On the Road

On the Road

"The best teacher is experience."

R 2012 · 142 min · ★ 5.6 · Adventure, Drama

Sal Paradise is a young writer whose life is shaken and ultimately redefined by the arrival of Dean Moriarty, a free-spirited, fearless, fast talking Westerner and his girl, Marylou. Traveling cross-country, Sal and Dean venture out on a personal quest for freedom from the conformity and conservatism engulfing them in search of the unknown, themselves, and the pursuit of “it” -- the pure essence of experience.

Directed by Walter Salles · Written by Jose Rivera

Your Rating

Where to Watch

Streaming

MUBI

Cast

Trailers & Videos

Make it a double feature

4h 31m together

On the Road

City of God

Both from Walter Salles.

More from Walter SallesSee all →

City of GodCity of God · 2002
City of God
8.42002
MovieDramaCrime
In the poverty-stricken favelas of Rio de Janeiro in the 1970s, two young men choose different paths. Rocket is a budding photographer who documents the increasing drug-related violence of his neighborhood, while José “Zé” Pequeno is an ambitious drug dealer diving into a dangerous life of crime.
ManasManas · 2025
Manas
8.22025
MovieDrama
Thirteen-year-old Marcielle lives on Marajó Island in the heart of the Amazon rainforest. To break a terrible cycle that imprisons the women around her in an isolated region, she must do the impossible to liberate herself and her younger sister from a dark abyss of silence held by her own family.
Central StationCentral Station · 1998
Central Station
8.11998
MovieDrama
An emotional journey of a former school teacher, who writes letters for illiterate people, and a young boy, whose mother has just died, as they search for the father he never knew.
I'm Still HereI'm Still Here · 2024
I'm Still Here
7.92024
MovieDramaHistory
A woman married to a former politician during the 1971 military dictatorship in Brazil is forced to reinvent herself and chart a new course for her family after a violent and arbitrary act.
CycloneCyclone · 2025
Cyclone
7.52025
MovieDrama
Dayse, a Brazilian playwright known as Cyclone, wants to study in Paris. Having a career in theater is unthinkable for a woman in São Paulo in 1918. But her director doesn’t want her to go, as he would lose his mistress and ghostwriter. When she becomes pregnant by him, her dream starts to fade. An artist’s struggle for self-determination in a patriarchal society, based on the true story of Daisy Pontes and modernist Oswald de Andrade.
AquariusAquarius · 2016
Aquarius
7.42016
MovieDrama
Clara, a vibrant former music critic and widow with flowing tresses is the only remaining apartment owner in a beautiful older building targeted for demolition by ruthless luxury high-rise developers. Clara proves to be a force to be reckoned with as she thwarts the builders plans to kick her out of the apartment.
The Motorcycle DiariesThe Motorcycle Diaries · 2004
The Motorcycle Diaries
7.42004
MovieDrama
Based on the journals of Che Guevara, leader of the Cuban Revolution. In his memoirs, Guevara recounts adventures he and best friend Alberto Granado had while crossing South America by motorcycle in the early 1950s.
Socorro NobreSocorro Nobre · 1995
Socorro Nobre
7.41995
MovieDocumentary
When the inmate Maria do Socorro Nobre reads an article about the Polish artist Franz Krajcberg in Veja magazine, she decides to write a letter to him. Socorro was sentenced to more than twenty-one years in a prison for women in Salvador, Bahia, while Franz is a tormented artist that lost his family and lived his childhood in a ghetto in Poland but survived the Holocaust. Franz moved to Brazil and recovered life wish living close to nature and inspires Socorro to dream with life again.
Behind the SunBehind the Sun · 2001
Behind the Sun
7.42001
MovieDramaThriller
Brazilian badlands, April 1910. Tonho is ordered by his father to avenge the death of his older brother. The young man knows that if he commits this crime, his life will be divided in two: the twenty years he has already lived and the few days he has left to live, before the other family avenges their son's death. He is torn between fulfilling his ancestral duty and rebelling against it, urged by his younger brother Pacu. That's when a tiny travelling circus passes through the vast badlands where Tonho's family lives.
Café de los maestrosCafé de los maestros · 2008
Café de los maestros
7.32008
MovieDocumentaryMusic
Coffee Masters is a documentary by Miguel Kohan, produced by Lita Stantic, Gustavo Santaolalla and Walter Salles. It tells the story of great tango of the old guard who, summoned by a rock musician, proposing a record to demonstrate its validity. This adventure, full of memories, humor and poignant moments, culminating with a presentation of the Masters at the Teatro Colon.
The Secret AgentThe Secret Agent · 2025
The Secret Agent
7.22025
MovieThrillerDrama
Brazil, 1977. Marcelo, a technology expert in his early 40s, is on the run. Hoping to reunite with his son, he travels to Recife during Carnival but soon realizes that the city is not the safe haven he was expecting.
New WorldNew World · 2024
New World
7.02024
MovieRomanceDrama
Conceição and Presto, an interracial couple, ask Presto's brother for his signature as a guarantor of the financial request supposed to assure them an apartment in Leblon, the whitest neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. The process proves to be much harder than they had imagined.
HomingHoming · 2019
Homing
7.02019
MovieDrama
In the bucolic countryside of Brazil, Marcelo, an easygoing cowboy at a cattle farm lives for one passion: rodeos. One tragic incident affects him deeply. Little by little he overcomes the trauma and is ready to dream again.
Noah's ArkNoah's Ark · 2024
Noah's Ark
7.02024
MovieAnimationMusic
A pair of mice attempt to board Noah's Ark: Vini, a charismatic poet with terrible stage fright, and Tito, a talented and charming guitarist. When the rains come, only one male and one female of each species is allowed on Noah's Ark. With the help of an ingenious cockroach and fate's good luck, Vini and Tito sneak their way onto the Ark and together avert a showdown among the ships carnivores and plant eaters. All the while, the animals perform a series of classic songs inspired by world renowned poet, Vinicius de Moraes. Can these talented stowaways use music to break the tension and help these cooped up creatures survive the 40 days and 40 nights together?
Paris Je T'aimeParis Je T'aime · 2006
Paris Je T'aime
6.82006
MovieDramaRomance
Olivier Assayas, Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven and Alfonso Cuaron are among the 20 distinguished directors who contribute to this collection of 18 stories, each exploring a different aspect of Parisian life. The colourful characters in this drama include a pair of mimes, a husband trying to choose between his wife and his lover, and a married man who turns to a prostitute for advice.
The Movie TellerThe Movie Teller · 2023
The Movie Teller
6.52023
MovieDramaHistory
María Margarita is the youngest of four siblings in a family living in a mining town in the Atacama Desert (Chile). The most special time of the week for this family is Sunday, when they all go to the movies to enjoy stories that let them escape their everyday lives by transporting them to other worlds. The girl’s parents soon realise that the little girl has a very special gift: an almost uncanny ability to recount movies. The girl’s extraordinary talent will spread throughout the village, changing the fortunes of her family as the country is transformed forever.

More Like This

AllegiantAllegiant · 2016
Allegiant
6.12016
MovieAdventureScience Fiction
Beatrice Prior and Tobias Eaton venture into the world outside of the fence and are taken into protective custody by a mysterious agency known as the Bureau of Genetic Welfare.
The Passion of Joan of ArcThe Passion of Joan of Arc · 1928
The Passion of Joan of Arc
8.01928
MovieDramaHistory
A classic of the silent age, this film tells the story of the doomed but ultimately canonized 15th-century teenage warrior. On trial for claiming she'd spoken to God, Jeanne d'Arc is subjected to inhumane treatment and scare tactics at the hands of church court officials. Initially bullied into changing her story, Jeanne eventually opts for what she sees as the truth. Her punishment, a famously brutal execution, earns her perpetual martyrdom.
KolyaKolya · 1996
Kolya
7.41996
MovieDramaComedy
After a fictitious marriage with a Russian emigrant, Cellisten Louka, a Czech man, must suddenly take responsibility for her son. However, it’s not long before the communication barrier is broken between the two new family members.
Almost FamousAlmost Famous · 2000
Almost Famous
7.52000
MovieDramaMusic
In 1973, a precocious 15-year-old aspiring rock journalist lands a dream assignment from Rolling Stone to tour with a rising rock band, embarking on a coming-of-age journey as he discovers the exhilarating and heartbreaking realities behind rock stardom.
Closely Watched TrainsClosely Watched Trains · 1966
Closely Watched Trains
7.21966
MovieComedyDrama
At a village railway station in occupied Czechoslovakia, a bumbling dispatcher’s apprentice longs to liberate himself from his virginity. Oblivious to the war and the resistance that surrounds him, this young man embarks on a journey of sexual awakening and self-discovery, encountering a universe of frustration, eroticism, and adventure within his sleepy backwater depot.
Cruel IntentionsCruel Intentions · 1999
Cruel Intentions
6.81999
MovieDramaRomance
Slaking a thirst for dangerous games, Kathryn challenges her stepbrother, Sebastian, to deflower their headmaster's daughter before the summer ends. If he succeeds, the prize is the chance to bed Kathryn. But if he loses, Kathryn will claim his most prized possession.
LolitaLolita · 1962
Lolita
7.31962
MovieDrama
Humbert Humbert is a middle-aged British novelist who is both appalled by and attracted to the vulgarity of American culture. When he comes to stay at the boarding house run by Charlotte Haze, he soon becomes obsessed with Lolita, the woman's teenaged daughter.
Rosemary's BabyRosemary's Baby · 1968
Rosemary's Baby
7.81968
MovieDramaHorror
A young couple, Rosemary and Guy, moves into an infamous New York apartment building, known by frightening legends and mysterious events, with the purpose of starting a family.
ShrekShrek · 2001
Shrek
7.82001
MovieAnimationComedy
It ain't easy bein' green -- especially if you're a likable (albeit smelly) ogre named Shrek. On a mission to retrieve a gorgeous princess from the clutches of a fire-breathing dragon, Shrek teams up with an unlikely compatriot -- a wisecracking donkey.
Animal FarmAnimal Farm · 1999
Animal Farm
5.71999
MovieDramaComedy
Animals on a farm lead a revolution against the farmers to put their destiny in their own hands. However this revolution eats their own children and they cannot avoid corruption.
SleepersSleepers · 1996
Sleepers
7.61996
MovieCrimeDrama
Two gangsters seek revenge on the state jail worker who during their stay at a youth prison sexually abused them. A sensational court hearing takes place to charge him for the crimes.
Moulin Rouge!Moulin Rouge! · 2001
Moulin Rouge!
7.52001
MovieDramaRomance
A celebration of love and creative inspiration takes place in the infamous, gaudy and glamorous Parisian nightclub, at the cusp of the 20th century. A young poet, who is plunged into the heady world of Moulin Rouge, begins a passionate affair with the club's most notorious and beautiful star.
SliverSliver · 1993
Sliver
5.61993
MovieDramaThriller
A woman moves into a Manhattan apartment, where she learns that the previous tenant's life ended under mysterious circumstances.
Planet of the ApesPlanet of the Apes · 1968
Planet of the Apes
7.71968
MovieScience FictionAdventure
Astronaut Taylor crash lands on a distant planet ruled by apes who use a primitive race of humans for experimentation and sport. Soon Taylor finds himself among the hunted, his life in the hands of a benevolent chimpanzee scientist.
All the President's MenAll the President's Men · 1976
All the President's Men
7.71976
MovieDramaMystery
During the 1972 elections, two reporters' investigation sheds light on the controversial Watergate scandal that compels President Nixon to resign from his post.
AparajitoAparajito · 1956
Aparajito
7.81956
MovieDrama
Apu and his family have moved away from the country to live in the bustling holy city of Benares. As he progresses from wide-eyed child to intellectually curious teenager, eventually studying in Kolkata, we witness his academic and moral education, as well as the growing complexity of his relationship with his mother.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter