Top Ten Crime Films (Part 1)

I thought I would try something a little different today. Since most people are currently spending an unending amount of time at home, I thought I would help with the movie nights by compiling lists of my favourite films that I would highly recommend everyone watches because honestly, they’re the best. That genre is going to be crime and I am going to look at my top 10 crime films and these are my recommendations for you to check out. The films provide suspense, drama, grit and just all-round enjoyment for you to watch.

10. Ocean's Eleven (2001)

Audacious plot: The King's Cross raid recalled the elaborate casino heist in Ocean's Eleven

This is a witty, smart, captivating film and it is star studded to say the least (you got George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon the list goes on and on). Danny Ocean (played by George Clooney) and the rest of his team, have a ploy to rob one of the biggest Casinos in Las Vegas. You want to know how much for? $150 million. The man in question, who owns the casino happens to be Terry Benedict, the lover of Danny Ocean's wife Tess. I know it sounds messy and very Eastender-ish but this is definitely a film that is worth your time. In this film you go on a journey with Ocean and his crew as they try and pull off this masterful heist, perhaps the greatest heist in Vegas history.

9. Reservoir Dogs (1992)

One of the many Quentin Tarantino masterpieces that has graced our screens. This was actually the film that helped Tarantino become the director he is today and what a way to explode onto the scene eh? There are times when this film becomes quite chilling, very brutal but all the more entertaining. I found it enthralling how Tarantino chooses to use humour in the midst of brutal moments in the film. It's based around six criminals who are hired to steal diamonds and they don’t know each other's true identity- so they gave each other names according to colours.

There's a really crazy scene about two guys arguing over who should be Mr Pink. In some ways I think this film paved the way for the ever popular tv series, Money Heist (you can stream on Netflix) where the characters do not know each other's real identity they just go by code names or rather the names of famous cities. Even so, Tarantino's first major hit is well worth the hype.

8. Training Day (2001)

A Denzel Washington masterpiece. Truly. This for me is one of his best roles, as he plays a senior narcotics officer Detective Alonzo, who is being tasked in training an up and coming officer Jake Hoyt (played by Ethan Hawke). One thing to note about Detective Alonzo, is that his methods of justice are… extreme. Some would argue that it is borderline unethical or just downright crazy. As this journey unfolds, we learn alongside rookie officer Hoyt that Alonzo isn't the cop we thought he might be, which may leave a sour taste in the mouth.

This film does remind us of why Denzel Washington is such a great actor, leaving you with conflicting feelings as he plays a very rogue detective who doesn't seem to do his job very well. There are some iconic moments in this film, which are used in today's pop culture- you've probably seen them in the form of GIFs. The journey in this film does not slow down for one second. Not one.

7. City of God (2002)

20 Things You (Probably) Didn't Know About City Of God

City of God (Cidade de Deus) shows life in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro through the eyes of Rocket, a young man who has grown up in the favelas. It feels authentic, raw, almost as if you are part of the life that is going on over there. You become invested into the characters there. I feel as though this would be quite different if this was told through the lens of an 'outsider' and I do not think the effect would be the same, could come across westernized. Who knows? This film is based around two people who follow very different paths.

We have the young man nicknamed Rocket (Buscapé), who is a budding photographer and he has been deployed to go and look into the drug-related violence that is taken place in the favelas. Not bad for a debut job, right? And we have Lil Ze, who wants to make a name for himself as the meanest drug dealer in the streets of Rio. These two cross paths on quite a few occasions and we do see the story unfold. It is quite refreshing to watch and was not given enough credit.

6. Drive (2011)

Now Drive is not your usual crime/thriller film. Normally what you find with a lot of these great crime films is that there is a lot of dialogue. The gangster or whoever the antagonist may be, they always have an incredible speech to say that is then quoted for many years, some even decades, after the film has been released. Drive is quite the opposite, it doesn't dwell so much on the dialogue and that is part of what makes the film so great. Ryan Gosling plays an unnamed stuntman and driver who is pulled into a world that he was not expecting to be in. Quite the contrary from the quiet mundane life he's living. He falls in love with a woman named Irene, who happens to be married to a criminal. The driver finds himself in a situation where has to switch to the other side of the law, going to extremes in order to protect Irene.

Ah.. I'm sure you want to see the rest? Stay tuned for the second half of this top ten, which will be out, later this week. In the meantime let me know what your top ten crime films or even just your favourite. Leave a comment down below or chat to me on Twitter (@bfunkmo).

Over and out.