Movies Like Birds of Paradise (2021)

Birds of Paradise is a 2021 drama film from Sarah Adina Smith with a MovieMagicScore of 6.5/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Billy Elliot: The Musical Live and Center Stage: On Pointe.

Drama

Billy Elliot: The Musical Live

2014

In County Durham, England, 1984, a talented young dancer, Billy Elliot, stumbles out of the boxing ring and onto the ballet floor. He faces many trials and triumphs as he strives to conquer his family’s set ways, inner conflict, and standing on his toes in a musical that questions masculinity, gender norms and conformity.

8.1

MagicScore

Center Stage: On Pointe

2016

Jonathan Reeves is tasked with infusing more contemporary styles and modernism into the American Ballet Academy, and enlists his top choreographers Charlie, Cooper and Tommy to recruit dancers to compete at a camp where the winners will be selected to join the Academy. Bella Parker, who has always lived in the shadow of her hugely successful sister Kate, finally gets her chance to step into the limelight as one of the dancers recruited for the camp.

6.4

MagicScore

Suspiria

1977

An American newcomer to a prestigious German ballet academy comes to realize that the school is a front for something sinister amid a series of grisly murders.

7.5

MagicScore

Etoile

1989

An American ballerina arrives in Hungary to enroll in a ballet school and it soon becomes apparent that things are not what they seem.

5.7

MagicScore

The American

2023

American ballet dancer Joy Womack is accepted into Moscow's infamously tough Bolshoi Ballet Academy, with the dream of becoming a great ballerina.

6.8

MagicScore

Yeh Ballet

2020

Discovered by an eccentric ballet master, two gifted but underprivileged Mumbai teens face bigotry and disapproval as they pursue their dancing dreams.

7.6

MagicScore

Billy Elliot

2000

County Durham, England, 1984. The miners' strike has started and the police have started coming up from Bethnal Green, starting a class war with the lower classes suffering. Caught in the middle of the conflict is 11-year old Billy Elliot, who, after leaving his boxing club for the day, stumbles upon a ballet class and finds out that he's naturally talented. He practices with his teacher Mrs. Wilkinson for an upcoming audition in Newcastle-upon Tyne for the royal Ballet school in London.

7.6

MagicScore

Suspiria

2018

A darkness swirls at the center of a world-renowned dance company, one that will engulf the artistic director, an ambitious young dancer, and a grieving psychotherapist. Some will succumb to the nightmare. Others will finally wake up.

6.9

MagicScore

Pretty Lethal

2026

A troupe of ballerinas find themselves fighting for survival as they attempt to escape from a remote inn after their bus breaks down on the way to a dance competition.

6.8

MagicScore

#10

Black Swan

2010

The story of a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life is completely consumed with dance. Nina lives with her retired ballerina mother who zealously supports her daughter's professional ambition. When the artistic director decides to replace the prima ballerina for the opening production of their new season, Nina is his first choice.

7.7

MagicScore

#11

The Dying Swan

1917

After being betrayed by her playboy lover, a heartbroken mute young woman joins a ballet company; during a performance of “The Dying Swan,” she enraptures a painter obsessed with portraying death genuinely.

6.4

MagicScore

#12

A Nutcracker Christmas

2016

When her niece is cast in The Philadelphia Ballet’s production of the Nutcracker, a jaded ex-ballerina is forced to come to terms with the life and love she left behind.

6.4

MagicScore

#13

The Mad Genius

1931

A crippled puppeteer rescues an abused young boy and turns the boy into a great ballet dancer. Complications ensue when, as a young man, the dancer falls in love with a young woman the puppeteer is also in love with.

6.3

MagicScore

#14

The Bolshoi

2016

Young and extremely talented dancer Yulya Olshanskaya from a small mining town draws a “happy ticket”: she is noticed by a former ballet dancer Pototsky and he promises her a future of great ballerina, worthy of the main stage of the country. However, in order to become a diamond, anyone, even the most outstanding brilliant, needs to be cut, and the way to the legendary stage of The Bolshoi Theatre for Yulya lies through the walls of the ballet school, where the more capricious teacher Galina Mikhailovna Beletskaya takes custody of the rebellious provincial. Turning into a prima will require incredible self-denial, and Yulya herself will have to make sure that the big ballet is not only the whiteness of the packs, the gold of the boxes and the slip of silk ribbons. But no obstacles will stop the one who has the big dream.

6.2

MagicScore

#15

Dance Academy: The Movie

2017

This 2017 movie follows the original dance academy TV show and tracks where the characters are in their lives now.

7.2

MagicScore

#16

Hans Christian Andersen

1952

A small-town shoemaker with a knack for spinning yarns, Hans encounters happiness and heartbreak on his road to becoming a full-fledged writer.

6.2

MagicScore

#17

Grand Jete

2022

Dance teacher and mother Nadja left her son Mario with her own mother when he was little. Now she has reappeared on his doorstep, seeking a closeness that knows fewer and fewer boundaries. An uncompromising film about family relationships.

4.9

MagicScore

#18

10DANCE

2025

Two dancers, opposites in all but their art, agree to train together for a competition. At first, they clash, but soon become drawn to each other.

7.1

MagicScore

#19

Dance with Me

1998

Young Cuban Rafael just buried his mother, and comes to Houston to meet his father John for the first time. The difficult part is that John doesn't know he is Rafael's father. John runs a dance studio, and everyone prepares for the World Open Dance championship in Las Vegas. It soon becomes clear Rafael is a very good dancer, and Ruby is the biggest hope for the studio at the championship.

6.9

MagicScore

#20

Strictly Ballroom

1992

Brave new steps put Scott's career in jeopardy. With a new partner and determination, can he still succeed?

6.6

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Birds of Paradise?

The top films similar to Birds of Paradise by MovieMagicScore are Billy Elliot: The Musical Live (8.1), Center Stage: On Pointe (6.4), Suspiria (7.5). Each shares drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Birds of Paradise worth watching?

Birds of Paradise holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.5/10 from 142 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Birds of Paradise?

Birds of Paradise (2021) is a drama film directed by Sarah Adina Smith, starring Diana Silvers, Kristine Froseth, Eva Lomby.

Where can I find more recommendations like Birds of Paradise?

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 Billy Elliot: The Musical Live Movies like Center Stage: On Pointe Movies like Suspiria Movies like Etoile Movies like The American Movies like Yeh Ballet

About movies like Birds of Paradise

This ranked list pairs Birds of Paradise (2021), a drama film from Sarah Adina Smith, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Diana Silvers 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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