Movies Like Essays

If you liked Essays (2000), a drama and animation movie directed by Sergey Ovcharov, 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
Matriculated (2003)
★ 6.6/10Also animation and drama
The human resistance works to convert a sentinel to their side. Part of the Animatrix collection of animated shorts set in the Matrix universe.
2
The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep (2025)
★ 6.7/10Also animation
When human sailors are attacked by mysterious creatures of the deep, only one person can stop the war between land and sea: the Witcher, Geralt of Rivia.
3
Strings (2004)
★ 6.6/10Also animation and drama
The story of Prince Hal who sets out to avenge his dead father against the city's rivals, the Zeriths, little knowing it was his wicked uncle Nezo who is the real killer, with his own designs on the throne.
4
Pear Cider and Cigarettes (2016)
★ 6.8/10Also animation and drama
The brutally honest story of Robert's turbulent relationship with a self-destructive, yet charismatic friend from childhood, who cries out for help from a military hospital in China and sets Rob on a wild ride to get…
5
Japoteurs (1942)
★ 6/10Also animation
Superman vs. Japanese spies hijacking a new super-bomber.
6
Primal: Tales of Savagery (2019)
★ 8.4/10Also animation and drama
Genndy Tartakovsky's Primal: Tales of Savagery features a caveman and a dinosaur on the brink of extinction. Bonded by tragedy, this unlikely friendship becomes the only hope of survival.
7
The Breadwinner (2017)
★ 7.8/10Also animation and drama
A headstrong young girl in Afghanistan, ruled by the Taliban, disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family.
8
Ploey: You Never Fly Alone (2018)
★ 6.2/10Also animation
A plover chick has not learned to fly when his family migrates in the fall. He must survive the arctic winter, vicious enemies and himself in order to be reunited with his beloved one next spring.
9
Girl in the Box (2016)
★ 6.7/10Also drama
The true story of 20-year-old Colleen Stan, a hitchhiking woman abducted by a young couple and held captive for seven years, during which time she's tortured and forced to live as a slave to her captors.
10
Hilda and the Mountain King (2021)
★ 7.6/10Also animation and drama
When Hilda wakes up in the body of a troll, she must use her wits and courage to get back home, become human again — and save the city of Trolberg.
11
Welcome to Smelliville (2021)
★ 6.7/10Also animation
The Oggly family arrive at the municipal rubbish dump of Smelliville and must look for a new home, but they never feel really welcome anywhere. They stink and are for most humans just a tad too oggly. When Firebottom…
12
Deathstroke: Knights & Dragons - The Movie (2020)
★ 7/10Also animation
The assassin Deathstroke tries to save his family from the wrath of H.I.V.E. and the murderous Jackal.
13
Skin (2009)
★ 6.4/10Also drama
Based on the true story of a black girl who was born to two white Afrikaner parents in South Africa during the apartheid era.
14
Ostinato (2024)
★ 6/10Also animation and drama
In this animated short, a composer realizes that incorporating a discordant tone instead of fighting it creates an unexpectedly beautiful harmony. This short was inspired by writer Sunita Balsara's experience with…
15
The Little Matchgirl (2006)
★ 7.4/10Also animation and drama
An animated short based on Hans Christian Andersen's tale about a poor young girl with a burning desire to find comfort and happiness in her life. Desperate to keep warm, the girl lights the matches she sells, and…
16
Bilal: A New Breed of Hero (2016)
★ 6.8/10Also animation
A thousand years ago, one boy with a dream of becoming a great warrior is abducted with his sister and taken to a land far away from home. Thrown into a world where greed and injustice rule all, Bilal finds the courage…
17
The Parts You Lose (2019)
★ 6.7/10Also drama
An unlikely friendship unfolds between a young deaf boy, Wesley, and a fugitive criminal who takes refuge in an abandoned barn on the family’s rural North Dakota farm.
18
Dragons: Rescue Riders: Secrets of the Songwing (2020)
★ 7.3/10Also animation
When a musical dragon with a beautiful voice hypnotizes the dragons and people of Huttsgalor, the Rescue Riders have to find a way to break the spell.
19
Babes in the Woods (1932)
★ 6.1/10Also animation
Two Dutch children stumble on a clearing in the woods where gnomes are going about their business. The gnomes are friendly to the children. A witch comes and takes them away on her broom to her gingerbread house, where…
20
The Gruffalo (2009)
★ 7.4/10Also animation
The magical tale of a mouse who sets foot on a woodland adventure in search of a nut. Encountering predators who all wish to eat him - Fox, Owl and Snake - the brave mouse creates a terrifying, imaginary monster to…