Movies like Penitentiary
If you like "Penitentiary" you are looking for independent film, rough and bleak movies about / with blaxploitation, prison, boxing, prison life, black, drifter and prison sex themes of Crime, Drama and Sport genre shot in USA.
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Penitentiary (1979)
1K
Genre: Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min.
Story:
A hitchhiker named Martel Gordone gets in a fight with two bikers over a prostitute, and one of the bikers is killed. Gordone is arrested and sent to prison, where he joins the prison's boxing team in an effort to secure an early parole and to establish his dominance over the prison's toughest gang.
Style:
independent film, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
blaxploitation, prison, boxing, prison life, black, drifter, prison sex, martial arts, underground, black history, thug life, false accusation, gay subtext, survival, prostitute, gang, escape, murder, manhood, sexual abuse, life is a bitch, fugitives, chases and races, injustice, rivalry ...
Time:
year 1979, 70s
Movie in categories
Most similar movies to Penitentiary
The list contains related movies ordered by similarity. Recommendation engine sorted out realistic, serious, rough and suspenseful films with plots about prison, murder, rivalry, life is a bitch, confined, dishonesty and prison life mostly in Drama, Crime and Action genres. Some movies like Penitentiary: The Pursuit of Happiness (1971), The Escapist (2002), Doing Hard Time (2004), The Mack (1973), The Ceremony (1963). The matching attributes are highlighted in bold.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min.
Story:
William Popper is the son of a stockbroker and is thoroughly disenchanted with "the system." So much so that even though he can prove that he ran over a woman in his car entirely by accident, he accepts a sentence for manslaughter.
Style:
thought provoking, realistic, psychological, serious, bleak
Plot:
escape, prison, on the run, college, law, college student, alienation, murder, prisoner, accident, car accident, manslaughter ...
Time:
year 1971, 70s
Place:
bronx new york city, new york, canada
Similarity:
100%
Genre: Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min.
Story:
An ex-con, on parole and trying to straighten his life out, decides to resume his boxing career when one of his prison enemies escapes and kills his girlfriend.
Style:
independent film, realistic, serious, suspenseful, bleak ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
boxing, blaxploitation, prison, martial arts, black, murder, tough heroes, injustice, wrongfully committed, haunted by the past, prison life, family in danger ...
Time:
year 1982, 80s
Similarity:
81%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min.
Story:
A man is framed for murder and sent to prison. He is beaten and tortured, then forced to fight the prison's worst killer, a martial-arts fighting midget called Thud.
Style:
grindhouse, psychotronic, independent film
Plot:
prison, blaxploitation, boxing, midget, black, martial arts, bare chested male, fighter, mixed martial arts, blood, prisoner, racial stereotype ...
Time:
year 1987
Similarity:
56%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 88 min.
Story:
Denis Hopkins, a pilot, lives with his pregnant wife Valerie and has a comfortable lifestyle. When a gang of criminals led by the sadistic Ricky Barnes breaks into his home, he offers whatever the criminals want to protect his wife and unborn child, ...
Style:
suspenseful, realistic, serious, tense, rough
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
prison, tough heroes, manhunt, violence spree, gang, criminal heroes, haunted by the past, murder, heroes, revenge, fugitives, prison escape ...
Similarity:
51%
Movie in collections
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min.
Story:
Sequel to the 2002 film. This time, Heavyweight Champ George "Iceman" Chambers (White) is sent to a Russian jail on trumped-up drug charges. In order to win his freedom he must fight against the jailhouse fighting champ Uri Boyka (Adkins) ...
Style:
suspenseful, serious, realistic, exciting, rough ...
Audience:
manly, boys' night, teens, girls' night
Plot:
boxing, prison, martial arts, kickboxing, tournament, convict, contests and competitions, fight, prison life, tough heroes, martial artist, fistfight ...
Time:
21st century
Place:
russia, usa, new jersey, california, tokyo
Similarity:
50%
Genre: Action, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
A father's eight year old son is murdered in a gangland shooting. The father (Boris Kodjoe) gets himself thrown into prison to avenge his son's death.
Style:
realistic, serious, suspenseful, rough, hood ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
prison, murder, vigilantism, vengeance, criminal heroes, prison life, redemption, dishonesty, police investigation, life is a bitch, law enforcement, confined ...
Similarity:
50%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min.
Story:
Goldie returns from five years at the state pen and winds up king of the pimping game. Trouble comes in the form of two corrupt white cops and a crime lord who wants him to return to the small time.
Style:
grindhouse, hood, independent film, funny, cult classic ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
blaxploitation, urban, african american, black, exploitation, ghetto, pimp, corrupt cop, street life, corruption, revenge, prison ...
Time:
70s
Place:
oakland california, bay area, usa, california
Similarity:
49%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: Spain, USA
Duration: 105 min.
Story:
A man (Robert Walker) has an affair with his condemned brother's (Laurence Harvey) girlfriend (Sarah Miles) while plotting his escape in Tangier.
Style:
noir, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing ...
Plot:
prison, prison escape, mistaken identity, death row, prisoner, escape, rivalry, chases and races, assassination, life is a bitch, heroes, investigation ...
Time:
year 1963, 60s
Place:
tangier morocco
Similarity:
49%
Movie in collections
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA, Germany, Japan
Duration: 94 min.
Story:
Monroe Hutchens is the heavyweight champion of Sweetwater, a maximum security prison. He was convicted to a life sentence due to a passionate crime. Iceman Chambers is the heavyweight champion, who lost his title due to a rape conviction to ten ...
Style:
suspense, talky, intense, stylized, tense ...
Audience:
boys' night, teens
Plot:
prison, violence, fight, boxing, prisoner, african american, prison fight, hip hop, mafia, tough guy, martial arts, gangster ...
Time:
year 2002, 21st century
Place:
usa, mojave desert, las vegas, nevada, california ...
Similarity:
49%
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Spain, Argentina
Duration: 117 min.
Story:
In the summer of 1928, several inmates from the National Penitentiary in Buenos Aires managed to escape. The film narrates the fate of each of these runaways in search of their destiny - tough men with their own ethical codes and ready to do ...
Style:
serious, suspenseful, rough, captivating, realistic
Plot:
fugitives, prison life, couple relations, prison, criminal heroes, on the run, starting over, couples, society, chases and races, prison break, escape ...
Time:
1920s
Place:
latin america, argentina
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 94 min.
Story:
A jailed auto mechanic must run for his life after he witnesses the murder of a fellow inmate by two prison guards.
Style:
independent film, exciting, realistic, serious, suspenseful ...
Plot:
frame up, murder, wrestling, chase, chases and races, life is a bitch, dishonesty, criminal heroes, on the run, confined, law enforcement, prison life ...
Time:
90s
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 93 min.
Story:
Now serving a life sentence for murder, James "Animal" Allen returns to fighting for cash in order to help his troubled son on the outside. However, with his newfound fame as a fighter, Animal uncovers a jailhouse conspiracy that threatens ...
Style:
realistic, serious, hood, crime drama
Plot:
prison, martial arts, prison life, false accusation, frame up, courtroom drama, murder, rivalry, jail, black, muscleman, prison violence ...
Similarity:
48%
337
Genre: Drama, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min.
Story:
Peter, a frustrated suburban teenager, prefers to hang out by the railroad tracks with his friends and get rid of boredom. When the young men throw the switch one day just for fun, a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions occurs. A train derails ...
Style:
realistic, serious, psychological, suspense, bleak
Plot:
prison, train, going straight, teenage life, redemption, confined, kids in trouble, hopes, youth, false accusation, society, prison life ...
Place:
new jersey, usa
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min.
Story:
When the top players of the Green Street Elite are imprisoned following a deadly battle with their archenemies Millwall every day becomes a fight for survival. On the inside, rival firms and prison guards will stop at nothing to make their lives a ...
Style:
serious, rough, realistic, suspense, tense ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
prison, hooligan, gang, mob violence, lifestyle, uninhibited rivalry, confined, buddies, rivalry, society, football, soccer ...
Time:
year 2009
Place:
england, britain, london, europe
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min.
Story:
When a robbery goes awry, the bandits all end up in a puddle of blood and only one lives and goes to jail for five years. Upon his release, the girlfriend wants her new boyfriend to kill him. Only trouble is the boyfriend knows that the fault was ...
Style:
serious, rough, suspenseful, tense, disturbing ...
Plot:
crime gone awry, friendship, haunted by the past, murder, criminal heroes, criminal's revenge, life is a bitch, drug dealing, dishonesty, gang, heist, infidelity ...
Time:
90s
Place:
new york, usa, manhattan new york city
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min.
Story:
A stock car driver goes undercover as the wheel man for a motorcycle gang.
Style:
cult classic, grindhouse, independent film, serious, realistic ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
biker, biker gang, bike, bank robbery, motorcycle gang, gangster, chase, gang, on the run, dishonesty, law enforcement, chases and races ...
Time:
20th century, 60s
Place:
florida
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min.
Story:
Russian inmate Boyka, now severely hobbled by the knee injury suffered at the end of Undisputed 2. No longer the feared prison fighter he was, he has declined so far that he is now good only for cleaning toilets. But when a new prison fight ...
Style:
suspenseful, exciting, realistic, serious, rough ...
Audience:
manly, boys' night
Plot:
prison fight, prison, boxing, kickboxing, martial arts, fistfight, mixed martial arts, hand to hand combat, contests and competitions, capoeira, prison life, fight ...
Time:
year 2010, 21st century
Place:
usa
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: Belgium
Duration: 105 min.
Story:
In August 1996, bus drivers Marcel Van Loock and Wim Moreels are apprehended by the Moroccan Customs for drug trafficking. Inside their bus, hidden behind a false compartment, they have discovered 700 pounds of hashish. Although the owner of the bus ...
Style:
serious, rough, disturbing, suspenseful, realistic ...
Plot:
prison, smuggling, survival, danger, prison life, life is a bitch, dishonesty, false accusation, injustice, violent content, warden, confined ...
Time:
90s, 20th century
Place:
antwerp, tangier morocco, morocco, africa
Similarity:
48%
Movie in collections
Genre: Drama, Sport
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min.
Story:
A young man struggles to become a boxing champ, but success blinds him. It is only through the love of his girlfriend that he is brought back to reality.
Style:
grindhouse, neo noir, independent film, serious, realistic ...
Plot:
boxing, boxer, black, power relations, love affair, rich and poor, rivalry, hopes, redemption, life is a bitch, love and romance, underdog ...
Time:
year 1981, 1940s
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min.
Story:
Tougher than Shaft and smoother than Superfly, this high-voltage sequel to Black Caesar explodes with enough action to incinerate New York City. Packed with machine-gun mayhem and riveting adventure, Hell Up in Harlem is nothing less than a ...
Style:
neo noir, grindhouse, cult classic, hood, grim ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
blaxploitation, male nudity, exploitation, black, gang, female martial artist, kung fu, gotham city, mobster, ghetto, underground, city life ...
Time:
70s
Place:
new york, harlem, usa, los angeles, coney island brooklyn new york city ...
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min.
Story:
Bernie Casey portrays Tyrone and Pamela Grier plays a sultry skin-flick star in this first Americanized remake of the iconic Michael Caine action film Get Carter. From Watts to the West Side, from porno parlors to a high-rise, from motel dives to a ...
Style:
psychotronic, neo noir, grindhouse, serious, realistic ...
Plot:
blaxploitation, lawyer, black, exploitation, revenge, martial arts, tough heroes, hitman, vengeance, criminal's revenge, lone wolves, rivalry ...
Time:
year 1972, 20th century, 70s
Place:
los angeles, usa
Similarity:
48%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min.
Story:
In this darkly karmic vision of Arizona, a man who breathes nothing but ill will begins a noxious domino effect as quickly as an uncontrollable virus kills. As he exits Arizona State Penn after twenty-one long years, Wilson has only one thing on the ...
Style:
serious, suspenseful, suspense, captivating, realistic
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
prison, vengeance, frame up, cons and scams, criminal's revenge, going straight, false accusation, brutality, life is a bitch, hooligan, escape, disorder ...
Place:
arizona, usa
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min.
Story:
The heroes in The Black Godfather are members of an African-American criminal organization. Like Brando in The Godfather, they're not averse to robbery and murder, but they do draw the line at narcotics. When the Mafia infiltrates the ...
Style:
independent film, serious, realistic, bleak, suspenseful ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
blaxploitation, organized crime, mobster, black history, black, revenge, vigilante, gangster, violent content, drug dealing, criminal heroes, partners against crime ...
Time:
70s
Place:
usa
Similarity:
47%
Movie in collections
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 92 min.
Story:
The Mafia tries to take revenge against a man who testified against them in court.
Style:
serious, realistic, rough, suspenseful
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
exploitation, vigilante, mafia, murder, gangster, gang, law enforcement, rebellion, legal, on the run, blind ambition, vengeance ...
Time:
year 1976, 70s
Place:
philadelphia, usa
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Drama, Crime
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min.
Story:
Redemption tells the story of Stan "Tookie" Williams, founder of the Crips L.A. street gang. Story follows his fall into gang-banging, his prison term, and his work writing children's novels encouraging peace and anti-violence ...
Style:
realistic, serious, emotional, bleak, crime drama ...
Plot:
redemption, death row, prison, gang, gangster, brutality, justice, adaptation, human spirit, hopes, journalism, life is a bitch ...
Time:
20th century, future, 80s
Place:
california, usa, los angeles
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 128 min.
Story:
In the streets of East Los Angeles, Manny is a formidable drug dealer. Impressed by his extravagant lifestyle and prowess, his young son, Kilo, yearns to follow in his footsteps. Kilo resolves to learn how to prosper in the drug world, and his new ...
Style:
rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, exciting
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
crime boss, gangster, prison, juvenile delinquency, criminal heroes, prison life, life is a bitch, gang, dishonesty, drug dealing, urban ghetto, murder ...
Time:
21st century
Place:
los angeles, california, usa, mexico
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min.
Story:
New Jersey Drive is a 1995 film about black youths in Newark, New Jersey, the unofficial "car theft capital of the world". Their favorite pastime is that of everybody in their neighborhood: stealing cars and joyriding. The trouble starts ...
Style:
hood, melancholic, brutal, serious, disturbing ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
gang, brutality, ghetto, police investigation, urban, vengeance, hip hop, murder, lone hero, black, teenage life, drug dealing ...
Time:
90s, 70s
Place:
new jersey, new york, usa, california
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: Philippines, USA
Duration: 87 min.
Story:
When two troublemaking female prisoners (one a revolutionary, the other a former harem-girl) can't seem to get along, they are chained together and extradited for safekeeping. The women, still chained together, stumble, stab, and cat-fight ...
Style:
grindhouse, realistic, serious, rough, psychotronic ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
blaxploitation, women in prison, prostitute, prison, lesbian, female exploitation, female prisoner, female voyeur, women's prison, vigilante, massage, sexual perversion ...
Time:
20th century, 70s
Place:
the philippines, asia
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min.
Story:
Former TV documentary filmmaker Mel Stuart tries to inject an acceptable degree of verisimilitude in Mean Dog Blues. A victim of circumstance, country and western musician Paul Ramsey (Gregg Henry) finds himself on a Southern chain gang. Captain ...
Style:
grindhouse, independent film, serious, realistic, tense ...
Plot:
prison, escape, female nudity, murder, corruption, forest, false accusation, rape, tough heroes, power relations, injustice, betrayal ...
Time:
year 1978, 70s, 20th century
Similarity:
47%
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Duration: 104 min.
Story:
A man is falsely convicted of the murder of his wife. During his time in jail, he finds comfort from four women with whom he corresponds. After his second court appearance, he is finally freed from prison only to be framed for yet 2 more murders ...
Style:
psychological thriller, independent film, realistic, serious, suspenseful ...
Audience:
boys' night
Plot:
serial killer, fugitives, wrongful conviction, serial murder, stalking, frame up, false accusation, death row, murder, best friend, police investigation, on the run ...
Time:
90s
Place:
new orleans
Similarity:
47%
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