Top 100 Gangster Movies
100 of the best gangster movies from different countries and different decades.
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100 titles
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroRay LiottaJoe PesciThe story of Henry Hill and his life in the mafia, covering his relationship with his wife Karen and his mob partners Jimmy Conway and Tommy DeVito.Scorsese's 'Goodfellas' is hands down the greatest gangster movie ever made. Featuring an amazing soundtrack and a great cast including Joe Pesci in his unforgettable, Oscar-winning role as Tommy DeVito.
- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsMarlon BrandoAl PacinoJames CaanThe aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.A beloved masterpiece from Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola. Marlon Brando is and always will be Don Vito Corleone.
- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsAl PacinoRobert De NiroRobert DuvallThe early life and career of Vito Corleone in 1920s New York City is portrayed, while his son, Michael, expands and tightens his grip on the family crime syndicate.The greatest sequel ever made.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsLeonardo DiCaprioMatt DamonJack NicholsonAn undercover cop and a mole in the police attempt to identify each other while infiltrating an Irish gang in South Boston.Remake of the Hong Kong classic 'Infernal Affairs', this film boasts a stellar cast and won Scorsese his long overdue Oscar.
- DirectorFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.The quintessential gangster movie. Groundbreaking, inspiring and based on a true story. The cinematography, directing and writing is unmatched in Brazilian cinema.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsJohn TravoltaUma ThurmanSamuel L. JacksonThe lives of two mob hitmen, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits intertwine in four tales of violence and redemption.Quintin Tarantino's groundbreaking, non-linear, multi-strand narrative that both inspired and created imitators. This is undoubtedly the cornerstone of 90's cinema and still enjoyed by millions today.
- DirectorJacques AudiardStarsTahar RahimNiels ArestrupAdel BencherifA delinquent Muslim man struggles to get by in prison until he is taken under the wing of a powerful mob boss. But his gradual rise through the mob's ranks brings him in conflict with his mentor.Winner at Cannes and nominated for Best Foreign film at the Academy Awards, this is probably the best gangster film to ever come out of France.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsAl PacinoMichelle PfeifferSteven BauerIn 1980 Miami, a determined Cuban immigrant takes over a drug cartel and succumbs to greed.Al Pacino disappears into the role of Cuban kingpin Tony Montana and gives us 3 hours of pure, cathartic entertainment.
- DirectorBryan SingerStarsKevin SpaceyGabriel ByrneChazz PalminteriThe sole survivor of a pier shoot-out tells the story of how a notorious criminal influenced the events that began with five criminals meeting in a seemingly random police lineup.Thrilling from start to finish.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroAl PacinoJoe PesciAn illustration of Frank Sheeran's life, from W.W.II veteran to hit-man for the Bufalino crime family and his alleged assassination of his close friend Jimmy Hoffa.
- DirectorJoel CoenEthan CoenStarsGabriel ByrneAlbert FinneyJohn TurturroTom Reagan, an advisor to a Prohibition-era crime boss, tries to keep the peace between warring mobs but gets caught in divided loyalties.The Coen Brothers take a stab at the gangster/crime genre and deliver an intellegent and aesthetically pleasing classic.
- DirectorSergio LeoneStarsRobert De NiroJames WoodsElizabeth McGovernA former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan 35 years later, where he must once again confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.An epic crime saga from Sergio Leone, the legendary director who gave us The Dollars trilogy and 'Once Upon a Time in the West'.
- DirectorJohn SingletonStarsCuba Gooding Jr.Laurence FishburneHudhail Al-AmirFollows the lives of three young males living in the Crenshaw ghetto of Los Angeles, dissecting questions of race, relationships, violence, and future prospects.As relevant today as it was when it first came out. Launched the career of Cuba Gooding, Jr., made Ice Cube into an even bigger cultural icon and paved the way for many up and coming actors and directors.
- DirectorJosé PadilhaStarsWagner MouraIrandhir SantosAndré RamiroAfter a prison riot, former-Captain Nascimento, now a high ranking security officer in Rio de Janeiro, is swept into a bloody political dispute that involves government officials and paramilitary groups.Sequel to the critically acclaimed 'Elite Squad' and one of the few sequels to outdo the orginal.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsHarvey KeitelTim RothMichael MadsenWhen a simple jewelry heist goes horribly wrong, the surviving criminals begin to suspect that one of them is a police informant.Quintin Tarantino's official debut. Dialog heavy, violent and very funny. A bonafide classic.
- DirectorSam MendesStarsTom HanksTyler HoechlinPaul NewmanA mob enforcer's son in 1930s Illinois witnesses a murder, forcing him and his father to take to the road, and his father down a path of redemption and revenge.Sam Medes, director of 'American Beauty' brings forth the adaptation of the popular comic series and Paul Newman gives his last great performance as Irish mob boss John Rooney.
- DirectorJosé PadilhaStarsWagner MouraAndré RamiroCaio JunqueiraIn 1997 Rio de Janeiro, Captain Nascimento has to find a substitute for his position while trying to take down drug dealers and criminals before the Pope visits.A gangster film set in the late 90's that focuses heavily on a special forces milirary unit known as BOPE and how they deal with the gangsters and drug lords in the favelas. From the writer of 'City of God'.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsRobert De NiroSharon StoneJoe PesciIn Las Vegas, two best friends - a casino executive and a mafia enforcer - compete for a gambling empire and a fast-living, fast-loving socialite.Scorsese's an De Niro's fifth collaboration is nothing short of extraordinary. De Niro is also reunited with frequent co-star Joe Pesci and the great James Woods.
- DirectorWilliam FriedkinStarsGene HackmanRoy ScheiderFernando ReyA pair of NYPD detectives in the Narcotics Bureau stumble onto a heroin smuggling ring based in Marseilles, but stopping them and capturing their leaders proves an elusive goal.The Oscar-winning film featuring Gene Hackman at his best as well as the greatest car chase in cinema history.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsEdward NortonBarry PepperPhilip Seymour HoffmanCornered by the DEA, convicted New York drug dealer Montgomery Brogan reevaluates his life in the 24 remaining hours before facing a seven-year jail term.Half gangster film, half love letter to NYC after the 9/11 attacks. Ed Norton and Rosario Dawson star in this bleak film about a man making all the wrong choices in life.
- DirectorAlejandro G. IñárrituStarsEmilio EchevarríaGael García BernalGoya ToledoAn amateur dog fighter, a supermodel, and a derelict assassin, all separately struggling to find love, find their lives transformed by a devastating car wreck in Mexico City.Inspired by Robert Altman's style of story telling, Amores Perros is Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu's best film. His other films include Babel and Biutiful.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsKevin CostnerSean ConneryRobert De NiroDuring Prohibition, Treasury agent Eliot Ness sets out to stop ruthless Chicago gangster Al Capone, and assembles a small, incorruptible team to help him.The greatest film ever made about Al Capone, the Prohibition era and the man that took him down, Elliott Ness. Directed by Brian De Palma - the man that gave us 'Scarface' and 'Carlito's Way'.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsSean PennTim RobbinsKevin BaconThe tragic murder of a 19-year-old girl reunites three childhood friends still living in Boston--the victim's gangster father, a detective, and the disturbed man they both suspect of killing her.Clint Eastwood directs this sad, tragic tale about three friends taking different paths when something happens to one of them during their childhood. Sean Penn and Tim Robbins both won Oscars for their roles - Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor respectively.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsNaomi WattsViggo MortensenArmin Mueller-StahlA teenager who dies during childbirth leaves clues in her journal that could tie her child to a rape involving a violent Russian mob family.Quite possibly the best Russian gangster film ever made.
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsJean RenoGary OldmanNatalie Portman12-year-old Mathilda is reluctantly taken in by Léon, a professional assassin, after her family is murdered. An unusual relationship forms as she becomes his protégée and learns the assassin's trade.A memorable performnce from Gary Oldman but the stand out is Natalie Portman as the 12-year old Mathilda.