Broadly speaking, an arthouse movieis one where entertainment value isn’t prioritized, and such movies are typically more serious, strange, and perhaps less approachable, too. That’s not to say arthouse movies are intentionally boring or pretentious (maybe some are, but it’s subjective), yet they can be potentially slow or obscure in parts. A great many arthouse films can be broadly described as dramas, but an arthouse movie can fall into any genre, really, so long as it retains the feeling of being artistic, ambitious, and distinctive.
The following movies all demonstrate this well, as they are all clearly identifiable as crime movies, crime/thrillers, or crime/action movies, but all fall within the definition of arthouse, too. For those who want something a little unusual, yet are in the mood for that unusual thing to have at least some exciting or narratively surprising elements, these are all good picks. They’re ranked below, starting with the good and ending with those that demonstrate the best of what “arthouse crime” films are capable of.
10’Only God Forgives' (2013)
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
In 2011, directorNicolas Winding Refnteamed withRyan Goslingto make the acclaimedDrive, which hadarthouse sensibilities combined with some action, thrills, and a slow-paced and engrossing crime storyline. It wasn’t for everyone, but ended up being well-received overall, raising anticipation for the duo’s follow-up, 2013’sOnly God Forgives. Gosling was once again a tough yet lonely man of few words getting wrapped up in a world of crime he didn’t fully understand, and the style and pacing of the film made it look like a spiritual sequel of sorts toDrive.
Yet watchingOnly God Forgives, it becomes clear that this one is far more out there and arguably “arthouse” in nature thanDrive, with a more ambiguous story, confronting scenes, and a cast filled with ruthless and hard-to-like characters. You have to be ready for some level of confusion entering intoOnly God Forgives, butthose ready for something that isn’tDrive 2.0will find things to appreciate, should they effectively get on the film’s level.
Only God Forgives
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9’Breathless' (1960)
Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Fewmovies from the 1960s were quite so influentialor as groundbreaking asBreathless, which remains one ofJean-Luc Godard’sbest-known works. Looking at the premise, it may not sound too unusual or arthouse, either, givenBreathlessis essentially about a man who needs to go on the run after committing a handful of crimes, and his efforts to convince a young woman he’s fallen for to join him on the run.
What does push things into more experimental and artistic territory is how that relatively simple central story is told.Breathlessis dizzying and uncompromising in how it’s shot and edited, and the fact some of it still looks and feels rather jarring when watched today suggests that it was about as fresh as breaths of air could get back in 1960. It’s not an easy movie to enjoy necessarily, and it’s similarly hard to get on its level, but it’s undeniably interesting to watch and significant for its influence on later crime films andthose made by New Hollywood directors.
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8’Sonatine' (1993)
Director: Takeshi Kitano
Takeshi Kitanois a renowned Japanese filmmaker who specializes inmaking Japanese gangster (or Yakuza) filmswhen he’s not solely focused on acting orhosting strange reality TV shows. Some of thesecrime films are very bleak, some are offbeat/darkly humorous, and others are a bit of both. Of those he’s directed,Sonatinemight be one of the most challenging, and could therefore have a shot at being considered the “most” arthouse of the bunch.
Much of the film is a deconstruction of typical Yakuza/gangster movies, following members of a gang who find themselves confused, lost, and directionless following a particularly messy clash with a rival gang.It’s not so much about action as it is about the tedious aftermath of violence, and this approach to showing the potential “boredom” of a criminal lifestyle makes Sonatine unique. To compare it to an English-language deconstructive film, it does for the gangster genrewhatJarheaddid for the war genre.
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7’Fallen Angels' (1995)
Director: Wong Kar-wai
One year on fromChungking Express, thesingular and legendaryWong Kar-waimade another film that might’ve scratched the same itch, but scratched it weirder. That film wasFallen Angels, which returns to familiar territory by exploring heartbreak, loneliness, and the highs and lows that come with trying to get by in a strange and sometimes violent world. However, whileChungking Expresshad two main stories - one in the first half, the other in the second -Fallen Angelsgets more structurally complex.
There are more characters inFallen Angels, they cross paths quite unpredictably, and Wong Kar-wai seems less concerned than he’s ever been when it comes to wrapping most plot threads up directly. However, for those who like the dreamy qualities of his films, and the distinctive approach he tends to take to the crime genre, there aremany things to love aboutFallen Angels, and it’s an undeniably striking film to simply look at, too.
6’Blue Velvet' (1986)
Director: David Lynch
Even thoughBlue Velvetranks asone of David Lynch’s more comprehensible movies, by no means could it be called a conventional crime/thriller/mystery film. It starts relatively small-scale, with a young man slowly finding himself drawn to a mysterious woman after making an unpleasant discovery in a vacant lot. From there, things get more complicated and surreal, especially when the woman is revealed to have ties to a group of dangerous criminals.
As far as arthouse crime movies go,Blue Velvetis relatively easy to follow, and might challenge more due to some of its content and disturbing sequences, more so than having a hard-to-follow narrative or feeling truly bizarre. Yet it is still off the beaten path, as far as neo-noir crime movies go, and carries with it that distinctive David Lynch style that ensuresBlue Velvetis loved by some, while perhaps causing bewilderment to others.
Blue Velvet
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5’Band of Outsiders' (1964)
Four years on fromBreathless, Jean-Luc Godard made another arthouse crime flick withBand of Outsiders, and this one’s arguably even better. It takes a similarly grounded and interestingly laidback look at the lives of a trio of characters, who more so aspire to be sauve and intelligent criminals than actually being, you know, sauve and intelligent criminals.
The approach makesBand of Outsiders, again, ahead of its time, as it’s a look at how certain people are drawn to immoral or antihero characters in fiction, sometimes to the point where it influences their behavior in real life. The film is also a good deal of fun and quite breezy in parts, though there is a surprising amount of substance and things it wants to say,makingBand of Outsidersan overall well-balanced and compelling movie in more ways than one.
4’You Were Never Really Here' (2017)
Director: Lynne Ramsay
Films about quiet, lonely protagonists (usually male) capable of exploding into violence have been popular for a while, and there’s a discussion to be had about whether these movies - orat least some of them - get heavily misinterpreted. There’s little chance of misinterpreting the approach ofYou Were Never Really Here, however, as it’s dark, bleak, and unwilling to even risk coming close to making violence exciting or cathartic.
Joaquin Phoenixstars here in one of his best performances, playing a disturbed war veteran who’s found a similarly grim profession outside of fighting in combat. He tracks down young girls who’ve gone missing, most of them kidnapped, and, in the process, dishes out brutal violence upon those responsible. The film doesn’t glorify this action, but Phoenix’s character is still a multifaceted one; far from a simpleTerminator-like character.The resulting film is odd but hypnotic, and worth viewing for those who want to see a familiar-sounding premise get taken in an entirely new direction.
You Were Never Really Here
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3’The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover' (1989)
Director: Peter Greenaway
It says something aboutthe filmography ofPeter Greenawaythat the uncompromising and often disgusting (yet sometimes beautiful)The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Loveris his most approachable film. The four title characters are all involved with a restaurant, and the plot unravels over about a week, with abuse and psychological torment leading to unusually understandable infidelity, which then sets offa cycle of various violent, vengeful acts.
The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Loverdoes have a straightforward plot that can be followed, with the title already implying a great deal and the various character introductions more or less signifying where the film will go. But that doesn’t matter when the story is told in such a bold way, andwhen it’s bolstered by such incredible music and visual power, be it through the use of color, shot composition, or costumes. It’s a shocking and upsetting crime film at times, but also an engrossing one.
2’Badlands' (1973)
Director: Terrence Malick
MostTerrence Malick films could be described as arthousein nature, given his frequent use of dreamlike visuals and poetic narration, coupled with stories that are either loosely plotted or unafraid to take their time.Badlandsis the most definable as a “crime” movie out of anything in Malick’s filmography, and it also might well be his least “arthouse,” given it’s simply about two young lovers on the run, and one of those lovers being a murderer.
Badlands was, appropriately enough, also Terrence Malick’s first feature film, and it therefore stands as a perfect starting point for his body of work in more ways than one. It’s a little likeBonnie and Clyde, or maybe evenBreathless, but does something entirely new with its presentation and overall sense of atmosphere. It’s a bold and beautiful film, and hugely impressive considering it was Malick’s feature debut.
1’Le Samouraï' (1967)
Director: Jean-Pierre Melville
A fantasticcrime/thriller that continues to influence to this day,Le Samouraïis an effortlessly cool and tense film about a hitman whose life spirals out of control. He has various enemies, and they all seem to be after him at once, ensuring he’s on the run for much of the film, and doing what he can to both right certain wrongs and simply survive the whole ordeal, no matter the cost.
Alain Delonmakes one hell of an impression in the lead role, playing the kind of part he might well have been born to play, andJean-Pierre Melvilledoes fantastically subdued yet visually impactful work as the director.Le Samouraïis just about the gold standard for this kind of arthouse-focused crime film, encapsulating the best of both worlds and holding up brilliantly for something that’s well over half a century old at this stage.
