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Movies like Narco Cultura

Key Features:
Drug cartel, Mexican culture, Cultural impact, Violence-high, Crime, Poverty, Social commentary, Addiction, Corruption, Law enforcement, Subculture, Social issues
Tone:
serious, gritty, cynical
Target Audience:
Documentary viewers, Social issue enthusiasts, Crime investigation fans, Cultural studies students
Emotional Arc:
Intrigue → Disgust

Narco Cultura

2013-11-22
Narco Cultura Poster - Find Similar Movies

To a growing number of Mexicans and Latinos in the Americas, narco-traffickers have become iconic outlaws and the new models of fame and success. They represent a pathway out of the ghetto, nurturing a new American dream fueled by the war on drugs. Narco Cultura looks at this explosive phenomenon from within, exposing cycles of addiction to money, drugs, and violence that are rapidly gaining strength on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border

Genres
Crime, Documentary
Crew
Shaul Schwarz, Shaul Schwarz
Rating
7.009(57 votes)
Narco CulturaNarco Cultura
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Cocaine Cowboys
7.254

In the 1980s, ruthless Colombian cocaine barons invaded Miami with a brand of violence unseen in this country since Prohibition-era Chicago - and it put the city on the map. "Cocaine Cowboys" is the true story of how Miami became the drug, murder and cash capital of the United States, told by the people who made it all happen.



Traffic
Traffic(2000)
7.1

An exploration of the United States of America's war on drugs from multiple perspectives. For the new head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the war becomes personal when he discovers his well-educated daughter is abusing cocaine within their comfortable suburban home. In Mexico, a flawed, but noble policeman agrees to testify against a powerful general in league with a cartel, and in San Diego, a drug kingpin's sheltered trophy wife must learn her husband's ruthless business after he is arrested, endangering her luxurious lifestyle.



Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy

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



Cartel Land
7.163

In the Mexican state of Michoacán, Dr. Jose Mireles, a small-town physician known as "El Doctor," shepherds a citizen uprising against the Knights Templar, the violent drug cartel that has wreaked havoc on the region for years. Meanwhile, in Arizona's Altar Valley—a narrow, 52-mile-long desert corridor known as Cocaine Alley—Tim "Nailer" Foley, an American veteran, heads a small paramilitary group called Arizona Border Recon, whose goal is to halt Mexico’s drug wars from seeping across our border.



Brazilian Western
6.3

When João goes to Brazil in search of a better life, he meets punk music enthusiast Maria and falls in love with her. But his involvement in the local drug trade makes him the target of a vicious drug lord.



The Precocious and Brief Life of Sabina Rivas

In the Mexican-Guatemalan border, young teenage lovers, Sabina and Jovany, both Hondurans, accidentally meet again after some years without seeing each other. She plans to get to the United States and dreams about being a great singer; he commits all the required atrocities to be accepted by the gang: la Mara Salvatrucha. Sabina and Jovany crashed with the most adverse conditions at the border like white slavery, the Mexican and American migratory agents Burrona and Patrick, the brothel matron Doña Lita, Don Nico the Mexican Consul in Tecún Umán, the drug trafficking networks, the army and la Mara Salvatrucha.



Bigger Stronger Faster*

In America, we define ourselves in the superlative: we are the biggest, strongest, fastest country in the world. Is it any wonder that so many of our heroes are on performance enhancing drugs? Director Christopher Bell explores America's win-at-all-cost culture by examining how his two brothers became members of the steroid-subculture in an effort to realize their American dream.



Diabolical Narco Satanists

Roberto makes a pact with the devil to please his multiple lovers sexually, Satan accepts the deal but promises to snatch his soul when he finds true love. Meanwhile, two cops are on the lookout for those responsible of a murderous drug on the streets.



The House I Live In
7.507

In the past 40 years, the War on Drugs has accounted for 45 million arrests, made America the world's largest jailer, and destroyed impoverished communities at home and abroad. Yet drugs are cheaper, purer, and more available today than ever. Where did we go wrong?



The Bosses
7.322

Set in 2013 Monterrey, Poncho is a student at a prestigious college, he goes to get weed with his friend El Greñas, they go to La Bomba to get some. Although when La Bomba runs out of weed, they decide to take him on a quest to get more weed from El Perro. When Poncho needs to go back home, La Bomba kidnaps both Poncho and Greñas and taking Poncho's phone and car. La Bomba contacts Poncho's father to get him one million dollars to free his son, though Bomba didn't know the deadly consequences.



Narcopolis
4.622

In the near future, Frank, a police officer, discovers that the legalization of all recreational drugs comes with a price.



A Cop Movie
7.2

This documentary walks the line between fact and fiction, delving into corruption in the Mexican police through the experiences of two officers.



El Infierno
7.9

After being deported back to Mexico, a man has no choice but to join the vicious drug cartel that has corrupted his hometown in order to survive.



New Order
New Order(2020)
6.4

In the near future, a popular uprising in Mexico City interrupts a wedding held at the home of a wealthy family. After the riots have been quashed, they discover the bride has gone missing and plea with the military to help locate her.



The Three Deaths of Marisela Escobedo

After the death of her daughter at the hand of her boyfriend, Marisela Escobedo began to fight for justice not only against the murderer but also against the corrupt Mexican judicial system.



American Me
7.4

During his 18 years in Folsom Prison, street-gang leader Santana rules over all the drug-and-murder activities behind bars. Upon his release, Santana goes back to his old neighborhood, intending to lead a peaceful, crime-free life. But his old gang buddies force him back into his old habits.



Chicuarotes
7.8

Cagalera and Moloteco are two teenagers from San Gregorio Atlapulco who are desperate to get out and move up and away from oppressive circumstances. When they hear of an opportunity to buy a spot in the electrician’s union, which could transform their lives, they quickly devolve into the criminal, adult underworld of Mexico City in a bid to buy their freedom.



Money Heist: The Phenomenon

A documentary on why 'Money Heist' sparked a wave of enthusiasm around the world for a lovable group of thieves and their professor.



Culture Shock
5.8

A young Mexican woman crosses the border in search of the American dream, only to instead find her worst nightmare lying within.



¡Qué Viva México!

Eisenstein shows us Mexico in this movie, its history and its culture. He believes, that Mexico can become a modern state.



Outlaws
Outlaws(2021)
6.9

Introverted Girona student Nacho meets two delinquents from the city's Chinatown and gets caught up in a summer onslaught of burglaries and hold ups that will change his life.



Narco Sub
Narco Sub(2021)
6.7

A former U.S. Navy Seal is forced to become the international criminal he once fought against when a powerful and violent drug cartel kidnaps his wife and daughter.



Sin Nombre
7.6

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.



El Sicario, Room 164

The story of a hitman for the drug cartels in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.



The Snitch Cartel
7.1

The real life story of Andres Lopez Lopez aka "Frecita" during his years involved with the Colombian Cartel aka "Cartel Norte del Valle"



New Jack City
6.6

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.



Flesh for Sale
6.6

The porn industry has grown from a product purchased on the sly, to be sold on newsstands in the daily press. "La piel vendida" aims to open a window to this film. His actors, actresses, directors, producers ... tell us their profession from the lights and shadows of a cinema by dint of being explicit in its imagery and themes, is hidden in their motivations: the viewer and their protagonists.



Heli
Heli(2013)
6.68

Heli must try and protect his young family when his 12-year-old sister inadvertently involves them in the brutal drug world. He must battle against the drug cartel that have been angered as well as the corrupt police force.



Whores' Glory
6.777

In Bangkok, Thailand, women punch a clock and wait for clients in a brightly lit glass box; in the red-light district of Faridpur, Bangladesh, a madam haggles over the price of a teenage girl; and in the border town of Reynosa, Mexico, crack-addicted women pray to a deity named Lady Death.



Lowlife
Lowlife(2017)
6.1

The sordid lives of an addict, an ex-con, and a luchador collide when an organ harvesting caper goes very, very wrong.



Holy Rollers
5.717

Inspired by actual events in the late nineties when Hasidic Jews were recruited as mules to smuggle ecstasy from Europe into the United States.



I'm No Longer Here
7.888

In Monterrey, Mexico, a young street gang spends their days dancing to slowed-down cumbia and attending parties. After a mix-up with a local cartel, their leader is forced to migrate to the U.S. but quickly longs to return home.



El Chicano
6.6

A pair of twin brothers from East L.A. choose to live their lives differently and end up on opposite sides of the law.



Lowriders
Lowriders(2017)
6.7

A young street artist in East Los Angeles is caught between his father's obsession with lowrider car culture, his ex-felon brother and his need for self-expression.



El Norte
El Norte(1983)
7.1

Brother and sister Enrique and Rosa flee persecution at home in Guatemala and journey north, through Mexico and on to the United States, with the dream of starting a new life.



La Civil
La Civil(2021)
7.7

Cielo is a mother whose teenage daughter is kidnapped in Northern Mexico. When the authorities offer no support in the search, Cielo takes matters into her own hands and transforms from housewife into a vengeful militant.



Chivas: The Movie
8.648

A documentary that chronicles the recent years of the famous C.D. Guadalajara, a Mexican football club commonly known as 'Chivas', their ups and downs, victories and struggles.



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.



Shiny_Flakes: The Teenage Drug Lord

Max S. reveals how he built a drug empire from his childhood bedroom in this story that inspired the series "How to Sell Drugs Online."



Maria Full of Grace
7.195

A pregnant Colombian teenager becomes a drug mule to make some desperately needed money for her family.



The Infiltrator
6.686

A U.S Customs official uncovers a massive money laundering scheme involving Pablo Escobar.



Bordertown
6.3

American corporations are using the North American Free Trade Agreement by opening large maquiladoras right across the United States–Mexico border. The maquiladoras hire mostly Mexican women to work long hours for little money in order to produce mass quantity products. Lauren Adrian, an impassioned American news reporter for the Chicago Sentinel wants to be assigned to the Iraq front-lines to cover the war. Instead, her editor George Morgan assigns her to investigate a series of slayings involving young maquiladora factory women in a Mexican bordertown.



Black and White
4.613

Rich Bower is an up-and-coming star in the hip-hop world. Everyone wants to be around him, including Raven and her fellow upper-class white high school friends. The growing appeal of black culture among white teens fascinates documentary filmmaker Sam Donager, who sets out to chronicle it with her husband, Terry. But before Bower was a rapper, he was a gangster, and his criminal past comes back to haunt him and all those around him.



Birds of Passage
7.293

During the marijuana bonanza, a violent decade that saw the origins of drug trafficking in Colombia, Rapayet and his indigenous family get involved in a war to control the business that ends up destroying their lives and their culture.



Dogwashers
6.6

When a narco past his prime refuses to pay a debt to an upstart, only a secret stash of money can save his men. But guess what the gardener just found?



Outlaws - For Greater Glory

A chronicle of the Cristeros War (1926-1929), which was touched off by a rebellion against the Mexican government's attempt to secularize the country.



Heroin(e)
Heroin(e)(2017)
6.9

This documentary follows three women — a fire chief, a judge, and a street missionary — as they battle West Virginia's devastating opioid epidemic.



Blow
Blow(2001)
7.355

A boy named George Jung grows up in a struggling family in the 1950's. His mother nags at her husband as he is trying to make a living for the family. It is finally revealed that George's father cannot make a living and the family goes bankrupt. George does not want the same thing to happen to him, and his friend Tuna, in the 1960's, suggests that he deal marijuana. He is a big hit in California in the 1960's, yet he goes to jail, where he finds out about the wonders of cocaine. As a result, when released, he gets rich by bringing cocaine to America. However, he soon pays the price.



Heroic
Heroic(2023)
7.2

Luis, an 18-year-old Mexican boy with indigenous roots, enters the Heroico Military College with the hope of securing a better future. There, he encounters a rigid and institutionally violent system designed to make him a perfect soldier.



Pornocracy: The New Sex Multinationals

Never before have we watched as much porn as today yet the traditional porn industry is dying. The arrival of web sites showing amateur clips has transformed the way porn is made and consumed. Behind this transformation lies one opaque multinational.



The Counselor
5.3

A lawyer finds himself in far over his head when he attempts to get involved in drug trafficking.



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.



Me gusta, pero me asusta

Brayan Rodriguez is an innocent heir to a criminal Sinaloa family sent to Mexico City to expand the business, and where he meets Claudia, and their worlds collide. Love and fun are everywhere.



Drug War
Drug War(2012)
6.879

A drug cartel boss is arrested in a raid and coerced into betraying his former accomplices as part of an undercover operation.



Snuff
Snuff(1976)
3

The followers of a charismatic cult leader set out to murder a pregnant actress.



Albakiara
Albakiara(2008)
2.2

Promiscuous teenager Chiara gets herself and her equally debauched peers embroiled in a drug ring run by a dirty cop.



Savages
Savages(2012)
6.343

Pot growers Ben and Chon face off against the Mexican drug cartel who kidnapped their shared girlfriend.



Monsters
Monsters(2010)
6.196

Six years ago NASA discovered the possibility of alien life within our solar system. A probe was launched to collect samples, but crashed upon re-entry over Central America. Soon after, new life forms began to appear and half of Mexico was quarantined as an infected zone. Today, the American and Mexican military still struggle to contain "the creatures," while a journalist agrees to escort a shaken tourist through the infected zone in Mexico to the safety of the U.S. border.



American Sicario
5.9

The story of the rise and fall of the first American-born drug lord in Mexico, this tale of power, money, greed and betrayal amongst rival members of the drug cartels finds American gangster Erik Vasquez scheming to become the top dog in the Mexican underworld, only to find himself making enemies out of both the powerful cartels and his own allies.



Miss Bala
Miss Bala(2011)
6.671

The story of a young woman clinging on to her dream to become a beauty contest queen in a Mexico dominated by organized crime.



Mondo Cane
6.346

A documentary consisting of a series of travelogue vignettes providing glimpses into cultural practices throughout the world intended to shock or surprise, including an insect banquet and a memorable look at a practicing South Pacific cargo cult.



Cocaine Godmother
6.4

At the age of 17, Griselda Blanco, made her way to the U.S. with a fake passport with her first husband Carlos. Living in Queens with her three sons, Griselda became enticed by the money the drug world offered, and quickly became embroiled with local drug runners. Griselda masterminded the use of beautiful women, the elderly and children as the mules and created false-bottom suitcases to smuggle cocaine from Colombia.



Leal
Leal(2018)
7.2

Former Colonel Fernandez is appointed Minister of the National Anti-Drug Agency (SENAD) and purges the special forces to fight the first of many battles against drug trafficking on the border of Paraguay and Argentina.



¡Que viva México!
7.332

After his grandfather's death, a man travels with his wife and kids to his hometown, where chaos ensues with his relatives over the inheritance.



Peter Knife
7.415

Based on the international hit song, Pedro Navaja (Peter the Knife) is the story of the coolest, street smart hustler ever to walk the streets of Mexico City. The police are after him, his rivals are after him, and all the while the most beautiful women of Mexico are in the cup of his hand. - Written by Echo Bridge Home Entertainment



Nacho Libre
6.5

Ignacio, a disrespected cook at a Mexican monastery, can barely afford to feed the orphans who live there. Inspired by a local wrestling hero, he decides to moonlight as the not-so-famous Luchador "Nacho Libre" to earn money for the monastery -- not to mention the admiration of beautiful nun Sister Encarnación.



The Killing of America

A documentary of the decline of America. Featuring footage (most exclusive to this film) from race riots to serial killers and much, much more.



Outlaw
Outlaw(2024)
6.223

At the age of nine, Rebeca is sold by her grandmother to the bookseller who ran Rocinha. Disputed by bicheiros and drug dealers, the community is going through changes in power. Rebeca becomes the wife of the chief drug dealer and, with the death of her partner, his successor. The electrifying trajectory of crime, violence, drugs and love of a female drug kingpin in Rocinha, Rio de Janeiro in the 1980s.



Mercury Plains
4.7

A troubled man runs away to Mexico and is recruited to join a paramilitary group of teens fighting the drug cartels. He proves himself to the group, but questions their motive.



Gangster Land
5.4

The story of America's most famous mobsters and their rise to power. Examine Al Capone's ascension through the eyes of his second in command, “Machine Gun” Jack McGurn.



Selena
Selena(1997)
7.7

In this biographical drama, Selena Quintanilla is born into a musical Mexican-American family in Texas. Her father, Abraham, realizes that his young daughter is talented and begins performing with her at small venues. She finds success and falls for her guitarist, Chris Perez, who draws the ire of her father. Seeking mainstream stardom, Selena begins recording an English-language album which, tragically, she would never complete.



Boone: The Bounty Hunter

When fame-seeking reality show bounty hunter, Boone, attempts to bring down a drug lord and his empire, he uncovers more than he bargains for and learns that justice means more than ratings.



Toxic Love
7.259

The alienating and repetitive life of a group of heroin junkies in 1980s Rome.



Midnight Family
7.021

In Mexico City's wealthiest neighborhoods, the Ochoa family runs a for-profit ambulance, competing with other unlicensed EMTs for patients in need of urgent care. In this cutthroat industry, they struggle to keep their financial needs from compromising the people in their care.



Tepepa
Tepepa(1969)
6.6

The Mexican guerilla leader Tepepa and his gang fight against the chief of police, Cascorro.



Dance with the Devil

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.



Kids for Cash
6.6

Filmmaker Robert May chronicles the case of a once-respected judge who received kickbacks for sending juvenile offenders to prison, even for minor crimes.



Héctor el Father: Conocerás la verdad

This autobiography of Hector Delgado runs from his childhood to become one of the greatest exponents of the urban genre, but the results of that life did not please him and led him to try to take his life .After being victim of a firefight at a service station in Aguada, a city hall in Puerto Rico, he stopped earning at least two hundred American dollars for presentation and being "devout of Jesus"



Sleep Dealer
5.906

Set in a near-future, militarized world marked by closed borders, virtual labor and a global digital network that joins minds and experiences, three strangers risk their lives to connect with each other and break the barriers of technology.



Miss Bala
Miss Bala(2019)
6.3

Gloria finds a power she never knew she had when she is drawn into a dangerous world of cross-border crime. Surviving will require all of her cunning, inventiveness, and strength.



Sabotage
Sabotage(2014)
5.6

John 'Breacher' Wharton leads an elite DEA task force that takes on the world's deadliest drug cartels. When the team successfully executes a high-stakes raid on a cartel safe house, they think their work is done – until, one-by-one, the team members mysteriously start to be eliminated. As the body count rises, everyone is a suspect.



No Country for Old Men

Llewelyn Moss stumbles upon dead bodies, $2 million and a hoard of heroin in a Texas desert, but methodical killer Anton Chigurh comes looking for it, with local sheriff Ed Tom Bell hot on his trail. The roles of prey and predator blur as the violent pursuit of money and justice collide.



We Are What We Are
5.915

After the death of a patriarch, a family must try to continue on with a disturbing, ritualistic tradition.



Helter Skelter
6.8

The investigation of two horrific mass murders leads to the capture and trial of the psychotic pseudo-hippie Charles Manson and his "family".



Belly
Belly(1998)
6

Tommy Bundy and Sincere are best friends as well as infamous and ruthless criminals and shot-callers in the hood. Respected by many but feared by all. As the police are closing in on them and new players are looking for a come up, will their reign last?



Gangsta
Gangsta(2018)
6.8

Antwerp, Belgium. The lives of four small-time drug dealers spin out of control when they steal a shipment of cocaine, triggering a full out war between an Amsterdam drug lord and a ruthless Colombian cartel.



American Grindhouse
6.742

This documentary explores the hidden history of the American Exploitation Film. The movie digs deep into this often overlooked category of U.S. cinema and unearths the shameless and occasionally shocking origins of this popular entertainment.



Vitória
Vitória(2025)
8.108

Nina is an elderly woman who lives alone and feels distressed by the increasing violence in her neighborhood. Amidst conflicts with her neighbors, she decides to film the movement of drug traffickers from her window, hoping to assist the police. After months of recording suspicious activities, her initiative attracts the attention of a journalist, who approaches Nina and offers to support her in her mission.



X-Rated: The Greatest Adult Movies of All Time

The evolution of adult cinema through the most influential films in history, a journey that begins in the 1970s and ends nowadays. An in-depth analysis of the success of the most prestigious erotic films, their impact on industry and society, and their influence on cinema and contemporary culture.



Picardía mexicana
7.217

An academic tags along among a crew of rowdy delivery-truck drivers, taking notes on their colorful and idiomatic use of language.



Eye for an Eye
6.7

Mario, an exemplary man, lives in a village on the Galician coast. In the old people’s home, where he works as a nurse, everyone appreciates him. When the best known narco in the area, Antonio Padín, recently released from prison, enters the residence, Mario tries to make Antonio feel at home. Now, Padín's two sons, Kike and Toño, are in charge of the family business. The failure of an operation will put Kike in jail and cause them to owe a large debt to a Colombian supplier. Toño will turn to the nurse to try to convince his father to assume the debt. But Mario has his own plans.



War on Everyone
5.764

Two corrupt cops in New Mexico set out to blackmail and frame every criminal unfortunate enough to cross their path. Things take a sinister turn, however, when they try to intimidate someone who is more dangerous than they are. Or is he?



Casa de Mi Padre
5.33

Scheming of a way to save their father's ranch, the Alvarez brothers find themselves in a war with Mexico's most feared drug lord.



Mouth to Mouth
5.387

An aimless adolescent joins several itinerant misfits who live on the fringe of society and welcome at-risk youths into their fold.



Illegal Tender
6

After the gangsters who killed his father come to settle a score, a teenage boy and his mother turn the tables on the killers - one Latino family's quest for honor and revenge as the hunted become the hunters.



Nazarin
Nazarin(1959)
7.6

After hiding a murderer, a Catholic priest is forced into self-exile and decides to embark on a pilgrimage through the Mexican countryside.



Gang Related
6.4

After murdering an undercover DEA agent, two corrupt cops scramble to cover up what they've done.



Easy Money
6.43

When JW becomes a drug runner in order to maintain his double life, his fate becomes tied to two other men: Jorge, a fugitive on the run from both the Serbian mafia and the police, and mafia enforcer Mrado, who is on the hunt for Jorge.



We're the Millers
6.838

A veteran pot dealer creates a fake family as part of his plan to move a huge shipment of weed into the U.S. from Mexico.

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