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The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones poster

Movies that feel likeThe Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013)

In New York City, Clary Fray, a seemingly ordinary teenager, learns that she is descended from a line of Shadowhunters β€” half-angel warriors who protect humanity from evil forces. After her mother disappears, Clary joins forces with a group of Shadowhunters and enters Downworld, an alternate realm filled with demons, vampires, and a host of other creatures. Clary and her companions must find and protect an ancient cup that holds the key to her mother's future.

If you loved The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, the closest films we have are Hellboy (2004), The Five Venoms (1978) and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009). All three share The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones' dreamlike feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Malignant (2021).

πŸ… 13% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 5.8 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Harald Zwartdreamlikekinetictwistydread
11 of 12 streaming nowNetflix Β· HBO Max Β· Amazon Prime Video

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If The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones hit the spot, these will too

Hellboy poster
Hellboy
2004 Β· dir. Guillermo del Toro
πŸ… 81%β˜… 6.9fantasy Β· action

Both land dream logic and momentum at once

The difference: Reviewed even better

In the final days of World War II, the Nazis attempt to use black magic to aid their dying cause. The Allies raid the camp where the ceremony is taking place, but not before they summon a baby demon who is rescued by Allied forces and dubbed "Hellboy". Sixty years later, Hellboy serves the cause of good rather than evil as an agent in the Bureau of Paranormal Research & Defense, along with Abe Sapien - a merman with psychic powers, and Liz Sherman - a woman with pyrokinesis, protecting America against dark forces.

The Five Venoms poster
The Five Venoms
1978 Β· dir. Chang Cheh
πŸ… 80%β˜… 7action Β· drama Β· mystery

Fantasy built on twists, twice over

The difference: Lighter on dread

A dying master sends his last student to check up on five former pupils, who each know a special style of kung-fu.

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus poster
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
2009 Β· dir. Terry Gilliam
πŸ… 63%β˜… 6.7adventure Β· fantasy Β· mystery

Both lean on dream logic more than on mystery

The difference: Goes its own way on the momentum

After a carnival troupe saves his life, a man agrees to help its immortal leader collect five souls and win a bet with the devil.

The Old Guard poster
The Old Guard
2020 Β· dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood
πŸ… 80%β˜… 6.7action Β· fantasyNetflix

Action with a pulse of momentum, in both cases

Four undying warriors who've secretly protected humanity for centuries become targeted for their mysterious powers just as they discover a new immortal.

Malignant poster
Malignant
2021 Β· dir. James Wan
πŸ… 77%β˜… 6.2horror Β· mysteryRent or buy

Dread-soaked mystery, and it commits to that

The difference: Played as horror first

Madison is paralyzed by shocking visions of grisly murders, and her torment worsens as she discovers that these waking dreams are in fact terrifying realities with a mysterious tie to her past.

Scream poster
Scream
2022 Β· dir. Tyler Gillett
πŸ… 76%β˜… 6.3horror Β· mysteryNetflixParamount+

Twisty fantasy in both cases

Twenty-five years after a streak of brutal murders shocked the quiet town of Woodsboro, a new killer has donned the Ghostface mask and begins targeting a group of teenagers to resurrect secrets from the town’s deadly past.

Emerald Green poster
Emerald Green
2016 Β· dir. Katharina SchΓΆde
β˜… 5.9fantasy Β· action Β· mystery

Dreamlike action in both cases

Emerald Green is the stunning conclusion to Kerstin Gier's Ruby Red Trilogy, picking up where Sapphire Blue left off, reaching new heights of intrigue and romance as Gwen finally uncovers the secrets of the time-traveling society and learns her fate.

Forbidden Empire poster
Forbidden Empire
2014 Β· dir. Oleg Stepchenko
β˜… 5.2thriller Β· adventure Β· mysteryPrime Video

Fantasy built on dread, twice over

Early 18th century. Cartographer Jonathan Green undertakes a scientific voyage from Europe to the East. Having passed through Transylvania and crossed the Carpathian Mountains, he finds himself in a small village lost in impassible woods. Nothing but chance and heavy fog could bring him to this cursed place. People who live here do not resemble any other people which the traveler saw before that. The villagers, having dug a deep moat to fend themselves from the rest of the world, share a naive belief that they could save themselves from evil, failing to understand that evil has made its nest in their souls and is waiting for an opportunity to gush out upon the world.

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance poster
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
2011 Β· dir. Brian Taylor
πŸ… 18%β˜… 4.4action Β· fantasy Β· thriller

Common ground: angel

When the devil resurfaces with aims to take over the world in human form, Johnny Blaze reluctantly comes out of hiding to transform into the flame-spewing supernatural hero Ghost Rider -- and rescue a 10-year-old boy from an unsavory end.

Season of the Witch poster
Season of the Witch
2011 Β· dir. Dominic Sena
πŸ… 11%β˜… 5.4adventure Β· fantasy Β· actionPrime VideoHulu

Kinetic action, and it commits to that

A 14th century Crusader returns with his comrade to a homeland devastated by the Black Plague. The Church commands the two knights to transport a witch to a remote abbey, where monks will perform a ritual in hopes of ending the pestilence.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter poster
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
2012 Β· dir. Timur Bekmambetov
πŸ… 34%β˜… 5.9action Β· fantasy Β· horrorMax

Both are built on the same subject: vampire

President Lincoln's mother is killed by a supernatural creature, which fuels his passion to crush vampires and their slave-owning helpers.

Daredevil poster
Daredevil
2003 Β· dir. Mark Steven Johnson
πŸ… 42%β˜… 5.3fantasy Β· actionDisney+

The same fantasy instincts

By day, blind attorney Matt Murdock toils for justice in Hell's Kitchen. By night, he's Daredevil, The Man Without Fear - a powerful, masked vigilante stalking the dark streets with an uncanny "radar sense" that allows him to "see" with superhuman capabilities. But when the love of his life, fiery Elektra Natchios, is targeted by New York City's ruthless Kingpin of crime and his deadly assassin Bullseye, Daredevil may be about to meet his match.

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The best-reviewed films that share The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones’ defining feeling.