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Men in Black poster

Movies that feel likeMen in Black (1997)

After a police chase with an otherworldly being, a New York City cop is recruited as an agent in a top-secret organization established to monitor and police alien activity on Earth: the Men in Black. Agent K and new recruit Agent J find themselves in the middle of a deadly plot by an intergalactic terrorist who has arrived on Earth to assassinate two ambassadors from opposing galaxies.

If you loved Men in Black, the closest films we have are X-Men (2000), Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and Back to the Future Part III (1990). All three share Men in Black's epic and cerebral feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Superman (1978).

πŸ… 91% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.3 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Barry Sonnenfeldkineticepicwittyplayfulcerebral
11 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max Β· Amazon Prime Video Β· Disney Plus

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If Men in Black hit the spot, these will too

Looking for the series itself? Also in this series: Men in Black II (2002) Β· Men in Black 3 (2012)

X-Men poster
X-Men
2000 Β· dir. Bryan Singer
πŸ… 82%β˜… 7.3adventure Β· action Β· science fictionDisney+

The same preoccupation in both: superhero

The difference: Trades the wit of Men in Black for an angle of its own

Two mutants, Rogue and Wolverine, come to a private academy for their kind whose resident superhero team, the X-Men, must oppose a terrorist organization with similar powers.

Thor: Ragnarok poster
Thor: Ragnarok
2017 Β· dir. Taika Waititi
πŸ… 93%β˜… 7.9action Β· adventure Β· comedyDisney+

Comic timing carrying cosmic scale that never takes itself seriously

The difference: Mythic tragedy under the jokes, and far bigger in scope

Thor is imprisoned on the other side of the universe and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok, the destruction of his home-world and the end of Asgardian civilization, at the hands of a powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela.

Back to the Future Part III poster
Back to the Future Part III
1990 Β· dir. Robert Zemeckis
πŸ… 79%β˜… 7.5adventure Β· comedy Β· science fiction

The same mix in both: scale, then wit

The final installment finds Marty digging the trusty DeLorean out of a mineshaft and looking for Doc in the Wild West of 1885. But when their time machine breaks down, the travelers are stranded in a land of spurs. More problems arise when Doc falls for pretty schoolteacher Clara Clayton, and Marty tangles with Buford Tannen.

The Incredible Hulk poster
The Incredible Hulk
2008 Β· dir. Louis Leterrier
πŸ… 68%β˜… 6.6science fiction Β· action Β· adventureDisney+

A secret world of monsters and agencies crashing into city streets

The difference: Plays it straight β€” the jokes are gone, the brooding isn't

Scientist Bruce Banner scours the planet for an antidote to the unbridled force of rage within him: the Hulk. But when the military masterminds who dream of exploiting his powers force him back to civilization, he finds himself coming face to face with a new, deadly foe.

Superman poster
Superman
1978 Β· dir. Richard Donner
πŸ… 87%β˜… 7.4science fiction Β· action Β· adventureMax

One thread runs through both: a secret identity

Mild-mannered Clark Kent works as a reporter at the Daily Planet alongside his crush, Lois Lane. Clark must summon his superhero alter-ego when the nefarious Lex Luthor launches a plan to take over the world.

Ant-Man poster
Ant-Man
2015 Β· dir. Peyton Reed
πŸ… 83%β˜… 7.2science fiction Β· adventure Β· actionDisney+Starz

A rookie learns the ropes from a dry veteran as the world turns stranger

The difference: A proper origin arc with real stakes, not throwaway cosmic gags

Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Doctor Hank Pym, protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.

Wild Wild West poster
Wild Wild West
1999 Β· dir. Barry Sonnenfeld
πŸ… 16%β˜… 5action Β· adventure Β· comedyParamount+

Sonnenfeld reteams the gadget-heavy buddy formula in the Old West

The difference: The chemistry never sparks β€” a famously misfiring blockbuster

Legless Southern inventor Dr. Arliss Loveless plans to rekindle the Civil War by assassinating President Ulysses S. Grant. Only two men can stop him: gunfighter James West and master-of-disguise and inventor Artemus Gordon. The two must team up to thwart Loveless' plans.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles poster
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
2014 Β· dir. Jonathan Liebesman
πŸ… 20%β˜… 5.8science fiction Β· action Β· adventureParamount+

New York hiding weirdness in plain sight, played for kicks and quips

The difference: Louder and blunter β€” CGI brawling over deadpan comic timing

When a kingpin threatens New York City, a group of mutated turtle warriors must emerge from the shadows to protect their home.

The Lost World: Jurassic Park poster
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
1997 Β· dir. Steven Spielberg
πŸ… 57%β˜… 6.6adventure Β· action Β· science fictionStarz

Kinetic where it counts, cerebral underneath

The difference: The scrappier of the two with critics

Four years after Jurassic Park's genetically bred dinosaurs ran amok, multimillionaire John Hammond shocks chaos theorist Ian Malcolm by revealing that he has been breeding more beasties at a secret location. Malcolm, his paleontologist ladylove and a wildlife videographer join an expedition to document the lethal lizards' natural behavior in this action-packed thriller.

Men in Black: International poster
Men in Black: International
2019 Β· dir. F. Gary Gray
πŸ… 23%β˜… 5.6comedy Β· science fiction Β· actionParamount+Starz

Action with a pulse of play, in both cases

The difference: 22 years apart, and the 2010s show

The Men in Black have always protected the Earth from the scum of the universe. In this new adventure, they tackle their biggest, most global threat to date: a mole in the Men in Black organization.

Small Soldiers poster
Small Soldiers
1998 Β· dir. Joe Dante
πŸ… 51%β˜… 6.3comedy Β· adventure Β· fantasyPrime Video

Kinetic adventure, and it commits to that

The difference: Leans harder into fantasy than Men in Black does

When missile technology is used to enhance toy action figures, the toys soon begin to take their battle programming too seriously.

The Time Machine poster
The Time Machine
2002 Β· dir. Simon Wells
πŸ… 28%β˜… 6science fiction Β· adventure Β· action

Both rooted in New York City

Hoping to alter the events of the past, a 19th-century inventor instead travels 800,000 years into the future, where he finds mankind divided into two warring races.

In the mood for more kinetic?

all kinetic movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share Men in Black’s defining feeling.