3 Movies Like Not Another Teen Movie (2001)

Staff & contributors

Director Gianni Di Gregorio’s gorgeous debut is an understated masterpiece about a bachelor who is his mother's caregiver. The movie takes place almost entirely in Di Gregorio's family home in central Rome, a beautiful, big, and well-furnished apartment that his character can't afford any longer. 

To catch a break from rent, he agrees to host the landlord’s mother while the landlord goes on holiday. The same for his and his mother’s medical bills, and the doctor shows up with yet another elderly woman.  

Di Gregorio finds himself running an impromptu elderly home, with conflicts rising about who gets to watch TV and whose dietary restrictions should be respected. But his calm demeanor, love for cooking, and a lot of white wine make him the perfect man for the job.

Genre: Comedy

Actor: Alfonso Santagata, Gianni Di Gregorio, Maria Calì, Marina Cacciotti, Valeria De Franciscis

Director: Gianni Di Gregorio

Rating: Not Rated

An old friend shows up on the doorstep of a happy family home and brings a whirlwind of trouble with him. Charles Burnett’s startling parable is tinged with magic and creeping danger. It digs into the tensions between African American folklore of the rural South and the assimilated middle-class lifestyle out West. 

This rift takes the form of Harry, whose disquieting presence throws his old friend Gideon’s Los Angeles home into disarray. Danny Glover is captivating as the devilish visitor, delivering each line with playful ease and simmering menace. Burnett’s sly narrative doesn’t boil down to good and evil but instead offers a layered and enigmatic exploration of identity.

Genre: Drama

Actor: Carl Lumbly, Cory Curtis, Danny Glover, Davis Roberts, DeForest Covan, DeVaughn Nixon, Ethel Ayler, Jimmy Witherspoon, Julius Harris, Mary Alice, Paul Butler, Paula Bellamy, Reina King, Richard Brooks, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Sy Richardson, Vonetta McGee, Wonderful Smith

Director: Charles Burnett

Pee Mak is a hilarious and heartwarming comedy that blends horror, romance, and slapstick humor with Thai folklore. The story follows a group of friends who return from war to a remote village, only to realize the village folks now fear Mak’s beautiful wife, believing she is now a ghost. The film's clever and witty dialogue and its eerie and suspenseful moments create a unique and memorable experience. Even with all of its cliche horror-comedy tropes, it’ll be hard not to enjoy all the heartfelt ridiculousness pulled off so well.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Horror, Romance

Actor: Attharut Kongrasri, Chatpong Nattapong, Davika Hoorne, Jongruay Somjinna, Kantapat Permpoonpatcharasuk, Mai Davika Hoorne, Mario Maurer, Nattapong Chartpong, Nimit Luksameepong, Pongsatorn Jongwilak, Pongsatorn Jongwilas, Sean Jindachot, Sirinuch Petchurai, Wiwat Kongrasri

Director: Banjong Pisanthanakun

Rating: N/A