Movies Like True Confessions (1981)

True Confessions is a 1981 crime, drama film from Ulu Grosbard with a MovieMagicScore of 6.1/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with The Little Things and He Walked by Night.

Crime Drama

The Little Things

2021

Deputy Sheriff Joe "Deke" Deacon joins forces with Sgt. Jim Baxter to search for a serial killer who's terrorizing Los Angeles. As they track the culprit, Baxter is unaware that the investigation is dredging up echoes of Deke's past, uncovering disturbing secrets that could threaten more than his case.

6.3

MagicScore

He Walked by Night

1949

Roy Martin aka Roy Morgan is a burglar and former war-time Radio & Electronics Engineer who listens in to radio police calls, allowing him to stay one step ahead of the cops.

6.7

MagicScore

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

1988

'Toon star Roger is worried that his wife Jessica is playing pattycake with someone else, so the studio hires detective Eddie Valiant to snoop on her. But the stakes are quickly raised when Marvin Acme is found dead and Roger is the prime suspect.

7.5

MagicScore

Devil in a Blue Dress

1995

In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright, a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet, who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city's black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.

6.5

MagicScore

Exorcist: The Beginning

2004

Years before Father Merrin helped save Regan MacNeil’s soul, he first encounters the demon Pazuzu in East Africa.

5.4

MagicScore

Jesse Stone: Night Passage

2006

A prequel to "Stone Cold", the story picks up after Jesse Stone is fired from the Los Angeles Police Department. He becomes an unlikely candidate recruited by a town council to become police chief of Paradise, MA, a small fishing town on Boston's North Shore. The board hopes his failed experience will keep him from digging too deep into the town's secrets. His first assignment is to investigate the murder of his predecessor whose death may be tied to a local domestic disturbance case, with connections to money laundering and murder involving some of the town's most affluent names as possible suspects.

6.9

MagicScore

Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song

1971

After saving a Black Panther from some racist cops, a black male prostitute goes on the run from "the man" with the help of the ghetto community and some disillusioned Hells Angels.

5.1

MagicScore

Corpus Christi

2019

A pious 20-year-old juvenile delinquent is sent to work at a sawmill in a small town; on arrival, he dresses up as a priest and accidentally takes over the local parish. The arrival of this young, charismatic preacher is an opportunity for the local community to begin the healing process after a tragedy that happened a year prior.

7.6

MagicScore

Absolution

1978

At a Catholic boys' school, domineering disciplinarian Father Goddard rules over his pupils with an iron hand. When one of his teenage charges confesses to murder, the dogmatic but deeply repressed Goddard finds his faith challenged and his life spiralling dangerously out of control.

6.4

MagicScore

#10

To Live and Die in L.A.

1985

When his longtime partner on the force is killed, reckless U.S. Secret Service agent Richard Chance vows revenge, setting out to nab dangerous counterfeit artist Eric Masters.

7.1

MagicScore

#11

Léon Morin, Priest

1961

Barny, although a Marxist, is intrigued by the mysteries of religion. In confession, she teases a priest, Léon Morin, but he is a young and intelligent man and ready to discuss anything.

7.0

MagicScore

#12

The Left Hand of God

1955

A man in priestly robes, seemingly the long-awaited Father O'Shea, arrives at a little-frequented Catholic mission in 1947 China. Though the man seems curiously uncomfortable with his priestly duties, his tough tactics prove very successful in the Seven Villages, as around them China disintegrates in civil war and revolution. But he has a secret, and his friendship with mission nurse Anne (an attractive war widow) seems to be taking on an unpriestly tone.

6.3

MagicScore

#13

The Iron Mask

1929

King Louis XIII of France is thrilled to have born to him a son - an heir to the throne. But when the queen delivers a twin, Cardinal Richelieu sees the second son as a potential for revolution, and has him sent off to Spain to be raised in secret to ensure a peaceful future for France. Alas, keeping the secret means sending Constance, lover of D'Artagnan, off to a convent. D'Artagnan hears of this and rallies the Musketeers in a bid to rescue her. Unfortunately, Richelieu out-smarts the Musketeers and banishes them forever.

6.7

MagicScore

#14

Crime 101

2026

When an elusive thief whose high-stakes heists unfold along the iconic 101 freeway in Los Angeles eyes the score of a lifetime, with hopes of this being his final job, his path collides with a disillusioned insurance broker who is facing her own crossroads. Determined to crack the case, a relentless detective closes in on the operation, raising the stakes even higher.

7.0

MagicScore

#15

Barton Fink

1991

A renowned New York playwright is enticed to California to write for the movies and discovers the hellish truth of Hollywood.

7.5

MagicScore

#16

Die Hard

1988

High above the city of L.A. a team of terrorists has seized a building, taken hostages, and declared war. One man has manages to escape... An off-duty cop hiding somewhere inside. He's alone, tired... and the only chance anyone has got.

7.8

MagicScore

#17

Motherless Brooklyn

2019

New York City, 1957. Lionel Essrog, a private detective living with Tourette syndrome, tries to solve the murder of his mentor and best friend, armed only with vague clues and the strength of his obsessive mind.

6.7

MagicScore

#18

The Sentinel

1977

As a young girl, Alison Parker attempted suicide after being traumatized by her father's sexual exploits. Now an elite fashion model, she moves to a Brooklyn Heights apartment building that houses a number of bizarre, eccentric tenants. After experiencing a string of disturbing occurrences, she attempts to uncover the building's sinister secret.

6.1

MagicScore

#19

Nightmare Alley

2021

An ambitious carnival man with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychologist who is even more dangerous than he is.

7.0

MagicScore

#20

Cry, the Beloved Country

1995

A South-African preacher goes to search for his wayward son who has committed a crime in the big city.

6.7

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like True Confessions?

The top films similar to True Confessions by MovieMagicScore are The Little Things (6.3), He Walked by Night (6.7), Who Framed Roger Rabbit (7.5). Each shares crime/drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is True Confessions worth watching?

True Confessions holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.1/10 from 171 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is True Confessions?

True Confessions (1981) is a crime, drama film directed by Ulu Grosbard, starring Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Charles Durning.

Where can I find more recommendations like True Confessions?

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

Keep exploring

Movies like The Little Things Movies like He Walked by Night Movies like Who Framed Roger Rabbit Movies like Devil in a Blue Dress Movies like Exorcist: The Beginning Movies like Jesse Stone: Night Passage

About movies like True Confessions

This ranked list pairs True Confessions (1981), a crime and drama film from Ulu Grosbard, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Robert De Niro 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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