Best movies like The Ark of Disperata
A unique, carefully handpicked, selection of the best movies like The Ark of Disperata Starring Antonio Carluccio, Gustavo Caputo, Celeste Casciaro, Davide Riso, and more. If you liked The Ark of Disperata then you may also like: Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot, Vault, Wedding in Blood, Borsalino, Bright Star and many more popular movies featured on this list. You can further filter the list even more or get a random selection from the list of similar movies, to make your selection even easier.
At Disperata, a small town in Southern Italy, the melancholy mayor Filippo Pisanelli feels terribly unfit for his role. Only a love of poetry and his passion for the literature lessons he gives to prison inmates admit a chink of light into his general state of depression. In jail he meets Pati, a small-time criminal from his own town. Pati and his brother Angiolino were dreaming of becoming the mafia bosses of Capo di Leuca, but the encounter with art changes everything and an unusual friendship between the three men will lead them to make courageous choices.
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Wedding in Blood
Lucienne Delamare and Pierre Maury are having an affair. Lucienne's husband Paul is the mayor, and a French deputy. Pierre's wife Clotilde has been weak and sickly for years. Lucienne's husband holds no excitement for her, and he is always away in Paris on business. Pierre is now the vice-mayor, thanks to Paul. Lucienne and Pierre have a secret meeting spot by a lake along a country lane. Pierre's wife dies suddenly, by suicide the town gossips believe. Pierre confesses otherwise to Lucienne. Paul proposes a shady land deal which will "benefit the town", and wants Pierre's political support and collusion. Then Paul discovers proof of his wife's affair...
Borsalino
In 1930 Marseilles two small-time crooks join forces when they meet brawling over a woman. Starting with fixed horse races and fights, they start to find themselves doing jobs for the local gangster bosses. When they decide to go into the business for themselves, their easy-going approach to crime starts to change.
Bright Star
In 1818, high-spirited young Fanny Brawne finds herself increasingly intrigued by the handsome but aloof poet John Keats, who lives next door to her family friends the Dilkes. After reading a book of his poetry, she finds herself even more drawn to the taciturn Keats. Although he agrees to teach her about poetry, Keats cannot act on his reciprocated feelings for Fanny, since as a struggling poet he has no money to support a wife.
Riot
Copper Jack Stone purposefully orchestrates a bank robbery in order to be thrown into prison with the notorious Russian kingpin Balam. Balam is more than just a mob criminal; he's a very cunning and dangerous lord who controls the police force from behind bars. Balam lives in prison as a cover for his real power, which is King of the city. His cell is a lavish private room built specifically for him, inaccessible to most in the depths of the prison structure. Even the warden fears venturing into his area of the prison. However, even surrounded by his loyal henchmen and guards in his sectioned off fortress, Balam doesn't know Jack is coming for him to avenge his family, who Balam murdered in cold blood. Balam is tough... but Jack is tougher.
Man on the Train
A mysterious criminal rolls into a small town planning to knock off the local bank, assuming it will go off without a hitch. But when he encounters a retired poetry professor, his plans take an unlikely turn. With no place to stay, the professor generously welcomes him into his home. As the two men talk, a bond forms between these two polar opposites, and surprising moments of humor and compassion emerge. As they begin to understand each other more, they each examine the choices they've made in their lives, secretly longing to live the type of lifestyle the other man has lived, based on the desire to escape their own.
Le Trou
Four prison inmates have been hatching a plan to literally dig out of jail when another prisoner, Claude Gaspard, is moved into their cell. They take a risk and share their plan with the newcomer. Over the course of three days, the prisoners and friends break through the concrete floor using a bed post and begin to make their way through the sewer system -- yet their escape is anything but assured.
Hollow Point
Livingston is trying to merge the Russians, Chinese and Italian gangsters into one group with huge amounts of money and power. FBI agent Susan and DEA agent Max are trying to stop them.
I'm Not Scared
While playing outside one day, nine-year-old Michele discovers Filippo, who is chained to the ground at the bottom of a hole. Michele witnesses town baddie Felice nearby and suspects something bad is happening. Michele is unsure whom he should tell about his discovery, eventually spilling the beans to his closest friend. Michele's parents learn of his discovery and warn him to forget what he saw
Happy-Go-Lucky
A look at a few chapters in the life of Poppy, a cheery, colorful, North London schoolteacher whose optimism tends to exasperate those around her.
Liberal Arts
Newly single, 35, and uninspired by his job, Jesse Fisher worries that his best days are behind him. But no matter how much he buries his head in a book, life keeps pulling Jesse back. When his favorite college professor invites him to campus to speak at his retirement dinner, Jesse jumps at the chance. He is prepared for the nostalgia of the dining halls and dorm rooms, the parties and poetry seminars; what he doesnāt see coming is Zibby ā a beautiful, precocious, classical-music-loving sophomore. Zibby awakens scary, exciting, long-dormant feelings of possibility and connection that Jesse thought he had buried forever.
Luchino Visconti
A chronological look at the creative life of Luchino Visconti (1906-1976). It examines his theatricality, role in the neorealist movement, use of melodrama, and relation to decadence. It touches on the impact of a fabulously wealthy childhood, his writing for "Cinema," his politics, his work with Renoir, his appreciation of Thomas Mann, and his deep knowledge of literature and the arts. Visconti moves constantly between film and the theater, staging plays provocatively, working with Maria Callas at La Scala, and shooting films in theaters. Clips from his films and interviews with actors, crew members, and critics provide details for this portrait of creativity.
Machine Gun McCain
After serving 12 years behind bars for armed robbery, tough guy Hank McCain finds himself the pawn of a ruthless mob runt's rebellion against a high level don. When McCain discovers that he's been betrayed and abandoned by his new employer, he retaliates with a high stakes Las Vegas casino heist that erupts into all-out war on the streets of Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York. Not blood, nor lust, nor wedding vows can come between McCain and his money...or his machine gun.
The Mayor of Rione SanitĆ
Antonio Barracano is a respected man among the Neapolitan underworld, keeping order and administering justice in Rione SanitĆ according to his own criteria, beyond the law. One day he's faced with a difficult decision after a young man asks him permission to kill his father.
Mob Town
Based on the true story of the notorious 1957 āmob summitā in upstate New York. Spearheaded by Vito Genovese, more than 50 leaders of the organized crime syndicates from around the country converged on the sleepy town to discuss upcoming expansion plans. Their plans are foiled when local police trooper Ed Croswell discovers their activities and, consequently, exposes the mob to the American public. Croswellās actions shed light on the massive web of corruption and changed the face of law enforcement forever.
The Postman
Simple Italian postman learns to love poetry while delivering mail to a famous poet; he uses this to woo local beauty Beatrice.
The Most Beautiful Wife
Based on the story of Franca Viola and Filippo Melodia. In Sicily, as a Mafia boss leaves for prison, he advises Vito, a young man who's his potential successor, to marry a virtuous and poor woman. Vito's eye settles on Francesca, only 15, but lovely and self-possessed. Among her virtues are high self worth and forthright speech, so although she falls in love with Vito, she won't bow down to him. Believing he's losing face, he has his boys kidnap her and he rapes her. Then, he tells her he'll still marry her. Instead, she files charges. Her parents, brother, and neighbors refuse to support her. Will she break?
Moon Child
Moon Child follows a group of childhood friends as they advance in a futuristic criminal underworld. Sho feels he is doomed to walk in his idol Kei's footsteps as a vampire with the gift of eternal life and the curse of blood thirst. Over time, their tight friendship becomes corrupted because of their rivalry and love for the same woman.
One Hundred Steps
Peppino Impastato is a quick-witted lad growing up in 1970s small-town Sicily. Despite living in a family with Mafia ties, one hundred steps away from the house of local boss Tano Badalamenti, Peppino denounces the whole Mafia system by using a small local radio station to broadcast his political pronouncements in the form of ironic humour.
Caveman: The Hidden Giant
It has been almost thirty years since Filippo Dobrilla started to sculpt a giant male nude inside a cave 650 metres deep in the Apuan Alps. This almost inaccessible place has jealously protected his secret: his youthful passion for a fellow climber, a passion Filippo was only able to indulge in here in the intimacy of this cave. Even after it was over and ever since then, Filippo has been returning regularly to the cave to work on the most important sculpture of his life, a masterpiece no one will see.
Honor Thy Father
Joseph Bologna stars as Bill Bonanno in this made-for-television adaptation of the controversial bestseller from Gay Talese, chronicling the rise of New York's infamous Bonanno organized crime family. When his father disappears in 1964 and Bill is compelled to take over the "empire," other mafiosi attempt to take what's theirs. Brenda Vaccaro and Richard S. Castellano fill out the impressive cast of this gripping crime tale.
The Professor
Loosely based on the real story of Camorra boss Raffaele Cutolo, nicknamed "O' Professore" (The Professor). His criminal career begins in prison, where he's able to build, step by step, a ruthless drug empire. He then instigates a Mafia war, destroying all the old Camorra bosses and becoming the new "boss of all bosses". With his sister Rosaria's help, he manages to escape from prison and goes to New York, where he forges an alliance with the Italian-American Mafia. Now at the peak of his power, Italian authorities are powerless to stop him...
Boss of Bosses
The story of the rise and fall of the powerful New York City organized crime boss, Paul Castellano.
Mafia Mamma
A suburban American woman inherits her grandfatherās Mafia empire and, guided by the Firmās trusted consigliere, defies everyoneās expectations, including her own, as the new head of the family business.
Killer Bean Forever
When things go bad in Beantown, top assassin Killer Bean is called to clean-up the mess. Detective Cromwell finds himself in the middle between Killer Bean and mob boss Cappuccino.
The Mafia Kills Only in Summer
While Arturo tries to gain the love of Flora, he witnesses the history of Sicily from 1969 to 1992, miraculously dodging the crimes of the Mafia and supporting as a journalist the heroic struggle of the judges and policemen who fought this infamous organization.
Everything You Want
An aimless young troublemaker, Alessandro, squanders his days gambling and getting into fights, and he often spends his nights in jail. With few prospects, he begrudgingly accepts a job as a companion to Giorgio, an elderly poet suffering from Alzheimerās. On their daily walks, the two banter and become friends, and Alessandro quickly learns more about this forgotten poet as the old manās memory drifts. After learning a secret from Giorgioās past, Alessandro and his friends work to uncover the mystery of this tale, an unexpected history lesson and a touching coming-of-age adventure.
The Bid
Loaded with a hilarious cast of comedians and internet personalities, The Bid follows Maurquis Boone and Richard āPhilly Filthy Richā Harris serving time for a crime they didnāt commit. Locked up, Boone & Rich encounter a variety of hardened, yet hilarious characters as they fight to prove their innocence and make it out the penitentiary in one piece.
Father Hope
Don Vasari is an anti-conformist priest. For this reason he is transferred to a juvenile prison in a small town in the southern of Italy. Nino, a sixteen year old inmate, is accused of murder but Don Vasari does not believe his guilt and he starts a courageous investigation to help him.
(Im)perfetti Criminali
Riccardo, Amir, Pietro and Massimo, four security guards, not particularly brilliant or courageous, are bound by an indissoluble friendship. When Amir, who has a large family to support, loses his job, the other three feel called to help him at any cost. Going from a bad idea to an impromptu criminal plan, the four friends will find themselves in a whirlwind of encounters, adventures and pitfalls, but also some surprises. Because our heroes still have more than one trick up their sleeveā¦
Zoran, My Nephew the Idiot
Paolo, 40 years old, lives in a small Friulian town close to the north-eastern border. Unreliable and with a passion for good wine, he spends his days at the local tavern and stubbornly stalks his ex-wife.