Movies Like The California Kid (1974)

The California Kid is a 1974 action, horror, tv movie, thriller film from Richard T. Heffron with a MovieMagicScore of 6.2/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Mean Dreams and Normal.

Action Horror TV Movie Thriller

Mean Dreams

2016

When two youngsters meet and fall for each other, they must go on the run from the girl's corrupt father, who is also the sheriff of the town.

6.4

MagicScore

Normal

2026

An unassuming substitute sheriff with a troubled past responds to a bank robbery in a small, sleepy town and unknowingly uncovers something far more explosive.

7.2

MagicScore

Girl

2020

A young woman returns to her small hometown intent on killing her abusive father only to discover someone murdered him the day before. As the girl searches for answers, she uncovers a family legacy more dangerous than she'd imagined.

6.0

MagicScore

The Giant Spider Invasion

1975

A black hole hits North Wisconsin and opens a door to other dimensions. Giant 15 meter spiders emerge from it, who have an appetite for human flesh! Two NASA scientists try to save the world.

4.0

MagicScore

Macon County Line

1974

A vengeful Southern sheriff is out for blood after his wife is brutally killed by a pair of drifters. Low-budget film set in Georgia in 1953 and at the time of release, purported to be based on a true story.

5.7

MagicScore

The Wraith

1986

Packard Walsh and his motorized gang control and terrorize an Arizona desert town where they force drivers to drag-race so they can 'win' their vehicles. After Walsh beats the decent teenager Jamie Hankins to death after finding him with his girlfriend, a mysterious power creates Jake Kesey, an extremely cool motor-biker who has a car which is invincible. Jake befriends Jamie's girlfriend Keri Johnson, takes Jamie's sweet brother Bill under his wing and manages what Sheriff Loomis couldn't; eliminate Packard's criminal gang the hard way...

6.4

MagicScore

Christmas Bloody Christmas

2022

It's Christmas Eve and Tori just wants to get drunk and party, but when a robotic Santa Claus at a nearby toy store goes haywire and begins a rampant killing spree through her small town, she's forced into a battle for survival.

5.4

MagicScore

Traffik

2018

A couple off for a romantic weekend in the mountains are accosted by a biker gang. Alone in the mountains, Brea and John must defend themselves against the gang, who will stop at nothing to protect their secrets.

6.1

MagicScore

Silent Rage

1982

A mentally ill man in a small Texas town goes on a killing rampage and is fatally wounded by police. When doctors use an experimental serum to bring him back to life, the killer develops superhuman strength and the town sheriff must pursue him.

6.0

MagicScore

#10

The Devil All the Time

2020

In Knockemstiff, Ohio and its neighboring backwoods, sinister characters converge around young Arvin Russell as he fights the evil forces that threaten him and his family.

7.2

MagicScore

#11

The Frighteners

1996

Once an architect, Frank Bannister now passes himself off as an exorcist of evil spirits. To bolster his facade, he claims his "special" gift is the result of a car accident that killed his wife. But what he does not count on is more people dying in the small town where he lives. As he tries to piece together the supernatural mystery of these killings, he falls in love with the wife of one of the victims and deals with a crazy FBI agent.

6.9

MagicScore

#12

Dead & Buried

1981

After a series of gory murders commited by mobs of townspeople against visiting tourists, the corpses appear to be coming back to life and living normally as locals in the small town.

6.4

MagicScore

#13

Child of God

2014

A dispossessed, violent man's life is a disastrous attempt to exist outside the social order. Successively deprived of parents and homes and with few other ties, he descends to the level of a cave dweller and falls deeper into crime and degradation.

4.8

MagicScore

#14

Rio Bravo

1959

A small-town sheriff in the American West enlists the help of a disabled man, a drunk, and a young gunfighter in his efforts to hold in jail the brother of the local bad guy.

7.8

MagicScore

#15

Eddington

2025

In May of 2020, a standoff between a small-town sheriff and mayor sparks a powder keg as neighbor is pitted against neighbor in Eddington, New Mexico.

6.4

MagicScore

#16

Brigham City

2001

Wes Clayton is a lawman and a bishop in a Mormon community called Brigham. The town is shaken when a woman from California is found murdered. Clayton and his young deputy work with an FBI agent sent to investigate. As a civil and spiritual leader in the frightened town, Clayton must uncover the town's deepest secrets, find the murderer and keep Brigham from ripping itself apart.

6.4

MagicScore

#17

Clay Pigeons

1998

Clay is a young man in a small town who witnesses his friend, Earl, kill himself because of the ongoing affair that Clay was having with the man's wife, Amanda. Feeling guilty, Clay now resists the widow when she presses him to continue with the affair. Clay unknowingly befriends a serial killer named Lester Long who murders the widow in an attempt to "help" his "fishing buddy."

6.2

MagicScore

#18

One False Move

1991

Following a series of drug deals and murders, three criminals -- Fantasia, Ray Malcolm and Pluto -- travel from Los Angeles to Houston, finally arriving in a small Arkansas town to go into hiding. Two detectives from the LAPD, who are already on the case, contact the town's sheriff, Dale Dixon, to alert him of the fugitives' presence in the area. Underestimating Dixon, the criminals have no idea what they are about to face.

6.6

MagicScore

#19

It Came from Outer Space

1953

Author and amateur astronomer John Putnam and schoolteacher Ellen Fields witness an enormous meteorite come down near a small town in Arizona. Putnam becomes a local object of scorn when, after examining the object up close, he announces that it is a spacecraft, and that it is inhabited...

6.3

MagicScore

#20

Welcome to Christmas

2018

Resort developer Madison Lane is tasked with finding a location for a new ski resort. Her boss tells her to take a trip to Christmas, Colorado, to consider the location. On her way into town, Madison has a minor fender-bender with the town’s welcome sign. Town Sheriff Gage McBride gives Madison a ride into town so she can attend her meeting with the mayor while the car is towed and repaired. Little does Madison know that the town is on a mission to convince Madison that Christmas is the best place for the new ski resort.

5.9

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like The California Kid?

The top films similar to The California Kid by MovieMagicScore are Mean Dreams (6.4), Normal (7.2), Girl (6.0). Each shares action/horror/tv movie/thriller themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is The California Kid worth watching?

The California Kid holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.2/10 from 34 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is The California Kid?

The California Kid (1974) is a action, horror, tv movie, thriller film directed by Richard T. Heffron, starring Martin Sheen, Vic Morrow, Michelle Phillips.

Where can I find more recommendations like The California Kid?

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

Keep exploring

Movies like Mean Dreams Movies like Normal Movies like Girl Movies like The Giant Spider Invasion Movies like Macon County Line Movies like The Wraith

About movies like The California Kid

This ranked list pairs The California Kid (1974), a action and horror and tv movie and thriller film from Richard T. Heffron, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Martin Sheen 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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