SimilarScreen
The Devil's Playground

The Devil's Playground

19776.51h 47m

Overview

A powerful drama relating the intimate aspect of teenage boys and their priest/educators behind the walls of a religious institution where rigid discipline backfires natural feelings are deemed unnatural acts and human lives are controlled in the names of good intentions.

Directed by Fred Schepisi
Written by Fred Schepisi
Produced by Fred Schepisi
Box OfficeBudget: $193K0

Top Cast

Arthur Dignam

Arthur Dignam

Brother Francine

Nick Tate

Nick Tate

Brother Victor

Simon Burke

Simon Burke

Tom Allen

C

Charles McCallum

Brother Sebastian

J

John Frawley

Brother Celian

John Diedrich

John Diedrich

Fitz

Alan Cinis

Alan Cinis

Waite

R

Richard Morgan

Smith

R

Rowan Currie

Casey

G

Gary Pixton

Tomkin

Themes & Keywords

boarding schoolcoming of agemelbourne, australiacatholic schooldisciplinesemi autobiographical1950s

About The Devil's Playground

The Devil's Playground is a drama film released in 1977 exploring themes of boarding school, coming of age, melbourne, australia, catholic school, discipline, semi autobiographical. Directed by Fred Schepisi, it stars Arthur Dignam, Nick Tate, Simon Burke. A powerful drama relating the intimate aspect of teenage boys and their priest/educators behind the walls of a religious institution where rigid discipline backfires natural feelings are deemed unnatural acts and human lives are controlled in the names of good intentions.

Movies Similar to The Devil's Playground

Discover titles like The Devil's Playground β€” ranked by similarity and community votes

We found 15 movies similar to The Devil's Playground

If you enjoyed The Devil's Playground, you'll love these handpicked recommendations. Each title below shares similar themes, tone, and storytelling style. Our algorithm analyzes genres, keywords, director filmography, and cast connections to find the closest matches. Whether you're looking for the same emotional depth, narrative structure, or visual style, these picks are curated to deliver the best viewing experience for fans of The Devil's Playground.

Liberty Heights
36% Match

This semi-autobiographical film by Barry Levinson follows various members of the Kurtzman clan, a Jewish family living in suburban Baltimore during the 1950s. As teenaged Ben completes high school, he falls for Sylvia, a black classmate, creating inevitable tensions. Meanwhile, Ben's brother, Van, attends college and becomes smitten with a mysterious woman while their father tries to maintain his burlesque business.

The Chocolate War
33% Match

Jerry, a new student at an elite Catholic prep school, must face the hazing practices handed down by the Vigils, a group of powerful students. When teacher Brother Leon pushes the students to sell chocolates for a fundraiser, the head of the Vigils, Archie, gets Jerry to reject selling for 10 days. However, Jerry decides to keep up the refusal past the original time frame, which pits him against the Vigils and the school staff.

Dead Poets Society
33% Match

At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his students to rebel against convention and seize the potential of every day, courting the disdain of the stern headmaster.

Aftersun
31% Match

Aftersun(2022)

Movie7.7/10

Sophie reflects on the shared joy and private melancholy of a holiday she took with her father twenty years earlier. Memories fill the gaps between camcorder footages as she tries to reconcile the father she knew with the troubled man she didn't.

The Fabelmans
31% Match

Growing up in post-World War II era Arizona, young Sammy Fabelman aspires to become a filmmaker as he reaches adolescence, but soon discovers a shattering family secret and explores how the power of films can help him see the truth.

Lady Bird
30% Match

Lady Bird(2017)

Movie7.3/10

Lady Bird McPherson, a strong willed, deeply opinionated, artistic 17 year old comes of age in Sacramento. Her relationship with her mother and her upbringing are questioned and tested as she plans to head off to college.

Flirting
30% Match

Flirting(1991)

Movie6.7/10

Two freethinking teenagers - a boy and a girl - confront with authoritarian teachers in their boarding schools. The other students treat this differently.

The Wanderers
29% Match

The streets of the Bronx are owned by '60s youth gangs where the joy and pain of adolescence is lived. Philip Kaufman tells his take on the novel by Richard Price about the history of the Italian-American gang β€˜The Wanderers.’

Picnic at Hanging Rock
29% Match

In the early 1900s, Miranda attends a girls boarding school in Australia. One Valentine's Day, the school's typically strict headmistress treats the girls to a picnic field trip to an unusual but scenic volcanic formation called Hanging Rock. Despite rules against it, Miranda and several other girls venture off. It's not until the end of the day that the faculty realizes the girls and one of the teachers have disappeared mysteriously.

The 400 Blows
28% Match

For young Parisian boy Antoine Doinel, life is one difficult situation after another. Surrounded by inconsiderate adults, including his neglectful parents, Antoine spends his days with his best friend, Rene, trying to plan for a better life. When one of their schemes goes awry, Antoine ends up in trouble with the law, leading to even more conflicts with unsympathetic authority figures.

White Squall
28% Match

In 1960, a hardy group of prep school students boards an old-fashioned sailing ship. With Capt. Christopher Sheldon at the helm, the oceangoing voyage is intended to teach the boys fortitude and discipline. But the youthful crew are about to get some unexpected instruction in survival when they get caught in the clutches of a white squall storm.

Schoolgirls
28% Match

In early 1990s Spain, eleven-year-old Celia lives with her mother and studies at a convent school in Zaragoza. When Brisa, a confident new classmate from Barcelona, arrives, Celia is drawn into a world that challenges the strict religious teachings and sheltered life she has known. Their friendship pushes her to confront hidden truths at home and the uncertainties of adolescence, leading her to explore questions of identity, independence, and belonging.

Stand by Me
27% Match

After learning that a boy their age has been accidentally killed near their rural homes, four boys decide to go see the body. Gordie, Vern, Chris, and Teddy encounter a mean junk man and a marsh full of leeches, but they also learn more about one another and their very different home lives. Just a lark at first, the boys' adventure evolves into a defining event in their lives.

American Beauty
27% Match

Lester Burnham, a depressed suburban father in a mid-life crisis, decides to turn his hectic life around after developing an infatuation with his daughter's attractive friend.