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Hachi: A Dog's Tale poster

Movies that feel likeHachi: A Dog's Tale (2009)

Professor Wilson discovers a lost Akita puppy on his way home. Despite objections from his wife, Hachi endears himself to the family and grows to be Parker's loyal companion. As their bond grows deeper, a beautiful relationship unfolds.

If you loved Hachi: A Dog's Tale, the closest films we have are A Dog's Purpose (2017), Departures (2008) and Fearless (2006). All three share Hachi: A Dog's Tale's contemplative feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is The White Balloon (1995).

🍅 64% Rotten Tomatoes★ 8.1 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Lasse Hallströmcontemplativewarmcozyhopeful
6 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · Hulu · Disney Plus

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If Hachi: A Dog's Tale hit the spot, these will too

A Dog's Purpose poster
A Dog's Purpose
2017 · dir. Lasse Hallström
🍅 35%★ 7.3adventure · fantasy · family

Hallström's other ode to a dog's devotion across an entire lifetime

The difference: A fantastical multi-life reincarnation story, not one quiet true bond

A dog goes on quest to discover his purpose in life over the course of several lifetimes with multiple owners.

Departures poster
Departures
2008 · dir. Yojiro Takita
🍅 80%★ 8drama

A quiet, patient drama that finds grace in life's smallest rituals

The difference: A Japanese drama about death and dignity, no dog and no owner

Daigo, a cellist, is laid off from his orchestra and moves with his wife back to his small hometown where the living is cheaper. Thinking he’s applying for a job at a travel agency he finds he’s being interviewed for work with departures of a more permanent nature – as an undertaker’s assistant.

Fearless poster
Fearless
2006 · dir. Ronny Yu
🍅 73%★ 7.6drama · action

Warmth and hope carried through hardship toward redemption

The difference: A martial-arts biography about pride and combat, not companionship

After going through a series of tragic events in his life, martial arts master Huo Yuanjia returns to Tianjin and must fight four international soldiers, in order to safeguard his nation's pride.

Like Stars on Earth poster
Like Stars on Earth
2007 · dir. Aamir Khan
🍅 93%★ 8.3drama

Common ground: hopeful

The difference: Reviewed even better

Ishaan Awasthi is an eight-year-old whose world is filled with wonders that no one else seems to appreciate. Colours, fish, dogs, and kites don't seem important to the adults, who are much more interested in things like homework, marks, and neatness. Ishaan cannot seem to get anything right in class; he is then sent to boarding school, where his life changes forever.

Wonder poster
Wonder
2017 · dir. Stephen Chbosky
🍅 86%★ 7.9family · dramaRent or buy

Contemplative where it counts, warm underneath

The difference: Easier on the hope than Hachi: A Dog's Tale

The story of August Pullman – a boy with facial differences – who enters fifth grade, attending a mainstream elementary school for the first time.

The Blind Side poster
The Blind Side
2009 · dir. John Lee Hancock
🍅 65%★ 7.6drama

A true story about a family whose kindness quietly changes a life

The difference: A human foster story, no animal companion at its heart

The story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All American football player and first round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family.

Children of Heaven poster
Children of Heaven
1997 · dir. Majid Majidi
🍅 83%★ 8.2drama · family

Both lean on comfort more than on drama

Zohre's shoes are gone; her older brother Ali lost them. They are poor, there are no shoes for Zohre until they come up with an idea: they will share one pair of shoes. School awaits.

Moneyball poster
Moneyball
2011 · dir. Bennett Miller
🍅 94%★ 7.6dramaHulu

Family built on hope, twice over

The story of Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane's successful attempt to put together a baseball team on a budget, by employing computer-generated analysis to draft his players.

Swades poster
Swades
2004 · dir. Ashutosh Gowariker
🍅 90%★ 8.2dramaNetflix

Contemplative drama, and it commits to that

A successful Indian scientist returns home to his village to take his nanny back to America with him, and in the process rediscovers his roots.

Oz the Great and Powerful poster
Oz the Great and Powerful
2013 · dir. Sam Raimi
🍅 56%★ 6.3fantasy · adventure · familyDisney+

Warm family in both cases

The difference: Leans harder into fantasy than Hachi: A Dog's Tale does

Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus illusionist and con-artist, is whisked from Kansas to the Land of Oz where the inhabitants assume he's the great wizard of prophecy, there to save Oz from the clutches of evil.

The White Balloon poster
The White Balloon
1995 · dir. Jafar Panahi
🍅 83%★ 7.6drama · family

Drama with a pulse of comfort, in both cases

Several people try to take advantage of a little girl's innocence to hustle money her mom gave to her to buy a goldfish with.

In America poster
In America
2003 · dir. Jim Sheridan
🍅 90%★ 7.7drama

Hopeful family, and it commits to that

A family of Irish immigrants adjusts to life on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen while also grieving the death of a child.

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The best-reviewed films that share Hachi: A Dog's Tale’s defining feeling.