Movies like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses (1991)
The best movies like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses (1991) are Absolution (2024), Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973) and Yakuza Graveyard (1976). If The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses 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 ratedTokyo Drifter (1966)7.1/10 from 221 votes
- NewestOne Mile: Chapter Two (2026)Released 2026
- In JapaneseBattles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973)Also in Japanese
Absolution (2024)
An aging ex-boxer gangster working as muscle for a Boston crime boss receives an upsetting diagnosis. Despite a faltering memory, he attempts to rectify the sins of his past and reconnect with his estranged children. He is determined to leave a positive legacy for his grandson, but the criminal underworld isn’t done with him and won’t loosen their grip willingly.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisBattles 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 crime & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisYakuza Graveyard (1976)
A police investigator cracks down on yakuza business, but once he realizes the police are in negotiations with certain factions, he sides with his own syndicate of choice.
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 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 action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMr. Long (2017)
Long is a Taiwanese killer known for his sword skills. After Long fails a Tokyo mission, he moves to a small town where no one knows about him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & action
Worth the HypeMovies 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 action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisRun (1991)
When a law student accidentally kills the son of a mob boss in a fight, he finds himself relentlessly pursued by the mob and the police.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSister Street Fighter (1974)
Li Mansei is a martial-arts champion turned undercover agent. When he is captured by a drug lord, his sister Li Koryu turns to his former martial-arts school, including the powerful Sonny Kawasaka, for help in the inevitable battle royale.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisTokyo Drifter (1966)
After yakuza boss Kurata dissolves his own criminal empire, a rival kingpin offers a position to Kurata's top operative, Tetsuya "Phoenix Tetsu" Hondo. When the fiercely loyal Tetsu declines, Otsuka taps unstoppable Tatsuzo the "Viper", a ruthless gun-for-hire, to assassinate him. As the Viper trails his target through the countryside, the agile Phoenix Tetsu grows concerned that one of his former associates has betrayed him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & action
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAl Capone (1959)
In this unusually accurate biography, small-time hood Al Capone comes to Chicago at the dawn of Prohibition to be the bodyguard of racketeer Johnny Torrio. Capone's rise in Chicago gangdom is followed through murder, extortion, and political fraud. He becomes head of Chicago's biggest "business," but moves inexorably toward his downfall and ignominious end.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBest of the Best 2 (1993)
In an underground fight club, blackbelt Travis Brickley is killed after losing to the evil martial arts master Brakus. Travis' death is witnessed by Walter Grady, the son of his best friend Alex Grady. Alex and his partner, Tommy Lee, vow to avenge their friend's death by defeating Brakus and shutting down the fight club.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe City of Lost Souls (2000)
Brazilian-Japanese gangster Mario rescues his Chinese girlfriend Kei as she's about to be deported from Japan. Desperate to escape, he hides in Tokyo's booming Japanese-Portuguese community and seeks passage from the country from a Russian mobster. To meet his price, they hold up a bigtime drug deal between the Chinese Mafia and the local Yakuza.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisK-20: The Fiend with Twenty Faces (2008)
In an alternate version of 1949 Japan in which World War II never happened, the Japanese capital of Teito is home to both an ultra rich upper class and the dirt poor masses. The city is thrown into a state of panic when a phantom thief called “The Kaijin (Fiend) with 20 Faces” (K-20 for short) begins to use his mysterious abilities to steal from the rich and give to the poor. One day a circus acrobat named Heikichi Endo (Takeshi Kaneshiro) is framed for K-20’s crimes and becomes determined to clear his name. He teams up with K-20’s next target, a wealthy duchess named Yoko Hashiba (Takako Matsu) and her detective fiancé (Toru Nakamura), to take K-20 down once and for all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Enforcer (2022)
A noir thriller set in Miami, the film follows an enforcer who discovers his femme fatale boss has branched out into cyber sex trafficking, putting a young runaway he’s befriended at risk. He sacrifices everything to save the young girl from the deadly organization he’s spent his life building.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
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 action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisOne Mile: Chapter Two (2026)
Former special forces operative Danny is forced back onto a remote island when a violent, secretive community takes revenge by abducting his daughter Alex, launching a relentless hunt against enemies prepared for his every move.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisPoint Blank (2019)
A nurse is forced to spring a wounded murder suspect from the hospital when the man’s brother kidnaps his pregnant wife and wants to make a trade.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBurning Dog (1991)
A gang of thieves plot to rob a US military base in Okinawa, but rising tensions in the group threaten to put the plan in jeopardy.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & action
Joker (1996)
A man and a woman get mixed up with yakuza.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Carlos (1991)
V-cinema classic about a wanted Brazilian Japanese gangster who flees to Tokyo and fights yakuza.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & action
Crime Hunter 2 - Bullets of Betrayal (1989)
Detective Joker from Little Tokyo, Los Angeles, USA is dispatched after receiving 211 calls from the police station.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & action
Crime Hunter 3: Killing Bullet (1990)
Joe reunites with his ex-lover Serika, unbeknownst that she is the mistress and pawn of Mexican-Japanese crime lord Nicol. Joe’s superiors see Serika as a suspect and a member of Nicol’s gang, so when she disappears, Joe must recruit outside help to get her back. Here a sympathetic female colleague named Sunny and a tearaway member of Nicol’s gang aid him in his search.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
PAZUZU (2000)
Togashi, who runs a small restaurant along the highway and leads a quiet life, finds himself being threatened by debt collector Kido after becoming a guarantor for a friend's debt. One day, a woman named Keiko appears before Togashi.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
STREET KIDS: Bousou Gishiki (1992)
The life of a young man who aspires to be in the judicial power begins to decline when he gets involved with street kids
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Trilogy: Another Ending - Kamen Rider Brave & Snipe (2018)
First installment of the V-Cinema Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Trilogy: Another Ending will focus on the characters of Hiiro Kagami (Kamen Rider Brave) and Taiga Hanaya (Kamen Rider Snipe). Saki, who is supposed to have disappeared, shows up and Hiiro is concerned. However, Lovelica was behind her reappearance and he is controlling her! Also, Luke Kidman, a mysterious American who is fond of Nico appears at Taiga’s hospital. However, he starts showing Lovelica’s Game Disease symptoms in front of Taiga, he didn't know that Lovelica is revived after he was killed by Cronus. The destiny of both heroes is put in jeopardy by the worst game plot ever. And God Kuroto Dan, lurking in the shadows has plans of his own…
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action
Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Trilogy: Another Ending - Kamen Rider Para-DX with Poppy (2018)
Second installment of the V-Cinema Kamen Rider Ex-Aid Trilogy: Another Ending will focus on the characters of Parado (Kamen Rider Para-DX) and Poppy Pipopapo (Kamen Rider Poppy). Saiko Yaotome is a doctor dedicated to recovery treatments and heads “Let's Make Bugsters”, a new training game created for the recovery of people that disappeared. The test run has Emu raising Parado and Saiko raising Poppy. There is something different about the Parado in the game, though. The “real” Parado has been trapped and he faces his mysterious double, with the strength of the bond with Emu.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action
Like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses?
The closest matches to The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses are Absolution (2024), Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973) and Yakuza Graveyard (1976). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses?
Start with Absolution (2024), the closest match to The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses.
What is the highest-rated movie like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses?
Tokyo Drifter (1966), rated 7.1/10 by 221 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses?
One Mile: Chapter Two (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there Japanese movies like The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses?
Yes: Battles Without Honor and Humanity: Deadly Fight in Hiroshima (1973), Yakuza Graveyard (1976) and Mr. Long (2017).
How are movies similar to The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Hitman: Blood Smells Like Roses, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.