Dramas based on Books on Netflix
Last updated January 22, 2025
The Buccaneers
1995 | NR | 3.5 out of 5 StarsFour sisters shunned as "new money" by elitist New York society travel to London to look for husbands, where they're courted by numerous suitors. But as old and new worlds clash, something has to give.
Details about The Buccaneers
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
2011 | NR | 3.5 out of 5 StarsBelieving that his father left him a message before dying in the September 11 attacks, young Oskar Schell embarks on an emotional odyssey through New York City to find the lock that matches a key he found among his father's belongings.
Details about Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
Hitchcock
2012 | NR | 3.5 out of 5 StarsIconic filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock struggles with his marriage, the censors and the financiers of his 1960 film Psycho in this biopic. Driven to prove he still has an edge, Hitchcock crafts what would become one of the greatest thrillers of all time.
Details about Hitchcock
Emperor
2012 | NR | 3.5 out of 5 StarsAs World War II ends, Gen. MacArthur oversees Japan's surrender, an act that dispels the nation's centuries-old beliefs about its emperor. With the eyes of the world -- and history -- upon them, MacArthur and his protégé will change Japan forever.
Details about Emperor
The Newton Boys
1998 | NR | 3.5 out of 5 StarsFour Texas brothers ignite a crime spree in the 1920s, robbing more than 200 banks across the country -- without ever killing anyone. In a career highlight, the unexpectedly compassionate team pulls off the largest train robbery in U.S. history.
Details about The Newton Boys
The Wings of the Dove
1997 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsIn the wake of her mother's death, Kate Croy (Helena Bonham Carter) moves in with her wealthy Aunt Maude (Charlotte Rampling), who, not wanting her niece to follow in her mother's footsteps by marrying a commoner, introduces Kate to rich gentleman Lord Mark (Alex Jennings). Kate prefers the penniless Merton Densher (Linus Roache), yet she also enjoys fine things and schemes to win not only Densher's love, but an heiress's money.
Details about The Wings of the Dove
The Beach
2000 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsWhile visiting Bangkok, a traveler learns of a secret beach that purportedly exemplifies paradise. He travels with two friends to the magnificent strand, where he discovers a bohemian community intent on keeping its precious refuge a secret.
Details about The Beach
Original Sin
2001 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsWealthy Cuban landowner Luis Vargas sends away for a plain-Jane bride. But when she arrives and turns out to be stunningly beautiful, Vargas is putty in her hands, which is a bad thing, since his new wife turns out to be a cunning con artist.
Details about Original Sin
The Molly Maguires
1970 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsIn 19th-century Pennsylvania, Detective James McParlan goes undercover to infiltrate a group of rebellious Irish American miners -- the Molly Maguires -- who resort to terrorist tactics to fight oppression by mine owners.
Details about The Molly Maguires
Riding in Cars with Boys
2001 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsDrew Barrymore stars as Beverly D'Onofrio, an unlucky teen who gets pregnant while still in high school, in this coming-of-age drama from director Penny Marshall that's based on D'Onofrio's autobiography by the same name. After sleeping with a boy she barely knew, Beverly gets married on a whim and discovers that her newborn isn't the only one who has a lot of growing up to do. Her teenage husband is a still a kid -- and so is she.
Details about Riding in Cars with Boys
Skinwalkers
2002 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsIn this PBS American Mystery! feature, Navajo Tribal Officer Jim Chee (Adam Beach) and Lt. Joe Leaphorn (Wes Studi) are hot on the trail of a series of puzzling murders that immerse them in the spine-tingling, mystical world of Navajo witchcraft. Up against the clock, Chee and Leaphorn search desperately for the connection between the murders -- which occurred 120 miles apart. The film is adapted from Tony Hillerman's best-selling novel.
Details about Skinwalkers
The Panic in Needle Park
1971 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsYoung heroin addict Bobby introduces his drug-free girlfriend to New York's "Needle Park." But in this sordid world peopled with addicts who lie, cheat and steal their way to their next fix, will Bobby feel any guilt for corrupting a pure soul?
Details about The Panic in Needle Park
The Lords of Discipline
1983 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsAt Carolina Military Institute, senior Will McLean is tasked with safeguarding Pearce -- the school's first black cadet. When it appears that Pearce has been marked for death, McLean begins an investigation that leads to a cabal of elite students.
Details about The Lords of Discipline
Red Riding Trilogy: Part 2: 1980
2009 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsAfter six years of vicious unsolved murders, Manchester policeman Peter Hunter arrives in West Yorkshire to supervise the Yorkshire Ripper investigation and a copycat killer case in this second installment of the Red Riding trilogy.
Details about Red Riding Trilogy: Part 2: 1980
Fat Kid Rules the World
2012 | NR | 3.4 out of 5 StarsDepressed, obese teen Troy is about to step in front of a bus and end it all when fate enters in the form of Marcus, a free-spirited street musician. Under his samaritan's nonjudgmental wing, talentless Troy finds acceptance in Marcus's punk band.
Details about Fat Kid Rules the World
The Four Feathers
2002 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsIn Victorian-era Sudan, British officer Harry Faversham resigns right before a battle against Mahdi rebels, prompting his fiancée and friends to brand him a coward. Little do they know he's going undercover for a chance to redeem himself.
Details about The Four Feathers
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
2002 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsTrash-TV maven Chuck Barris has it all -- the hit series "The Gong Show" and the love of a good woman. But he also has a big, dark secret: He's a CIA assassin who kills while purportedly escorting his game show winners on their vacation prizes.
Details about Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
The Dancer Upstairs
2002 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsAugustin Rejas attempts to find the mysterious Ezequiel, the leader of a revolution being fermented by native people of a Latin American nation. But weighing equally heavy on Rejas's psyche is his attraction to his daughter's ballet teacher.
Details about The Dancer Upstairs
Vanity Fair
2004 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsIn this sumptuous film version of William Makepeace Thackeray's famous novel, lower-class vixen Becky Sharp uses her good looks and considerable wit to climb her way up the precipitous social ladder of 1820s London.
Details about Vanity Fair
Mandingo
1975 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsThis controversial potboiler set in antebellum Louisiana chronicles the decline of the slave-breeding Maxwell family. Son Hammond marries his Southern belle cousin Blanche, but the two bed their slaves instead of each other.
Details about Mandingo
The Narrows
2008 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsMike Manadoro (Kevin Zegers) is torn between two worlds -- his numbers-runner father Vinny's (Vincent D'Onofrio) Brooklyn way of life and the college lifestyle he discovers as a photography student -- in this drama based on Tim McLoughlin's novel Heart of the Old Country. While earning money for school as his father's driver and by delivering packages for a local mobster, Mike yearns to fully embrace the urbane new world he's entered.
Details about The Narrows
Never Let Me Go
2010 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsBased on Kazuo Ishiguro's acclaimed novel, this sci-fi drama from director Mark Romanek is centered on thirtysomething Kathy (Carey Mulligan), who reflects on her time spent at Hailsham, an English boarding school, alongside classmates Ruth (Keira Knightley) and Tommy (Andrew Garfield). Born for an unusual reason, the three struggle with their destiny and their love triangle. Charlotte Rampling plays headmistress Miss Emily.
Details about Never Let Me Go
Bloodworth
2010 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsKris Kristofferson is E.F. Bloodworth, an impoverished aging musician who returns to his Tennessee hometown to make amends with the family he abandoned for 20 years of roaming, only to find their lives have disintegrated into a troubled mess.
Details about Bloodworth
An Invisible Sign
2010 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsWhen a puzzling disease devastates her beloved father, math prodigy Mona Gray deals with the pain by isolating herself from the rest of the world and turning for comfort to the reliable world of mathematics. But when she later teaches math to troubled grade school kids, Mona discovers that her gift can be a route back from her long emotional exile. Marilyn Agrelo directs and Jessica Alba stars in this adaptation of the book by Aimee Bender.
Details about An Invisible Sign
Eat Pray Love
2010 | NR | 3.3 out of 5 StarsRecent divorcée Liz decides to reshape her life, traveling the world in search of direction. She heads to Italy, India and Bali, indulging in delicious cuisine while seeking the true meaning of self-love, family, friendship and forgiveness.
Details about Eat Pray Love
About Best on Netflix Canada
Best on Netflix is the place to discover the best TV shows and movies available on Netflix. Find the newest releases of your favorite movies and TV shows available for streaming on Netflix today. This site lists all the amazing content available to Netflix members. If you want to watch a movie or TV shows, you must go to the official Netflix website. Best on Netflix is not related to Netflix and its purpose is to highlight the great content already available on Netflix since we're such huge fans of their service. We love Netflix just as much as you do! We hope you enjoy this movie and tv show discovery tool.
We have a lot of great features coming up in the next few weeks to help highlight the best movies and TV shows on Netflix, so stay tuned!