Dynamic Watchlist Hub: May 14, 2026

10 Best Movies Like Return of the absent

If you loved Return of the absent, we've curated the perfect watchlist for you based on shared genres, themes, and directorial style.

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Expert Review & Ratings

See our full critical analysis and audience score for Return of the absent.

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#1
Simon Birch

Simon Birch

1998★ 6.8

Why watch this? A perfect follow-up to Return of the absent for fans of Comedy. It captures a similar light-hearted atmosphere.

Simon Birch and Joe Wenteworth are boys who have a reputation for being oddballs. Joe never knew his father, and his mother, Rebecca, is keeping her lips sealed no matter how much ...

#2
Twisted Nerve

Twisted Nerve

1968★ 6.8

Why watch this? A perfect follow-up to Return of the absent for fans of Thriller. It captures a similar spine-chilling atmosphere.

Martin Durnley is a young man with an infantilizing mother, resentful stepfather and an institutionalized brother with Down's syndrome. To cope, he retreats into an alternate child...

#3
Rocks

Rocks

2019★ 6.6

Why watch this? A perfect follow-up to Return of the absent for fans of Drama. It captures a similar emotionally gripping atmosphere.

15-year-old Rocks fears that she and her little brother Emmanuel will be taken into care and forced apart if anyone finds out that their mother has left them. Against all odds, and...

#4
A Little Princess

A Little Princess

1995★ 7.6

Why watch this? A perfect follow-up to Return of the absent for fans of Drama. It captures a similar emotionally gripping atmosphere.

When her father enlists to fight for the British in WWI, young Sara Crewe goes to New York to attend the same boarding school her late mother attended. She soon clashes with the se...

#5
David Copperfield

David Copperfield

1935★ 6.7

Why watch this? A perfect follow-up to Return of the absent for fans of Drama. It captures a similar emotionally gripping atmosphere.

A young man journeys from a difficult childhood to maturity, exploring social injustice, personal development, and the complexities of human relationships....

#6
Jonathan

Jonathan

2018★ 5.9

Why watch this? A perfect follow-up to Return of the absent for fans of Drama. It captures a similar emotionally gripping atmosphere.

Jonathan is a young man with a strange condition that only his brother understands. But when he begins to yearn for a different life, their unique bond becomes increasingly tested...

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