Top 35 Greatest Korean Gangster Movies Of All Time. If you’re a fan of mafia movies, then you’ve come to the right place. Here are the Top 10 Best Korean Gangster Movies Ever, as ranked by fans all over the world. From high school gangster movies to Triads and Yakuza to gangster comedy films, South Korean films about the mafia and criminal organizations contain some of South Korea’s greatest cinematic works.
Korean Gangster Movies
1. New World (2013)
Directed: Park Hoon-jung
Samsung is a police officer who works for Gold Moon International, which is South Korea’s biggest corporate criminal syndicate. He has been working undercover for 8 years and is constantly in danger of being exposed. Chief King promises to transfer him to an overseas police position but keeps putting it off.
When he threatens to resign from the force, King threatens to reveal his real identity to the criminal syndicate, which will lead to his death. When Goldmoon’s chairman passes away due to an accident, two men vie for his job. Jung Chung has the support of the Chinese-born Northmoon clan, while Lee Jorge has the support of Jaebum’s faction.
King pits Jung and Lee against each other, hoping that they will fight each other and pave the way for Suzuki to take over as chairman. He hopes that the weak Suzuki will lead the company and make it weak enough to beat the strong Suzuki. The king extorts money from Jung and persuades him to reveal the truth about his crimes in exchange for being pardoned. – Korean Gangster Movies
2. The Outlaws (2017)
Directed: Kang Yoon-sung
In Euro District, Soul City, Ma Sudo, a detective in the Euro District, is trying to maintain order while two local Chinese and Korean gangs, the Venom Gang and the Cobra Gang, are fighting for control of Chinatown. Gang Chen, the bloodsucking leader of the Black Dragon Gang, tries to take over Chinatown with his henchman Jungfrau, and his henchman Yangtze, who killed Sundae.
Ma and Jean, a captain of the Euro District’s police force, learn of Gang Chen’s criminal activities and plan to take him into custody. However, Gang Chen and his two henchmen, Yangtze and Jungfrau, attack Byung-soo and her mother’s birthday party, and Kangaroo’s henchmen are killed. Gang Chen’s whereabouts are revealed to Hwang, the hotelier and CEO of Euro District, and Hwang’s men attempt to arrest Gang Chen. After Gang Chen kills Hwang’s men, Yangtze and Angora are arrested by Ma and Jean. – Korean Gangster Movies
3. The Man from Nowhere (2010)
Directed: Lee Jung-beom
A calm and serene man who runs a pawnshop. He has a girlfriend called So-mi, who is a young girl from his neighborhood. So-mi’s mom Yo-jong, a go dancer, is addicted to Opium. Yo-jong is instructed by her lover to steal a large batch of Opium from the bar where Yo-jong works and hide it in her camera bag. She pawns the camera bag for safekeeping. This catches the attention of drug lord Oh Mung -guy.
Mansion, one of his lieutenants, orders his subordinate brothers, Long seek, to get the opium. After torturing So-mi in front of Yo-jong, he forces Yo-jong to reveal where the drugs are. Du-chi, another of Longseek’s lieutenants, goes to TAE-six’s house to try to scare him, but he easily defeats them. After holding So-mi captive, Jong-il arranges for Yo-jong to deliver the opium to Yo-jong. After informing the police, they try to arrest Yo-jong and Yo-jong. – Korean Gangster Movies
4. The Gangster, The Cop, The Devil (2019)
Director: Won-Tae Lee
After a stranger runs over a man’s car, he kills him while he’s taking photos of the damage so he can submit it for car insurance. A cop goes through the scene of the crime and suspects it’s a serial killer. However, his commanding officer doesn’t believe him. The victim’s boss, Soon Kangaroo, is also a crime boss. On his way home from a meeting, he gets run over by the same murderer who tried to kill him, too.
There’s a brutal fight between the two of them, and both of them get injured. The killer gets away after running over Soon with his car and Soon is taken to the hospital. Soon’s henchmen think it was a rival gang that attacked them, but Soon thinks it wasn’t a gang member because the killer’s movements seemed random and random. At the hospital, Soon asks to cooperate with the police so they can catch the murderer, but Soon won’t do it. Instead, Moon tells his men to look for the killer. – Korean Gangster Movies
5. Nameless Gangster (2005)
Director: Yoon Jong-bin
Following President Row Jae-won’s announcement of an anti-organized crime clampdown, Busan business tycoon Choi Kyuhyun is arrested and charged with embezzlement of billions of won from a hotel construction company, as well as intimidating, abducting, and beating. Busan prosecutor Jo Bum-seek is in charge of investigating the case, particularly the murder of HEO Nashik by a mobster named Kim Pan-ho, whom Kyuhyun is believed to have been in contact.
As a Busan customs official, Choi was already involved in taking bribes and stealing goods. One night, he and his colleague, Mr. Gang, found 10 kilograms of harpoon in a warehouse. Gang then asked his friend, gangster Choi Hyung-BAE, to sell the horizon to a Japanese yakuza he has connections with. Kyuhyun finds out that the younger Hyung is also part of the same Choi family clan out of Gyeongju, and the two develop a close relationship. After leaving his customs job, Kyuhyun becomes a full-time businessman, while Hyung-b. – Korean Gangster Movies
6. A Dirty Carnival
Director: Yoo Ha
KIM Byung-soo is a late-20s gangster who is unable to get the money he needs to keep his family from being evicted. He subverts his boss and takes on a job from the President to get rid of Attorney Park, who has been a thorn in the side of President Hwang. Upon completion of this job, Kim gets the money he wants, as well as President Hwang’s respect and a place at his side in the organization.
Kim and President Hwang promised never to mention the hit to each other so that they and the organization wouldn’t be caught up in it. While all this is going on, Kim reunites with his old elementary school friend Min-ho. Min-ho is working on a gangster movie but keeps getting rejected by higher-ups because he thinks the scripts are too fake. He decides to make the film look more authentic, so he interviews Kim, who he thinks is a real gangster. In the meantime, Kim meets his high school girlfriend, Hyung Joo. – Korean Gangster Movies
7. A Bittersweet Life (2005)
Director: Kim Jee-woon
King’s crime boss, Kim Sun-woo, is a high-level enforcer and a loyal subordinate. Sun-woo and King share a concern about business tension between Back, a son of a rival family, and Back’s men after Sun-woo beat up them for overstaying at their nightclub. King is about to go on a business trip when he orders him to shadow his young girlfriend, Shin Min-ah, who he suspects is having an affair with another man.
As Sun-woo does his duty and escorts Shin Min-ah to her music recital, he becomes silently captivated by her beauty as he sees glimpses into her lonely, barren personal life. When he comes to find Shin Min-ah at her home and finds her with a lover, he beats him up and prepares to report Kong. However, Kong decides to spare the two of them on condition that they never see each other again. Later, one of Bank’s men tries to apologize to Sun-woo for beating up his men, but Sun-woo refuses to apologize. In a fit of anger, he gets drunk at his apartment and is mugged by one of his henchmen. – Korean Gangster Movies
8. The Yellow Sea (2011)
Directed: Na Hong-jin
The Yellow Sea is a South Korean action-thriller film that was released in 2010. It was directed and co-written by Ha Hodgkin. The film stars the lead actors, who also worked together for the first time in The Chaser, where Ha played the antagonist in The Chaser and Kim played the protagonist in The Yellow Sea.
In this case, Ha plays the protagonist and Kim plays the antagonist in this film. In Kanji, northeastern China, a taxi driver named Guam is struggling to make ends meet. His wife has gone back to South Korea after promising to send money to him, but he has not heard from her, and he is plagued by nightmares that she is engaged in an extramarital affair. Guam is thrown out of his job and is taken advantage of by debt collectors who take most of the severance pay he receives. He is now deeply in debt. – Korean Gangster Movies
9. The Roundup (2022)
Director: Lee Sang-yong
The Roundup is a South Korean action-packed crime-action-packed crime-thriller directed by Lee Singsong. Directed by Lee Sung-Yong, the film stars Ma Donetsk and Son Sukkot. It is a sequel to The Outlaws and the second part of the Crime City series. The film was first released in IMAX theaters in May.
Set four years after the events of The Outlaws, the plot of The Roundup follows Detective Ma SEOO as he embarks on a mission to Vietnam to hand over a suspect. Along the way, he comes across a series of brutal killings of Korean tourists perpetrated by a ruthless killer known as King HAE Sung. On the box office front, The Roundup opened at number one in South Korea and mobilized a total of 10 million admissions, making it the best opening of a Korean movie in the last few days. – Korean Gangster Movies
10. Night in Paradise (2020)
Director: Park Hoon-jung
The story follows Taegu, a gangster who rebuffs an offer to join forces with his rival gang, which is led by President DOH. After his sister and his niece are killed, he seeks revenge by killing President DOH and all of his men before escaping to the island of the EU. He meets a woman who is terminally ill and her weapons dealer Uncle Auto.
In the meantime, President Yang’s boss plans to eliminate all the remaining lieutenants of Bursting and end the gang once and for all. However, this plan fails due to Taegu’s leadership and effectiveness, and President Ma’s men hunt him down relentlessly to get revenge. To save his life, Yang betrays him and gives him up to the gang, but Ma reveals that he did it because he was afraid that Yang would become powerless if he defected to Bursting. – Korean Gangster Movies
11. Hwayi: A Monster Boy (2013)
Director: Jang Joon-hwan
In the heart of the forest, a well-known five-person crime group lives together on an abandoned farm. On a day that didn’t go according to plan, an infant that they had abducted in a blackmail scheme ends up with them. Fourteen years later, the boy who is now known as “Hawaii” lives the life of the son of the five criminal fathers. Away is raised in a very special way, learning from his father’s skills instead of attending school.
He has adjusted to this new life, but sometimes he still yearns for the “normal” life that other boys live. The gang arranges for another crime to be committed, in which the boy will get his first taste of action. During a game of hide-and-seek, the boy fires a gun at his opponent. At first, the fingers shake and the gun shudders, but after a single shot, the boy pulls the trigger as if he is possessed. Dong-beam, the son of the cold martial artist, is killed. – Korean Gangster Movies
12. Friend (2001)
Directed: Kwak Kyung-taek
The story centers around the lives of the four childhood friends who are the leaders of the group, whose fathers are powerful gangsters, and the class clown, Jung-ho, who was a good student. They play together as kids and sell sex-related images. In middle school, they fall in love with a girl band’s lead singer, whom they invite to their house for a party.
It is at this party that Sang-take gets his first kiss, which was performed by the lead singer’s younger sister, Jin-sung. In high school, Sang-seek gets into a fight with a teacher and is suspended from school. During an excursion to the cinema, Sang-took catches the attention of a schoolboy whom he had previously picked a quarrel with.
While Jung-ho saves Sang-seek from a rival school, dongs destroys the school’s glass cases full of awards and trophies, resulting in his expulsion from school. After graduating from high school, Jung-ho and Sang-seek both go to college, but the others don’t. Jung-ho returns home to find Sang-seek is married. – Korean Gangster Movies
13. The Prison (2017)
Director: Na Hyun
Yukon is a disgraced former police inspector who is sent to prison after a car accident in which he was involved. He is placed in a prison cell with other prisoners that he had imprisoned himself. While Yukon is in prison, he finds out that the entire prison is run by a single prisoner named Yukon. He has been running a criminal empire with the assistance of the prison warden and the prison guards. He is the perfect alibi for them. Soon after that, Yukon becomes an important part of the criminal empire. – Korean Gangster Movies
14. Friend: The Great Legacy (2013)
Director: Kwak Kyung-taek
The story of The Great Legacy picks up 17 years after the events of the preceding film. Having claimed that he was responsible for ordering the murder of his friend, Lee John Seek, he is released from prison to a world as unfamiliar as the one in which he once led. With his henchman, Funky, now effectively in charge, John Seek secretly sets out on a quest to challenge his current power. He enlists the help of Choi Sung-ho, whom he had known in prison, as well as the members of Sung-ho’s gang.
Sung-ho is the 20-year-old son of John Seek’s high school girlfriend, now working as a hostess at a bar. He had served one year in prison for hitting his mother’s violent ex-boyfriend. Having grown to love John Seek over the years, Sung-ho is happy to side with him. However, when he learns the truth about his past, the relationship between John Seek and Sung-ho becomes strained. – Korean Gangster Movies
15. The City of Violence (2016)
Director: Ryoo Seung-wan
The story follows a former gangster who follows a gang of thugs into an alley, where they stab him to death. After nearly 20 years, his four childhood buddies reunite at his funeral, all of whom had gone their separate ways: The So, who had become a police detective in Seoul, Filho, who had taken over his younger brother’s business, SEK Swan, who had been a debt collector, and Dong Swan, who was struggling as a math professor.
The So decides to look into the murder within the week before he plans to go back to work in Seoul, while SEK Swan decides to track down and kill the killers. During the investigation, The So is attacked by a gang of young people, and barely survives after SEK Swan’s sudden appearance. After hunting down the gangs, it is revealed that Wang Jane’s death was not a random, random attack, but rather a calculated murder. The discovery leads to Dong Swan’s admission that Oil Ho was the mastermind behind the plan after Wang Jane disapproved of Oil Ho’s plans to make their city a tourist area. – Korean Gangster Movies
16. The Drug King (2016)
Directed: Woo Min-ho
Lee Osama is the real-life story of a drug lord who built his empire in the crime world of Busan. Lee started as a member of Chilling, a group of criminals in Busan, who originated from the province of Shanghai. Initially, Lee used to transport diamonds and other goods, but then he started to import drugs for domestic consumption, and then he started to export drugs to Japan, making a lot of money from it. – Korean Gangster Movies
17. Asura: The City of Madness (2016)
Director: Kim Sung-su
Han Docking is a homicide detective who receives money for taking care of the behind-the-scenes work for the Akdeok Mayor, who commits various criminal activities for the sake of profit and success. Han is constantly exposed to evil, but this time he enters the path of a criminal who would do anything for money under the pretense of paying his wife’s hospital expenses, a terminally ill cancer patient.
Prosecutor Kim Chain takes advantage of Han’s weakness and uses him to investigate the Video mayor for corruption and criminal activities. The prosecutors and Park Tangible take advantage of Han to their advantage and use him for their gain. Meanwhile, Han, who has turned into a typhoon-like eye, sends his junior detective, who follows him like a big brother, under the watchful eye of Park Sandbar. – Korean Gangster Movies
18. Beasts Clawing at Straws (2020)
Director: Kim Yong-hoon
Stuck in an unappealing job and having to take care of his sick mother, he finds a large bag of money in the sauna. Jae-young is a customs officer who is owed money by criminal Mr. Park. He conspires with one of Park’s henchmen to pull off a big scam on a “sucker” who is trying to escape the country. Mi-ran is an escort girl with an abusive husband. One of her clients tries to kill him in exchange for his life insurance policy money.
All three characters run into dangerous people and get into more and more trouble as they try to cheat their way to the final payout. In the end, Jong-un loses his house because of the fire that Leon–He set to hide her murder of Park for the money, but after killing Park’s lieutenant to avenge her boss, she loses the key to the locker that contains the bag of money. Jong-un’s wife, who works as a cleaning lady at the airport, finds the key and gets the money. – Korean Gangster Movies
19. Breathless (2008)
Directed: Yang Ik-june
Rangoon is a nasty and abusive gangster who works for an illegitimate moneylender run by his old girlfriend and loan shark, Manisha. He is the first one to attack protestors who are obstructing the construction company’s work with the others in the organization. He has a nephew named Hyung-in, whom he loves very much. His sister also cares about him and invites him for dinner. He and his mother are not on the best of terms, and he does not speak to his mother at all.
It is shown that his abusive father had a fight with his mother once and stabbed his mother by accident, and his mother was later killed in a car crash. On the day of his visit to his nephew, Rangoon accidentally spits on the high school student Han Benches, who asks him to apologize. They had a fight, and he punched her in the face and knocked her down. When she woke up, she noticed that Rangoon had wiped his clothes clean. She demanded compensation from him, and he gave it to her. – Korean Gangster Movies
20. Gangster High (2006)
Director: Park Ki-hyung
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In 1991, a studious soccer enthusiast named Sang-ho started a soccer club called “Tigers” with the help of his two friends, “Taegu” and “Change”. It is through Taegu that Sang-ho meets “Suttee”, “Jong-un’s” girlfriend, who is the leader of a gang known as “TNT”. The rivalry between the two gangs quickly escalates into a violent confrontation. After Taegu dies in a car accident resulting from a gang fight with “TNT,” the “Tiger” decide to avenge his death.
The two gangs collide in a billiard club, and despite Suttee’s best efforts, a brutal battle between the gangs takes place. Three people die, and the rest are permanently injured, including Sang-ho’s friends. Since Sang-ho was the one who started the fight, he is accused of killing those three people and is sentenced to prison, where he reminisces that “Tiger Soccer Club” was originally set up for the sole purpose of enjoying soccer and friendship. – Korean Gangster Movies
21. Rough Cut (2008)
Director: Jang Hoon
So issue’s ganglia is the leader of the local organized crime who still wants to be in films. Sonata’s Siobhan is a cocky actor who is very easy to tease. In his most recent film, he played a gangster, in which he got into the role so much that he put one of his stuntmen in the hospital. The two men meet at a salon where they happen to hang out by accident. Sonata invites Gang-pa to join their production, but this gangster in real life will only agree to do it if the fight scenes are real. The two main characters keep trying to outdo each other at every turn. – Korean Gangster Movies
22. The Merciless (2017)
Directed: Byun Sung-hyun
The plot revolves around an undercover cop and a prison guard who team up to take control of a gang. The main character, Hyung too, is the undercover cop while Han Jaeho, the prison guard, is the leader of the gang. The relationship between Han and Hyung is marked by loyalty and betrayal. – Korean Gangster Movies
23. Gangnam Blues (2015)
Director: Yoo Ha
In the 70s, during a time of political instability, Gangnam in the south of Seoul is beginning to develop into a prosperous area. Two childhood friends, Lee Min-ho and Kim Rae-won, are living on the outskirts of the city, living in shanties until local criminals destroy their homes. Hoping to make some money, they get caught up in a series of violent political clashes and are separated from each other during one of these clashes.
After three years, Kim Rae-won finds himself living as the adopted son of the former gang leader Gil-too, whom he does not know about, as a petty gangster. Yong, on the other hand, has risen to power inside the most powerful criminal group in the city, the Yang Kitten organization, and is involved in real estate trading through the tips he receives from Min Seabee, who is in turn in real estate deals. Together, they start to enter into a larger business of land trading. Eventually, they decide to work together and plan to get what they want. – Korean Gangster Movies
24. The Dude in Me (2019)
Directed: Kang Hyo-jin
Pan-Soo is an elite gangster who is married to the daughter of his boss. On the day of the incident, Jong-un falls from the roof while trying to get a shoe and hits his head on the ground. He wakes up in the hospital and notices that everyone is calling him a ‘student’, and Jong-un’s father runs up to him and calls him ‘Jong-un’ and embraces him. Pansies are in a state of confusion and runs to the mirror to see if he is still in his own body.
After several attempts to return to his body, where he is still unconscious, Pan-Soo decides to accept his fate and go home with Dong Hymn’s dad. Dong Hymn is being bullied at school and is overweight. He fights back against the bullying until they stop bothering him and his friend. At the same time, his loyal subordinate Man Chub is at the hospital looking after his unconscious body. Man Chub convinces Pansies that he has switched bodies with Dong Hymn and helps him gather information and the daily activities of the gang. – Korean Gangster Movies
25. The Killer: A Girl Who Deserves to Die (2022)
Director: Choi Jaehoon
The background of the story is that Bang is a retired killer who has gotten married and has a daughter with his wife. Leonardo tells him that she and her best friend are going on a vacation to the EU together and asks him to look after 17-year-old Kim Soon Hi, her best friend’s daughter. At first, he resists but eventually agrees. Later that same day, he sends his wife and Kim Soon Hi’s stepmother away in the morning and picks up Kim Soon Hi at Honda in the evening.
He goes home after asking Kim Soon Hi to stay at his girlfriend’s house for the next few days. Yeo-jin calls him asking for help as she has a stomachache, and he goes to look for her. She fakes being sick to make him come and pick her up. However, after receiving a text message from him, she tells him to go home and he drives away. When he looks back, he sees Kim Soon Hi riding away with several others on a bike. – Korean Gangster Movies
26. A Better Tomorrow (1986)
Director: John Woo
The main character, Sung Tho, is a high-ranking member of the Hong Kong triad. He runs a profitable printing and distribution operation that creates fake U.S. banknotes. He is well-liked by his co-workers, including his best friend Mark Lee. The prologue of the book follows a day in Ho’s life as he watches a new batch of fake notes being printed and meets with foreign clients to exchange their products for fake Hong Kong dollars.
Ho’s younger brother Kit has just finished high school and is training to become a police officer. Ho conceals his criminal lifestyle from his brother and supports Kit’s decision to pursue a career in the police, even though their ailing father urges him to leave behind the life of crime. Thing joins Ho after agreeing to mentor him, and Ho decides to leave the triad after making another deal in Taiwan. However, Thing and Ho are ambushed by local law enforcement, leading to a shoot-out in a sewage tunnel entrance. – Korean Gangster Movies
27. Beat (1997)
Directed: Kim Sung-su
Beat is a rollercoaster ride of dreams and despair that follows an ambitious high schooler, Min, as he embarks on an epic journey into the vicious world of gangsters. The film is a captivating mix of ambition and redemption, and its raw intensity ignites a flood of emotions. Featuring unforgettable performances, and set in the dark corners of the Korean gangster films, Beat lives on as a cherished classic. – Korean Gangster Movies
28. Sunflower (2006)
Director: Kang Seok-Beom
Sunflower is a visually stunning story of redemption and change that triumphs in its honest depiction of a gangster who has turned his life around. Director Kim Rae-won’s touching and heartbreaking portrayal of a man on the brink of change anchors the film’s intricate narrative. A masterpiece of empathy, Sunflower continues to demonstrate the genre’s power to break stereotypes and explore deeper human experiences. – Korean Gangster Movies
29. Man in Love (2021)
Director: Yin Chen-hao
Man in Love is an action-packed Korean gangster movie set in the dark world of Korean crime cinema. It follows an enforcer named Tail who rediscovers his true self through an unexpected, yet heartbreaking love story. Hwang Jung-min plays Tail in this action-packed film, and his love story is told through the eyes of the woman who falls in love with him. The film has been praised by both critics and audiences alike for its powerful story of redemption and love. Man in Love is a box office success that remains a genre staple today. – Korean Gangster Movies
30. Marrying the Mafia (2002)
Director: Jeong Heung-sun
Marrying the Mafia is a wild ride of crime and comedy, where the protagonist gets caught up in the viciousness of a crime family. The film’s unique combination of comedy and suspense, and its star-studded cast, are sure to make it one of the most beloved standouts among Korean gangster movies. Full of humor and pure, unadulterated fun, this one-of-a-kind gem provides a much-needed break from the darker undertones of the genre. – Korean Gangster Movies
31. Bloody Tie (2006)
Director: Choi Ho
Sung-do wants to make it big in the drug business. He works as a 2-bit crystal methamphetamine dealer to make ends meet and support his half-retired uncle, who is a drug dealer. Sang-do also works as an informer for a corrupt cop named Ho. They form an uneasy partnership when they both try to take out a drug lord who is protected by the government, but their issues keep popping up at the wrong time, ruining their chances of success. – Korean Gangster Movies
32. The Truth Beneath (2016)
Director: Lee Kyoung-mi
Candidate Jonathan’s daughter goes missing 15 days before the election. Candidate Jonathan is focused on the election, but his wife goes looking for her daughter and finds some suspicious signs. – Korean Gangster Movies
33. The Swindlers (2017)
Director: Jang Chang-won
Public prosecutor Park and fraudster Rising are working together to find a notorious scammer, but they both have their own motivations. – Korean Gangster Movies
34. Marine Boy (2009)
Director: Yoon Jong-Seok
After a night of drinking and gambling, Chanson, an ex-professional swimmer, takes on a huge debt. The drug lord proposes to settle the debt by allowing Chanson to transport drugs by swimming across the sea. – Korean Gangster Movies
35. Cruel Winter Blues (2006)
Director: Lee Jeong-beom
Jae-won is a gang captain who has been in the business for many years. He is a seasoned veteran of the mob family. Chick, who is a black belt in taekwondo and a newcomer to gang life, is quietly offended by the cruel and random acts that Jae-won does to him and others. Chick and Jae-won decide to go after rival gangster Desk, who killed their boss and childhood friend several years ago. They take Chick as their accomplice in the assassination. Together, they journey to Desk’s hometown, Bulgy, a small rural village in South Ella province. – Korean Gangster Movies
