Movies like Burning Ambition (1989)
The best movies like Burning Ambition (1989) are Iron Angels (1987), Vengeance (2009) and Dog Bite Dog (2006). If Burning Ambition 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 ratedElection 2 (2006)7.4/10 from 214 votes
- NewestAccident Man: Hitman's Holiday (2022)Released 2022
Iron Angels (1987)
Yeung’s poppy fields are torched by a law enforcement task force, she retaliates by ordering police officials assassinated. The Angels break into Yeung’s corporate offices, eventually tracing her headquarters. After Alex Fong’s character is captured and held by Yeung, the Angels mount an assault to rescue him. A complex sub-plot involving an armored car bullion robbery eventually leads the Angels to a final showdown with Yeung and her men.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisVengeance (2009)
A French chef swears revenge after a violent attack on his daughter's family in Macau, during which her husband and her two children are murdered. To help him find the killers, he hires three local hit-men working for the mafia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDog Bite Dog (2006)
A young Cambodian man who has been trained to fight for money in his country is hired to kill someone in Hong Kong. He performs the hit and then flees from Hong Kong police, who are wrestling with internal problems of a model cop and his son, who is also on the force and who was told by his dad not to become a police officer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNinja: Shadow of a Tear (2013)
Fight everyone and trust no one: it's the code of survival practiced by martial-arts master Casey Bowman after his life of domestic bliss is shattered by a savage act of violence. Vowing revenge, the fearless American stealthily tracks the killer from Osaka to Bangkok to Rangoon with the help of a wise and crafty sensei. His only clues: a series of victims whose necks bear the distinctive mark of strangulation by barbed wire. Fighting to avenge as well as to survive, Casey must sharpen his razor-like responses and take his battle skills to the next level, even using deep meditation to fake his own death. His target: the sinister drug lord Goro, who is flooding the streets with deadly meth cooked at his remote jungle factory. To prepare for his ultimate confrontation, Casey must finally become an invisible warrior worthy of the name Ninja. But just when his prey is cornered, an unexpected twist shows Casey that his battle is only beginning: he truly can trust no one.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSPL: Kill Zone (2005)
Chan, an articulate senior detective nearing the end of his career, is taking care of the daughter of a witness killed by ruthless crime lord Po. Martial arts expert Ma is set to take over as head of the crime unit, replacing Chan who wants an early retirement.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisNo Retreat, No Surrender 3: Blood Brothers (1990)
Two feuding brothers of differing political views, one a policeman, the other a martial artist, join forces to avenge the death of their father, a retired agent who was brutally murdered by the mafia.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 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 thisTime and Tide (2000)
A streetwise young man becomes a bodyguard to score quick cash. He befriends a disillusioned mercenary determined to begin life anew. They find themselves working together to foil an assassination attempt, but their partnership ultimately can't last.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisIn the Line of Duty 4 (1989)
Two detectives who are up to their necks in trouble and in each other's face, as they try to shut down a drug-trafficking scheme that could be connected with international ties to organized crime. But in the midst of their investigation, innocent immigrant dock worker Luk Wan-Ting gets caught up in the mix when he witnesses the murder of an intelligence operative and is framed for the crime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisRampage: Capital Punishment (2014)
A man takes over a TV station and holds a number of hostages as a political platform to awaken humanity, instead of money.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisExit Wounds (2001)
Maverick cop Orin Boyd always brings down the domestic terrorists he tracks, but he ruffles feathers with his unorthodox techniques -- and soon finds himself reassigned to the toughest district in Detroit. When he discovers a group of detectives secretly operating a drug ring, Boyd joins forces with an unlikely ally -- gangster Latrell Walker -- to bring down the rotten cops.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
SnoozefestMovies like thisUntil Death (2007)
Anthony Stowe is a dirty cop who is hooked on heroin—and everyone hates him. After a serious accident, he is placed into an induced coma, but emerges from it a better person who wants to put things right.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisRise of the Footsoldier (2007)
Carlton Leach rises from one of the most feared generals of the football terraces to becoming a member of a notorious gang of criminals who rampaged their way through London and Essex in the late '80s and early '90s.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNaked Killer (1992)
A young woman is trained by a professional assassin to become her partner in crime.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies 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 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 thisAccident Man: Hitman's Holiday (2022)
The Accident Man is back, and this time he must best the top assassins in the world to protect the ungrateful son of a mafia boss, save the life of his only friend and rekindle his relationship with his maniacal father figure.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisElection 2 (2006)
As election time nears, current Triad chairman Lok faces competition from his godsons. At the same time, Jimmy looks to increase his business relations with mainland China.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFrank and Penelope (2022)
A tale of love and violence when a man on his emotional last legs finds a savior seductively dancing in a run-down strip club. And a life most certainly headed off a cliff suddenly becomes redirected - as everything is now worth dying for.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both thriller & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisTriple 9 (2016)
A gang of criminals and corrupt cops plan the murder of a police officer in order to pull off their biggest heist yet across town.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDiner (2019)
A former murderer and genius chef along with a waitress come together with a group of fantastical assassins in a diner. A girl with a hollowness in her heart, who believes that she belongs nowhere, is thrust into a series of attacks where she must struggle to find her will to live.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & thriller
The Bloody Brood (1959)
Nico, a drug dealer, murders a telegram messenger-boy "for kicks", egged on by partner-in-crime, TV director Francis. Cliff, the boy's older brother, investigates his death due to the slow progress made by the police.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & crime
The Shadow Effect (2017)
A young man's life is turned upside down when his violent dreams begin to blend with reality.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
SnoozefestMovies like thisDead in the Water (2002)
Young, rich, and randy Gloria takes the family motorboat for some fun in the sun off the coast of Brazil. Along with her are her longtime boyfriend Danny, his best friend Jeff, and the son of an important and infinitely influential client, Marcos. It probably wasn't a good idea to take three gorgeous men the same age out on a boat with a bikini-clad beauty who lately has been questioning her relationship with her main squeeze, but it gets even worse than expected. There's tragedy, betrayal, and more tragedy as the faulty value systems of the wealthy brats spin out of control.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & thriller
Payday (2018)
When inexperienced criminal Ben holds up a small-town restaurant, the poorly-planned robbery spirals into a hostage crisis beyond his control. Trapped inside with him is his girlfriend, manager Adie Graham, a cunning sociopath who masterminded the theft to cover up evidence of her embezzlement. As Ben tries to keep her involvement a secret whilst negotiating with the police, Adie plays a dangerous game of deceit and manipulation, willing to do anything and everything to come out on top - no matter who gets hurt.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action & thriller
Bakerman (2020)
The award-winning Nordic Noir from writer/director David Noel Bourke. Jens has accepted far too much for too long. Being the shy night-owl he is, he keeps to himself, but the world will not let him be. The new master baker's quality starts slackening, and when a bunch of yobs one day smash the window of Jens's car, he takes one of them out. Intoxicated by his own new unexpressed vigour, Jens comes out of his shell, but the destructive driving force leads him towards a free fall. + WINNER! BEST MALE ACTOR (Mikkel Vadsholt) at NIFF + WINNER! BEST OF YEAR at Oniros + WINNER! BEST FOREIGN FEATURE FILM - MARYLAND INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL + Nominated for Méliès d’Argent AWARD "BAKERMAN is a Nordic "Falling Down". A film that is as shocking with its vigilante story as it is captivating with its determination...." - CPH:PIX Film Festival
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller & crime
Heat Wave (1991)
Rin Jyoshima lost her father to death-by-gambling; years later, she's grown up in the Kosugi household and has fallen victim to gambling herself.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Mucha Sangre (2003)
Two fugitives try to stop an alien invasion that reproduce by sodomizing men.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both action
Feedback (2019)
A radio host is kidnapped on air and forced to tell secrets about his past.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
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Like Burning Ambition and something else?
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Burning Ambition?
The closest matches to Burning Ambition are Iron Angels (1987), Vengeance (2009) and Dog Bite Dog (2006). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Burning Ambition?
Start with Iron Angels (1987), the closest match to Burning Ambition.
What is the highest-rated movie like Burning Ambition?
Election 2 (2006), rated 7.4/10 by 214 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Burning Ambition?
Accident Man: Hitman's Holiday (2022) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to Burning Ambition chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Burning Ambition, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.