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Being John Malkovich poster

Movies that feel likeBeing John Malkovich (1999)

One day at work, unsuccessful puppeteer Craig finds a portal into the head of actor John Malkovich. The portal soon becomes a passion for anybody who enters its mad and controlling world of overtaking another human body.

If you loved Being John Malkovich, the closest films we have are The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985), Groundhog Day (1993) and Songs from the Second Floor (2000). All three share Being John Malkovich's witty and playful feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Defending Your Life (1991).

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If Being John Malkovich hit the spot, these will too

The Purple Rose of Cairo poster
The Purple Rose of Cairo
1985 · dir. Woody Allen
🍅 93%★ 7.6fantasy · comedy · romance

Witty and playful in the same breath

The difference: Takes it somewhere less contemplative than Being John Malkovich does

Cecilia is a waitress in New Jersey, living a dreary life during the Great Depression. Her only escape from her mundane reality is the movie theatre. After losing her job, Cecilia goes to see 'The Purple Rose of Cairo' in hopes of raising her spirits, where she watches dashing archaeologist Tom Baxter time and again.

Groundhog Day poster
Groundhog Day
1993 · dir. Harold Ramis
🍅 93%★ 8romance · fantasy · comedy

The same mix in both: dream logic, then romance

The difference: Leans harder into romance than Being John Malkovich does

A cynical TV weatherman, along with his idealistic producer and his sardonic cameraman, is sent to report on Groundhog Day in the small town of Punxsutawney, where he finds himself repeating the same day over and over.

Songs from the Second Floor poster
Songs from the Second Floor
2000 · dir. Roy Andersson
🍅 88%★ 7.5drama · comedy

Comedy with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

A monumental traffic jam serves as the backdrop for the lives of the inhabitants of a Swedish city.

A Dog's Will poster
A Dog's Will
2000 · dir. Guel Arraes
★ 8.6comedy · drama · fantasy

Both lean on wit more than on drama

The difference: Sits closer to romance than Being John Malkovich does

The lively João Grilo and the sly Chicó are poor guys living in the hinterland who cheat a bunch of people in a small town in Northeastern Brazil. When they die, they have to be judged by Christ, the Devil and the Virgin Mary before they are admitted to paradise.

Bruce Almighty poster
Bruce Almighty
2003 · dir. Tom Shadyac
🍅 48%★ 6.8fantasy · comedy

Playful fantasy in both cases

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

Bruce Nolan toils as a "human interest" television reporter in Buffalo, NY, but despite his high ratings and the love of his beautiful girlfriend, Bruce remains unfulfilled. At the end of the worst day in his life, he angrily ridicules God — and the Almighty responds, endowing Bruce with all of His divine powers.

Stranger Than Fiction poster
Stranger Than Fiction
2006 · dir. Marc Forster
🍅 73%★ 7.5drama · comedy · romancePeacock

Comedy built on stillness, twice over

Harold Crick is a lonely IRS agent whose mundane existence is transformed when he hears a mysterious voice narrating his life.

Practical Magic poster
Practical Magic
1998 · dir. Griffin Dunne
🍅 31%★ 6.4romance · fantasy · comedyMax

Common ground: witch

Sally and Gillian Owens, born into a magical family, have mostly avoided witchcraft themselves. But when Gillian's vicious boyfriend, Jimmy Angelov, dies unexpectedly, the Owens sisters give themselves a crash course in hard magic. With policeman Gary Hallet growing suspicious, the girls struggle to resurrect Angelov -- and unwittingly inject his corpse with an evil spirit that threatens to end their family line.

Click poster
Click
2006 · dir. Frank Coraci
🍅 34%★ 6.4comedy · drama · fantasyStarz

Dreamlike drama, and it commits to that

A married workaholic, Michael Newman doesn't have time for his wife and children, not if he's to impress his ungrateful boss and earn a well-deserved promotion. So when he meets Morty, a loopy sales clerk, he gets the answer to his prayers: a magical remote that allows him to bypass life's little distractions with increasingly hysterical results.

The Invention of Lying poster
The Invention of Lying
2009 · dir. Ricky Gervais
🍅 56%★ 6.4comedy · fantasy · romance

Fantasy built on romance, twice over

Set in a world where the concept of lying doesn't exist, a loser changes his lot when he invents lying and uses it to get ahead.

Dark Shadows poster
Dark Shadows
2012 · dir. Tim Burton
🍅 35%★ 6.2comedy · fantasy

The same preoccupation in both: witch

Vampire Barnabas Collins is inadvertently freed from his tomb and emerges into the very changed world of 1972. He returns to Collinwood Manor to find that his once-grand estate and family have fallen into ruin.

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham poster
Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham
2001 · dir. Karan Johar
🍅 100%★ 7.4comedy · dramaNetflixPrime Video

Witty comedy in both cases

Years after his father disowns his adopted brother for marrying a woman of lower social standing, a young man goes on a mission to reunite his family.

Defending Your Life poster
Defending Your Life
1991 · dir. Albert Brooks
🍅 92%★ 7.2romance · fantasy · comedy

Playful drama, and it commits to that

Is there love after death? After he dies suddenly, the hapless advertising executive Daniel Miller finds himself in Judgment City, a gleaming way station where the newly deceased must prove they lived a life of sufficient courage to advance in their journey through the universe. As the self-doubting Daniel struggles to make his case, a budding relationship with the uninhibited Julia offers him a chance to finally feel alive.

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The best-reviewed films that share Being John Malkovich’s defining feeling.