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Movies Like Big Fella

If you liked Big Fella (1938), a music and drama movie directed by J. Elder Wills, 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. 1Michael

    Michael (2026)

    ★ 8.6/10Also music and drama

    The story of Michael Jackson, one of the most influential artists the world has ever known, and his life beyond the music. His journey from the discovery of his extraordinary talent as the lead of the Jackson Five, to…

  2. 2I Can Only Imagine 2

    I Can Only Imagine 2 (2026)

    ★ 8.3/10Also music and drama

    Following the breakout success of the song 'I Can Only Imagine', MercyMe's Bart Millard is living the dream—sold-out arenas, a devoted fanbase, and a thriving career. But behind the spotlight, Bart's past threatens the…

  3. 3I Can Only Imagine

    I Can Only Imagine (2018)

    ★ 7.5/10Also music and drama

    Growing up in Greenville, Texas, Bart Millard suffers physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his father, Arthur. When Arthur becomes terminally ill, he finds redemption by embracing his faith and rediscovering…

  4. 4Tom Sawyer

    Tom Sawyer (1973)

    ★ 6.5/10Also music

    Tom Sawyer and his pal Huckleberry Finn have great adventures on the Mississippi River, pretending to be pirates, attending their own funeral, and witnessing a murder.

  5. 5Unsung Hero

    Unsung Hero (2024)

    ★ 7.1/10Also drama and music

    When David Smallbone's successful music company collapses, he moves his family from Australia to the United States in search of a brighter future. With nothing more than their six children, their suitcases, and their…

  6. 6The Jazz Singer

    The Jazz Singer (1927)

    ★ 6.1/10Also drama and music

    A young Jewish man is torn between tradition and individuality when his old-fashioned family objects to his career as a jazz singer. This is the first full length feature film to use synchronized sound, and is the…

  7. 7Boychoir

    Boychoir (2015)

    ★ 6.8/10Also music and drama

    A troubled and angry 11-year-old orphan from a small Texas town, ends up at a Boy Choir school after the death of his single mother. Completely out of his element, he finds himself in a battle of wills with a demanding…

  8. 8Little Lord Fauntleroy

    Little Lord Fauntleroy (1980)

    ★ 7.3/10Also drama

    Young Cedric Errol and his widowed mother live in genteel poverty in 1880s Brooklyn after the death of his father. Cedric's grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt, has long ago disowned his son for marrying an American…

  9. 9Make Mine Music

    Make Mine Music (1946)

    ★ 5.8/10Also music

    In the tradition of Fantasia, Make Mine Music is a glorious collection of musically charged animated shorts featuring such fun-filled favorites as "Peter and the Wolf", narrated by the beloved voice behind Winnie the…

  10. 10Honeydripper

    Honeydripper (2007)

    ★ 5.9/10Also drama and music

    In 1950s Alabama, the owner of the Honeydripper juke joint finds his business dropping off and against his better judgment, hires a young electric guitarist in a last ditch effort to draw crowds during harvest time.

  11. 11August Rush

    August Rush (2007)

    ★ 7.4/10Also drama and music

    Evan, a musically gifted orphan, runs away from his orphanage and searches New York City for his birth parents. On his journey, he's taken under the wing of the Wizard, a homeless man who lives in an abandoned theater…

  12. 12You Got Served

    You Got Served (2004)

    ★ 6.4/10Also music and drama

    At Mr. Rad's Warehouse, the best hip-hop crews in Los Angeles compete for money and respect. But when a suburban crew crashes the party, stealing their dancers — and their moves — two warring friends have to pull…

  13. 13Good Vibrations

    Good Vibrations (2012)

    ★ 6.7/10Also music and drama

    The story of music legend Terri Hooley, a key figure in Belfast's punk rock scene. Hooley founded the Good Vibrations store from which a record label sprung, representing bands such as The Undertones, Rudi and The…

  14. 14King Creole

    King Creole (1958)

    ★ 6.4/10Also drama and music

    Delinquent Danny Fisher flunks out of high school, quits his job as a nightclub busboy, and one night gets the chance to perform. Success is imminent and local crime boss Maxie Fields wants to hire him to perform at…

  15. 15Clouds

    Clouds (2020)

    ★ 8.2/10Also music and drama

    Young musician Zach Sobiech discovers his cancer has spread, leaving him just a few months to live. With limited time, he follows his dream and makes an album, unaware that it will soon be a viral music phenomenon.

  16. 16Yankee Doodle Dandy

    Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

    ★ 7/10Also drama and music

    A film of the life of the renowned musical composer, playwright, actor, dancer and singer George M. Cohan.

  17. 17Dreamgirls

    Dreamgirls (2006)

    ★ 6.7/10Also drama and music

    A trio of female soul singers cross over to the pop charts in the early 1960s, facing their own personal struggles along the way.

  18. 18Let It Shine

    Let It Shine (2012)

    ★ 7/10Also music

    A teenage rapper must use his musical talent to help a friend and win the girl of his dreams while overcoming self-doubt and the expectations of his strict religious parents.

  19. 19Too Late Blues

    Too Late Blues (1961)

    ★ 6.4/10Also drama and music

    Ghost is an ideological musician and leader of a jazz band who would rather play his blues in the park to the birds than compromise himself. His peripatetic performances lead him to cross paths with a singer, while his…

  20. 20The Deep End of the Ocean

    The Deep End of the Ocean (1999)

    ★ 6.6/10Also drama

    A three-year-old boy disappears during his mother's high school reunion. Nine years later, by chance, he turns up in the town in which the family has just relocated.

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