The Best Gangster Shows to Get a Thrill

23/03/2021

Trafficking in drugs, alcohol, pimping and mafia, organized crime always offers material for scenarios developed to make the small screen even more fascinating. Let’s take a look at the finest gangster shows that have struck TV.

Peaky Blinders

Dealing with alcohol trafficking, racketeering, razor blades and caps, Peaky Blinders follows the adventures of a family of criminals in Birmingham in the 1920s. Created by Steven Knight, the series focuses on the evolution of British gangs of the time, each one more formidable than the last. Interspersed with historical facts and fictionalized stories, the screenplay showcases the members of the Shelby clan, named the Peaky Blinders, and portrays them in all their savagery, as in their most touching vulnerability. Nothing is black and white; behind every great villain lies a broken part of humanity. A spark of life crippled by the Great War (World War I) or other equally heartbreaking misfortunes.

Snowfall

In the eighties, racism and segregation divided the population of Los Angeles into two distinct parts. Blacks and Whites don’t melt in the pot. They live differently, dream differently, yet end up being bound by the same thing: drugs. In the chaotic world of Snowfall, Franklin Saint, a bright young African-American, decides to enter the cocaine business. Clever, astute, he gradually builds his own empire, drawing the wrath of his enemies in the process. His meteoric rise then causes a great deal of envy, but also generates a growth in trafficking, which eventually spreads through the city of angels like wildfire.

Sons of Anarchy

A leathered rage of roaring motorbikes, Sons of Anarchy tells the story of an anarchist biker club, trying hard to bring order to the fictional town of Charming, California. A group of mechanics in pretense, the motorcycle gang is actually involved in various illegal businesses, including major arms trafficking. Cruel and violent, they will stop at nothing to gain respect and do not hesitate to breathe a wind of terror into their territories. Rival gangs, traffickers and law enforcement, enemies quickly multiply and make their world darker than ever.

Mafiosa

French TV series created by Hugues Pagan, Mafiosa immerses viewers in the world of the Corsican mafia. The story revolves around Sandra Paoli, a young woman propelled to the head of a very powerful clan after the death of her uncle. Faced with the machismo, rivalries and constant tensions, the new leader has to show unfazed ferocity. A stern and fine strategist, she must succeed in establishing herself in this men’s world, which is ruled by political manipulation, threats, murders and racketeering. She can’t do so without paying a very heavy price.

Narcos

Inspired by the story of Pablo Escobar, Narcos traces the struggle of Colombia and the United States against cocaine trafficking. No petty criminals in the making here: you will find fearsome leaders of organized crime, holding their drug trade with an iron fist. The show looks at the various parties involved in the Medellín Cartel cases and covers all aspects of this illegal business. Politicians, justice, police and gangsters: everyone here is fighting for power, trying to establish their own law in this ruthless universe.

The Deuce

With The Deuce, David Simon and George Pelecanos bring New York's infamous street to life, a temple of vice and pleasure. The series looks back at the rise of the porn industry in the 1970s, while developing an underground atmosphere with mafia, pimping and shady trafficking of all kinds. James Franco plays the twin brothers Vincent and Frankie Martino, seedy bar managers, who get in bed with the local underworld. It's enough to discover sex work from a new angle, with all the dangers that this entails.

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