Movies Like An American Pilot

If you liked An American Pilot (1980), a movie directed by Wang Yi and Weiyi Wang, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
Buddha Mountain (2011)
★ 6.7/10
In Chengdu, China, a retired female opera singer named Master Chang takes in a trio of young tenants into her boarding home. The tenants include a rock singer and a college student who has run away from home.
2
Lost in Beijing (2007)
★ 6.5/10
A look at modern-day life in China's capital centered on a ménage-a-quatre involving a young woman, her boss, her husband and her boss's wife.
3
Lan Yu (2001)
★ 7.2/10
A love story between a country boy in Beijing to study and a wealthy businessman set against the backdrop of the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident.
4
Summer Palace (2007)
★ 7.4/10
Yu Hong leaves her home village and starts university in Beijing, where she develops a consuming and compulsive relationship with another student. The student riots from 1989 then ensue and take a toll on their lives.
5
Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998)
★ 7.2/10
Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even…
6
Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
★ 7.1/10
A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as…
7
Rip Girls (2000)
★ 6.3/10
A teen-age girl and her father come to an island on Hawaii, they find a closer relationship to each other and think about changing the island. During her adventures, Sydney finds friends, a new hobby with her fantastic…
8
Black Dog (2024)
★ 7.1/10
Released from jail, Lang returns to his hometown in Northwest China. As part of a dog patrol tasked with clearing stray dogs before the 2008 Olympics, he bonds with a black stray. The two lonely souls embark on a new…
9
Upstream (2024)
★ 6.8/10
A moment of impulsiveness turns Gao Zhilei into a "stay-at-home" individual, but he never expected his life to take a turn in the opposite direction. A series of changes compel him to take on his responsibilities as…
10
The Rescue (2020)
★ 7/10
A rescue unit within the Chinese Coast Guard are forced to overcome their personal differences to resolve a crisis.
11
Back to Back, Face to Face (1994)
★ 8.3/10
Wang Shuangli is Deputy Director of the local Cultural Centre, and hopes to be appointed Director. However Old Ma is brought in from the country and installed as Director. This starts a long train of events with Wang's…
12
The Truth About Emanuel (2013)
★ 6/10
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
13
Under the Hawthorn Tree (2010)
★ 7.8/10
The daughter of a right-winger, schoolgirl Jing Qiu is sent to the countryside for reeducation, and tasked to help write a textbook. There she meets Lao San, a young soldier with a bright future ahead. Despite the…
14
Caught by the Tides (2024)
★ 6.7/10
Years after her boyfriend left her for the big city and promised to bring her there after he’s settled down, a Chinese woman sets out on a journey to be reunited with him.
15
Fast Girls (2012)
★ 6/10
A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.
16
Brotherhood of Blades (2014)
★ 6.7/10
In the late Ming Dynasty, three sworn brothers who serve as the imperial secret police are dispatched to hunt down Wei Zhongxian, a eunuch politician who had been forced to resign from his influential post and exiled…
17
Return to Dust (2022)
★ 7.3/10
Humble, unassuming Ma and timid Cao have been cast off by their families and forced into an arranged marriage. They have to combine their strength and build a home to survive. In the face of much adversity, an…
18
The Trials of Cate McCall (2013)
★ 6.4/10
In order to be reinstated to the bar and recover custody of her daughter, a hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and on probation, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder.
19
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
★ 7.7/10
An aging Chinese immigrant is swept up in an insane adventure, where she alone can save what's important to her by connecting with the lives she could have led in other universes.
20
He Said, She Said (1991)
★ 5.9/10
Womanising, right-wing Dan Hanson and quiet, liberal Lorie Bryer work for the Baltimore Sun. Rivals for the job of new writer of a vacant column, the paper ends up instead printing their very different opinions…