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Movies Like The American Wake

If you liked The American Wake (2018), a drama and history movie directed by Kevin Quinn, 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. 1Radium Girls

    Radium Girls (2020)

    ★ 6.6/10Also drama and history

    Young women toiling in a factory are exposed to hazardous material which takes a disastrous toll on their health.

  2. 2Adventures of a Mathematician

    Adventures of a Mathematician (2021)

    ★ 6.1/10Also drama and history

    The warmhearted story of Polish immigrant and mathematician Stan Ulam, who moved to the U.S. in the 1930s. Stan deals with the difficult losses of family and friends all while helping to create the hydrogen bomb and…

  3. 3Hounddog

    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. 4Anuja

    Anuja (2024)

    ★ 6.5/10Also drama

    When a brilliant nine-year-old working in a sweatshop gets a chance to attend school, she must make a difficult choice for her and her sister's future.

  5. 5Munich - The Edge of War

    Munich - The Edge of War (2021)

    ★ 6.9/10Also drama and history

    At the tense 1938 Munich Conference, former friends who now work for opposing governments become reluctant spies racing to expose a Nazi secret.

  6. 6Snow Flower and the Secret Fan

    Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (2011)

    ★ 6.1/10Also drama and history

    A story set in 19th century China and centered on the lifelong friendship between two girls who develop their own secret code as a way to contend with the rigid cultural norms imposed on women.

  7. 7Belfast

    Belfast (2021)

    ★ 7/10Also drama and history

    Buddy is a young boy on the cusp of adolescence, whose life is filled with familial love, childhood hijinks, and a blossoming romance. Yet, with his beloved hometown caught up in increasing turmoil, his family faces a…

  8. 8The Book of Daniel

    The Book of Daniel (2013)

    ★ 7/10Also drama and history

    Taken into slavery after the fall of Jerusalem in 605 B.C., Daniel is forced to serve the most powerful king in the world, King Nebuchadnezzar. Faced with imminent death, Daniel proves himself a trusted Advisor and is…

  9. 9Panther

    Panther (1995)

    ★ 6.3/10Also drama and history

    In this sprawling, fictionalized history of the Black Panthers, 1960s Oakland becomes a war zone as the Panthers battle for the right to exist.

  10. 10Girl 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.

  11. 11Giant

    Giant (2026)

    ★ 6.9/10Also drama and history

    Follows Prince Naseem Hamed from his humble beginnings on the tough working-class streets of Sheffield and his discovery by Ingle, himself a steel industry worker turned boxing trainer. Their unlikely partnership…

  12. 12The Current War

    The Current War (2018)

    ★ 6.7/10Also drama and history

    Electricity titans Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse compete to create a sustainable system and market it to the American people.

  13. 13Oranges and Sunshine

    Oranges and Sunshine (2010)

    ★ 6.9/10Also drama and history

    The story of Margaret Humphreys, a social worker from Nottingham, who uncovers one of the most significant social scandals in recent times – the forced migration of children from the United Kingdom to Australia and…

  14. 14Confirmation

    Confirmation (2016)

    ★ 6.9/10Also drama and history

    Judge Clarence Thomas' nomination to the United States' Supreme Court is called into question when former colleague, Anita Hill, testifies that he had sexually harassed her.

  15. 15Shattered Glass

    Shattered Glass (2003)

    ★ 7/10Also drama and history

    Stephen Glass is a staff writer for the respected current events and policy magazine The New Republic and a freelance feature writer for publications such as Rolling Stone, Harper's and George. By the mid-90s, Glass'…

  16. 16The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

    The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (2017)

    ★ 6.3/10Also drama and history

    An African-American woman becomes an unwitting pioneer for medical breakthroughs when her cells are used to create the first immortal human cell line in the early 1950s.

  17. 17The Truth About Emanuel

    The Truth About Emanuel (2013)

    ★ 6/10Also drama

    A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.

  18. 18Eleanor the Great

    Eleanor the Great (2025)

    ★ 6.8/10Also drama

    94-year-old Eleanor Morgenstein tries to rebuild her life after the death of her best friend. As a result, she moves back to New York City after living in Florida for decades.

  19. 19Julia

    Julia (1977)

    ★ 6.5/10Also drama and history

    At the behest of an old and dear friend, playwright Lillian Hellman undertakes a dangerous mission to smuggle funds into Nazi Germany.

  20. 20The Experiment

    The Experiment (2010)

    ★ 6.4/10Also drama

    20 men are chosen to participate in the roles of guards and prisoners in a psychological study that ultimately spirals out of control.

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