Movies like Close Encounters of the Third Kind
If you like "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" you are looking for captivating, cerebral and breathtaking movies about / with ufo, alien, first contact, alien abduction, technology, alien contact and space and aliens themes of Drama and Sci-Fi genre shot in USA or UK.
Find your next favorite and similar movies in two steps:
1. Identify all themes of interest from this film (block below).
2. Look for them in the presented list.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
231K
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, UK
Duration: 138 min.
Story:
After an encounter with UFOs, a line worker feels undeniably drawn to an isolated area in the wilderness where something spectacular is about to happen.
Style:
captivating, cerebral, breathtaking, atmospheric, mysterious, visually appealing, visual, futuristic, sentimental, scary ...
Audience:
kids, teens, family outing, pre-teens, teen drama, adult
Plot:
ufo, alien, first contact, alien abduction, technology, alien contact, space and aliens, contact, flying saucer, extraterrestrial, airplane, chase, secret base, space, spacecraft, single mother, obsession, evacuation, alien life-form, benign alien, alien encounter, nervous breakdown, gas mask, mountain, car chase ...
Time:
70s, 20th century, future, near future, year 1977
Place:
wyoming, indiana, india, ohio, arizona, north america, indianapolis indiana ...
Movie in categories
Most similar movies to Close Encounters of the Third Kind
The list contains related movies ordered by similarity. Recommendation engine sorted out thought provoking, suspense, cerebral and weird films with plots about alien, space, outer space, extraterrestrial, alien invasion, space and aliens and ufo mostly in Sci-Fi, Drama and Mystery genres. Some movies like Close Encounters of the Third Kind: Contact (1997), Arrival (2016), The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008), The X-Files (1998), Fire in the Sky (1993). The matching attributes are highlighted in bold.
310K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 150 min.
Story:
Contact is a science fiction film about an encounter with alien intelligence. Based on the novel by Carl Sagan the film starred Jodie Foster as the one chosen scientist who must make some difficult decisions between her beliefs, the truth, and ...
Style:
inspirational, philosophical, cerebral, emotional, thought provoking ...
Audience:
teens, adult
Plot:
science, nasa, space travel, scientist, alien encounter, astronomy, first contact, religion, space and aliens, intelligence, alien contact, research ...
Time:
future, 90s, 20th century, distant future
Place:
puerto rico, new mexico, florida, washington d.c., usa ...
Similarity:
84%
852K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 116 min.
Story:
Taking place after alien crafts land around the world, an expert linguist is recruited by the military to determine whether they come in peace or are a threat.
Style:
psychological, philosophical, intellectual, reflective, twist ending ...
Audience:
family friendly, teens, adult
Plot:
first contact, alien, female protagonist, linguist, ufo, extraterrestrial, alien contact, time, alien invasion, creature, science, alien race ...
Time:
year 2016, future, 2010s
Place:
montana, china, america, massachusetts, venezuela ...
Similarity:
85%
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 104 min.
Story:
A representative of an alien race that went through drastic evolution to survive its own climate change, Klaatu comes to Earth to assess whether humanity can prevent the environmental damage they have inflicted on their own planet. When barred from ...
Style:
stylized, suspenseful, apocalyptic, visual, atmospheric ...
Audience:
teens
Plot:
ufo, end of the world, alien encounter, alien, alien invasion, alien contact, evil alien, happy ending, first contact, robot, extraterrestrial, apocalypse ...
Time:
year 2008, future, 20th century, 1920s, 2000s ...
Place:
usa, washington d.c., virginia, new jersey, manhattan new york city ...
Similarity:
100%
114K
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 121 min.
Story:
Mulder and Scully, now taken off the FBI's X Files cases, must find a way to fight the shadowy elements of the government to find out the truth about a conspiracy that might mean the alien colonization of Earth.
Style:
suspense, suspenseful, cerebral, scary, neo noir ...
Audience:
boys' night, teens
Plot:
conspiracy, ufo, alien, conspiracy theory, first contact, chase, evil alien, twists and turns, alien abduction, fbi, obsession, alien possession ...
Time:
20th century, 90s, prehistory, prehistoric times, future
Place:
london, washington d.c., usa, europe, tunisia ...
Similarity:
100%
Movie in collections
Genre: Biography, Drama, Fantasy, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min.
Story:
A group of men who were clearing bush for the government arrive back in town, claiming that their friend was abducted by aliens. Nobody believes them, and despite a lack of motive and no evidence of foul play, their friends' disappearance is ...
Style:
suspenseful, scary, disturbing, psychological, cult classic ...
Plot:
ufo, alien abduction, alien, alien encounter, alien contact, space and aliens, extraterrestrial, alien invasion, space, first contact, abduction, working class ...
Time:
90s, 70s, 20th century, year 1975
Place:
arizona, usa, phoenix arizona
Similarity:
86%
Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min.
Story:
From the producers of Paranormal Activity, Insidious, and Sinister comes Dark Skies: a supernatural thriller that follows a young family living in the suburbs. As husband and wife Daniel and Lacey Barret witness an escalating series of disturbing ...
Style:
scary, psychological, serious, twist ending, spooky ...
Plot:
supernatural, alien abduction, alien, danger, disorder, extraterrestrial, bird, ufo, abduction, family in danger, paranormal activity, evil alien ...
Time:
year 2013, year 2000, future, 2010s, 21st century
Place:
usa
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 45 min.
TV show
Story:
A chronicle of the true top secret U.S. Air Force-sponsored investigations into UFO-related phenomena in the 1950s and ’60s, known as “Project Blue Book.”
Style:
enigmatic, captivating, exciting, suspenseful, suspense ...
Plot:
ufo, physicist, political conspiracy, alien, state affairs, alien abduction, investigation, alien conspiracy, government agency, paranormal activity, alien contact, space and aliens ...
Time:
50s, 1950s, 20th century, 60s
Place:
usa
Similarity:
100%
2.5M
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, UK, Canada
Duration: 169 min.
Story:
Interstellar chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.
Style:
futuristic, mind bending, cerebral, clever, philosophical ...
Audience:
teens, chick flick, kids, girls' night, date night ...
Plot:
space travel, time travel, outer space, nasa, astronaut, father daughter relationship, space, dystopian future, survival, end of the world, robot, space exploration ...
Time:
future, year 2014, 2010s, near future, 21st century
Place:
los angeles, colorado
Similarity:
80%
Movie in collections
Genre: Adventure, Sci-Fi
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 149 min.
Story:
Humanity finds a mysterious object buried beneath the lunar surface and sets off to find its origins with the help of HAL 9000, the world's most advanced super computer.
Style:
futuristic, philosophical, mind bending, cerebral, psychedelic ...
Audience:
family outing, kids, teens, adult
Plot:
space travel, artificial intelligence, astronaut, outer space, space, moon, computer, scientist, human versus computer, extraterrestrial, deception, spacewalk ...
Time:
future, year 2001, 20th century, 2000s, stone age ...
Place:
persia
Similarity:
100%
202K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: Germany, USA
Duration: 120 min.
Story:
Prot is a patient at a mental hospital who claims to be from a far away Planet. His psychiatrist tries to help him, only to begin to doubt his own explanations.
Style:
psychological, touching, sentimental, cerebral, philosophical ...
Audience:
teen drama
Plot:
patient, mental institution, extraterrestrial, alien, mysterious character, psychiatry, hypnosis, psychiatrist, planet, space and aliens, investigation, delusion ...
Time:
future, year 2001, 80s, 90s, 21st century
Place:
usa, persia, new york, newfoundland, greenland ...
Similarity:
71%
Genre: Biography, Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK, USA, Australia
Duration: 107 min.
Story:
A novelist's wife and son see him changed by an apparent encounter with aliens in the mountains.
Style:
atmospheric, psychological, scary, suspenseful, serious ...
Plot:
alien abduction, alien, ufo, alien contact, hypnosis, alien invasion, writers, halloween, supernatural, extraterrestrial, paranoia, creature ...
Time:
80s, year 1989
Place:
new york
Similarity:
80%
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 119 min.
Story:
A young NASA JPL scientist is abducted by extraterrestrials but when no one believes his story he becomes obsessed with finding proof which leads him on a journey of discovery.
Style:
futuristic, mysterious, intellectual, captivating, independent film
Plot:
extraterrestrial, ufo, scientist, abduction, nasa, science, young man, curiosity, target, journey, obsessive quest, rise to the top ...
Place:
costa rica
Similarity:
100%
411K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min.
Story:
A family living on a farm finds mysterious crop circles in their fields which suggests something more frightening to come.
Style:
suspense, twist ending, creepy, suspenseful, atmospheric ...
Plot:
alien invasion, ufo, alien, alien encounter, single father, faith, first contact, survival, loss of faith, death of wife, extraterrestrial, natural disaster ...
Time:
2000s, future, year 2002, 21st century
Place:
philadelphia, pennsylvania, usa, north america, mexico ...
Similarity:
75%
Genre: Adventure, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min.
Story:
This is a sequel to 2001 A Space Odyssey. It is now 2010 and both the Americans and the Russians are racing to get to Jupiter to investigate the black monolith (similar to the one found in Lunar Crater Clavius) which was found by the U.S.S. ...
Style:
futuristic, philosophical, intellectual, stylized, spiritual ...
Audience:
teens
Plot:
astronaut, space travel, nasa, artificial intelligence, space exploration, paranoia, space opera, contact, space, deep space, spaceship, science ...
Time:
future, year 2010, distant future, year 1984, near future ...
Place:
tower bridge london, ussr, soviet union, paris france, london ...
Similarity:
100%
279K
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 104 min.
Story:
For the past 60 years, a space-traveling smart-ass named Paul has been locked up in a top-secret military base, advising world leaders about his kind. But when he worries he’s outlived his usefulness and the dissection table is drawing ...
Style:
funny, entertaining, unusual plot structure, parody, sexy ...
Audience:
teens, kids, date night
Plot:
alien, road trip, benign alien, chase, first contact, ufo, alien encounter, space and aliens, space travel, buddies, friends, disorder ...
Time:
year 2011, 1940s, year 2009, future, 80s ...
Place:
nevada, arizona, austin texas, usa, england ...
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: UK
Duration: 103 min.
Story:
Set in 2019, The Beyond chronicles the groundbreaking mission which sent astronauts - modified with advanced robotics, through a newly discovered wormhole known as the Void. When the mission returns unexpectedly, the space agency races to discover ...
Style:
cerebral, futuristic, enigmatic, suspense, disturbing ...
Plot:
space exploration, found footage, first contact, alien invasion, spacecraft, trapped in space, robot, human in outer space, advanced technology, hi-tech, discovery, space program ...
Time:
near future, future
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 93 min.
Story:
After a mysterious blackout, a son goes out to investigate and captures footage of actual aliens. When the aliens follow he and his brothers back to their home all hell breaks lose.
Style:
mockumentary, christmas horror, weird, fake documentary
Plot:
alien abduction, found footage, ufo, thanksgiving, holiday horror, alien invasion, abduction, lake, alien, flying saucer, terror, monster ...
Similarity:
100%
73K
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 117 min.
Story:
When a group of trespassing seniors swim in a pool containing alien cocoons, they find themselves energized with youthful vigor.
Style:
sentimental, touching, captivating, feel good, humorous ...
Audience:
family outing, date night, girls' night, kids
Plot:
elderly, cocoon, life & death, alien, space and aliens, chase, benign alien, fountain of youth, alien invasion, first contact, extraterrestrial, cancer ...
Time:
80s, future, 20th century
Place:
florida, usa
Similarity:
50%
Movie in collections
104K
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: Soviet Union
Duration: 167 min.
Story:
A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor and the mental problems of cosmonauts on the station. He soon discovers that the water on the planet is a type of brain which brings out ...
Style:
art house, atmospheric, cerebral, enigmatic, philosophical ...
Audience:
teens, adult
Plot:
outer space, scientist, metaphysics, space travel, space and aliens, space station, dream, trapped in space, astronaut, loneliness, science, philosophy ...
Time:
distant future, 70s, future, year 1972
Place:
soviet union, ussr, russia, tokyo
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Adventure, Family, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 115 min.
Story:
After a gentle alien becomes stranded on Earth, the being is discovered and befriended by a young boy named Elliott. Bringing the extraterrestrial into his suburban California house, Elliott introduces E.T., as the alien is dubbed, to his brother ...
Style:
sentimental, feel good, sad, sweet, inspirational ...
Audience:
kids, family outing, family friendly, teens, girls' night ...
Plot:
alien, friendship, childhood, children, coming of age, ufo, friendly alien, space and aliens, chase, boy, child protagonist, bicycle ...
Time:
20th century, 80s, year 1982, 90s, future
Place:
california, usa, persia, los angeles
Similarity:
33%
57K
Genre: Romance, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 115 min.
Story:
An alien takes the form of a young widow's husband and asks her to drive him from Wisconsin to Arizona. The government tries to stop them.
Style:
road movie, erotic, touching, spiritual, anamorphic ...
Audience:
family outing, date night, chick flick
Plot:
alien, metaphysics, alien invasion, desert, benign alien, ufo, space, on the road, road trip, chase, friendly alien, time travel ...
Time:
80s, year 1984, future, 20th century
Place:
usa, las vegas, north america, arizona, washington d.c. ...
Similarity:
67%
208K
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 140 min.
Story:
A civilian oil rig crew is recruited to conduct a search and rescue effort when a nuclear submarine mysteriously sinks. One diver soon finds himself on a spectacular odyssey 25,000 feet below the ocean's surface where he confronts a mysterious ...
Style:
suspenseful, psychological, exciting, suspense, visually stunning ...
Audience:
kids, teens
Plot:
ocean, ufo, underwater, first contact, disaster, sea, submarine, space and aliens, survival, heroic mission, alien encounter, alien ...
Time:
80s, 20th century, year 1989, future
Similarity:
60%
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min.
Story:
When astronaut Spencer Armacost returns to Earth after a mission that nearly cost him his life, he decides to take a desk job in order to see his beautiful wife, Jillian, more often. Gradually, Jillian notices that Spencer's personality seems ...
Style:
psychological, suspenseful, surprise ending, suspense, scary ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
woman in danger, outer space, astronaut, alien, husband wife relationship, nasa, alien abduction, space, pregnancy, mission, danger, space and aliens ...
Time:
90s, year 1999, future
Similarity:
100%
Movie in collections
22K
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 68 min.
TV show
Story:
Taken spans five decades and four generations, centering on three families: the Keys, Crawfords, and Clarkes. World War II veteran Russell Keys is plagued by nightmares of his abduction by aliens during the war; the Roswell incident transforms Owen ...
Style:
captivating, psychological, sentimental, atmospheric, stylized ...
Plot:
ufo, alien abduction, alien encounter, alien invasion, extraterrestrial, flying saucer, abduction, alien, supernatural, kidnapping, space and aliens, officer ...
Time:
20th century, 1940s, 80s, 50s, 90s ...
Place:
usa
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min.
Story:
A number of 'missing person' cases are reported in Phoenix, Arizona when an unexplained light appears in the sky one night in 1997.
Style:
enigmatic, tense, mockumentary, captivating, suspense ...
Plot:
ufo, found footage, alien abduction, military, conspiracy, alien invasion, missing person, investigation, danger, desert, death, abduction ...
Place:
phoenix arizona, arizona, usa, sonora, mexico
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min.
Story:
Based on the book "UFO Crash at Roswell" by Kevin Randle and Donald Schmitt, Roswell follows the attempts of Major Jesse Marcel to discover the truth about strange debris found on a local rancher's field in July of 1947. Told by his ...
Style:
captivating, cynical, serious, suspenseful, bleak
Plot:
ufo, alien abduction, alien invasion, space and aliens, extraterrestrial, cadet, space, flying saucer, military, conspiracy, abduction, soldier ...
Time:
1940s
Place:
new mexico, usa
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min.
Story:
During a Space Shuttle mission a satellite rams a unidentified flying object. The UFO afterwards performs an emergency landing in the deserts of Arizona. However the White House denies it's existence because of the near presidential elections. ...
Style:
independent film, suspenseful, disturbing, serious, psychotronic ...
Plot:
nasa, alien, extraterrestrial, conspiracy, ufo, alien invasion, chase, astronaut, investigation, secret, flying saucer, alien contact ...
Time:
year 1980, 70s, future
Place:
arizona, texas, las vegas, california
Similarity:
100%
118K
Genre: Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 134 min.
Story:
The OSSA discovers a spacecraft thought to be at least 300 years old at the bottom of the ocean. Immediately following the discovery, they decide to send a team down to the depths of the ocean to study the space craft.They are the best of best, ...
Style:
scary, breathtaking, mind bending, atmospheric, psychological ...
Audience:
boys' night, adult
Plot:
ocean, underwater, alien, first contact, twists and turns, ufo, time travel, paranoia, psychology, survival, space and aliens, ghost ship ...
Time:
future, jurassic, 90s, 20th century, 80s
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Duration: 146 min.
Story:
A robotic boy, the first programmed to love, David is adopted as a test case by a Cybertronics employee and his wife. Though he gradually becomes their child, a series of unexpected circumstances make this life impossible for David. Without final ...
Style:
philosophical, thought provoking, futuristic, touching, sentimental ...
Audience:
kids, family friendly, teens, teen drama
Plot:
artificial intelligence, cyberpunk, androids and robots, androids, distopia, adoption, robot, imagination, boy, destiny, machine, child abuse ...
Time:
future, year 2001, 2000s, near future, distant future ...
Place:
new york, persia, usa, coney island brooklyn new york city, manhattan new york city ...
Similarity:
33%
997K
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA, UK, Hungary, Jordan
Duration: 144 min.
Story:
During a manned mission to Mars, Astronaut Mark Watney is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw ...
Style:
futuristic, biting, clever, suspenseful, suspense ...
Audience:
teens, kids, girls' night
Plot:
survival, mars, astronaut, stranded, space travel, nasa, isolation, science, outer space, struggle for survival, space, loneliness ...
Time:
year 2015, 2030s, year 2016, near future, future ...
Place:
china, london, houston texas, pasadena california, beijing china ...
Similarity:
100%
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