Movies Like Shanghai Rhapsody

If you liked Shanghai Rhapsody (1984), a comedy and drama movie directed by Kinji Fukasaku, 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
Clika (2026)
★ 8.3/10Also music and drama
Aspiring small-town musician Chito is determined to make it big. When a clip of him performing one of his songs goes viral, he seizes the opportunity and pushes to carve out a place for himself in the new wave of…
2
Sweet and Lowdown (1999)
★ 6.8/10Also comedy and drama
In the 1930s, jazz guitarist Emmet Ray idolizes Django Reinhardt, faces gangsters and falls in love with a mute woman.
3
Coda (2020)
★ 6.1/10Also music and drama
A famous pianist at the twilight of his career meets a free-spirited music critic who soon becomes his rock as his mental state deteriorates.
4
School Dance (2014)
★ 7.4/10Also comedy and music
High schooler Jason has found his dream girl—the gorgeous Anastacia. There’s just one problem: she doesn’t know he exists. If he can win a spot on the school’s hottest dance crew, Jason might have a shot. But before he…
5
Feel the Beat (2020)
★ 7.5/10Also comedy and music
After failing to make it on Broadway, April returns to her hometown and reluctantly begins training a misfit group of young dancers for a competition.
6
Grace of My Heart (1996)
★ 6/10Also comedy and drama
Philadelphia teenager Edna Buxton wins a talent contest during the early rock 'n' roll era, changes her name to Denise Waverly and moves to New York City to make it big. Though she flops as a recording artist…
7
Krush Groove (1985)
★ 6.4/10Also comedy and drama
Russell Walker is a young, successful manager of rap performers, handling acts for the Krush Groove label, including Run-DMC and The Fat Boys. When Run-D.M.C. has a hit record and Russell needs more money to press more…
8
10,000 Saints (2015)
★ 6/10Also comedy and drama
A sweeping multigenerational story set against the backdrop of the raw, roaring New York City of the late 1980s; adoption, teen pregnancy, drugs, hardcore punk rock, the unbridled optimism and reckless stupidity of the…
9
Drumline: A New Beat (2014)
★ 6.8/10Also music and comedy
A girl from New York attends a college in Atlanta to join their once-famous marching band.
10
CQ (2001)
★ 5.9/10Also comedy and drama
A young filmmaker in 1960s Paris juggles directing a cheesy sci-fi debacle, directing his own personal art film, coping with his crumbling relationship with his girlfriend, and a new-found infatuation with the sci-fi…
11
Moxie (2021)
★ 7.2/10Also comedy and drama
Inspired by her mom's rebellious past and a confident new friend, a shy 16-year-old publishes an anonymous zine calling out sexism at her school.
12
Small Apartments (2012)
★ 5.9/10Also comedy and drama
When a clumsy deadbeat accidentally kills his landlord, he must do everything in his power to hide the body, only to find that the distractions of lust, the death of his beloved brother, and a crew of misfit characters…
13
Wild Rose (2019)
★ 6.8/10Also music and comedy
A young Scottish singer, Rose-Lynn Harlan, dreams of making it as a country artist in Nashville after being released from prison.
14
Don't Think Twice (2016)
★ 6.4/10Also comedy and drama
An improv group deals with several crises, including the loss of their lease and one member hitting the big time.
15
Lady Windermere's Fan (1925)
★ 6.9/10Also comedy and drama
A society woman believes her husband is having an affair, a misconception which may have dire personal consequences for all involved.
16
Metal Lords (2022)
★ 6.8/10Also comedy and drama
For teenage misfits Hunter and Kevin, the path to glory is clear: Devote themselves to metal. Win Battle of the Bands. And be worshipped like gods.
17
Swing Girls (2004)
★ 8/10Also comedy and drama
A group of delinquent high school girls form a band when they accidentally poison their school's brass band and have to replace them.
18
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…
19
The Happiest Millionaire (1967)
★ 6.8/10Also comedy and drama
A happy and unbelievably lucky young Irish immigrant, John Lawless, lands a job as the butler of an unconventional millionaire, Biddle. His daughter, Cordelia Drexel Biddle, tires of the unusual antics of her…
20
One Chance (2013)
★ 6.7/10Also drama and comedy
This film follows the remarkable and inspirational true story of Paul Potts, a shy, bullied shop assistant by day and an amateur opera singer by night.