Neo Noir Movies Featuring Vigilantism.
by seymourblack-1 | created - 21 Nov 2019 | updated - 10 Sep 2022 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Death Wish (1974)
R | 93 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A New York City architect becomes a one-man vigilante squad after his wife is murdered by street punks. In self-defense, the vengeful man kills muggers on the mean streets after dark.
Director: Michael Winner | Stars: Charles Bronson, Hope Lange, Vincent Gardenia, Steven Keats
Votes: 44,025 | Gross: $22.00M
2. Seeking Justice (2011)
R | 105 min | Action, Crime, Drama
After his wife is assaulted, a husband enlists the services of a vigilante group to help him settle the score. Then he discovers they want a 'favor' from him in return.
Director: Roger Donaldson | Stars: Nicolas Cage, January Jones, Guy Pearce, Harold Perrineau
Votes: 47,985 | Gross: $0.04M
3. Harry Brown (2009)
R | 103 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An elderly ex-serviceman and widower looks to avenge his best friend's murder by doling out his own form of justice.
Director: Daniel Barber | Stars: Michael Caine, Emily Mortimer, David Bradley, Charlie Creed-Miles
Votes: 91,354 | Gross: $1.82M
4. The Chase (1966)
Passed | 134 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
The citizens of a Texan town become concerned and panicked when a local bad boy escapes prison and heads for his hometown.
Director: Arthur Penn | Stars: Marlon Brando, Jane Fonda, Robert Redford, E.G. Marshall
Votes: 13,397 | Gross: $5.00M
5. Prisoners (2013)
R | 153 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
When Keller Dover's daughter and her friend go missing, he takes matters into his own hands as the police pursue multiple leads and the pressure mounts.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Melissa Leo
Votes: 809,099 | Gross: $61.00M
6. I Am Wrath (2016)
R | 92 min | Action, Thriller
Stanley Hill opens a can of brutal vengeance on the thugs who murdered his wife and the corrupt cops who are protecting them.
Director: Chuck Russell | Stars: John Travolta, Christopher Meloni, Amanda Schull, Sam Trammell
Votes: 16,062
7. The Equalizer (2014)
R | 132 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A man who believes he has put his mysterious past behind him cannot stand idly by when he meets a young girl under the control of ultra-violent Russian gangsters.
Director: Antoine Fuqua | Stars: Denzel Washington, Marton Csokas, Chloë Grace Moretz, David Harbour
Votes: 419,867 | Gross: $101.53M
8. Sudden Impact (1983)
R | 117 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
When a woman exacts deadly revenge on the aggressors who raped her and her sister ten years earlier, Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan is assigned to the case.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Pat Hingle, Bradford Dillman
Votes: 48,602 | Gross: $67.64M
9. The Dark Knight (2008)
PG-13 | 152 min | Action, Crime, Drama
When the menace known as the Joker wreaks havoc and chaos on the people of Gotham, Batman must accept one of the greatest psychological and physical tests of his ability to fight injustice.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine
Votes: 2,869,622 | Gross: $534.86M
10. Watchmen (2009)
R | 162 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
In a version of 1985 where superheroes exist, the murder of a colleague sends active vigilante Rorschach on the trail of a conspiracy that will change the course of history.
Director: Zack Snyder | Stars: Jackie Earle Haley, Patrick Wilson, Carla Gugino, Malin Akerman
Votes: 582,350 | Gross: $107.51M
11. Never Let Go (1960)
Not Rated | 90 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A cosmetic salesman sets out to prove to himself and his wife that he is not a failure.
Director: John Guillermin | Stars: Richard Todd, Peter Sellers, Elizabeth Sellars, Adam Faith
Votes: 1,691
12. Vigilante (1982)
R | 90 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
After his wife and son got brutalized by a street gang, and a corrupt criminal justice system puts the perpetrators back on the street, a NYC factory worker teams up with a vigilante group to find some measure of bloody justice.
Director: William Lustig | Stars: Robert Forster, Fred Williamson, Richard Bright, Rutanya Alda
Votes: 4,536
13. American Assassin (2017)
R | 111 min | Action, Thriller
After the death of his girlfriend at the hands of terrorists, Mitch Rapp is drawn into the world of counterterrorism, mentored by tough-as-nails former U.S. Navy S.E.A.L. Stan Hurley.
Director: Michael Cuesta | Stars: Dylan O'Brien, Michael Keaton, Sanaa Lathan, Taylor Kitsch
Votes: 90,873 | Gross: $36.25M
14. Savage Streets (1984)
R | 93 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A teenage vigilante seeks revenge on a group of violent thugs who raped her handicapped sister and killed her best friend.
Directors: Danny Steinmann, Tom DeSimone | Stars: Linda Blair, John Vernon, Robert Dryer, Johnny Venokur
Votes: 5,692
15. The Exterminator (1980)
R | 104 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A man's best friend is killed on the streets of New York City. The man (Robert Ginty) then transforms into a violent killer, turning New York City into a great war zone, and Christopher George is the only one to stop him.
Director: James Glickenhaus | Stars: Robert Ginty, Samantha Eggar, Christopher George, Steve James
Votes: 6,556
16. Coffy (1973)
R | 90 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A sexy Black nurse takes vigilante justice against inner-city drug dealers after her sister becomes their latest victim.
Director: Jack Hill | Stars: Pam Grier, Booker Bradshaw, Robert DoQui, William Elliott
Votes: 12,926
17. Sleepers (1996)
R | 147 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
After a prank goes disastrously wrong, a group of boys are sent to a detention center where they are brutalized. Thirteen years later, an unexpected random encounter with a former guard gives them a chance for revenge.
Director: Barry Levinson | Stars: Robert De Niro, Kevin Bacon, Brad Pitt, Jason Patric
Votes: 237,505 | Gross: $49.10M
18. Taken (I) (2008)
PG-13 | 90 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A retired CIA agent travels across Europe and relies on his old skills to save his estranged daughter, who has been kidnapped while on a trip to Paris.
Director: Pierre Morel | Stars: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Leland Orser
Votes: 634,322 | Gross: $145.00M
19. Magnum Force (1973)
R | 124 min | Action, Crime, Mystery
Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan pursues a conspiracy of vigilante cops, who are not above going beyond the law to kill San Francisco's undesirables.
Director: Ted Post | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Hal Holbrook, Mitchell Ryan, David Soul
Votes: 66,615 | Gross: $4.56M
20. Edge of Darkness (2010)
R | 117 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
As homicide detective Thomas Craven investigates the murder of his activist daughter, he uncovers a corporate cover-up and government conspiracy that attracts an agent tasked with cleaning up the evidence.
Director: Martin Campbell | Stars: Mel Gibson, Ray Winstone, Danny Huston, Bojana Novakovic
Votes: 99,013 | Gross: $43.31M
21. Death Wish (2018)
R | 107 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Dr. Paul Kersey is an experienced trauma surgeon, a man who has spent his life saving lives. After an attack on his family, Paul embarks on his own mission for justice.
Director: Eli Roth | Stars: Bruce Willis, Vincent D'Onofrio, Elisabeth Shue, Camila Morrone
Votes: 76,443 | Gross: $34.02M
22. Street Kings (2008)
R | 109 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
An undercover cop, disillusioned by the death of his wife, is implicated in the murder of an officer and must struggle to clear himself.
Director: David Ayer | Stars: Keanu Reeves, Forest Whitaker, Hugh Laurie, Chris Evans
Votes: 120,781 | Gross: $26.42M
23. Wege in die Nacht (1999)
98 min | Thriller, Drama
An unemployed ex-bureaucrat by day becomes mentor to two young vigilantes at night.
Director: Andreas Kleinert | Stars: Hilmar Thate, Cornelia Schmaus, Henriette Heinze, Dirk Borchardt
Votes: 246
24. Max Payne (2008)
PG-13 | 100 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Coming together to solve a series of murders in New York City are a police detective and an assassin, who will be hunted by the police, the mob, and a ruthless corporation.
Director: John Moore | Stars: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Beau Bridges, Ludacris
Votes: 130,165 | Gross: $40.69M
25. The Punisher (1989)
R | 89 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
When Frank Castle's family is murdered by criminals, he wages war on crime as a vigilante assassin known only as The Punisher.
Director: Mark Goldblatt | Stars: Dolph Lundgren, Louis Gossett Jr., Jeroen Krabbé, Kim Miyori
Votes: 25,788
26. Dirty Harry (1971)
R | 102 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
When a man calling himself "the Scorpio Killer" menaces San Francisco, tough-as-nails Police Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan is assigned to track down the crazed psychopath.
Directors: Don Siegel, Clint Eastwood | Stars: Clint Eastwood, Andrew Robinson, Harry Guardino, Reni Santoni
Votes: 168,250 | Gross: $35.90M
27. Mystic River (2003)
R | 138 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The tragic murder of a 19-year-old girl reunites three childhood friends still living in Boston--the victim's gangster father, a detective, and the disturbed man they both suspect of killing her.
Director: Clint Eastwood | Stars: Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon, Emmy Rossum
Votes: 485,736 | Gross: $90.14M
28. Breakdown (I) (1997)
R | 93 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A man searches for his missing wife after his car breaks down in the middle of the desert.
Director: Jonathan Mostow | Stars: Kurt Russell, J.T. Walsh, Kathleen Quinlan, M.C. Gainey
Votes: 61,689 | Gross: $50.13M
29. The Brave One (2007)
R | 122 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Struggling to recover emotionally from a brutal assault that killed her fiancé and left her in a coma, a radio personality begins a quest for vengeance against the perpetrators that leaves a bloody trail across New York City.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Jodie Foster, Terrence Howard, Naveen Andrews, Nicky Katt
Votes: 63,485 | Gross: $36.79M
30. Night City (I) (2015)
105 min | Action, Crime, Drama
The disturbed young loner Paul is looking for his place in life in the urban 80s metropolis Night City. When the sleazy city infused with crime and violence pushes him to the edge, he ... See full summary »
Director: Dennis Vehlen | Stars: Dennis Vehlen, Jana Lisa Neuber, Kai Henschel, René de la Vigne
Votes: 23
31. Death Wish 3 (1985)
R | 90 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Architect/vigilante Paul Kersey arrives back in New York City and is forcibly recruited by a crooked police chief to fight street crime caused by a large gang terrorizing the neighborhoods.
Director: Michael Winner | Stars: Charles Bronson, Deborah Raffin, Ed Lauter, Martin Balsam
Votes: 17,369 | Gross: $16.12M
32. In the Blood (I) (2014)
R | 108 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
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.
Director: John Stockwell | Stars: Gina Carano, Cam Gigandet, Ismael Cruz Cordova, Danny Trejo
Votes: 13,111
33. The Fourth Angel (2001)
R | 96 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
A man seeks justice after his wife and two daughters are gunned down in a terrorist attack.
Director: John Irvin | Stars: Jeremy Irons, Forest Whitaker, Jason Priestley, Briony Glassco
Votes: 3,326
34. Taxi Driver (1976)
R | 114 min | Crime, Drama
A mentally unstable veteran works as a nighttime taxi driver in New York City, where the perceived decadence and sleaze fuels his urge for violent action.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Albert Brooks
Votes: 920,239 | Gross: $28.26M
35. Punisher: War Zone (2008)
R | 103 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Frank Castle, known as the Punisher, ruthlessly demolishes organized crime, but it starts an even bigger war.
Director: Lexi Alexander | Stars: Ray Stevenson, Dominic West, Julie Benz, Doug Hutchison
Votes: 67,153 | Gross: $8.05M
36. The Equalizer 2 (2018)
R | 121 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Robert McCall serves an unflinching justice for the exploited and oppressed, but how far will he go when that is someone he loves?
Director: Antoine Fuqua | Stars: Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, Ashton Sanders, Orson Bean
Votes: 197,567 | Gross: $102.08M
37. Cutter's Way (1981)
R | 109 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Richard spots a man dumping a body, and decides to expose the man he thinks is the culprit with his friend Alex Cutter.
Director: Ivan Passer | Stars: Jeff Bridges, John Heard, Lisa Eichhorn, Ann Dusenberry
Votes: 7,632 | Gross: $1.73M
38. Outlaw (2007)
R | 103 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A group of people who feel betrayed by their government and let down by their Police force form a modern-day outlaw posse in order to right what they see as the wrongs of society.
Director: Nick Love | Stars: Sean Bean, Danny Dyer, Rupert Friend, Sean Harris
Votes: 12,809
39. Above the Law (1988)
R | 99 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A former Special Operations Vietnam vet works as a Chicago cop, and uncovers C.I.A. wrongdoing.
Director: Andrew Davis | Stars: Steven Seagal, Pam Grier, Henry Silva, Ron Dean
Votes: 34,603 | Gross: $18.87M
40. Mr. Majestyk (1974)
PG | 103 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A melon farmer battles organized crime and a hit man who wants to kill him.
Director: Richard Fleischer | Stars: Charles Bronson, Linda Cristal, Al Lettieri, Lee Purcell
Votes: 9,810 | Gross: $0.13M
41. Jack Reacher (2012)
PG-13 | 130 min | Action, Mystery, Thriller
A homicide investigator digs deeper into a case involving a trained military sniper responsible for a mass shooting.
Director: Christopher McQuarrie | Stars: Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Richard Jenkins, Werner Herzog
Votes: 364,956 | Gross: $80.07M
42. Death Sentence (2007)
R | 105 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Nick Hume is a mild-mannered executive with a perfect life, until one gruesome night he witnesses something that changes him forever. Transformed by grief, Hume eventually comes to the disturbing conclusion that no length is too great when protecting his family.
Director: James Wan | Stars: Kevin Bacon, John Goodman, Kelly Preston, Garrett Hedlund
Votes: 74,823 | Gross: $9.53M
43. Street Knight (1993)
R | 91 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A former cop returns to challenge a plot to escalate gang violence in the streets of Los Angeles.
Director: Albert Magnoli | Stars: Jeff Speakman, Christopher Neame, Lewis Van Bergen, Jennifer Gatti
Votes: 881 | Gross: $0.84M
44. Walking Tall (1973)
R | 125 min | Action, Biography, Crime
Based on the life of Tennessee sheriff Buford Pusser, who almost single-handily cleaned up his small town of crime and corruption, but at a personal cost of his family life and nearly his own life.
Director: Phil Karlson | Stars: Joe Don Baker, Elizabeth Hartman, Leif Garrett, Dawn Lyn
Votes: 6,747 | Gross: $4.75M
45. The Foreigner (I) (2017)
R | 113 min | Action, Thriller
A humble businessman with a buried past seeks justice when his daughter is killed in an act of terrorism. A cat-and-mouse conflict ensues with a government official, whose past may hold clues to the killers' identities.
Director: Martin Campbell | Stars: Katie Leung, Jackie Chan, Rufus Jones, Mark Tandy
Votes: 123,261 | Gross: $34.39M
46. Night Hunter (2018)
R | 98 min | Action, Thriller
A weathered Lieutenant, his police force, and a local vigilante are all caught up in a dangerous scheme involving a troubled, recently-arrested man who's linked to years of female abductions and murders.
Director: David Raymond | Stars: Henry Cavill, Ben Kingsley, Alexandra Daddario, Stanley Tucci
Votes: 27,006
47. Man on Fire (2004)
R | 146 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In Mexico City, a former CIA operative swears vengeance on those who committed an unspeakable act against the family he was hired to protect.
Director: Tony Scott | Stars: Denzel Washington, Christopher Walken, Dakota Fanning, Radha Mitchell
Votes: 389,462 | Gross: $77.91M
48. 10 to Midnight (1983)
R | 101 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
An LAPD detective and his rookie partner are on the trail of a psychopathic young man who is murdering young women.
Director: J. Lee Thompson | Stars: Charles Bronson, Lisa Eilbacher, Andrew Stevens, Gene Davis
Votes: 9,347 | Gross: $7.10M
49. Nobody (I) (2021)
R | 92 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A docile family man slowly reveals his true character after his house gets burgled by two petty thieves, which, coincidentally, leads him into a bloody war with a Russian crime boss.
Director: Ilya Naishuller | Stars: Bob Odenkirk, Aleksey Serebryakov, Connie Nielsen, Christopher Lloyd
Votes: 324,196 | Gross: $27.27M
50. Peppermint (2018)
R | 101 min | Action, Thriller
Five years after her husband and daughter are killed in a senseless act of violence, a woman comes back from self-imposed exile to seek revenge against those responsible and the system that let them go free.
Director: Pierre Morel | Stars: Jennifer Garner, John Gallagher Jr., John Ortiz, Juan Pablo Raba
Votes: 70,865 | Gross: $35.42M
51. Fire with Fire (II) (2012)
R | 97 min | Action, Crime, Mystery
A fireman takes an unexpected course of action when a man whom he's been ordered to testify against, after being held up at a local convenience store, threatens him.
Director: David Barrett | Stars: Josh Duhamel, Bruce Willis, Rosario Dawson, Vincent D'Onofrio
Votes: 27,590
52. Dead Man's Shoes (2004)
Not Rated | 90 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A disaffected soldier returns to his hometown to get even with the thugs who brutalized his mentally-challenged brother years ago.
Director: Shane Meadows | Stars: Paddy Considine, Gary Stretch, Toby Kebbell, Stuart Wolfenden
Votes: 58,354 | Gross: $0.01M
53. Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016)
PG-13 | 118 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Jack Reacher must uncover the truth behind a major government conspiracy in order to clear his name while on the run as a fugitive from the law.
Director: Edward Zwick | Stars: Tom Cruise, Cobie Smulders, Aldis Hodge, Robert Knepper
Votes: 175,239 | Gross: $58.70M
54. Hotel Fear (1978)
92 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A mother and her daughter run a hotel during the late stages of WWII. The mother suddenly dies, and the daughter finds herself alone with her sleazy guests.
Director: Francesco Barilli | Stars: Luc Merenda, Leonora Fani, Francisco Rabal, Jole Fierro
Votes: 922
55. Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003)
R | 111 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
After awakening from a four-year coma, a former assassin wreaks vengeance on the team of assassins who betrayed her.
Director: Quentin Tarantino | Stars: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah, Michael Madsen
Votes: 1,193,285 | Gross: $70.10M
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