Movies Like 81

If you liked 81 (1996), a movie directed by Stephen Burke, 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
Hunger (2008)
★ 7.2/10
The story of Bobby Sands, the IRA member who led the 1981 hunger strike during The Troubles in which Irish Republican prisoners tried to win political status.
2
Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
★ 7.1/10
A poor, struggling South Carolinian mother and daughter face painful choices with their resolve and pride. Bone, the eldest daughter, and Anney her tired mother, grow both closer and farther apart: Anney sees Glen as…
3
The Iron Lady (2011)
★ 6.3/10
A look at the life of Margaret Thatcher, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, with a focus on the price she paid for power.
4
Advantageous (2015)
★ 6/10
In a near-future city where soaring opulence overshadows economic hardship, Gwen and her daughter, Jules, do all they can to hold on to their joy, despite the instability surfacing in their world.
5
Shirley (2024)
★ 6.6/10
Shirley Chisholm makes a trailblazing run for the 1972 Democratic presidential nomination after becoming the first Black woman elected to Congress.
6
The Brady Bunch Movie (1995)
★ 6.1/10
The original '70s TV family is now placed in the 1990s, where they're even more square and out of place than ever.
7
Lucky Them (2013)
★ 6/10
More interested in partying and flirting with young musicians than work, veteran rock journalist Ellie Klug has one last chance to prove her value to her magazine’s editor: a no-stone-unturned search to discover what…
8
East of Eden (1955)
★ 7.5/10
In the Salinas Valley in and around World War I, Cal Trask feels he must compete against overwhelming odds with his brother for the love of their father. Cal is frustrated at every turn, from his reaction to the war…
9
Watchmen (2009)
★ 7.4/10
In a gritty and alternate 1985, the glory days of costumed vigilantes have been brought to a close by a government crackdown. But after one of the masked veterans is brutally murdered, an investigation into the killer…
10
An Autumn Romance (2021)
★ 7.1/10
When librarian Taylor Harris suddenly loses her job, she decides to visit her brother in a small town in Montana. There, she gets involved in the fight to help save her brother's hotel from tycoon Joel Sheenan, who…
11
Coup! (2024)
★ 6.4/10
A mysterious grifter appears on an isolated seaside estate claiming to be a wealthy family's new chef. When the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918 descends on the island, the mischievous cook rouses his fellow staff to rebel…
12
The Last Seduction (1994)
★ 6.7/10
A devious femme fatale steals her husband’s drug money and hides out in a small town where she meets the perfect dupe for her next scheme.
13
Watchmen: Chapter II (2024)
★ 7.3/10
Suspicious of the events ensnaring their former colleagues, Nite Owl and Silk Spectre are spurred out of retirement to investigate. As they grapple with personal ethics, inner demons and a society turned against them…
14
Jungleland (2020)
★ 6.4/10
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.
15
Maria (2024)
★ 6.5/10
Maria Callas, the world's greatest opera singer, lives the last days of her life in 1970s Paris, as she confronts her identity and life.
16
Quiz Show (1994)
★ 7.2/10
Herbert Stempel's transformation into an unexpected television personality unfolds as he secures victory on the cherished American game show, 'Twenty-One.' However, when the show introduces the highly skilled…
17
Goal! (2005)
★ 6.8/10
Like millions of kids around the world, Santiago harbors the dream of being a professional footballer... However, living in the Barrios section of Los Angeles, he thinks it is only that—a dream. Until one day an…
18
The Kitchen (2019)
★ 6.1/10
The mobster husbands of three 1978 Hell's Kitchen housewives are sent to prison by the FBI. Left with little but a sharp ax to grind, the ladies take the Irish mafia's matters into their own hands — proving…
19
Guns Up (2025)
★ 6.5/10
When a job goes horribly wrong, an ex-cop and family man who moonlights as a mob henchman has one night to get his family out of the city.
20
The Safety of Objects (2002)
★ 6.5/10
In a suburban landscape, the lives of several families interlace with loss, despair and personal crisis. Esther Gold has lost focus on all but caring for her comatose son, Paul, and neglects her daughter and husband…