Movies Like The Candidate

If you liked The Candidate (1983), a drama movie directed by Wu Ziniu and Chen Lu, 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
Pickpocket (1997)
★ 7.2/10Also drama
A small town pickpocket whose friends have moved on to higher trades finds himself bitter and unable to adapt.
2
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…
3
Ip Man: Kung Fu Master (2019)
★ 6.5/10Also drama
Ip Man’s promising career as a Policeman is ruined after he is framed for murder and targeted by a mob boss’s daughter.
4
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.
5
Beast (2026)
★ 7.5/10Also drama
MMA legend Patton James, now a commercial fisherman, is pulled back into the cage when his brother is in danger. Reuniting with his old coach Sammy, he commits to one final fight in one championship against the brutal…
6
O.G. (2018)
★ 6/10Also drama
Louis Menkins is five weeks away from being released after 26 years in prison. He is faced with the decision to put his own release at risk in order to protect a young man named Beecher from growing gang controversies.
7
Crippled Avengers (1978)
★ 6.8/10Also drama
A group of martial artists seek revenge after being crippled by Tu Tin-To, a martial arts master, and his son.
8
Eye for an Eye (2022)
★ 7.1/10Also drama
A highly trained and exceptionally deadly swordsman looks for revenge after being caught in the middle of a power struggle that results in the assassination of an innocent woman's family.
9
Embattled (2020)
★ 6.7/10Also drama
The eldest son of a ruthlessly tough MMA champion must fight his way out of the abusive cycle his father has continued.
10
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.
11
El Chicano (2019)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
A pair of twin brothers from East L.A. choose to live their lives differently and end up on opposite sides of the law.
12
Hands of Stone (2016)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
The legendary Roberto Duran and his equally legendary trainer Ray Arcel change each other's lives.
13
Fast Girls (2012)
★ 6/10Also drama
A street smart runner develops an intense rivalry with an equally ambitious wealthy young athlete.
14
Never Say Never (2023)
★ 7.1/10Also drama
A disgraced MMA fighter finds redemption by training underprivileged kids, risking everything to give them a chance at a better life through boxing.
15
Clan of the White Lotus (1980)
★ 6.6/10Also drama
The Qing emperor releases all detained Shaolin disciples, but the vindictive White Lotus clan decides to exterminate all the disciples. One martial artist survives the onslaught, and constantly trains while in hiding…
16
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.
17
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.
18
Most (2003)
★ 7.3/10Also drama
A poetic and powerful story of a father forced to choose between love and duty.
19
Five Fingers of Death (1972)
★ 6.7/10Also drama
A young boxer joins a martial arts school to increase his skill so he can enter a martial arts competition. He leaves the school when he hears that a local gangster is terrorizing the town. He comes to the aid of a…
20
Jungleland (2020)
★ 6.4/10Also drama
Stanley manages his boxer brother Lion but when a devastating loss in the ring leaves the pair in debt, an opportunity to recoup the cash leads to a series of misadventures that threaten to break the bond between them.