Last updated March 2024
On the hunt for sensationally awesome Best Crime Movies 2004 ? See our compilation of 30 marvelous, universally beloved Best Crime Movies 2004 handpicked for your viewing pleasure. Critically celebrated by revered IMDB reviewers and widely adored by our own legion of savvy users, these world-class titles simply have no equal. Lend fellow viewers a hand by voting up the titles you feel are keepers. We appreciate your stellar contributions showcasing the finest entertainment available!
Black Friday (2004)
Plot Summary:
Under torture, Indian gangster Tiger Memon confesses to his involvement in a plot to set off explosives throughout Bombay. The police choose not to believe him, however, and bombs tear through the city that Friday, wreaking havoc and polarizing the citizens of Bombay. Through a series of interviews, DCP Rakesh Maria comes closer to discovering who the leader of the conspiracy is, but it soon becomes clear that a foreign power must be involved
Duration: 143 min
IMDB Rating: 8.4/10
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, History
Country: India
Plot tags: terrorism, terrorist, politics, muslim, interrogation, investigation, life is a bitch, legal, society, law enforcement, journalism, bomb, innocence, protest, conspiracy, religious intolerance, police, multiple storylines, hindu, islam, conflict, war crime, renaissance, terrorist attack, threat
Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)
Plot Summary:
The Bride unwaveringly continues on her roaring rampage of revenge against the band of assassins who had tried to kill her and her unborn child. She visits each of her former associates one-by-one, checking off the victims on her Death List Five until there's nothing left to do … but kill Bill
Duration: 137 min
IMDB Rating: 8.0/10
IMDB Votes: 791000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: revenge, vigilante, vengeance, strong female lead, sword fight, dark humor, martial arts, mission, hitman, retribution, tough girl, female assassin, one woman army, female warrior, sword, mentor, master warrior, female protagonist, kung fu, samurai, female martial artist, pride and honor, gory, fight, journey
3-Iron (2004)
Plot Summary:
A young man, whose only possession is a motorcycle, spends his time riding around the city looking for empty apartments. After finding one, he hangs out for a while, fixing himself something to eat, washing laundry or making small repairs in return. He always tries to leave before the owners get back but in one ostensibly empty mansion he meets the abused wife of a rich man and she escapes with him
Duration: 88 min
IMDB Rating: 7.9/10
IMDB Votes: 58000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Romance
Country: South Korea, Japan
Plot tags: golf, loneliness, motorcycle, melancholy, relationships, love triangle, jealousy, abusive husband, love, art, existentialism, love story, destiny, erotica, drifter, homeless, mission, asian, runaway, family life, love affair, unsupportive spouse, domestic violence, masturbation, sex
Man on Fire (2004)
Plot Summary:
Jaded ex-CIA operative John Creasy reluctantly accepts a job as the bodyguard for a 10-year-old girl in Mexico City. They clash at first, but eventually bond, and when she's kidnapped he's consumed by fury and will stop at nothing to save her life
Duration: 146 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 383000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Switzerland, UK, USA, Mexico
Plot tags: revenge, kidnapping, vengeance, vigilante, cia, vigilantism, friendship, mercenary, lone hero, redemption, justice, child in peril, police corruption, danger, ransom, bodyguard, cia agent, violence, daring rescue, violent, warrior, organized crime, conspiracy, torture, murder
Crash (2004)
Plot Summary:
Los Angeles citizens with vastly separate lives collide in interweaving stories of race, loss and redemption
Duration: 112 min
IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
IMDB Votes: 446000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany, Australia
Plot tags: racism, police, prejudice, racial tension, multiple storylines, sexual harassment, racist, social injustice, plot twist, redemption, interracial relations, class differences, society, city life, police corruption, immigrant, cop, hate, parents and children, social differences, suffering, depression, tragedy, manipulation, relationships
Vera Drake (2004)
Plot Summary:
Abortionist Vera Drake finds her beliefs and practices clash with the mores of 1950s Britain – a conflict that leads to tragedy for her family
Duration: 125 min
IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
IMDB Votes: 27000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: UK, France
Plot tags: abortion, working class, unwanted pregnancy, pregnancy, neighbor, injustice, miscarriage, life is a bitch, double life, character study, abortionist, family life, rebellion, fighting the system, society, family problems, selflessness, understanding, deal, family in crisis, nursing, women, poverty, feminism, secret
Dead Man's Shoes (2004)
Plot Summary:
A soldier returns home to his small town and exacts a deadly revenge on the thugs who tormented his dimwitted brother while he was away
Duration: 90 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 57000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Plot tags: revenge, bullying, brutality, vengeance, mental illness, justice, cruelty, great ending, humiliation, execution, drug abuse, heroes, brother brother relationship, forced sex, vigilante, haunted by the past, violent, gangster, drug, twists and turns, small town, anti hero, sadism, illness, bully
Collateral (2004)
Plot Summary:
Cab driver Max picks up a man who offers him $600 to drive him around. But the promise of easy money sours when Max realizes his fare is an assassin
Duration: 120 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 426000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: hitman, hostage, twists and turns, taxi driver, taxi, killings, sociopath, killer, assassin, merciless, murderer, victim, murder witness, organized crime, conspiracy, contract killer, nihilism, gunfight, danger, murder, accident, death, brutality, fbi, surveillance
The Consequences of Love (2004)
Plot Summary:
Titta di Girolamo has been living in a small hotel in Lugano for ten years, he leads a dull and rigid live and has apparently lost his capability to feel human emotion. This all changes when he decides to talk to Sofia, the Barmaid
Duration: 100 min
IMDB Rating: 7.5/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Romance
Country: Italy
Plot tags: mafia, loneliness, age difference, fall in love, haunted by the past, mysterious character, unlikely couple, love and romance, couples, manipulation, dishonesty, dull life, twists and turns, drug abuse, older man younger woman relationship, murder, killer, love, police officer, italian mafia, mental disorder, depression, circus, sexuality, organized crime
The Uniform (2004)
Plot Summary:
Just as he is preparing for his daughter's wedding, a veteran policeman is assigned to a crack team transporting a Pakistani secret agent to trial
Duration: 174 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: terrorism, murder, muslim, vengeance, rivalry, danger, law enforcement, dishonesty, heroes, rookie, small town, small town life, police, revenge, corruption, police officer, hindu, corrupt politician, cop, terrorist, police corruption, wedding, chases and races, violence, death
Maria Full of Grace (2004)
Plot Summary:
A pregnant Colombian teenager becomes a drug mule to make some desperately needed money for her family
Duration: 101 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 36000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: Colombia, Ecuador, USA
Plot tags: drug dealing, immigrant, human trafficking, friendship, coming of age, life is a bitch, women, loneliness, depression, addiction, drug abuse, illegal immigration, drug, character study, financial problem, juvenile delinquency, drug addict, teenage life, new job, boyfriend, poverty, heroin, immigration, adolescence, bittersweet
Bad Education (2004)
Plot Summary:
Two children, Ignacio and Enrique, know love, the movies and fear in a religious school at the beginning of the 1960s. Father Manolo, director of the school and its professor of literature, is witness to and part of these discoveries. The three are followed through the next few decades, their reunion marking life and death
Duration: 106 min
IMDB Rating: 7.4/10
IMDB Votes: 63000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: Spain
Plot tags: sexual abuse, gay, transsexual, child abuse, transvestism, boarding school, male nudity, teacher, transsexuality, gender, coming of age, transgender, youth, lgbt, first love, blackmail, life is a bitch, dangerous attraction, pedophilia, lgbtq, glbt, friendship, gays and lesbians, lgbtqi, couples
Pusher II (2004)
Plot Summary:
Tony (Mads Mikkelsen) is released from prison - again. This time he has his mind set on changing his broken down life, but that is easier said than done
Duration: 100 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 24000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: Denmark, UK
Plot tags: gang, gangster, debt, drug dealing, going straight, criminal heroes, male nudity, nudity, male pubic hair, parent child relationship, friends, parents and children, life is a bitch, rivalry, partner, nordic, drug, drug dealer, father son relationship, organized crime, wedding, murder, brothel, heroin, prison
Layer Cake (2004)
Plot Summary:
When a seemingly straight-forward drug deal goes awry, XXXX has to break his die-hard rules and turn up the heat, not only to outwit the old regime and come out on top, but to save his own skin
Duration: 105 min
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
IMDB Votes: 192000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Plot tags: twists and turns, gangster, heist, murder, drug, drug lord, caper, plot twist, violence, drug addiction, organized crime, mafia, going straight, criminal heroes, british gangster, female nudity, robbery, drug dealing, hitman, drug dealer, betrayal, greed, sex, chase, gang
Ferpect Crime (2004)
Plot Summary:
A playboy has the tables turned on him when he finds himself being used as a plaything by an undesirable woman in this black comedy from Spain
Duration: 105 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Country: Spain, Italy
Plot tags: murder, store, satire, ambition, rivalry, character study, salesman, dangerous attraction, couples, blackmail, job promotion, department store, revenge, dysfunctional family, sex, business, wedding, magic realism, gangsta, criminal mind, amor, ghost, unrequited love, sexual abuse, delusional woman
36th Precinct (2004)
Plot Summary:
The Film takes place in Paris, where two cops are competing for the vacant seat of chief of police while in the middle of a search for a gang of violent thieves. The movie is directed by Olivier Marchal, a former police officer who spent 12 years with the french police before creating this story, which in part is taken from real facts that happened during the 1980s in France
Duration: 111 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France
Plot tags: vengeance, twists and turns, rivalry, organized crime, police corruption, investigation, violence, dirty cop, police investigation, police, nudity, ambition, law enforcement, workplace intrigue, heist, gang, uninhibited rivalry, gang violence, police officer killed, dishonesty, blind ambition, spouse in danger, cop, betrayal, robbery
District B13 (2004)
Plot Summary:
Set in the ghettos of Paris in 2010, an undercover cop and ex-thug try to infiltrate a gang in order to defuse a neutron bomb
Duration: 84 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 73000
Genere: Action, Crime, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: France
Plot tags: martial arts, ghetto, gang, parkour, fight, undercover cop, tough guy, bomb, betrayal, race against time, urban ghetto, crime boss, heroes, danger, working undercover, revenge, dystopia, violence, hand to hand combat, distopia, vigilantism, bully, organized crime, escapades, corruption
Mean Creek (2004)
Plot Summary:
Teenagers living in small-town Oregon take a boat trip for a birthday celebration. When they get an idea to play a mean trick on the town bully, it suddenly goes too far. Soon they're forced to deal with the unexpected consequences of their actions
Duration: 90 min
IMDB Rating: 7.1/10
IMDB Votes: 33000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: prank, friendship, kids in trouble, small town, teenager, vengeance, coming of age, bullying, revenge, bully, guilt, childhood, friends, boy, truth or dare, brother brother relationship, unsupportive friend, first love, psychology, drowning, interrogation, humiliation, rivalry, deal, disorder
The Assassination of Richard Nixon (2004)
Plot Summary:
It’s 1974 and Sam Bicke has lost everything. His wife leaves him with his three kids, his boss fires him, his brother turns away from him, and the bank won’t give him any money to start anew. He tries to find someone to blame for his misfortunes and comes up with the President of the United States who he plans to murder
Duration: 95 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 26000
Genere: Biography, Crime, Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA, Mexico
Plot tags: depression, obsession, hypocrisy, assassination, suicide, psychology, robbery, crime gone awry, revenge, tragedy, attempted murder, head of state, mental illness, life is a bitch, society, rules and policies, misfit, alienation, lifestyle, social commentary, biopic, hijacking, corruption, planned murder, swindle
New Police Story (2004)
Plot Summary:
Sent into a drunken tailspin when his entire unit is killed by a gang of thrill-seeking punks, disgraced Hong Kong police inspector Wing (Jackie Chan) needs help from his new rookie partner, with a troubled past of his own, to climb out of the bottle and track down the gang and its ruthless leader
Duration: 123 min
IMDB Rating: 6.9/10
IMDB Votes: 29000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong, China
Plot tags: martial arts, hostage, redemption, partner, police, kung fu, fight scenes, gang, undercover cop, gunfight, rivalry, bank robbery, fight, haunted by the past, buddy cop, vengeance, dark past, karate, violence, kidnapping, murder, car chase, chase, guilt, mafia
Millions (2004)
Plot Summary:
Two boys, still grieving the death of their mother, find themselves the unwitting benefactors of a bag of bank robbery loot in the week before the United Kingdom switches its official currency to the Euro. What's a kid to do?
Duration: 98 min
IMDB Rating: 6.8/10
IMDB Votes: 26000
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Family
Country: UK
Plot tags: robbery, coming of age, youth, children, stolen money, boy, greed, catholic, self discovery, single parent, young heroes, parents and children, human nature, saint, christmas season, bittersweet, christmas, brother brother relationship, child, religious, rich and poor, money, religion, death, morality
The Football Factory (2004)
Plot Summary:
The Football Factory is more than just a study of the English obsession with football violence, it's about men looking for armies to join, wars to fight and places to belong. A forgotten culture of Anglo Saxon males fed up with being told they're not good enough and using their fists as a drug they describe as being more potent than sex and drugs put together
Duration: 91 min
IMDB Rating: 6.7/10
IMDB Votes: 32000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA, UK
Plot tags: soccer, hooligan, football, organized crime, dark humor, lifestyle, violent, violence, working class, dysfunctional family, football hooligan, drug, rivalry, machismo, buddies, violence spree, obsession, direction and purpose, bar fight, uninhibited rivalry, gangster, skinhead, gang, brutality, drug abuse
Dhoom (2004)
Plot Summary:
A gang of bikers headed by the cool-headed and arrogant Kabir is on a robbing spree in Mumbai. They rob establishments and then zip away on their superbikes. ACP Jai Dixit is the case in-charge and he recruits a bumbling bike mechanic and racer named Ali to chase the gang on a bike and help Jai nab them. Kabir accepts the challenge, and pulls off another robbery amidst a function. This causes Jai and Ali to call it off. Jai resigns from the police force and Ali goes back to his daily job. Meanwhile Kabir has lost one of his team members and recruits Ali for their final job in Goa. The action shifts from the congested Mumbai traffic to the sunny Goa for the final showdown between cops and robbers
Duration: 129 min
IMDB Rating: 6.6/10
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: India
Plot tags: heist, motorcycle, leadership, obsessive quest, rivalry, law enforcement, criminal heroes, chase, biker, motorcycle chase, hindu, exploitation, motor sport, gang of thieves, cop, chases and races, mechanic, delivery, gang war, tough law enforcer, bank robbery, thief, police officer, beach, motorcycle racing
Spartan (2004)
Plot Summary:
U.S. government agent Scott is assigned to rescue the daughter of a high-ranking government official. As willing as he is to bend the rules to get things done, though, Scott is shocked to find that others are willing to go even further to protect a political career
Duration: 106 min
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
IMDB Votes: 33000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Germany, USA
Plot tags: secret service, kidnapping, investigation, missing person, spy, politics, conspiracy, espionage, female agent, political conspiracy, secret agent, rescue, race against time, twists and turns, gunfight, danger, dishonesty, sex trafficking, surveillance, illegal prostitution, military, violence, assassin, betrayal, undercover agent
Cellular (2004)
Plot Summary:
A young man receives an emergency phone call on his cell phone from an older woman. She claims to have been kidnapped – and the kidnappers have targeted her husband and child next
Duration: 94 min
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
IMDB Votes: 104000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany
Plot tags: kidnapping, hostage, race against time, psychopath, cell phone, secrets, home invasion, police corruption, confined, lone hero, runaway, kidnapped, conspiracy, murder, twists and turns, family in danger, violence, telephone call, heroes, rescue, chases and races, misfit, danger, law enforcement, dishonesty
Ocean's Twelve (2004)
Plot Summary:
Danny Ocean reunites with his old flame and the rest of his merry band of thieves in carrying out three huge heists in Rome, Paris and Amsterdam – but a Europol agent is hot on their heels
Duration: 125 min
IMDB Rating: 6.5/10
IMDB Votes: 408000
Genere: Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: heist, robbery, con artists, thief, perfect crime, caper, twists and turns, master thief, con men, planning, money, art thief, criminal's revenge, suprisingly clever, casino, conspiracy, fraud, criminal heroes, buddies, revenge, greed, creativity, gangster, rivalry, cons and scams
Criminal (2004)
Plot Summary:
Needing a new partner capable of intricate cons, Richard Gaddis, recruits Rodrigo, a crook with a perfect poker face. The two plan a big-time scam: selling a fake Silver Certificate to currency collector William Hannigan. Rodrigo distrusts his new associate, but needs money to help out his ill father. The situation becomes more complicated when Rodrigo falls for Gaddis' sister, Valerie, drawing another player into the game
Duration: 87 min
IMDB Rating: 6.4/10
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: con artists, twists and turns, forgery, manipulation, heist, plot twist, justice, caper, con men, partner, crime gone awry, petty criminal, dishonesty, criminal heroes, small time, visceral, hustler, hotel, chase, casino, criminal, con man, profanity, concierge, mastermind
The Punisher (2004)
Plot Summary:
When undercover FBI agent Frank Castle's wife and son are slaughtered, he becomes 'the Punisher' -- a ruthless vigilante willing to go to any length to avenge his family
Duration: 124 min
IMDB Rating: 6.4/10
IMDB Votes: 169000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany
Plot tags: revenge, vengeance, vigilante, vigilantism, violence, lone hero, superhero, tough guy, one man army, comic hero, mafia, hitman, dark hero, tough heroes, tragic hero, crime fighter, tough law enforcer, violent, loss of loved one, anti hero, organized crime, torment, death of child, smuggling, heroes
Mindhunters (2004)
Plot Summary:
Trainees in the FBI's psychological profiling program must put their training into practice when they discover a killer in their midst
Duration: 106 min
IMDB Rating: 6.3/10
IMDB Votes: 63000
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: Netherlands, UK, Finland, USA
Plot tags: serial killer, mind game, island, twists and turns, trap, investigation, survival, profiler, psycho killer, murder, bloody violence, killing spree, confined, sociopath, characters killed one by one, fbi agent, violence, unknown killer, mystery killer, sadistic psychopath, betrayal, murderer, fbi, psychopath, dishonesty
Walking Tall (2004)
Plot Summary:
A former U.S. soldier returns to his hometown to find it overrun by crime and corruption, which prompts him to clean house
Duration: 86 min
IMDB Rating: 6.3/10
IMDB Votes: 109000
Genere: Action, Crime
Country: USA
Plot tags: vigilante, one against many, ex military, small town, home invasion, lone hero, justice, revenge, organized crime, vigilantism, heroes, police corruption, fighting crime, violence, gunfight, machismo, one man army, ex soldier, corruption, life philosophy, gangster, brutality, law enforcement, partner, drug lord