Movies Like The Wayside Pebble

If you liked The Wayside Pebble (1960), a movie directed by Seiji Hisamatsu, 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
Daddy Day Care (2003)
★ 5.9/10
Two men get laid off and have to become stay-at-home dads when they can't find jobs, which inspires them to open their own day-care center.
2
Good Morning (1959)
★ 7.7/10
Two boys beg their parents for a television set, nagging them until all patience is lost. The parents order the boys to be quiet and the boys do exactly that--refusing to utter a word. The boys' silence ultimately puts…
3
Back to School (1986)
★ 6.4/10
Self-made millionaire Thornton Melon decides to get a better education and enrolls at his son Jason's college. While Jason tries to fit in with his fellow students, Thornton struggles to gain his son's respect, giving…
4
Tokyo Sonata (2008)
★ 7.4/10
The winds of change blow as a family grapples with unemployment, alienation, mistrust and a lack of communication. When a Japanese salaryman loses his job to outsourcing to China, it's simply the beginning of a series…
5
Shoplifters (2018)
★ 7.8/10
In the outskirts of Tokyo, a poor but close-knit group living on the fringes of society survives through shoplifting and odd jobs. When Osamu and his son take in a neglected young girl, their already fragile existence…
6
Dismissed (2017)
★ 6.5/10
A straight-edged teacher finds trouble when an honors student is willing to do anything to get an A.
7
Kids Return (1996)
★ 6.9/10
Shinji and Masaru spend most of their school days harassing fellow classmates and playing pranks. They drop out and Shinji becomes a small-time boxer, while Masaru joins up with a local yakuza gang. However, the world…
8
Tokyo Story (1953)
★ 8.2/10
The elderly Shukishi and his wife, Tomi, take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi, a doctor, and their daughter, Shige, a hairdresser, don't…
9
A Geisha (1953)
★ 7.6/10
Fleeing a distressing family situation, Eiko, a very young girl, becomes an apprentice to Miyoharu, a veteran geisha. Both, determined to preserve their professional integrity, must face the selfishness and ambition of…
10
Bad Apples (2026)
★ 6.9/10
A struggling primary school teacher is forced to take drastic action because of a foul-mouthed, violent student, and uncovers how her community will turn a blind eye to the most outrageous events to preserve harmony…
11
Matilda (1996)
★ 7.2/10
Matilda Wormwood is an brilliant and intelligent little girl. Unfortunately, her parents, Harry and Zinnia, fail to see that fact. As time passes, she finally starts school and has a kind teacher, loyal friends, and a…
12
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable – Chapter 1 (2017)
★ 6.6/10
Welcome to idyllic Morioh, whose ocean views and charming townscapes make it a breezy Japanese utopia. But a chain of grisly killings has cast a bloody pall of uncertainty over its residents, especially Josuke…
13
Blue Spring (2001)
★ 7.1/10
Soon after being named the new leader of his high school's gang system, Kujo grows bored with the violence and hatred that surround him. He wants desperately to abandon his post… but his once-enviable position of power…
14
Death Note: Light Up the NEW World (2016)
★ 6.3/10
10 years has passed since the confrontation between Kira and L. Again, Shinigami sends death notes to the ground and due to this, the world soon falls into chaos. Tsukuru is a member of the Death Note special task…
15
High and Low (1963)
★ 8.4/10
A Yokohama shoe executive faces a wrenching choice when kidnappers mistakenly seize his chauffeur’s son but demand the ransom anyway.
16
Monster (2023)
★ 7.9/10
After an outburst at school involving her son, a concerned single mother demands answers, triggering a sequence of deepening suspicion and turmoil.
17
Lesson of the Evil (2012)
★ 6.7/10
Seiji Hasumi is a popular English teacher in a private high school. He is also a violent and sociopathic killer who concocts an extreme plan to deal with the rise of bullying and bad behavior among the student body.
18
The Bookshop (2017)
★ 6.5/10
Set in a small English town in 1959, a woman decides, against polite but ruthless local opposition, to open a bookshop, a decision which becomes a political minefield.
19
Assassination Classroom (2015)
★ 7.2/10
A mysterious creature destroys part of the moon and then warns that, if it is not destroyed before March of the following year, Earth will be next. It also demands to become the homeroom teacher of Class E, a…
20
My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999)
★ 7/10
The Yamadas are a typical middle class Japanese family in urban Tokyo and this film shows us a variety of episodes of their lives. With tales that range from the humorous to the heartbreaking, we see this family cope…