Movies Like Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet (2016)

Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet is a 2016 drama, history film from Lee Joon-ik with a MovieMagicScore of 7.8/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Harbin and MAL·MO·E: The Secret Mission.

Drama History

Harbin

2024

In 1909, several years after Korea is forced into becoming a Japanese colony, freedom fighters plot the daring assassination of Japan's prime minister during their quest for independence.

7.7

MagicScore

MAL·MO·E: The Secret Mission

2019

During the Japanese occupation of Korea, the Japanese Empire seeks to eradicate the Korean language and identity. In retaliation, a small group of Korean patriots try to protect their language by compiling the first Korean language dictionary.

7.8

MagicScore

Anarchist from Colony

2017

Based on the life of the Korean anarchist Park Yeol, the film shows his struggle to counter the massacre of Koreans by the government during the 1923 great Kanto earthquake, focusing on his activities as the leader of the anti-Japanese organization Bulryeongsa and his relationship with Japanese comrade Fumiko Kaneko.

7.4

MagicScore

Assassination

2015

In Japanese-occupied Korea, three freedom fighters are assigned a mission to assassinate a genocidal military leader and his top collaborator. But the plan goes completely awry amidst double-crossings, counter-assassinations, and a shocking revelation about one of the assassins' past.

7.3

MagicScore

The Battle: Roar to Victory

2019

Over a 4 day period, a fierce battle takes place between Korean independence militias and imperialist Japanese forces in Manchuria, China. The militia includes a master swordsman and an expert marksman.

7.3

MagicScore

The Age of Shadows

2016

Set in the late 1920s, The Age of Shadows follows the cat-and-mouse game that unfolds between a group of resistance fighters trying to bring in explosives from Shanghai to destroy key Japanese facilities in Seoul, and Japanese agents trying to stop them.

7.2

MagicScore

Phantom

2023

In 1933, when Korea was under Japanese occupation, five people in Gyeongseong are suspected to be "Phantom" spies of the anti-Japanese organization.

6.9

MagicScore

Kill Your Darlings

2013

A murder in 1944 draws together the great poets of the beat generation: Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs.

7.0

MagicScore

The Battleship Island

2017

During the Japanese colonial era, roughly 400 Korean people, who were forced onto Battleship Island 'Hashima Island' to mine for coal, attempt to escape.

7.1

MagicScore

#10

The Last Princess

2016

Under the oppressive Japanese colonial rule, Deok-hye, the last Princess of the declining Joseon Dynasty, is forced to move to Japan. She spends her days missing home, while struggling to maintain dignity as a princess. After a series of failed tries, Deok-hye makes her final attempt to return home with help of her childhood sweetheart, Jang-han.

6.7

MagicScore

#11

Gandhi

1982

In the early years of the 20th century, Mohandas K. Gandhi, a British-trained lawyer, forsakes all worldly possessions to take up the cause of Indian independence. Faced with armed resistance from the British government, Gandhi adopts a policy of 'passive resistance', endeavouring to win freedom for his people without resorting to bloodshed.

7.6

MagicScore

#12

Limonov: The Ballad

2024

A revolutionary militant, a thug, an underground writer, a butler to a millionaire in Manhattan. But also a switchblade-waving poet, a lover of beautiful women, a warmonger, a political agitator, and a novelist who wrote of his greatness. Eduard Limonov’s life story is a journey through Russia, America, and Europe during the second half of the 20th century.

6.4

MagicScore

#13

My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown

1989

No one expects much from Christy Brown, a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class Irish family. Though Christy is a spastic quadriplegic and essentially paralyzed, a miraculous event occurs when, at the age of 5, he demonstrates control of his left foot by using chalk to scrawl a word on the floor. With the help of his steely mother — and no shortage of grit and determination — Christy overcomes his infirmity to become a painter, poet and author.

7.5

MagicScore

#14

Mary Shelley

2017

The love affair between poet Percy Shelley and Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin resulted in the creation of an immortal novel, “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus.”

7.0

MagicScore

#15

Andrei Rublev

1966

An expansive Russian drama, this film focuses on the life of revered religious icon painter Andrei Rublev. Drifting from place to place in a tumultuous era, the peace-seeking monk eventually gains a reputation for his art. But after Rublev witnesses a brutal battle and unintentionally becomes involved, he takes a vow of silence and spends time away from his work. As he begins to ease his troubled soul, he takes steps towards becoming a painter once again.

8.0

MagicScore

#16

The Trials of Oscar Wilde

1960

England, 1890s. The brutal and embittered Marquis of Queensberry, who believes that his youngest son, Bosie, has an inappropriate relationship with the famous Irish writer Oscar Wilde, maintains an ongoing feud with the latter in order to ruin his reputation and cause his fall from grace.

6.3

MagicScore

#17

Everybody Wants Some!!

2016

A comedy that follows a group of friends as they navigate their way through the freedoms and responsibilities of unsupervised adulthood.

6.4

MagicScore

#18

The Devils

1971

In 17th-century France, Father Urbain Grandier's protection of the city of Loudun from the corrupt Cardinal Richelieu is undermined by a sexually repressed nun's accusation of witchcraft.

7.5

MagicScore

#19

Oppenheimer

2023

The story of J. Robert Oppenheimer's role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II.

8.0

MagicScore

#20

The Last Emperor

1987

A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as just another peasant worker in the People's Republic.

7.6

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet?

The top films similar to Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet by MovieMagicScore are Harbin (7.7), MAL·MO·E: The Secret Mission (7.8), Anarchist from Colony (7.4). Each shares drama/history themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet worth watching?

Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.8/10 from 20 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet?

Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet (2016) is a drama, history film directed by Lee Joon-ik, starring Kang Ha-neul, Park Jeong-min, Kim In-woo.

Where can I find more recommendations like Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet?

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 Harbin Movies like MAL·MO·E: The Secret Mission Movies like Anarchist from Colony Movies like Assassination Movies like The Battle: Roar to Victory Movies like The Age of Shadows

About movies like Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet

This ranked list pairs Dongju: The Portrait of a Poet (2016), a drama and history film from Lee Joon-ik, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Kang Ha-neul 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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