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Movies like Hard Eight

Key Features:
Gambling, Mentorship, Crime, Neo-noir, Casino, Redemption, Moral ambiguity, Character study, Las Vegas, Friendship, Violence-moderate, Nudity-moderate
Tone:
serious, restrained, gritty
Target Audience:
Crime drama enthusiasts, Character-driven movie fans, Neo-noir aficionados, Independent film viewers
Emotional Arc:
Intrigue → Tension → Resignation

Hard Eight

1997-02-28
Hard Eight Poster - Find Similar Movies

A stranger mentors a young Reno gambler who weds a hooker and befriends a vulgar casino regular.

Genres
Drama, Crime
Cast
Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson, F. William Parker, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Nathanael Cooper, Wynn White, Robert Ridgely, Kathleen Campbell
Crew
Paul Thomas Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson
Rating
6.9(919 votes)
Hard EightHard Eight
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The Underneath
5.6

A recovering gambling addict attempts to reconcile with his family and friends but finds trouble and temptation when caught between feelings for his ex-wife and her dangerous hoodlum boyfriend.



Killing Them Softly

Jackie Cogan is an enforcer hired to restore order after three dumb guys rob a Mob protected card game, causing the local criminal economy to collapse.



Phoenix
Phoenix(1998)
5.324

Gambling fever -- along with a brutal bookie -- leads three crooked cops into a double-dealing scheme that lands them in hot water way over their heads.



Atlantic City
6.8

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.



Hardball
Hardball(2001)
6.5

An aimless young man who is scalping tickets, gambling and drinking, agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of getting a loan from a friend.



Casino
Casino(1995)
7.993

In Las Vegas, two best friends--a casino executive and a Mafia enforcer--compete for a gambling empire and a fast-living, fast-loving socialite.



Wild Card
Wild Card(2015)
5.7

When a Las Vegas bodyguard with lethal skills and a gambling problem gets in trouble with the mob, he has one last play… and it's all or nothing.



Easy Money: Hard to Kill

JW is serving hard time in prison and struggling to get back on an honest path. There are glimmers of hope in his life – some venture capitalists are interested in a new piece of trading software he's developed, and while behind bars he's made peace with an old enemy. This all proves to be an illusion. On leave from prison, and back in contact with his former gang, JW learns that once you've walked in the shoes of a criminal there just may be no going back.



Hard Luck
Hard Luck(2006)
5.5

Three converging story lines involving bootleggers, a serial killer and drug dealers are followed. A former drug dealer tries to go straight, but comes across a stash of stolen drugs. Meanwhile, a middle-aged suburban housewife hides a sadistic and vicious streak.



The Gambler
6.015

Literature professor Jim Bennett leads a secret life as a high-stakes gambler. Always a risk-taker, Bennett bets it all when he borrows from a gangster and offers his own life as collateral. Staying one step ahead, he pits his creditor against the operator of an illicit gambling ring while garnering the attention of Frank, a paternalistic loan shark. As his relationship with a student deepens, Bennett must risk everything for a second chance.



Training Day
7.508

On his first day on the job as a narcotics officer, a rookie cop works with a rogue detective who isn't what he appears.



Gutshot Straight
4.133

A professional poker player falls deep into underworld when he takes an unexpected wager from a mysterious high roller.



The Tin Star
7.007

An experienced bounty hunter helps a young sheriff learn the meaning of his badge.



The Mechanic
6.524

Arthur Bishop is a 'mechanic' - an elite assassin with a strict code requiring professional perfection and total detachment. One of an elite group of assassins, Bishop may be the best in the business - with a unique talent for cleanly eliminating targets. When Harry McKenna, his close friend and mentor, is murdered, Harry's son comes to him with vengeance in his heart and a desire to learn Bishop's trade, signaling the birth of a deadly partnership.



Pale Flower
7.3

A gangster gets released from prison and has to cope with the recent shifts of power between the gangs, while taking care of a thrill-seeking young woman, who got in bad company while gambling.



48 Hrs.
48 Hrs.(1982)
6.682

A hard-nosed cop reluctantly teams up with a wise-cracking criminal temporarily paroled to him, in order to track down a killer.



The Good Thief
6.072

An aging gambler on a losing streak attempts to rob a casino in Monte Carlo. But someone's already tipped off the cops before he even makes a move.



Small Crimes
5.383

A disgraced former cop, fresh off a six-year prison sentence for attempted murder, returns home looking for redemption but winds up trapped in the mess he left behind.



Wall Street
7.2

A young and impatient stockbroker is willing to do anything to get to the top, including trading on illegal inside information taken through a ruthless and greedy corporate raider, whom takes the youth under his wing.



Two for the Money

A former college athlete joins forces with a sports consultant to handicap football games for high-rolling gamblers.



Croupier
Croupier(1998)
6.7

Jack Manfred is an aspiring writer who to make ends meet, takes a job as a croupier. Jack remains an observer, knowing that everything in life is a gamble and that gamblers are born to lose. Inevitably, he gets sucked into the world of the casino which takes its toll on his relationships and the novel he is writing.



Jamesy Boy
6.404

Based on the true story of teenager James Burns who goes from a suburban street gang to a maximum-security prison cell surrounded by hardened criminals. He turns his life around in prison thanks to the unexpected friendship he forms with a convicted murderer who becomes his mentor.



Narc
Narc(2002)
6.743

When the trail goes cold on a murder investigation of a policeman, an undercover narcotics officer is lured back to the force to help solve the case.



Colors
Colors(1988)
6.5

A confident young cop is shown the ropes by a veteran partner in the dangerous gang-controlled barrios of Los Angeles, where the gang culture is enforced by the colors the members wear.



Only God Forgives
5.8

Julian, who runs a Thai boxing club as a front organization for his family's drug smuggling operation, is forced by his mother Crystal to find and kill the individual responsible for his brother's recent death.



8 Million Ways to Die

Scudder is a detective with the Sheriff's Department who is forced to shoot a violent suspect during a narcotics raid. The ensuing psychological aftermath of this shooting worsens his drinking problem and this alcoholism causes him to lose his job, as well as his marriage.



Joe
Joe(1970)
6.415

After murdering his daughter's drug-dealing boyfriend, a wealthy ad executive stumbles into a bar and strikes up an uneasy alliance with Joe Curran, a drunken bigot with a bloodlust who works at a local factory.



Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead

Five different criminals face imminent death after botching a job quite badly.



The Gambler
6.7

New York City English professor Axel Freed outwardly seems like an upstanding citizen. But privately Freed is in the clutches of a severe gambling addiction that threatens to destroy him.



Ballad of a Small Player

Amid the glittering casinos of Macau, a gambler running from his past — and his debts — becomes fascinated by an enigmatic woman at the baccarat table.



Mona Lisa
Mona Lisa(1986)
6.9

George is a small-time crook just out of prison who discovers his tough-guy image is out of date. Reduced to working as a minder/driver for high class call girl Simone, he has to agree when she asks him to find a young colleague from her King's Cross days. That's when George's troubles just start.



Sin City
Sin City(2005)
7.463

Welcome to Sin City. This town beckons to the tough, the corrupt, the brokenhearted. Some call it dark… Hard-boiled. Then there are those who call it home — Crooked cops, sexy dames, desperate vigilantes. Some are seeking revenge, others lust after redemption, and then there are those hoping for a little of both. A universe of unlikely and reluctant heroes still trying to do the right thing in a city that refuses to care.



Shot Caller
6.956

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.



Hard Candy
6.813

Hayley’s a smart, charming teenage girl. Jeff’s a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, an impromptu fashion shoot back at Jeff’s place. Jeff thinks it’s his lucky night. He’s in for a surprise.



Bad Influence
5.9

Wimpy young executive Michael is about to get pulverized by a jealous boyfriend in a bar when a handsome, mysterious stranger steps in—and then disappears. Later that night, Michael runs into a stranger on a pier, who wheedles his way into Michael's life and turns it upside down.



Focus
Focus(2015)
6.9

Nicky, an accomplished con artist, gets romantically involved with his disciple Jess but later ends their relationship. Years later, she returns as a femme fatale to spoil his plans.



Carlito's Way
7.8

Free after years in prison, Carlito Brigante intends to give up his criminal ways, but it's not long before the ex-con is sucked back into the New York City underworld. Reconnecting with his dancer girlfriend, Carlito gets entangled in the shady dealings of his friend Dave Kleinfeld, who also serves as his lawyer. An encounter with shifty gangster Benny Blanco sets the duo on a dangerous path.



Man of the West
6.6

Heading east to Fort Worth to hire a schoolteacher for his frontier town home, Link Jones is stranded with singer Billie Ellis and gambler Sam Beasley when their train is held up. For shelter, Jones leads them to his nearby former home, where he was brought up an outlaw. Finding the gang still living in the shack, Jones pretends to be ready to return to a life crime.



13
13(2010)
5.8

A naive young man assumes a dead man's identity and finds himself embroiled in an underground world of power, violence, and chance where men gamble behind closed doors on the lives of other men.



Gorbaciof
Gorbaciof(2010)
6.05

Marino Pacileo has a soft spot for gambling. When he discovers that Lila's father, the young Chinese girl that he is in love with cannot pay a debt, the gambler steals money from the jail he is in to help the love of his life.



Gangster No. 1
6.4

An old gangster is advised that Freddie Mays would leave jail after thirty years in prison. His mood changes and he recalls when he was a young punk and who joined Freddie's gang—a man he both envied and ultimately betrayed.



Hard Times
6.8

In the depression, Chaney, a strong silent streetfighter, joins with Speed, a promoter of no-holds-barred street boxing bouts. They go to New Orleans where Speed borrows money to set up fights for Chaney, but Speed gambles away any winnings.



Revolver
Revolver(2005)
6.3

Hotshot gambler Jake Green is long on bravado and seriously short of common sense. Rarely is he allowed in any casino because he's a bona fide winner and, in fact, has taken so much money over the years that he's the sole client of his accountant elder brother, Billy. Invited to a private game, Jake is in fear of losing his life.



Nightmare Alley
7

An ambitious carnival man with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words hooks up with a female psychologist who is even more dangerous than he is.



Hard Days
Hard Days(2023)
6.6

After going to extremes to cover up an accident, a corrupt cop's life spirals out of control when he starts receiving threats from a mysterious witness.



21
21(2008)
6.694

Ben Campbell is a young, highly intelligent student at M.I.T. who strives to succeed. Wanting a scholarship to transfer to Harvard School of Medicine to become a doctor, Ben learns that he cannot afford the $300,000 tuition as he comes from a poor, working-class background. But one evening, Ben is introduced by his unorthodox math professor to a small but secretive club of five students, Jill, Choi, Kianna, and Fisher, who are being trained by Professor Rosa to count cards at blackjack.



Roger Dodger
6.108

A smooth-talking ad executive attributes his remarkable success with women to his ability to manipulate their emotions from the moment he first meets them. When his teenage nephew drops in for a visit, he soon learns that his approach isn't as foolproof as he thought when he attempts to teach the boy how to pick up women.



St. Vincent
7.1

A young boy whose parents just divorced finds an unlikely friend and mentor in the misanthropic, bawdy, hedonistic, war veteran who lives next door.



Death Sentence
6.775

Nick Hume is a mild-mannered executive with a perfect life, until one gruesome night he witnesses something that changes him forever. Transformed by grief, Hume eventually comes to the disturbing conclusion that no length is too great when protecting his family.



Win It All
5.674

A gambling addict faces a conflict when entrusted with keeping a bunch of money that isn't his.



The Grifters
6.5

A small-time conman has his loyalties torn between his estranged mother and his new girlfriend, both of whom are high-stakes grifters with their own angles to play.



The Color of Money
6.8

Former pool hustler "Fast Eddie" Felson decides he wants to return to the game by taking a pupil. He meets talented but green Vincent Lauria and proposes a partnership. As they tour pool halls, Eddie teaches Vincent the tricks of scamming, but he eventually grows frustrated with Vincent's showboat antics, leading to an argument and a falling-out. Eddie takes up playing again and soon crosses paths with Vincent as an opponent.



Felon
Felon(2008)
7.1

A family man convicted of killing an intruder must cope with life afterward in the violent penal system.



The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar

A rich man learns about a guru who can see without using his eyes. He sets out to master the skill in order to cheat at gambling.



The Mechanic
6.678

Arthur Bishop is a veteran hit man who, owing to his penchant for making his targets' deaths seem like accidents, thinks himself an artist. It's made him very rich, but as he hits middle age, he's so depressed and lonely that he takes on one of his victim's sons, Steve McKenna, as his apprentice. Arthur puts him through a rigorous training period and brings him on several hits. As Steven improves, Arthur worries that he'll discover who killed his father.



Bad Guy
Bad Guy(2002)
6.514

A pimp enforcer takes revenge on a woman who rejected his advances by tricking her into prostitution, but complications arise.



Juror #2
Juror #2(2024)
6.871

While serving as a juror in a high profile murder trial, family man Justin Kemp finds himself struggling with a serious moral dilemma…one he could use to sway the jury verdict and potentially convict—or free—the accused killer.



Q & A
Q & A(1990)
5.8

A young district attorney seeking to prove a case against a corrupt police detective encounters a former lover and her new protector, a crime boss who refuses to help him.



Uncut Gems
7.151

A charismatic New York City jeweler always on the lookout for the next big score makes a series of high-stakes bets that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime. Howard must perform a precarious high-wire act, balancing business, family, and encroaching adversaries on all sides in his relentless pursuit of the ultimate win.



Murder-Set-Pieces
3.878

A ferocious, misogynistic, and morally deprived serial killer is active in Las Vegas. Obsessed with the collapse of the Twin Towers, and with Nazi tendencies, he even targets underage girls.



Role Models
6.487

Two salesmen trash a company truck on an energy drink-fueled bender. Upon their arrest, the court gives them a choice: do hard time or spend 150 service hours with a mentorship program. After one day with the kids, however, jail doesn't look half bad.



The Hateful Eight
7.756

Bounty hunters seek shelter from a raging blizzard and get caught up in a plot of betrayal and deception.



The Corruptor
6.1

Danny is a young cop partnered with Nick, a seasoned but ethically tainted veteran. As the two try to stop a gang war in Chinatown, Danny relies on Nick but grows increasingly uncomfortable with the way Nick gets things done.



Lucky You
Lucky You(2007)
5.6

A professional poker player whose astounding luck at the table fails to translate into his lonesome love life attempts to win the World Series of Poker while simultaneously earning the affections of a beautiful Las Vegas singer.



Wild Bill
Wild Bill(2011)
6.8

Out on parole after 8 years inside Bill Hayward returns home to find his now 11 and 15 year old sons abandoned by their mother and fending for themselves. Unwilling to play Dad, an uncaring Bill is determined to move on.



Poolhall Junkies
6.3

A retired pool hustler is forced to pick up the stick again when his brother starts a game he can't finish.



Joe
Joe(2014)
6.5

The rough-hewn boss of a lumber crew courts trouble when he steps in to protect the youngest member of his team from an abusive father.



Levity
Levity(2003)
6.1

Manuel Jordan is a man who is free after serving 23 years for killing a teenager during an attempted robbery. After nearly two decades of staring at his victim's face on a newspaper clipping in his cell, the newly paroled man seeks redemption. Instead, redemption—in the form of a mysterious minister and two needy women— finds him.



The Hard Way
5.4

After learning of his brother's death during a mission in Romania, a former soldier joins two allies to hunt down a mysterious enemy and take his revenge.



Half Nelson
6.642

Despite his dedication to the junior-high students who fill his classroom, idealistic teacher Dan Dunne leads a secret life of addiction that the majority of his students will never know. But things change when a troubled student Drey makes a startling discovery of his secret life, causing a tenuous bond between the two that could either end disastrously or provide a catalyst of hope.



Bounce
Bounce(2000)
5.797

Buddy Amaral, a successful and self-absorbed Los Angeles advertising executive, switches airline tickets with a stranger just before boarding a long-delayed flight so that he might enjoy an overnight fling with a pretty Dallas businesswoman. When the plane goes down, killing all aboard, Buddy's guilt soon turns into an alcohol problem. As part of his 12-step program, Buddy seeks atonement and decides to seek out the woman he thinks he's left a widow.



Cop & ½
Cop & ½(1993)
4.471

When a pint-sized 8-year-old kid witnesses a murder he offers to help the police, if they make him a cop, too. Saddled with this streetwise sidekick, a hardboiled cop is forced to take his new partner seriously as they race the clock to bring the bad guys to justice.



The Cincinnati Kid

An up-and-coming poker player tries to prove himself in a high-stakes match against a long-time master of the game.



Midnight Cowboy
7.5

Joe Buck is a wide-eyed hustler from Texas hoping to score big with wealthy New York City women; he finds a companion in Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo, an ailing swindler with a bum leg and a quixotic fantasy of escaping to Florida.



F1
F1(2025)
7.805

Racing legend Sonny Hayes is coaxed out of retirement to lead a struggling Formula 1 team—and mentor a young hotshot driver—while chasing one more chance at glory.



Jennifer Eight
6.063

John Berlin, a big-city cop from LA moves to a small-town police force and immediately finds himself investigating a murder. Using theories rejected by his colleagues, Berlin meets a young blind woman named Helena, whom he is attracted to. Meanwhile, a serial killer is on the loose—and only John knows it.



The Big Combo
7

Police Lt. Leonard Diamond vies to bring a clever, well connected, and sadistic gangster to justice all the while obsessing over the gangster's girlfriend.



8MM
8MM(1999)
6.5

A small, seemingly innocuous plastic reel of film leads surveillance specialist Tom Welles down an increasingly dark and frightening path. With the help of the streetwise Max, he relentlessly follows a bizarre trail of evidence to determine the fate of a complete stranger. As his work turns into obsession, he drifts farther and farther away from his wife, family and simple life as a small-town PI.



Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

Some of Sin City's most hard-boiled citizens cross paths with a few of its more reviled inhabitants.



Ocean's Eleven
6.369

Danny Ocean and his gang attempt to rob the five biggest casinos in Las Vegas in one night.



Twelve
Twelve(2010)
5.684

A young drug dealer watches as his high-rolling life is dismantled in the wake of his cousin's murder, which sees his best friend arrested for the crime.



Bad Boys
Bad Boys(1983)
7

Mick O'Brien is a young Chicago street thug torn between a life of petty crime and the love of his girlfriend. But when the heist of a local drug dealer goes tragically wrong Mick is sentenced to a brutal juvenile prison where violence is a rite of passage and respect is measured in vengeance.



Flawless
Flawless(1999)
6.2

An ultraconservative police officer suffers a debilitating stroke and is assigned to a rehabilitative program that includes singing lessons - with the drag queen next door.



Heist
Heist(2015)
6.142

A father is without the means to pay for his daughter's medical treatment. As a last resort, he partners with a greedy co-worker to rob a casino. When things go awry they're forced to hijack a city bus.



Lay the Favorite
5.224

A former stripper's talent with numbers lands her a job with a professional gambler who runs a sports book in Las Vegas.



Where the Sidewalk Ends

A police detective's violent nature keeps him from being a good cop.



Sinners and Saints
5.6

In lawless storm ravaged New Orleans, eleaguered Detective Sean Riley is trying to cope with the death of his young son and the abandonment of his wife. Facing a probable suspension from the department, Riley is teamed with a young homicide Detective, Will Ganz, to help solve a series of brutal murders that have plunged the city into a major gang war. The two quickly realize there is something far more sinister going on than either could have ever imagined.



Outside In
6.162

An ex-con struggling to readjust to life in his small town forms an intense bond with his former high-school teacher.



Slow Burn
Slow Burn(2005)
5.3

A district attorney is involved in a 24-hour showdown with a gang leader and is, at the same time, being manipulated by an attractive assistant district attorney and a cryptic stranger.



U Turn
U Turn(1997)
6.6

When a desperate man’s car breaks down in a bizarre desert town while evading vengeful bookies, he becomes entangled in a dangerous love triangle. Caught between a married couple, he’s faced with deadly contracts to kill them both.



On the Waterfront
7.883

A prizefighter-turned-longshoreman with a conscience goes up against labor leaders to expose corruption, extortion, and murder among the union ranks.



Honeymoon in Vegas
5.6

On her deathbed, a mother makes her son promise never to get married, which scars him with psychological blocks to a commitment with his girlfriend. They finally decide to tie the knot in Vegas, but a wealthy gambler arranges for the man to lose $65K in a poker game and offers to clear the debt for a weekend with his fiancée.



Protégé
Protégé(2007)
6.8

A special agent has for 8 years been deep undercover in Asia's lucrative organized crime trade as he plays protégé to one of the key players, Banker. Now, Nick has but he has started to feel loyalty to his new environment and to the money.



Ca$h
Ca$h(2010)
5.8

A stroke of good luck turns lethal for Sam Phelan and his wife Leslie when they are faced with a life-changing decision that brings strange and sinister Pyke Kubic to their doorstep. As Pyke leads Sam and Leslie on a tumultuous adventure through the streets of Chicago, each are pulled deeper and deeper into a desperate spiral of deception and violence – all in the name of money.



Deal
Deal(2008)
5.315

As an ex-gambler teaches a hot-shot college kid some things about playing cards, he finds himself pulled into the world series of poker, where his protégé is his toughest competition.



Hard Target
6.49

When a woman's father goes missing, she enlists a local to aid in her search. The pair soon discover that her father has died at the hands of a wealthy sportsman who hunts homeless men as a form of recreation.



Less Than Zero
6.4

A college freshman returns to Los Angeles for Christmas at his ex-girlfriend's request, but discovers that his former best friend has an out-of-control drug habit.



Blood and Wine
5.733

A man who has failed as a father and husband commits a heist to make money for his fledging business, but things become complicated when his wife interferes.



Mean Streets
7.067

A small-time hood must choose from among love, friendship and the chance to rise within the mob.

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