I was just watching the Martin Scorsese film "Casino" last night for the second time, and I forgot what an awesome fucking movie it was! For those who haven't seen it, it tells a story of when many of the casinos in Las Vegas were largely owned and operated by the mob.
What are some of your all time favourite gangster movies, or movies that you would suggest for me to watch? I am a big fan of the crime/gangster genre.
I loved the Casino film too. If you havent seen it, try Goodfellas. It's a gangster movie as well, and Joe Pesci is in that one too. Also has the same director
I love Mesrine Part 1 and 2. If you haven't seen it, you should definitely check it out. It's has Vincent Cassel (Irreversible, Eastern Promises, La Haine) in it, who is one of my favorite actors. It's about Jacques Mesrine, the most infamous French criminal in history and was Public Enemy #1 in the late 70's.
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Stander, which is about Andre Stander, a South African police officer who started robbing banks because he was sick of the corrupt system and wanted to prove that a white man could get away with nearly anything. He was a master of disguise and sometimes robbed banks on his lunch break and returned to the scene later to investigate. He was also known for robbing a bank and returning again to rob a hidden safe he missed that he heard about over the radio while driving away.
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Carlos is another great film. It's actually a 7 hour miniseries in 3 parts. It's about Ilich RamÃ*rez Sánchez (aka Carlos the Jackal), a Venezuelan terrorist who raided the 1975 OPEC meeting in Vienna and is considered most famous political terrorist of his time.
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All of these are true stories and very impressive ones. Also Gangster's Paradise: Jerusalema and Gomorrah are great. These are all on Netflix instant too
I like a lot of English gangster films also, especially Guy Ritchie. Snatch, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, RocknRolla, Layer Cake, and Martina Cole's miniseries, The Take starring Tom Hardy are all excellent.
American Gangster, American History X, American Me, Four Brothers, L.A. Confidential, and Goodfellas are all fantastic movies!
Blood In Blood Out is a movie I discovered about a year and a half ago and I fucking LOVE that gritty style of gangsterism, especially the part of the movie that takes place in Prison. I also like other LA gangster type movies like Menace II Society, and even older films like "Colours" starring Sean Penn as a teenager. Anything to do with the race wars and Crips/Bloods and latino gangs in LA is something I find very interesting and entertaining.
Dimethyl - once again you have impressed me by going over the top and recommended a slew of films that look incredible, the majority of which I have not seen (minus the ones listed at the bottom). I am really looking forward to checking out these movies mate, thanks so much for the suggestions!
Some other good movies that come to mind, if anybody hasn't seen:
Scarface - A classic gangster film, very long film to sit through but it is a must see for all who haven't
Reservoir Dogs - One of Quentin Tarantino's best films about a group of criminals pulled together to pull off the perfect crime, which subsequently goes horribly wrong when they realize one of them set them up. Excellent cast in this movie.
Carlito's Way - One of my favourite Al Pacino films about a heroin trafficker who gets out of a life sentence based on a legal technicality, after serving just a few years in prison. He decides to quit the gangster life and buy a night club to save up for a quiet life of retirement, but he soon finds that it is impossible to resist being sucked back into his old gangster ways, despite his deep desire to do so. Awesome film!
Donnie Brasco - Really awesome film with a great cast, based on the true story of FBI agent Joe Pistone, who infiltrates the New York mafia pretending to be a jewel dealer. He gets taken under the wing of mob boss (Al Pacino), and throughout the film he is torn between his FBI job and his growing love for the men he has come to know so well. Another must see.
The Departed - This is a great film that I always forget about when thinking of 'gangster films.' An undercover cop played by Leonardo Di Caprio goes undercover and infiltrates a notorious Boston mob syndicate ran by Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson). Similar plot to Donnie Brasco, but a completely different film, and definitely worth watching. Excellent film and much more modern, so you will definitely recognize many of the actors.
City of God - A very sad film that follows the lives of a bunch of Brazilian children who run a gang in the streets of Rio De Janeiro. They live a life of poverty, crime, and violence, motivated by greed and their eagerness to rise above the life of poverty that they have been subjected to. A very gritty film and probably very different than many films you have seen before. This film is remarkable, and if you enjoy it as much as I did then you will be interested in the sequel, City of Men, that follows two best friends who are raised in Rio De Janeiro and whose relationship begins to crumble as they travel very different paths in their lives. Just as good as the first.
Dimethyl - once again you have impressed me by going over the top and recommended a slew of films that look incredible, the majority of which I have not seen (minus the ones listed at the bottom). I am really looking forward to checking out these movies mate, thanks so much for the suggestions!
No problem man. Let me know what you think. I think I'm going to watch Mesrine again actually. It's been a while since I've seen it and I just can never get enough of Vincent Cassel.
Another must see is Chopper, which is about Mark "Chopper" Read, a legendary Australian criminal who wrote an autobiography while in prison. Eric Bana's performance is brilliant.
Definitely check out Sin Nombre, which is on Netflix. I watched it recently and it's one of the best films I've seen in a long time. It's about a MS-13 member who betrays his gang and flees retaliation by traveling on top of a train to the U.S. from Central America.
Not necessarily a gangster film, but Bronson is excellent. It stars Tom Hardy, another one of my favorite actors. It's also a true story about Charlies Bronson, Britain's most violent prisoner. It's on Netflix isntant too.
Also Paid in Full, which is on Netflix and Tsotsi, One Eight Seven, South Central are all great. I love crime films and shows more than any other genre, so I pretty much have an unlimited supply of recommendations lol.
Best gangster movies of all time?
Best gangster movies of all time?
For those who haven't seen it, it tells a story of when many of the casinos in Las Vegas were largely owned and operated by the mob.
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