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Movies that feel like Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

If you loved Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, the closest films we have are Meet John Doe (1941), Zero for Conduct (1933) and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936). All three share Mr. Smith Goes to Washington's witty and playful feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 5 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Criterion Channel, Brew and MGM Plus and others, checked against today's data.

After the death of a United States Senator, the idealistic Jefferson Smith is appointed as his replacement in Washington. The naive and earnest new senator soon finds himself battling political corruption.

πŸ… 85% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 8.1 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Frank Caprawittyplayfulcontemplative

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If Mr. Smith Goes to Washington hit the spot, these will too

Meet John Doe poster
Meet John Doe
1941 Β· dir. Frank Capra
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.6drama Β· comedy Β· romance

Both are Frank Capra's work, and they rhyme

The difference: Played as romance first

As a parting shot, fired reporter Ann Mitchell prints a fake letter from unemployed "John Doe," who threatens suicide in protest of social ills. The paper is forced to rehire Ann and hires John Willoughby to impersonate "Doe." Ann and her bosses cynically milk the story for all it's worth, until the made-up "John Doe" philosophy starts a whole political movement.

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Zero for Conduct poster
Zero for Conduct
1933 Β· dir. Jean Vigo
πŸ… 94%β˜… 7.2comedy Β· drama

Witty and playful in the same breath

In a repressive boarding school with rigid rules of behavior, four boys decide to rebel against the director on a celebration day.

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Mr. Deeds Goes to Town poster
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
1936 Β· dir. Frank Capra
πŸ… 90%β˜… 7.8comedy Β· drama Β· romance

The same hand behind both of them: Frank Capra

Longfellow Deeds lives in a small town, leading a small town kind of life. When a relative dies and leaves Deeds a fortune, Longfellow moves to the big city where he becomes an instant target for everyone. Deeds outwits them all until Babe Bennett comes along. When small-town boy meets big-city girl anything can, and does, happen.

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Arsenic and Old Lace poster
Arsenic and Old Lace
1944 Β· dir. Frank Capra
πŸ… 86%β˜… 7.9comedy Β· crime

Comedy built on wit, twice over

The difference: Without the same stillness

Mortimer Brewster, a newspaper drama critic, playwright, and author known for his diatribes against marriage, suddenly falls in love and gets married; but when he makes a quick trip home to tell his two maiden aunts, he finds out his aunts' hobby - killing lonely old men and burying them in the cellar!

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Nights of Cabiria poster
Nights of Cabiria
1957 Β· dir. Federico Fellini
πŸ… 100%β˜… 8.1drama Β· comedy

Contemplative drama, and it commits to that

Rome, 1957. A woman, Cabiria, is robbed and left to drown by her boyfriend, Giorgio. Rescued, she resumes her life and tries her best to find happiness in a cynical world. Even when she thinks her struggles are over and she has found happiness and contentment, things may not be what they seem.

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Being There poster
Being There
1979 Β· dir. Hal Ashby
πŸ… 95%β˜… 7.9comedy Β· drama

Common ground: washington dc, usa

The difference: 40 years apart, and the 1970s show

A simple-minded gardener named Chance has spent all his life in the Washington D.C. house of an old man. When the man dies, Chance is put out on the street with no knowledge of the world except what he has learned from television.

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It Happened One Night poster
It Happened One Night
1934 Β· dir. Frank Capra
πŸ… 98%β˜… 8.1comedy Β· romance

Both are built on the same subject: black and white

The difference: Not nearly as contemplative

A runaway heiress makes a deal with the rogue reporter trailing her but the mismatched pair end up stuck with each other when their bus leaves them behind.

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The Bank Dick poster
The Bank Dick
1940 Β· dir. Edward F. Cline
πŸ… 96%β˜… 7.1comedy

Both lean on play more than on comedy

Egbert SousΓ© becomes an unexpected hero when a bank robber falls over a bench he's occupying. Now considered brave, Egbert is given a job as a bank guard. Soon, he is approached by charlatan J. Frothingham Waterbury about buying shares in a mining company. Egbert persuades teller Og Oggilby to lend him bank money, to be returned when the scheme pays off. Unfortunately, bank inspector Snoopington then makes a surprise appearance.

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Sons of the Desert poster
Sons of the Desert
1933 Β· dir. William A. Seiter
πŸ… 100%β˜… 7.5comedy

Drama with a pulse of wit, in both cases

Ollie and Stan deceive their wives into thinking they are taking a medically necessary cruise when they are really going to a lodge convention.

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Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. poster
Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.
2003 Β· dir. Rajkumar Hirani
β˜… 8.1comedy Β· drama

Contemplative comedy in both cases

A gangster sets out to fulfill his father's dream of becoming a doctor.

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Day of the Wacko poster
Day of the Wacko
2002 Β· dir. Marek Koterski
β˜… 8.1comedy Β· drama

Playful drama, and it commits to that

It is a bitter story about a middle-aged man, who hates his life and other people, including himself. Adam Miauczynski, the character known from director Marek Koterski's previous films, is a 49 year-old teacher, who reads poetry during school lessons and later goes home swearing and calling his neighbours' names. The worst pain for him is the next 5 minutes of living. He doesn't accept himself and even everyday contacts with others cause his aggression. Though constantly dreaming of a romantic love, he is not bold enough to make his dreams come true. The desperate Miauczynski personalizes our own fears and obsessions, which have become so visible recently.

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You Can't Take It with You poster
You Can't Take It with You
1938 Β· dir. Frank Capra
πŸ… 94%β˜… 7.8comedy Β· romance

The same preoccupation in both: black and white

Alice, the only relatively normal member of the eccentric Sycamore family, falls in love with Tony Kirby, but his wealthy banker father and snobbish mother strongly disapprove of the match. When the Kirbys are invited to dinner to become better acquainted with their future in-laws, things don't turn out the way Alice had hoped.

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The best-reviewed films that share Mr. Smith Goes to Washington’s defining feeling.