Movies Like Desperate Living

If you liked Desperate Living (1977), a comedy and crime movie directed by John Waters, 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
Hard to Die (1990)
★ 6/10Also comedy
While doing the inventory for a lingerie outlet in a high rise office building, five attractive women are terrorized by a series of bizarre killings. They suspect that the strange janitor, who witnessed another series…
2
Ricky Gervais: Mortality (2025)
★ 7/10Also comedy
Ricky Gervais tackles life, death and the state of the world in a brutally honest special that spares no topic, even his own mortality.
3
Who Is Cletis Tout? (2001)
★ 5.9/10Also comedy and crime
With a hitman’s gun aimed at him, Finch tells the story of how he broke out of jail, fell in love, and took the identity of a man wanted by the Mafia.
4
South Park (Not Suitable for Children) (2023)
★ 7.4/10Also comedy
After it's discovered that a teacher at South Park Elementary has an OnlyFans page, Randy is compelled to take a closer look at the seedy underbelly of the world of online influencers.
5
Smokin' Aces (2006)
★ 6.5/10Also comedy and crime
When a Las Vegas performer-turned-snitch named Buddy Israel decides to turn state's evidence and testify against the mob, it seems that a whole lot of people would like to make sure he's no longer breathing.
6
Hobo with a Shotgun (2011)
★ 5.9/10Also crime
A vigilante homeless man pulls into a new city and finds himself trapped in urban chaos, a city where crime rules and where the city's crime boss reigns. Seeing an urban landscape filled with armed robbers, corrupt…
7
Pink Flamingos (1972)
★ 6.1/10Also comedy and crime
Notorious Baltimore criminal and underground figure Divine goes up against Connie & Raymond Marble, a sleazy married couple who make a passionate attempt to humiliate her and seize her tabloid-given title as "The…
8
Female Trouble (1976)
★ 6.9/10Also comedy and crime
Teenage delinquent Dawn Davenport, incensed after her parents do not give her the cha-cha heels she wanted for Christmas, runs away from home. After an illegitimate child and hairstylist husband bring her more misery…
9
68 Kill (2017)
★ 5.9/10Also comedy and crime
Chip's problem is that he can't say no to beautiful women. This weakness gets him into a world of trouble when he agrees to help his girlfriend steal $68,000.
10
Bill Burr: Drop Dead Years (2025)
★ 7.2/10Also comedy
In what might be his most personal and introspective hour yet, Bill offers hilarious takes on everything from male sadness to dating advice.
11
Ricky Gervais: Armageddon (2023)
★ 7.1/10Also comedy
Ricky Gervais dishes out controversial takes on political correctness and oversensitivity in a taboo-busting comedy special about the end of humanity.
12
High Anxiety (1977)
★ 6.4/10Also comedy
A psychiatrist with intense acrophobia (fear of heights) goes to work for a mental institution run by doctors who appear to be crazier than their patients, and have secrets that they are willing to commit murder to keep.
13
Louis C.K.: Oh My God (2013)
★ 7.6/10Also comedy
Filmed at the Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, AZ on February 15th and 16th, 2013, Oh My God is Louis C.K.'s fifth stand-up special, his first for HBO since 2007's Shameless, and his first since winning a Emmy Award for…
14
Rise of the Footsoldier (2007)
★ 6.4/10Also crime
Carlton Leach rises from one of the most feared generals of the football terraces to becoming a member of a notorious gang of criminals who rampaged their way through London and Essex in the late '80s and early '90s.
15
Dave Chappelle: The Unstoppable... (2025)
★ 6.7/10Also comedy
Facing a world gone sideways, comedy icon Dave Chappelle delivers bold truths and potent punchlines in this no-holds-barred special.
16
A Clockwork Orange (1971)
★ 8.2/10Also crime
In a near-future Britain, young Alexander DeLarge and his pals get their kicks beating and raping anyone they please. When not destroying the lives of others, Alex swoons to the music of Beethoven. The state, eager to…
17
Accident Man (2018)
★ 6.3/10Also crime and comedy
Mike Fallon, the Accident Man, is a stone cold killer. When a loved one is murdered by his own crew, Fallon is forced to avenge the one person who actually meant something to him.
18
Pretty Persuasion (2005)
★ 5.8/10Also comedy
A 15-year-old girl incites chaos among her friends and a media frenzy when she accuses her drama teacher of sexual harassment.
19
In the Blood (2014)
★ 5.8/10Also crime
When her husband goes missing during their Caribbean vacation, a woman sets off on her own to take down the men she thinks are responsible.
20
Sin City (2005)
★ 7.5/10Also crime
Welcome to Sin City. This town beckons to the tough, the corrupt, the brokenhearted. Some call it dark… Hard-boiled. Then there are those who call it home — Crooked cops, sexy dames, desperate vigilantes. Some are…