20 movies like Leadbelly, ordered by similarity : Papillon(2017), I Can Only Imagine(2018), Woodpeckers(2017), Midnight Express(1978), Get On Up(2014), Rocketman(2019), Bronson(2008), Mandela, My Dad and Me(2015), Bohemian Rhapsody(2018), South Central(1992), Nico, 1988(2017), A Prophet(2009) ...
Biography
USA
1975
126 Minutes
Roger E. Mosley Paul Benjamin Madge Sinclair Alan Manson Albert P. Hall Art Evans James Brodhead John Henry Faulk Vivian Bonnell Dana Manno Timothy Pickard
blues singer musician prisoner friend engaging intense louisiana texas prison stage leadbelly performance racism imprisonment blues music underdog discovery 1940s
The life of Blues and folk singer Huddie Leadbetter, nicknamed Leadbelly is recounted. Covering the good times and bad from his 20s to 40s. Much of that time was spent on chain gangs in the... See full summary »
Adventure, History, Biography, Drama
USA|Czech Republic|Spain
2017
133 Minutes
Charlie Hunnam Rami Malek Roland Møller Nina Senicar Tommy J. Flanagan Eve Hewson Christopher Fairbank Brian Vernel
convict innocent man prison guard prisoner escape artist friend tense bleak thrilling suspenseful incredible intricate prison island prison cell paris french guiana apartment prison prison break
Wrongfully convicted for murder, Henri Charriere forms an unlikely relationship with fellow inmate and quirky convicted counterfeiter Louis Dega, in an attempt to escape from the notorious penal colony on Devil's Island.
Biography, Drama, Music
USA
2018
110 Minutes
J. Michael Finley Madeline Carroll Dennis Quaid Trace Adkins Cloris Leachman Jason Burkey Mark Furze Randy McDowell Cole Marcus Alexander Dominguez Brody Rose
musician father son band member teacher friend incredible inspiring heartwarming emotional creative tense texas stage recording studio house auditorium coming of age family father/son relationship
The inspiring and unknown true story behind MercyMe's beloved, chart topping song that brings ultimate hope to so many is a gripping reminder of the power of true forgiveness.
Drama
2017
106 Minutes
Jean Jean Ramón Emilio Candelario Judith Rodriguez Jose Cruz Manuel Raposo Karina Valdez Aleja Johnson Carlota Carretero Keunis Álvarez Orestes Amador
prison guard prisoner prisoners messenger gangsters love interest romantic interest romantic rival rival dark disturbing emotional engaging gripping intense moving passionate powerful raw tense
Incarcerated in the Dominican Republic, an inmate uses sign language to communicate with his imprisoned girlfriend at an adjacent institution.
Biography, Drama
UK|USA
1978
121 Minutes
Brad Davis Randy Quaid John Hurt Bo Hopkins Paul L. Smith Mike Kellin Norbert Weisser Irene Miracle Paolo Bonacelli Michael Ensign Kevork Malikyan
prison guard prisoner police officer girlfriend judge bleak gutsy shocking istanbul prison airport prison life prison break drug trafficking foreign relations torture escape transformation wretched excess 1970s
Billy Hayes, an American college student, is caught smuggling drugs out of Turkey and thrown into prison.
Biography, Drama
UK|USA
2014
138 Minutes
Chadwick Boseman Nelsan Ellis Dan Aykroyd Viola Davis Lennie James Fred Melamed Craig Robinson Jill Scott Octavia Spencer Josh Hopkins Brandon Smith
james brown singer entertainer musician audience mother brash confident creative jail house stage recording studio car hotel music singing entertainment abandonment prison
A chronicle of James Brown's rise from extreme poverty to become one of the most influential musicians in history.
Musical, Biography, Gay & Lesbian, Drama
UK|USA|Canada
2019
121 Minutes
Taron Egerton Jamie Bell Richard Madden Gemma Jones Bryce Dallas Howard Steven Mackintosh Stephen Graham Tate Donovan Charlie Rowe Matthew Illesley Kit Connor
musician singer-songwriter superstar band manager friend wild creative tense inspiring stage backstage england house stardom fame wealth music relationships rise adventure
A musical fantasy about the fantastical human story of Elton John's breakthrough years.
Biography, Drama
UK|Cayman Islands|Denmark|USA
2008
92 Minutes
Tom Hardy Kelly Adams Luing Andrews Katy Barker Amanda Burton Mark Devenport Paul Donnelly Andrew Forbes Jon House Matt King James Lance
prisoner fighter prison guard promoter wife teacher brutal unrestrained gritty england prison cell solitary confinement prison life michael peterson solitary confinement crime criminal justice system alter ego underdog
A young man who was sentenced to seven years in prison for robbing a post office ends up spending three decades in solitary confinement. During this time, his own personality is supplanted by his alter-ego, Charles Bronson.
Documentary, Biography
UK
2015
54 Minutes
actor nelson mandela son musician engaging inspiring moving south africa film set town recording studio nelson mandela acting grief music discovery transformation 2010s
In 2013, Idris Elba produced and released "Idris Elba presents mi Mandela", an album inspired by his time researching and portraying Nelson Mandela in "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom". The ... See full summary »
Drama, History, Biography, Music, Gay & Lesbian
UK|USA
2018
135 Minutes
Rami Malek Lucy Boynton Gwilym Lee Ben Hardy Joseph Mazzello Aidan Gillen Tom Hollander Allen Leech Mike Myers Aaron McCusker Dermot Murphy
musician band frontman band member band manager singer gay man brash wild unrestrained sultry tense creative stage backstage hotel stadium family home mansion stardom freddie mercury
The story of the legendary British rock band Queen and lead singer Freddie Mercury, leading up to their famous performance at Live Aid (1985).
Drama
USA
1992
99 Minutes
Glenn Plummer Byron Keith Minns Lexie D. Bigham Vincent Craig Dupree LaRita Shelby Kevin Best Allan Hatcher Christian Coleman Ivory Ocean Starletta DuPois Carl Lumbly
gang member girlfriend son best friend convict father gripping brutal moving south central los angeles prison street gangs drug addiction mentorship father/son relationship self-discovery prison transformation
A former gangster fresh out of prison wants to change his life for the better and must save his 10 year old son who has already chosen a gang life.
Biography, Music, Drama, History
Italy|Belgium
2017
94 Minutes
Trine Dyrholm Sàndor Funtek Anamaria Marinca Karina Fernandez Calvin Demba Gordon John Sinclair Thomas Trabacchi Francesco Colella
singer songwriter musician manager son rock star brooding emotional moving raw tense gripping europe stage restaurant road vehicle interview room isolation music business
The last year of singer Nico's life, as she tours and grapples with addiction and personal demons.
Crime, Drama
France|Italy
2009
154 Minutes
Tahar Rahim Niels Arestrup Adel Bencherif Hichem Yacoubi Reda Kateb Antoine Basler Gilles Cohen Pascal Henault Foued Nassah Jean-Emmanuel Pagni
convict mobster prisoner engaging gripping tense france prison crime ambition murder organized crime prison racism growing up discovery rivalry rise 2000s
A young Algerian man is sent to a French prison.
Drama, War, History, Biography
USA
2014
137 Minutes
Jack O'Connell Domhnall Gleeson Garrett Hedlund Miyavi Finn Wittrock Jai Courtney Maddalena Ischiale Vincenzo Amato John Magaro Luke Treadaway Louis McIntosh
athlete olympic athlete crew member air force pilot prisoner of war prison guard uplifting patriotic inspiring japan pacific ocean air force base prison camp berlin world war ii prisoners of war olympic games survival air force airplane crash
After a near-fatal plane crash in WWII, Olympian Louis Zamperini spends a harrowing 47 days in a raft with two fellow crewmen before he's caught by the Japanese navy and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp.
Biography, Drama, History
USA|Hungary|Italy|Romania
2017
105 Minutes
Mateus Ward Jamie McShane Alexandra Bard Casey Bond Ben Reed Michael Monks Richard Riehle James Morrison
love interest convict murderer chaplain reformer prison guard emotional brutal intense inspiring touching prison courtroom texas crime scene field reform religious beliefs religious awakening violence
THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY is inspired by the existentialist novel of the same name by G.K. Chesterton (1908). The novel is considered a metaphysical thriller, and our film could be ... See full summary »
Drama, Biography, War
Russia|Germany|Lithuania|Poland
2018
120 Minutes
Konstantin Khabensky Christopher Lambert Felice Jankell Dainius Kazlauskas Sergey Godin Roman Ageev
prisoner of war soviet soldier concentration camp survivor lieutenant nazi sergeant dark chilling intense disturbing frightening raw poland concentration camp survival nazis prisoners of war world war ii concentration camp uprising
Soviet officer Alexander Pechersky organizes a revolt and mass escape of prisoners from Sobibór extermination camp in October 1943.
Biography, Drama
France|UK|Czech Republic
2007
140 Minutes
Marion Cotillard Clotilde Courau Jean-Paul Rouve Sylvie Testud Pascal Greggory Jean-Pierre Martins Emmanuelle Seigner Gérard Depardieu Catherine Allégret Caroline Sihol Alban Casterman
friend singer musician grandmother club owner boxer engaging melodramatic incredible spectacular brothel normandy, france street hollywood, calif. city nightclub music edith piaf troubled childhood friendship
Biopic of the iconic French singer Édith Piaf. Raised by her grandmother in a brothel, she was discovered while singing on a street corner at the age of 19. Despite her success, Piaf's life was filled with tragedy.
Biography, Drama
USA
2018
99 Minutes
Aldis Hodge Greg Kinnear Sherri Shepherd Melanie Liburd Tiffany Dupont Gino Vento Xosha Roquemore Mystie Smith Jose Miguel Vasquez Dorian Missick Monique Grant
football player convict wrongly accused police officer assistant district attorney family member inspiring emotional confident moving football field house prison courtroom law office wrongfully accused shattered dreams wrongful conviction imprisonment self-confidence
A football player's dreams to play in the NFL are halted when he is wrongly convicted and sent to prison. Years later, he fights to clear his name within an unjust system.
Biography, Drama
West Germany|Czechoslovakia
1986
122 Minutes
Barbara Sukowa Daniel Olbrychski Otto Sander Adelheid Arndt Jürgen Holtz Doris Schade Hannes Jaenicke
marxist lover pacifist philosopher wife politician intricate passionate berlin prison political rally protest world war i social injustice murder imprisonment rosa luxemburg sacrifice underdog 1920s
After years of political agitation, Rosa Luxemburg, Karl Liebknecht, and Leo Jogiches form a revolutionary German party, the Spartacists.
Documentary, Biography
USA
2003
107 Minutes
David Friedman Jesse Friedman
father son brother mother victim police officer creepy emotional family home great neck, n.y. suburbia prison child molestation family wretched excess fall mystery 2000s
Documentary on the Friedmans, a seemingly typical, upper-middle-class Jewish family whose world is instantly transformed when the father and his youngest son are arrested and charged with shocking and horrible crimes.
Biography, Drama, Crime
USA
1962
148 Minutes
Burt Lancaster Karl Malden Thelma Ritter Betty Field Neville Brand Edmond O'Brien Hugh Marlowe Telly Savalas James Westerfield Chris Robinson
prisoner warden guard mother wife moving touching leavenworth prison alcatraz island missouri solitude prison new love redemption rise transformation 1960s
A surly convicted murderer held in permanent isolation redeems himself when he becomes a renowned bird expert.