Movies Like Spanking the Monkey (1994)

Spanking the Monkey is a 1994 comedy, drama film from David O. Russell with a MovieMagicScore of 5.7/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Grand Jete and Cecilia.

Comedy Drama

Grand Jete

2022

Dance teacher and mother Nadja left her son Mario with her own mother when he was little. Now she has reappeared on his doorstep, seeking a closeness that knows fewer and fewer boundaries. An uncompromising film about family relationships.

4.9

MagicScore

Cecilia

1983

After repeatedly flaunting her peerless body to her servants, snobbish aristocrat Cecilia becomes the victim of rape. But the experience triggers a carnal awakening, full of socialite sex parties and woodland orgies. And before long, Cecilia finds her amorous adventures spinning out of control, particularly when her husband decides to join in on the free-love lifestyle.

4.1

MagicScore

Sleepwalkers

1992

Charles Brady and his mother, Mary, are the last of a dying breed whose needs are not of this world. They are Sleepwalkers - able to stay alive only by feeding on the life-force of the innocent, but destined to roam the earth, avoiding discovery while searching for their next victim. That search takes them to the sleepy little town of Travis, Indiana, where beautiful teenager Tanya Robertson is about to become an unwilling pawn in their nightmarish fight for survival.

6.0

MagicScore

Meet Bill

2007

A mild-mannered bank executive mentors a teenage con artist and tries to make a career change as a doughnut merchant.

6.1

MagicScore

The People Under the Stairs

1991

Trapped inside a fortified home owned by a mysterious couple, a young boy quickly learns the true nature of the homicidal inhabitants, and secret creatures hidden deep within the walls.

6.5

MagicScore

American Beauty

1999

Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation with his daughter's attractive friend.

8.0

MagicScore

Midaq Alley

1995

Heated tempers, frustrated desires and dashed hopes plague a diverse group of individuals whose lives cross paths in Mexico City. There is the bar-owner's son, Chava, who yearns to emigrate to America. A poor barber, Abel, is madly in love with the gorgeous Alma, who eventually becomes a high-class prostitute. Finally, there is Susanita, the desperate spinster who pursues many love affairs in hopes of finding a husband.

7.0

MagicScore

Castle of Purity

1973

A disciplined and sexually driven man forces his family to stay isolated in their home in order to protect them from the “evil nature” of human beings.

7.3

MagicScore

The Insect Woman

1963

A woman, Tome, is born to a lower class family in Japan in 1918. The title refers to an insect, repeating its mistakes, as in an infinite circle. Imamura, with this metaphor, introduces the life of Tome, who keeps trying to change her poor life.

7.2

MagicScore

#10

The Color Purple

2023

A decades-spanning tale of love and resilience and of one woman's journey to independence. Celie faces many hardships in her life, but ultimately finds extraordinary strength and hope in the unbreakable bonds of sisterhood.

7.0

MagicScore

#11

Savage Grace

2007

This examination of a famous scandal from the 1970s explores the relationship between Barbara Baekeland and her only son, Antony. Barbara, a lonely social climber unhappily married to the wealthy but remote plastics heir Brooks Baekeland, dotes on Antony, who is homosexual. As Barbara tries to "cure" Antony of his sexuality -- sometimes by seducing him herself -- the groundwork is laid for a murderous tragedy.

5.6

MagicScore

#12

Vixen!

1968

In a Canadian mountain resort, Vixen Palmer resides with her naive pilot husband Tom. While he's away flying in tourists, she sleeps with practically everybody including a husband and his wife, and even her biker brother. However, the only one she won't bed is her brother's friend... who is Black.

5.5

MagicScore

#13

Toys Are Not for Children

1972

Emotionally stunted child-like woman Jamie Godard not only suffers from an unhealthy fixation on her long absent father, but also has an obsession with all the toys he gave her as a little girl. After getting a job at a toy store, Jamie decides to marry co-worker Charlie Belmond. When the marriage doesn't work out, Jamie runs away to New York City and becomes a prostitute who specializes in servicing perverted old men who want to play daddy with her.

5.3

MagicScore

#14

Something's Gotta Give

2003

When perpetually single, aging music industry exec Harry Sanborn, and his latest trophy girlfriend, Marin, arrive at her mother's beach house in the Hamptons, they find that her mother, playwright Erica Barry, also plans to stay for the weekend. Erica is scandalized by the relationship and Harry's sexist ways. But when Harry has a heart attack while there, and the doctor prescribes bedrest, his only option is to stay at the Barry home. Left in the care of Erica and his doctor, a love triangle starts to take shape.

6.6

MagicScore

#15

Mommy

2014

A peculiar neighbor offers hope to a recent widow who is struggling to raise a teenager who is unpredictable and, sometimes, violent.

8.2

MagicScore

#16

Rise

2022

Elise thought she had the perfect life: an ideal boyfriend and a promising career as a ballet dancer. It all falls apart the day she catches him cheating on her with her stage backup; and after she suffers an injury on stage, it seems like she might not be able to dance ever again.

7.4

MagicScore

#17

Starter for 10

2006

In 1985, against the backdrop of Thatcherism, Brian Jackson enrolls in the University of Bristol, a scholarship boy from seaside Essex with a love of knowledge for its own sake and a childhood spent watching University Challenge, a college quiz show. At Bristol he tries out for the Challenge team and falls under the spell of Alice, a lovely blond with an extensive sexual past.

6.4

MagicScore

#18

Mountain Men

2014

Two estranged brothers, Toph and Cooper, must journey to a remote family cabin in the mountains to evict a squatter. Buried resentment and bruised egos soon derail the plan and when the smoke clears they've destroyed their car and burned down the cabin, leaving them stranded in the cold Rocky Mountain winter. With their very survival at stake, they must learn to work together as brothers to get back to civilization.

5.5

MagicScore

#19

Good Morning

1959

A lighthearted take on director Yasujiro Ozu’s perennial theme of the challenges of intergenerational relationships, Good Morning tells the story of two young boys who stop speaking in protest after their parents refuse to buy a television set. Ozu weaves a wealth of subtle gags through a family portrait as rich as those of his dramatic films, mocking the foibles of the adult world through the eyes of his child protagonists. Shot in stunning color and set in a suburb of Tokyo where housewives gossip about the neighbors’ new washing machine and unemployed husbands look for work as door-to-door salesmen, this charming comedy refashions Ozu’s own silent classic I Was Born, But . . . to gently satirize consumerism in postwar Japan.

7.7

MagicScore

#20

I Was Born, But...

1932

Two young brothers become the leaders of a gang of kids in their neighborhood. Ozu's charming film is a social satire that draws from the antics of childhood as well as the tragedy of maturity.

7.5

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Spanking the Monkey?

The top films similar to Spanking the Monkey by MovieMagicScore are Grand Jete (4.9), Cecilia (4.1), Sleepwalkers (6.0). Each shares comedy/drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Spanking the Monkey worth watching?

Spanking the Monkey holds a MovieMagicScore of 5.7/10 from 78 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Spanking the Monkey?

Spanking the Monkey (1994) is a comedy, drama film directed by David O. Russell, starring Jeremy Davies, Alberta Watson, Benjamin Hendrickson.

Where can I find more recommendations like Spanking the Monkey?

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 Grand Jete Movies like Cecilia Movies like Sleepwalkers Movies like Meet Bill Movies like The People Under the Stairs Movies like American Beauty

About movies like Spanking the Monkey

This ranked list pairs Spanking the Monkey (1994), a comedy and drama film from David O. Russell, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Jeremy Davies 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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