Movies like Help Wanted (1939)
The best movies like Help Wanted (1939) are Belly (1998), Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman (2021) and The Protector (1985). If Help Wanted hooked you with its crime, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Asphalt Jungle (1950)7.5/10 from 561 votes
- NewestThe Pickup (2025)Released 2025
Belly (1998)
Tommy Bundy and Sincere are best friends as well as infamous and ruthless criminals and shot-callers in the hood. Respected by many but feared by all. As the police are closing in on them and new players are looking for a come up, will their reign last?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTed Bundy: American Boogeyman (2021)
Set in a gritty and decadent 1970s America, American Boogeyman follows the elusive and charming killer and the manhunt that brought him to justice involving the detective and the FBI rookie who coined the phrase ‘serial killer’.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Protector (1985)
Billy Wong is a New York City cop whose partner is gunned down during a robbery. Billy and his new partner, Danny Garoni, are working security at a fashion show when a wealthy man's daughter, Laura Shapiro, is kidnapped. The Federal authorities suspect that Laura's father is involved with Mr. Ko, a Hong Kong drug kingpin, so the NYC police commissioner sends the two cops to Hong Kong to investigate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisJohnny Dangerously (1984)
An honest, goodhearted man is forced to turn to a life of crime to finance his neurotic mother's skyrocketing medical bills.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHow to Rob a Bank (2007)
Caught in the middle of a bank robbery, a slacker and a bank employee become the ones who arbitrate the intense situation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Valachi Papers (1972)
When Joe Valachi has a price put on his head by Don Vito Genovese, he must take desperate steps to protect himself while in prison. An unsuccessful attempt to slit his throat puts him over the edge to break the sacred code of silence.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Brothers Rico (1957)
Eddie Rico, the erstwhile bookkeeper for a big Mafia boss, is now making a living as an honest merchant in Florida with his family. Things go sour when the police start a search for his syndicate-linked brothers who are on the lam after a big hit, forcing Eddie to get involved with the Mafia again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisJuice (1992)
Four Harlem friends -- Bishop, Q, Steel and Raheem -- dabble in petty crime, but they decide to go big by knocking off a convenience store. Bishop, the magnetic leader of the group, has the gun. But Q has different aspirations. He wants to be a DJ and happens to have a gig the night of the robbery. Unfortunately for him, Bishop isn't willing to take no for answer in a game where everything's for keeps.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Phenix City Story (1955)
A crime-busting lawyer and his initially reluctant attorney father take on the forces that run gambling and prostitution in their small Southern town.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeyond a Reasonable Doubt (1956)
A newspaper publisher, wanting to prove a point about the insufficiency of circumstantial evidence, talks his possible son-in-law Tom into a hoax in an attempt to expose ineptitude of the city's hard-line district attorney. The plan is to have Tom plant clues leading to his arrest for killing a female nightclub dancer. Once Tom is found guilty, he is to reveal the setup and humiliate the DA.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Asphalt Jungle (1950)
Recently paroled from prison, legendary burglar "Doc" Riedenschneider, with funding from Alonzo Emmerich, a crooked lawyer, gathers a small group of veteran criminals together in the Midwest for a big jewel heist.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBottle Rocket (1993)
Dysfunctional friends Dignan and Anthony plan and execute a robbery with their pot-growing friend, Bob. The short film that inspired Wes Anderson’s feature debut.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Place Beyond the Pines (2013)
A motorcycle stunt rider considers committing a crime in order to provide for his wife and child, an act that puts him on a collision course with a cop-turned-politician.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSleepless (2017)
Undercover Las Vegas police officer Vincent Downs, who has a lot of enemies, is caught in a high stakes web of corrupt cops and the mob-controlled casino underground. When a heist goes wrong, a crew of homicidal gangsters kidnap Downs’ teenage son T. In one sleepless night, Downs will have to rescue his son, evade an internal affairs investigation, and bring the kidnappers to justice.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Great Train Robbery (1903)
After the train station clerk is assaulted and left bound and gagged, then the departing train and its passengers robbed, a posse goes in hot pursuit of the fleeing bandits.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFun with Dick and Jane (1977)
When an upwardly mobile couple find themselves unemployed and in debt, they turn to armed robbery in desperation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Pickup (2025)
A routine cash pickup takes a wild turn when mismatched armored truck drivers Russell and Travis are ambushed by ruthless criminals led by savvy mastermind Zoe.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVendetta (2022)
When his daughter is murdered, William Duncan takes the law into his own hands, setting out on a quest for retribution. After killing the street thug responsible for her death, he finds himself in the middle of a war with the thug's brother, father, and their gang, who are equally hell-bent on getting even. What ensues is a tense back-and-forth game of vengeance. By the end, William comes to find that the quest for revenge never has a winner.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
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 · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRiot in Cell Block 11 (1954)
A prisoner leads his counterparts in a protest for better living conditions which turns violent and ugly.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSoak the Old (1940)
Part of MGM's "Crime Does Not Pay" series, this short film focuses on crimes revolving around pension scams.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Know Your Money (1940)
This MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short tells the fictitious story of a bill counterfeiting ring and explores the government's attempt to curb counterfeiting.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Don't F*ck With Pikkis (TBA)
Childhood friends Dino and Max gets thrown into the Helsinki underworld and try to find their way out.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Foolproof (1936)
Starts with "Anderson Family" court trial where wife testifies on the murder of her husband, while the police investigation finds some interesting twists to the crime. Part of the Crime Does Not Pay series
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
The Public Pays (1936)
In this MGM Crime Does Not Pay series short, a protection racket preying on milk distribution is broken through the persistence of law enforcement and the courage of a local businessman.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Think It Over (1938)
A gang of 'professional torches' burn down stores for the insurance money.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Behind the Criminal (1937)
Episode 13 of the Crime Does Not Play series from MGM.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
What Price Safety! (1938)
Racketeers muscle in on construction business, use inferior materials, make big profits and endanger the public safety.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Buried Loot (1935)
An embezzler who expects to serve his time in prison and then pick up his buried loot is in for a surprise.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Alibi Racket (1935)
How police interrogation cracks the "airtight" alibi of a criminal.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Help Wanted?
The closest matches to Help Wanted are Belly (1998), Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman (2021) and The Protector (1985). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Help Wanted?
Start with Belly (1998), the closest match to Help Wanted.
What is the highest-rated movie like Help Wanted?
The Asphalt Jungle (1950), rated 7.5/10 by 561 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Help Wanted?
The Pickup (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Help Wanted?
Yes: Belly (1998), Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman (2021) and The Protector (1985).
How are movies similar to Help Wanted chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Help Wanted, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.