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Movies Like Running on Empty

After experiencing Running on Empty, should consider this hand-picked list which questions the purpose and weight of our choices while delivering targets the intellect with complex, multi-layered ideas. Carefully balances character depth with narrative flow makes this a solid addition to your watchlist.

Mood Breakdown
Runtime Cluster

Standard feature-length experiences.

Viewer Fit

Best for fans of who appreciate concise storytelling.

Top Picks

The Newton Boys
6.1

The Newton Boys

1998

The story of the Newton gang, the most successful bank robbers in history, owing to their good planning and minimal violence.

The Getaway
7.1

The Getaway

1972

A recently released ex-convict and his loyal wife go on the run after a heist goes wrong.

Heat
7.9

Heat

1995

Obsessive master thief Neil McCauley leads a top-notch crew on various daring heists throughout Los Angeles while determined detective Vincent Hanna pursues him without rest. Each man recognizes and respects the ability and the dedication of the other even though they are aware their cat-and-mouse game may end in violence.

The Asphalt Jungle
7.5

The Asphalt Jungle

1950

Recently paroled from prison, legendary burglar "Doc" Riedenschneider, with funding from Alonzo Emmerich, a crooked lawyer, gathers a small group of veteran criminals together in the Midwest for a big jewel heist.

Normal Life
5.9

Normal Life

1996

Chris Anderson and his wife Pam live a fairly normal life until Chris loses his job on the police force and secretly turns to robbing banks to make his wife's dreams come true. Upon discovering his secret, she joins his deadly crime wave and together they terrorize an unsuspecting suburban town.

Face
6.2

Face

1997

Ray is an aging ex-socialist who has become a bankrobber after seeing the demise of socialism in 1980s Britain. Teaming up with a gang of other has-beenish crims, he commits one bank job too many. The gang dissolves in a murderous flurry of recriminations.

The Town
7.2

The Town

2010

Doug MacRay is a longtime thief, who, smarter than the rest of his crew, is looking for his chance to exit the game. When a bank job leads to the group kidnapping an attractive branch manager, he takes on the role of monitoring her – but their burgeoning relationship threatens to unveil the identities of Doug and his crew to the FBI Agent who is on their case.

Closer to the Moon
6.6

Closer to the Moon

2014

A Romanian police officer teams up with a small crew of bank robbers to pull off a heist by convincing everyone at the scene of the crime that they are only filming a movie.

More Movies Like Running on Empty

The League of Gentlemen
7.0

The League of Gentlemen

1960

Involuntarily-retired Colonel Hyde recruits seven other dissatisfied ex-servicemen for a special project. Each of the men has a skeleton in the cupboard, is short of money, and is a service-trained expert in his field. The job is a bank robbery, and military discipline and planning are imposed by Hyde and second-in-command Race on the team, although civilian irritations do start getting in the way.

The Old Man & the Gun
6.4

The Old Man & the Gun

2018

The true story of Forrest Tucker, from his audacious escape from San Quentin at the age of 70 to an unprecedented string of heists that confounded authorities and enchanted the public. Wrapped up in the pursuit are a detective, who becomes captivated with Forrest’s commitment to his craft, and a woman, who loves him in spite of his chosen profession.

Parker
6.1

Parker

2013

A thief with a unique code of professional ethics is double-crossed by his crew and left for dead. Assuming a new disguise and forming an unlikely alliance with a woman on the inside, he looks to hijack the score of the crew's latest heist.

Little Caesar
6.9

Little Caesar

1931

A small-time hood shoots his way to the top, but how long can he stay there?

Plastic
6.0

Plastic

2014

Sam and Fordy run a credit card fraud scheme, but when they steal from the wrong man, they find themselves threatened by sadistic gangster. They need to raise £5m and pull off a daring diamond heist to clear their debt.

Cradle 2 the Grave
6.1

Cradle 2 the Grave

2003

Gang leader Tony pulls off a major diamond heist with his crew, but cop-turned-criminal Ling knows who has the loot and responds by kidnapping Tony's daughter and holding her for ransom. Unfortunately, Tony's lost the diamonds as well. As he frantically searches for his daughter and the jewels, Tony pairs with a high-kicking government agent who once worked with Ling and seeks revenge on him.

Ambulance
6.6

Ambulance

2022

Decorated veteran Will Sharp, desperate for money to cover his wife's medical bills, asks for help from his adoptive brother Danny. A charismatic career criminal, Danny instead offers him a score: the biggest bank heist in Los Angeles history: $32 million.

The Highwaymen
6.8

The Highwaymen

2019

In 1934, Frank Hamer and Manny Gault, two former Texas Rangers, are commissioned to put an end to the wave of vicious crimes perpetrated by Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, a notorious duo of infamous robbers and cold-blooded killers who nevertheless are worshiped by the public.

The Brink's Job
6.1

The Brink's Job

1978

In 1950, a group of unlikely criminal masterminds commits the robbery of the century. Led by Tony Pino, a petty thief fresh out of prison, and Joe McGinnis, who specializes in planning lucrative capers, the gang robs Brink's main office in Boston of more than $2 million. However, things begin to go awry when the FBI gets involved, the cops start cracking down on the gang and McGinnis refuses to hand over the loot...

Public Enemies
6.7

Public Enemies

2009

Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger's charm and audacity endear him to much of America's downtrodden public, but he's also a thorn in the side of J. Edgar Hoover and the fledgling FBI. Desperate to capture the elusive outlaw, Hoover makes Dillinger his first Public Enemy Number One and assigns his top agent, Melvin Purvis, the task of bringing him in dead or alive.

Dog Day Afternoon
7.8

Dog Day Afternoon

1975

Based on the true story of would-be Brooklyn bank robbers John Wojtowicz and Salvatore Naturile. Sonny and Sal attempt a bank heist which quickly turns sour and escalates into a hostage situation and stand-off with the police. As Sonny's motives for the robbery are slowly revealed and things become more complicated, the heist turns into a media circus.

The Anderson Tapes
6.1

The Anderson Tapes

1971

Thief Duke Anderson—just released from ten years in jail—takes up with his old girlfriend in her posh apartment block, and makes plans to rob the entire building. What he doesn't know is that his every move is being recorded on audio and video, although he is not the subject of any surveillance.

Why These Movies Are Similar

These recommendations share core qualities with Running on Empty (1991): Crime and Drama themes, similar narrative structure, and comparable emotional depth. NoBadPicks uses a combination of TMDB collaborative filtering, genre matching, and AI analysis to surface films most likely to resonate with fans of Running on Empty.

See full details for Running on Empty (1991)

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