Best movies like P.T. Barnum

A unique, carefully handpicked, selection of the best movies like P.T. Barnum Starring Beau Bridges, Jordan Bridges, Cynthia Dale, Natalie Radford, and more. If you liked P.T. Barnum then you may also like: W.C. Fields and Me, The Wager, Winchell, Jackpot, The Brittany Murphy Story and many more popular movies featured on this list. You can further filter the list even more or get a random selection from the list of similar movies, to make your selection even easier.

movie

This series illustrates the life and career of P.T. Barnum, America's greatest showman and promoter. Starting as a young man who managed an old woman who was supposedly George Washington's nursemaid, we see his career as he finds success promoting curiosities and attractions with panache and a judicious mix of truth and creativity, whether it be promoting his museum or characters like the midget General Tom Thumb. Yet because the demands of his businesses, his family life is troubled and marred by tragedy. All the while, events lead to his greatest creation, the Ringling Brothers/Barnum & Bailey Circus.

selected filters: Sort: Default

You may filter the list of movies on this page for a more refined, personalized selection of movies.

Still not sure what to watch click the recommend buttun below to get a movie recommendation selected from all the movies on this list

Know any good movies to watch like P.T. Barnum 1999. With a similar plot or stoyline. Suggest it.

W.C. Fields and Me

In 1920s New York City, W. C. Fields is a successful headlining entertainer, but when his girlfriend leaves him and his broker loses his money, Fields begins anew in California. Working at a wax museum, Fields eventually lands a film role that ascends him to stardom. Back in the limelight and palling around with John Barrymore and the like, Fields meets an aspiring actress Carlotta Monti at a party, with whom he forms a rocky relationship.

The Wager

An actor at the pinnacle of his Hollywood career finds himself buckling to temptation after he accepts the lead in a classic tale of good versus evil. Michael Steele has just been nominated for Best Actor at the Academy Awards. In the wake of that announcement, Michael is cast in what may be the role of a lifetime. He's set to play the lead in an incredible story of monumental conflict, but will all of the swirling gossip around Michael cause him to stumble on the path of righteousness? His marriage is in jeopardy and his career is on the line. This man who has always tried to do the right thing must find the courage and conviction needed to set his life straight.

Winchell

The true story of the influential and controversial columnist, Walter Winchell.

Jackpot

Sunny Holiday, a middle-aged country singer with dreams of stardom, walks out on his wife and child and hits the road with his manager in a desperate search for fame and fortune... and to get far away from the past he's left behind.

The Brittany Murphy Story

A look at Brittany Murphy's rise to Hollywood fame in the 1990s, her struggles with celebrity and self-esteem, and her mysterious death in 2009 at the age of 32.

Let It Shine

A young teenage rapper must use his musical talent to help his friend out and win the girl of his dreams by going through several events of betrayal, trust and agreement while his religious parents have strictly dislike his interests.

Elvis

This biopic traces Elvis Presley’s life from his impoverished childhood to his meteoric rise to stardom to his triumphant conquering of Las Vegas.

The Greatest Showman

The story of American showman P.T. Barnum, founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

The Carpetbaggers

When playboy Jonas inherits his father's industrial empire, he expands it by acquiring an aircraft factory and movie studio. His rise to power is ruthless. He marries and then quickly abandons sweet, bubbly Monica, turns his young, attractive stepmother Rina into a self-destructive actress and manages to disappoint even his closest friend, cowboy movie star Nevada. Is Jonas beyond redemption?

Harlow

Loosely based biography of 1930s star Jean Harlow as she begins her climb to stardom. One of two "Harlow" film biographies that appeared in 1965, this one stars Carol Lynley in the title role that begins as Jean Harlow, a bit player in Laurel and Hardy comedies, is invited to test for director Jonathan Martin for the lead in Howard Hughes's "Hell's Angels." She is an instantaneous sensation, and in a series of films devoted more to her body than her talent, she becomes Hollywood's "Platanum Blonde."

5.0 / 10 2002 Drama
suggested by: JungleJaguar

Last Call

Renowned writer F. Scott Fitzgerald is living the last months of his life with his youthful secretary, confidant, and protégé who later wrote a memoir of their time together.

Laura Lansing Slept Here

With a glittering cast that includes Katharine Hepburn and Karen Austin in lead roles, Laura Lansing Slept Here is a humorous family movie. Hepburn plays Laura Lansing, a novelist who undergoes an identity crisis as, despite her fame and fortune, she feels something is missing from her life. Entering into a quest to return a degree of normalcy to her life, Lansing's attempts provide many comedic moments, as well as a salient lesson for the famous author.

Martha, Inc.: The Story of Martha Stewart

Martha, Inc.: The Story of Martha Stewart is a 2003 NBC TV movie starring Cybill Shepherd as Martha Stewart in which the life of Martha Stewart is outlined starting from her life in New Jersey to the scandal behind her arrest.

The Leading Man

Successful playwright Felix Webb has a new play, 'The Hit Man', in rehearsal. Directed by his old friend Humphrey, it is already being hailed as a masterpiece; but Felix can't enjoy his success. He has fallen passionately in love with Hilary, a beautiful, fiesty young actress, and is preparing to desert his perfect family, his wife Elena and three lively children. His intolerable situation is further complicated when Humphrey casts Hilary as one of the leads in 'The Hit Man'. Enter Robin Grange, a charismatic young Hollywood actor making his London theatre debut. Robin is attractive, charming and dangerous, and soon inveigles his way into everyone's life. He ingratiates himself with the cast and, quickly grasping Felix's dilemma, sets about weaving his web of mischief. He suggests that if he were to seduce Elena, she would be distracted from Felix's affair, regain her self respect, and perhaps even willingly part from the unfaithful husband to whom she clings...

The Ballad of Ramblin' Jack

With the help of her mother, family, friends, and fellow musicians, Aiyana Elliott reaches for her father, legendary cowboy troubadour, Ramblin' Jack Elliott. She explores who he is and how he got there, working back and forth between archival and contemporary footage. Born in 1932 in Brooklyn, busking through the South and West in the early 50s, a year with Woody Guthrie, six years flatpicking in Europe, a triumphant return to Greenwich Village in the early 60s, mentoring Bob Dylan, then life on the road, from gig to gig, singing and telling stories. A Grammy and the National Medal of Arts await Jack near the end of a long trail. What will Aiyana find for herself?

Blame It on the Night

When his unmarried mother dies, custody of 13-year-old Job is assumed by his alleged father, Chris, whom he has never seen. Job is an enthusiastic cadet at a military academy, and Chris turns out to be a top-grossing rock star who removes Job from his beloved school to keep him company on tour. Getting acquainted is fraught with culture shock for both father and son. Written by Paul Emmons

The Identical

During the Great Depression, identical twins are separated at birth. One, Drexel Hemsley becomes a wildly successful '50s rock star, while the other, Ryan Wade, struggles to balance his passion for music and pleasing his parents, who want him to become a preacher. Finally, Ryan rebels against his parents' wishes and launches his own music career -- performing the hits of Drexel Hemsley. Ryan later learns the truth about Drexel when their fates tragically collide.

The 24 Hour Woman

Grace tries to be the perfect mother and TV producer but finds trouble in juggling both.

Rosie: The Rosemary Clooney Story

The story of singer Rosemary Clooney's rise to fame, her marriage to Jose Ferrer, and her nervous breakdown.

Barnum

The amazing biography of legendary circus impresario and unparalleled showman, P.T. Barnum.

A Man Called Adam

A famous jazz trumpeter finds himself unable to cope with the problems of everyday life.

The Blue Diner

Blue Diner is a story of a Puerto Rican mother Meche (Miriam Colon) and daughter Elena (Lisa Vidal) living together in Boston and difficulties they face when Elena mysteriously loses her ability to speak Spanish, he first language. As Elena's language disappears, he boyfriend's (Jose Yenque) painting inexplicably appears at the museum where her mother Meche works.

The Audrey Hepburn Story

The film spans from Hepburn's early childhood to the 1950s which details her life as a Dutch ballerina, coming to grips with her parents' divorce, and enduring life in the Nazi-occupied Netherlands during World War II. She then settles in the U.S. where she succeeds in making it big as a movie actress, in such movies as Breakfast at Tiffany's.

Grace Kelly

The fairy tale story of the actress who became a princess is told in this biography that traces her rise from Philadelphia socialite to Hollywood movie star.

Daydream Believers: The Monkees' Story

The story of the 60s pop group The Monkees, as they rise above their status as a band created for a TV show, to establishing their legacy in their own right. The band faces many obstacles, among them the right to play their own instruments on record.

suggested by: constellations

Gleason

The story begins at the height of Gleason's career. He has it all: women, wealth, and extraordinary power. But he is haunted by memories of his childhood. Gleason spends his formative years entering amateur contests, performing in sleazy night spots. Along the way, he steals gags from the best comics in town and finds love with Genevieve, a dancer whom he marries. But Gleason isn't the ideal husband or even a responsible father as he abandons his family to answer the call of Hollywood. Brash, arrogant, and egotistical, he alienates his directors and the man who discovers him. When he ends up back in New York, Gleason gets one of those rare second chances in the new medium of television, creating some of its most unforgettable characters. But even as Gleason becomes the talk of the tube, his life - ruled by demons of rage, booze, and insecurity - unravels.

6.5 / 10 2009 Drama History
suggested by: user725htu43nja

Enid

A poignant biography of one of the most successful and wildly-read writers of the 20th century. Her stories enthralled children everywhere but her personal struggles often proved too much.

5.2 / 10 2009 Drama
suggested by: user9716btej364

Margot

At the age of forty Dame Margot Fonteyn is considered to be past her best as a prima ballerina and Ninette de Valois is reducing her roles at the Royal Ballet. Then the exciting young Russian dancer Rudolf Nureyev, a recent defector to the West, comes into her life and her bed and revitalizes her career. Frederick Aashton creates a new ballet for them and they become the golden couple of the ballet world. However, Margot is married to Roberto 'Tito' Arias, a Panamanian politician of dubious repute who is not sympathetic to her calling and is probably faithless. When he is shot and paralyzed for life Margot must carry on dancing well into her sixties in order to pay for his costly treatment though she still collaborates with Rudolf in the occasional ballet.

Louis Cyr : The Strongest Man in the World

Biopic of Louis Cyr, strongest man in the world at the end of the 19th Century.

Barnum

Barnum the musical traces Phineas Taylor Barnum's career from 1835 to 1881 when he joined James A. Bailey to form the circus which was called The Greatest Show on Earth. Barnum is a defender of "the noble art of humbug" with a philosophy, and has a free wheeling ambition to make a fortune. He buys the oldest woman in the world, named Joyce Heath, as a sideshow attraction. Barnum builds a museum of curiosities supported by his wife Charity, who would like him to settle down.

Authors Anonymous

When a dysfunctional group of unpublished writers accept Hannah into their fold, the last thing they expect is her overnight success. Can these lovable misfits achieve their artistic dreams and avoid killing one another in the process?

Meat Loaf: To Hell and Back

"Meat Loaf" Aday is an overgrown Texas youngster, the son of a gentle woman dying of cancer and an alcoholic, abusive father. Tormented by his father and schoolmates over his size, he strikes out on his own after his mother's death, in an impossible task to prove himself to the world and to himself. A chance audition for a musical leads him to join forces with composer Jim Steinman, and together the two make music history with the operatic rock album "Bat Out of Hell." But the demons that drive Meat Loaf aren't assuaged by success, and eventually he must come to terms with them.

More related lists

Sort results by:

X close
Default
Clear filters
...