Best tv shows like Manhattan
Last updated March 2024
Looking for tv shows related to Manhattan? Offer your knowledge to steer others to tv shows and films you've already viewed that may also rivet them. Support widening the community of people alluding videos to one another. We appreciate your input!
Plot Summary:
Set against the backdrop of the greatest clandestine race against time in the history of science with the mission to build the world's first atomic bomb in Los Alamos, New Mexico. Flawed scientists and their families attempt to co-exist in a world where secrets and lies infiltrate every aspect of their lives.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 55 min
Plot tags: clever, serious, captivating, realistic, melancholic, historical drama, independent film, period drama
Best tv shows and movies like Manhattan (2014):
Similar in 89%
Mr Selfridge (2013)
Plot Summary:
Mr. Selfridge recounts the real life story of the flamboyant and visionary American founder of Selfridge's, London's lavish department store. Set in 1909 London, when women were reveling in a new sense of freedom and modernity, it follows Harry Gordon Selfridge ('Mile a Minute Harry'), a man with a mission to make shopping as thrilling as sex. Pioneering and reckless, with an almost manic energy, Harry created a theater of retail where any topic or trend that was new, exciting, entertaining - or just eccentric - was showcased.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: stylized, captivating, costume drama, serious, realistic, period piece, dark drama, historical drama, period drama, vintage
Similar in 90%
Pathfinders: In the Company of Strangers (2011)
Plot Summary:
Untold and lost history. A true story of the American Pathfinders, the volunteer paratroopers whose deadly mission was to land 30 minutes before the Normandy invasion, locate and mark strategic "drop zones" and set up the top-secret navigation equipment needed to guide the main airborne assault on D-Day.
IMDB Rating: 3.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Action, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, captivating, suspenseful, epic, serious, independent film
Similar in 84%
Diplomacy (2014)
Plot Summary:
The night of August 24, 1944. The fate of Paris is in the hands of General von Choltitz, governor of Grand Paris, who is preparing, on Hitler’s orders, to blow up the French capital. The descendent of a long line of Prussian military men, the general has never had any hesitation when it came to obeying orders. This is what’s on Swedish consul Raoul Nordling’s mind as he takes the secret staircase that leads to General von Choltitz’s suite at the Hôtel Meurice. The bridges on the Seine and the major monuments of Paris (including the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower) are mined with explosives, ready to be detonated. Armed with all the weapons of diplomacy, the consul will try to convince the general not to follow Hitler’s order of destruction.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: France, Germany
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, captivating, talky, political
Similar in 86%
The Sinking of the Laconia (2010)
Plot Summary:
Two-part drama based on the true story of the Allied ship Laconia, sunk in WWII by a German U-Boat, which then surfaced against orders to rescue the civilian crew.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: UK, Germany
Duration:
Plot tags: touching, serious, suspenseful, realistic, nautical
Similar in 76%
Bomb Girls (2012)
Plot Summary:
Focusing on a group of women working in a munitions plant during World War II, this ensemble drama depicts the dangers and new experiences they face.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Canada
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: captivating, realistic, serious, stylized, historical drama, tense, period piece, costume drama, period drama
Similar in 75%
X Company (2015)
Plot Summary:
An emotionally-driven character drama, set in the thrilling and dangerous world of WWII espionage and covert operations. It follows the stories of five highly skilled young recruits - Canadian, American and British - torn from their ordinary lives to train as agents in an ultra-secret facility on the shores of Lake Ontario. These agents parachute behind enemy lines, where they're fair game for torture and execution. From elegant hotels to hellholes in the field, it's one risky operation after another, masterminded by the brains of Camp X.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Canada
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, exciting, captivating, tense, suspense, dark, educational, historical drama
Similar in 75%
Home Fires (2015)
Plot Summary:
The story of a group of inspirational women in a rural Cheshire community with the shadow of World War II casting a dark cloud over their lives. As the conflict takes hold and separates the women from their husbands, fathers, sons and brothers, the characters find themselves under increasing and extraordinary pressures in a rapidly fragmenting world. By banding together as the Great Paxford Women’s Institute, they help maintain the nation’s fabric in its darkest hour, and discover inner resources that will change their lives forever.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, War
Country: UK
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: captivating, realistic, serious, psychological, historical drama, touching, period piece, costume drama, period drama
Similar in 86%
April 9th (2015)
Plot Summary:
In the early morning of April 9th 1940 the Danish army is alerted. The Germans have crossed the border; Denmark is at war against Europe's strongest army. In Southern Jutland Danish bicycle- and motorcycle companies are ordered out, to against all odds, hold back the forces until the Danish reinforcements can be mobilized. In the fatal hours, we follow second lieutenant Sand and his bicycle company - they will as the first Danish soldiers meet the enemy in combat on April 9th 1940.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Denmark
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, tense, suspense, suspenseful
Similar in 78%
Anzacs (1985)
Plot Summary:
Anzacs was a 1985 5-part Australian miniseries set in World War I. The series follows the lives of a group of young Australian men who enlist in the 8th Battalion of the First Australian Imperial Force in 1914, fighting first at Gallipoli in 1915, and then on the Western Front for the remainder of the war. It follows in the wake of Australian New Wave war films such as Breaker Morant, Gallipoli, and precedes The Lighthorsemen. Recurring themes of these films include the Australian identity, such as mateship and larrikinism, the loss of innocence in war, and also the continued coming of age of the Australian nation and its soldiers.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 839
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Australia
Duration: 165 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic, vintage, period drama
Similar in 86%
The Astronaut Wives Club (2015)
Plot Summary:
Based on the book by Lily Koppel, this 10 episode limited series tells the story of the women who were key players behind some of the biggest events in American history. As America’s astronauts were launched on death-defying missions, Life Magazine documented the astronauts’ families, capturing the behind-the-scenes lives of their young wives. Overnight, these women were transformed from military spouses into American royalty. As their celebrity rose and tragedy began to touch their lives, they rallied together.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, psychological, period drama
Similar in 81%
Pan Am (2011)
Plot Summary:
Pan Am is an American period drama television series created by writer Jack Orman. Named for the iconic Pan American World Airways, the series features the pilots and stewardesses of the airline as it operated in the early 1960s at the beginning of the commercial Jet Age.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 21000
Genere: Drama, History, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 42 min
Plot tags: sentimental, realistic, stylized, serious, romantic, retro, entertaining, anime, costume drama, historical drama
Similar in 85%
The Knick (2014)
Plot Summary:
Set in downtown New York in 1900, 'The Knick' is centered on the Knickerbocker Hospital and the groundbreaking surgeons, nurses and staff who work there, pushing the bounds of medicine in a time of astonishingly high mortality rates and zero antibiotics. John Thackery is a brilliant surgeon pioneering new methods in the field, despite his secret addiction to cocaine. He leads a team of doctors including his protégé Dr. Everett Gallinger; the young Dr. Bertie Chickering Jr. and Dr. Algernon Edwards, a promising surgeon who's been recently thrust upon him. The lively cast of characters at the hospital also includes Cornelia Robertson, the daughter of its benefactor, Captain August Robertson; surly ambulance driver Tom Cleary; Lucy Elkins; a fresh-faced nurse from the country; the crooked hospital administrator Herman Barrow; and Sister Harriet, a nun who isn't afraid to speak her mind.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 52000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 58 min
Plot tags: serious, psychological, bleak, atmospheric, medical drama, rough, costume drama, historical drama, philosophical, gothic
Similar in 84%
TURN: Washington's Spies (2014)
Plot Summary:
The story of New York farmer, Abe Woodhull, who bands together with a group of childhood friends to form The Culper Ring, an unlikely group of spies who turn the tide in America’s fight for independence.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 23000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: period piece, serious, captivating, suspenseful, realistic, historical drama, tension, tense, political, costume drama
Similar in 82%
Sons of Liberty (2015)
Plot Summary:
The story of a group of very different men fighting in the American Colonies for freedom, and how they will shape the future for the United States of America.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 270 min
Plot tags: captivating, historical drama, exciting, serious, realistic, tense, suspenseful, political, period drama
Similar in 90%
Lincoln (1988)
Plot Summary:
After arriving in Washington in 1861 after his election, Abraham Lincoln struggles with personal and political problems during his Presidency. Originally titled "Lincoln", the name of this miniseries was changed to "Gore Vidal's Lincoln" when it was released for home entertainment.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 444
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 188 min
Plot tags: historical drama, clever, serious, captivating, emotional, realistic, talky
Similar in 83%
Halt and Catch Fire (2014)
Plot Summary:
Set in the early 1980s, and about a fictional visionary, an engineer and a prodigy whose innovations confronts the corporate behemoths of the time. Their personal and professional partnership will be challenged by greed and ego while charting the changing culture in Texas' Silicon Prairie.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 35000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: clever, realistic, serious, captivating, melancholic, retro, emotional, dramatic, crying, cerebral
Similar in 81%
Above and Beyond (2006)
Plot Summary:
True Story about the Atlantic Ferry Operation during World War II.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 227
Genere: Drama, War
Country: Canada
Duration: 240 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, emotional, realistic
Similar in 80%
Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis (1991)
Plot Summary:
True story of the sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis, its crew's struggle to survive the sharks and exposure, and the captain's scape-goat court-martial.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 934
Genere: Action, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: bleak, realistic, exciting, serious, captivating, disaster movie
Similar in 86%
Piece of Cake (1988)
Plot Summary:
The lives and loves of the men of RAF Hornet Squadron who are transferred to France at the outbreak of World Wat II in September 1939. For the most part the men are competent fliers but there is little action in the first several months. The men wile away their time with some engaging in dangerous stunts while others woo some of the local lasses. The phony war comes to an end in April 1940 and the Battle of Britain begins. By September that year, few of them are left and despite their success, few see themselves as heroes. (6 episodes).
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 774
Genere: Drama, War
Country: UK
Duration: 312 min
Plot tags: costume drama, exciting, serious, captivating, realistic, period drama
Similar in 85%
World War II: When Lions Roared (1994)
Plot Summary:
Based upon the actual cables between Washington, London and Moscow during the Second World War, this TV-movie examines the relationship between the leaders of these countries throughout the conflict. Franklin D. Roosevelt (John Lithgow), Winston Churchill (Bob Hoskins) and Joseph Stalin (Michael Caine), spring to life as real but imperfect people who nevertheless are great leaders fighting a great war.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 622
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 194 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, clever, serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing, contemplative, talky
Similar in 83%
The Saboteurs (2015)
Plot Summary:
The story about the heavy water war unfolds during the prolouge, eruption and the end of the second world war. We follow the story of the the key personnel in the race of who develops the atomic bomb first.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Norway, Denmark, UK, Czech Republic, Sweden
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: serious, captivating, realistic, suspenseful, tense, period piece
Similar in 77%
Enola Gay: The Men, the Mission, the Atomic Bomb (1980)
Plot Summary:
Well-intentioned history lesson; the decision to drop the atom bomb, the secrecy surrounding the mission, and the men who flew it.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 317
Genere: Adventure, Drama, History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 156 min
Plot tags: rough, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic
Similar in 87%
The Color of War (2001)
Plot Summary:
A series featuring actual color footage of World War II.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 156
Genere: History, War
Country: USA
Duration: 780 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, serious, disturbing, realistic, bleak, contemplative
Similar in 78%
Fat Man and Little Boy (1989)
Plot Summary:
This film reenacts the Manhattan Project, the secret wartime project in New Mexico where the first atomic bombs were designed and built.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: USA, Mexico
Duration: 127 min
Plot tags: factual, suspense, intense, serious, realistic, anamorphic, independent film, sincere, thought provoking, captivating
Similar in 90%
Strange Angel (2018)
Plot Summary:
The story of the mysterious and brilliant Jack Parsons in 1940s Los Angeles as by day he helps birth the discipline of American rocketry and by night is a performer of sex magick rituals and a disciple to occultist Aleister Crowley.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: tense, enigmatic, captivating, realistic, erotic, spiritual, anthology, period drama
Similar in 75%
Castles in the Sky (2014)
Plot Summary:
It is the mid-1930s and the storm clouds of WWII were forming in Germany. This films charts the work of Robert Watson Watt - the pioneer of Radar - and his hand-picked team of eccentric yet brilliant meteorologists as they struggle to turn the concept of Radar into a workable reality. Hamstrung by a tiny budget, seemingly insurmountable technical problems and even a spy in the camp, Watson Watt also has to deal with marital problems as he chases his dream. By 1939, Watson Watt and his team have developed the world's first Radar system along the south east coast of England. A system that, in 1940, proved pivotal in winning the Battle of Britain.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: clever, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative, stylized
Similar in 87%
Band of Brothers (2001)
Plot Summary:
Drawn from interviews with survivors of Easy Company, as well as their journals and letters, Band of Brothers chronicles the experiences of these men from paratrooper training in Georgia through the end of the war. As an elite rifle company parachuting into Normandy early on D-Day morning, participants in the Battle of the Bulge, and witness to the horrors of war, the men of Easy knew extraordinary bravery and extraordinary fear - and became the stuff of legend. Based on Stephen E. Ambrose's acclaimed book of the same name.
IMDB Rating: 9.4
IMDB Votes: 508000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 594 min
Plot tags: epic, heroic, captivating, tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, historical drama, exciting
Similar in 81%
Day One (1989)
Plot Summary:
Hungarian physicist Leo Szilard leaves Europe, eventually arriving in the United States. With the help of Einstein, he persuades the government to build an atomic bomb. The project is given to no-nonsense Gen. Leslie Groves who selects physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer to head the Los Alamos Laboratory in New Mexico, where the bomb is built. As World War II draws to a close, Szilard has second thoughts about atomic weapons, and policy makers debate how and when to use the bomb.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 494
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 141 min
Plot tags: tense, thought provoking, serious, captivating, realistic
Similar in 83%
Oppenheimer (1980)
Plot Summary:
Biography of the American physicist who led the U.S. effort to develop the atomic bomb during World War II, only to find himself suspected as a security risk in the 1950s because of his increasing ambivalence about the effect of his life's work.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 653
Genere: Biography, Drama, History, War
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 420 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing
Similar in 85%
Genius (2017)
Plot Summary:
Anthology series about famous geniuses with the first season charting how Albert Einstein unlocked the mysteries of the atom and the universe, and the second exploring the passionate nature and relentless creative drive of Pablo Picasso.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 43 min
Plot tags: anthology, historical drama, inspirational, enigmatic, captivating, psychological, educational, saga, costume drama, intellectual