20 best movies like A Dirty Carnival (2006)

List of the best movies like A Dirty Carnival (2006): New World, The Last Tycoon, Infernal Affairs III, The Yellow Sea, Friend: The Great Legacy, Naked Soldier, The Divine Move, A Most Violent Year, Gangster Land, Scarface.

Tags: movies similar to A Dirty Carnival (2006) - full list

Markimdb: 7.6
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea
Duration02:15

An undercover cop has his loyalties tested when the boss of the corporate gang he's spent years infiltrating dies.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genreaction, drama, adventure, crime
CountryHong Kong, China

Set in Shanghais Gangster era of the early 1900s, THE LAST TYCOON tells the tale of CHENG (Chow Yun-Fat), a young man who is set up by the chief of police (Sammo Hung) and must leave the life he knows and QIU (Monica Mok), the woman he loves, to start again. After escaping prison CHENG quickly and violently moves his way up the ladder of Shanghais criminal underworld to become on the most powerful mob bosses in Shanghais history. But fame and notoriety take their toll when CHENG finds himself stuck between the looming Japanese army and the scheming local secret service. Matters are only made worse when he bumps into the love of his life QIU, along with her writer husband. Will love re-kindle in the dusk of an era?

Markimdb: 6.8
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime, detective
CountryHong Kong, China
Duration01:58

Infernal Affairs III is a 2003 Hong Kong crime thriller film directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. It is the third installment in the Infernal Affairs film series, and is both a sequel and a semi-prequel to the original film, as it intercuts events before and after the events in the original.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea
Duration02:37

The region where the borders of North Korea, China, and Russia come together, forms a sort of modern day wild west, where more than half of the population relies on illegal activity in order to survive. In Yanbian, on the Chinese side of the border, Gu-nam wiles away his days driving a cab and spends his nights getting drunk and gambling. His wife went to Seoul to work and send back money, but it’s been months since he has heard from her. When local crime lord Myun offers to erase Gu-nam’s debts in exchange for a contract killing in Seoul, Gu-nam reluctantly accepts.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea
Duration02:04

A sequel to Kwak Kyeong-taek's "Friend" in 2001, "Friends 2" is about three men who are gangsters based in the background of the year 1963 and 2010.

Markimdb: 4.8
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryHong Kong
Duration01:30

A gorgeous lethal killer, brainwashed by the villain, makes a startling discovery in a mission to eliminate a person she can in no way imagine.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea
Duration01:58

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.

Markimdb: 7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA, United Arab Emirates
Duration02:05

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 a 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.

Markimdb: 4.4
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryUSA

The story of America's most famous mobsters and their rise to power. Examine Al Capone's ascension through the eyes of his second in command, “Machine Gun” Jack McGurn.

Markimdb: 7.7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:33

A murderous thug shoots his way to the top of the mobs while trying to protect his sister from the criminal life.

Markimdb: 5
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryIndia
Duration02:18

A common man who transforms into a gangster revolts against the very system he once obediently followed by declaring war on the police, the government, and the industrialists.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryIndia
Duration02:05

ACP Vishnu is sent on a mission to investigate and clean the underbelly of Goa. During his investigation, he uncovers a huge racket and discovers the involvement of various politicians.

Markimdb: 4.8
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA

The seemingly random killings of an assassin puzzle her former lover, a wealthy Greek crime boss whose organization is jeopardized by his love for her, and the detective following her rising body count

Markimdb: 6.7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:28

A group of Chicago mob ruthless enforcers are sent to Kansas City to settle things with the owner of a slaughterhouse who has taken money that is not his to keep.

Markimdb: 5.5
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:31

Three teenage friends get in way over their head when they cross a down-home crime syndicate. They hope to make a break for it and escape their dead-end existence in a cotton-mill town but get sucked into the seedy underbelly of organized crime when one of them steals from the wrong man.

Markimdb: 5.7
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountryUnited Kingdom, France

Charts the headlong fall of Pinkie, a razor-wielding disadvantaged teenager with a religious death wish.

Markimdb: 6
Genreaction, drama, adventure, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:51

Adapted from the successful novel, Dead in 5 Heartbeats, by Ralph "Sonny" Barger with Keith and Kent Zimmerman. The story follows the Infidelz MC's former President, Patch Kinkade, who has left his personal demons behind for the calm of desert life. When war erupts between his brothers he left behind and the rival Hooligans, Patch rides back into town to either make peace or do battle.

Markimdb: 6.9
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryHong Kong
Duration01:59

Steelhead is a Chinese laborer who comes to Japan hoping for a better life. Unable to find honest work and bullied into the shadows with his fellow Chinese illegal immigrants, he soon finds himself ascending as the boss of a black market mob. After providing a deadly service to a powerful Yakuza crime boss, Steelhead’s rise to mafia power spirals rapidly out of control as he’s given reign over the dangerous and lucrative Shinjuku district.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea
Duration01:54

A woman subject to mental, physical, and sexual abuse on a remote island seeks a way out.

Markimdb: 7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, adventure, crime
CountryHong Kong
Duration01:41

Ko Chow is an undercover cop who is under pressure from all sides. His boss, Inspector Lau, wants him to infiltrate a gang of ruthless jewel thieves; in order to do this he must obtain some handguns; his girlfriend wants him to commit to marriage or she will leave Hong Kong with another lover; and he is being pursued by other cops who are unaware that he is a colleague.What is more Chow would rather quit the force. He feels guilty about having to betray people who have become his friends, even if they do happen to be killers, drug dealers, loan sharks and protection racketeers: "I do my job, but I betray my friends."To add to his problems, he begins to bond with Fu, a member of the gang.

Markimdb: 6.3
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea

A young assassin is sent to kill a retired mob boss. But things get complicated when she begins to like him.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genreaction, thriller, melodrama, drama, crime
CountryUnited Kingdom, USA
Duration02:09

Terry Noonan returns home to New York's Hells Kitchen after a ten year absence. He soon hooks up with childhood pal Jackie who is involved in the Irish mob run by his brother Frankie. Terry also rekindles an old flame with Jackie's sister Kathleen. Soon, however, Terry is torn between his loyalty to his friends and his loyalties to others.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:33

A teenage vigilante seeks revenge on a group of violent thugs who raped her handicapped sister and murdered her best friend.

Markimdb: 5.7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA

A violent street gang, the Rebels, rule the streets of Gary, Indiana. The Rebels shoot Marvin Bookman, a store-keeper, for giving the police information about a drive-by shooting they committed. Marvin's son, former NFL star John who created the Rebels, returns to Gary to be with his father and, with a little help from his friends, to destroy the Rebels his way.

Markimdb: 8.2
Genreaction, thriller, crime
CountryIndia

Shahid Khan is exiled after impersonating the legendary Sultana Daku in order to rob British trains. Now outcast, Shahid becomes a worker at Ramadhir Singh's colliery, only to spur a revenge battle that passes on to generations. At the turn of the decade, Shahid's son, the philandering Sardar Khan vows to get his father's honor back, becoming the most feared man of Wasseypur.

Markimdb: 7.2
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUnited Kingdom
Duration01:43

An elderly ex-serviceman and widower looks to avenge his best friend's murder by doling out his own form of justice.

Markimdb: 5.4
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryNew Zealand
Duration01:51

Minka is a teenage Polynesian boy living in the heart of the city. With his P-addicted mother well on the way to going completely off the rails, three people enter his life - each with a promise - each with the power to destroy.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genreaction, thriller, comedy, melodrama, drama, crime
CountryJapan
Duration01:34

Kitano plays Murakawa, a Tokyo yakuza tiring of gangster life. Along with a few of his henchmen, he is sent by his boss to Okinawa to help end a gang war, supposedly to mediate between two warring clans. He finds that the dispute between the clans is insignificant and whilst wondering why he was sent to Okinawa at all, Murakawa's headquarters are bombed and he and his gang are ambushed in a bar.

Markimdb: 6.1
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime, detective
CountryUSA
Duration01:47

A secretary is found dead in a White House bathroom during an international crisis, and Detective Harlan Regis is in charge of the investigation. Despite resistance from the Secret Service, Regis partners with agent Nina Chance. As political tensions rise, they learn that the crime could be part of an elaborate cover-up. Framed as traitors, the pair, plus Regis' partner, break into the White House in order to expose the true culprit.

Markimdb: 6.7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:45

Nick Hume is a mild-mannered executive with a perfect life, until one gruesome night he witnesses something that changes him forever. Transformed by grief, Hume eventually comes to the disturbing conclusion that no length is too great when protecting his family.

Markimdb: 7.4
Genreaction, thriller, drama, western, crime
CountryMexico, USA
Duration01:52

An American bartender and his prostitute girlfriend go on a road trip through the Mexican underworld to collect a $1 million bounty on the head of a dead gigolo.

Markimdb: 6.9
Genreaction, drama, crime, biography
CountryUSA
Duration01:47

After a shoot-out kills five FBI agents in Kansas City the Bureau target John Dillinger as one of the men to hunt down. Waiting for him to break Federal law they sort out several other mobsters, while Dillinger's bank robbing exploits make him something of a folk hero. Escaping from jail he finds Pretty Boy Floyd and Baby Face Nelson have joined the gang and pretty soon he is Public Enemy Number One. Now the G-men really are after him.

Markimdb: 6.6
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountrySouth Korea

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.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genredrama, crime, music
CountryUnited Kingdom
Duration02:01

Ensemble film revolving around characters living in Forest Gate, London. Over the course of a few days, six inter-linking stories explore issues of drug use, prostitution and urban poverty.

Markimdb: 7
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration02:17

Ace is an impressionable young man working for a dry cleaning business. His friend, drug dealer Mitch goes to prison. In an unrelated incident, he finds some cocaine in a pants pocket. Soon, Ace finds himself dealing cocaine for Lulu. Via lucky breaks and solid interpersonal skills, Ace moves to the top of the Harlem drug world. Of course, unfaithful employees and/or rivals conspire to bring about Ace's fall.

Markimdb: 5.3
Genreaction, thriller, comedy, drama, crime
CountryUSA, Japan
Duration01:44

Rita Rizzoli is a narcotics cop with a plethora of disguises. When a drug shipment is hijacked, the thieves don't know that the drug is unusually pure and packs of 'Fatal Beauty' begin turning up next to too many dead bodies. Mike works for the original owner of the drugs and tries to tell himself that since he does not handle the drugs, he is 'clean'. Mike becomes Rita's constant companion.

Markimdb: 8.3
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryIndia

A budding director endeavors to research a merciless gangster for making a film on gangsterism. But his secret attempts to conduct the research fail when he gets caught for snooping.

Markimdb: 5.7
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUnited Kingdom
Duration01:41

A group of people who feel betrayed by their government and let down by their police force form a modern-day outlaw posse in order to right what they see as the wrongs of society.

Markimdb: 6.3
Genreaction, thriller, crime, detective
CountrySouth Korea
Duration01:10

On the run from a dogged internal affairs agent, a corrupt cop reluctantly teams up with a defiant teen to unravel a conspiracy -- before it's too late.

Markimdb: 6.2
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountrySweden, Germany, Denmark, France
Duration02:07

JW now lives in exile and is more than ever determined to find out what happened to his missing sister Camilla. Every trace leads him to the world of organized crime in Stockholm. Jorge is about to do his last score - the largest robbery in Swedish history. But during the complicated preparations he meets a woman from his past - Nadja. Martin Hägerström is chosen to go undercover into the Serbian mafia, in order to get its notorious boss Radovan Krajnic behind bars. When an assassination attempt is made on Radovan, his daughter Natalie is pulled into the power struggle within the Serbian mafia.

Markimdb: 7
Genreaction, thriller, crime, detective
CountrySouth Korea
Duration02:00

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.

Markimdb: 8.4
Genrethriller, drama, crime
CountryUnited Kingdom

A thrilling and raw crime drama following a gang of drug dealers in Hackney, London - an honest and gripping rendition of inner-city drug and gang culture.

Markimdb: 6.3
Genredrama, detective
CountrySouth Korea

is a story about elite high school seniors, the top 1%, who are prepared to go to extremes to get into prestigious universities. A student who has ranked number one at an esteemed school dies in a remote mountain. Finding out why and the ultimate impact of his death make up the bulk of this thriller’s elaborate narrative, whose shocking conclusion could lead us to comment, “We’ve seen a devil.” Despite a structure that freely weaves together past and present, and a cast of appealing actors including Lee David, Gung Jun and Kim Kkot-bi, the most remarkable thing about the film is the theme itself. It touches on and raises the critical issue of the demands of Korea’s education system, which are becoming more extreme and competitive by the day.

Markimdb: 7.6
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime, biography
CountryIndia
Duration02:05

Inspired from real life, this fiery crime thriller depicts the phenomenal rise to power of Paritala Ravi from Andhra Pradesh, a powerful killer. When a man's father and elder brother are murdered in cold blood due to the fatal mixture of caste, crime, jealousy and dirty politics, a fearless young man who has been kept away from his family's violent lifestyle, is left with no choice but to get into the fray. He hides in the forest and begins clinically exacting revenge upon those responsible for the death of his family members. Will he be successful in his mission? How will his future unfold?

Markimdb: 6.2
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryPoland

A policeman gets killed and the short-staffed police chief sends for a few experienced officers to support him in his fight with organized crime. Meanwhile, a conflict between local gangster groups escalates.

Markimdb: 5.6
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:28

A drug kingpin's return home touches off a turf war.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryFrance
Duration01:51

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.

Markimdb: 6.8
Genreaction, drama, crime
CountryDenmark
Duration01:31

Nordvest is a gangsterfilm set in the suburbs of Copenhagen. Casper (18), the oldest of 3 siblings, survives life on the streets by committing burglaries for the neighbourhood boss, Jamal. When Casper gets an offer to work for Jamal’s rival Björn, he jumps at the chance for a better life, making his way into a world of drugs and prostitution. As things escalate between Björn and Jamal, Casper finds himself and his family dead center of a conflict, that threatens to destroy them.

Markimdb: 5.7
Genredrama, crime, biography
CountryUSA
Duration01:41

Young Al Capone catches the eye of Johnny Torrio, a criminal visiting New York from Chicago. Torrio invites Capone to move to Illinois to help run his Prohibition-era alcohol sales operation. Capone rises through the ranks of Torrio's gang and eventually takes over. On top, he works to consolidate his power by eliminating his enemies, fixing elections to his advantage and getting rich. In his spare time, Capone courts the principled Iris Crawford.

Markimdb: 6.4
Genreaction, thriller, drama, crime
CountryUSA
Duration01:49

Jimmie Rainwood was minding his own business when two corrupt police officers (getting an address wrong) burst into his house, expecting to find a major drug dealer. Rainwood is shot, and the officers frame him as a drug dealer. Rainwood is convicted of drug dealing, based on the perjured evidence of a police informant. Thrown into a seedy jail, fighting to prove his innocence is diffucult when he has to deal with the realities of prison life, where everyone claims they were framed.




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