Hard To Find Crime Flix Now Streaming on Hulu

So I understand that Netflix isn't the only game in town. Hulu multi-tiered streaming services are a bit much for me to navigate, but I've been slightly tempted with their uptick in movie acquisitions. They may not have all the latest titles, but they've got some gems buried in lineup. Here are a few hard to find crime flicks currently streaming there. And don't worry - if you, like me, are not a paid Hulu subscriber, many of these are available on their free service.

Vice Squad - Gary A. Sherman - Bonkers, trashy exploitation cop flick from the bottom rung. Love it, hate it, you won't be able to look away.

I Went Down - Paddy Brethnach - Not based on a Letter to Penthouse. Brendan Gleeson has been in more truly darkly comedic crime fare than anybody else you want to name.

The Last Lullaby - Jeffrey Goodman - Material that plays to Tom Sizemore's strengths and a film that features a great and sinister turn by Ray McKinnon. Based on a Quarry story by Max Allan Collins this one has been frustratingly difficult to find. Hope it gets more exposure when the Quarry TV show debuts next year - noted promising elements of the show: Peter Mullen as The Broker, the 1970s period setting and John Hillcoat's listing as executive producer (assuming he's directing an episode or two).

Easy Money III: Life Deluxe - Jens Jonsson - There are not nearly enough crime films like the Easy Money flicks in the world. This trilogy of high-production-value, large-canvas, expansive-cast, serious-minded, kinetic-as-fuck films based on the novels by Jens Lapidus will be a high-water mark for global crime aficionados for decades. The first two installments seem to be easier to come by - if you've not yet completed the trilogy, here's your chance. It ends strong.

Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within - Jose Padilha - Similarly Padilha's Elite Squad films satisfy on many levels and sport titles just about as bad as the Easy Money films. Imagine a James Ellroy police corruption saga set in Rio de Janeiro and starring Wagner Moura (Pablo Escobar from Narcos). These films rock and honestly, they don't have to be watched in order. Don't be afraid to watch the second if you've not seen the first.

Gomorrah - Matteo Garrone - If you watched Suburra on Netflix and you have to get more like that this one will fucking destroy you. Corruption so dense you're already compromised. Morally devastating and artfully pitiless, this is the nightmare of today.

The Baader Meinhoff Complex - Uli Edel - The late aughties produced a very special crop of 20th century historical, political, true-crime flicks - morally ambiguous, complex, beautifully rendered and just so sumptuous (Olivier Assayas's Carlos, Jean-Francois Richet's Mesrine films, Paolo Sorrentino's Il Divo, Steven Soderbergh's Che films, hell even Steven Spielberg's Munich) and this one about the German revolutionary group's origins and exploits stands right alongside the best of the period... or the last 20 years. Period.

La Haine - Mathieu Kassovitz - Calling it 1990's French Mean Streets is probably too condescending, but also seems as suitably brief and apt a description you might need to get you interested.

Little Fish - Rowan Woods - Alongside South Korea, Australia seems to be producing the most consistently compelling and fresh crime films in the world. This one is quieter than most, but features terrific performances from its cast who seem to be invigorated working in their homeland (Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Sam Neill). Give it a go.

Kill Me Again - John Dahl - Val Kilmer is a low-rent PI who specializes in divorce who's approached by Joanne Whalley who's got a high-risk, big-money proposition for him to keep a bunch of stolen money out of the hands of Michael Madsen, her psychotic husband. Dahl's debut heralded the arrival of a major noir talent and still crackles today.