Movies Like Play It as It Lays (1972)

Play It as It Lays is a 1972 drama film from Frank Perry with a MovieMagicScore of 5.9/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Downfalls High and Naked.

Drama

Downfalls High

2021

When reserved and lonely teenager Fenix meets popular high school girl Scarlett, the two form a bond that shapes the rest of his life.

6.2

MagicScore

Naked

1993

An unemployed Brit vents his rage on unsuspecting strangers as he embarks on a nocturnal London odyssey.

7.2

MagicScore

Badhaai Do

2022

A gay cop and a lesbian teacher enter a sham marriage to pacify their families but find that relationships — both real and fake — aren't all that easy.

6.7

MagicScore

Twelve Monkeys

1995

In the year 2035, convict James Cole reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to discover the origin of a deadly virus that wiped out nearly all of the earth's population and forced the survivors into underground communities. But when Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990 instead of 1996, he's arrested and locked up in a mental hospital. There he meets psychiatrist Dr. Kathryn Railly and the son of a famous virus expert who may hold the key to the Army of the 12 Monkeys; thought to be responsible for unleashing the killer disease.

7.6

MagicScore

Despair

1978

Berlin, 1930, during the rise of Nazism. Hermann Hermann, a Russian emigrant and chocolate manufacturer, married to the capricious Lydia, loses his temper more and more every day when dealing with his workers and other businessmen; until he meets Felix, a vagrant, who seems to be physically identical to him; a disconcerting fact that leads Hermann Hermann to plot a particular way out of a fake world he actually hates.

6.4

MagicScore

Girl, Interrupted

1999

Set in the changing world of the late 1960s, Susanna Kaysen's prescribed "short rest" from a psychiatrist she had met only once becomes a strange, unknown journey into Alice's Wonderland, where she struggles with the thin line between normal and crazy. Susanna soon realizes how hard it is to get out once she has been committed, and she ultimately has to choose between the world of people who belong inside or the difficult world of reality outside.

7.6

MagicScore

Silver Linings Playbook

2012

After losing his job and wife, and spending time in an institution, a former teacher winds up living with his parents. He wants to rebuild his life and reconcile with his wife, but his father would be happy if he shared his obsession with the Philadelphia Eagles. Things get complicated when he meets Tiffany Maxwell who offers to help him reconnect with his wife if he will do something very important for her in exchange.

7.1

MagicScore

Manic

2001

Follows the fate of Lyle, a violent adolescent who, in lieu of prison, is placed in a juvenile mental institution, where he encounters a group of equally troubled teens. This motley crew—abused, sexually confused, violent, and yet hanging on by their grit and anger—becomes Lyle's last lifeline as he fights to find meaning in a world that seems to defy understanding.

6.9

MagicScore

The Last Time I Saw Richard

2013

Jonah is proud to be the loner at the teenage mental health clinic, taking pleasure in making the other patients uncomfortable. But when he is forced to share a room with the newly admitted Richard, the boys become locked in a battle of wills.

6.5

MagicScore

#10

Mad to Be Normal

2017

The story of Scottish psychiatrist RD Laing and his unique community at Kingsley Hall, East London in the 1960s.

5.9

MagicScore

#11

Kyon Ki...

2005

After accidentally killing his fiancee, Anand becomes insane and is admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Tanvi, his doctor, falls in love with him, but her father does not approve, given his past.

5.7

MagicScore

#12

Mad Love

1995

Matt falls for Casey, the new girl in school. She's fun-loving and eccentric, but there's a darkness to her whimsy that Matt can't begin to comprehend. When Casey attempts to commit suicide, her parents place her in a mental institution. Matt springs her out, and together the young lovers head on a road trip. They believe their love can "cure" Casey's problems. Matt starts to wonder, though, if are they inspired or misguided.

5.2

MagicScore

#13

Angst

1983

A killer is released from prison and breaks into a remote home to kill a woman, her handicapped son and her pretty daughter.

7.1

MagicScore

#14

Blonde

2022

From her volatile childhood as Norma Jeane, through her rise to stardom and romantic entanglements, this reimagined fictional portrait of Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe blurs the lines of fact and fiction to explore the widening split between her public and private selves.

5.9

MagicScore

#15

Harvey

1950

The story of Elwood P. Dowd who makes friends with a spirit taking the form of a human-sized rabbit named Harvey that only he sees (and a few privileged others on occasion also.) After his sister tries to commit him to a mental institution, a comedy of errors ensues. Elwood and Harvey become the catalysts for a family mending its wounds and for romance blossoming in unexpected places.

7.7

MagicScore

#16

Gothika

2003

After a car crash, criminal psychologist Dr. Miranda Grey regains consciousness only to find that she's a patient in the same mental institution that currently employs her. She's been accused of murdering her husband Dr. Douglas Grey — but she has no memory of committing the crime. As she tries to regain her memory and convince her co-worker, Dr. Pete Graham, of her innocence, a vengeful spirit uses her as an earthly pawn, which further convinces everyone of her guilt.

6.1

MagicScore

#17

Alone in the Dark

1982

A quartet of murderous psychopaths break out of a mental hospital during a power blackout and lay siege to their doctor's house.

5.8

MagicScore

#18

Krazzy 4

2008

4 mental patients formulate the plan to rescue their kidnapped doctor and teach the kidnappers a lesson.

4.8

MagicScore

#19

Keane

2004

William Keane is barely able to cope. It has been six months since his six-year-old daughter was abducted from New York City’s Port Authority Bus Terminal while traveling with him. Repeatedly drawn to the site of the abduction, Keane wanders the bus station, compulsively replaying the events of that fateful day, as if hoping to change the outcome.

6.0

MagicScore

#20

Perfect Blue

1998

Rising pop star Mima Kirigoe quits singing to pursue a career as an actress. After she takes up a role on a popular detective show, her handlers and collaborators begin turning up murdered. Harboring feelings of guilt and haunted by visions of her former self, Mima's reality and fantasy meld into a frenzied paranoia.

8.3

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Play It as It Lays?

The top films similar to Play It as It Lays by MovieMagicScore are Downfalls High (6.2), Naked (7.2), Badhaai Do (6.7). Each shares drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Play It as It Lays worth watching?

Play It as It Lays holds a MovieMagicScore of 5.9/10 from 21 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Play It as It Lays?

Play It as It Lays (1972) is a drama film directed by Frank Perry, starring Tuesday Weld, Anthony Perkins, Adam Roarke.

Where can I find more recommendations like Play It as It Lays?

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 Downfalls High Movies like Naked Movies like Badhaai Do Movies like Twelve Monkeys Movies like Despair Movies like Girl, Interrupted

About movies like Play It as It Lays

This ranked list pairs Play It as It Lays (1972), a drama film from Frank Perry, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Tuesday Weld 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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