Best tv shows like Small Axe
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A look at the lives of a group of friends and their families living in West London from 1968 to 2014.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 407 min
Plot tags: anthology, captivating, thought provoking, suspense, disturbing, social, period drama
Best tv shows and movies like Small Axe (2020):
Similar in 82%
Across the Line (2015)
Plot Summary:
Out of the approximately 600 players in the National Hockey League, thirty are Black. Mattie Slaughter, a hockey phenom from the rural Black community of North Preston, wants to make it thirty-one. To reach his goal, Mattie needs to keep his nose clean and avoid trouble. Hard to do though, when you go to a school where racism taints every interaction, your older brother is a hustler and you’re crushing on a girl who’s already hooked up.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 524
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: captivating, suspense, disturbing
Similar in 75%
The Little Nyonya (2020)
Plot Summary:
Set in the 1930s, the drama spans across several generations of a wealthy Straits-born Chinese family in Malacca, and revolves around the feuds surrounding it. Yue Niang, a strong-willed Nyonya refuses to be consigned to her lowborn status in life and sets out to change her destiny, eventually succeeding as a businesswoman.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 20
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration: 41 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 82%
The Trial of Christine Keeler (2019)
Plot Summary:
The minister, his mistress, and her lover the spy. The story of the woman at the centre of one of the 20th century's biggest scandals – which changed Britain forever.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 352 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing, political, period drama, beautiful
Similar in 88%
Colin in Black & White (2021)
Plot Summary:
The life of athlete Colin Kaepernick and his adoptive parents as they navigate the challenges of raising a black son in a white family and community.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Biography, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: psychological, thought provoking, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 83%
Side by Side (2012)
Plot Summary:
Lado a Lado is a Brazilian telenovela produced and broadcast by Rede Globo from September 10, 2012 to March 8, 2013. Written by Claudia Lage and João Ximenes Braga, with collaborations by Chico Soares, Douglas Tourinho, Fernando Rebello, Vellego Jackie, Nina Crintzs and Maria Camargo, script supervision by Gilberto Braga, directed by Dennis Carvalho and core general direction of Vinicius Coimbra, it starrs Camila Pitanga and Marjorie Estiano as the main characters.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 192
Genere: Comedy, Drama, History, Romance
Country: Brazil
Duration:
Plot tags: novela, psychological, captivating, disturbing, soap opera, telenovela
Similar in 80%
A.L.Zh.I.R (2019)
Plot Summary:
The wife of the aircraft designer, Olga Pavlova, the head of the Moscow garment factory, and the wife of the director of the opera house, the famous Soviet opera singer Sofia Ter-Ashaturova, meet in the prison car of the train. Together they will go to Akmola camp of the wives of traitors of the Motherland, where there will be representatives of the most different strata of the population. Heroes will need strength of spirit and endurance to pass all the terrible ordeals on their way and remain human.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 32
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: Russia
Duration:
Plot tags: psychological, thought provoking, captivating, suspense
Similar in 89%
1Life (2016)
Plot Summary:
The struggles and political back stabbing among four friends vying for control over the app they created, '1Life'.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 10
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: tense, thought provoking, captivating, suspense
Similar in 86%
Canterbury Tales (2003)
Plot Summary:
Adaptations of Chaucer's Tales to a modern setting.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 398
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 52 min
Plot tags: anthology, captivating, period drama
Similar in 80%
Noughts + Crosses (2020)
Plot Summary:
In an alternate history where black “Cross” people rule over white “Noughts”, young couple Sephy and Callum are divided by their colour but united by love.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: psychological, thought provoking, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 81%
Homemade (2020)
Plot Summary:
Acclaimed filmmakers from around the world channel their creativity during COVID-19 isolation with this diverse, genre-spanning collection of short films.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 876
Genere: Drama
Country: Chile, Italy
Duration: 138 min
Plot tags: anthology, psychological, thought provoking, captivating, disturbing, disaster movie
Similar in 82%
This Evening (2017)
Plot Summary:
Everyone has three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 641
Genere: Drama
Country: Egypt
Duration:
Plot tags: psychological, thought provoking, captivating, social, disturbing
Similar in 77%
The Orphan of Zhao (2013)
Plot Summary:
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IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 15
Genere: Drama, History
Country: China
Duration:
Plot tags: tense, captivating, suspense, disturbing
Similar in 77%
Anne Boleyn (2021)
Plot Summary:
The final months of Boleyn's life, her struggle with Tudor England's patriarchal society, her desire to secure a future for her daughter, Elizabeth, and the brutal reality of her failure to provide Henry with a male heir.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 28000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, captivating, historical drama
Similar in 77%
Girlfriends (2018)
Plot Summary:
After the dramatic and sudden death of Linda's husband Micky, childhood friends Linda, Sue and Gail find themselves back together again. Each has their own problems to face; from a looming divorce from the husband she still loves and the loss of a high-powered job through age discrimination, to juggling the endless responsibilities of their grandchildren and aging mothers.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 771
Genere: Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 46 min
Plot tags: captivating
Similar in 77%
The Indian Doctor (2010)
Plot Summary:
The Indian Doctor is a British television drama set in the summer of 1963. Produced by Rondo Media and Avatar Productions, it was first broadcast on BBC One in 2010. The most recent series began on 27 February 2012 and concluded on 2 March. It is a period comedy drama starring Sanjeev Bhaskar as an Indian doctor who finds work in a South Wales mining village.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration:
Plot tags: sentimental, realistic, captivating, psychological, period piece, historical drama, humorous, semi serious, period drama
Similar in 89%
Guerrilla (2017)
Plot Summary:
Set against the backdrop of one of the most explosive times in U.K. history, Guerrilla tells the story of a politically active couple whose relationship and values are tested when they liberate a political prisoner and form a radical underground cell in 1970s London.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: tense, captivating, suspense, disturbing, interesting
Similar in 80%
New World (2020)
Plot Summary:
Set in the city of Beiping during the 22 days before the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 is a story about the drastic changes in the lives of three brothers Jin Hai, Tie Lin, and Xu Tian as well as a romance between Xu Tian and Tian Dan. In investigating the murder that claimed the life of his fiancee, policeman Xu Tian starts on a trail that will eventually lead to his involvement in the liberation of Beiping. Jin Hai, Tie Lin, and Xu Tian are three friends who are as close as brothers. In the face of historic changes and conflicting beliefs, they make choices that take them on diverging paths. Xu Tian and communist member Tian Dan meet during their lowest moments and find a common goal that brings them together.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 45
Genere: Drama
Country: China
Duration: 40 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, suspense, disturbing
Similar in 79%
The Porter (2022)
Plot Summary:
In 1921, friends and train porters Junior and Zeke find their unbreakable bond stretched to its limits when tragedy inspires them to take conflicting paths to a better life.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 510
Genere: Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, suspense, realistic, disturbing, period drama
Similar in 83%
Line of Separation (2015)
Plot Summary:
Spring 1945, just before Germany's zero hour. In Tannbach, a fanatical band of Nazi soldiers stages one last murderous attack on their fellow citizens before the arrival of the Americans, who finally end the war. It is an uneasy peace, however, that collapses when the Russian troops arrive. Both superpowers claim Tannbach for themselves in this miniature version of the dawn of the Cold War.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: Germany, Czech Republic
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, thought provoking, captivating, suspenseful, harsh, disturbing, period piece
Similar in 86%
Jamestown (2017)
Plot Summary:
The early 17th Century story of three courageous, dynamic women who leave their dark pasts behind in England, and make the journey of a lifetime across the ocean for a new life in America.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: atmospheric, suspense, realistic, costume drama, disturbing, historical drama, period piece, captivating, melancholic, period drama
Similar in 88%
10,000 Black Men Named George (2002)
Plot Summary:
In the 1920s, the rights of American workers to join a labor union was still considered an open question, and African-Americans were routinely denied their civil and economic rights. 10,000 Black Men Named George, the title, refers to the fact Pullman porters were often called "George" by white passengers, which was considered a racial slur.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 349
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, captivating, disturbing, tense, sincere, serious, realistic, contemplative, entertaining
Similar in 87%
A Very British Scandal (2021)
Plot Summary:
Sex, secrets and suspicion - the true story of a duchess publicly shamed in a high society divorce that gripped the nation.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: UK
Duration: 177 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, disturbing, costume drama, period drama
Similar in 82%
Tokyo Trial (2016)
Plot Summary:
In the wake of World War II, 11 Allied judges are tasked with weighing the fates of Japanese war criminals in a tense international trial.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: Canada, Japan, Netherlands
Duration: 200 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, tense, captivating, disturbing, political, historical drama
Similar in 90%
Voltaire in Love (2021)
Plot Summary:
Explore the early life and evolution of the philosopher and visionary Voltaire, from his love stories, his father's issues to the discovery of his vocation, his commitments against religious fanaticism and the arbitrary misuse of justice and politics. Explore a life of pain, passion, and the growth of an epic and talented hero, the origins of the young François Arouet, his childhood suffering, his entourage, his talent, his years of imprisonment in the Bastille, his ambiguous relations with the French court or his return in France after his exile.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 126
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: France
Duration:
Plot tags: thought provoking, captivating, disturbing
Similar in 84%
Separate But Equal (1991)
Plot Summary:
A dramatization of the American court case that destroyed the legal validity of racial segregation. One of the most pivotal moments in 20th century American history is bracingly dramatized in Separate but Equal. In telling the detailed story of the Supreme Court's 1953 decision to abolish racial segregation in schools, this superb 1991 TV movie covers a broad spectrum of issues, never taking its "eyes off the prize" while its first-rate cast conveys the importance of the Supreme Court's ultimately unanimous decision.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 763
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 190 min
Plot tags: historical drama, sincere, thought provoking, clever, serious, captivating, realistic, contemplative, talky
Similar in 85%
Show Me a Hero (2015)
Plot Summary:
Mayor Nick Wasicsko took office in 1987 during Yonkers' worst crisis when federal courts ordered public housing built in the white, middle class side of town, dividing the city in a bitter battle fueled by fear, racism, murder and politics.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 358 min
Plot tags: serious, tense, rough, thought provoking, captivating, political, realistic, social, saga, clever
Similar in 87%
Women of the Movement (2022)
Plot Summary:
A limited series focusing on Mamie Till Mobley, who devoted her life to seeking justice for her son Emmett Till following his brutal murder in the Jim Crow South.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 45 min
Plot tags: psychological, captivating, suspense, disturbing, anthology, thought provoking
Similar in 82%
King (1978)
Plot Summary:
A 1978 TV miniseries about the career of Martin Luther King Jr. from his days as a Baptist minister in Atlanta in the early '50s until his assassination in 1968.
IMDB Rating: 8.0
IMDB Votes: 431
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 271 min
Plot tags: sincere, thought provoking, serious, captivating, realistic, disturbing
Similar in 83%
The Book of Negroes (2015)
Plot Summary:
Kidnapped in Africa and subsequently enslaved in South Carolina, Aminata must navigate a revolution in New York, isolation in Nova Scotia and treacherous jungles of Sierra Leone, in an attempt to secure her freedom in the 19th century.
IMDB Rating: 7.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History, War
Country: Canada
Duration: 265 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, emotional, disturbing, epic, serious, captivating, realistic, historical drama, stylized, uplifting
Similar in 82%
When They See Us (2019)
Plot Summary:
Five teens from Harlem become trapped in a nightmare when they're falsely accused of a brutal attack in Central Park.
IMDB Rating: 8.9
IMDB Votes: 134000
Genere: Biography, Crime, Drama, History
Country: USA
Duration: 296 min
Plot tags: suspense, captivating, detective, atmospheric, intellectual, epic, political, social, educational, anthology