feelsalike.comSign in
A Beautiful Mind poster

Movies that feel likeA Beautiful Mind (2001)

From the heights of notoriety to the depths of depravity, John Forbes Nash Jr. experiences it all. As a brilliant but socially awkward mathematician, he made a groundbreaking discovery early in his career and stands on the brink of international acclaim. But as the handsome and arrogant Nash accepts secret work in cryptography, he becomes entangled in a mysterious conspiracy. His life takes a nightmarish turn and he soon finds himself on a painful and harrowing journey of self-discovery.

If you loved A Beautiful Mind, the closest films we have are Cinderella Man (2005), Before Sunset (2004) and Veer-Zaara (2004). All three share A Beautiful Mind's contemplative and romantic feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Dil Chahta Hai (2001).

6 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · HBO Max

Can't choose? Answer three questions and get one movie for tonight.

Stream it:Apple TV ↗
See it on the Mood Map

When is A Beautiful Mind streaming? →

If A Beautiful Mind hit the spot, these will too

Cinderella Man poster
Cinderella Man
2005 · dir. Ron Howard
🍅 80%★ 8romance · drama · history

Howard again: a real man's fall and fight back, with a devoted wife

The difference: Depression-era boxing — the struggle is physical, not mental

The true story of boxer Jim Braddock who, following his retirement in the 1930s, makes a surprise comeback in order to lift his family out of poverty.

Before Sunset poster
Before Sunset
2004 · dir. Richard Linklater
🍅 95%★ 8.1drama · romance

The love of a life examined through nothing but conversation

The difference: Eighty real-time minutes of talk — no plot machinery at all

Nine years later, Jesse travels across Europe giving readings from a book he wrote about the night he spent in Vienna with Celine. After his reading in Paris, Celine finds him, and they spend part of the day together before Jesse has to again leave for a flight. They are both in relationships now, and Jesse has a son, but as their strong feelings for each other start to return, both confess a longing for more.

Veer-Zaara poster
Veer-Zaara
2004 · dir. Yash Chopra
🍅 94%★ 7.8drama · romanceNetflix

Devotion held across decades and impossible barriers

The difference: Epic Bollywood romance — songs and separation over psychology

Squadron Leader Veer Pratap Singh, a pilot in the Indian Air Force, rescues the stranded Zaara, a woman from Pakistan, following a bus accident, and their lives are forever bound.

The Notebook poster
The Notebook
2004 · dir. Nick Cassavetes
🍅 55%★ 7.8romance · dramaRent or buy

A lifelong love tested by a mind that betrays it

The difference: Pure romance, no biography — swoon first, everything else second

An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's. From a faded notebook, the old man's words bring to life the story about a couple who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately reunited, seven years later, after they have taken different paths.

The Bridges of Madison County poster
The Bridges of Madison County
1995 · dir. Clint Eastwood
🍅 90%★ 7.6drama · romance

A once-in-a-lifetime love weighed against the life already built

The difference: Quiet, adult and unhurried — no genius arc, just longing

Photographer Robert Kincaid wanders into the life of housewife Francesca Johnson for four days in the 1960s.

Dil Chahta Hai poster
Dil Chahta Hai
2001 · dir. Farhan Akhtar
🍅 100%★ 8.1drama · romanceNetflix

Love and self-discovery traced across the formative years

The difference: A breezy friendship ensemble — the drama stays light on its feet

Three inseparable childhood friends are just out of college. Nothing comes between them - until they each fall in love, and their wildly different approaches to relationships creates tension.

In the Mood for Love poster
In the Mood for Love
2000 · dir. Wong Kar-Wai
🍅 92%★ 8drama · romanceMax

Love rendered as ache — restraint, glances and what goes unsaid

The difference: Elliptical and unresolved — mood replaces story entirely

In 1960s Hong Kong, two neighbors form an intimate bond after making a discovery about their spouses in this visually stunning tale of unrequited love.

Pride & Prejudice poster
Pride & Prejudice
2005 · dir. Joe Wright
🍅 87%★ 7.8drama · romanceRent or buy

A prickly, brilliant mind slowly letting love in

The difference: Regency courtship — wit and restraint, no shadow of illness

A story of love and life among the landed English gentry during the Georgian era. Mr. Bennet is a gentleman living in Hertfordshire with his overbearing wife and five daughters, but if he dies their house will be inherited by a distant cousin whom they have never met, so the family's future happiness and security is dependent on the daughters making good marriages.

Two Lovers poster
Two Lovers
2008 · dir. James Gray
🍅 81%★ 7drama · romance

A fragile man torn between the love that steadies and the one that thrills

The difference: Small, sad and unresolved — no triumph waiting at the end

A depressed man moves back in with his parents following a recent heartbreak and finds himself with two women.

Head-On poster
Head-On
2004 · dir. Fatih Akin
★ 7.9drama · romance

Both land stillness and romance at once

The difference: Trades the paranoia of A Beautiful Mind for an angle of its own

With the intention to break free from the strict familial restrictions, a suicidal young woman sets up a marriage of convenience with a forty-year-old addict, an act that will lead to an outburst of envious love.

Slumdog Millionaire poster
Slumdog Millionaire
2008 · dir. Danny Boyle
🍅 92%★ 8drama · romance

An improbable life story vindicated by devotion and destiny

The difference: Kinetic Mumbai bustle — a thriller pulse under the romance

A teenager reflects on his life after being accused of cheating on the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?".

Sense and Sensibility poster
Sense and Sensibility
1995 · dir. Ang Lee
🍅 97%★ 7.7drama · romance

Love endured through hardship with intelligence and feeling

The difference: Austen manners and society — the obstacles are rules, not delusions

The Dashwood sisters, sensible Elinor and passionate Marianne, learn that their prospects of marriage seem doomed by their family's sudden loss of fortune. After Henry Dashwood dies unexpectedly, his estate must pass on by law to his son. These circumstances leave Mr. Dashwood's wife and daughters without a home and with barely enough money to live on. As Elinor and Marianne struggle to find romantic fulfillment in a society obsessed with financial and social status, they must learn to mix sense with sensibility in their dealings with both money and men.

In the mood for more contemplative?

all contemplative movies →

The best-reviewed films that share A Beautiful Mind’s defining feeling.