Movies Like To Be and to Have (2002)

To Be and to Have is a 2002 documentary film from Nicolas Philibert with a MovieMagicScore of 7.3/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Waiting for "Superman" and A Gentle Breeze in the Village.

Documentary

Waiting for "Superman"

2010

Gripping, heartbreaking, and ultimately hopeful, Waiting for Superman is an impassioned indictment of the American school system from An Inconvenient Truth director Davis Guggenheim.

6.9

MagicScore

A Gentle Breeze in the Village

2007

When eighth-grade cool guy Hiromi transfers from Tokyo to a small elementary/middle school with only six kids enrolled, wholesome and honest Soyo becomes enthralled with his sophisticated world.

6.9

MagicScore

The Hours

2002

The story of three women searching for more potent, meaningful lives. Each is alive at a different time and place, all are linked by their yearnings and their fears. Their stories intertwine, and finally come together in a surprising, transcendent moment of shared recognition.

7.3

MagicScore

We Shall Overcome

2006

A drama about a boy who's inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and challenges repressive school authority in 1969 Denmark.

7.3

MagicScore

The Wave

2008

A school teacher discusses types of government with his class. His students find it too boring to repeatedly go over national socialism and believe that dictatorship cannot be established in modern Germany. He starts an experiment to show how easily the masses can become manipulated.

7.5

MagicScore

Only Yesterday

1991

In lyrical switches between the present and the past, Taeko contemplates the arc of her life, and wonders if she has been true to the dreams of her childhood self.

7.4

MagicScore

The Story of the Weeping Camel

2003

When a Mongolian nomadic family's newest camel colt is rejected by its mother, a musician is needed for a ritual to change her mind.

7.1

MagicScore

On the Way to School

2008

One year in the life of a Turkish teacher, teaching the Turkish language to Kurdish children in a remote village in Turkey. The children can't speak Turkish, the teacher can't speak Kurdish and is forced to become an exile in his own country. On the Way to School is a film about a Turkish teacher who is alone in a village as an authority of the state, and about his interaction with the Kurdish children who have to learn Turkish. The film witnesses the communication problem emphasizing the loneliness of a teacher in a different community and culture; and the changes brought up by his presence into this different community during one year. The film chronicles one school year, starting from September 2007 until the departure of the teacher for summer holiday in June 2008. During this period, they begin to know and understand each other mutually and slowly.

7.0

MagicScore

Tokyo Story

1953

The elderly Shukishi and his wife, Tomi, take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children in Tokyo. Their elder son, Koichi, a doctor, and their daughter, Shige, a hairdresser, don't have much time to spend with their aged parents, and so it falls to Noriko, the widow of their younger son who was killed in the war, to keep her in-laws company.

8.1

MagicScore

#10

On the Way to School

2013

These children live in the four corners of the earth, but share the same thirst for learning. They understand that only education will allow them a better future and that is why, every day, they must set out on the long and perilous journey that will lead them to knowledge. Jackson and his younger sister from Kenya walk 15 kilometres each way through a savannah populated by wild animals; Carlito rides more than 18 kilometres twice a day with his younger sister, across the plains of Argentina; Zahira lives in the Moroccan Atlas Mountains who has an exhausting 22 kilometres walk along punishing mountain paths before she reaches her boarding school; Samuel from India sits in a clumsy DIY wheelchair and the 4 kilometres journey is an ordeal each day, as his two younger brothers have to push him all the way to school…

6.8

MagicScore

#11

Strings

2013

María's routine at school is altered by the arrival of a very special child. Soon, they become close friends.

8.0

MagicScore

#12

Leo

2023

Jaded 74-year-old lizard Leo has been stuck in the same Florida classroom for decades with his terrarium-mate turtle. When he learns he only has one year left to live, he plans to escape to experience life on the outside but instead gets caught up in the problems of his anxious students — including an impossibly mean substitute teacher.

7.4

MagicScore

#13

Melody

1971

Two youngsters declare to their parents that they want to get married. Not sometime in the future but as soon as possible.

7.1

MagicScore

#14

Elephant

2003

Several ordinary high school students go through their daily routine as two others prepare for something more malevolent.

7.0

MagicScore

#15

Far from Men

2015

A French teacher in a small Algerian village during the Algerian War forms an unexpected bond with a dissident who is ordered to be turned in to the authorities.

6.8

MagicScore

#16

Silent Hill

2006

Rose, a desperate mother, takes her adopted daughter, Sharon, to the town of Silent Hill in an attempt to cure her of her ailment. After a violent car crash, Sharon disappears, and Rose embarks on a horrific journey to get her back and begins to uncover the truth behind the apocalyptic disaster that burned the town 30 years earlier.

6.6

MagicScore

#17

Bad Teacher

2011

A lazy, incompetent middle school teacher who hates her job and her students is forced to return to her job to make enough money for a boob job after her rich fiancé dumps her.

5.6

MagicScore

#18

Boyhood

2014

The film tells a story of a divorced couple trying to raise their young son. The story follows the boy for twelve years, from first grade at age 6 through 12th grade at age 17-18, and examines his relationship with his parents as he grows.

7.5

MagicScore

#19

The Seventh Continent

1989

Chronicles three years of a middle-class family seemingly caught up in their daily routines, troubled only by minor incidents. Behind their apparent calm and repetitive existence, however, they're planning something much more sinister.

7.4

MagicScore

#20

The Cave of the Yellow Dog

2005

The little nomad girl, Nansal, finds a baby dog in the Mongolian veld, who becomes her best friend - against all rejections of her parents. A story about a Mongolian family of nomads - their traditional way of life and the rising call of the City.

7.4

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like To Be and to Have?

The top films similar to To Be and to Have by MovieMagicScore are Waiting for "Superman" (6.9), A Gentle Breeze in the Village (6.9), The Hours (7.3). Each shares documentary themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is To Be and to Have worth watching?

To Be and to Have holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.3/10 from 144 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is To Be and to Have?

To Be and to Have (2002) is a documentary film directed by Nicolas Philibert, starring Georges Lopez, Johan, Alizé.

Where can I find more recommendations like To Be and to Have?

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

Keep exploring

Movies like Waiting for "Superman"Movies like A Gentle Breeze in the Village Movies like The Hours Movies like We Shall Overcome Movies like The Wave Movies like Only Yesterday

About movies like To Be and to Have

This ranked list pairs To Be and to Have (2002), a documentary film from Nicolas Philibert, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Georges Lopez 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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