feelsalike.comSign in
The Secret of Kells poster

Movies that feel likeThe Secret of Kells (2009)

Adventure awaits 12 year old Brendan who must fight Vikings and a serpent god to find a crystal and complete the legendary Book of Kells. In order to finish Brother Aiden's book, Brendan must overcome his deepest fears on a secret quest that will take him beyond the abbey walls and into the enchanted forest where dangerous mythical creatures hide. Will Brendan succeed in his quest?

If you loved The Secret of Kells, the closest films we have are Song of the Sea (2014), Ponyo (2008) and Kirikou and the Sorceress (1998). All three share The Secret of Kells' whimsical and warm feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Boy & the World (2014).

🍅 90% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.5 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Tomm Moorewhimsicalwarmcozydreamlike
9 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max · Amazon Prime Video · Disney Plus

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

Not on subscription streaming right now. Rent or buy below.

See it on the Mood Map

If The Secret of Kells hit the spot, these will too

Song of the Sea poster
Song of the Sea
2014 · dir. Tomm Moore
🍅 99%★ 8family · animation · fantasy

Tomm Moore working the same nerve twice

The story of the last Seal Child’s journey home. After their mother’s disappearance, Ben and Saoirse are sent to live with Granny in the city. When they resolve to return to their home by the sea, their journey becomes a race against time as they are drawn into a world Ben knows only from his mother’s folktales. But this is no bedtime story; these fairy folk have been in our world far too long. It soon becomes clear to Ben that Saoirse is the key to their survival.

Ponyo poster
Ponyo
2008 · dir. Hayao Miyazaki
🍅 91%★ 7.6animation · fantasy · familyMax

Whimsical and warm in the same breath

When Sosuke, a young boy who lives on a clifftop overlooking the sea, rescues a stranded goldfish named Ponyo, he discovers more than he bargained for. Ponyo is a curious, energetic young creature who yearns to be human, but even as she causes chaos around the house, her father, a powerful sorcerer, schemes to return Ponyo to the sea.

Kirikou and the Sorceress poster
Kirikou and the Sorceress
1998 · dir. Michel Ocelot
🍅 96%★ 7.5fantasy · adventure · animationPrime Video

Both land comfort and dream logic at once

The difference: Leans harder into adventure than The Secret of Kells does

Drawn from elements of West African folk tales, it depicts how a newborn boy, Kirikou, saves his village from the evil witch Karaba.

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole poster
🍅 52%★ 6.9animation · adventure · family

Both lean on whimsy more than on animation

The difference: The scrappier of the two with critics

When a young owl is abducted by an evil Owl army, he must escape with new-found friends and seek the legendary Guardians to stop the menace.

The Book of Life poster
The Book of Life
2014 · dir. Jorge R. Gutierrez
🍅 82%★ 7.2animation · family · fantasyDisney+Peacock

Family built on warmth, twice over

The journey of Manolo, a young man who is torn between fulfilling the expectations of his family and following his heart. Before choosing which path to follow, he embarks on an incredible adventure that spans fantastical worlds where he must face his greatest fears.

Boy & the World poster
Boy & the World
2014 · dir. Alê Abreu
🍅 93%★ 7.5animation · fantasy · adventure

Cozy fantasy, and it commits to that

Suffering because of his father's departure to the big city, a boy leaves his village and discovers a fantastic world dominated by bug-engines and strange beings. An unusual animation with various artistic techniques that portrays the issues of the modern world through the eyes of a child.

Arthur and the Revenge of Maltazard poster
🍅 14%★ 5.3adventure · fantasy · animationPrime VideoStarz

Animation with a pulse of dream logic, in both cases

Arthur answers a distress call from Princess Selenia, who is menaced by the nefarious Maltazard.

Epic poster
Epic
2013 · dir. Chris Wedge
🍅 65%★ 6.6animation · adventure · familyMax

Whimsical family in both cases

A teenager finds herself transported to a deep forest setting where a battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil is taking place. She bands together with a rag-tag group characters in order to save their world—and ours.

Return to Never Land poster
Return to Never Land
2002 · dir. Robin Budd
🍅 46%★ 5.8adventure · fantasy · animationDisney+

Warm fantasy in both cases

In 1940, the world is besieged by World War II. Wendy, all grown up, has two children; including Jane, who does not believe Wendy's stories about Peter Pan.

Arrietty poster
Arrietty
2010 · dir. Hiromasa Yonebayashi
🍅 94%★ 7.6fantasy · animation · familyMax

Both lean on comfort more than on animation

14-year-old Arrietty and the rest of the Clock family live in peaceful anonymity as they make their own home from items "borrowed" from the house's human inhabitants. However, life changes for the Clocks when a human boy discovers Arrietty.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh poster
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
1977 · dir. John Lounsbery
🍅 100%★ 7.5animation · family · adventureDisney+

Family built on dream logic, twice over

The difference: Made in the 1970s, in a different era of the craft

Whether we’re young or forever young at heart, the Hundred Acre Wood calls to that place in each of us that still believes in magic. Join pals Pooh, Piglet, Kanga, Roo, Owl, Rabbit, Tigger and Christopher Robin as they enjoy their days together and sing their way through adventures.

The Last Unicorn poster
The Last Unicorn
1982 · dir. Jules Bass
🍅 75%★ 7.3fantasy · animation · familyPrime Video

Both play fantasy straight

A unicorn learns from a riddle-speaking butterfly that she is supposedly the last of her kind, all the others having been herded away by the monstrous Red Bull. The unicorn sets out to discover the truth behind the butterfly's words. She is eventually joined on her quest by Schmendrick, a second-rate magician, and Molly Grue, a middle-aged woman who dreamed all her life of seeing a unicorn. Their journey leads them far from home, all the way to the castle of King Haggard.

In the mood for more whimsical?

all whimsical movies →

The best-reviewed films that share The Secret of Kells’ defining feeling.