Best movies like The Substitute
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Lucio, a prestigious university professor, takes the position of substitute teacher at a high school in the suburbs of Buenos Aires, where he grew up. Through tales, novels and poetry, he tries to distract his class from the harsh reality of their everyday lives. But soon, he must step out of his professional duties when Dilan, one of his students, is threatened by a local drug kingpin.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Argentina, Spain, Mexico, Italy, France, Switzerland, UK
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags:
Best tv shows and movies like The Substitute (2022):
Similar in 77%
Fresh Air (2006)
Plot Summary:
A mother with an affection to air-refreshers, a daughter looking down on her mothers job.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 381
Genere: Drama
Country: Hungary
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 87%
All Roads to Pearla (2019)
Plot Summary:
A Texas town awakes when a high school wrestler gets entangled with a drifter and her psychopathic lover. Lives then intertwine and spiral violently out of control once he becomes her escort driver.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 243
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: independent film
Similar in 80%
Tenth of a Second (1987)
Plot Summary:
"Tenth of a Second" is the account of one man's desperate attempt to fight the oppressive apartheid regime of South Africa. This political thriller centres around Michael Wilder (James Whyle), a schoolteacher and political activist, with a failing marriage. Wilder is a member of the "Organisation" which is involved in subversive activities against the state. One day, Raymond (Nicky Rebelo), a fellow member, visits Wilder and leaves him with a suitcase containing a bomb. Wilder is expected to place in a busy shopping centre. But things do not go according to plan and the consequences of his actions result in devastating effects for Wilder and his grip on reality.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 24
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: South Africa
Duration: 77 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 76%
Man on the Train (2002)
Plot Summary:
A man, Milan (played by Johnny Hallyday) steps off a train, into a small French village. As he waits for the day when he will rob the town bank, he runs into an old retired poetry teacher named M. Manesquier (Jean Rochefort). The two men strike up a strange friendship and explore the road not taken, each wanting to live the other's life.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France, UK, Germany, Japan
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: touching, emotional, atmospheric, sincere, humorous, surreal, mind bending, psychedelic, independent film, realistic
Similar in 83%
3 Holes and a Smoking Gun (2014)
Plot Summary:
An ex-Hollywood screenwriter now teaching an evening class in New York finds himself in a battle of wits with a devious screenwriter student.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 159
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: suspense, psychological, unusual plot structure, contemplative, detective, visually appealing, cult film
Similar in 83%
The Deadliest Lesson (2008)
Plot Summary:
A gang of violent teenagers uses detention class to get revenge on the teacher who identified a friend as the gunman in a deadly shooting.
IMDB Rating: 4.1
IMDB Votes: 250
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 86%
Night of the Pencils (1986)
Plot Summary:
The Night of the Pencils was a series of kidnappings and forced disappearances, followed by the torture, rape, and murder of a number of young students during the last Argentine dictatorship (known as the National Reorganization Process). The kidnappings took place over the course of several days beginning on September 16, 1976.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, History, Thriller, War
Country: Argentina
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: political, disturbing, manga, mindfuck
Similar in 89%
They Returned (2015)
Plot Summary:
They Returned is a beautifully touching and unnerving story about the unexplained disappearance of three children, two boys and one girl, and their reappearance three days later in a semi-autistic state. Not even the children themselves are able to help anyone understand what happened.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 291
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Argentina
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: suspense, tense, bleak, captivating
Similar in 90%
Goldfish Club (2011)
Plot Summary:
Irie plays Hiiragi Haru, a third-year high school student with no real interest in women or higher education, instead choosing to live his life idly. When he notices a first-year student named Harukawa Koto being bullied, he lends her a hand, and the two form a “goldfish club” just for themselves. While love begins to bloom between them, the bullying against Koto continues to escalate. --- Tokyograph.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 23
Genere: Drama
Country: Japan
Duration: 29 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 77%
Lesson of the Evil: Prologue (2012)
Plot Summary:
Follows high school teacher Seiji Hasumi's background history and in the process depicts the horror inherent in daily life.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 82
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Japan
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags:
Similar in 82%
Red Bear (2002)
Plot Summary:
Bear has never gotten over the separation from his wife and daughter after having been convicted for armed robbery and homicide and sent to prison. Now he is out, to finally get his cut of the money and reunite with his family, or at least avenge the damage done.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Argentina, Spain, France
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, touching, emotional, realistic, crime drama
Similar in 84%
The Kindergarten Teacher (2018)
Plot Summary:
Lisa Spinelli is a Staten Island teacher who is unusually devoted to her students. When she discovers one of her five-year-olds is a prodigy, she becomes fascinated with the boy, ultimately risking her family and freedom to nurture his talent.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Israel, UK, Canada
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: sentimental, touching, rough, emotional, suspense, erotic, sad, art house, tension, weird
Similar in 90%
Unman, Wittering and Zigo (1971)
Plot Summary:
A new school teacher learns that the previous teacher was killed by his pupils, and he fears the same will happen to him.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 677
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: offbeat, independent film, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 75%
Orphan (2016)
Plot Summary:
A young woman who moves to Paris and has a brush with disaster. The grown-up at last, an accomplished woman, who thought she was safe from her own past. Gradually, these characters come together to form a single heroine.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, suspense, disturbing, non-linear, no music
Similar in 78%
3:15 (1986)
Plot Summary:
Violent crime is routine. Organized drug trade runs rampant in the face of powerless authority. And a vicious street gang holds dominion with a savage reign of terror. Welcome to Lincoln High! Here the cobras rule the school and everyone in it. Everyone except for Jeff Hanna.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 804
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: independent film, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, fast, suspense
Similar in 89%
Koblic (2016)
Plot Summary:
Tomás Kóblic, a former pilot and captain of the Argentinian Navy, disobeys an order and becomes a fugitive in order to survive. He chooses to hide in a small town in the south of the country, where his presence will catch the attention of the unscrupulous and violent local marshal.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Argentina, Spain
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: suspense, captivating, disturbing, social, mindfuck, exciting
Similar in 90%
A Sort of Family (2017)
Plot Summary:
What limits does Malena cross to get what she wants most? Malena is a 38 year old middle class doctor from Buenos Aires. One afternoon she receives the call from Doctor Costas, who informs her that she must travel immediately to the north of the country: the baby she was waiting for is about to be born. Unexpectedly Malena decides to embark on an uncertain journey, full of crossroads, facing all kinds of legal and moral obstacles that will make her constantly wondering how far she is ready to go.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 762
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Argentina, Brazil, France, Poland, Germany, Denmark
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: road movie, captivating, suspenseful, disturbing, compassionate, art house, complex
Similar in 89%
Everybody Has a Plan (2012)
Plot Summary:
Following the death of his identical twin brother Pedro, Agustín sets out to begin his life anew by assuming Pedro’s identity and returning to the mysterious Tigre Delta region where the brothers had spent their childhood. Soon after his homecoming, however, Agustín finds himself unwittingly embroiled in the deadly criminal underworld that his brother had been part of.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Argentina, Spain, Germany, USA
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, captivating, suspense, crime drama, realistic, gloomy
Similar in 77%
Like Father Like Son (2005)
Plot Summary:
Life for Dee Stanton is improving at every turn. Her legal career is blossoming and her boyfriend Dominic unexpectedly proposes to her. Things were very different 11 years ago when her husband Paul was jailed for the brutal murders of four girls and Dee was hounded from her home. Dee has kept all this a secret from her 15-year-old son Jamie. Now he has discovered the truth about his father and demands to see him.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 374
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 137 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, serious, suspenseful, captivating, detective, realistic
Similar in 90%
Before the Storm (2000)
Plot Summary:
Leo, a guy in the seventh grade gets harassed by a two years older boy in school and seeks revenge. At the same time, Ali, the father of a girl in Leo's class (who Leo has a crush on) is contacted by a opposition group from his home country that wants Ali to assassinate an important man for them. Otherwise, they'll kill the family that Ali left when moving to Sweden.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Sweden
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: independent film, suspense, exciting, tense, captivating, cult classic, crying, detective, surprise ending, cult film
Similar in 84%
The Invisible Eye (2010)
Plot Summary:
Spying on her students, a teacher finds an exciting hobby.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 841
Genere: Drama
Country: Argentina, France, Spain
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: realistic, tense, serious, psychological, captivating, sincere, bleak, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 81%
Home Room (2002)
Plot Summary:
A high school shooting has repercussions on the town and students.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 133 min
Plot tags: touching, serious, emotional, gothic, intense, cerebral, independent film, realistic, contemplative, psychological
Similar in 90%
The Principal (1987)
Plot Summary:
Burglary. Drugs. Assault. Rape. The students at Brandel High are more than new Principal Rick Latimer bargained for. Gangs fight to control the school using knives - even guns - when they have to. When Latimer and the head of security try to clean up the school and stop the narcotics trade, they run up against a teenage mafia. A violent confrontation on the campus leads to a deadly showdown with the drug dealer's gang, and one last chance for Latimer to save his career... and his life.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: feel good, hood, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, exciting, inspirational, sexy, unusual plot structure
Similar in 79%
Death of a Cheerleader (2019)
Plot Summary:
A remake of the cult classic, inspired by Randall Sullivan’s Rolling Stone article of the same name about the real life murder of a popular, affluent and beautiful Northern California high school cheerleader at the hands of a classmate.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 536
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Canada, UK
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: tense, captivating, suspense, disturbing
Similar in 77%
A Teacher's Obsession (2015)
Plot Summary:
A high-school English teacher becomes dangerously obsessed with a star athlete who needs academic help.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 396
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 83 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, captivating, suspense
Similar in 82%
Bang Bang You're Dead (2002)
Plot Summary:
Trevor is a troubled high school student, thanks to the effects of bullying. This is the story of his fight to break free.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: realistic, harsh, suspenseful, sincere, teen, psychological, philosophical, depressing, political, sad
Similar in 80%
The Preppie Connection (2015)
Plot Summary:
A student at a private school uses his connections to establish a drug trafficking network.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: Puerto Rico, USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: tense, captivating, psychological, suspense
Similar in 81%
Detention: The Siege at Johnson High (1997)
Plot Summary:
A former high school student, Jason Copeland, returns to his school to take his revenge on the teachers for failing him out of school.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 629
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 82%
Elephant (2003)
Plot Summary:
Several ordinary high school students go through their daily routine as two others prepare for something more malevolent. The film chronicles the events surrounding a school shooting.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 96000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: disturbing, bleak, psychological, realistic, controversial, non-linear, independent film, teen, meditative, enigmatic
Similar in 77%
The Wrath of God (2022)
Plot Summary:
Convinced the tragic deaths of her loved ones were orchestrated by a famous novelist she worked for, Luciana turns to a journalist to expose her truth.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Argentina
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: disturbing, tense, enigmatic, captivating, psychological thriller