Movies Like The Protagonists (1999)

The Protagonists is a 1999 crime, drama, thriller film from Luca Guadagnino with a MovieMagicScore of 5.3/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with How to Make a Monster and Man of a Thousand Faces.

Crime Drama Thriller

How to Make a Monster

1958

When master monster make-up man Pete Dumond is fired by the new bosses of American International studios, he uses his creations to exact revenge.

5.6

MagicScore

Man of a Thousand Faces

1957

The turbulent life and professional career of vaudeville actor and silent screen horror star Lon Chaney (1883-1930), the man of a thousand faces; bearer of many personal misfortunes that even his great success could not mitigate.

6.6

MagicScore

In Cold Blood

1967

After a botched robbery results in the brutal murder of a rural family, two drifters elude police, in the end coming to terms with their own mortality and the repercussions of their vile atrocity.

7.5

MagicScore

The Stranger Beside Me

2003

While working at a Seattle clinic for women in the 1970s, Ann Rule becomes friends with Ted Bundy. Based on a book by Ann Rule.

5.9

MagicScore

Beautiful & Twisted

2015

Following the murder of hotel heir Ben Novack Jr., police focus their investigation on his wife, Narcy.

5.4

MagicScore

Killers of the Flower Moon

2023

When oil is discovered in 1920s Oklahoma under Osage Nation land, the Osage people are murdered one by one—until the FBI steps in to unravel the mystery.

7.4

MagicScore

An American Crime

2007

The true story of suburban housewife Gertrude Baniszewski, who kept a teenage girl locked in the basement of her Indiana home during the 1960s.

7.3

MagicScore

The Good Nurse

2022

Suspicious that her colleague is responsible for a series of mysterious patient deaths, a nurse risks her own life to uncover the truth.

6.9

MagicScore

Dillinger

1973

After a shoot-out kills five FBI agents in Kansas City the Bureau target John Dillinger as one of the men to hunt down. Waiting for him to break Federal law they sort out several other mobsters, while Dillinger's bank robbing exploits make him something of a folk hero. Escaping from jail he finds Pretty Boy Floyd and Baby Face Nelson have joined the gang and pretty soon he is Public Enemy Number One. Now the G-men really are after him.

6.5

MagicScore

#10

Dance with a Stranger

1985

Ruth Ellis lives with her ten-year old son Andy next to a night club. One night she meets David Blakely, and they start a love affair. However, for David with his upper-class background, it is impossible to uphold the relationship. He breaks up with her, something which makes Ellis, obsessed by him, very upset.

5.9

MagicScore

#11

Helter Skelter

2004

The rise of Charles Manson and his "family," who are responsible for a series of famous murders in the late 1960s. Manson, a magnetic and mysterious man, attracts road-weary single mother Linda Kasabian to join his collection of outcasts on a ranch outside of Los Angeles. After murdering actress Sharon Tate, Manson and his followers are investigated by district attorney Vincent Bugliosi.

5.7

MagicScore

#12

The Craigslist Killer

2011

Based on a true story. Philip Markoff, a charismatic and popular med student at Boston University, leads a double life as a brutal and cruel sexual deviant who abuses prostitutes he finds via Craigslist.

5.1

MagicScore

#13

The Black Dahlia Haunting

2012

While investigating the murder of her father by her blind younger brother, a young woman disturbs the vengeful spirit of Elizabeth Short, known in legend as "The Black Dahlia".

4.7

MagicScore

#14

25 Years of Innocence

2020

Tomasz Komenda was 23 years old when his normal life was brutally interrupted. Overnight he was arrested, thrown into prison and charged with murder. Subsequent expert opinions confirmed his participation in the crime, and any evidence was against him. For nearly two decades in prison, he was beaten, intimidated, humiliated and on his own. Finally, after 18 years of imprisonment, prosecutors and a policeman appeared on his way, who decided to discover the truth behind the mysterious case of the detainee.

7.7

MagicScore

#15

Murder on a Sunday Morning

2001

2001 French documentary about the murder trial of a 15 year old black teen accused of murder in Jacksonville, Florida. Winner of 2002 Academy Award for Best Documentary.

7.4

MagicScore

#16

A Killer Among Friends

1992

A teenage girl disappears and later turns up drowned, with a log across her back. Three years later, a former friend comes forward with some answers.

7.2

MagicScore

#17

Missing: The Lucie Blackman Case

2023

July 1, 2000. British 21-year-old Lucie Blackman goes missing in Tokyo, sparking an international investigation — and an unyielding quest for justice.

7.0

MagicScore

#18

Amanda Knox

2016

This gripping, atmospheric documentary recounts the infamous trial, conviction and eventual acquittal of Seattle native Amanda Knox for the 2007 murder of a British exchange student in Italy.

6.6

MagicScore

#19

Into the Deep: The Submarine Murder Case

2020

In 2016, a young Austrialian filmmaker began documenting amateur inventor Peter Madsen. One year in, Madsen brutally murdered Kim Wall aboard his homemade submarine. An unprecedented revelation of a killer and the journey his young helpers take as they reckon with their own complicity and prepare to testify.

6.5

MagicScore

#20

Yara

2021

The murder of 13-year-old Yara Gambirasio shocks the little town of Brembate di Sopra, Italy. To bring the culprit to justice, prosecutors have only scant DNA evidence and no database to compare them to. Based on a true story.

6.3

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like The Protagonists?

The top films similar to The Protagonists by MovieMagicScore are How to Make a Monster (5.6), Man of a Thousand Faces (6.6), In Cold Blood (7.5). Each shares crime/drama/thriller themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is The Protagonists worth watching?

The Protagonists holds a MovieMagicScore of 5.3/10 from 29 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is The Protagonists?

The Protagonists (1999) is a crime, drama, thriller film directed by Luca Guadagnino, starring Tilda Swinton, Fabrizia Sacchi, Andrew Tiernan.

Where can I find more recommendations like The Protagonists?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more crime recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like How to Make a Monster Movies like Man of a Thousand Faces Movies like In Cold Blood Movies like The Stranger Beside Me Movies like Beautiful & Twisted Movies like Killers of the Flower Moon

About movies like The Protagonists

This ranked list pairs The Protagonists (1999), a crime and drama and thriller film from Luca Guadagnino, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Tilda Swinton take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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