Best movies like The City of Violence
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
Tae-su, a detective fighting organized crime, returns to his hometown for his high school friend Wang-jae's funeral. There, he meets his old friends Pil-ho, Dong-hwan and Seok-hwan and they reminisce. Suspecting something fishy about Wang-jae's death, Tae-su and Seok-hwan start investigating it, each in his own way. Their investigations lead to a land development project that Pil-ho is directing.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: stylized, rough, serious, suspenseful, bloody, heroic, crime drama, independent film
Best tv shows and movies like The City of Violence (2006):
Similar in 90%
Heroic Duo (2003)
Plot Summary:
Tough cop Ken Li (Cheng) is at the top of his game, but he's going to need some help to solve a grisly crime that the offender, a respected police officer, doesn't even remember committing. He seeks out Jack Lai (Lai), a former psychologist now in disgrace and behind bars, who has an uncanny ability to bend people to his will. Making an uneasy truce, this unconventional pair set out on a mission to find the man responsible, a master of hypnotism who will stop at nothing to get his revenge!.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 880
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized, heroic
Similar in 78%
Long Arm of the Law: Part 2 (1987)
Plot Summary:
This sequel to the critically-acclaimed box-office winner Long Arm of the Law maintains the same stark realism of the original. In Saga Two, the Royal Hong Kong Police put into operation a new plan to counteract the problem of increasing violent crimes committed by new arrivals from across the border in China. In agreement with Chinese authorities, three Hong Kong detectives go undercover as illegal immigrants in order to infiltrate the powerful gang that is organizing the crime wave. The action is tough and graphic, reminiscent of The French Connection, Hong Kong style.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 284
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: heroic, crime drama, exciting, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, fast, poliziottesco
Similar in 85%
Double Tap (2000)
Plot Summary:
Leslie Cheung plays Rick Pang, an IPSC champion who is also a gun expert who modifies his pistols to perfect his technique known as 'double tap', placing two shots in the same exact spot. In the 1996 IPSC Hong Kong shooting competition, he goes up against another experienced shooter named Miu. Unfortunately, the competition was marred by a depressed stock trader, a friend of Miu, who lost much in the stock market and threatened the safety of the contest, wounding the IPSC supervisor, again one of Miu's friend. Rick was forced to kill him with his trademark double tap. Rick's experience from this encounter was strangely exciting to him and he discovers his lust for murdering others in cold blood.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, realistic, suspenseful, crime drama, heroic, cult film
Similar in 88%
Game of Death II (1980)
Plot Summary:
In this dark tale of revenge, Bruce Lee "returns" as Billy Lo, whose best friend Chin Ku dies of a sudden illness. But suspicion of foul play arises when a gang tries to steal Ku's coffin at the funeral using a helicopter. When Lo's younger brother Lo hears about the incident, he leaves his Buddhist master to investigate the truth. His trail soon leads him to the Castle of Death, the last place Chin Ku was seen alive. There, he meets and befriends an unlikely ally--a cruel and merciless martial arts expert who is also the tower's master. But when the master dies under mysterious circumstances, Lo ends up dueling with someone far more terrifying.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Action, Crime, Mystery
Country: Hong Kong, South Korea
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: grindhouse, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized
Similar in 86%
SPL: Kill Zone (2005)
Plot Summary:
Chan, an articulate senior detective nearing the end of his career, is taking care of the daughter of a witness killed by ruthless crime lord Po. Martial arts expert Ma is set to take over as head of the crime unit, replacing Chan who wants an early retirement.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong, Macao
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: exciting, serious, realistic, suspenseful, rough, inspirational, neo noir, crime drama, cult classic, action thriller
Similar in 86%
Legendary Assassin (2008)
Plot Summary:
An assassin who is fresh from his latest kill becomes stranded in an island, when he inadvertently befriends a female police officer. As the night progresses, the unspoken truth honored by the two sides of the law is broken. After the remains of a body that belonged to a drug lord and syndicate crime leader are found, chaos ensues and criminals ravage the once peaceful streets in a race against time to find the mysterious murderer that's loose and out for blood.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong, China
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, suspenseful, realistic, fast
Similar in 79%
The Divine Move (2014)
Plot Summary:
Professional baduk (go) player Tae-seok loses a high-stakes game to infamous underground gambler Sal-soo, and ends up framed for the murder of his own brother and locked up in prison. He vows revenge and trains ferociously. After serving his seven-year sentence, he gets in touch with his brother's former associate "Tricks," hermit and blind master player "The Lord," and skillful junkyard owner Mok-su; together, they begin formulating a plan to get back at Sal-soo and his men. Tae-seok slowly penetrates Sal-soo's inner circle and his gambling joint, and eliminates Sal-soo's men one by one. But Sal-soo discovers Tae-seok's true identity and engages him in one final game that will seal the fates of the two men involved.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Crime
Country: South Korea
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, suspenseful, suspense, realistic
Similar in 79%
Bullets, Blood & a Fistful of Ca$h (2006)
Plot Summary:
A hard boiled tale of bloody revenge that interweaves the stories of nine criminals. The story takes place in one day, on the eve of an all out syndicate war. Through a twisted series of events, the interweaving narratives are put on an ultra-violent collision course that will determine, once and for all, who owns the streets.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 740
Genere: Action, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: rough, realistic, serious, suspenseful, bloody, action packed
Similar in 84%
The Third Wave (2003)
Plot Summary:
Johan Falk hasn't been working for over a year since he resigned from the police. Most of all he wants to move out to the countryside, but fate has a different thought.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Sweden, Finland
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, suspenseful, realistic
Similar in 81%
Born to Raise Hell (2010)
Plot Summary:
A hard core Interpol Agent is assigned to an Eastern European task force to target gun trafficking and dope running throughout the Balkans. While investigating a Russian gun dealer, his team is caught in a bloody street war between a Gypsy gang and the Russians, leaving one task force member dead. Fueled with vengeance, he leads us on an action packed thrill ride while avenging his friend's death.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, tense, suspense, hood, realistic, fast
Similar in 90%
Full Alert (1997)
Plot Summary:
Police Inspector Pao is trying to catch Mak Kwan, a gang member who is first arrested, but then escapes from the prison. By chance, Pao realizes that the target of Kwan's gang is the H.K. Jockey Club.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: neo noir, heroic, crime drama, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 78%
Mask of the Ninja (2008)
Plot Summary:
In a heavily wooded private estate in the Malibu Hills, towering above the tumbling Pacific, millionaire CEO Kenji Takeo and his daughter, Miko, prepare for the arrival from Japan of Takeo's wife, Kumiko. But the calm of Solstice Canyon is shattered by a meticulously planned stealth attack on the Takeo home by a masked band of ninja assassins.
IMDB Rating: 3.6
IMDB Votes: 442
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: rough, suspenseful, exciting, serious, crime drama
Similar in 82%
Special ID (2013)
Plot Summary:
A cop and his team of comrades go undercover in one of China's most ruthless underworld organizations to stop a gang leader, only to put themselves in great danger after being exposed one by one.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Action, Crime
Country: China
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, suspenseful, tense, crime drama, realistic
Similar in 75%
Triad Wars (2008)
Plot Summary:
In the midst of a violent gang war, a series of misfortunes threaten the fate of a gang boss and his mob.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 117 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, suspenseful, realistic, bloody, heroic, crime drama, slasher, fast
Similar in 86%
High Voltage (1998)
Plot Summary:
After unknowingly robbing a money laundering operation the heist crew must avoid mobsters.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 700
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, crime drama, independent film
Similar in 90%
Kung Fu Jungle (2014)
Plot Summary:
A martial arts instructor working at a police academy gets imprisoned after killing a man by accident. But when a vicious killer starts targeting martial arts masters, the instructor offers to help the police in return for his freedom.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 12000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: China, Hong Kong
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: exciting, stylized, rough, suspenseful, scenic, crime drama, perverse, cult classic, serious, realistic
Similar in 89%
Flash Point (2007)
Plot Summary:
Detective Sergeant Ma Jun, known for dispensing his own brand of justice during arrests, teams up with an undercover cop, Wilson, to try and bring down three merciless Vietnamese brothers running a smuggling ring in the months before mainland China's takeover of Hong Kong. Jun pursues the gang tirelessly, sometimes ignoring police protocols. A showdown is inevitable!.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 14000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong, China
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: exciting, tense, captivating, suspense, cliffhanger, crime drama, cult classic, non stop action, aesthetic, rough
Similar in 83%
Nowhere to Hide (1999)
Plot Summary:
Over the next 72 days, Detective Woo will push his skills to the limits and his team of cops to the edge as they conduct a manhunt for an elusive criminal. Woo takes the law into his own hands as the hunt becomes personal, and as his target may get away.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: stylized, neo noir, exciting, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, fast, tense, noir
Similar in 79%
Black Ransom (2010)
Plot Summary:
A powerful triad boss has been kidnapped, and the new police superintendent Koo (Fala Chen) decides to recruit the help of Mann (Simon Yam), a former supercop who has since been relegated to back-up duty. Mann has his work cut out for him when he realizes his opponent is Sam (Michael Miu), a former cop with plenty of grudges. When Sam takes the fight to Mann’s family, Mann is more than determined to bring down the dangerous kidnapper and his gang.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 541
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, serious, tense, captivating, psychological, suspense, heroic, exciting, rough, emotional
Similar in 87%
Tiger Cage (1988)
Plot Summary:
Something fishy is going on in the anti-Drug Trafficking Unit of the HK Police, and only a few honest cops know that the corruption goes all the way to the top. However, they must prove their case quickly, and by unconventional means, after they are framed for murder and drug-trafficking themselves. Dodging bullets from cops and criminals alike, the race is on to clear their names, protect their loved ones, and bring their corrupt colleagues to justice.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: bloody, heroic, cult classic, exciting, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, fast
Similar in 78%
Vengeance (2009)
Plot Summary:
A French chef swears revenge after a violent attack on his daughter's family in Hong Kong, during which her husband and her two children are murdered. To help him find the killers, he hires three local hit-men working for the mafia.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong, France
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: neo noir, realistic, stylized, serious, heroic, tense, captivating, suspense, disturbing, bloody
Similar in 83%
Shanghai Grand (1996)
Plot Summary:
Gangsters abound in this lively, romantic crime drama that is set in Shanghai during WW II. The tale of Taiwanese patriot Hsu Wen-Chiang begins as he is washed up on a beach near Shanghai. He is taken in by Ting Lik, a kindly beggar who is desperately in love with Feng Ching-Ching, the daughter of a prominent gangster. It isn't long before Ting Lik successfully rises through the underworld ranks to become one of the city's most powerful gangsters. Hsu is beside him all the way and uses his own power to get revenge against those who tried to have him killed much earlier. The film's later focus is on the exploits of Feng who long ago had a relationship with Hsu when he was on the lam in northern China. Back in the present, Hsu and Feng meet again by chance and they resume their affair until Hsu learns that Feng's father is one of his enemies and kills him. Poor Feng goes mad with grief. Ting finds out and swears revenge upon Hsu.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 874
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: heroic, crime drama, tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized, gloomy
Similar in 75%
Exiled (2006)
Plot Summary:
A friendship is formed between an ex-gangster, and two groups of hitmen - those who want to protect him and those who were sent to kill him.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Hong Kong
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, serious, suspenseful, heroic, neo noir, bloody, contemplative, stylized, hood
Similar in 81%
Confession of Murder (2012)
Plot Summary:
On the day the 15-year statute of limitations expired on a high profile serial murder case that claimed the lives of 10 women, a family member of the victim throws himself off the building in front of Choi Hyeong-goo, the detective in charge of the case. Two years later, a man called Lee Doo-seok publishes a book titled "I am the Murderer" claiming responsibility for the murders that took place 17 years ago. His book becomes a bestseller because of the author’s charming looks and his vivid depiction of the crime. The detective and the self-proclaimed murderer meet face to face on a television debate show. Believing that Lee is nothing but a con artist, Detective Choi renews his search for the ultimate truth. Then another man appears suddenly, claiming he is the real killer.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 11000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: tense, suspenseful, rough, detective, stylized, psychological, twisted, psychological thriller, noir, mind bending
Similar in 79%
A Bittersweet Life (2005)
Plot Summary:
Kim Sun-woo is an enforcer and manager for a hotel owned by a cold, calculative crime boss, Kang who assigns Sun-Woo to a simple errand while he is away on a business trip; to shadow his young mistress, Heesoo, for fear that she may be cheating on him with another, younger man, with the mandate that he must kill them both if he discovers their affair.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 42000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: suspense, bleak, psychological, tense, atmospheric, exciting, serious, brutal, neo noir, bloody
Similar in 86%
Urban Justice (2007)
Plot Summary:
Seagal plays a man with a dark and violent past, who seeks revenge for the murder of his son.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: rough, suspenseful, exciting, serious, realistic, suspense, bloody, cult classic, bleak, fast
Similar in 84%
War (2007)
Plot Summary:
FBI agent Jack Crawford is out for revenge when his partner is killed and all clues point to the mysterious assassin Rogue. But when Rogue turns up years later to take care of some unfinished business, he triggers a violent clash of rival gangs. Will the truth come out before it's too late? And when the dust settles, who will remain standing?.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 96000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, suspenseful, fast paced, action packed, stylized, crime drama, tense, suspense, perverse
Similar in 78%
The Raid 2 (2014)
Plot Summary:
After fighting his way through an apartment building populated by an army of dangerous criminals and escaping with his life, SWAT team member Rama goes undercover, joining a powerful Indonesian crime syndicate to protect his family and uncover corrupt members of his own force.
IMDB Rating: 7.9
IMDB Votes: 130000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Indonesia, USA
Duration: 150 min
Plot tags: brutal, stylized, bloody, suspense, grindhouse, rough, exciting, serious, suspenseful, breathtaking
Similar in 81%
The Man from Nowhere (2010)
Plot Summary:
His only friend called him 'the man from nowhere'... Taesik, a former special agent becomes a loner after losing his wife in a miserable accident and lives a bitter life running a pawnshop. He only has a few customers and a friend named Somi, a little girl next door. As Taesik spends more and more time with Somi, he gets attached to her. Then Somi is kidnapped by a gang, and as Taesik tries to save Somi by becoming deeply associated with the gang his mysterious past is revealed.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 74000
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: South Korea
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: serious, tense, brutal, exciting, touching, emotional, neo noir, bleak, suspense, harsh
Similar in 89%
The Raid (2011)
Plot Summary:
Deep in the heart of Jakarta's slums lies an impenetrable safe house for the world's most dangerous killers and gangsters. Until now, the run-down apartment block has been considered untouchable to even the bravest of police. Cloaked under the cover of pre-dawn darkness and silence, an elite swat team is tasked with raiding the safe house in order to take down the notorious drug lord that runs it. But when a chance encounter with a spotter blows their cover and news of their assault reaches the drug lord, the building's lights are cut and all the exits blocked. Stranded on the sixth floor with no way out, the unit must fight their way through the city's worst to survive their mission. Starring Indonesian martial arts sensation Iko Uwais.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 214000
Genere: Action, Crime, Thriller
Country: Indonesia, France, USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: exciting, brutal, suspenseful, suspense, serious, breathtaking, intense, grindhouse, fast paced, cult classic