Movies Like Barfly (1987)

Barfly is a 1987 comedy, drama, romance film from Barbet Schroeder with a MovieMagicScore of 6.9/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Leaving Las Vegas and Withnail & I.

Comedy Drama Romance

Leaving Las Vegas

1995

Ben Sanderson, an alcoholic Hollywood screenwriter who lost everything because of his drinking, arrives in Las Vegas to drink himself to death. There, he meets and forms an uneasy friendship and non-interference pact with prostitute Sera.

7.3

MagicScore

Withnail & I

1987

Two out-of-work actors -- the anxious, luckless Marwood and his acerbic, alcoholic friend, Withnail -- spend their days drifting between their squalid flat, the unemployment office and the pub. When they take a holiday "by mistake" at the country house of Withnail's flamboyantly gay uncle, Monty, they encounter the unpleasant side of the English countryside: tedium, terrifying locals and torrential rain.

7.3

MagicScore

Bukowski: Born Into This

2003

Director John Dullaghan’s biographical documentary about infamous poet Charles Bukowski, Bukowski: Born Into This, is as much a touching portrait of the author as it is an exposé of his sordid lifestyle. Interspersed between ample vintage footage of Bukowski’s poetry readings are interviews with the poet’s fans including such legendary figures such as Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Joyce Fante (wife of John), Bono, and Harry Dean Stanton. Filmed in grainy black and white by Bukowski’s friend, Taylor Hackford, due to lack of funding, the old films edited into this movie paint Bukowski’s life of boozing and brawling romantically, securing Bukowski’s legendary status.

6.7

MagicScore

Tales of Ordinary Madness

1981

Poet/lecturer Charles Serking awakens from his alcoholic haze long enough to take a bus back to L.A. and plunge into an orgy of drink and sexual depravity.

6.0

MagicScore

A Star Is Born

1954

A movie star helps a young singer-actress find fame, even as age and alcoholism send his own career into a downward spiral.

7.1

MagicScore

Trees Lounge

1996

Tommy has lost his job, his love and his life. He lives in a small apartment above the Trees Lounge, a bar which he frequents along with a few other regulars without lives. He gets a job driving an ice cream truck and ends up getting involved with the seventeen-year-old niece of his ex-girlfriend. This gets him into serious trouble with her father.

6.9

MagicScore

Shakes the Clown

1991

Shakes plods about his duties as party clown, and uses all of his free time getting seriously drunk. Binky, another clown, wins the spot on a local kiddie show, which depresses Shakes even more, and his boss threatens him with unemployment if he can't get his act under control.

5.4

MagicScore

Every Which Way but Loose

1978

Philo Beddoe is your regular, easygoing, truck-driving guy. He's also the best bar-room brawler west of the Rockies. And he lives with a 165-pound orangutan named Clyde. Like other guys, Philo finally falls in love - with a flighty singer who leads him on a screwball chase across the American Southwest. Nothing's in the way except a motorcycle gang, some cops, and legendary brawler Tank Murdock.

6.1

MagicScore

Angel

1984

Molly Stewart, a teen at the top of her class who survives by working nights as a prostitute on Hollywood Blvd, finds her world beginning to fall apart when a depraved, necrophiliac serial killer begins targeting LA’s streetwalkers.

6.0

MagicScore

#10

The Iceman Cometh

1973

Set in 1912, inside a dive bar named The Last Chance Saloon, its destitute patrons eagerly await the arrival of Hickey, who arrives annually and props everyone up with free drinks and spirited stories of his travels. However, when Hickey does show up this year, it is with a message of temperance and an exhortation to give up hopeless dreams and face reality.

5.9

MagicScore

#11

The Rack Pack

2016

The 1980s snooker rivalry between Alex “Hurricane” Higgins and Steve “The Nugget” Davis, two very different personalities who helped popularise the sport on TV.

6.9

MagicScore

#12

Synchronic

2020

Two New Orleans paramedics' lives are ripped apart after encountering a series of horrific deaths linked to a designer drug with bizarre, otherworldly effects.

6.3

MagicScore

#13

Lady of the Manor

2021

Past and present collide when aimless slacker Hannah gets hired to portray Lady Wadsworth -- a Southern belle from the 1800s -- for tours at Wadsworth Manor. Hannah figures she can fake it well enough, until the ghost of Lady Wadsworth appears and tells her it's time to change her wild ways -- or she'll haunt her forever.

5.8

MagicScore

#14

Reuben, Reuben

1983

A drunken Scottish poet who has not written a word in years feels compelled to regain control of his life and work after meeting a beautiful young woman.

6.2

MagicScore

#15

Any Which Way You Can

1980

Philo takes part in a bare knuckle fight – as he does – to make more money than he can earn from his car repair business. He decides to retire, but when the Mafia come along and arrange another fight, he's pushed into it. A motorcycle gang and an orangutan called Clyde all add to the 'fun'.

5.7

MagicScore

#16

The Servant

1963

Indolent aristocrat Tony employs competent Barrett as his manservant and all seems to be going well until Barrett persuades Tony to hire his sister as a live-in maid.

7.6

MagicScore

#17

One A.M.

1916

A drunken homeowner has a difficult time getting about in his home after arriving home late at night.

6.7

MagicScore

#18

The Singers

2026

An impromptu singing contest at a dive bar turns a lonely night into a soul-baring moment of shared harmony.

6.7

MagicScore

#19

The Lost Weekend

1945

Don Birnam, a long-time alcoholic, has been sober for ten days and appears to be over the worst... but his craving has just become more insidious. Evading a country weekend planned by his brother and girlfriend, he begins a four-day bender that just might be his last - one way or another.

7.6

MagicScore

#20

Boiling Point

2021

A head chef balances multiple personal and professional crises at a popular restaurant in London.

7.2

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Barfly?

The top films similar to Barfly by MovieMagicScore are Leaving Las Vegas (7.3), Withnail & I (7.3), Bukowski: Born Into This (6.7). Each shares comedy/drama/romance themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Barfly worth watching?

Barfly holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.9/10 from 367 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Barfly?

Barfly (1987) is a comedy, drama, romance film directed by Barbet Schroeder, starring Mickey Rourke, Faye Dunaway, Alice Krige.

Where can I find more recommendations like Barfly?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more comedy recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like Leaving Las Vegas Movies like Withnail & I Movies like Bukowski: Born Into This Movies like Tales of Ordinary Madness Movies like A Star Is Born Movies like Trees Lounge

About movies like Barfly

This ranked list pairs Barfly (1987), a comedy and drama and romance film from Barbet Schroeder, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Mickey Rourke take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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