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Movies Like Ballad of the Yellow River

If you liked Ballad of the Yellow River (1989), a drama movie directed by Teng Wenji, 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. 1One Second

    One Second (2020)

    ★ 7.3/10Also drama

    A movie fan escapes from a labour camp during the Chinese Cultural Revolution and strikes up a relationship with a homeless female vagabond.

  2. 2Skin

    Skin (2009)

    ★ 6.4/10Also drama

    Based on the true story of a black girl who was born to two white Afrikaner parents in South Africa during the apartheid era.

  3. 3Black Dog

    Black Dog (2024)

    ★ 7.1/10Also drama

    Released from jail, Lang returns to his hometown in Northwest China. As part of a dog patrol tasked with clearing stray dogs before the 2008 Olympics, he bonds with a black stray. The two lonely souls embark on a new…

  4. 4Lighting Up the Stars

    Lighting Up the Stars (2022)

    ★ 7.4/10Also drama

    Having been released after serving his sentence, a funeral director accidentally crosses paths with a girl which brings about an unexpected change in his attitude towards life.

  5. 5The Young One

    The Young One (1960)

    ★ 7/10Also drama

    A jazz musician seeks refuge from a lynch mob on a remote island, where he meets a hostile game warden and the young object of his attentions.

  6. 6Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains

    Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains (2020)

    ★ 7.3/10Also drama

    In the Chinese town of Fuyang, four brothers go about their day-to-day lives, their destinies shaped by love and challenges.

  7. 7What Maisie Knew

    What Maisie Knew (2013)

    ★ 7.1/10Also drama

    In New York City, six-year-old Maisie is caught in the middle of a bitter custody battle between her self-absorbed parents—an aging rock singer mother and a distracted art dealer father. As both quickly marry new…

  8. 8Hardball

    Hardball (2001)

    ★ 6.5/10Also drama

    An aimless young man who is scalping tickets, gambling and drinking, agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of getting a loan from a friend.

  9. 9Girl in the Box

    Girl in the Box (2016)

    ★ 6.7/10Also drama

    The true story of 20-year-old Colleen Stan, a hitchhiking woman abducted by a young couple and held captive for seven years, during which time she's tortured and forced to live as a slave to her captors.

  10. 10Upstream

    Upstream (2024)

    ★ 6.8/10Also drama

    A moment of impulsiveness turns Gao Zhilei into a "stay-at-home" individual, but he never expected his life to take a turn in the opposite direction. A series of changes compel him to take on his responsibilities as…

  11. 11Hounddog

    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.

  12. 12Imperial Dreams

    Imperial Dreams (2014)

    ★ 6.5/10Also drama

    A 21-year-old reformed gangster's devotion to his family and his future is put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his old stomping grounds in Watts, Los Angeles.

  13. 13Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl

    Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl (1998)

    ★ 7.2/10Also drama

    Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even…

  14. 14The Short History of the Long Road

    The Short History of the Long Road (2019)

    ★ 7.3/10Also drama

    Nola grew up living in a van with her father, Clint—two nomads against the world. When tragedy strikes, Nola must confront the reality of life on the road alone, learning to own her grief, her past, and her new…

  15. 15Caught by the Tides

    Caught by the Tides (2024)

    ★ 6.7/10Also drama

    Years after her boyfriend left her for the big city and promised to bring her there after he’s settled down, a Chinese woman sets out on a journey to be reunited with him.

  16. 16A Question of Faith

    A Question of Faith (2017)

    ★ 7.5/10Also drama

    When Tragedy Strikes three Families, their Destiny forces them on a coverging path and mercy as the challenges of their fate could also resurrect their beliefs

  17. 17Kaili Blues

    Kaili Blues (2016)

    ★ 7.1/10Also drama

    Chen Sheng goes off in search of his nephew who has been abandoned by his father. Along the way, he encounters numerous people from his past and also those from his future.

  18. 18A Sun

    A Sun (2019)

    ★ 7.7/10Also drama

    A family of four fractures under the weight of unmet expectations, unexpected tragedy, and uncompromising pride.

  19. 19Police Story: Lockdown

    Police Story: Lockdown (2013)

    ★ 6.2/10Also drama

    A man looking for the release of a long-time prisoner takes a police officer, his daughter, and a group of strangers hostage.

  20. 20The Kindness of Strangers

    The Kindness of Strangers (2019)

    ★ 6.4/10Also drama

    Clara and her two sons escape from her abusive husband with little more than their car and plan to start over in New York. After the car towed away, the family meets Alice, who gets them into an emergency shelter…

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