5 Best Crime Films Set In L.A. (& 5 Set In New York City)
The setting is often its own character in crime dramas. Which are the best crime films set in Los Angeles or New York City?
The crime film has always been a popular canvas for filmmakers. From noir dramas such as Casablanca and Double Indemnity, "rogue cop" films such as Dirty Harry and Code of Silence, to robbery films such as Reservoir Dogs and Before the Devil knows You're Dead, some of cinema's finest directors (including Don Seigel, William Friedkin, Quentin Tarantino, and Michael Mann) have made great works (and big box office) out of the crime genre.
The best crime films have an expert sense of place, with Los Angeles and New York being the prime setting. Here are the five best movies set in L.A., along with the five best crime films set in NYC.
10 L.A. - L.A. Confidential (1997)
Curtis Hanson and Brian Helgeland won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for this shotgun-blast script for the powerhouse 1950s-set Crime film L.A. Confidential.
Guy Pearce, Russell Crowe, and Kevin Spacey play three very different L.A. cops who stumble on a series of murders tied to police corruption. Critics were in unison in their praise of Hanson's film. L.A. Confidential is an old-style police thriller that painstakingly recreates Los Angeles in the 1950s to absolute perfection.
9 New York City - Bad Lieutenant (1992)
Abel Ferrara's controversial Bad Lieutenant was a critical darling that led Harvey Keitel to newfound respect as an actor. Keitel plays the titular New York City cop who is as crooked as they come. Addicted to drugs, sex, and women, the lieutenant finds a chance at redemption when he investigates the rape of a nun.
The film pulled no punches when showing the grittier side of night-time New York City circa 1992. Ferrara felt at home amongst the pimps, pushers, and prostitutes who walk the seedier areas of the city. The film rose the already respected Ferrara to a level reached by few cinematic artists.
8 L.A. - The Driver (1978)
In only his second film, director Walter Hill showed he could make a slick crime film with European sensibilities. The Driver follows a getaway driver (tough as nails Ryan O'Neal) who runs afoul of the wrong criminals and seeks revenge for the killing of his boss while being hunted by a cop (a fantastic Bruce Dern) who refuses to give up.
Hill uses the green-lit nights of Los Angeles to great effect framing interesting architectural design as a slick background, as O'Neal's driver races from place to place, eluding the police, cheating death, and exacting his revenge. Most of the film, as does the driver, exists at night.
7 New York City - King Of New York (1990)
Abel Ferrara solidified his name into the annals of gritty New York filmmaking with his cult classic gangster film, King of New York. Christopher Walken starred as Frank White, a former drug kingpin who is free after almost a decade and seeks to reclaim his territory while becoming a philanthropist.
The film revels in the violent and darker sides of the early '90s NYC, ravaged by the crack cocaine epidemic. Frank's crew is populated by the prime New York character actors of the time, including Wesley Snipes, Giancarlo Esposito, and Laurence Fishburne in the role of the hitman Jimmy-Jump. Critics cited Ferrara's uniquely New York style and the film went on to become one of the most respected of all gangster films.
6 L.A. - Heat (1995)
Rightfully called an "L.A. Crime Epic," Michael Mann made history with 1995's Heat. Mann brought together Al Pacino and Robert De Niro for their first on-screen pairing that saw them actually interact. DeNiro is a thief who runs a tight crew (Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, and Danny Trejo) of high tech thieves. Meanwhile, Al Pacino is the dogged cop who has his own fearless crew (Wes Studi, Mykelti Williamson, and Ted Levine) who will stop at nothing to bring down DeNiro.
Mann gave Heat a slick look and made Los Angeles its own character. The city bleeds a dark cool designed by Dante Spinotti's masterful cinematography. The film is, indeed, an Ambient epic that rightfully became a classic of the Crime genre.
5 New York City - Serpico (1973)
Sidney Lumet was the undisputed king of the New York cop film, which started with his 1973 masterpiece Serpico. Al Pacino is brilliant in the true story of Frank Serpico, an NYPD cop who fought against police corruption and was instrumental in the forming of the Knapp Commission, created in 1970 due to Serpico's reports on widespread corruption.
Lumet used New York in all of its glory and opened up Serpico's story on a bigger visual level. He allowed the summers of the city to cast a bright light on the film, representing the light Frank Serpico shone on the formerly secret corruption.
4 L.A. - To Live And Die In L.A. (1985)
While William Friedkin's Crime classic To Live and Die in L.A. wasn't a hit with audiences upon its release in 1985, critics fell in love with the film and its status would grow throughout the decades. The film concerns two Federal agents (star-making turns from William L. Petersen and John Pankow) on the trail of a murderous counterfeiter (Willem Dafoe).
Friedkin makes the city of L.A. their co-star, as Robby Mueller's photography allows the sun to burn down on these characters, all pawns in each other's shell game. The film is bathed in fiery orange and yellow hues, burning the intensity of the city and the film's story across the screen.
3 New York City - The French Connection (1971)
William Friedkin won the Oscar for Best Director and Gene Hackman became a star when he won Best Actor for playing real-life detective "Popeye" Doyle in 1971's Best Picture Winner, The French Connection. The film is the true story of two NYC cops (Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider) who stumble onto the biggest drug bust in history.
The film takes place in the cold New York winter during a time when much of the city looked burned out and bleak. Friedkin uses this griminess to great effect, as the two cops hustle their way through the garbage-strewn streets to find the source of the drug connection.
2 L.A. - Chinatown (1974)
Roman Polanski cemented his place as a Master with his Robert Towne scripted masterpiece, Chinatown, the story of a P.I. who falls into a twisted case of political corruption, incest, and murder.
Chinatown is a legendary piece of cinematic art. Polanski's brilliant recreation of 1930s Los Angeles remains unmatched to this day. John A. Alonzo's camerawork, Richard Sylbert's Production Design, and Anetha Sylbert's costumes take its audience back to the time period without a false note.
1 New York City - Prince Of The City (1981)
Sidney Lumet continued his look at police corruption in NYC with his powerhouse 1981 film, Prince of the City. Treat Williams gives the performance of his career as Det. Daniel Ciello, who lets himself be duped into turning in bad cops, which eventually leads to his friends and his own successful squad.
Lumet showed a darker New York City to bring out the darkness that Ciello was surrounded by once he became an informant. Early on, Lumet shows sunny days and backyard barbeques but once things get serious and no one can be trusted, the city becomes darker; more rain and nights on garbage-filled streets.