Movies Like Runaway Blues

If you liked Runaway Blues (1988), a crime movie directed by David Lai Tai-wai, 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
As Tears Go By (1988)
★ 7/10Also crime
Mid-level gangster Wah falls in love with his beautiful cousin, but must also continue to protect his volatile partner-in-crime and friend, Fly.
2
Election (2005)
★ 7.2/10Also crime
After losing an election to become chairman of the Wo Lin Shing triad, a gang leader lashes out and tries to seize the dragon-head baton, the official symbol of a chairman's authority.
3
PTU (2003)
★ 7/10Also crime
Follows a police tactical unit during one dangerous night on the streets of Hong Kong as they try to recover a cop's stolen gun. Things turn deadly when they run into a web of gangland crimes.
4
Belly (1998)
★ 6.3/10Also crime
Tommy Bundy and Sincere are best friends as well as infamous and ruthless criminals and shot-callers in the hood. Respected by many but feared by all. As the police are closing in on them and new players are looking…
5
Code of Silence (1985)
★ 6/10Also crime
A Chicago cop is caught in the middle of a gang war while his own comrades shun him because he wants to take an irresponsible cop down.
6
Infernal Affairs (2002)
★ 7.8/10Also crime
Chan Wing Yan, a young police officer, has been sent undercover as a mole in the local mafia. Lau Kin Ming, a young mafia member, infiltrates the police force. Years later, their older counterparts, Chen Wing Yan and…
7
Miracles: The Canton Godfather (1989)
★ 7.1/10Also crime
A country boy becomes the head of a gang through the purchase of some lucky roses from an old lady. He and a singer at the gang's nightclub try to do a good deed for the old lady when her daughter comes to visit.
8
The Protector (1985)
★ 5.9/10Also crime
Billy Wong is a New York City cop whose partner is gunned down during a robbery. Billy and his new partner, Danny Garoni, are working security at a fashion show when a wealthy man's daughter, Laura Shapiro, is…
9
Plunder Road (1957)
★ 6.9/10Also crime
A spectacular heist starts to unravel as the crooks take it on the lam.
10
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…
11
One Nite in Mongkok (2004)
★ 6.8/10Also crime
A gangster's son is accidentally killed during a drunken dispute with a rival gang, and Officer Milo's task force is assigned to the case. He soon learns that a hitman has been hired to take out the rival gang leader…
12
King Ivory (2025)
★ 7/10Also crime
Based on extensive research involving law enforcement and gang members, a never-before-seen, authentic look inside the underworld of fentanyl trafficking from gangs inside the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester…
13
SPL: Kill Zone (2005)
★ 7/10Also crime
Chan, an articulate senior detective nearing the end of his career, is taking care of the daughter of a witness killed by ruthless crime lord Po. Martial arts expert Ma is set to take over as head of the crime unit…
14
Infernal Affairs II (2003)
★ 7.3/10Also crime
In this prequel to the original, a bloody power struggle among the Triads coincides with the 1997 handover of Hong Kong, setting up the events of the first film.
15
Special ID (2013)
★ 6/10Also crime
A career-long undercover Hong Kong cop is sent to Mainland China when his former protégé becomes the primary suspect in a murder.
16
Yes, Madam! (1985)
★ 7.2/10Also crime
Two unlucky thieves break into a just murdered man's hotel room and steal his passport, with a hidden microfilm, wanted by a triad boss. Two ass-kicking women cops—one Chinese, one British—are on the case.
17
The Dead Pool (1988)
★ 6.3/10Also crime
Dirty Harry Callahan returns for his final film adventure. Together with his partner Al Quan, he must investigate the systematic murder of prominent figures. By the time Harry learns that the murders are part of a sick…
18
Confession of Pain (2006)
★ 6.3/10Also crime
In a city of love and prosperity, a city of lost hope and premature death, veteran detective Hei feels it all: the hurt, the helplessness, the horror. When his father-in-law, the billionaire benefactor Kim, is…
19
Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In (2024)
★ 7/10Also crime
In 1980s Hong Kong, troubled youth Chan Lok-kwun, a mainland refugee, struggles to survive in the Kowloon Walled City by joining underground fights. Betrayed by crime boss Mr. Big while trying to buy a fake ID, he…
20
Pulp Fiction (1994)
★ 8.5/10Also crime
A burger-loving hit man, his philosophical partner, a drug-addled gangster's moll and a washed-up boxer converge in this sprawling, comedic crime caper. Their adventures unfurl in three stories that ingeniously trip…