Movies Like Muddy River

If you liked Muddy River (1981), a drama movie directed by Kōhei Oguri, 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
Repast (1951)
★ 7.6/10Also drama
In post-WWII Osaka, a middle-aged woman is forced to examine her dreary life and marriage when her husband's young and flirtatious cousin arrives for a brief stay to escape an arranged marriage.
2
Look Back (2024)
★ 8.2/10Also drama
Popular, outgoing Fujino is celebrated by her classmates for her funny comics in the class newspaper. One day, her teacher asks her to share the space with Kyomoto, a truant recluse whose beautiful artwork sparks a…
3
The End of Summer (1961)
★ 7.5/10Also drama
The family of an older man who runs a small sake brewery become concerned with his finances and his health after they discover him visiting an old mistress from his youth.
4
Taboo (1999)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
Set during Japan's Shogun era, this film looks at life in a samurai compound where young warriors are trained in swordfighting. A number of interpersonal conflicts are brewing in the training room, all centering on a…
5
Twenty-Four Eyes (1954)
★ 7.7/10Also drama
From 1928 to 1946, the lives of 12 young people and their school teacher in a poor Japanese village are profoundly affected by historical events and personal circumstances.
6
From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
★ 7.5/10Also drama
Yokohama, 1963. Japan is picking itself up from the devastation of World War II and preparing to host the 1964 Olympics—and the mood is one of both optimism and conflict as the young generation struggles to throw off…
7
The Hidden Fortress (1958)
★ 8/10Also drama
In feudal Japan, during a bloody war between clans, two cowardly and greedy peasants, soldiers of a defeated army, stumble upon a mysterious man who guides them to a fortress hidden in the mountains.
8
Late Spring (1949)
★ 8/10Also drama
Noriko is perfectly happy living at home with her widowed father, Shukichi, and has no plans to marry -- that is, until her aunt Masa convinces Shukichi that unless he marries off his 27-year-old daughter soon, she…
9
Love & Pop (1998)
★ 7.7/10Also drama
Tokyo schoolgirl Hiromi and her friends engage in a practice known as enjo kosai, or "compensated dating", where older men pay young girls for dates. Hiromi plunges deeper into this world to raise money for an…
10
Tokyo Fist (1995)
★ 6.8/10Also drama
A businessman, Tsuda, runs into a childhood friend, Kojima, on the subway. Kojima is working as a semiprofessional boxer. Tsuda soon begins to suspect that Kojima might be having an affair with his fiancée Hizuru…
11
No Regrets for Our Youth (1946)
★ 6.9/10Also drama
After her anti-fascist professor father is dismissed, Yukie navigates love, political repression, and wartime upheaval—ultimately forging her own path in pre- and post-WWII Japan.
12
House of Bamboo (1955)
★ 6.2/10Also drama
Eddie Kenner is given a special assignment by the Army to get the inside story on Sandy Dawson, a former GI who has formed a gang of fellow servicemen and Japanese locals.
13
Tokyo Story (1953)
★ 8.2/10Also drama
The elderly Shukishi and his wife, Tomi, take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi, a doctor, and their daughter, Shige, a hairdresser, don't…
14
Museum (2016)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
In Tokyo, Japan, several grotesque murders take place on rainy days. Detective Sawamura, who is in charge of the case, soon discovers that his own family is connected to the crimes.
15
The Outsider (2018)
★ 6.1/10Also drama
A former American G.I. joins a yakuza family after his release from prison in post-World War II Osaka.
16
Kensuke's Kingdom (2024)
★ 7.1/10Also drama
A young boy and his family set off on a sailing trip of a lifetime until a violent storm erupts, sweeping Michael and his dog overboard. After washing up on a remote island, terrified, they struggle to survive and…
17
Blood and Bones (2004)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
In 1923, teenager Kim Shun-Pei moves from Cheju Island, in South Korea, to Osaka, in Japan. Along the years, he becomes a cruel, greedy and violent man and builds a factory of kamaboko, processed seafood products, in…
18
Kids Return (1996)
★ 6.9/10Also drama
Shinji and Masaru spend most of their school days harassing fellow classmates and playing pranks. They drop out and Shinji becomes a small-time boxer, while Masaru joins up with a local yakuza gang. However, the world…
19
Sakuran (2006)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
Kiyoha rises from the lowly courtesan ranks to the high class position of Oiran in the steamy red-light district of Yoshiwara. She is determined to stand on her own two feet and live life as she pleased.
20
Harmonium (2016)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
Toshio hires Yasaka to work in his workshop. But then this old acquaintance, who has just been released from prison, begins to meddle in Toshio's family life.