30 Gripping Crime Dramas from 2002 You Need to See

The Legend of Al, John and Jack

2002 • 105 min

Comedy, Crime

During the Depression, three unlucky gangsters – Al, John, and Jack – discover their boss wants them dead. They devise a plan to betray him and sell him to the FBI, but Al's memory problems complicate their scheme.

7.1

6.5

El bonaerense

2002 • 105 min • Box office $410K

Drama, Crime

Zapa is a locksmith living in a small, quiet town in Buenos Aires province. After a mistake lands him in trouble, his uncle – a retired police officer – helps him by getting him released and sending him to Buenos…

6.8

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The Barber

2002 • 94 min

Horror, Crime, Mystery

In the Alaskan town of Revelstoke, barber Dexter is shocked by the news that Lucy Waters' body has been found. He had killed her days earlier, hoping the remains would remain undiscovered until spring. The story unfolds from the perspective…

5.6

5.7

17+

The Hard Word

2002 • 102 min

Action, Comedy, Crime

Three brothers, imprisoned for bank robbery, find a lucrative, though questionable, way to pass the time. Crime can be profitable, if you understand. But when relationships complicate the dynamic between the criminals and the police, the results become strange and…

5.4

6.0

17+

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29 Palms

2002 • 93 min • Budget $5M

Comedy, Crime, Drama

A casino experiences a theft when a bag of money disappears, and the Hitman (Chris O'Donnell) is tasked with recovering it. His pursuit leads him through a series of transfers, with the bag passing through the hands of the Drifter…

4.6

4.7

17+

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The Missing Gun

2002 • 90 min

Comedy, Crime, Drama

Following a night of heavy drinking, a police officer finds himself without his service weapon. He desperately searches for the lost revolver while also pursuing the killer responsible for the death of his former lover.

7.0

6.6

13+

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Lupin the Third: Episode 0: First Contact

2002 • 90 min

Animation, TV Movie, Action

It all begins with a robbery! Lupin III and Fujiko both want an ancient artifact that Jigen is protecting, while Goemon is searching for his clan's lost treasure in the same area. Naturally, Inspector Zenigata is hot on their trail.…

6.6

7.5

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Stark Raving Mad

2002 • 101 min • Budget $5M • Box office $54K

Comedy, Crime, Action

A criminal secretly plans to get even with the powerful boss who ordered his brother's death while they were working together.

6.1

6.2

17+

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Buffalo Soldiers

2002 • 98 min • Budget $15M • Box office $2M

Drama, Comedy, War

Just before the Berlin Wall comes down, a hidden criminal world thrives among American soldiers stationed in West Germany.

6.3

6.7

17+

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Better Luck Tomorrow

2002 • 101 min • Budget $250K • Box office $3M

Crime, Drama, Romance

A group of high-achieving Asian-American seniors become emboldened by a sense of control as they become involved in illegal activities outside of school.

6.3

7.0

17+

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Whatever You Say

2002 • 110 min

Crime, Drama, Thriller

Bastien, a driven young production assistant, impresses respected producer Jean-Louis and earns the opportunity to create his own television program.

5.7

6.0

Deuces Wild

2002 • 96 min • Budget $10M • Box office $6M

Action, Crime, Drama

In 1950s New York City, a violent gang war is brewing on the streets of Brooklyn between the Deuces and the ruthless Vipers.

5.5

5.6

17+

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+12

Madame Satã

2002 • 105 min

Crime, Drama, Romance

Rio de Janeiro, 1930s. João Francisco dos Santos exists on the fringes of society – a man with a complicated past as the son of slaves, a former convict, and known for his rough behavior. He's also a protector to…

6.8

7.0

Old Men in New Cars: In China They Eat Dogs II

2002 • 95 min • Box office $144K

Action, Comedy, Crime

On his deathbed, the aging Monk's final request is for his adopted son, Harald, to locate his biological son, Ludvig. However, Ludvig is currently incarcerated in a Swedish prison.

6.7

AIBOU: Tokyo Detective Duo

2010 • 107 min

Documentary

Across America, rural landowners are suddenly offered lucrative deals from energy companies to lease their land. The companies are eager to tap into a vast natural gas supply, often called the "Saudi Arabia of natural gas." Using a new hydraulic…

7.1

7.6

City of God

2002 • 129 min • Budget $3M • Box office $30M

Drama, Crime

In 1970s Rio de Janeiro's impoverished favelas, two young men make contrasting choices. Rocket is an aspiring photographer who documents the escalating drug violence in his community. Meanwhile, José "Zé" Pequeno is an ambitious newcomer to the dangerous world of…

8.4

8.6

17+

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Dark Blue

2002 • 118 min • Budget $15M • Box office $12M

Crime, Thriller

Against the backdrop of the 1992 Rodney King riots, a robbery and homicide investigation sets off a chain of events that forces a corrupt LAPD officer to reconsider his methods.

6.2

6.6

17+

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Paid in Full

2002 • 98 min • Box office $3M

Action, Crime, Drama

Ace, a young man easily influenced, works at a dry cleaning shop. His friend Mitch, a drug dealer, is sent to prison. Separately, Ace discovers cocaine in a pair of pants. He soon begins dealing cocaine for Lulu and rapidly…

6.8

7.0

17+

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Heaven

2002 • 96 min • Budget $11M • Box office $4M

Drama, Thriller, Romance

After police fail to act on her requests to arrest the man who killed her husband, a woman decides to seek justice herself. She soon finds herself accused of murder and unexpectedly developing feelings for the officer investigating the case.

6.4

6.9

17+

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Analyze That

2002 • 96 min • Budget $60M • Box office $55M

Comedy, Crime

After a prison stay, mobster Paul Vitti seeks counseling from his analyst, Dr. Ben Sobel. However, Sobel is overwhelmed; he's recently taken over the family practice and is burdened with his own considerable stress.

5.8

5.9

17+

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Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

2002 • 113 min • Budget $30M • Box office $33M

Comedy, Crime, Drama

Chuck Barris achieved fame as a television producer, but his most significant work occurred in secret. While working in television, Barris allegedly accepted a recruitment offer from the CIA and underwent training to become a covert operative. This is according…

6.7

7.0

17+

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Trapped

2002 • 106 min • Budget $30M • Box office $13M

Thriller, Crime

When their daughter is kidnapped by professionals, the Jennings family fights back against the meticulously crafted scheme.

6.2

6.1

17+

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City by the Sea

2002 • 108 min • Budget $40M • Box office $22M

Crime, Drama, Mystery

Detective Vincent LaMarca is a highly respected NYPD officer who has carefully built a life away from his troubled past. His world is shattered when he discovers his own son has become involved in criminal activity.

5.8

6.1

17+

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Murder by Numbers

2002 • 120 min • Budget $50M • Box office $56M

Crime, Drama, Thriller

Detective Cassie Mayweather, a determined homicide investigator, and her new partner are investigating a murder. They're trying to understand two young men who are exceptionally intelligent but deeply cruel – killers whose hidden pasts may hold the key to their…

6.2

17+

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Shottas

2002 • 95 min • Budget $200K

Action, Adventure, Crime

This is a gritty urban drama following two friends from the dangerous streets of Kingston, Jamaica. Biggs and Wayne embrace a life of crime to survive. Starting as young boys, they become involved in criminal activity and eventually relocate to…

7.6

6.1

17+

Stream on

+10

D-Tox

2002 • 96 min • Budget $55M • Box office $6M

Thriller, Crime, Horror

A former FBI agent struggling with alcohol joins nine other law enforcement officers with personal problems at a remote detox center in Wyoming. When a severe snowstorm isolates the clinic, a killer among them begins to strike.

5.6

5.4

17+

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+12

Blood Work

2002 • 110 min • Budget $50M • Box office $31M

Thriller, Crime, Action

A retired FBI profiler, recovering from a heart transplant, is pulled back into work. An analysis of his own blood reveals information that helps identify a serial killer.

6.2

6.4

17+

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John Q

2002 • 116 min • Budget $36M • Box office $102M

Drama, Thriller, Crime

John Quincy Archibald is a father and husband whose son is diagnosed with an enlarged heart. He later learns a transplant is not possible due to HMO insurance denial. Consequently, he takes a hospital full of patients hostage, demanding the…

7.1

13+

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Ted Bundy

2002 • 99 min • Budget $1M • Box office $68K

Crime, Horror

Seattle, 1974. Ted Bundy succumbs to his violent impulses and begins a nationwide killing spree, leaving behind a trail of victims who have been raped, tortured, murdered, dismembered, and sexually violated.

5.7

5.8

17+

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Irreversible

2002 • 93 min • Budget $3M • Box office $6M

Drama, Thriller, Crime

After a woman is brutally raped, her lover and her ex-boyfriend decide to take matters into their own hands. Driven by the belief that some wrongs can't be forgiven, fueled by primal rage, and frustrated by the failures of the…

7.2

7.3

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