Crime film

Crime action films are those that favor violence. According to Jule Selbo, the crime and action genres are intertwined: "the films could not exist in their popular form without the other on equal footing—therefore they are working in tandem". Examples include the Fast & Furious film series.[4][5]

Crime comedy films are a hybrid of the crime film and the comedy that play with the conventions of the crime film and may introduce aspects of dark humor. Generally, they feature dim-witted criminals or crime sprees that are bumblingly executed or are presented in a lighthearted manner. The genre had a resurgence in popularity in the independent film scene of the 1990s, which combined the clichés of the crime thriller with comic appropriations.[6] Examples include Kung Fu Hustle, The Wolf of Wall Street, 22 Jump Street, and Seven Psychopaths.[7]

Crime dramas are films that focus on the moral dilemmas of criminals. They differ from crime thrillers as the films generally focus on a grimmer and more realistic portrayal of the criminal world over violence and gunplay sequences. Occasionally these films begin with the flashier elements of the crime thriller such as in The Godfather, Goodfellas, and Once Upon a Time in America to develop into more contemplative narratives.[8]

Crime thrillers focus on the exciting elements of both successful and unsuccessful crimes. Unlike police procedurals, they focus on a criminal or a group of criminals rather than law enforcement. These films tend to focus on conspiracies and psychopathology of criminals, and are often violent and nihilistic. Examples include The Killers, The Peacock, Av Mevsimi and Memories of Murder.[9]

Dacoit films are a genre of Indian cinema revolving around dacoity. The genre was pioneered by Mehboob Khan's Aurat (1940) and Mother India (1957). Other examples include Gunga Jumna (1961), Sholay (1975) and Bandit Queen (1994).

Gangster films are films that tell the story from the perspective of gangsters, who are portrayed as idealistic antiheroes. The gangster film is among the oldest genres of films, with examples dating as early as Underworld, Little Caesar and Scarface.[10] After World War II, these films became increasingly violent and menacing with films like Underworld USA.[10] These films also were made outside the United States in Hong Kong, Japan and France.[10]

This film deals with a group of criminals attempting to perform a theft or robbery, as well as the possible consequences that follow. Heist films that are lighter in tone are called caper films. Examples include The Killing, Ocean's 11, Dog Day Afternoon, Reservoir Dogs, and The Town.

Apart from telling their own tales of African American gangsters in syndicates, films like Black Caesar feature the Italian mafia prominently. Often the blaxploitation films of the 1970s such as Shaft tell the tale of African American gangsters rising up and defeating the established white criminal order.[11] African Americans were under-represented in filmmaking roles during much of the 20th century. It took African American producers and directors of the 1990s like John Singleton, Spike Lee and the Hughes Brothers to begin exploring the criminal lifestyle in American urban communities, telling stories of drugs, gang culture, gang violence, racism and poverty in African American communities.[12] Examples of films from the 1990s fitting the African-American gangster genre include Boyz N The Hood, Menace II Society and New Jack City.[13][12]

Mumbai underworld is an Indian cinema crime film genre. The genre frequently draws inspiration from real Mumbai underworld gangsters, such as Haji Mastan, Dawood Ibrahim and D-Company. The genre was pioneered by Salim–Javed's Zanjeer (1973) and Deewaar (1975), starring Amitabh Bachchan. Other examples include the Don franchise (1978–2012), Nayakan (1986), Salaam Bombay! (1988), Parinda (1989), Satya (1998), Company (2002), Black Friday (2004), Slumdog Millionaire (2008) and Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai (2010).

Police procedurals focus on the police who investigate the actions of criminals, with examples such as He Walked by Night, In the Heat of the Night, Madigan, and The French Connection.

The prison film is a type of crime film that focuses on the difficult living conditions in prisons, as well as occasionally focusing on inmates adjusting to life outside of prison.[14]