'Must See' British Crime Dramas
by johndrake99 | created - 11 Aug 2013 | updated - 11 Aug 2013 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. The Sweeney (1975–1978)
TV-PG | 51 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Jack Regan and George Carter are hard-edged detectives in the Flying Squad of London's Metropolitan Police. They pursue villains by methods which are underhanded and often illegal, frequently violent and - more often than not - successful.
Stars: John Thaw, Dennis Waterman, Garfield Morgan, John Alkin
Votes: 2,652
2. Inspector Morse (1987–2000)
TV-14 | 3,431 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Chief Inspector Morse has an ear for Western classical music, a taste for beer, and a nose for crime. He and Detective Sergeant Robert Lewis solve intriguing cases in and around the Oxford area.
Stars: John Thaw, Kevin Whately, James Grout, Peter Woodthorpe
Votes: 14,359
3. Between the Lines (1992–1994)
50 min | Crime, Drama
British police drama following the team at the Complaints Investigation Bureau - the unit that polices the police.
Stars: Neil Pearson, Tom Georgeson, Siobhan Redmond, Tony Doyle
Votes: 632
4. Prime Suspect (1991)
TV-14 | 104 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A female police detective investigates a series of serial murders while dealing with sexist hostility from her male comrades.
Stars: Helen Mirren, John Benfield, Tom Bell, Craig Fairbrass
Votes: 9,224
5. Life on Mars (2006–2007)
TV-14 | 959 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
After a near-fatal car accident, smart, savvy, sharp-suited detective Sam is mysteriously transported back to 1973. Confused by his new surroundings, Sam tries to return to the present, but the police force of long ago needs his help.
Stars: John Simm, Philip Glenister, Liz White, Dean Andrews
Votes: 32,416
6. The Krays (1990)
R | 115 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
This fact-based movie follows the life of the twin crime-lords in London's '60s underworld.
Director: Peter Medak | Stars: Gary Kemp, Martin Kemp, Billie Whitelaw, Tom Bell
Votes: 9,050 | Gross: $2.06M
7. Mona Lisa (1986)
R | 104 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A man recently released from prison manages to get a job driving a call girl from customer to customer.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Bob Hoskins, Cathy Tyson, Michael Caine, Robbie Coltrane
Votes: 18,707 | Gross: $5.79M
8. The Third Key (1956)
Not Rated | 96 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The sleuths of Scotland Yard try to solve a series of burglaries.
Director: Charles Frend | Stars: Jack Hawkins, John Stratton, Dorothy Alison, Michael Brooke
Votes: 1,376
9. Get Carter (1971)
R | 112 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
When his brother dies under mysterious circumstances in a car accident, London gangster Jack Carter travels to Newcastle to investigate.
Director: Mike Hodges | Stars: Michael Caine, Ian Hendry, Britt Ekland, John Osborne
Votes: 36,785 | Gross: $0.39M
10. Green Street Hooligans (2005)
R | 109 min | Crime, Drama, Sport
A wrongfully expelled Harvard undergrad moves to London, where he is introduced to the violent underworld of football hooliganism.
Director: Lexi Alexander | Stars: Elijah Wood, Charlie Hunnam, Claire Forlani, Marc Warren
Votes: 161,846 | Gross: $0.34M
11. Layer Cake (2004)
R | 105 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A successful cocaine dealer gets two tough assignments from his boss on the eve of his planned early retirement.
Director: Matthew Vaughn | Stars: Daniel Craig, Sienna Miller, Michael Gambon, Tom Hardy
Votes: 195,620 | Gross: $2.34M
12. Sexy Beast (2000)
R | 89 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Brutal gangster Don Logan recruits "retired" safecracker Gal for one last job, but it goes badly for both of them.
Director: Jonathan Glazer | Stars: Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, Ian McShane, Amanda Redman
Votes: 69,268 | Gross: $6.95M
13. The Hit (1984)
R | 98 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Ten years after ratting on his old mobster friends in exchange for personal immunity, two hit men drive a hardened criminal to Paris for his execution. However, while on the way, whatever can go wrong, does go wrong.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: Freddie Stuart, Ralph Brown, A.J. Clarke, Terence Stamp
Votes: 9,539 | Gross: $0.88M
14. The Long Firm (2004)
220 min | Crime, Drama
The lives of characters who live, love, and suffer through their association with the charismatic charms of gangster Harry Starks.
Stars: Mark Strong, George Costigan, Neil Conrich, Geoff Bell
Votes: 733
15. The Bank Job (2008)
R | 111 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Martine offers Terry a lead on a foolproof bank hit on London's Baker Street. She targets a roomful of safe deposit boxes worth millions in cash and jewelry along with a treasure trove of dirty secrets.
Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Jason Statham, Saffron Burrows, Stephen Campbell Moore, Daniel Mays
Votes: 189,187 | Gross: $30.06M
16. Robbery (1967)
110 min | Crime, Drama
A group of British criminals plan the robbery of the Royal Mail train on the Glasgow-London route.
Director: Peter Yates | Stars: Stanley Baker, Joanna Pettet, James Booth, Frank Finlay
Votes: 2,042
17. I Promised to Pay (1961)
94 min | Crime, Drama
A gang plans to steal a factory's wages, but an armored van foils them. They rob anyway, killing the driver. His vengeful wife and encroaching police make the gang betray each other.
Director: Sidney Hayers | Stars: Michael Craig, Françoise Prévost, Billie Whitelaw, William Lucas
Votes: 894
18. The Offence (1973)
R | 112 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A burnt-out British police detective finally snaps whilst interrogating a suspected child molester.
Director: Sidney Lumet | Stars: Sean Connery, Trevor Howard, Vivien Merchant, Ian Bannen
Votes: 7,987
19. Odd Man Out (1947)
Approved | 116 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
A wounded Irish nationalist leader attempts to evade police following a failed robbery in Belfast.
Director: Carol Reed | Stars: James Mason, Robert Newton, Cyril Cusack, F.J. McCormick
Votes: 11,418
20. I Became a Criminal (1947)
Approved | 78 min | Crime, Drama, Film-Noir
After WW2, former RAF airman Clem Morgan joins a gang of black-market smugglers-thieves but when a robbery goes wrong, Clem is caught , framed for a policeman's murder, and is sent to prison where he plots his escape and revenge.
Director: Alberto Cavalcanti | Stars: Sally Gray, Trevor Howard, Griffith Jones, Rene Ray
Votes: 1,907
21. The Concrete Jungle (1960)
TV-14 | 86 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
In the UK, after pulling a racetrack robbery, repeat offender Johnny Bannion hides the loot in a farmer's field but the police and the local mob come looking for Johnny and the money.
Director: Joseph Losey | Stars: Stanley Baker, Sam Wanamaker, Grégoire Aslan, Margit Saad
Votes: 1,763
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