Movies like City of Desire (2002)
The best movies like City of Desire (2002) are Pitfall (1948), The Gentlemen (2020) and Criminal Activities (2015). If City of Desire hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
City of Desire
Quick picks
- Highest ratedPulp Fiction (1994)8.5/10 from 31,320 votes
- NewestA Working Man (2025)Released 2025
Pitfall (1948)
An insurance man wishing for a more exciting life becomes wrapped up in the affairs of an imprisoned embezzler, his model girlfriend, and a violent private investigator.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Gentlemen (2020)
American expat Mickey Pearson has built a highly profitable marijuana empire in London. When word gets out that he’s looking to cash out of the business forever it triggers plots, schemes, bribery and blackmail in an attempt to steal his domain out from under him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCriminal Activities (2015)
Four young men make a risky investment together that gets them into trouble with the mob.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisTo Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
When his longtime partner on the force is killed, reckless U.S. Secret Service agent Richard Chance vows revenge, setting out to nab dangerous counterfeit artist Eric Masters.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSkincare (2024)
Famed aesthetician Hope Goldman is about to take her career to the next level by launching her very own skin care line. However, she soon faces a new challenge when a rival opens a boutique directly across from her store. Suspecting that someone is trying to sabotage her, she embarks on a quest to unravel the mystery of who's trying to destroy her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Comeback Trail (2020)
Two movie producers who owe money to the mob set up their aging movie star for an insurance scam to try and save themselves. But they wind up getting more than they ever imagined.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisFind Me Guilty (2006)
Based on the true story of Jack DiNorscio, a mobster who defended himself in court for what would be the longest mafia trial in U.S. history.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisFamily Plot (1976)
Spiritualist Blanche Tyler and her cab-driving boyfriend encounter a pair of serial kidnappers while trailing a missing heir in California.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Bank Job (2008)
Terry is a small-time car dealer trying to leave his shady past behind and start a family. Martine is a beautiful model from Terry's old neighbourhood who knows that Terry is no angel. When Martine proposes a foolproof plan to rob a bank, Terry recognises the danger but realises this may be the opportunity of a lifetime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Black Book (2023)
After his son is wrongly accused of kidnapping, a deacon who has just lost his wife takes matters into his own hands and fights a crooked police gang to clear him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCriminal (2004)
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.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCriss Cross (1949)
An armored-car guard must join a robbery after being caught with his ex-wife by her gangster husband.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Working Man (2025)
Levon Cade left behind a decorated military career in the black ops to live a simple life working construction. But when his boss's daughter, who is like family to him, is taken by human traffickers, his search to bring her home uncovers a world of corruption far greater than he ever could have imagined.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJackie Brown (1997)
Jackie Brown is a flight attendant who gets caught in the middle of smuggling cash into the country for her gunrunner boss. When the cops try to use Jackie to get to her boss, she hatches a plan — with help from a bail bondsman — to keep the money for herself.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)
Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParker (2013)
A thief with a unique code of professional ethics is double-crossed by his crew and left for dead. Assuming a new disguise and forming an unlikely alliance with a woman on the inside, he looks to hijack the score of the crew's latest heist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPulp Fiction (1994)
A burger-loving hit man, his philosophical partner, a drug-addled gangster's moll and a washed-up boxer converge in this sprawling, comedic crime caper. Their adventures unfurl in three stories that ingeniously trip back and forth in time.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisCity of Ghosts (2002)
A con man who is on the run from law enforcement in the U.S. travels to Cambodia to collect his share in an insurance scam but discovers more than he bargained for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisFoxy Brown (1974)
A voluptuous black woman takes a job as a high-class prostitute in order to get revenge on the mobsters who murdered her boyfriend.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Outfit (1973)
A two-bit criminal takes on the Mafia to avenge his brother's death. Earl Macklin is a small time criminal who is released from prison after an unsuccessful bank robbery only to discover that a pair of gunmen killed his brother.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like City of Desire?
The closest matches to City of Desire are Pitfall (1948), The Gentlemen (2020) and Criminal Activities (2015). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after City of Desire?
Start with Pitfall (1948), the closest match to City of Desire.
What is the highest-rated movie like City of Desire?
Pulp Fiction (1994), rated 8.5/10 by 31,320 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like City of Desire?
A Working Man (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like City of Desire?
Yes: Pitfall (1948), The Gentlemen (2020) and Criminal Activities (2015).
How are movies similar to City of Desire chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside City of Desire, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.