Movies Like And the Band Played On (1993)

And the Band Played On is a 1993 drama, tv movie film from Roger Spottiswoode with a MovieMagicScore of 6.4/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with The Normal Heart and Longtime Companion.

Drama TV Movie

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.

7.7

MagicScore

Longtime Companion

1989

During the summer of 1981, a group of friends in New York are completely unprepared for the onslaught of AIDS. What starts as a rumor about a mysterious "gay cancer" soon turns into a major crisis as, one by one, some of the friends begin to fall ill, leaving the others to panic about who will be next. As death takes its toll, the lives of these friends are forever redefined by an unconditional display of love, hope and courage.

6.7

MagicScore

The Witnesses

2007

Paris, 1984. A group of friends contend with the first outbreak of the AIDS epidemic.

6.3

MagicScore

The Flu

2013

A case of the flu quickly morphs into a pandemic. As the death toll mounts and the living panic, the government plans extreme measures to contain it.

7.5

MagicScore

The Invasion

2007

Washington, D.C. psychologist Carol Bennell and her colleague Dr. Ben Driscoll are the only two people on Earth who are aware of an epidemic running rampant through the city. They discover an alien virus aboard a crashed space shuttle that transforms anyone who comes into contact with it into unfeeling drones while they sleep. Carol realizes her son holds the key to stopping the spread of the plague and she races to find him before it is too late.

6.0

MagicScore

Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway

2008

Set in New York City's gritty East Village, the revolutionary rock opera RENT tells the story of a group of bohemians struggling to live and pay their rent. "Measuring their lives in love," these starving artists strive for success and acceptance while enduring the obstacles of poverty, illness and the AIDS epidemic.

7.9

MagicScore

Rent

2019

The story of several friends in New York City facing financial poverty, homophobia, AIDS, and, of course, rent.

6.7

MagicScore

An Early Frost

1985

Successful lawyer Michael Pierson is gay, but he has always hidden this part of his life from his mother, Katherine, father, Nick, and grandmother Beatrice. But when Michael discovers he has AIDS and is dying of complications from the disease, he must open up to his parents and the rest of his family. Though fearful of their reactions, he introduces them to his longtime lover, Peter, and looks to them for support.

5.7

MagicScore

Buddies

1985

David, a naive graduate student, has volunteered to work as a 'buddy' for people dying of AIDS. Assigned to the intensely political Robert, a lifelong activist whose friends and family have abandoned him following his diagnosis, the two men, each with notably different world views, soon discover common bonds, as David's inner activist awakens and Robert's need for emotional release is fulfilled.

8.2

MagicScore

#10

Bohemian Rhapsody

2018

Singer Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, drummer Roger Taylor and bass guitarist John Deacon take the music world by storm when they form the rock 'n' roll band Queen in 1970. Hit songs become instant classics. When Mercury's increasingly wild lifestyle starts to spiral out of control, Queen soon faces its greatest challenge yet – finding a way to keep the band together amid the success and excess.

8.0

MagicScore

#11

Dallas Buyers Club

2013

Loosely based on the true-life tale of Ron Woodroof, a drug-taking, women-loving, homophobic man who in 1986 was diagnosed with HIV/AIDS and given thirty days to live.

7.9

MagicScore

#12

Philadelphia

1993

Two competing lawyers join forces to sue a prestigious law firm for AIDS discrimination. As their unlikely friendship develops their courage overcomes the prejudice and corruption of their powerful adversaries.

7.7

MagicScore

#13

Holding the Man

2015

Tim and John fell in love while teenagers at their all-boys high school. John was captain of the football team, Tim an aspiring actor playing a minor part in Romeo and Juliet. Their romance endured for 15 years in the face of everything life threw at it – the separations, the discrimination, the temptations, the jealousies and the losses – until the only problem that love can't solve tried to destroy them.

7.7

MagicScore

#14

Rent

2005

This rock opera tells the story of one year in the life of a group of bohemians struggling in late 1980s East Village, New York, USA. The film centers around Mark and Roger, two roommates. While a tragedy has made Roger numb to new experiences, Mark begins capturing their world through his attempts to make a personal movie. In the year that follows, they and their friends deal with love, loss, and working together.

6.9

MagicScore

#15

Parting Glances

1986

Michael and Robert, two gay men living in Brooklyn, spend their last day together before Robert leaves for Africa on work assignment. Michael still has feelings for his friend Nick, who has AIDS.

6.8

MagicScore

#16

1985

2018

Having been gone for three years, closeted advertising executive Adrian returns to his Texas hometown and struggles to reveal his dire circumstances to his conservative family.

6.2

MagicScore

#17

Love! Valour! Compassion!

1997

A group of gay friends spend summer weekends together at a lakeside house in upstate New York. As the season progresses and secrets begin to surface, the complex relationships within the group are sometimes strained and sometimes strengthened.

6.1

MagicScore

#18

It's My Party

1996

Nick, a gay, HIV-positive architect, begins to display severe symptoms of AIDS and makes preparations to kill himself before he is unable to function normally. He arranges a party to reconnect and say goodbye to his closest friends and his confused parents. But when his ex-partner, Brandon, a television director who left Nick when he was diagnosed with HIV, shows up, what was supposed to be a celebratory event becomes much more difficult for everyone.

6.1

MagicScore

#19

The Trip

2002

When 19-year-old gay-rights activist Tommy and 24-year-old Alan first meet in 1973, they find themselves on the opposite sides of the political coin...

6.1

MagicScore

#20

We Were Here

2011

A reflective look at the arrival and impact of AIDS in San Francisco and how individuals rose to the occasion during the first years of the crisis.

6.8

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like And the Band Played On?

The top films similar to And the Band Played On by MovieMagicScore are The Normal Heart (7.7), Longtime Companion (6.7), The Witnesses (6.3). Each shares drama/tv movie themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is And the Band Played On worth watching?

And the Band Played On holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.4/10 from 105 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is And the Band Played On?

And the Band Played On (1993) is a drama, tv movie film directed by Roger Spottiswoode, starring Matthew Modine, Alan Alda, Patrick Bauchau.

Where can I find more recommendations like And the Band Played On?

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

Keep exploring

Movies like The Normal Heart Movies like Longtime Companion Movies like The Witnesses Movies like The Flu Movies like The Invasion Movies like Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway

About movies like And the Band Played On

This ranked list pairs And the Band Played On (1993), a drama and tv movie film from Roger Spottiswoode, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Matthew Modine 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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