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Movies that feel like Stranger Than Fiction (2006)

If you loved Stranger Than Fiction, the closest films we have are Truly Madly Deeply (1991), Hairspray (2007) and Volver (2006). All three share Stranger Than Fiction's contemplative and witty feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 4 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Netflix, HBO Max and Paramount Plus Premium and others, checked against today's data.

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

🍅 73% Rotten Tomatoes7.5 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Marc Forstercontemplativewittyplayfulromantictenderdreamlike
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If Stranger Than Fiction hit the spot, these will too

Truly Madly Deeply poster
Truly Madly Deeply
1991 · dir. Anthony Minghella
🍅 76%7.2fantasy · drama · comedy

Two things both keep coming back to: love and death

Nina is totally heartbroken at the death of her boyfriend Jamie, but is even more unprepared for his return as a ghost. At first it's almost as good as it used to be – hey, even the rats that infested her house have disappeared. But Jamie starts bringing ghostly friends home and behaving more and more oddly.

Hairspray poster
Hairspray
2007 · dir. Adam Shankman
🍅 92%6.7comedy · romance · drama

Contemplative where it counts, witty underneath

Pleasantly plump teenager Tracy Turnblad auditions to be on Baltimore's most popular dance show - The Corny Collins Show - and lands a prime spot. Through her newfound fame, she becomes determined to help her friends and end the racial segregation that has been a staple of the show.

Volver poster
Volver
2006 · dir. Pedro Almodóvar
🍅 91%7.6comedy · drama · romance

Both are built on the same subject: death

The difference: Not nearly as dreamlike as Stranger Than Fiction

Three generations of women deal with family secrets while surviving the east wind, fire, insanity, superstition, lies and even death.

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

Playful and romantic in the same breath

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.

Practical Magic poster
Practical Magic
1998 · dir. Griffin Dunne
🍅 28%6.4romance · fantasy · comedy

The same preoccupation in both: love

The difference: Reviewed a good deal more coolly

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.

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

The same mix in both: tenderness, then dream logic

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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Finding Neverland
2004 · dir. Marc Forster
🍅 83%7.6drama · fantasy

Both are Marc Forster's work, and they rhyme

During a writing slump, playwright J.M. Barrie meets a widow and her four children, all young boys—who soon become an important part of Barrie’s life and the inspiration that lead him to create his masterpiece. Peter Pan.

Shallow Hal poster
Shallow Hal
2001 · dir. Peter Farrelly
🍅 49%6comedy · drama · fantasy

Contemplative drama in both cases

After taking his dying father's advice, Hal dates only the embodiments of female physical perfection. But that all changes after Hal has an unexpected run-in with self-help guru Tony Robbins. Intrigued by Hal's shallowness, Robbins hypnotizes him into seeing the beauty that exists even in the least physically appealing women. Hal soon falls for Rosemary, but he doesn't realize that his gorgeous girlfriend is actually a 300-pound-not-so-hottie.

Barfi! poster
Barfi!
2012 · dir. Anurag Basu
🍅 81%8.1drama · romance · comedy

Witty comedy, and it commits to that

The heartwarming tale of Barfi, a charming deaf-mute young man from 1970s Darjeeling, and two unalike women who can't help but fall for him.

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

Romance with a pulse of play, in both cases

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.

Swiss Army Man poster
Swiss Army Man
2016 · dir. Daniel Kwan
🍅 73%6.9comedy · drama · romance

Fantasy built on romance, twice over

The difference: Sits closer to adventure than Stranger Than Fiction does

Alone on a tiny deserted island, Hank has given up all hope of ever making it home again. But one day everything changes when a dead body washes ashore, and he soon realizes it may be his last opportunity to escape certain death. Armed with his new “friend” and an unusual bag of tricks, the duo go on an epic adventure to bring Hank back to the woman of his dreams.

The Time Traveler's Wife poster
The Time Traveler's Wife
2009 · dir. Robert Schwentke
🍅 38%7.1drama · romance · fantasy

Both lean on tenderness more than on drama

Due to a genetic disorder, handsome librarian Henry DeTamble involuntarily zips through time, appearing at various moments in the life of his true love, the beautiful artist Clare Abshire.

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The best-reviewed films that share Stranger Than Fiction’s defining feeling.