Movies like The Viper Brothers and the Young General (1975)
The best movies like The Viper Brothers and the Young General (1975) are Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973), Female Yakuza Tale (1973) and Sympathy for the Underdog (1971). If The Viper Brothers and the Young General 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 ratedFireworks (1997)7.7/10 from 826 votes
- NewestBeast (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseBattles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973)Also in Japanese
Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973)
Repeatedly beat to a pulp by gamblers, cops, and gangsters, lone wolf Shoji Yamanaka finally finds a home as a Muraoka family hitman and falls in love with boss Muraoka's niece. Meanwhile, the ambitions of mad dog Katsutoshi Otomo draws our series' hero, Shozo Hirono, and the other yakuza into a new round of bloodshed.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFemale Yakuza Tale (1973)
Ocho is accidentally captured by a drug trafficking cartel who use Chinese women to smuggle drugs into Japan by hiding it in their vaginas. She is tortured, and manages to escape, fighting both the male yakuzas and a gang of female thieves.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSympathy for the Underdog (1971)
A yakuza gang gets driven out of Yokohama by a big gang from Tokyo. They relocate to Okinawa to violently start over.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRainy Dog (1997)
A Japanese assassin stranded in Taiwan must take work from a local crime boss to make ends meet when suddenly a woman from his past delivers a son to him.
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 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 thisGraveyard of Honor (2002)
A barkeeper saves a yakuza boss' life and thus makes his way up in the organization. However, his fear of nothing soon causes problems.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Yakuza (1974)
When George Tanner does business with high-ranking Yakuza Tono, Tono kidnaps his daughter, and George summons his old friend, private eye Harry Kilmer, to Japan to investigate.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Return of Sister Street Fighter (1975)
When Koryu's childhood friend Shurei is abducted by gangsters, the desperate young woman recruits a female martial artist and a tough-as-nails stranger to join her for a dangerous rescue mission.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAbove the Rim (1994)
Story of a promising high school basketball star and his relationships with two brothers, one a drug dealer and the other a former basketball star fallen on hard times and now employed as a security guard.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWinged Creatures (2009)
A psychotic man opens fire in a diner, murdering numerous people before killing himself. The survivors struggle in different ways following this horrendous event: a doctor doubts his own instincts and elects to use an experimental medical procedure on his wife, while a gambler believes he's on a lucky streak. A waitress begins engaging in promiscuous sex, and a young girl whose father is among the dead gains unexpected fame.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisAmerican Murderer (2022)
The True story of how charismatic con man Jason Derek Brown bankrolls his extravagant lifestyle through a series of scams. On Brown’s trail: Lance Leising, a dogged FBI special agent determined to put Brown behind bars. When Brown’s funds run low and his past catches up with him, he plots his most elaborate scheme yet, pitting himself against Leising in a deadly game of cat and mouse — and becoming the most unlikely and elusive fugitive on the FBI’s most-wanted list.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisPanic (2000)
Alex is going through a midlife crisis and it has become a very difficult time for him. His marriage is struggling, he's worried about his son, and his job of killing people for his family has become the most stressful part of his life. He seeks the help of a therapist and meets a woman in the waiting room that he connects with.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisViolent Saturday (1955)
Three men case a small town very carefully, with plans to rob the bank on the upcoming Saturday, which turns violent and deadly.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCass (2008)
The incredible true story of how an orphaned Jamaican baby, adopted by an elderly white couple and brought up in an all white area of London, became one of the most feared and respected men in Britain.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
SnoozefestMovies like thisFireworks (1997)
Beleaguered police detective Nishi takes desperate measures to try and set things right in a world gone wrong. With those close to him suffering their own tribulations, Nishi's methods become increasingly extreme.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBeast (2026)
MMA legend Patton James, now a commercial fisherman, is pulled back into the cage when his brother is in danger. Reuniting with his old coach Sammy, he commits to one final fight in one championship against the brutal champion Xavier Grau.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisIn the Blood (2014)
When her husband goes missing during their Caribbean vacation, a woman sets off on her own to take down the men she thinks are responsible.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisThe Last Days of American Crime (2020)
In the not-too-distant future, as a final response to crime and terrorism, the U.S. government plans to broadcast a signal that will make it impossible for anyone to knowingly break the law.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisA Scarred Life 2: Blood Will Tell (1972)
President of the territorial yakuza organization is being manipulated by a crooked leader in the military and some capitalists Ishikiri. The plan is to get multiple family of the organized crime groups based in Osaka to war it out and order the Shima to the Onishi group of the branch to expand the territory. Now members of the same yakuza gang are forced to fight each other over territory and honor.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
Snake of Violence (2013)
In Osaka, three troubled young kids, Kanako, Atsushi and Kenji, are hanging out together all the time. One day Kenji who lives in an orphanage is sold to a yakuza and their friendship has to come to an end. 25 years later, Kanako is married to Atsushi who is an incompetent yakuza. They have 3 daughters. Kenji is a competent unbeatable yakuza. Atsushi, who sucks at everything, for the first time gets a dangerous mission to kill a thug who has attacked the office of his yakuza group. Kenji, who has advanced to the first lieutenant position, by mistake kills a dumb-ass son of the head of Tokyo Yakuza, which triggers a battle between Osaka and Tokyo Yakuzas. Then, Kenji meets Atsushi in 25 years.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
Boiling Point (1990)
Masaki, a baseball player and gas-station attendant, gets into trouble with the local Yakuza and goes to Okinawa to get a gun to defend himself. There he meets Uehara, a tough gangster, who is in serious debt to the yakuza and planning revenge.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisKids Return (1996)
Shinji and Masaru spend most of their school days harassing fellow classmates and playing pranks. They drop out and Shinji becomes a small-time boxer, while Masaru joins up with a local yakuza gang. However, the world is a tough place.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGonin (1995)
Five men plot to steal a large sum of money from the local yakuza, but everything does not go as planned and the men find themselves hunted down by contract killers.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGinza Midnight Story — Utopia 2 (2000)
In a continuation of "Utopia: Midnight Story, White Flower Bud" Haruka Ichijou follows through in her vow to become the No1 Geisha. She develops intricate schemes and mindful manipulations in changing her "Papa-san's," or Sugar Daddies, on her way up the modern geisha ladder. After she pits one against the other, the men begin to compete for her in elaborate and very expensive ventures, and their fight to win her for their prize in all-consuming frenzy becomes the focus for the No1 Spot. A barrage of young geisha's karate fighting seals their fate at last!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Yakuza Ladies: Burning Desire (2005)
Tamaki's (Iwashita) husband is the head of the Idei clan, based in southern Osaka. As the film opens, punch-permed lieutenant Ginji (Riki Takeuchi) is killed while pumping iron. Following the hit, rumors and recriminations abound, slowly corroding the clan's cohesion. Ginji, it turns out, was mired in debt. After Ginji borrowed a small fortune to build a luxury resort, his bank went belly up and stopped financing the loan. Frantic for funds, he decided as a last resort to rat out his boss who had skimmed five-billion yen from the gang. Soon everyone assumes that Idei did the hit. Convinced that Idei is being framed, Tamaki sets out to find the real killer.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
Yakuza Ladies: The Final Battle (1990)
A Yakuza boss's wife and the widow of a rival crime syndicate's murdered leader bond over a common purpose: to seek vengeance.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
A Man with Dragon Tattoos (1962)
In the late 1890s, coal is a precious new natural resource. During an era of rapid economic growth, dreams are instilled into the lives of many across Japan. A vigorous young man with a look of fearless determination, sets foot on the northern part of Kyushu, an area where Yakuza thrived. His name is Kingoro Tamai (Yujiro Ishihara). With plans to travel the world, Kingoro worked diligently at a coal mine. His loyalty and hard work earned the respect of his peers, his courage won the heart of the beautiful Mon (Ruriko Asaoka), and his success evoked jealousy in his enemies.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Kagerô 2 (1996)
An entertainment drama depicting the conflict of yakuza, centering on the female torso and her sister's feud.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Viper Brothers and the Young General?
The closest matches to The Viper Brothers and the Young General are Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973), Female Yakuza Tale (1973) and Sympathy for the Underdog (1971). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Viper Brothers and the Young General?
Start with Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973), the closest match to The Viper Brothers and the Young General.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Viper Brothers and the Young General?
Fireworks (1997), rated 7.7/10 by 826 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Viper Brothers and the Young General?
Beast (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like The Viper Brothers and the Young General?
Yes: Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973), Female Yakuza Tale (1973) and Sympathy for the Underdog (1971).
How are movies similar to The Viper Brothers and the Young General chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Viper Brothers and the Young General, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.