Crime backdrop

Crime movies

A deep dive into the underworld of gangsters, detectives, and heists where the line between right and wrong blurs.

Subgenres include: Organized Crime, Heist, Con Artist Crime.

The Whole Nine Yards

1391. The Whole Nine Yards

Comedy Crime Parody Organized Crime
6.7

20001h 38min

United States

Director: Jonathan Lynn

After a mobster agrees to cooperate with an FBI investigation in order to stay out of prison, he's relocated by the authorities to a life of suburban anonymity as part of a witness protection program. It's not long before a couple of his new neighbours figure out his true identity and come knocking to see if he'd be up for one more hit—suburban style.

Themes

Deception in relationships, Witness protection strain, Money-driven manipulation, Loyalty vs survival, Suburban disguise, Crime and family ties

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
fuboTV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Saving Grace

1392. Saving Grace

Crime Comedy Narcotics Crime Satire
6.9

20001h 33min

France, United Kingdom

Director: Nigel Cole

Unexpectedly widowed, prim and proper housewife Grace Trevethyn finds herself in dire financial straits when she inherits massive debts her late husband had been accruing for years. Faced with losing her house, she decides to use her talent for horticulture and hatches a plan to grow potent marijuana which can be sold at an astronomical price, thus solving her financial crisis.

Themes

Community scrutiny and interference, Risk driven entrepreneurship, Marginal ascent through illicit means, Loyalty under conflicting relationships, Economic precarity under debt, Resourcefulness and improvisation

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

American Psycho

1393. American Psycho

Thriller Drama Crime Mind Game Thriller Psychological Drama
7.6

20001h 42min

Canada, United States

Director: Mary Harron

A wealthy New York investment banking executive hides his alternate psychopathic ego from his co-workers and friends as he escalates deeper into his illogical, gratuitous fantasies.

Themes

White collar violence, Alienation in affluence, Appearance versus reality, Satire of consumer culture, Class and status pressure, Deceptive self image

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Talented Mr. Ripley

1394. The Talented Mr. Ripley

Thriller Crime Drama Mind Game Thriller Con Artist Crime
7.4

19992h 20min

United States

Director: Anthony Minghella

Tom Ripley is a calculating young man who believes it's better to be a fake somebody than a real nobody. Opportunity knocks in the form of a wealthy U.S. shipbuilder who hires Tom to travel to Italy to bring back his playboy son, Dickie. Ripley worms his way into the idyllic lives of Dickie and his girlfriend, plunging into a daring scheme of duplicity, lies and murder.

Themes

Deception and manipulation, Double life, Secret identity, Fake identity, Identity theft, Social climbing and envy

Available on

Netflix
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Green Mile

1395. The Green Mile

Fantasy Drama Crime Supernatural Fantasy Tragic Drama
8.6

19993h 9min

United States

Director: Frank Darabont

A supernatural tale set on death row in a Southern prison, where gentle giant John Coffey possesses the mysterious power to heal people's ailments. When the cell block's head guard, Paul Edgecomb, recognizes Coffey's miraculous gift, he tries desperately to help stave off the condemned man's execution.

Themes

Abuse of power, Authority and mercy, Healing at a cost, Death penalty ethics, Dignity under sentence, Memory as evidence

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Peacock Premium
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Happy, Texas

1396. Happy, Texas

Comedy Crime
6.3

19991h 38min

United States

Director: Mark Illsley

Two escaped convicts roll into the village of Happy, Texas, where they're mistaken for a gay couple who work as beauty pageant consultants. They go along with it to duck the police, but the local sheriff has a secret of his own.


Dead or Alive

1397. Dead or Alive

Action Thriller Crime
6.7

19991h 45min

Japan

Director: Takashi Miike

Ryūichi and his small gang of Triad vie for control of the Japanese underworld in a crime-ridden Shinjuku quarter while Detective Jojima tries to bring it down.


Flawless

1398. Flawless

Comedy Drama Crime
6.4

19991h 52min

United States

Director: Joel Schumacher

An ultraconservative police officer suffers a debilitating stroke and is assigned to a rehabilitative program that includes singing lessons - with the drag queen next door.


Herod's Law

1399. Herod's Law

Comedy Crime Mystery Drama
7.8

19992h 3min

Mexico

Director: Luis Estrada

In the 1940s, a small Mexican town has seen its last three mayors assassinated in rapid succession. A naive janitor is recruited to become the new mayor, and he believes he will modernize the little town and usher in a reign of peace. But the system corrupts him very quickly, and he takes to abusing his power while associating with an unscrupulous assortment of opportunists, hypocrites and criminals.


The Bone Collector

1400. The Bone Collector

Crime Thriller Drama Mystery
6.7

19991h 58min

United States

Director: Phillip Noyce

A renowned criminologist and a young police officer are on the trail of a bloodthirsty maniac who leaves ciphers and hidden clues beside his victims. Each new discovery raises the stakes in this deadly game.