Movies Like Waves

If you liked Waves (2023), a movie directed by Janelle Basallo, 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
Captains Courageous (1937)
★ 7.4/10
Harvey, the arrogant and spoiled son of an indulgent absentee-father, falls overboard from a transatlantic steamship and is rescued by a fishing vessel on the Grand Banks. Harvey fails to persuade them to take him…
2
Along for the Ride (2022)
★ 6.6/10
The summer before college, Auden meets the mysterious Eli, a fellow insomniac. While the seaside town of Colby sleeps, the two embark on nightly quests to help Auden experience the fun, carefree teen life she never…
3
Strange Weather (2016)
★ 5.9/10
Years after her son's suicide, a woman longs to confront both the past and a friend of his who took his business idea.
4
The Thirteenth Year (1999)
★ 6.6/10
A teen learns that his birth mother is a mermaid after he begins to grow fins and slimy scales on his thirteenth birthday.
5
Meshes of the Afternoon (1943)
★ 7.6/10
A woman returning home falls asleep and has vivid dreams that may or may not be happening in reality. Through repetitive images and complete mismatching of the objective view of time and space, her dark inner desires…
6
The Unsaid (2001)
★ 6.6/10
A doctor dealing with the aftermath of his son's death tries to help a troubled young man.
7
Moll Flanders (1996)
★ 6.1/10
The daughter of a thief, young Moll is placed in the care of a nunnery after the execution of her mother. However, the actions of an abusive priest lead Moll to rebel as a teenager, escaping to the dangerous streets of…
8
Tuck Everlasting (2002)
★ 6.7/10
Teenager Winnie Foster is growing up in a small rural town in 1914 with her loving but overprotective parents, but Winnie longs for a life of greater freedom and adventure.
9
Northfork (2003)
★ 6/10
The year is 1955, and a great flood is coming to Northfork, Montana. A new hydroelectric dam is about to be installed in the mountains above the town, ready to submerge the valley in the name of progress. It is the…
10
True Spirit (2023)
★ 7/10
When the tenacious young sailor Jessica Watson sets out to be the youngest person to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the world, many expect her to fail. With the support of her sailing coach and mentor Ben…
11
Of Mice and Men (1992)
★ 7.2/10
Two drifters, one a gentle but slow giant, try to make money working the fields during the Depression so they can fulfill their dreams.
12
Charlie St. Cloud (2010)
★ 7/10
Accomplished sailor Charlie St. Cloud has the adoration of his mother Claire and his little brother Sam, as well as a college scholarship that will lead him far from his sleepy Pacific Northwest hometown. But his…
13
The Girl in the Book (2015)
★ 5.8/10
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
14
Home (2021)
★ 6.7/10
An ex-felon returns home from prison and must confront the demons of his past.
15
Alice in Wonderland (1933)
★ 6.1/10
In Victorian England, a bored young girl dreams that she has entered a fantasy world called Wonderland, populated by even more fantastic characters.
16
Passion of Mind (2000)
★ 5.8/10
A psychological romantic thriller where fantasy and reality become indistinguishable for a woman leading a double life in her dreams.
17
Life of Pi (2012)
★ 7.4/10
The story of an Indian boy named Pi, a zookeeper's son who finds himself in the company of a hyena, zebra, orangutan, and a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck sets them adrift in the Pacific Ocean.
18
Tigertail (2020)
★ 6.7/10
A man reflects on the lost love of his youth and his long-ago journey from Taiwan to America as he begins to reconnect with his estranged daughter.
19
American Skin (2019)
★ 7/10
A Marine veteran working as a school janitor tries to mend his relationship with his son after a divorce. When his son is killed by a police officer found innocent without standing trial, he takes matters into his own…
20
The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)
★ 7.2/10
A timid magazine photo manager who lives life vicariously through daydreams embarks on a true-life adventure when a negative goes missing.