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.

Chappie

871. Chappie

Crime Action Science Fiction AI Sci-Fi Epic Action
6.8

20152h

United States, South Africa

Director: Neill Blomkamp

Every child comes into the world full of promise, and none more so than Chappie: he is gifted, special, a prodigy. Like any child, Chappie will come under the influence of his surroundings—some good, some bad—and he will rely on his heart and soul to find his way in the world and become his own man. But there's one thing that makes Chappie different from any one else: he is a robot.

Themes

Surveillance and control, Ai autonomy through manipulation, Ethics of creation under profit, Deception shaping loyalties, Humans vs machines, Debt-driven coercion and crime

Available on

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

Focus

872. Focus

Romance Comedy Crime Romantic Comedy Con Artist Crime
6.6

20151h 45min

United States

Director: Glenn Ficarra

Nicky, an accomplished con artist, gets romantically involved with his disciple Jess but later ends their relationship. Years later, she returns as a femme fatale to spoil his plans.

Themes

Deception and trust, Loyalty versus ambition, Misdirection and manipulation, Emotional risk in crime, Romance and vulnerability in crime

Available on

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

The Gunman

873. The Gunman

Action Drama Crime One-Person Army Psychological Drama
5.8

20151h 55min

France, Spain

Director: Pierre Morel

Eight years after fleeing the Congo following his assassination of that country's minister of mining, former assassin Jim Terrier is back, suffering from PTSD and digging wells to atone for his violent past. After an attempt is made on his life, Terrier flies to London to find out who wants him dead -- and why. Terrier's search leads him to a reunion with Annie, a woman he once loved, who is now married to an oily businessman with dealings in Africa.

Themes

Loyalty under pressure, Justice versus corporate interests, Corporate security overreach, Betrayal within mercenary networks, Resource-driven violence, External manipulation by firms

Available on

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

Kingsman: The Secret Service

874. Kingsman: The Secret Service

Crime Comedy Action Adventure Spy Action
7.7

20152h 9min

United Kingdom, United States

Director: Matthew Vaughn

The story of a super-secret spy organization that recruits an unrefined but promising street kid into the agency's ultra-competitive training program just as a global threat emerges from a twisted tech genius.

Themes

Mentorship under pressure, Technology as weapon, Elite vs street talent, Private power versus public risk, Loyalty under selection, Global threat response

Available on

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

Wild Card

875. Wild Card

Thriller Crime Action Organized Crime Revenge Thriller
5.6

20151h 32min

United States

Director: Simon West

When a Las Vegas bodyguard with lethal skills and a gambling problem gets in trouble with the mob, he has one last play… and it's all or nothing.

Themes

Money as leverage, Risk and consequence, Urban crime economy, Gambling addiction under pressure, Crime and protection dynamics, Autonomy versus coercion

Available on

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

Blackhat

876. Blackhat

Crime Thriller Action Organized Crime Computer Threat Thriller
5.5

20152h 13min

United States

Director: Michael Mann

Nicholas Hathaway, a furloughed convict, and his American and Chinese partners hunt a high-level cybercrime network from Chicago to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Jakarta. As Hathaway closes in, the stakes become personal as he discovers that the attack on a Chinese nuclear power plant was just the beginning.

Themes

Technology as weapon, Betrayal under pressure, Race against time, Cross border pursuit, Rogue networks, Conspiracy and deception

Available on

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

A Most Violent Year

877. A Most Violent Year

Crime Drama Thriller Organized Crime Cover-Up Thriller
6.9

20142h 4min

United Arab Emirates, United States

Director: J.C. Chandor

A thriller set in New York City during the winter of 1981, statistically one of the most violent years in the city's history, and centered on the lives of an immigrant and his family trying to expand their business and capitalize on opportunities as the rampant violence, decay, and corruption of the day drag them in and threaten to destroy all they have built.

Themes

Immigrant ambition vs exploitation, Capitalism and corruption, American dream under pressure, Financial leverage and ethics, Risk management and deception, Law and business tension

Available on

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

The Gambler

878. The Gambler

Thriller Crime Drama Organized Crime Kidnapping & Captivity Thriller
6.0

20141h 51min

United States

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Literature professor Jim Bennett leads a secret life as a high-stakes gambler. Always a risk-taker, Bennett bets it all when he borrows from a gangster and offers his own life as collateral. Staying one step ahead, he pits his creditor against the operator of an illicit gambling ring while garnering the attention of Frank, a paternalistic loan shark. As his relationship with a student deepens, Bennett must risk everything for a second chance.

Themes

Debt-driven coercion, Gambling as self-destructive escape, Power dynamics and coercion, Risk vs consequence, Moral hazards in mentorship, Dual lives and legitimacy

Available on

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

Poker Night

879. Poker Night

Thriller Action Crime Horror Kidnapping & Captivity Thriller
6.2

20141h 44min

United States, Canada

Director: Greg Francis

When a new detective is caught by a vicious psychopath and locked in a basement, he must use the knowledge he learned from some of the best detectives at Poker Night, then match wits against his captor.

Themes

Confinement under pressure, Risk management under threat, Group storytelling as strategy, Shared tactical knowledge, Cat and mouse dynamic, Trust under coercion

Available on

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

The Connection

880. The Connection

Thriller Crime Action Narcotics Crime Investigation Suspense
7.1

20142h 15min

Belgium, France

Director: Cédric Jimenez

Newly transferred to the bustling port city of Marseille to assist with a crackdown on organized crime, energetic young magistrate Pierre Michel is given a rapid-fire tutorial on the ins and outs of an out-of-control drug trade. Pierre's wildly ambitious mission is to take on the French Connection, a highly organized operation that controls the city's underground heroin economy and is overseen by the notorious —and reputedly untouchable— Gaetan Zampa. Fearless, determined and willing to go the distance, Pierre plunges into an underworld world of insane danger and ruthless criminals.

Themes

Underground drug economy, Corruption within law enforcement, Loyalty and defection, Personal cost of duty, Illegal surveillance, Organized crime vs justice

Available on

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