Films like The Godfather
15 picks with a similar feel
What defines The Godfather, going by its Boxlist taste profile: Heavy and moving: a realistic crime drama, slow-burning rather than fast. Best if you like stories that hit hard. Its strongest markers on Boxlist are themes of rags to riches, injustice and vengeance and deep rivalry, plus tags such as mob boss, crime family and italian american.
Here are 15 films with a similar feel, ranked by how closely they match that profile. Treat them as picks to try, not a definitive list.
Based on The Godfather (1972).
- 1
Scarface (1983)
Film8.2Faster-paced
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and gritty, with themes of rags to riches and injustice and vengeance. Common ground: mafia, gangster, loss of loved one.
- 2
Casino (1995)
Film8.0Easier to follow
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and slow-burning, with themes of rags to riches and deep rivalry. Common ground: mafia, organized crime.
- 3
GoodFellas (1990)
Film8.5Darker
Why it's like The Godfather: Also grounded and weighty, with themes of deep rivalry. Common ground: mafia, organized crime, gangster.
- 4
A Bronx Tale (1993)
Film7.8Easier to follow
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and grounded, with themes of deep rivalry. Common ground: italian american, mafia, gangster.
- 5
Dogman (2018)
Film7.6Faster-paced
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and emotional, with themes of injustice and vengeance and an all-consuming quest. Common ground: italy, revenge.
- 6
Boyz n the Hood (1991)
Film7.6Easier to follow
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and grounded, with themes of injustice and vengeance and deep rivalry. Common ground: gangster.
- 7
American Gangster (2007)
Film7.6
Why it's like The Godfather: Also grounded and weighty, with themes of rags to riches and deep rivalry. Common ground: gangster.
- 8
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Film8.7
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and slow-burning, with themes of injustice and vengeance and an all-consuming quest.
- 9
The Irishman (2019)
Film7.7
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and gritty, with themes of deep rivalry and resilience and survival. Common ground: mafia, organized crime, gangster.
- 10
Suburra (2015)
Film7.3Faster-paced
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and gritty, with themes of deep rivalry. Common ground: mafia.
- 11
Midnight Express (1978)
Film7.6Darker
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and gritty, with themes of deep rivalry and an all-consuming quest. Common ground: lawyer.
- 12
Mean Streets (1973)
Film7.2Easier to follow
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and emotional, with themes of deep rivalry and love against the odds. Common ground: gangster.
- 13
Blow (2001)
Film7.4
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and grounded, with themes of rags to riches and deep rivalry.
- 14
Molly's Game (2017)
Film7.1
Why it's like The Godfather: Also grounded and weighty, with themes of deep rivalry and an all-consuming quest. Common ground: lawyer.
- 15
Dogville (2003)
Film7.8Faster-paced
Why it's like The Godfather: Also weighty and emotional, with themes of rags to riches and injustice and vengeance.
Boxlist compares The Godfather with every film in its catalogue on ten taste scores (pace, tone, weight, realism and more), story themes, genres and TMDB keywords, and ranks the closest. Every pick has a TMDB rating of 6.7 or more from at least 1,000 votes, new releases wait until their ratings settle, and only one title per franchise makes the list. It is an approximation of feel, so treat it as a starting point. Ratings are TMDB audience scores out of 10.
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Take the taste testQuestions
- What should I watch if I like The Godfather?
- Picks with a similar feel include Scarface, Casino, GoodFellas and A Bronx Tale. Each shares part of The Godfather's taste profile, themes or tags; the full list has 15 films.
- How are these films like The Godfather chosen?
- Boxlist compares The Godfather with every film in its catalogue on ten taste scores (pace, tone, weight, realism and more), story themes, genres and TMDB keywords, and ranks the closest. Every pick has a TMDB rating of 6.7 or more from at least 1,000 votes, new releases wait until their ratings settle, and only one title per franchise makes the list. It is an approximation of feel, so treat it as a starting point.