NoBadPicks

Movies Like Dirty Dancing

If you loved Dirty Dancing's Drama and Romance storytelling, these films deliver a similar experience — carefully selected for tone, themes, and emotional depth. Each pick includes where to watch it right now.

Top Picks

Dirty Dancing
7.3

Dirty Dancing

1987

Expecting the usual tedium that accompanies a summer in the Catskills with her family, 17-year-old Frances 'Baby' Houseman is surprised to find herself stepping into the shoes of a professional hoofer—and unexpectedly falling in love.

Footloose
6.6

Footloose

2011

Ren MacCormack is transplanted from Boston to the small southern town of Bomont where loud music and dancing are prohibited. Not one to bow to the status quo, Ren challenges the ban, revitalizing the town and falling in love with the minister’s troubled daughter Ariel in the process.

Anne of Green Gables
7.2

Anne of Green Gables

2016

A retelling of L.M. Montgomery's story of Anne Shirley, an orphan who is accidentally sent to a couple looking to adopt a boy instead.

Anchors Aweigh
6.8

Anchors Aweigh

1945

Two sailors on shore leave head out for four days of partying – only to become involved in the affairs of an aspiring singer and her precocious nephew.

Not Easily Broken
6.3

Not Easily Broken

2009

A car accident and shifting affections test the bond between a married couple.

Endless Love
6.9

Endless Love

2014

A privileged girl and a charismatic boy's instant desire sparks a love affair made only more reckless by parents trying to keep them apart.

Little Lord Fauntleroy
7.4

Little Lord Fauntleroy

1980

Young Cedric Errol and his widowed mother live in genteel poverty in 1880s Brooklyn after the death of his father. Cedric's grandfather, the Earl of Dorincourt, has long ago disowned his son for marrying an American. But after the death of the Earl's remaining son, he decides to accept Cedric as his heir.

The Secret: Dare to Dream
7.3

The Secret: Dare to Dream

2020

A widow with three children hires a handyman to fix her house during a major storm. When not doing home repairs, he shares his philosophy of believing in the power of the universe to deliver what we want.

More Movies Like Dirty Dancing

A Complete Unknown
7.1

A Complete Unknown

2024

New York, early 1960s. Against the backdrop of a vibrant music scene and tumultuous cultural upheaval, an enigmatic 19-year-old from Minnesota arrives in the West Village with his guitar and revolutionary talent, destined to change the course of American music.

Lovely, Still
6.6

Lovely, Still

2009

A holiday fable that tells the story of an elderly man discovering love for the first time.

Two for the Seesaw
6.5

Two for the Seesaw

1962

After leaving his wife, lawyer Jerry Ryan moves from Omaha, Nebraska to New York City to start a new life. While studying for the New York Bar Examination and working to finalize his divorce, Ryan meets dancer Gittel Mosca, and the two begin a cautious courtship. However, Ryan feels that he must come to terms with his failed marriage and overcome his lingering attachment to his ex-wife before he can redefine himself and embrace his budding romance.

Breathe
7.4

Breathe

2017

Based on the true story of Robin, a handsome, brilliant and adventurous man whose life takes a dramatic turn when polio leaves him paralyzed.

Little Women
7.9

Little Women

2019

Four sisters come of age in America in the aftermath of the Civil War.

West Side Story
7.2

West Side Story

1961

In Manhattan’s Upper West Side, rival gangs of Polish-Americans and newly arrived Puerto Ricans clash for control of the neighborhood, even as two young members from opposite sides fall dangerously in love.

Housekeeping
6.5

Housekeeping

1987

In the Pacific Northwest during the 1950s, two young sisters whose mother has abandoned them wind up living with their Aunt Sylvie, whose views of the world and its conventions don't quite live up to most people's expectations.

The Longest Ride
7.6

The Longest Ride

2015

The lives of a young couple intertwine with a much older man as he reflects back on a lost love while he's trapped in an automobile crash.

A California Christmas: City Lights
6.6

A California Christmas: City Lights

2021

Follows Callie and Joseph one year after they fell in love, now running a dairy farm and winery, but their romance is threatened when business and family obligations call Joseph back to the city.

Wuthering Heights
6.4

Wuthering Heights

1970

Young orphan Heathcliff is adopted by the wealthy Earnshaw family and moves into their estate, Wuthering Heights. Soon, the new resident falls for his compassionate foster sister, Cathy. The two share a remarkable bond that seems unbreakable until Cathy, feeling the pressure of social convention, suppresses her feelings and marries Edgar Linton, a man of means who befits her stature. Heathcliff vows to win her back.

Blind
6.2

Blind

2017

A novelist is blinded in a car crash that killed his wife and several years later rediscovers his passion for life and writing when he embarks on an affair with the neglected wife of an indicted businessman.

Hair
7.3

Hair

1979

Upon receiving his draft notice and leaving his family ranch in Oklahoma, Claude heads to New York and befriends a tribe of long-haired hippies on his way to boot camp.

Why These Movies Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Dirty Dancing (2017): Drama and Romance themes, similar narrative structure, and comparable emotional depth. NoBadPicks uses a combination of TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface films most likely to resonate with fans of Dirty Dancing.

See full details for Dirty Dancing (2017)

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