Movies Like Shakespeare Behind Bars
If you liked Shakespeare Behind Bars (2005), a documentary movie directed by Hank Rogerson, 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
The Work (2017)
★ 7.5/10Also documentarySet entirely inside Folsom Prison, The Work follows three men during four days of intensive group therapy with convicts, revealing an intimate and powerful portrait of authentic human transformation that transcends…
- 2
Looking for Richard (1996)
★ 6.8/10Also documentaryAl Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
- 3
The Alabama Solution (2025)
★ 6.9/10Also documentaryIncarcerated men defy the odds to expose a cover-up in one of America’s deadliest prison systems.
- 4
The Crash (2026)
★ 6.8/10Also documentaryA teen slams her car into a building, killing her boyfriend and his friend. What seems like a tragic accident becomes a murder case.
- 5
13th (2016)
★ 7.8/10Also documentaryAn in-depth look at the prison system in the United States and how it reveals the nation's history of racial inequality.
- 6
Louis Theroux: Behind Bars (2008)
★ 7.4/10Also documentaryFor two weeks, Theroux visits the San Quentin State Prison.
- 7
Crips and Bloods: Made in America (2009)
★ 6.6/10Also documentaryWith a first-person look at the notorious Crips and Bloods, this film examines the conditions that have lead to decades of devastating gang violence among young African Americans growing up in South Los Angeles.
- 8
A Toxic Love Story (2026)
★ 6.4/10Also documentaryA string of threatening emails escalates into a revenge plot involving a newly married US marshal and his ex-girlfriend.
- 9
Into the Abyss (2011)
★ 6.9/10Also documentaryWe do not know when and how we will die. Death Row inmates do. Werner Herzog embarks on a dialogue with Death Row inmates, asks questions about life and death and looks deep into these individuals, their stories, their…
- 10
Maternal Instinct (2026)
★ 7.2/10Also documentaryPolice pull over a woman who claims she just gave birth. But the baby — and the blood — aren't hers. Twisted lies unravel in this true-crime documentary.
- 11
Seduced and Abandoned (2013)
★ 6.2/10Also documentarySEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director…
- 12
Titicut Follies (1967)
★ 7.3/10Also documentaryEmploying methods of direct cinema–observation, limited stylization, and non-intervention–this stark look into the State Prison for the Criminally Insane in Bridgewater, Massachusetts shows its denizens, who were often…
- 13
Evil Influencer: The Jodi Hildebrandt Story (2025)
★ 6.2/10Also documentaryUnravel the case of Utah therapist Jodi Hildebrandt, whose child abuse arrest with parenting YouTuber Ruby Franke exposed a twisted tale of manipulation.
- 14
28 Up (1985)
★ 7.5/10Also documentaryJust two years away from turning 30, participants in Michael Apted's documentary series are facing serious questions of identity and purpose, wondering whether they've found their place in the world.
- 15
Elstree 1976 (2015)
★ 6.2/10Also documentaryA documentary about ten very different lives connected by having appeared onscreen wearing masks or helmets in Star Wars.
- 16
Biggie & Tupac (2002)
★ 6.4/10Also documentaryIn 1997, rap superstars Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace (aka Biggie Smalls, The Notorious B.I.G.) were gunned down in separate incidents, the apparent victims of hip hop's infamous east-west rivalry. Nick…
- 17
McQueen (2018)
★ 7.4/10Also documentaryAlexander McQueen's rags-to-riches story is a modern-day fairy tale, laced with the gothic. Mirroring the savage beauty, boldness and vivacity of his design, this documentary is an intimate revelation of McQueen's own…
- 18
The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)
★ 6.6/10Also documentaryDocumentary about legendary Paramount producer Robert Evans, based on his famous 1994 autobiography.
- 19
Michael Moore in TrumpLand (2016)
★ 5.9/10Also documentaryOscar-winner Michael Moore dives right into hostile territory with his daring and hilarious one-man show, deep in the heart of TrumpLand in the weeks before the 2016 election.
- 20
Dawg Fight (2015)
★ 6.4/10Also documentaryIn a crime-plagued neighborhood near Miami, brutal, bare-knuckled backyard fights give young men a chance to earn money -- and self-respect.