feelsalike.comSign in
The Look of Silence poster

Movies that feel likeThe Look of Silence (2014)

An Indonesian man with a communist background named Ramli was brutally murdered when the "Communist" purge occurred in 1965. His remaining family members lived in fear and silence until the making of this documentary. Adi, a brother of his, decided to revisit the horrific incident and visited the men who were responsible for the killings and one survivor of the purge. These meetings uncovered sadistic details of the murders and exposed raw emotions and reactions of the killers' family members about what happened in the past - much to Adi's disappointment.

If you loved The Look of Silence, the closest films we have are The Act of Killing (2012), I'm Still Here (2024) and Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist (1997). All three share The Look of Silence's contemplative feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Places in the Heart (1984).

πŸ… 96% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 8.2 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Joshua Oppenheimerepiccontemplativemelancholy
9 of 12 streaming nowNetflix Β· Amazon Prime Video Β· Paramount Plus Essential

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

Stream it:Fandor β†—
See it on the Mood Map

When is The Look of Silence streaming? β†’

If The Look of Silence hit the spot, these will too

The Act of Killing poster
The Act of Killing
2012 Β· dir. Joshua Oppenheimer
πŸ… 96%β˜… 8.2documentary Β· historyRent or buy

Both are Joshua Oppenheimer's work, and they rhyme

The difference: Trades the melancholy of The Look of Silence for an angle of its own

After befriending documentarian Joshua Oppenheimer, former Indonesian death squad leaders reenact their real-life mass killings in the style of various American film genres. As they recreate their past atrocities, the line between reality and performance blurs, exposing the lingering impact of Indonesia's 1965-66 anti-communist purge and the unsettling psychology of its perpetrators.

I'm Still Here poster
I'm Still Here
2024 Β· dir. Walter Salles
β˜… 8.1drama Β· historyNetflix

Epic where it counts, contemplative underneath

The difference: Leans harder into drama than The Look of Silence does

A woman married to a former politician during the 1971 military dictatorship in Brazil is forced to reinvent herself and chart a new course for her family after a violent and arbitrary act.

Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist poster
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.5documentary

Melancholy documentary, and it commits to that

The story of Robert Flanagan, a man who was born with cystic fibrosis and told he wouldn't live past 20, who through a unique odyssey of masochism, art and love found a way to live decades past his expiration date.

Silent Heart poster
Silent Heart
2014 Β· dir. Bille August
β˜… 7.1drama

History built on stillness, twice over

Three generations of a family gather over a weekend. The sisters Sanne and Heidi have accepted their terminally-ill mother’s desire to die before her disease worsens; but, as the weekend progresses, their mother's decision becomes harder and harder to deal with, and old conflicts come to the surface.

City of Men poster
City of Men
2007 Β· dir. Paulo Morelli
πŸ… 74%β˜… 7.2dramaParamount+

The same preoccupation in both: grief

Best buddies Acerola and Laranjinha, about to turn 18, discover things about their missing fathers' pasts which will shatter their solid friendship, in the middle of a war between rival drug gangs from Rio's favelas.

The King's Speech poster
The King's Speech
2010 Β· dir. Tom Hooper
πŸ… 94%β˜… 8drama Β· historyParamount+

One thread runs through both: biography

The King's Speech tells the story of the man who became King George VI, the father of Queen Elizabeth II. After his brother abdicates, George ('Bertie') reluctantly assumes the throne. Plagued by a dreaded stutter and considered unfit to be king, Bertie engages the help of an unorthodox speech therapist named Lionel Logue. Through a set of unexpected techniques, and as a result of an unlikely friendship, Bertie is able to find his voice and boldly lead the country into war.

Nobody Knows poster
Nobody Knows
2004 Β· dir. Hirokazu Kore-eda
πŸ… 92%β˜… 8drama

Both are built on the same subject: grief

In a small Tokyo apartment, twelve-year-old Akira must care for his younger siblings after their mother leaves them and shows no sign of returning.

13 Assassins poster
13 Assassins
2010 Β· dir. Takashi Miike
πŸ… 95%β˜… 7.5adventure Β· drama Β· actionPrime Video

Epic history in both cases

A bravado period action film set at the end of Japan's feudal era in which a group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a war-torn future.

Hero poster
Hero
2002 Β· dir. Zhang Yimou
β˜… 7.9drama Β· adventure Β· action

Documentary with a pulse of melancholy, in both cases

During China's Warring States period, a district prefect arrives at the palace of Qin Shi Huang, claiming to have killed the three assassins who had made an attempt on the king's life three years ago.

Places in the Heart poster
Places in the Heart
1984 Β· dir. Robert Benton
πŸ… 90%β˜… 7.4drama

Both lean on stillness more than on history

The difference: 30 years apart, and the 1980s show

In 1935 rural Texas, recently widowed Edna Spaulding struggles to survive with two small children, a farm to run, and very little money in the bank - not to mention a deadly tornado and the unwelcome presence of the Ku Klux Klan. Edna is aided by her beautician sister, Margaret; a blind boarder, Mr. Will; and a would-be thief, Moze, who decides to teach Edna how to plant and harvest cotton.

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father poster
πŸ… 94%β˜… 8.5documentary Β· crimePrime Video

Both lean on melancholy more than on documentary

In 2001, Andrew Bagby, a medical resident, is murdered not long after breaking up with his girlfriend. Soon after, when she announces she's pregnant, one of Andrew's many close friends, Kurt Kuenne, begins this film, a gift to the child.

Hostiles poster
Hostiles
2017 Β· dir. Scott Cooper
πŸ… 71%β˜… 7.2drama Β· western Β· historyStarz

Both work the same scale

The difference: The scrappier of the two with critics

A legendary Native American-hating Army captain nearing retirement in 1892 is given one last assignment: to escort a Cheyenne chief and his family through dangerous territory back to his Montana reservation.

In the mood for more epic?

all epic movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share The Look of Silence’s defining feeling.