The 40 most popular japanese crime movies, ranked. Click any film for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


High and Low
1963 · 2h 22m · JP
A Yokohama shoe executive faces a wrenching choice when kidnappers mistakenly seize his chauffeur’s son but demand the ransom anyway.


The Castle of Cagliostro
1979 · 1h 42m · JP
After a successful robbery leaves famed thief Lupin the Third and his partner Jigen with nothing but a large amount of expertly crafted counterfeit bills, he decides to track down the forgers responsible—and steal any other treasures he may find in the Castle of Cagliostro, including the 'damsel in distress' he finds imprisoned there.


Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagram
2024 · 1h 50m · JP
A message has arrived from Kid the Phantom Thief, that he will steal a Japanese sword belonging to wealthy Onoe Family in Hakodate, Hokkaido. Conan and Heiji Hattori, who happened to be in Hakodate, are on the case to capture Kid. Coincidentally the family lawyer of Onoe is found murdered in the warehouse district, apparently slaughtered by a Japanese sword. The suspect is an investor/arms dealer who is said to be after Onoe family’s hidden treasure. In the North among cherry blossoms, the exciting hunt for treasure begins!


Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway
2026 · 1h 49m · JP
When a string of deadly highway incidents begin, Conan Edogawa's investigations point towards an orchestrated plot rather than mere accidents. As he uncovers a conspiracy involving hidden identities and advanced technology, the case escalates into a high-speed race against time to stop a calculating mastermind before more lives are lost.


Shoplifters
2018 · 2h · JP
In the outskirts of Tokyo, a poor but close-knit group living on the fringes of society survives through shoplifting and odd jobs. When Osamu and his son take in a neglected young girl, their already fragile existence begins to unravel. As the family grows attached to her, buried secrets surface, forcing them to confront the true meaning of love, belonging, and what makes a family.


Lupin the Third: Island of Assassins
1997 · 1h 33m · JP
Lupin is framed for the murder of Inspector Zenigata by a mysterious assailant holding a silver-coloured Walther P38 pistol Lupin himself once owned. Tracking the true killer leads Lupin to the island of the bloodthirsty Tarantula assassins inside the Devil’s Triangle. After joining the spider-tattooed army against their will, Lupin and his gang make both new friends and enemies as they not only plan to take home the Tarantulas’ massive gold repository for themselves, but hunt down the shooter from Lupin’s past. Can Lupin put to rest this demon who haunts his memories with the Walther P38?


Sakamoto Days
2026 · 2h 8m · JP
After getting married and having a daughter, a retired legendary hitman must protect his family when his past catches up to him.


Detective Conan: Quarter of Silence
2011 · 1h 49m · JP
The explosion of a new Tokyo Subway line leads Conan and his friends in a snow-clad village. Here, after eight years, the little detective sheds light on the dynamics behind the shocking event that caused the death of a woman and the coma of a 15-year-old boy. Under the beautiful snow, Conan gets involved in something bigger than him.


Brother
2000 · 1h 53m · JP
A Japanese Yakuza gangster's deadly existence in his homeland gets him exiled to Los Angeles, where he is taken in by his little brother and his brother's gang.


All About Lily Chou-Chou
2001 · 2h 26m · JP
Charts the troubled teenage years of students Yūichi Hasumi and Shūsuke Hoshino, exploring the shifting and complex power dynamics of their relationship against the backdrop of Yūichi's love for the dreamy and abstract music of pop star Lily Chou-Chou.


Cure
1997 · 1h 51m · JP
A frustrated detective deals with the case of several gruesome murders committed by people who have no recollection of what they've done.


Rashomon
1950 · 1h 28m · JP
Four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife.


Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback
2025 · 1h 49m · JP
As police inspector Yamato Kansuke pursues a certain man in the snowy mountains of Nagano, a shadow suddenly appears in his field of vision. While he's distracted, a rifle bullet fired by someone grazes his left eye and causes an avalanche accompanied by a roar. Ten months later, Kansuke, having miraculously survived the avalanche, receives a report that a researcher at the Nobeyama National Astronomical Observatory has been attacked.


Detective Conan: Black Iron Submarine
2023 · 1h 50m · JP
While visiting Hachijo-jima, Conan sneaks aboard a security boat heading to the Pacific Buoy, an off-shore facility constructed near the coasts built to connect surveillance cameras used by police forces around the world. However, an engineer gets abducted! An eerie sound of a propeller hums underwater as a dark figure begins to creep toward Ai Haibara... When the forbidden Black Box is opened, the sealed-away past will surface above the treacherous waves!


Detective Conan: The Time Bombed Skyscraper
1997 · 1h 34m · JP
Once brilliant teenage detective Shinichi Kudo was given a poison that reverted him to a 4-year-old. He's adopted the pseudonym Conan Edogawa so no one (save for an eccentric inventor) will know. Now he's got to solve a series of bombings before his loved ones become victims. Who is this madman and why is he doing this? Only the young genius can save the day but will even he be up to the task?


The Eel
1997 · 1h 57m · JP
A businessman kills his adulterous wife and is sent to prison. After his release, he opens a barbershop and meets new people, talking to almost no one except for an eel he befriended while in prison.


Vengeance Is Mine
1979 · 2h 20m · JP
A thief, a murderer, and a charming lady-killer, Iwao Enokizu is on the run from the police.


Lupin the Third: The Legend of the Gold of Babylon
1985 · 1h 40m · JP
Lupin squares off with two criminal families and Inspector Zenigata's new female patrol to track down a hoard of biblical-era treasure.


Case Closed: Countdown to Heaven
2001 · 1h 40m · JP
As a pair of towers in Tokyo are being prepared for their grand opening, there is a series of murders of people connected to the towers. Conan suspects that the mysterious Syndicate may also be involved.


Detective Conan: The Scarlet Bullet
2021 · 1h 50m · JP
At the opening ceremony of the WSG (World Sports Games) Tokyo Games, a sports festival held once every four years, it is announced that the world's first vacuum superconducting maglev with a maximum speed of 1,000 kilometers per hour will open. While attracting attention from around the world, top executives of large companies are kidnapped from the party venue where WSG tournament sponsors gather. Conan moves toward a solution and eventually finds a connection with the WSG abduction case that occurred 15 years ago in Boston, USA.


Boiling Point
1990 · 1h 36m · JP
Masaki, a baseball player and gas-station attendant, gets into trouble with the local Yakuza and goes to Okinawa to get a gun to defend himself. There he meets Uehara, a tough gangster, who is in serious debt to the yakuza and planning revenge.


Ichi the Killer
2001 · 2h 9m · JP
As sadomasochistic yakuza enforcer Kakihara searches for his missing boss he comes across Ichi, a repressed and psychotic killer who may be able to inflict levels of pain that Kakihara has only dreamed of.


Crows Zero
2007 · 2h 10m · JP
The students of Suzuran High compete for the King of School title. An ex-graduate yakuza is sent to kill the son of a criminal group, but he can't make himself do it as he reminds him of his youth.


Detective Conan: The Lost Ship in the Sky
2010 · 1h 43m · JP
A terrorist group invades a laboratory containing a deadly bacteria and destroys the lab with an explosion. They later announce via the internet they have gained possession of the bacteria and declare themselves to be the Red Siamese Cats, a terrorist group that was eradicated a decade ago.


Detective Conan: Captured in Her Eyes
2000 · 1h 40m · JP
Police officers around Tokyo are being murdered by an unknown assailant. When Ran witnesses an attempt on the life of one of her friends in the police, she loses her memory. Now, Conan and Inspector Megure must find the murderer while Ran attempts to regain her lost memories.


Lupin the Third: The Mystery of Mamo
1978 · 1h 42m · JP
While attempting to win the affections of a beautiful rival, a master thief risks death to learn the secret intentions of a wealthy and seemingly immortal, but certainly ruthless, recluse.


MFKZ
2018 · 1h 35m · FR
Angelino is just one of thousands of deadbeats living in Dark Meat City. But an otherwise unremarkable scooter accident caused by a beautiful, mysterious stranger is about to transform his life... into a waking nightmare! He starts seeing monstrous forms prowling around all over the city... Is Angelino losing his mind, or could an alien invasion really be happening this quietly...?


Death Note Relight 1: Visions of a God
2007 · 2h 11m · JP
When rogue shinigami Ryuk leaves his Death Note in the human world, he has no idea how far the one who finds it will take his new-found power. With the Death Note in hand, brilliant high school student Light Yagami vows to rid the world of evil. A recap of Death Note episodes 1–26, with alternate footage.


Kids Return
1996 · 1h 47m · JP
Shinji and Masaru spend most of their school days harassing fellow classmates and playing pranks. They drop out and Shinji becomes a small-time boxer, while Masaru joins up with a local yakuza gang. However, the world is a tough place.


Crying Freeman
1995 · 1h 42m · CA
A lethal assassin for a secret Chinese organisation, who sheds tears of regret each time he kills, is seen swiftly and mercilessly executing three Yakuza gangsters by a beautiful artist. She is captivated by the grace of his kill and later falls in love with him. An intense power struggle for the leadership of the Yakuza Clans ensues as they seek vengeance for the death of their leader.


Lupin the Third: Bye Bye, Lady Liberty
1989 · 1h 37m · JP
Foiled repeatedly by the predictions of Interpol's supercomputer, Lupin has settled down. His partner Jigen asks him to pull one last heist: recover the Super Egg, a massive diamond hidden somewhere inside the Statue of Liberty.


Lupin III: The First
2019 · 1h 33m · JP
The iconic "gentleman thief" Lupin III returns in an action-packed, continent-spanning adventure, as Lupin III and his colourful underworld companions race to uncover the secrets of the mysterious Bresson Diary, before it falls into the hands of a dark cabal that will stop at nothing to resurrect the Third Reich.


Detective Conan: The Raven Chaser
2009 · 1h 51m · JP
A new member from the Black Organization that shrunk Shinichi's body manages to find out about Shinichi's transformation into Conan. This discovery starts to put those around him in danger as Gin and the other Black Organization members start to take action.


Demon City
2025 · 1h 46m · JP
Framed for his family's murder and left for dead, an ex-hitman will stop at nothing to exact revenge on the masked "demons" who have taken over his city.


LUPIN THE 3rd vs. CAT'S EYE
2023 · 1h 32m · JP
Lupin III competes with the Kisugi sisters to steal a triptych of paintings that once belonged to their father, and which hold the key to a long-unsolved mystery.


Detective Conan: The Darkest Nightmare
2016 · 1h 52m · JP
On a dark night, the Japanese police is raided by a spy. Different countries' intelligence agencies - such as England's MI6, Germany's BDN, and America's CIA - as well as the FBI's secret files are going to be taken, but public safety officers lead by Tooru Amuro arrive just in time. The spy steals a car and escapes. The spy and Amuro are then locked in a dead heat on the highway, and just as it is about to cause an accident with multiple cars, the spy's car is hit by FBI agent Shuichi Akai's rifle bullet and falls of the roadway. The next day, Conan and his friends go to a newly-remodeled aquarium in Tokyo. Under the main attraction, a Ferris wheel, Conan finds an attractive woman alone and injured. Her left and right eyes are different colors.


Fireworks
1997 · 1h 43m · JP
Beleaguered police detective Nishi takes desperate measures to try and set things right in a world gone wrong. With those close to him suffering their own tribulations, Nishi's methods become increasingly extreme.


Detective Conan: The Last Wizard of the Century
1999 · 1h 40m · JP
Kaitou Kid dares to challenge the police once more, setting his sights on the Russian Imperial Easter Egg. With the date, time, and place, the Osaka police force scrambles to stop him. But this time, Kid may have bitten off more than he can chew—Conan Edogawa, Heiji Hattori, and numerous others are also trying to get their hands on the jeweled egg.


Lupin the Third: The Pursuit of Harimao's Treasure
1995 · 1h 30m · JP
The infamous bandit Harimao hid a treasure, and to retrieve it, Lupin and the gang must gather three lost statues. When the Nazi-like group Neo-Himmel make a run for the goods, Lupin reluctantly partners with the aging "double-O" MI-6 agent Sir Archer and his granddaughter Diana to gather the statues first. Can this unorthodox team bond well enough to see this mission through?


Bullet Train Explosion
2025 · 2h 17m · JP
When panic erupts on a Tokyo-bound bullet train that will explode if it slows below 100 kph, authorities race against time to save everyone on board.
Japanese cinema gave the world Kurosawa's samurai epics, Ozu's domestic dramas, Godzilla and the kaiju film, and the J-horror wave that Hollywood spent the 2000s remaking. It also sustains the most developed animation industry on earth.
Crime films trace the machinery around lawbreaking — heists, syndicates, investigations, and the people worn down by all three. From film noir through the American gangster epic to modern procedurals, it's a genre that doubles as social commentary.