Movies Like Cartel Land (2015)

Cartel Land is a 2015 documentary, drama film from Matthew Heineman with a MovieMagicScore of 7.2/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Hyena and Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy.

Documentary Drama

Hyena

2015

Good policing doesn't necessarily mean doing everything by the book. But as the business of crime in London turns to favour the Albanians and Turks, how does a "good" policeman survive?

5.6

MagicScore

Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy

2021

A cheap, powerful drug emerges during a recession, igniting a moral panic fueled by racism. Explore the complex history of crack in the 1980s.

6.8

MagicScore

The Wraith

1986

Packard Walsh and his motorized gang control and terrorize an Arizona desert town where they force drivers to drag-race so they can 'win' their vehicles. After Walsh beats the decent teenager Jamie Hankins to death after finding him with his girlfriend, a mysterious power creates Jake Kesey, an extremely cool motor-biker who has a car which is invincible. Jake befriends Jamie's girlfriend Keri Johnson, takes Jamie's sweet brother Bill under his wing and manages what Sheriff Loomis couldn't; eliminate Packard's criminal gang the hard way...

6.4

MagicScore

Sin Nombre

2009

Sayra, a Honduran teen, hungers for a better life. Her chance for one comes when she is reunited with her long-estranged father, who intends to emigrate to Mexico and then enter the United States. Sayra's life collides with a pair of Mexican gangmembers who have boarded the same American-bound train.

7.6

MagicScore

Filth

2013

A bigoted junkie cop suffering from borderline personality disorder and drug addiction manipulates and hallucinates his way in a bid to secure promotion.

6.8

MagicScore

Atlantic City

1980

In a corrupt city, a small-time gangster and the estranged wife of a pot dealer find themselves thrown together in an escapade of love, money, drugs and danger.

6.8

MagicScore

We Own the Night

2007

A New York nightclub manager tries to save his brother and father from Russian mafia hitmen.

6.7

MagicScore

New Jack City

1991

A gangster, Nino, is in the Cash Money Brothers, making a million dollars every week selling crack. A cop, Scotty, discovers that the only way to infiltrate the gang is to become a dealer himself.

6.6

MagicScore

True Romance

1993

Clarence marries hooker Alabama, steals cocaine from her pimp, and tries to sell it in Hollywood, while the owners of the coke try to reclaim it.

7.5

MagicScore

#10

Mayhem

2017

A virus spreads through an office complex causing white collar workers to act out their worst impulses.

6.5

MagicScore

#11

Dolemite

1975

Dolemite is a pimp who was set up by Willie Greene and the cops, who have planted drugs, stolen furs, and guns in his trunk and got him sentenced to 20 years in jail. One day, Queen B and a warden planned to get him out of Jail and get Willie Green and Mitchell busted for what they did to him.

5.8

MagicScore

#12

Cannibal Ferox

1981

Three friends out to disprove cannibalism meet two men on the run who tortured and enslaved a cannibal tribe to find emeralds, and now the tribe is out for revenge.

5.4

MagicScore

#13

Cut and Run

1985

A reporter and her cameraman connect a surviving Jonestown leader and a TV exec's missing son to a drug war where jungle installations are being massacred by an army of natives and a skilled white assassin.

5.3

MagicScore

#14

Edge of Sanity

1989

When his experiments into a powerful new anesthetic go hideously awry, respected physician Dr. Jekyll transforms into the hideous Jack Hyde. As his wife Elisabeth passes her time in charitable work, rehabilitating the district's fallen women, Hyde is drawn into an escalating cycle of lust and murder that seems to know no bounds.

5.3

MagicScore

#15

Gone Baby Gone

2007

When 4 year old Amanda McCready disappears from her home and the police make little headway in solving the case, the girl's aunt, Beatrice McCready hires two private detectives, Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro. The detectives freely admit that they have little experience with this type of case, but the family wants them for two reasons—they're not cops and they know the tough neighborhood in which they all live.

7.3

MagicScore

#16

Shot Caller

2017

A newly-released prison gangster is forced by the leaders of his gang to orchestrate a major crime with a brutal rival gang on the streets of Southern California.

7.0

MagicScore

#17

The Jericho Mile

1980

A runner, serving a life sentence at Folsom Prison, works at becoming the world's fastest miler and wins a chance to compete for a spot on the Olympic team.

6.0

MagicScore

#18

The Border

1982

A corrupted border agent decides to clean up his act when an impoverished woman's baby is put up for sale on the black market.

6.1

MagicScore

#19

Dance with the Devil

1997

She's sexy, shameless and loves taking people to their limit. She's a dangerous young woman who dreams about a jaguar that licks her naked body and sleeps by her side. Her past is bathed in blood and weird passions. Now she's met the man of her wildest dreams. He's dark, tough and mysterious. He likes robbing banks, trafficking in corpses and spicing it all with voodoo rituals. Together, the duo sets off toward Mexico destined to become the most feared outlaws in the continent.

6.5

MagicScore

#20

Vigilante

1983

New York City factory worker Eddie Marino is a solid citizen and regular guy, until the day a sadistic street gang brutally assaults his wife and murders his child. When a corrupt judge sets the thugs free, he goes berserk and vows revenge.

6.2

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Cartel Land?

The top films similar to Cartel Land by MovieMagicScore are Hyena (5.6), Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy (6.8), The Wraith (6.4). Each shares documentary/drama themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Cartel Land worth watching?

Cartel Land holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.2/10 from 361 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is Cartel Land?

Cartel Land (2015) is a documentary, drama film directed by Matthew Heineman, starring Robert Hetrick, José Manuel Mireles Valverde, Tim Nailer Foley.

Where can I find more recommendations like Cartel Land?

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

Keep exploring

Movies like Hyena Movies like Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy Movies like The Wraith Movies like Sin Nombre Movies like Filth Movies like Atlantic City

About movies like Cartel Land

This ranked list pairs Cartel Land (2015), a documentary and drama film from Matthew Heineman, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Robert Hetrick 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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