The 15 Best ’90s Gangster Movies of All Time, Ranked

90s gangster movies represent a specific time in Hollywood when creators and audiences were fascinated by the more sinister, uncomfortable, and tragically human parts of the criminal underworld, and as a result, the best gangster films of the 90s are also considered some of the best films of all time. Gangster films have been extremely popular since the 30s and 40s and each decade brings a new take on the genre. It’s inherently compelling, with its family drama, violence, and escapist fantasies of wealth and power.

Over the years, different decades have come to represent different things about gangster films. The 90s are an interesting period, not least because The Sopranos came out in 1999 to close the book on decades. In the 1990s, the term “gangster” expanded to mean different elements of organized crime, leading black, Asian and English directors to film the world of the Mafia through their unique lens. Of course, classic Italian-American gangster films still fill the genre’s ranks, but the ’90s are a mixed bag of very varied films.

15

King of New York (1990)

A forgotten performance by Christopher Walken

A forgotten 90s gangster film that has been re-evaluated in recent years, King of New York stars Christopher Walken as Frank White, a drug dealer in a war to control New York City’s criminal underworld. After being released from prison, Frank sets out to reclaim his crown and rebuild his empire into something legitimate. It’s a much more violent and dark film than the standard gangster films that came before it. Thanks to Walken’s performance and the film’s visual style, King of New York It’s a thrilling watch and a 90s crime film that could have a sequel.

14

New City Jack (1991)

A drug dealer faces off against an NYPD detective

In Jack’s New TownNino Brown (Wesley Snipes) leads the Cash Money Brothers gang, which runs the crack networks in his Harlem neighborhood when drugs hit the streets. Undercover cop Scotty Appleton (Ice-T) eventually infiltrates Nino’s gang and works to get revenge on him for something Nino did to Appleton years ago. Jack’s New Town is an alarming and gripping crime caper filled with one of Snipes’ best performances. Its representation of the crack epidemic is a frighteningly real illustration of late 20th century outrage.

13

Catch the Shorty (1995)

Comedy and gangsters meet in a Hollywood mix

Be short follows a Miami mobster and loan shark, Chili Palmer (John Travolta), who travels to Hollywood after a series of bad deals and decisions that lead him to get a job working for Brooklyn mob boss Ray “Bones” Barnoni (Dennis Farina). While in Hollywood, Chili gets the brilliant idea to present his life as a movie idea, causing more headaches and gunshots. Featuring an impressive ensemble including Gene Hackman, Rene Russo, Danny DeVito and James Gandolfini, Be short mirrors some of the absurdities of mob life, creating a franchise in the process.

12

Padlock, stock and two smoking barrels (1998)

Guy Ritchie explores the London Underground

Guy Ritchie’s films often deal with criminal elements and his film debut, Padlock, stock and two smoking barrelsis no different. The film follows small-time London criminals, Eddie (Nick Moran), Tom (Jason Flemyng), Soap (Dexter Fletcher) and Bacon (Jason Statham), who are trying to raise enough money to pay for Eddie’s membership in a high-octane card game. risk. Faced with a vengeful crime boss, the gang must rob another gang. Deliciously twisted and fun, this film has all the Ritchie hallmarks that have made him one of the most popular working directors.

11

Donnie Brasco (1997)

A true story about the Bonanno crime family

Donnie Brasco stars Johnny Depp as Joseph D. Piston, an undercover FBI agent posing as a thief named Donnie Brasco. Donnie infiltrates the Bonanno crime family after befriending aging mobster Lefty Ruggiero (Al Pacino). Lefty shows Donnie the ins and outs of Mafia life and the two develop a father-son friendship. Donnie Brasco forgoes most gangster movie clichés for an honest and moving look at loneliness in a criminal organization. With two fantastic performances in the center, Donnie Brasco is a grounded and intelligent thriller.

10

Sonatina (1993)

An elderly Yakuza enforcer recalls his life

Takeshi Kitano, known for hosting his beloved Takeshi Castlewrote, edited, directed and stars Sonatinaa gangster film set in Tokyo. The film follows Murakawa (Kitano), an old yakuza enforcer who is bored and tired of his life of crime. A mission gone wrong introduces him to a young woman, Miyuki (Aya Kokumai), who he is determined to protect. Sonatina is a contemplative work that is often punctuated by moments of intense violence. Humor, bloodshed and romance combine to form a unique version of the gangster film.

9

Carlito’s Way (1993)

A career criminal tries to follow the straight and narrow

In Carlito’s PathAl Pacino plays Carlito Brigante, an ex-criminal who is released from prison on a technicality. Considering this a chance at redemption, Carlito renounces crime, but slowly, he is dragged back into the same criminal elements that sent him to prison. One of Brian De Palma’s greatest works, Carlito’s Path is an epic and tragic story of how crime finds a way to bring down those who try to escape it. The film may recreate familiar ground in terms of story, but Pacino’s fierce performance and De Palma’s gaze make it something special.

8

Boyz and the Hood (1991)

South Central LA is the site of major gang fights

Boyz and the Hood combines elements of gangster films, coming-of-age drama, and a specific black point of view rarely seen at the time for something completely unique. Cuba Gooding Jr. and Ice Cube star as Tre Styles III and Doughboy Baker, respectively, two childhood best friends who are separated when Tre moves to another city with his mother. Occurring over several years, Boyz and the Hood examines the pipeline that turns children into hardened gangsters. It’s a hard-hitting but compassionate portrait and incredibly well-handled in its storytelling.

7

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999)

A mob enforcer lives by an ancient warrior code

Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai is a completely unique gangster film that combines storytelling styles from gangster, hood, and samurai films. Starring Forest Whitaker as the eponymous ghost dog, The Way of the Samurai follows a mob hitman who lives by the ancient code of the samurai. Director Jim Jarmusch seamlessly combines two very different film styles and reveals how close samurai and gangster films are in essence. It’s a deeply sad performance from Whitaker, whose character never seems sure why he continues to follow his violent codes.

6

Bugsy (1991)

Warren Beatty stars as the American mobster

Based on the life of real American mobster Bugsy Seigel, Bugsy stars Warren Beatty as the eponymous gangster, closely following his affair with Hollywood star Virginia Hill (Annette Bening). Half detective film and half romance, Bugsy is a true American epic with some incredible performances at its center. The violence in the scenes is shocking and fascinating, but it’s the chemistry between Bening and Beatty that makes the film. While Bugsy may not be the most historically accurate gangster film of all time, its setting and the feelings it provokes are as real as anything.

5

A Bronx Story (1993)

A boy must choose between two worlds

Robert De Niro’s directorial debut, A Bronx Storyit was much better than it should have been for a novice filmmaker. Based on the one-man play of the same name A Bronx Story is a coming-of-age gangster story starring Lillo Brancato Jr. as Calogero, son of a straight-laced bus driver, Lorenzo (De Niro), who falls in love with the Mafia, specifically, the magnanimous capo Sonny (Chazz Palminteri). Incredibly solidly written, acted and edited, A Bronx Story is a fantastically watchable gangster film, with a moving and unusually gentle performance from De Niro.

4

Miller’s Crossing (1990)

The Coen brothers make the Irish gangster epic

Irish gangster films are much less popular than their Italian-American cousins, but when done well, they can be just as captivating and moving. Miller’s Crossing follows a power struggle between two rival Irish gangs during Prohibition. Tom Reagan (Gabriel Byrne) finds a way to play the two sides against each other for his benefit. Distinctively Coen, with a tight, beautifully written script, Miller’s Crossing It’s one of his brother’s best films. Quirky, fast and breathtaking, Miller’s Crossing it feels like a breeze that suddenly turns into a whirlwind.

3

Casino (1995)

Las Vegas becomes the Wild West

I had Casino not leave two years later Good companionsit would consistently rank among Martin Scorsese’s best films. However, many people decided it was an imitation of Good companionsdamaging his legacy, but it is decidedly not that. Casino is a much darker and more real story about the beginnings of Las Vegas and how the Mafia got its hands on the booming city to get as much out of it as possible. More like The Irish what Good companions, Casino is a sad, harsh, and appropriately ambitious film about a rarely portrayed part of American history.

2

Pulp Fiction (1994)

Tarantino changes the face of cinema with his gangster film

With so many intertwined stories, It may be debatable to even call pulp Fiction a gangster film, but organized crime is a critical piece of Quentin Tarantino’s second feature film. No matter who they are: a killer, a boxer or a flock of seagulls, they are all involved in the machinations of criminals and gangsters. Hyper-stylized but without seeming hard to impress, and with dialogue that is some of the best Tarantino has ever written, pulp Fiction is without a doubt his best film and one of the best films of all time.

1

Goodfellas (1990)

The culmination of decades of gangster films

Before Good companionsgangster films often saw the Mafia as attractive. They positioned gangsters as dangerous but cool; villains, but with more complexity to humanize them. Martin Scorsese disabused the audience of this notion with Good companions. This masterpiece 90s gangster movie epic shows what it’s really like to be in the mafia: bloody, dishonorable, fake and never worth it. An absolute joy to see the image that Good companions Paints is hilarious, shocking, and grossly realistic in a way few films or shows have replicated.