Film

The Family

Name: The Family
Genre: Crime, Comedy, Action
Released: 2013
Cast: Robert De Niro, Michelle Pfeiffer, Tommy Lee Jones, Dianna Agron, John D'Leo

Other titles called The Family: the 2019 series (Netflix).

Gangster

A mobster in witness protection tries to go straight in rural France, but his family can't shake their old ways. Luc Besson directs this crime comedy as a clash between Mafia instinct and suburban normalcy, where every petty grievance becomes a criminal conspiracy. It's lighter than it sounds, funnier than it has any right to be, and perfect if you want gangsters behaving badly without the weight of prestige drama.

TMDb rating

3.2

If you liked this

GoodFellas1990

The spiritual ancestor: mobsters, funny violence, a voiceover-driven narrative about life inside the life. De Niro plays the same archetype here, but Scorsese's film is the masterclass in making crime glamorous and terrible at once.

But Three and a half hours, and the cocaine paranoia sequence goes to genuinely dark places. This is about the romance and corruption of the mob, not the comedy of being stuck in the suburbs.

Ocean's Eleven2001

Ensemble crime caper with the same lightness of touch and star power. Talented people solving problems with style and humour, everyone having too much fun to take themselves seriously. Same register, different job.

But Soderbergh's cool detachment might feel too slick after Besson's scrappier energy. Also, if you're looking for genuine danger, this isn't the film—it's all surface charm.

The Gentlemen2020

Guy Ritchie's recent crime comedy with the same DNA: clever criminals, elaborate schemes born from small slights, a fondness for the crooks despite themselves. Stylish, propulsive, and genuinely entertaining without pretending to be important.

But Ritchie's trademark overlapping dialogue and fractured timeline can feel mannered. Some jokes land harder than others, and the runtime sags in the middle.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Family

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Matilda1996

Both are Danny DeVito films about families trapped in dysfunction, finding their way out through connection and refusal to play by the rules. One is a crime comedy, the other is a fable about a child's mind—but the emotional logic is identical.

Danny DeVito directs and stars in this children's fantasy about a brilliant girl with telekinetic powers. It sounds nothing like The Family, but DeVito's Mafia-adjacent home is the same war between civilization and brute chaos—except the victory is intellectual and gentle instead of criminal. Same director, wildly different energy.

But It's a children's film, and uncompromising about it. If you're looking for crime thrills, you'll find a story about reading and kindness instead. But that's precisely what makes it startling.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang2005

Robert Downey Jr. narrating a Los Angeles crime comedy where petty criminals and wannabe actors collide. Sharp, fast, affectionate toward its knuckleheads, and genuinely funny about people in over their heads.

But The tonal shifts between comedy and real violence can feel jarring. It's also dense with LA in-jokes that land better if you care about that world.

In Bruges2008

Two hitmen hide in a medieval Belgian city after a job goes wrong. It has The Family's blend of criminal consequence and dark humour, but Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson make every moment count. Gorgeous and painful and funny.

But Darker than The Family—the regret and violence cut deeper. If you're looking for lighter fare, this will pull you down into something more serious.

Analyze This1999

Mob boss Robert De Niro seeing a therapist (Billy Crystal). It's the prototype for comedy-crime collision, gentler and more good-natured than The Family, with De Niro playing similar notes from the other side of the joke.

But The therapy premise feels dated, and the humour is broader and sometimes obvious. Billy Crystal's riffing won't work for everyone, and it can feel more sitcom than cinema.

Snatch2000

Guy Ritchie's crime caper with interconnected criminals, diamonds, bare-knuckle boxing, and a pace that never lets up. Rough, funny, packed with character actors having the time of their lives, and genuinely clever about its own chaos.

But The overlapping storylines and rapid cutting can be exhausting rather than exhilarating. Also, some of the ethnic stereotyping hasn't aged gracefully.

The Drop2014

Tom Hardy as a Brooklyn bartender caught between underworld obligations and his own conscience. Quieter than The Family, but with the same DNA of ordinary people entangled in crime. Superbly acted and genuinely suspenseful.

But It's slow and deliberate where The Family is zippy. If you want comedy and constant motion, this will feel like a slog into sadness.

Sexy Beast2001

A retired criminal living in Spain in paradise, then a psychopath arrives and ruins everything. It's surreal, darkly funny, and Ben Kingsley's performance is one of the most terrifying villains in crime cinema. Absolutely original.

But Aggressively weird and paced like a fever dream. The opening sequence is nearly dialogue-free and hypnotic, but if you want propulsive narrative momentum, this is the opposite.

A Prophet2009

Both examine how Mafia logic seeps into everyday life and relationships. The Family treats it as absurdity; A Prophet treats it as tragedy. Same system, opposite registers.

A young man enters prison and rises through the criminal hierarchy using intelligence and alliances. It's The Family's opposite: dead serious, in French, shot with documentary realism, and about how the Mafia makes you instead of you managing to keep your humanity. Magnificent and devastating.

But Brutal realism and slow-burn tension where The Family is comic relief. Subtitled, two and a half hours, and emotionally exhausting. This is the shadow side of organized crime without the laughs.

Godless2017

Both are about systems of power—Mafia logic and patriarchy—colliding with people trying to find a way to live. The Family finds humour in that collision; Godless finds tragedy. But the DNA is structural.

A miniseries about a town run entirely by women in the Old West, where a fugitive drifter arrives and disrupts everything. It's a western masquerading as a crime story, gorgeously shot, with the same tension between outsider logic and community rules. Only six episodes, a complete story, and visually stunning.

But Westerns are a specific taste. Also, it's more interested in atmosphere and character than plot propulsion; if you want The Family's pace, this will feel meditative and slow. And the gender politics, though interesting, are sometimes on-the-nose.