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Mad City

Mad City

One man will make a mistake. The other will make it a spectacle.

19976.21h 54m

Overview

A misguided museum guard who loses his job and then tries to get it back at gunpoint is thrown into the fierce world of ratings-driven TV gone mad.

Directed by Costa-Gavras
Written by Tom Matthews, Eric Williams
Produced by Arnold Kopelson, Anne Kopelson
Box OfficeBudget: $50.0MRevenue: $10.5M

Top Cast

John Travolta

John Travolta

Sam Baily

Dustin Hoffman

Dustin Hoffman

Max Brackett

Mia Kirshner

Mia Kirshner

Laurie Callahan

Alan Alda

Alan Alda

Kevin Hollander

Robert Prosky

Robert Prosky

Lou Potts

Blythe Danner

Blythe Danner

Mrs. Banks

William Atherton

William Atherton

Dohlen

Ted Levine

Ted Levine

Lemke

M

Milton Davis Jr.

The Kids

Bill Nunn

Bill Nunn

Cliff Williams

Themes & Keywords

journalisthostagemuseum

About Mad City

Mad City is a thriller, drama film released in 1997 exploring themes of journalist, hostage, museum. Directed by Costa-Gavras, it stars John Travolta, Dustin Hoffman, Mia Kirshner. A misguided museum guard who loses his job and then tries to get it back at gunpoint is thrown into the fierce world of ratings-driven TV gone mad.

Movies Similar to Mad City

Discover titles like Mad City — ranked by similarity and community votes

We found 15 movies similar to Mad City

If you enjoyed Mad City, you'll love these handpicked recommendations. Each title below shares similar themes, tone, and storytelling style. Our algorithm analyzes genres, keywords, director filmography, and cast connections to find the closest matches. Whether you're looking for the same emotional depth, narrative structure, or visual style, these picks are curated to deliver the best viewing experience for fans of Mad City.

Nothing But the Truth
32% Match

When reporter Rachel Armstrong writes a story that reveals the identity of a covert CIA operative, the government demands that Rachel reveal her source. She defies the special prosecutor and is thrown in jail. Meanwhile, her attorney, Albert Burnside argues her case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Penthouse North
31% Match

A reclusive, blind photojournalist lives quietly in a New York penthouse with her boyfriend, until a smooth but sadistic criminal looking for a hidden fortune enters her life.

Proof of Life
30% Match

When American engineer Peter Bowman is kidnapped while working in South America, his wife Alice enlists special agent Terry Thorne to help free him. However, complications arise when Thorne falls in love with her. Their lives are on the line, their hearts out on a limb.

Albino Alligator
28% Match

While escaping from a foiled robbery attempt, three thieves find themselves surrounded by police at a New Orleans bar--only they're not the people the police are searching for.

Collateral
27% Match

Collateral(2004)

Movie7.2/10

Cab driver Max picks up a man who offers him $600 to drive him around. But the promise of easy money sours when Max realizes his fare is an assassin.

Blood Diamond
27% Match

An ex-mercenary turned smuggler. A Mende fisherman. Amid the explosive civil war overtaking 1999 Sierra Leone, these men join for two desperate missions: recovering a rare pink diamond of immense value and rescuing the fisherman's son, conscripted as a child soldier into the brutal rebel forces ripping a swath of torture and bloodshed countrywide.

Inside Man
27% Match

Inside Man(2006)

Movie7.4/10

When an armed, masked gang enter a Manhattan bank, lock the doors and take hostages, the detective assigned to effect their release enters negotiations preoccupied with corruption charges he is facing.

Prisoners
26% Match

Prisoners(2013)

Movie8.1/10

Keller Dover is facing every parent’s worst nightmare. His six-year-old daughter, Anna, is missing, together with her young friend, Joy, and as minutes turn to hours, panic sets in. The only lead is a dilapidated RV that had earlier been parked on their street.

Trapped
25% Match

Trapped(2002)

Movie6.2/10

When their daughter is abducted by experienced kidnappers, the Jennings turn the tables on their seemingly fool-proof plan.

Munich
25% Match

Munich(2005)

Movie7.1/10

During the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, eleven Israeli athletes are taken hostage and murdered by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September. In retaliation, the Israeli government recruits a group of Mossad agents to track down and execute those responsible for the attack.

The Goldfinch
25% Match

A boy in New York is taken in by a wealthy family after his mother is killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In a rush of panic, he steals 'The Goldfinch', a painting that eventually draws him into a world of crime.

Funny Games
24% Match

When Ann, husband George, and son Georgie arrive at their holiday home they are visited by a pair of polite and seemingly pleasant young men. Armed with deceptively sweet smiles and some golf clubs, they proceed to terrorize and torture the tight-knit clan, giving them until the next day to survive.