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Close Encounters of the Third Kind poster

Movies that feel likeClose Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

After an encounter with UFOs, an electricity linesman feels undeniably drawn to an isolated area in the wilderness where something spectacular is about to happen.

If you loved Close Encounters of the Third Kind, the closest films we have are Crumb (1995), Nymphomaniac: Vol. I (2013) and Avalon (2001). All three share Close Encounters of the Third Kind's obsessive feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Tony Takitani (2004).

πŸ… 91% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.6 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Steven Spielbergcerebralcontemplativeobsessive
9 of 12 streaming nowNetflix Β· HBO Max Β· Disney Plus

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If Close Encounters of the Third Kind hit the spot, these will too

Crumb poster
Crumb
1995 Β· dir. Terry Zwigoff
πŸ… 95%β˜… 8documentary

The same preoccupation in both: obsession

The difference: Less cerebral, more its own thing

This movie chronicles the life and times of R. Crumb. Robert Crumb is the cartoonist/artist who drew Keep On Truckin', Fritz the Cat, and played a major pioneering role in the genesis of underground comix. Through interviews with his mother, two brothers, wife, ex-wife and ex-girlfriends, as well as selections from his vast quantity of graphic art, we are treated to a darkly comic ride through one man's subconscious mind.

Nymphomaniac: Vol. I poster
Nymphomaniac: Vol. I
2013 Β· dir. Lars von Trier
πŸ… 77%β˜… 6.9drama

The same mix in both: stillness, then obsession

The difference: 36 years apart, and the 2010s show

A man named Seligman finds a fainted wounded woman in an alley and he brings her home. She tells him that her name is Joe and that she is nymphomaniac. Joe tells her life and sexual experiences with hundreds of men since she was a young teenager while Seligman tells about his hobbies, such as fly fishing, reading about Fibonacci numbers or listening to organ music.

Avalon poster
Avalon
2001 Β· dir. Mamoru Oshii
πŸ… 83%β˜… 6.4action Β· science fiction

Both are built on the same subject: obsession

The difference: Played as action first

In a future world, young people are increasingly becoming addicted to an illegal (and potentially deadly) battle simulation game called Avalon. When Ash, a star player, hears of rumors that a more advanced level of the game exists somewhere, she gives up her loner ways and joins a gang of explorers. Even if she finds the gateway to the next level, will she ever be able to come back to reality?

Taxi Driver poster
Taxi Driver
1976 Β· dir. Martin Scorsese
πŸ… 89%β˜… 8.2crime Β· dramaApple TV+

Both lean on stillness more than on drama

The difference: Leans further into crime

Suffering from insomnia, disturbed loner Travis Bickle takes a job as a New York City cabbie, haunting the streets nightly, growing increasingly detached from reality as he dreams of cleaning up the filthy city.

A Heart in Winter poster
A Heart in Winter
1992 Β· dir. Claude Sautet
πŸ… 85%β˜… 7.5drama Β· romance

Science fiction with a pulse of obsession, in both cases

Beautiful violin virtuoso Camille has two obsessions: the music of Ravel, and a friend of her husband's who crafts violins. But his heart seems to be as cold as her playing is passionate.

Misery poster
Misery
1990 Β· dir. Rob Reiner
πŸ… 86%β˜… 7.8drama Β· thrillerMax

Contemplative drama, and it commits to that

After an accident, acclaimed novelist Paul Sheldon is rescued by a nurse who claims to be his biggest fan. Her obsession takes a dark turn when she holds him captive in her remote Colorado home and forces him to write back to life the popular literary character he killed off.

Stalker poster
Stalker
1979 Β· dir. Andrei Tarkovsky
πŸ… 100%β˜… 8science fiction Β· dramaMax

Both keep coming back to the same thing: alien

Near a gray and unnamed city is the Zone, a place guarded by barbed wire and soldiers, and where the normal laws of physics are victim to frequent anomalies. A stalker guides two men into the Zone, specifically to an area in which deep-seated desires are granted.

The Blue Angel poster
The Blue Angel
1930 Β· dir. Josef von Sternberg
πŸ… 96%β˜… 7.6drama

Obsessive science fiction in both cases

Prim professor Immanuel Rath finds some of his students ogling racy photos of cabaret performer Lola Lola and visits a local club, The Blue Angel, in an attempt to catch them there. Seeing Lola perform, the teacher is filled with lust, eventually resigning his position at the school to marry the young woman. However, his marriage to a coquette -- whose job is to entice men -- proves to be more difficult than Rath imagined.

The Master poster
The Master
2012 Β· dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
πŸ… 85%β˜… 7.1drama

Both know what they want from drama

Freddie, a volatile, heavy-drinking veteran who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, finds some semblance of a family when he stumbles onto the ship of Lancaster Dodd, the charismatic leader of a new "religion" he forms after World War II.

The Prestige poster
The Prestige
2006 Β· dir. Christopher Nolan
πŸ… 77%β˜… 8.5drama Β· mystery Β· science fictionNetflix

Science fiction built on ideas, twice over

A mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy -- full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.

Tony Takitani poster
Tony Takitani
2004 Β· dir. Jun Ichikawa
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.2drama

The drama is handled with the same confidence

A reclusive illustrator falls in love with a young woman who addictively shops for clothing.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 poster
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
2014 Β· dir. Marc Webb
πŸ… 50%β˜… 6.6action Β· adventure Β· science fictionDisney+

Both sit in the same cerebral register

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

For Peter Parker, life is busy. Between taking out the bad guys as Spider-Man and spending time with the person he loves, Gwen Stacy, high school graduation cannot come quickly enough. Peter has not forgotten about the promise he made to Gwen’s father to protect her by staying away, but that is a promise he cannot keep. Things will change for Peter when a new villain, Electro, emerges, an old friend, Harry Osborn, returns, and Peter uncovers new clues about his past.

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The best-reviewed films that share Close Encounters of the Third Kind’s defining feeling.