12 Movies and shows you should watch if you liked The Mauritanian

The film, The Mauritanian, by Kevin Macdonald, has been adapted from Mohamedou Ould Slahi’s 2015 memoir detailing the life of a prisoner detained in Guantanamo Bay for 14 years, without charge. The film sees Jodie Foster, as the lawyer defending him and Tahar Rahim playing Slahi. The film follows the story of his fight for justice after he was picked up in 2002 at a family wedding and kept as a prisoner till 2016. A criminal defense lawyer from New Mexico, Nancy Hollander, played by Foster, decides to take up Slahi’s case pro bono. Shailene Woodley plays Teri who helps Hollander fight against the bureaucracy without terms and conditions. Foster’s performance for her silver-haired Hollander earned her a BAFTA.

If gritty courtroom dramas like the Mauritanian are your guilty pleasure, here is a list of crime thrillers with similar plotlines for you:

A Few Good Men-YouTube

Possibly one of the most iconic courtroom dramas starring Tom Cruise as Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee along with our favourite Jack Nicholson as Colonel Nathan R Jessep. Jessep is a tough, bigoted Vietnam veteran, with a career shaped by cold-war politics. Also, Jessep is the commander of the marines stationed at the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, which is the central image in this film adaptation of Aaron Sorkin’s hit broadway drama. The story follows a court-martial against two men accused of murdering a Marine private who witnessed a member of his unit arbitrarily fire on a Cuban watchtower near the base.

How to get away with murder- Netflix

This Viola Davis starrer, a suspense-driven legal thriller about a group of ambitious law students, is one of the finest courtroom dramas in recent years. Annalise Keating (Davis) is their brilliant, mysterious criminal defense professor. They become entangled in a murder plot and shake the entire university, changing the course of their lives. Shonda Rhimes’ feature is a hyper-caffeinated update of ‘The Paper Chase’. Fast, frothy, and Keating’s Darwinian approach to learning is what made this series a Primetime Emmy Award winner!

If Beale Street Could Talk- Youtube

Adapted from James Baldwin’s 1970 novel, this film talks about prejudice, oppression, and imprisonment. This cinematic love story is a terrific film, interweaving social realism with themes of love, loss and transcendence. From bold to gentle and then to scenes of promise and expectation, the plot follows the story of a pregnant African-American woman, after her fiance’s false imprisonment, who sets out to clear his name and prove his innocence. Intimately shot, brilliantly performed and a narrative that makes you go beyond the realms of time and space, this film needs to be on your list.

The Nice Guys- AirtelXstream

This Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling starrer light-hearted film is quick on its wits and its fists. If crime dramas with an eccentric edge are your fetish, this dark comedy will be up your alley. The plot of this neo-noir action comedy follows a private eye, played by Gosling who investigates the apparent suicide of a fading porn star in 1970s Los Angeles, along with officer Jackson Healy, played by Crowe. The film has a terrific soundtrack to go along with the storyline that matches the pace of the two actors, uncovering a conspiracy.

The Irishman- Netflix

One of the most awaited films of recent years, Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman is a majestic mob epic that is highly compelling. Pennsylvania, 1956. Frank Sheeran(Robert De Niro) is a war veteran of Irish origin who works as a truck driver. He accidentally meets mobster Russell Bufalino, played by Joe Pesci. Once Frank becomes his trusted man, Bufalino sends him to Chicago with the task of helping Jimmy Hoffa, played by Al Pacino, a powerful union leader related to organized crime, with whom Frank will maintain a close friendship for nearly twenty years. An absolute must-watch!

Marvel’s Luke Cage- Netflix

Most of Marvel’s Netflix superhero shows are barely superhero-y at all. If you’ve watched Jessica Jones, you already know who Luke Cage is. Given superstrength and durability by a sabotaged experiment, the wrongly accused man (much like in the Mauritanian) escapes prison to become a superhero for hire. A series less about its hero and more about the place he lives in and his effect on it, Luke Cage is also Marvel’s first property centered on a black character. The series has references to black history, icons, and their legacy which is worth mentioning.

A Private War- Google Play Movies

Arguably Rosamund Pike’s best performance yet, this drama, inspired by the 2012 Vanity Fair profile by Marie Brenner, tells the story of one of the most celebrated war correspondents of our time, Marie Colvin. The psychological portrait of Colvin is an utterly fearless and rebellious spirit, driven to the frontlines of conflicts across the globe to give a voice to the voiceless. Pike’s convincing portrayal smoothes over the cracks of this gutsy drama in a story that is now more relevant than ever.

War Dogs- YouTube

Buoyed by its gleefully irreverent plot, this compelling story is based on the lives of two young men, David Packouz and Efraim Diveroli, who win a $300 million contract from the Pentagon to arm America's allies in Afghanistan. Wildly entertaining while being a rare comment on contemporary society, this film stars Jonah Hill, Bradley Cooper and Myles Teller, who shine superbly in the film. Proof of the saying ‘truth is stranger than fiction’, this comic drama is one of Todd Philips’ best!

Richard Jewell- Youtube

Directed by Clint Eastwood and based on true events, Richard Jewell is a story of what happens when what is reported as fact obscures the truth. The stirring narrative follows Richard Jewell as the security guard who reports finding an explosive at the 1996 Atlanta bombing. Richard Jewell thinks quick, works fast and saves hundreds, perhaps thousands, of lives after a domestic terrorist plant’s several pipe bombs and they explode during a concert, only to be falsely suspected of the crime by sloppy FBI work and sensational media coverage.

Angel Has Fallen- Youtube

This Gerard Butler and Morgan Freeman starrer relies heavily on action and its lead actors. The Has Fallen series has various spinoffs in multiple languages due to their commercial success. If you’re a fan of non-stop super intense violence, this thrill ride is for you. Angel Has Fallen follows the story of Secret Service agent Mike Banning, played by Gerard Butler, who is charged with attempting to assassinate President Trumbull. Chased by his own colleagues and the FBI, Banning begins a race against the clock to clear his name.

Criminal 2016- Prime

Another film that loops in American Intelligence is Criminal. The film isn’t your top-notch A grade, crime thriller flick but it definitely can be your one-time watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Bill Pope (Ryan Reynolds) is a CIA agent on a mission in London tracking down a hacker nicknamed "The Dutchman." When he gets mysteriously ambushed and killed, an experimental procedure is used to transfer his memories into dangerous ex-convict Jericho Stewart (Kevin Costner). When he wakes up with the CIA agent's memories, his mission is to find The Dutchman and eliminate him before the hacker launches ICBM and starts World War III.

Survivor 2015- Amazon Prime

Another narrative that follows the falsely accused being wrongfully convicted. If you are longing for some Pierce Brosnan action on screen, this thriller lines up decent actors but isn’t the best story out there. The plot follows a Foreign Service Officer, played by Milla Jovovich, in London who tries to prevent a terrorist attack set to hit New York but is forced to go on the run when she is framed for crimes she did not commit.

Not an exhaustible list, this genre of films has for long been a fan favourite! The latest in this category, The Mauritanian is streaming on Amazon Prime now!