Summary

• The Gentlemen tells the story of an American expatriate running a cannabis empire in London, mixing action and comedy in a slick crime story.
• Director Guy Ritchie's style perfectly complements this story, but there are many more movies out there like The Gentlemen.
• Movies like Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels share some of the same elements, exploring the stories of colorful collections of characters who eventually come together to tell a wider crime story.

The Gentlemen was Guy Ritchie's much-anticipated return to the slick crime stories that started his career, but when looking for movies like The Gentlemen, fans can look beyond Ritchie's own filmography as well. Like Snatch and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, The Gentlemen brings a colorful collection of characters together to tell a wider crime story with interweaving plots and an all-star cast that includes Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Hugh Grant, and Colin Farrell.

The Gentlemen movie centers around an American expatriate running a cannabis empire in London. While The Gentlemen TV series will satisfy fans of the movie, there are other great films that are similar available to enjoy as well. Movies like The Gentlemen mix the crime element with a sense of comedy. They often feature shady yet charming protagonists, memorable ensembles of characters, and a classy style that makes it all the more enjoyable to revisit. Despite The Gentlemen having its own unique qualities, there are likely a number of great movies that fit the bill.

20 Pulp Fiction (1994)

Intersecting Stories Of Criminals In Los Angeles

Pulp Fiction is one of the most influential movies of the 1990s and the movie that cemented Quentin Tarantino as a fresh filmmaking voice of his generation. The movie is another huge ensemble of characters like hitmen, boxers, and a gangster's wife who all make up the larger wild adventure taking place over a couple of days in the crime world of Los Angeles.

While The Gentlemen is original in its own ways, it was (like so many other movies like it) clearly influenced by Pulp Fiction with its intersecting stories and unique chronological approach. Despite its violence, Pulp Fiction is secretly a comedy movie with it proving there can be big laughs in dark material. The movie was a cultural hit and won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.

19 The Limey (1999)

A British Gangster Heads To LA To Avenge His Daughter

The Gentlemen has elements of its central character being somewhat of a fish-out-of-water, with Matthew McConaughey's American gangster working in the UK to establish his business. However, The Limey previously flipped The Gentlemen's concept with a British gangster visiting LA. Terrence Stamp stars in the Steven Soderbergh movie as a Cockney gangster who seeks the man who killed his daughter.

A great genre blend that feels like a mix between gritty British crime movies of the 70s and a more easygoing LA crime story.

Though it is a revenge tale, The Limey also has a fun energy with Stamp's charming lead performance as well as Peter Fonda's unexpected villain. It makes for a great genre blend that feels like a mix between gritty British crime movies of the 70s and a more easygoing LA crime story.

18 Get Shorty (1995)

A Mob Enforcer Decides To Produce A Movie

Elmore Leonard is one of the greatest crime authors of all time, and he helped develop a writing style that humanizes gangsters like the ones in The Gentlemen simply by having them talk like ordinary people. The characters in The Gentlemen are in the middle of a dangerous job, but they also have mundane, relatable moments as humans — something Get Shorty perfected way back in 1995.

Fans of the unforgettable and well-rounded characters in The Gentlemen will find Get Shorty more than scratches the same itch.

Get Shorty stars John Travolta as a gangster who decides to get into the movie business. The crime element mixed with the world of Hollywood is a lot of fun, especially with an all-star cast that includes Danny DeVito, Rene Russo, Gene Hackman, Delroy Lindo, and James Gandolfini. Fans of the unforgettable and well-rounded characters in The Gentlemen will find Get Shorty more than scratches the same itch.

17 Layer Cake (2004)

A Non-Violent Drug Dealer Is Drawn Into A Dangerous Feud

Matthew Vaughn's first movie showed a slick and stylish side to him that is a far cry from his later bombastic movies, but Layer Cake remains his best. Before Daniel Craig was 007, he starred in this British crime movie that, like The Gentlemen, follows a gangster in the drug business who is looking for a path to a legitimate way of life but finds dangerous obstacles around every corner.

Daniel Craig is terrific in Layer Cake as the lifelong criminal who is far from the deadly gangsters normally seen in the genre. He is joined by an excellent cast that includes a number of future stars like Sienna Miller, Ben Whishaw, and Tom Hardy.

16 Sexy Beast (2000)

An Ex-Criminal Is Visited By His Ruthless Former Associate

Sexy Beast is an underrated British crime thriller that fans of The Gentlemen will be sure to enjoy. It stars Ray Winstone as a former criminal who is living a life of retirement and peace in Spain when a former associate named Don Logan (Ben Kingsley) arrives to convince him to do another job and will not take no for an answer. Like The Gentlemen, there is a central theme of the tension that comes with someone getting pulled back into the crime life they are trying to remove themselves from.

It is also a movie featuring more conversations between criminals than actual crimes with a simmering sense of dread whenever Logan is on screen. Kingsley earned an Oscar nomination for his fiery and hugely entertaining performance.

15 Seven Psychopaths (2012)

A Struggling Writer And His Unusual Friends Kidnap A Gangster’s Beloved Shih Tzu

This bizarre crime tale from writer and director Martin McDonaugh is made up of various intersecting stories and characters revolving around Colin Farrell's beleaguered screenwriter and his dog-kidnapping associates

This bizarre crime tale from writer and director Martin McDonaugh is made up of various intersecting stories and characters revolving around Colin Farrell's beleaguered screenwriter and his dog-kidnapping associates. As he struggles with his unfinished script about a group of violent men, Farrell's protagonist finds himself in the crosshairs thanks to his loose canon friend (Sam Rockwell).

An equally enjoyable meta movie experience to The Gentlemen, Seven Psychopaths dazzles with its talented ensemble, keeps the audience hooked with turns in its story, and glues everything together with copious amounts of very dark comedy.

14 The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

The Rise And Fall Of Jordan Belfort

Leonardo DiCaprio shines as Wall Street crook Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street, a breathlessly fast-paced style of iconic director Martin Scorsese. Matthew McConaughey also appears in a relatively brief — but totally scene-stealing — role as a mentor to the still-budding Belfort on his journey down into a shameless pit of excess and greed.

Though Scorsese's most famous crime movies usually focus on the mafia rather than white-collar criminals, The Wolf of Wall Street shares its most central themes and every bit of their exuberance and insight into the lives and mentality of its extraordinary, yet relatable, characters. This also thematically resonates with The Gentlemen, especially thanks to the appearances of Matthe McConaughey.

13 Gringo (2018)

The Calamitous Collision Between Several Intersecting Crime Stories

In Gringo, a downtrodden middle management nobody at a pharmaceutical company fakes his own kidnapping in Mexico and begins a calamitous collision between several intersecting crime stories going on around him involving betrayal, cartel crime, and the pursuit of a revolutionary marijuana pill that could change the drug market forever.

David Oyelowo delivers an outstanding performance at the head of Gringo's star-studded cast, bouncing off of hilarious turns from Charlize Theron and Sharlto Copley in particular. It is the kind of crime movie like The Gentlemen in which the fun comes from seeing how deep into trouble the characters get and how they can hope to crawl their way back.

12 Goodfellas (1990)

The Story Of Infamous Mobster Henry Hill

Martin Scorsese defined his distinct crime movie style with this quick-fire masterpiece about the whirlwind gangster life of infamous mobster Henry Hill. Goodfellas remains funny, frenzied, and fantastic filmmaking that sits comfortably above most other movies in general, let alone those in the crime genre. Like almost every gangster film released after it, Goodfellas influence on The Gentlemen becomes clear in a single viewing.

Every mafia movie, and certainly most crime movies in general, released after Goodfellas has copied it in some way or another

Henry Hill's never-ending battle to keep his life of crime kicking results in a saga of bigger and bigger highs, setting up an brutal yet entertaining fall. Every mafia movie, and certainly most crime movies in general, released after Goodfellas has copied it in some way or another and the dynamic between the compelling cast of characters is, for all intents and purposes, flawless.

11 Smokin' Aces (2006)

A Performer-Turned-Snitch Decides To Testify Against The Mob

One of the more cult movies like The Gentlemen is 2006's Smokin' Aces, which weaves a similarly multilayered tale featuring a stacked ensemble cast. A Las Vegas entertainer/wannabe gangster finds himself at the end of his wild ride and facing a death sentence from the mafia when his supposed hit is complicated by several opportunistic parties looking to capture or kill the titular Buddy 'Aces' Israel.

Joe Carnahan's highly-stylized crime comedy thriller is packed to the brim with action sequences

Joe Carnahan's highly-stylized crime comedy thriller is packed to the brim with action sequences and just about every kind of eye-grabbing trick and twist that it can fit up its sleeve as its colorful assortment of characters converges in a hotel in Lake Tahoe in pursuit of their prize. The movie also has a fantastic cast that includes Chris Pine, Alicia Keys, Ryan Reynolds, and Ben Affleck.

10 RocknRolla (2008)

A Crooked Land Deal Goes Wrong

Even though RocknRolla came out over a decade ago and features stars like Gerard Butler, Idris Elba, and Tom Hardy, it failed to win mainstream attention. However, there's no doubt that fans of the fast-paced action film The Gentlemen will find this lesser-known Guy Ritchie movie quite a treat.

The movie is essentially a battle of the hungriest and most powerful gangsters in London who are overpowered by an unexpected player.

Before The Gentlemen, RocknRolla was Ritchie dipping his toes back into the crime world with a madcap story. The movie is essentially a battle of the hungriest and most powerful gangsters in London who are overpowered by an unexpected player. Full of twists, turns, and enough action to ignite a fire, RocknRolla makes for an amazing watching experience.

Despite the end credits teasing a sequel, RocknRolla 2 still has yet to be released.

9 The Snitch Cartel (2011)

The Story Of Andres Lopez

This Colombian American movie isn't exactly regarded as a fantastic piece of art, but it's still entertaining and thrilling enough to satisfy the fans of The Gentlemen thanks to its focus on the narcotics trade. Snitch Cartel is the story of a young man who sees his path to fortune and success by getting into the drug trafficking game.

The lack of well-known actors takes the experience to a whole other level — real, raw, and intense.

While it focuses on the lower-level drug figures trying to make it in the business, rather than the kingpins in The Gentlemen, it is still an energetic and fast-paced ride through this dangerous world. The lack of well-known actors takes the experience to a whole other level — real, raw, and intense.

8 Savages (2012)

Pot Growers Ben And Shon Face The Mexican Cartel Who Kidnapped Their Girlfriend

Savages has a very different pace from movies directed by Guy Ritchie, including The Gentlemen. However, it's the slower beginning and the softer undertones that make the increasingly tense atmosphere feel even more intense. Starring Blake Lively as the girlfriend of pot growers Ben and Shon, the movie follows the two male protagonists as they face the Mexican cartel who kidnapped Lively's O.

The relationship between the lead characters provides an emotional anchor not always seen in movies like The Gentlemen

The relationship between the lead characters provides an emotional anchor not always seen in movies like The Gentlemen, and it makes the ensuing action all the more exciting. While the ending of Savages is very controversial, the experience leading up to it is a fun ride.

7 Brannigan (1975)

A Chicago Police Lieutenant Escorts A Crime Boss Back To The U.S.

While the recent wonders of technology have been able to elevate the genre to new heights, there's nothing quite like the charm brought by '70s gangster movies. Brannigan is a 1975 film that follows Chicago Police Lieutenant Jim Brannigan as he flies to the United Kingdom to escort an infamous crime boss back to the States. However, the stakes are high, and Brannigan finds himself in an intense life-or-death situation.

The similar fish-out-of-water approach as The Gentlemen provides some fun cultural clashes, especially with American movie icon John Wayne in the titular role. This is Wayne attempting his hand at the Dirty Harry-type role, and while it doesn't work quite as effectively as Clint Eastwood's transition from Westerns to crime dramas, it is a fun old-school gem.

6 Snatch (2000)

A Colorful Group Of Characters Search For A Priceless Diamond

Undeniably one of Guy Ritchie's biggest masterpieces and achievements, Snatch captures all the best aspects of his filmmaking and writing style that he attempted to revive in The Gentlemen. Snatch is another crime ensemble that follows a colorful group of characters, from an American gangster to an Irish boxer to a trio of hapless thieves, all intersecting as they search for a priceless diamond.

The movie is funny and slick with a great sense of humor that leans more into laughs than thrills, meaning that Snatch is one of the most quotable Guy Ritchie movies. Ritchie assembles a terrific cast that is a mix of his frequent collaborators, like Jason Statham and Vinnie Jones, as well as big-name stars like Brad Pitt and Benicio Del Toro. The result is one of the most rewatchable and fun British crime movies of all time.

5 Pineapple Express (2008)

A Group Of Stoners Run From Hitmen

This Golden Globe-nominated film strikes the perfect balance between comedy and action. Starring Seth Rogen and James Franco, Pineapple Express has all the makings of a Guy Ritchie movie like The Gentlemen if it were produced by American comedy filmmaker Judd Apatow. When a process server and his marijuana dealer find themselves on the run from very dangerous mobsters, a wild hunt ensues, with plenty of hilarious and action-packed moments in between.

There is some great action set pieces, but the movie's real draw is its nonstop laughs.

It is a brilliant idea to make a full-blown action movie with useless stoners as the protagonists. Rogen is as funny as always, but Franco surprised a lot of people by delivering a hilarious performance that was a far cry from his more serious work up until that point. There is some great action set pieces, but the movie's real draw is its nonstop laughs.

4 99 and 44/100% Dead (1974)

A Vintage War Between Gang Bosses

The title of 99 and 44/100% Dead alone is enough to pique someone's interest, but the good things don't stop there. This relatively obscure and forgotten movie from the '70s might not be a classic, but there's a lot to love here. In a typical war between gang bosses, the movie follows Big Eddie and Uncle Frank in a hilarious yet violent battle to consistently one-up each other in the most ridiculous ways.

It wouldn't be a surprise if the older movie was an inspiration to Ritchie as a filmmaker.

The kind of madcap style with zany characters resonate with The Gentlemen despite the many decades between the two movie's release dates, and it wouldn't be a surprise if the older movie was an inspiration to Ritchie as a filmmaker.

3 Interview With A Hitman (2012)

An Elite Hitman Deals With The Dangers Of His Past

2012's Interview With A Hitman adopts a much more serious and somber tone than many other movies like The Gentlemen, choosing drama and crime as the main drivers of a thrilling and suspenseful plot. The audience joins a ruthless Eastern European assassin as he navigates the dangers of his past coming back to haunt him as he tries to find peace with a new crime family.

While it might not be as much fun as the romp of The Gentlemen, the movie is another look at a crime figure who is flawed but not evil and trying to make the most of the dangerous world they are in.

2 The Long Good Friday (1982)

Things Go Wrong As A Crime Boss Attempts To Go Straight

The Long Good Friday appears to have been a huge influence on The Gentlemen, with some scenes in Guy Ritchie's movie directly paying homage to ones from the excellent British crime movie from the 1980s. Bob Hoskins stars in the movie as a crime boss who is attempting to go straight by selling off his business to the American mafia. However, as the deal draws near. He runs into one catastrophe after another that threatens to destroy everything.

The premise is very similar to Ritchie's movie, and The Long Good Friday is one of the best gangster movies to come out of the 1980s.

The premise is very similar to Ritchie's movie, and The Long Good Friday is one of the best gangster movies to come out of the 1980s. Hoskins is a wonderful lead, a man who can be ruthless and intimidating, but also loves his wife (played by Helen Mirren) and jokes around with his friends. The movie also includes one of the most impactful final shots in movie history.

1 Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels (1998)

A Group Of Criminals Find Themselves Tangled Up In A Series Of Weird Events

Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels is up there with Snatch when it comes to Guy Ritchie's best career moments, and as far as movies like The Gentlemen go, it doesn't get much better. Much like other Guy Ritchie projects fans have come to love, this movie is a raw and authentic collection of characters and side-plots. Cannabis growers, gangsters, loan sharks, and general thugs find themselves tangled up in a series of weird, hilarious, and action-packed events, in true Ritchie fashion.

A terrific introduction to the distinct rhythm of Ritchie's movies.

It is a terrific introduction to the distinct rhythm of Ritchie's movies. While it is smaller in budget and scale compared to his later movies, it captures the same energetic and thrilling pace that makes his movies so fun to watch. Watching Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels alongside The Gentlemen shows how far Ritchie has come as a filmmaker while also showing that he has had fun sticking to his roots.