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A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence poster

Movies that feel likeA Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014)

An absurdist, surrealistic and shocking pitch-black comedy, which moves freely from nightmare to fantasy to hilariously deadpan humour as it muses on man’s perpetual inhumanity to man.

If you loved A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, the closest films we have are Songs from the Second Floor (2000), About Endlessness (2019) and The Brand New Testament (2015). All three share A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence's witty and playful feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons (2013).

πŸ… 90% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 6.9 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Roy Anderssoncontemplativewittyplayfuldreamlike
7 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max Β· Amazon Prime Video Β· Disney Plus

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If A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence hit the spot, these will too

Songs from the Second Floor poster
Songs from the Second Floor
2000 Β· dir. Roy Andersson
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.5drama Β· comedy

The same hand behind both of them: Roy Andersson

A monumental traffic jam serves as the backdrop for the lives of the inhabitants of a Swedish city.

About Endlessness poster
About Endlessness
2019 Β· dir. Roy Andersson
πŸ… 95%β˜… 6.8drama Β· fantasy Β· comedyRent or buy

Both are Roy Andersson's work, and they rhyme

A reflection on human life in all its beauty and cruelty, its splendor and banality, guided by a Scheherazade-esque narrator. Inconsequential moments have the same significance as historical events. Simultaneously an ode and a lament, presents a kaleidoscope of all that is eternally human, an infinite story of the vulnerability of existence.

The Brand New Testament poster
The Brand New Testament
2015 Β· dir. Jaco Van Dormael
πŸ… 82%β˜… 7.1comedy Β· fantasy

The same mix in both: wit, then play

The difference: Goes its own way on the stillness

God lives in Brussels. On Earth though, God is a coward, morally pathetic and odious to his family. His daughter, Ea, is bored at home and can't stand being locked up in a small apartment in ordinary Brussels, until the day she decides to revolt against her dad...

Monster Hunt poster
Monster Hunt
2015 Β· dir. Raman Hui Shing-Ngai
πŸ… 68%β˜… 6.1comedy Β· fantasy Β· adventure

Dreamlike comedy in both cases

The difference: Lighter on stillness

Young monster kids try to make peace between the world of humans and the world of the monsters.

The Mermaid poster
The Mermaid
2016 Β· dir. Stephen Chow
πŸ… 95%β˜… 6.2comedy Β· fantasy Β· romance

Witty fantasy, and it commits to that

The difference: Played as romance first

When Xuan's real estate project threatens the home of mermaids, Shan is sent to stop him. When they fall in love, he is encouraged to cancel the project. However, he must save them from bigger danger.

Into the Woods poster
Into the Woods
2014 Β· dir. Rob Marshall
πŸ… 71%β˜… 5.9fantasy Β· comedyDisney+

Both lean on play more than on drama

In a woods filled with magic and fairy tale characters, a baker and his wife set out to end the curse put on them by their neighbor, a spiteful witch.

If I Were You poster
If I Were You
2006 Β· dir. Daniel Filho
πŸ… 13%β˜… 6.1comedy Β· fantasy

Comedy with a pulse of dream logic, in both cases

The difference: The scrappier of the two with critics

The publicist Claudio and the housewife and choral teacher Helena have been married for many years, but they do not understand and respect the feelings and view point of the partner. Claudio sees Helena as a shopper and "little teacher of a choral" and Helena sees Claudio as an insensitive and rough man. On the night before the fiftieth anniversary of Claudio, they changed places with each other.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice poster
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
2024 Β· dir. Tim Burton
πŸ… 76%β˜… 6.6comedy Β· fantasyMax

Fantasy built on wit, twice over

After a family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Betelgeuse, Lydia's life is turned upside down when her teenage daughter, Astrid, accidentally opens the portal to the Afterlife.

The Visitors poster
The Visitors
1993 Β· dir. Jean-Marie PoirΓ©
πŸ… 31%β˜… 7fantasy Β· comedyPrime Video

Playful drama, and it commits to that

The difference: 21 years apart, and the 1990s show

After a wizard's spell goes awry, 12th-century Gallic knight Godefroy de Papincourt, Count of Montmirail finds himself transported to 1993, along with his dimwitted servant, Jacquouille la Fripouille. Startled and perplexed by modern technology, the duo run amok, destroying cars and causing chaos until they meet Beatrice de Montmirail, an aristocratic descendant of the nobleman, who may be able to help them get back to 1123.

Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons poster
πŸ… 94%β˜… 6.7action Β· fantasy Β· adventurePrime Video

Another one that scratches it

The difference: Leans further into action

In a world plagued by demons who cause great human suffering, young demon hunter Tang Sanzang must fight against monstrous demons, as well as contend with a beautiful demon hunting woman on his path to enlightenment.

Nothing Left to Do But Cry poster
Nothing Left to Do But Cry
1984 Β· dir. Roberto Benigni
β˜… 7.6comedy Β· fantasy

The fantasy is handled with the same confidence

Two 20th-century friends accidentally stumble into the year 1492, where they meet a charming teen and try to alter history.

Harvey poster
Harvey
1950 Β· dir. Henry Koster
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.9comedy Β· fantasy

Comedy approached the same way

The story of Elwood P. Dowd who makes friends with a spirit taking the form of a human-sized rabbit named Harvey that only he sees (and a few privileged others on occasion also.) After his sister tries to commit him to a mental institution, a comedy of errors ensues. Elwood and Harvey become the catalysts for a family mending its wounds and for romance blossoming in unexpected places.

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The best-reviewed films that share A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence’s defining feeling.