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Movies Like Midnight Cowboy

For those captivated by Midnight Cowboy, are likely to find resonance in stories that questions the purpose and weight of our choices all while offering targets the intellect with complex, multi-layered ideas. Carefully balances character depth with narrative flow makes this a deeper look into what makes these stories stick.

Mood Breakdown
Runtime Cluster

Standard feature-length experiences.

Viewer Fit

Best for fans of who appreciate concise storytelling.

Top Picks

Joe
6.5

Joe

2014

The rough-hewn boss of a lumber crew courts trouble when he steps in to protect the youngest member of his team from an abusive father.

Mysterious Skin
7.7

Mysterious Skin

2005

A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.

Once Upon a Time in America
8.4

Once Upon a Time in America

1984

A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan over thirty years later, where he once again must confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.

The Apprentice
6.9

The Apprentice

2024

A young Donald Trump, eager to make his name as a hungry scion of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, comes under the spell of Roy Cohn, the cutthroat attorney who would help create the Donald Trump we know today. Cohn sees in Trump the perfect protégé—someone with raw ambition, a hunger for success, and a willingness to do whatever it takes to win.

Taxi Driver
8.1

Taxi Driver

1976

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.

Stuart: A Life Backwards
7.4

Stuart: A Life Backwards

2007

Story about the remarkable friendship between a reclusive writer and illustrator and a chaotic homeless man, whom he gets to know during a campaign to release two charity workers from prison.

Gotti
6.5

Gotti

1996

John Gotti, the head of a small New York mafia crew breaks a few of the old family rules. He rises to become the head of the Gambino family and the most well-known mafia boss in America. Life is good, but suspicion creeps in, and greed, rule-breaking and his high public profile all threaten to topple him.

A Home at the End of the World
6.4

A Home at the End of the World

2004

Three friends form a bond over the year, Johnathan is gay, Clare is straight and Bobby is neither, instead he loves the people he loves. As their lives go on there is tension and tears which culminate in a strong yet fragile friendship between the three.

More Movies Like Midnight Cowboy

Jeffrey
6.2

Jeffrey

1995

Jeffrey, a gay man living in New York City with an overwhelming fear of contracting AIDS, concludes that being celibate is the only option to protect himself. As fate would have it, shortly after his declaration of a sex-free existence, he meets the handsome Steve Howard, his dream man -- except for his HIV-positive status. Facing this dilemma, Jeffrey turns to his best friend and an outrageous priest for guidance.

Carlito's Way
7.8

Carlito's Way

1993

Free after years in prison, Carlito Brigante intends to give up his criminal ways, but it's not long before the ex-con is sucked back into the New York City underworld.

Moonlight
7.4

Moonlight

2016

The tender, heartbreaking story of a young man’s struggle to find himself, told across three defining chapters in his life as he experiences the ecstasy, pain, and beauty of falling in love, while grappling with his own sexuality.

25th Hour
7.3

25th Hour

2002

On the eve of a seven-year prison sentence, a New York drug dealer spends his final day of freedom confronting his past, his relationships, and the choices that led to his downfall in a city still reeling from 9/11.

The Boys in the Band
6.8

The Boys in the Band

2020

At a birthday party in 1968 New York, a surprise guest and a drunken game leave seven gay friends reckoning with unspoken feelings and buried truths.

The Nines
6.0

The Nines

2007

A troubled actor, a television show runner, and an acclaimed videogame designer find their lives intertwining in mysterious and unsettling ways.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
7.5

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

2023

Two teenage Mexican-American loners in 1987 El Paso explore a new, unusual friendship and the difficult road to self-discovery.

Bully
6.7

Bully

2001

A group of teenagers in South Florida enact a murder plot against their mutual bully, Kent, who has emotionally, physically, and sexually abused them for years.

The Normal Heart
7.7

The Normal Heart

2014

The story of the onset of the HIV-AIDS crisis in New York City in the early 1980s, taking an unflinching look at the nation's sexual politics as gay activists and their allies in the medical community fight to expose the truth about the burgeoning epidemic to a city and nation in denial.

My Policeman
7.6

My Policeman

2022

In the late 1990s, the arrival of elderly invalid Patrick into Marion and Tom’s home triggers the exploration of seismic events from 40 years previous: the passionate relationship between Tom and Patrick at a time when homosexuality was illegal.

Behind the Candelabra
6.6

Behind the Candelabra

2013

Based on the autobiographical novel, the tempestuous 6-year relationship between Liberace and his (much younger) lover, Scott Thorson, is recounted.

Nickel Boys
6.6

Nickel Boys

2024

Chronicles the powerful friendship between two young Black teenagers navigating the harrowing trials of reform school together in Florida.

Why These Movies Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Midnight Cowboy (1969): Drama 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 Midnight Cowboy.

See full details for Midnight Cowboy (1969)

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