoot that fateful sequence.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: serious, touching, captivating, erotic, sexy, independent film, deep, humorous, realistic, sincere
Similar in 76%
Open (2010)
Plot Summary:
OPEN is a hallucinogenic journey through gender, identity, the body, love and how those can be shared by two people. The film consists of interlocking stories lines- the first about two transwomen in a pandrogynous relationship in which they simultaneously receive plastic surgery treatments to mirror each other's features to ideally form into a single person. The second story follows a transman and his new (cisgender) boyfriend as they run away from home and push against their own personal boundaries while dealing with his unexpected pregnancy.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 138
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, serious, realistic, psychological, captivating, sincere, atmospheric, touching, independent film, queer cinema
Similar in 84%
Something Must Break (2014)
Plot Summary:
When Sebastian meets Andreas for the first time, he knows they belong together. While Sebastian defies gender norms — flouting convention in his androgynous fluidity — straight-identifying Andreas becomes unable to accept his attraction to another man, as their relationship progresses. Struggling with his identity, Sebastian becomes increasingly determined to become “Ellie,” even if it means walking away from Andreas. Something Must Break brims with raw electricity as it explores questions of gender and sexuality with refreshing candor.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Sweden
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, realistic, avant garde, depressing, bleak, queer cinema
Similar in 87%
Laurence Anyways (2012)
Plot Summary:
The story of an impossible love between a woman named Fred and a transgender woman named Laurence who reveals her inner desire to become her true self: a woman.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Canada, France
Duration: 168 min
Plot tags: aesthetic, sincere, emotional, romantic, social, uplifting, sentimental, inspirational, lgbt cinema, melancholic
Similar in 89%
Brokeback Mountain (2005)
Plot Summary:
Two modern-day cowboys meet on a shepherding job in the summer of '63, the two share a raw and powerful summer together that turns into a lifelong relationship conflicting with the lives they are supposed to live.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 376000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 134 min
Plot tags: emotional, touching, sexy, sad, melancholic, crying, sexual, neo western, controversial, heartbreaking
Similar in 80%
Lolita (1997)
Plot Summary:
Urbane professor Humbert Humbert marries a New England widow to be near her nymphet daughter.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 65000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: France, USA
Duration: 137 min
Plot tags: erotic, psychological, sexual, sexy, melancholic, disturbing, cynical, sensual, romantic, intellectual
Similar in 82%
Damage (1992)
Plot Summary:
The life of a respected British politician at the height of his career crumbles when he becomes obsessed with his son's lover.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: UK, France
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: sexy, sexual, erotic, melancholic, psychological, sensual, emotional, realistic, non-linear, romantic
Similar in 86%
Summer Lover (2008)
Plot Summary:
On honeymoon on the island of Lesbos, a woman falls for the daughter of a Russian archaeologist.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: Ukraine
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: erotic, realistic, melancholic, suspenseful, sexy, sexual, serious
Similar in 86%
If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000)
Plot Summary:
The stories of three lesbian couples -- who live in the same house at different periods of time -- who are at a crossroads in their lives. In 1961, Edith loses her lover, Abby, to a stroke. Linda and Amy struggle with feminist issues in 1972. And, in 2000, Kal and Fran try to have a baby with the help of sperm donor.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: captivating, sexual, psychological, disturbing, erotic, lgbt cinema, multicultural, sensual, sentimental, sincere
Similar in 89%
Elena Undone (2010)
Plot Summary:
The wife of a pastor who preaches against homosexuality embarks on an affair with a female writer.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: captivating, realistic, touching, sexual, sexy, erotic, romantic drama, steamy, independent film, serious
Similar in 85%
Desert Hearts (1985)
Plot Summary:
The story of straight-edge literature professor Vivian who travels to Reno to get away from a relationship breakup when she falls in love with an attractive and unconventional girl named Cay.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: sexy, touching, sentimental, realistic, sincere, captivating, erotic, independent film, lgbt cinema, romantic drama