Movies Like Harukanaru haha no kao

If you liked Harukanaru haha no kao (1960), a movie directed by Eiichi Koishi, 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
Fortune Favors Lady Nikuko (2021)
★ 7/10
Brash single mother Nikuko is well-known for her bold spirit, much to the embarrassment of Kikuko, her pensive yet imaginative daughter. In contrast to her mother, Kikuko wants nothing more than to fit in as she…
2
Call Me Chihiro (2023)
★ 7.2/10
An unapologetic former sex worker starts working at a bento stand in a small seaside town, bringing comfort to the lonely souls who come her way.
3
My Happy Marriage (2023)
★ 7.4/10
An unhappy young woman from an abusive family is married off to a fearsome and chilly army commander. But the two learn more about each other, love may have a chance.
4
Girl in the Basement (2021)
★ 7.6/10
Sara is a teen girl who is looking forward to her 18th birthday to move away from her controlling father Don. But before she could even blow out the candles, Don imprisons her in the basement of their home.
5
Laggies (2014)
★ 6.1/10
Overeducated and underemployed, 28 year old Megan is in the throes of a quarterlife crisis. Squarely into adulthood with no career prospects, no particular motivation to think about her future and no one to relate to…
6
After (2019)
★ 7.1/10
Tessa Young is a dedicated student, dutiful daughter and loyal girlfriend to her high school sweetheart. Entering her first semester of college, Tessa's guarded world opens up when she meets Hardin Scott, a mysterious…
7
Bunny Drop (2011)
★ 7.1/10
Daikichi learns that his recently deceased grandfather has an illegitimate daughter with an unknown mother. The girl's name is Rin and she is just 6 years old. Everybody in Daikichi's family looks at the girl as an…
8
Hot Gimmick: Girl Meets Boy (2019)
★ 5.9/10
A quiet teen's life is shaken up when she's forced to be her arrogant neighbor's slave. He loves her, but they both have a lot to learn about trust.
9
MOTHER (2020)
★ 7/10
Shuhei is leading a tough life. His alcoholic mother Akiko can only hook up with bad guys and order Shuhei to go get money from his disapproving grandparents instead of going to school. Except raising the little…
10
Gantz (2010)
★ 6.5/10
After trying to rescue a man on the subway tracks, two teens wake up in a room dominated by a mysterious black sphere that sends them to hunt down and kill aliens hiding on Earth.
11
Belle (2021)
★ 7.6/10
Suzu is a 17-year-old high-school student living in a rural town with her father. Wounded by the loss of her mother at a young age, Suzu one day discovers the massive online world "U" and dives into this alternate…
12
Moving (1993)
★ 7.5/10
Physically separated from her father and at odds with her distraught mother, a girl must negotiate her own passage to maturity.
13
Fish Tank (2009)
★ 6.9/10
Fifteen-year-old Mia is in a constant state of war with her family and the world around her. When she meets her party-girl mother’s charming new boyfriend Connor, she is amazed to find he returns her attention, and…
14
Laurel Canyon (2003)
★ 6/10
When an uptight young man and his fiancée move into his libertine mother's house, the resulting clash of life attitudes shakes everyone up.
15
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable – Chapter 1 (2017)
★ 6.6/10
Welcome to idyllic Morioh, whose ocean views and charming townscapes make it a breezy Japanese utopia. But a chain of grisly killings has cast a bloody pall of uncertainty over its residents, especially Josuke…
16
Wildflower (2023)
★ 7.4/10
The story of Bea Johnson from birth to graduation as she navigates life with an intellectually disabled parent and an extended family who can't quite agree on the best way to help.
17
Love Me Love Me (2026)
★ 6.1/10
After her brother's death, June moves to Milan for a fresh start, finding comfort in Will, the perfect honor student at her new international school. But when his troubled best friend James—hiding a dangerous life in…
18
GO (2001)
★ 7.4/10
Sugihara, a Japanese-born, third-generation Korean teenager struggles to find a place in a society that will not accept him.
19
Oldboy (2013)
★ 5.9/10
A man has only three and a half days and limited resources to discover why he was imprisoned in a nondescript room for 20 years without any explanation.
20
The Quiet (2006)
★ 6.1/10
After her widowed father dies, deaf teenager Dot moves in with her godparents, Olivia and Paul Deer. The Deers' daughter, Nina, is openly hostile to Dot, but that does not prevent her from telling her secrets to her…