Movies Like What Goes Up

If you liked What Goes Up (2009), a drama movie directed by Jonathan Glatzer, 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 Brotherhood of Justice (1986)
★ 6/10Also drama
High-school students start a vigilante group in their neighbourhood but, as their power increases, they become more abusive and dangerous.
2
White Bird in a Blizzard (2014)
★ 6.2/10Also drama
In 1988, a teenage girl's life is thrown into chaos when her mother disappears.
3
Hounddog (2008)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
A drama set in the American South, where a precocious, troubled girl finds a safe haven in the music and movement of Elvis Presley.
4
White Boy Rick (2018)
★ 6.4/10Also drama
The story of Richard Wershe Jr., a teenager who became an undercover informant for the police during the 1980s, and was ultimately arrested for drug trafficking and sentenced to life in prison.
5
My Friend Dahmer (2017)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
Jeffrey Dahmer struggles with a difficult family life as a young boy. During his teenage years he slowly transforms, edging closer to the serial killer he was to become.
6
The Principal (1987)
★ 6.4/10Also drama
Burglary. Drugs. Assault. Rape. The students at Brandel High are more than new Principal Rick Latimer bargained for. Gangs fight to control the school using knives - even guns - when they have to. When Latimer and the…
7
Blood Ties (2013)
★ 6.1/10Also drama
Two brothers, on either side of the law, face off over organized crime in Brooklyn during the 1970s.
8
The Basketball Diaries (1995)
★ 7.4/10Also drama
A high school basketball player’s life turns upside down after free-falling into the harrowing world of drug addiction.
9
The Girl in the Book (2015)
★ 5.8/10Also drama
The story of a young writer's transformation when her past invades her present.
10
Beautiful Boy (2018)
★ 7.6/10Also drama
After he and his first wife separate, journalist David Sheff struggles to help their teenage son, who goes from experimenting with drugs to becoming devastatingly addicted to methamphetamine.
11
Strange Weather (2016)
★ 5.9/10Also drama
Years after her son's suicide, a woman longs to confront both the past and a friend of his who took his business idea.
12
Lucky Them (2013)
★ 6/10Also drama
More interested in partying and flirting with young musicians than work, veteran rock journalist Ellie Klug has one last chance to prove her value to her magazine’s editor: a no-stone-unturned search to discover what…
13
Run (1991)
★ 6/10Also drama
When a law student accidentally kills the son of a mob boss in a fight, he finds himself relentlessly pursued by the mob and the police.
14
uwantme2killhim? (2013)
★ 5.9/10Also drama
Based on the Vanity Fair article of the same title, a story about a young boy drawn into a web of lies through an online chatroom.
15
Coffy (1973)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
After her younger sister gets involved in drugs and is severely injured by contaminated heroin, a nurse sets out on a mission of vengeance and vigilante justice, killing drug dealers, pimps, and mobsters who cross her…
16
180 (2026)
★ 5.9/10Also drama
When an unexpected road rage incident puts his son in critical condition, an enraged father spirals down a dark path of emotional turmoil and vengeance.
17
Rise of the Footsoldier 3 (2017)
★ 6.4/10Also drama
In the late 1980s, Pat Tate journeys from peddling pills in Marbella to his time in prison, where he solidifies his power before his release to reclaim his turf.
18
The Infiltrator (2016)
★ 6.7/10Also drama
A U.S Customs official uncovers a massive money laundering scheme involving Pablo Escobar.
19
The Poker House (2008)
★ 6.2/10Also drama
Agnes and her two sisters struggle through a day in a home overrun by gamblers, thieves, and johns.
20
Lean On Me (1989)
★ 7.3/10Also drama
When principal Joe Clark takes over decaying Eastside High School, he's faced with students wearing gang colors and graffiti-covered walls. Determined to do anything he must to turn the school around, he expels…