Movies like Sonny (2002)
The best movies like Sonny (2002) are Dead Presidents (1995), No Mercy (1986) and A Soldier's Story (1984). If Sonny hooked you with its crime and drama, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHunger (2008)7.2/10 from 1,281 votes
- NewestGolpes (2025)Released 2025
Dead Presidents (1995)
On the streets they call cash dead presidents. And that's just what a Vietnam veteran is after when he returns home from the war only to find himself drawn into a life of crime. With the aid of his fellow vets he plans the ultimate heist -- a daring robbery of an armored car filled with unmarked U.S. currency!
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNo Mercy (1986)
An unconventional undercover Chicago cop and his partner are recruited to commit the murder of a New Orleans criminal kingpin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisA Soldier's Story (1984)
In a rural town in Louisiana, a black Master Sergeant is found shot to death just outside the local Army Base. Military lawyer, Captain Davenport—also a black man—is sent from Washington to conduct an investigation. Facing an uncooperative chain of command and fearful black troops, Davenport must battle with deceit and prejudice in order to find out exactly who really did kill the Master Sergeant.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHouse of Bamboo (1955)
Eddie Kenner is given a special assignment by the Army to get the inside story on Sandy Dawson, a former GI who has formed a gang of fellow servicemen and Japanese locals.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHoffa (1992)
A portrait of union leader James R. Hoffa, as seen through the eyes of his friend, Bobby Ciaro. The film follows Hoffa through his countless battles with the RTA and President Roosevelt.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn the Electric Mist (2009)
Lt. Dave Robicheaux, a detective in New Iberia, Louisiana, is trying to link the murder of a local hooker to New Orleans mobster Julie 'Baby Feet' Balboni, who is co-producer of a Civil War film. When the star of the film, Elrod Sykes, reports finding another corpse in the Atchafalaya Swamp near the movie set, Robicheaux starts another investigation, believing the corpse to be the remains of a black man whose murder he witnessed 35 years earlier.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBelly (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 & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTigerland (2000)
A group of recruits go through Advanced Infantry Training at Fort Polk, Louisiana's infamous Tigerland, last stop before Vietnam for tens of thousands of young men in 1971.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSweet Bird of Youth (1962)
Gigolo and drifter Chance Wayne returns to his hometown as the companion of a faded movie star, Alexandra Del Lago, whom he hopes to use to help him break into the movies. Chance runs into trouble when he finds his ex-girlfriend, the daughter of the local politician Tom "Boss" Finley, who more or less forced him to leave his daughter and the town many years ago.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNighthawks (1981)
When one of Europe's most lethal terrorists shows up in New York, an elite undercover cop is assigned to take him down by any means necessary.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHard Target (1993)
When a woman's father goes missing, she enlists a local to aid in her search. The pair soon discover that her father has died at the hands of a wealthy sportsman who hunts homeless men as a form of recreation.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBlack Snake Moan (2006)
A God-fearing bluesman takes to a wild young woman who, as a victim of childhood sexual abuse, is looking everywhere for love, but never quite finding it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAct of Violence (1949)
A former prisoner of war, Frank Enley is hailed as a hero in his California town. However, Frank has a shameful secret that comes back to haunt him when fellow survivor Joe Parkson emerges, intent on making Frank pay for his past deeds.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Chase (1946)
Chuck Scott gets a job as chauffeur to tough guy Eddie Roman; but Chuck's involvement with Eddie's fearful wife becomes a nightmare.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSomewhere in the Night (1946)
George Taylor returns from WWII with amnesia. Back home in Los Angeles, while trying to track down his old identity, he stumbles onto a three year old murder case and a hunt for a missing $2 million.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDead Reckoning (1946)
War heroes Rip Murdock and Johnny Drake are sent to Washington, D.C, to receive top honors for their service. Johnny, seemingly terrified by the publicity that awaits him, jumps off the train and later turns up dead. Suspecting foul play, Rip begins digging into his pal's past. He encounters cover-ups, threats to his own life and deadly femme fatale Coral Chandler.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisImperial Dreams (2014)
A 21-year-old reformed gangster's devotion to his family and his future is put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his old stomping grounds in Watts, Los Angeles.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhile the City Sleeps (1956)
Newspaper men compete against each other to find a serial killer dubbed "The Lipstick Killer".
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWalking Tall (2004)
A former U.S. soldier returns to his hometown to find it overrun by crime and corruption, which prompts him to clean house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGolpes (2025)
Fresh from prison in 1980s Spain, Migueli reunites his gang for heists to settle past debts. His brother Sabino, now a cop assigned to the case, knows his methods - but Migueli won't stop until he reaches his goal.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Ted K (2021)
An exploration of Ted Kaczynski's life in Lincoln, Montana in the years leading up to his arrest as The Unabomber.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Blood of Wolves (2018)
Set in 1988 in Hiroshima, Japan, prior to the enactment of the anti-organized crime law. A rumor exists that Detective Shogo Ogami has ties with the yakuza. He is partnered with Detective Shuichi Hioka and they investigate a missing person case involving a financial company employee. Conflicts between opposing yakuza groups become more serious.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Skeleton Key (2005)
A hospice nurse working at a spooky New Orleans plantation home finds herself entangled in a mystery involving the house's dark past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHunger (2008)
The story of Bobby Sands, the IRA member who led the 1981 hunger strike during The Troubles in which Irish Republican prisoners tried to win political status.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisA Love Song for Bobby Long (2004)
A headstrong young woman returns to New Orleans after the death of her estranged mother.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNico, 1988 (2017)
Approaching age 50, singer/songwriter Nico leads a solitary existence, far from her days as a Warhol superstar and celebrated vocalist for the Velvet Underground in the 1960s. Her life and career on the fringes, Nico's new manager convinces her to hit the road again and tour in Europe to promote her latest album. She longs to rebuild a relationship with her son, whose custody she lost long ago.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhat Goes Up (2009)
Set in the mid-80s, when a reporter is sent to cover the Challenger Space Shuttle launch only to become mixed up in the lives of some local students.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Diam Diam Era (2020)
The story of the Lim family from Long Long Time Ago, continues in this two-part film series. Conflict grows between Ah Kun and his nephew Shun Fa. Themes of a generation gap between those born in the 1950s and the following generation are explored in their varying reactions to nation-building policies implemented from the 1980s to the present day.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Shooting for Socrates (2014)
Set in Belfast against the backdrop of the 1986 World Cup, Shooting for Socrates tells the story of a momentous time in Northern Ireland's football history through the eyes of players, fans and the media. The film also follows the lives of passionate football supporter Arthur and his son Tommy from East Belfast. The lead up to a momentous day in the life of a young boy (his 10th birthday) mirrors the build up to the big day for the Northern Ireland football team as they play the greatest match of their lives.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like Sonny and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Sonny?
The closest matches to Sonny are Dead Presidents (1995), No Mercy (1986) and A Soldier's Story (1984). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Sonny?
Start with Dead Presidents (1995), the closest match to Sonny.
What is the highest-rated movie like Sonny?
Hunger (2008), rated 7.2/10 by 1,281 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Sonny?
Golpes (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Sonny?
Yes: Dead Presidents (1995), No Mercy (1986) and A Soldier's Story (1984).
How are movies similar to Sonny chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Sonny, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.