Movies Like A Shock to the System

If you liked A Shock to the System (1990), a crime and comedy movie directed by Jan Egleson, here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
Phone Booth (2003)
★ 6.9/10Also crime
A slick New York publicist who picks up a ringing receiver in a phone booth is told that if he hangs up, he'll be killed... and the little red light from a laser rifle sight is proof that the caller isn't kidding.
2
The Woman in the Window (2021)
★ 6/10Also crime
An agoraphobic woman living alone in New York begins spying on her new neighbors only to witness a disturbing act of violence.
3
The Killer (2023)
★ 6.6/10Also crime
After a fateful miss, an assassin battles his employers, and himself, on an international manhunt he insists isn't personal.
4
Psycho Therapy: The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write About a Serial Killer (2025)
★ 6.8/10Also crime and comedy
A struggling writer in the midst of a divorce befriends a retired serial killer who incidentally becomes his marriage counselor by day, and killing counselor for his next book by night.
5
Q & A (1990)
★ 5.9/10Also crime
A young district attorney seeking to prove a case against a corrupt police detective encounters a former lover and her new protector, a crime boss who refuses to help him.
6
The Big Heat (1953)
★ 7.7/10Also crime
After the suspicious suicide of a fellow cop, tough homicide detective Dave Bannion takes the law into his own hands when he sets out to smash a vicious crime syndicate.
7
Killing Them Softly (2012)
★ 6/10Also crime
Jackie Cogan is an enforcer hired to restore order after three dumb guys rob a Mob protected card game, causing the local criminal economy to collapse.
8
Reasonable Doubt (2014)
★ 5.8/10Also crime
When up-and-coming District Attorney Mitch Brockden commits a fatal hit-and-run, he feels compelled to throw the case against the accused criminal who was found with the body and blamed for the crime. Following the…
9
Rise of the Footsoldier (2007)
★ 6.4/10Also crime
Carlton Leach rises from one of the most feared generals of the football terraces to becoming a member of a notorious gang of criminals who rampaged their way through London and Essex in the late '80s and early '90s.
10
The Woman in Cabin 10 (2025)
★ 6.2/10Also crime
On a lavish yacht for an assignment, a journalist sees a passenger go overboard. But when no one believes her, she risks her life to uncover the truth.
11
Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman (2021)
★ 6.6/10Also crime
Set in a gritty and decadent 1970s America, American Boogeyman follows the elusive and charming killer and the manhunt that brought him to justice involving the detective and the FBI rookie who coined the phrase…
12
Caught Stealing (2025)
★ 6.8/10Also crime and comedy
Burned-out ex-baseball player Hank Thompson unexpectedly finds himself embroiled in a dangerous struggle for survival amidst the criminal underbelly of late 1990s New York City, forced to navigate a treacherous…
13
The Anderson Tapes (1971)
★ 6.2/10Also crime
Thief Duke Anderson—just released from ten years in jail—takes up with his old girlfriend in her posh apartment block, and makes plans to rob the entire building. What he doesn't know is that his every move is being…
14
Blitz (2011)
★ 6.2/10Also crime
A tough cop is dispatched to take down a serial killer who has been targeting police officers.
15
Legend (2015)
★ 7/10Also crime
Suave, charming and volatile, Reggie Kray and his unstable twin brother Ronnie start to leave their mark on the London underworld in the 1960s. Using violence to get what they want, the siblings orchestrate robberies…
16
Wardriver (2026)
★ 7.4/10Also crime
He’s a Wardriver: a hacker who steals from banks, not people—until he’s noticed. Now the money turns violent, and the woman caught in it could save him or kill them both.
17
Parker (2013)
★ 6.1/10Also crime
A thief with a unique code of professional ethics is double-crossed by his crew and left for dead. Assuming a new disguise and forming an unlikely alliance with a woman on the inside, he looks to hijack the score of…
18
Balls Up (2026)
★ 5.8/10Also comedy
Two marketing executives go "balls out" and pitch a bold full‑coverage condom sponsorship with the World Cup. After their drunken celebration in Brazil sparks a global scandal, they must outrun furious fans, criminals…
19
Seven Psychopaths (2012)
★ 6.8/10Also comedy and crime
A struggling screenwriter inadvertently becomes entangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends kidnap a gangster's beloved Shih Tzu.
20
11:14 (2004)
★ 6.8/10Also comedy and crime
Tells the seemingly random yet vitally connected story of a set of incidents that all converge one evening at 11:14pm. The story follows the chain of events of five different characters and five different storylines…