Movies like Penitentiary Chances (1998)
The best movies like Penitentiary Chances (1998) are Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019), The Informer (2019) and In Cold Light (2026). If Penitentiary Chances hooked you with its crime, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Shawshank Redemption (1994)8.7/10 from 31,818 votes
- NewestThe Crash (2026)Released 2026
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)
A chronicle of the crimes of Ted Bundy, from the perspective of his longtime girlfriend, Elizabeth Kloepfer, who refused to believe the truth about him for years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Informer (2019)
In New York, former convict Pete Koslow, related to the Polish mafia, must deal with both Klimek the General, his ruthless boss, and the twisted ambitions of two federal agents, as he tries to survive and protect the lives of his loved ones.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn Cold Light (2026)
Fresh out of prison, Ava's attempt to reclaim her drug operation collapses when she witnesses a brutal crime, forcing her to flee into a nightmarish underworld where allies are scarce and enemies multiply by the minute.
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 System (2022)
When a young soldier, newly returned from war, gets caught up in a drug bust, he is recruited by the authorities to go undercover in a notoriously dangerous prison in order to figure out what is really going on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGoodFellas (1990)
The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisBrute Force (1947)
Timeworn Joe Collins and his fellow inmates live under the heavy thumb of the sadistic, power-tripping guard Captain Munsey. Only Collins' dreams of escape keep him going, but how can he possibly bust out of Munsey's chains?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisKing Ivory (2025)
Based on extensive research involving law enforcement and gang members, a never-before-seen, authentic look inside the underworld of fentanyl trafficking from gangs inside the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester a.k.a. "Big Mac."
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both 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
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 · both crime
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Imprisoned in the 1940s for the double murder of his wife and her lover, upstanding banker Andy Dufresne begins a new life at the Shawshank prison, where he puts his accounting skills to work for an amoral warden. During his long stretch in prison, Dufresne comes to be admired by the other inmates -- including an older prisoner named Red -- for his integrity and unquenchable sense of hope.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Unforgivable (2021)
A woman is released from prison after serving a sentence for a violent crime and re-enters a society that refuses to forgive her past.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies 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 thisAll the Devils Are Here (2025)
After a heist, four criminals lay low in a remote safehouse, waiting for orders. As paranoia builds, one thing becomes clear — the real threat may not be outside, but among them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisWhite Heat (1949)
A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and then leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist. After the heist, events take a crazy turn.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSiberian Education (2013)
The story of a gang of children growing up in a community of banished criminals, in a forgotten corner of the former Soviet Union. This community rejects the world outside. The only law it obeys… is its own. Against this backdrop two best friends, Kolyma and Gagarin, gradually become fierce enemies as they find themselves on opposite sides of the strict code of honour of the ‘honest criminal’ brotherhood.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCa$h (2010)
A stroke of good luck turns lethal for Sam Phelan and his wife Leslie when they are faced with a life-changing decision that brings strange and sinister Pyke Kubic to their doorstep. As Pyke leads Sam and Leslie on a tumultuous adventure through the streets of Chicago, each are pulled deeper and deeper into a desperate spiral of deception and violence – all in the name of money.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisInside Man (2023)
Based on true events. A disgraced police detective seeking redemption goes undercover to expose a violent crime syndicate. But as he sinks deeper into the mob, the price for absolution may be higher than he can afford.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Substitute (1996)
When an inner-city Miami schoolteacher gets her knee broken after standing up to the school's gang leader, her mercenary combat specialist boyfriend goes undercover as a substitute teacher to take down the punk. Soon he discovers a conspiracy of criminals at work, and must reassemble his team from his last jungle raid to stop them.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Crash (2026)
A teen slams her car into a building, killing her boyfriend and his friend. What seems like a tragic accident becomes a murder case.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like this
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Penitentiary Chances?
The closest matches to Penitentiary Chances are Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019), The Informer (2019) and In Cold Light (2026). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Penitentiary Chances?
Start with Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019), the closest match to Penitentiary Chances.
What is the highest-rated movie like Penitentiary Chances?
The Shawshank Redemption (1994), rated 8.7/10 by 31,818 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Penitentiary Chances?
The Crash (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Penitentiary Chances?
Yes: Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019), The Informer (2019) and In Cold Light (2026).
How are movies similar to Penitentiary Chances chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Penitentiary Chances, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.