30 Best Movies Like Menace II Society You Need to Watch
If you liked one of the best gangster movies of all time, Menace II Society, then you will like our list as well. In it, we are bringing you the best movies like Menace II Society you can watch right now.
Menace II Society is set in Watts and Crenshaw neighborhoods of Los Angeles, and follows the life of Kaydee “Caine” Lawson (Tyrin Turner) and his close friends. It gained notoriety for its scenes of violence, profanity and drug-related content, and also received critical acclaim for the performances of Turner, Jada Pinkett, and Larenz Tate, the direction, and its realistic portrayal of urban violence and powerful underlying messages.
If you are looking to find more similar movies to Menace II Society just take a look below.
Training Day (2001)
The only danger greater than crossing the line between law and crime is the policeman stepping on it. Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke will take us through the drug-infested streets of Los Angeles, where common notions of good and evil are often a deadly delusion.
The young idealist Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) wants to become a narcotics agent of the Los Angeles Police Department and prevent dealers from selling drugs on the streets, but it will seem extremely difficult for him because he has to spend 24 hours of his training with agent Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington).
Harris is a veteran, with the Narcotics Division for over a decade, and his methods have become, to put it mildly, questionable over time, if not outright corrupt. As the day goes by, Hoyt witnesses these methods firsthand, while he is driven mad thinking about who is the real culprit in the whole story and where exactly the answers lie.
Blue Story (2019)
Best friends Timmy and Marco go to the same high school, but live in neighboring London boroughs. When Marco gets beaten up by one of Timmy’s friends, the two boys wind up on rival sides of a gang war in which there are no winners – only victims.
Dead Presidents (1995)
The story begins in the Bronx in 1968, where a young black man, Anthony Curtis (Larenz Tate), decides to go to the Marines after graduating from high school instead of college, leaving his pregnant girlfriend behind. After the not-so-pleasant years spent in the hell of the Vietnam War, he returns home, where he discovers that almost nothing is as it was before.
His best friends, also Vietnam veterans, turned to drugs. His new family had to be supported by a local pimp during his long absence. Anthony tries to survive by doing hard work at a slaughterhouse, but when he loses his job, the only thing left for him is crime.
Four Brothers (2005)
Four brothers have returned home to bury their mother, but she is not the only one they plan to bury. The same fate awaits the man who killed her.
Evelyn (Fionnula Flanagan), the mother of the Mercer brothers, is brutally murdered during a robbery at a store. The Mercer brothers, Bobby (Mark Wahlberg), Jack (Garrett Hedlund), Angel (Tyrese Gibson) and Jeremiah (André Benjamin) return home to avenge her and find the killer.
But the situation will be complicated when the connection of one of the brothers with local criminals is revealed. Even the two policemen trying to solve the case don’t seem to be who they say they are.
American Gangster (2007)
Nobody noticed Frank Lucas (Washington), the quiet driver of one of the most powerful black mob bosses, Ellsworth Johnson, but when his boss suddenly dies, Frank takes advantage of the crack in the power structure to create his own empire. With his insight and strict business ethics, he manages to rise to the very top of the drug market in Harlem, placing a cleaner and cheaper product on the streets.
Richie Roberts (Crowe) is a hardened cop who plays by his own rules and knows the law of the street. He quickly realizes that there has been a change of power in the mafia circles of New York, and over time he learns that Lucas is responsible for it. Although they are on opposite sides of the law, Roberts and Lucas have something in common – the honor and pride they bring to their work. Their destinies will be closely intertwined and a conflict will arise from which only one will emerge as the winner.
Felon (2008)
The life of a caring husband and father turns into a real nightmare after the court finds him guilty of accidentally killing a burglar who broke into his home. He is sentenced to three years to life in prison and Wade (Dorff) realizes that this is a place where social norms have not been forgotten.
In addition to having to share a cell with a serial killer (Kilmer), Wade suffers the wrath of a sadistic prison guard (Perrineau). In order to survive, he will have to become the nastiest of all. The film is based on true stories from Corcoran Prison. Stephen Dorff suffered two concussions while filming fight scenes.
Donnie Brasco (1997)
Young jeweler Donnie Brasco (Johnny Depp) comes to a New York cafe where mobsters gather. There, he draws the attention of Lefty Ruggieri (Al Pacino), an aging mob hitman who decides to recruit him for his dirty work. Ruggieri becomes Brasco’s mentor and includes him in the mafia gang led by Sony Black (Michael Madsen). None of them suspect that Brasco is actually just the pseudonym of Joe Pistone, an FBI agent who has been inserted into the mob in order to expose its operations.
Joe is entrusted with an important task in which he must expose the Bonanno family, which has become very powerful and is at the head of all the operations of the criminal milieu. Because of this, Joe left his family and the life he had been leading until then, taking on a new identity.
For Donnie Brasco, his dangerous game becomes more and more difficult as he befriends Ruggieri and knows that he will perish as soon as his mask of a government agent is revealed. On the other hand, Pistone’s relationship with his wife (Anne Heche) and his children suffers due to his deep involvement in the violent world of the mafia and his long absence from home.
BlacKkKlansman (2018)
It’s the early 1970s, and Ron Stallworth becomes the first African-American detective to serve at the Colorado Springs Police Department. Determined to speak out, Stallworth bravely embarks on a dangerous mission: he enters the ranks of the Ku Klux Klan by deception and exposes himself to their actions. The Ku Klux Klan systematically advocates the superiority and supremacy of the white race, as well as anti-Semitism and homophobia.
At Stallworth’s persuasion, he is soon joined on the task by a more experienced colleague, the Jew Flip Zimmerman, and the two begin the investigation of life together. They are uniting against an extremist organization that is trying to sanitize its otherwise violent rhetoric in order to appeal to the masses and attract new followers of this hateful ideology. The goal of Stallworth’s undercover assignment is to expose and put an end to local KKK operations.
City of Lies (2018)
After two decades, the case of Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace aka The Notorious B.I.G remains open. Jack Jackson (F. Whitaker), a reporter desperate to save his reputation and career, is determined to find out why. He finds Poole, and the two form an uneasy partnership to finally solve this case.
As Poole relives the incredible story of power, corruption and crime, Jackson begins to uncover a growing web of scandal and fraud. Relentless in their pursuit of the truth, these two broken men threaten to shatter the foundations of the Los Angeles Police Department while fighting for their own redemption.
The Many Saints of Newark (2021)
His son Michael Gandolfini appears in the role of young Tony Soprano, played in the series by the late James Gandolfini. The film is set in Newark, New Jersey, in the early 70s. In those years, America was marked by numerous protests and large migrations of white people from racially diverse areas, and mafia families then ruled the streets of Newark.
Young Tony Soprano finds it difficult to manage in high school, where, although he is told that he has an above-average IQ and that he has the qualities that good leaders possess – he leans more towards ‘family affairs’.
Brawl in Cell Block 99 (2017)
Bradley is a former boxer whose life is not going well at the moment. His marriage is falling apart and he has lost his job. In order to somehow take care of his family, he decides to turn to an old friend, a criminal for whom Bradley soon starts selling drugs for help.
Of course, things don’t go according to plan there either, and after a failed transaction, Bradley ends up in prison, where he is forced to work as a wrecker for the criminals who are holding him captive.
Shaft (2000)
Cold-blooded and murderous NYPD detective John Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson) arrests Walter Wade Jr. (Christian Bale) in a racially motivated murder. The eyewitness has disappeared, and Wade is on the run. Two years later, Wade returns to face justice, certain that his father’s money and power, as well as racist politics, will guarantee an acquittal.
Shaft tries to find a witness, and Wade wants to kill her. He turns to a ghetto drug lord, Peoples Hernandez (Jeffrey Wright), who is willing to kill for money and use Wade to find a way to rich narcotics buyers. His path was blocked by the firm and determined Shaft. Can he find the witness Diana Palmieri (Toni Collette) in time and lead her through the hail of bullets?
The Salton Sea (2002)
In search of redemption, Danny Parker will stop at nothing. Danny Parker (Val Kilmer) is a man in a desperate search for redemption. Namely, his wife was killed because he, paralyzed by fear, did not even try to prevent it. Determined to prove that he is not a coward and avenge her death, Parker will take on the job of a police informant.
His new friends have no idea about his true identity or the tasks he performs, and his new employers do not know his true motives for entering the half-world of addicts, dealers, criminals and lost souls.
Friday (1995)
Just fired from his job, Craig (Ice Cube) and his best friend Smokey (Chris Tucker) spend Friday smoking marijuana in their neighborhood in South Central, Los Angeles. Before the sun goes down, Craig will have to find $200 to repay the debt to the dealer, get a job so that his parents don’t kick him out of the house, avoid his girlfriend in order to seduce another woman’s heart without unnecessary distractions, as well as survive a conflict with neighborhood troublemakers. And that’s just the beginning…
Get Rich or Die Tryin’ (2005)
He realized that no one would help him, that he had to rely only on himself and loudly declared: “Get Rich or Die Tryin'” He liked the first option better.
The only life the young African-American Marcus (50 Cent) knows is a raw and dangerous survival in the black ghetto, where the young man simply doesn’t get many chances. One of the options is to engage in petty or somewhat larger crime, but there is also another possibility, which is the musical career of a talented rapper. Marcus is aware of his musical qualities, but he doesn’t find anyone willing to help him on his way to achieving his dreams. He will have to do everything himself.
New Jersey Drive (1995)
Crime drama. Jason Petty is an African-American teenager from Newark and already knows prison inside out. Namely, every now and then he ends up in it because of car thefts and joyous drives with which he spends aimless days with his companions.
His best friend is Midget, and the girl they both like is Coreen. Jason’s mom Rene, a dignified woman who also takes care of her younger daughter Jackie, is not at all happy with her son’s behavior and tries to explain to him the pointlessness of his lifestyle. Meanwhile, the police respond more harshly to car thefts, even shooting without reason. When Jason and Midget steal a police car, the cops decide it’s the last straw…
My Crazy Life (1993)
Mi Vida Loca tells the story of young Mexican-American women in Los Angeles and the struggles they have in a life of poverty and early motherhood while being members of an infamous street gang. Mousie and Sad Girl are best friends from childhood, growing up in Echo Park, a neighborhood that had a significant amount of gang activity in the late 1980s and early 1990s era.
They pride themselves for remaining loyal to each other and their gang. But when Sad Girl sleeps with Mousie’s boyfriend (a member of their neighborhood gang who is killed in a drug deal gone bad) and becomes pregnant, their friendship is ruptured.
As dramatic and occasional comical situations unfold around them, some that would turn violent, they must try to stay together as friends despite the betrayals, heartbreak and tragedies. The film takes a rather independent look at a world where women seem to have no choice but to raise their children, involve themselves with gang activity, and survive by whatever means available.
Empire (2002)
Victor Rosa is trying to change his life, and he gets the chance to do so when he meets Jack, an investment banker on Wall Street, through his girlfriend. Viktor is too deeply involved in the criminal world and cannot escape the reputation of a local drug dealer and an old gang.
Straight Outta Compton (2015)
The film is about the Californian hip-hop group N.W.A., named after their first album released in 1988. The members were Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube and Arabian Prince and was founded in 1996, to be joined two years later by MC Ren and DJ Yella.
Arabian Prince was the first to leave the group, followed by Ice Cube in 1989 because he felt that his talent was not being expressed enough, then Dr. Dre for the group to break up in 1991 after a check each of the members made a pretty good independent career.
Sugar Hill (1993)
Traumatic memories of his mother’s tragic death and his father’s addiction still plague Remel today, even though he avenged his father as a teenager. Although he was an excellent student, instead of going to college, Remelo chose the “career” of a gangster, together with Rejnatana, growing up under the kind of mentorship of the old-fashioned gangster boss Gus Molino (A. Vigod). Despite this, Remelo has become an educated, cultured dealer who shuns his wares, takes care of his father selflessly, lives in a lavish apartment and wears expensive suits and cashmere coats.
Rejnatan gradually loses the battle with drugs and sinks deeper and deeper into the hell of addiction. After meeting the attractive Melissa (T. Randle) in a club one evening, who does not want a relationship with a dealer and criminal, Remelo begins to think about retirement and peaceful family life. His plans will be interrupted by ambitious newcomer Loli Jonas (E. Hudson), a gangster who wants to rule Sugar Hill with Gus’s help…
Belly (1998)
The story of two criminals who, after acquiring wealth, reconsider their actions and the life behind them. One wants to return to his African roots and move to Africa, and the other turns to faith and converts to Islam.
City of God (2002)
The City of God, what a wonderful irony, is the infamous part of Rio de Janeiro. Created in the 1960s of the last century, since the beginning of the 1980s it has been the most dangerous place in the city, known as the Favela. The story set in that bleak area entangles the fates of many of its inhabitants. Humanity and compassion have no place there, it is an eternal reign of bloody violence. A young photographer, the black man Rocket (Alexandr Rodriguez), tells us the story of the City of God permeated through 30 years.
Although he himself is not an active participant in most of the action, he is a perfect storyteller, emotionally connected to the slum in which he was born and from which he rises thanks to his talent. In the 1960s, the City of God was ruled by the Tender Trio – a gang of the gas station and motel robbers. Young people learn from them, including Rocket’s friend Lil Dice. In the 1970s, Lil Dice, now known as Lil Ze, ruled the city.
Violent and crazy, that drug boss is the whip of God for his opponents. On the other hand, his friend Rocket (narrator) is vaccinated against gangster pretensions and all he wants to do is take photos. In the 1980s, a terrible war rages between the two remaining “god” gangs. Will this war ever end?
8 Mile (2002)
8 Mile is the name of the road that separates predominantly black Detroit from the wealthier white suburbs. There in the trailer lives a mother (K. Basinger), whose son nicknamed B-Rabbit (Eminem) returns to the apartment, because his girlfriend got pregnant and left him, and he left her his only possession – an old car.
He got a job at the car scrap yard and his social status is equal to that of his dark-skinned fellow citizens on the other side of the road. Like them, he also wants to become famous as a rapper, which is even more difficult for him due to the color of his skin…
South Central (1992)
After ten years spent in prison, Bobby (Glenn Plummer) returns to everyday life in Los Angeles, to open the door to his new life, far from crime. However, the past will not leave him alone, because his underage son has already stepped into criminal waters. Bobby will do everything in his power to save his son from an unhappy future.
Juice (1992)
Four teenagers from Harlem, Q, Bishop, Raheem and Steel, skip school one day and learn that one of their friends has been killed in a bar shooting. After that Bishop (Tupac) talks like they didn’t deserve any respect from others. In order to get it, they decide to rob a small store on the corner of the street, but the crazy Bishop shoots the cashier for no reason.
They ran into the alley and Raheem tried to take Bishop’s gun, but he was also killed. Now there are only three of them left who know what happened, and Bishop decides to dispose of the other two as well.
Dangerous Minds (1995)
Louanne Johnson (M. Pfeiffer) belonged to the units of the US Marines. Now, through the mediation of her friend Hal Griffith (G. Dzundz), who teaches in a California high school, she applied for the position of English language and literature teacher. Mrs. Carla Nichols (R. Bartlett), who is the assistant principal of that school, George Grandey (C. B. Vance), hires her after a short conversation. The very first day in class is a shock for Louanne.
The students are loose and dangerous and don’t take her seriously at all. They grew up in bad social circumstances. All are of either African-American or Mexican descent. Among them stand out the rebellious and beautiful “leader” of the class Emilio (W. Dominguez) and Raul (R. Santiago) who is very intelligent, but seems to hide his intelligence. There is also the highly intelligent Callie (I. Harris) who will remain in a different state.
Louanne immediately realizes that she has to approach such students in an unconventional way, which the principal does not like. First he tries to teach them karate, and then he tries to move on to poetry, which doesn’t seem to interest them at all. In a conversation with her colleague Hal, it occurs to her to start teaching them poetry using the example of Bob Dylan’s songs…
Paid in Full (2002)
The possibility of quick and easy earnings will soon draw Ace into the world of dealing, and in a short time turn him into the leader of the Harlem dealer world.
Ace is a nice young man who works in a laundromat, and his friend Mitch is a drug dealer. After Mitch’s arrest and going to prison, Ace accidentally finds a packet of cocaine in his pocket that will change his life completely.
Boyz n the Hood (1991)
Young Tre Styles (Cuba Gooding Jr.) is sent by his mother to live with his father, Furious Styles (Laurence Fishburne) in the notorious part of Los Angeles, South Central, filled with violence, gangs and drugs. Furious has managed to resist the neighborhood’s destructive influence and is determined to keep his son out of trouble as well.
But he still can’t protect Treo from all the evil forces that rule there, and they include his best friends, Doughboy (Ice Cube), who is slowly falling into a hell of drugs and crime, and his brother Ricky (Morris Chestnut), a high school football star and minor father. When a chance encounter leads to gunfire and tragedy, Tre must decide whether to join Doughboy on a dangerous revenge mission…
Notorious (2009)
Notorious is the story of Christopher Wallace. Through raw talent and sheer determination, Wallace transforms himself from a Brooklyn street dealer (he once sold crack to pregnant women) to one of the greatest rappers of all time, NOTORIOUS B.I.G. Follow his meteoric rise to fame and his refusal to succumb to expectations, redefining the idea of ​​the “American Dream.”
Black Mass (2015)
Bulger (Johnny Depp) is a gangster of Irish roots, who for over 20 years played a double game as one of America’s biggest criminals, and enjoyed the safety and support of his childhood friend, the most important person in the Boston FBI.
Their dirty deal, by which Bulger became an FBI informant, allowed him to consolidate his power, but also to eventually become the FBI’s greatest enemy and spend 16 years on the list of most wanted criminals.
