Movies Like Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Midnight Cowboy is a 1969 drama film from John Schlesinger with a MovieMagicScore of 7.5/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Mysterious Skin and Marley & Me.

Drama

Mysterious Skin

2005

A teenage hustler and a young man obsessed with alien abductions cross paths, together discovering a horrible, liberating truth.

7.7

MagicScore

Marley & Me

2008

A newly married couple, in the process of starting a family, learn many of life's important lessons from their trouble-loving retriever, Marley. Packed with plenty of laughs to lighten the load, the film explores the highs and lows of marriage, maturity and confronting one's own mortality, as seen through the lens of family life with a dog.

7.2

MagicScore

The Color Purple

1985

An epic tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry. After Celie's abusive father marries her off to the equally debasing 'Mister' Albert Johnson, things go from bad to worse, leaving Celie to find companionship anywhere she can. She perseveres, holding on to her dream of one day being reunited with her sister in Africa.

7.7

MagicScore

Confessions of a Congressman

1978

Roberto, a leader and follower of the ideals of his radical leftist opposition party, can’t resist the cheap beautiful street teenagers that are thrown his way for various pleasures.

6.0

MagicScore

Taxi Driver

1976

Suffering from insomnia, disturbed loner Travis Bickle takes a job as a New York City cabbie, haunting the streets nightly, growing increasingly detached from reality as he dreams of cleaning up the filthy city.

8.1

MagicScore

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

My Own Private Idaho

1991

In this loose adaptation of Shakespeare's "Henry IV," Mike Waters is a hustler afflicted with narcolepsy. Scott Favor is the rebellious son of a mayor. Together, the two travel from Portland, Oregon to Idaho and finally to the coast of Italy in a quest to find Mike's estranged mother. Along the way they turn tricks for money and drugs, eventually attracting the attention of a wealthy benefactor and sexual deviant.

7.1

MagicScore

200 American

2003

Conrad is a gay man living in NYC. He's also CEO of an ad agency and by nature a control freak. Although Conrad is still in love with Martin (his ex), he hires a young Aussie hustler named Tyler, first for a night and then to work for his company. Things get increasingly complicated as Conrad tries to rekindle things with Martin. Meanwhile Tyler (who's daytime name is Ian) falls for Michael his new supervisor

4.8

MagicScore

The Hunger Games

2012

In a dystopian society where the Capitol forces each district to send two young tributes to fight to the death in a televised spectacle, a girl volunteers to take her sister’s place, setting the stage for a struggle of survival and defiance.

7.2

MagicScore

#10

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi

2016

An American Ambassador is killed during an attack at a U.S. compound in Libya as a security team struggles to make sense out of the chaos.

7.3

MagicScore

#11

Chuck & Buck

2000

Chuck and Buck are childhood best friends whose lives have taken very different paths. While Chuck moved away and now has a real life, Buck stayed behind and developed a dangerous fixation—on Chuck's life.

5.9

MagicScore

#12

Cop

1988

An obsessive, insubordinate homicide cop is convinced a serial killer is loose in the Hollywood area and disobeys orders in order to catch him.

6.2

MagicScore

#13

The Accused

1988

Out drinking one night after a fight with her boyfriend, three men brutally rape Sarah Tobias in a bar while people watch and cheer. District Attorney Kathryn Murphy takes the case; however, she allows the rapists to receive a mild sentence. A distraught Sarah decides to seek punishment for the men who witnessed and encouraged the rape. To get justice, Sarah must take the stand and revisit the night of her attack.

7.1

MagicScore

#14

Anonymous Animals

2021

The balance of power between man and animal is reversed. In a remote countryside, any encounter with the dominant can become hostile. At the crossroads of fantastic and suspense kind, Anonymous Animals questions the place of animals in our societies.

6.3

MagicScore

#15

They Cloned Tyrone

2023

A series of eerie events thrusts an unlikely trio onto the trail of a nefarious government conspiracy lurking directly beneath their neighborhood.

6.5

MagicScore

#16

Relay

2025

A broker of lucrative payoffs between corrupt corporations and the individuals who threaten them breaks his own rules when a new client seeks his protection to stay alive.

7.0

MagicScore

#17

How to Blow Up a Pipeline

2023

A crew of young environmental activists execute a daring mission to sabotage an oil pipeline.

6.4

MagicScore

#18

Querelle

1982

A handsome Belgian sailor on shore leave in the port of Brest, who is also a drug smuggler and murderer, embarks upon a voyage of highly charged and violent homosexual self-discovery that will change him forever from the man he once was.

6.6

MagicScore

#19

The Last Match

2013

Cuba is not a country for young gays. Teen rent boy Reinier falls in love with a mate in the slum soccer field in their neighbourhood in Havana. Although obsessed with moneymaking to hold up his baby, teen wife, and wife's grandma, gambler Reinier always fails to get the stroke of luck he looks for. At the same time he cannot help being infatuated by Yosvani. Handsome Yosvani will give up his older, wealthy girlfriend (whom he hooked up to pay for a lavish life in the big city), and the work he does for her father, a loan thug, so much in love he is with Reinier. But the boys would fight hard to keep this love in the reckless Havana streets.

7.2

MagicScore

#20

Sauvage

2018

Léo, a 22-year-old homeless sex worker searches for genuine love on the streets of Strasbourg.

6.7

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Midnight Cowboy?

The top films similar to Midnight Cowboy by MovieMagicScore are Mysterious Skin (7.7), Marley & Me (7.2), The Color Purple (7.7). Each shares drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Midnight Cowboy worth watching?

Midnight Cowboy holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.5/10 from 1,523 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is Midnight Cowboy?

Midnight Cowboy (1969) is a drama film directed by John Schlesinger, starring Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman, Sylvia Miles.

Where can I find more recommendations like Midnight Cowboy?

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 Mysterious Skin Movies like Marley & Me Movies like The Color Purple Movies like Confessions of a Congressman Movies like Taxi Driver Movies like Philadelphia

About movies like Midnight Cowboy

This ranked list pairs Midnight Cowboy (1969), a drama film from John Schlesinger, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Jon Voight 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.

← Back to Midnight Cowboy