Movies like City War (1988)
The best movies like City War (1988) are Ironheart (1992), The Protector (1985) and Legacy of Rage (1986). If City War hooked you with its action and crime, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedHard Boiled (1992)7.5/10 from 1,008 votes
- NewestHavoc (2025)Released 2025
Ironheart (1992)
An L.A. cop goes after a gang of murderous drug dealers.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & 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 action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisLegacy of Rage (1986)
A man is framed for murder by his drug-dealing best friend who covets his girlfriend, leading to eight years in jail and a vow of revenge upon release.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Shepherd: Border Patrol (2008)
A Texas cop battles ex-navy seals who are trying to traffic drugs from Mexico into the USA.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBeast Stalker (2008)
Sergeant Tong is wracked with guilt after he unwittingly kills a young girl whilst capuring a criminal named Cheung. When the girl's sister is later kidnapped in a ploy to get Cheung released, Sergeant Tong vows to find and rescue her before she comes to harm.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLethal Weapon 3 (1992)
Riggs and Murtaugh pursue a former officer who uses his knowledge of police procedure and policies to steal and sell confiscated guns and ammunition to local street gangs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHard Boiled (1992)
A cop who loses his partner in a shoot-out with gun smugglers goes on a mission to catch them. In order to get closer to the leaders of the ring he joins forces with an undercover cop who's working as a gangster hitman. They use all means of excessive force to find them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFull Contact (1992)
In an effort to get his buddy out of a gambling debt, Jeff agrees to join forces with Judge in a weapons heist. The job goes bad and Judge betrays Jeff. Jeff plots the ultimate revenge on Judge and his followers and it is a question of whether he can follow through with his plan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHavoc (2025)
When a drug heist swerves lethally out of control, a jaded cop fights his way through a corrupt city's criminal underworld to save a politician's son.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRaging Fire (2021)
Cheung Sung-bong is a highly respected cop with a long history of success in dangerous cases. However, his past soon comes back to haunt him when a former protégé resurfaces, seeking revenge.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMotorway (2012)
Two police pursuit drivers, a hothead rookie and his long-suffering, almost-retired mentor, face off against an escape car driver from the latter's past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisParadox (2017)
When a Hong Kong police negotiator is informed about the sudden disappearance of his 16-year-old daughter in Thailand, he travels there to search for her whereabouts.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCurry & Pepper (1990)
Two best friends and cop partners become the subject of a beautiful news reporter's documentary. The two soon find themselves competing for screen time as well as the love of the reporter while after a murderous arms dealer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExpect the Unexpected (1998)
Bumbling mainland crooks mess up a jewelry heist. Two cops serious Ken and jokey Sam investigate but mix up these amateurs with dangerous mainland robbers in the neighborhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWar (2007)
FBI agent Jack Crawford is out for revenge when his partner is killed and all clues point to the mysterious assassin Rogue. But when Rogue turns up years later to take care of some unfinished business, he triggers a violent clash of rival gangs. Will the truth come out before it's too late? And when the dust settles, who will remain standing?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnother Day in Paradise (1998)
In the hope of a big score, two junkie couples team up to commit various drug robberies which go disastrously wrong, leading to dissent, violence, and murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Shipment (2021)
A former U.S. Navy Seal is forced to become the international criminal he once fought against when a powerful and violent drug cartel kidnaps his wife and daughter.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last of the Finest (1990)
An elite group of vice cops are fired from the L.A.P.D. for being over-zealous in their war against drugs. It is immediately apparent that some of their superiors are involved in the drug ring. Banded together, four of the banned cops (which quickly becomes three when one is killed early) band together to fight the drug ring undercover. They gain capital for weapons by ripping off minor drug dealers. Then well-armed they go after the kingpin (Boyd).
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe White Storm (2013)
An operation in Thailand against a notorious drug lord changes the destiny of a Hong Kong Police Department narcotic team. Five years later, a drug dealing brings them together again.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBull (2021)
Ten years after he was last seen, a vicious mob enforcer returns home to find his son and methodically track down the gang that double-crossed him. His quest for revenge soon leads to a savage showdown between his wife and her mob boss father.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisStreet Kings (2008)
Tom Ludlow is a disillusioned L.A. Police Officer, rarely playing by the rules and haunted by the death of his wife. When evidence implicates him in the execution of a fellow officer, he is forced to go up against the cop culture he's been a part of his entire career, ultimately leading him to question the loyalties of everyone around him.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBandidas (2006)
When a ruthless robber baron takes away everything they cherish, a rough-and-tumble, idealistic peasant and a sophisticated heiress embark on a quest for justice, vengeance…and a few good heists.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOperation Carwash: A Worldwide Corruption Scandal Made in Brazil (2017)
2013. During Operation Bidone, the Federal Police seized a truck loaded with palm heart, which contained 697 kg of cocaine. The investigation falls on the team assembled by Ivan Romano, based in Curitiba and composed by Beatriz, Júlio and Ítalo. The traffic connections lead them to the dower Alberto Youssef and later to the former Petrobras director Paulo Roberto Costa, who reveals an immense structure involving builders and the government, in order to divert public money. As the investigation progresses, the group led by Ivan is increasingly approaching some of the country's most influential politicians.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRunning Out of Time (1999)
Police inspector and excellent hostage negotiator Ho Sheung-Sang finds himself in over his head when he is pulled into a 72 hour game by a cancer suffering criminal out for vengeance on Hong Kong's organized crime syndicates.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLady Snowblood (1973)
A strikingly beautiful young woman is trained from birth to be a deadly instrument of revenge against the swindlers who destroyed her family.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDanger: Diabolik (1968)
International man of mystery Diabolik and his sensuous lover Eva Kant pull off heist after heist, all while European cops led by Inspector Ginko and envious mobsters led by Ralph Valmont are closing in on them.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHannibal Rising (2007)
The story of the early, murderous roots of the cannibalistic killer, Hannibal Lecter – from his hard-scrabble Lithuanian childhood, where he witnesses the repulsive lengths to which hungry soldiers will go to satiate themselves, through his sojourn in France, where as a medical student he hones his appetite for the kill and learnt sword skills from his Japanese girlfriend, who happened to have similar fate
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Vexxer (2007)
Scotland Yard investigators have to prevent the murder of Victoria Dickman when her name is found on a death list.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTorrente 3: The Protector (2005)
A popular and beautiful politician plans to expose the evil-doings of a multinational corporation. Hoping to silence her, the corporation's top executives decide to hire the most incompetent detective they can find to act as her bodyguard.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like City War?
The closest matches to City War are Ironheart (1992), The Protector (1985) and Legacy of Rage (1986). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after City War?
Start with Ironheart (1992), the closest match to City War.
What is the highest-rated movie like City War?
Hard Boiled (1992), rated 7.5/10 by 1,008 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like City War?
Havoc (2025) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to City War chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside City War, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.