400 Best Mystery Movies to Watch (Page 12)

Feeling investigative? If you’re not sure which movie to go for, allow us to clue you in. From detective stories and whodunnits to suspenseful dramas, here are the best mystery-themed movies and shows to stream now.

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166. Huesera: The Bone Woman, 2023

Huesera: The Bone Woman might not be the scariest film horror fans would see, but it does strike at the heart of the scary experience of motherhood. Through eerie sounds of breaking bones and weirdly contorted hands at the edge of beds, the film depicts new mother Valeria being haunted by the titular spirit, despite her prayer to the Virgin Mary. Valeria pleads for her husband and family to listen, though each time she does becomes proof of her faults as a mother. The terror in newcomer Natalia Solián’s face makes it all feel believable, but it’s the folk-inspired imagery of first-time feature director Michelle Garza Cervera that turns this film into a feminist masterpiece.

Genre: Drama, Horror, Mystery

Actor: Aida López, Alfonso Dosal, Emilram Cossío, Enoc Leaño, Gina Morett, Martha Claudia Moreno, Mayra Batalla, Mercedes Hernández, Natalia Solián, Pablo Guisa Koestinger, Samantha Castillo, Sonia Couoh

Director: Michelle Garza Cervera

Rating: NR

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167. Exhuma, 2024

	
For the longest time, land was where people formed strength in community, where people were born, lived, died, and was buried in, but it was also how empires grew in power, often at the expense of the people that came before. Exhuma is centered in a haunted burial site of a Korean family that migrated due to the war, but as the shamans try to unearth the casket, they also uncover the psychospiritual ways in which Japan colonized Korea– haunting the land with their own ghosts, dividing its people through belief, and leaving deep scars that hasn’t yet been fully recovered from. While the double exorcism situation can be a tad confusing, Exhuma nonetheless elevates this folk horror drama with their respect and attention to detail for Korean shamanism.Genre: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Baek Seung-chul, Choi Min-sik, Choi Moon-kyoung, Hong Seo-jun, Jang Ui-don, Jeon Jin-gi, Jung Yun-ha, Kim Go-eun, Kim Jae-chul, Kim Ji-an, Kim Min-jun, Kim Sun-young, Kim Tae-jun, Lee Da-wit, Lee Do-hyun, Lee Eun-joo, Lee Jong-goo, Lee Young-lan, Park Jae-wan, Park Jeong-ja, Park Ji-il, Rikiya Koyama, Yoo Hai-jin
Director: Jang Jae-hyun
Rating: NR

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168. Disclaimer, 2024

Starring the Cate Blanchett and directed by Alfonso Cuaron, Disclaimer is every bit as cinematic and enjoyable as you’d imagine it to be. It’s juicy and well-performed (Hoyeon’s unnatural acting notwithstanding), filled with enough twists and turns to keep you seated despite the occasionally melodramatic plot. It’s designed to make you crave more: more rich acting, more pulpy mystery, more explosive secrets, and more emotional breakdowns, which Blanchett has certainly mastered. It’s not as deep as it thinks itself to be, and the script can be overwrought at times (do we really need every single movement narrated?) but the fun twists, great performances, and beautiful cinematography more than makes up for them.

Genre: Drama, Mystery

Actor: Cate Blanchett, Indira Varma, Kevin Kline, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Leila George, Lesley Manville, Louis Partridge, Sacha Baron Cohen

Rating: TV-MA

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169. Celebrity, 2023

Glossy and intense, Celebrity strips away the glamour of influencer life by taking the allure of fame and weaving an entrancing mystery into it at the end of every episode. A-ri's climb to the top is paralleled by the secret of her supposed death and return, which she reveals through a live stream. With a large cast, the intrigue never fully wanes as these influencers grate the nerves while contributing to their own demise. The promise of learning about everyone's secrets and finally understanding how A-ri dies keeps you at the edge of your seat, even if the influencer angle feels cliche.

Genre: Drama, Mystery

Actor: Han Eu-ddeum, Jun Hyo-seong, Jung Yoo-min, Kang Min-hyuk, Lee Chung-ah, Lee Dong-gun, Moon Tae-yu, Park Gyu-young, Park Ye-ni

Director: Kim Cheol-kyu

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170. Castle Rock, 2019

	
Fans of Stephen King would likely know how long the fictional town of Castle Rock stood in his novels. Hulu’s Castle Rock weaves two original tales based on what is known about this strange, strange town, with the first season centered on a mysterious inmate and the second centered on a mentally ill nurse. While it does get confusing at times, the series is able to weave in a taste of King’s mystery horror elements, with the terrifying abuses of America’s modern day institutions. While Hulu’s attempt at a multiverse can occasionally get a bit shaky, Castle Rock nonetheless creates an interesting reinterpretation of the King of Horror’s Maine town.Genre: Drama, Mystery
Actor: Barkhad Abdi, Elsie Fisher, Lizzy Caplan, Matthew Alan, Paul Sparks, Tim Robbins, Yusra Warsama
Rating: TV-MA

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171. Babylon Berlin, 2017

	
Babylon Berlin is mostly an intriguing spy thriller with both the sleekness and the style of the Golden Twenties, but what makes it stand out is the way it depicts the inevitability of the country’s upcoming struggles, as well as the hope it held in itself to reach a brighter future, with the new millennium. It’s a pretty brilliant concept. Through the eyes of its alternate protagonists, the show depicts Berlin polarized by two ideologies, and it keeps this context to drive Inspector Gereon Rath’s investigation, with the help of police clerk and flapper in the underground Charlotte Ritter. While the later seasons lost a bit of its edge, Babylon Berlin nevertheless paints a new perspective of the capital that once was at the forefront of art and science.Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Actor: Benno Fürmann, Lars Eidinger, Liv Lisa Fries, Ronald Zehrfeld, Volker Bruch
Rating: TV-MA

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172. Animal Kingdom, 2010

A cracking cast including Guy Pearce and Joel Edgerton elevate this dark and gripping Australian crime drama, which was received with glowing reviews from critics but was sadly forgotten with time.

Breakout star James Frecheville plays J, a teenager who goes to live with his grandmother, the head of a Melbourne crime organization. As the heat closes in and things go awry, J finds himself caught between his family and a detective who wants to save him.

Jacki Weaver is outstanding as the conniving grandma and the film put Ben Mendelsohn on the road to Hollywood stardom. Animal Kingdom is a superior crime saga with plenty of emotional depth to match the tense drama.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Andy McPhee, Anna Lise Phillips, Anthony Ahern, Anthony Hayes, Ben Mendelsohn, Ben Ouwehand, Bert LaBonté, Brenda Palmer, Bryce Lindemann, Chris Weir, Christina Azucena, Clayton Jacobson, Dan Wyllie, David Michôd, Dom Phelan, Guy Pearce, Jack Heanly, Jacki Weaver, Jacqueline Brennan, James Frecheville, James Saunders, Joel Edgerton, Josh Helman, Justin Rosniak, Kieran Darcy-Smith, Laura Wheelwright, Luke Ford, Michael Valamios, Michael Vice, Mirrah Foulkes, Paul Smits, Sullivan Stapleton, Susan Prior, Tim Phillipps

Director: David Michôd

Rating: R

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173. 13 Tzameti, 2005

13 Tzameti is a unique suspense movie from Georgia and the debut of director Géla Babluani. This film explores the life of a migrant worker from Georgia working in France, who literally gambles his life in a high stakes game of chance organized by powerful criminals. 13 Tzameti won the World Cinema Jury Prize at Sundance in 2008, and of course, a not nearly as good American remake. Do yourself a favor and check out the original!

Genre: Action, Mystery, Thriller

Actor: Augustin Legrand, Aurélien Recoing, Bruno Davézé, Christophe Vandevelde, Didier Ferrari, Fred Ulysse, George Babluani, Jacques Gallo, Jo Prestia, Nicolas Pignon, Olga Legrand, Pascal Bongard, Vania Vilers

Director: Géla Babluani

Rating: Not Rated

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174. Three Pines, 2022

Set in the seemingly idyllic town of Three Pines in Quebec, Canada, Three Pines the series follows Chief Inspector Armand Gamache (Alfred Molina) as he attempts to solve a string of murders and disappearances in the area. It’s a classic whodunnit that doesn't try too hard to be twisty and complicated; instead, it lays out its clues neatly and cleverly without giving too much away, all while digging deep into local issues such as the institutional neglect of indigenous people.

There’s no shortage of mysteries and crime thrillers on TV at the moment, but what makes Three Pines stand out is its seemingly virtuous lead. “You look for good even in the worst of humanity, don’t you?” says one witness about Armand, but it will be interesting to find out just how far his well-meaning ways can go.

Genre: Crime, Mystery

Actor: Alfred Molina

Rating: TV-14

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175. The White Ribbon, 2009

	
This 2009 Palme d'Or winner is filmed beautifully in black and white by Michael Haneke. In equal parts mysterious and disturbing, it is set in a northern German village in between 1913 and 1914 where strange events start to happen seemingly on their own. The people of the village, who feel as if they were punished, try to investigate it as the events start affecting them one by one. As they speculate on who is behind the acts that never stop, the film unfolds its slow but captivating plot. A brilliant and unique movie.Genre: Drama, Mystery
Actor: Aaron Denkel, Anne-Kathrin Gummich, Arndt Schwering-Sohnrey, Birgit Minichmayr, Branko Samarovski, Burghart Klaußner, Burghart Klaussner, Carmen-Maja Antoni, Christian Friedel, Detlev Buck, Enno Trebs, Ernst Jacobi, Fion Mutert, Gabriela Maria Schmeide, Hanuš Polak jr., Janina Fautz, Jonas Jennerjahn, Josef Bierbichler, Kai-Peter Malina, Klaus Manchen, Krzysztof Zarzecki, Leonard Boes, Leonard Proxauf, Leonie Benesch, Levin Henning, Lilli Fichtner, Luzie Ahrens, Malin Steffen, Marcin Tyrol, Maria Dragus, Maria-Victoria Dragus, Marisa Growaldt, Mercedes Jadea Diaz, Michael Kranz, Michael Schenk, Miljan Chatelain, Paraschiva Dragus, Paula Kalinski, Rainer Bock, Roxane Duran, Sebastian Badurek, Sebastian Hülk, Sebastian Łach, Sebastian Pawlak, Simon Pawlowsky, Steffi Kuhnert, Stephanie Amarell, Susanne Lothar, Theo Trebs, Thibault Sérié, Ulrich Tukur, Ursina Lardi, Vincent Krüger
Director: Michael Haneke
Rating: R

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176. The Wailing, 2016

In rural Korea a policeman starts to investigate peculiar and violent events that most of the people in his village attribute to the arrival of a new Japanese resident. As the occurrences keep multiplying, and different perspectives in the film are shown, you start to lose touch with reality in the face of what can only be described as genius film-making. As critic Jada Yuan puts it, the film operates on a level “that makes most American cinema seem clunky and unimaginative”. For this reason, and while The Wailing is a true horror flick with a great premise, it’s also more than just that: it boosts a mind-boggling, interesting plot that will have you thinking about it long after the credits roll. Protip: grab the person next to you and make them watch this movie with you so you can have someone to discuss it with after!

Genre: Horror, Mystery

Actor: Bae Yong-geun, Cho Han-cheul, Chun Woo-hee, Do-won Kwak, Han-Cheol Jo, Heo Jin, Hur Jin, Hwang Jung-min, Hwang Seok-jeong, Hwang Suk-jung, Jang So-yeon, Jeon Bae-soo, Jeong-min Hwang, Jo Han-chul, Jo Yeon-hee, Jun Kunimura, Jung-min Hwang, Kim Do-yoon, Kim Hwan-hee, Kim Ki-cheon, Kim Ki-chun, Kwak Do-won, Lee Jung-eun, Lee Seon-hee, Lee Sun-hee, Lee Yong-nyeo, Moon Chang-gil, Park Seong-yeon, Park Sung-yeon, So-yeon Jang, Son Kang-gook, Sung-yeon Park, Woo-hee Chun, Yoo Soon-woong, 赵汉哲

Director: Hong-jin Na, Na Hong-jin

Rating: Not Rated, TV-MA

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177. The Tourist, 2024

	
The first few minutes of The Tourist make it seem like a straight action thriller. It’s cool and gritty, with Jamie Dornan ably playing the role of strong but likable leading man. Then ever so subtly, it shifts its tone into something more playful and wholesome, then shifts back to dangerous territory. The back-and-forth feels jarring at first, almost like we’re seeing the show discover what it should be in real time. But eventually, it settles into a comfortable and confident rhythm, one that’s difficult not to watch. The funny bits are care of silly townie humor and that dry Australian wit, while most of the high-intensity action is thanks to Dornan (though he delivers amusing zingers too, especially when paired with Shalom Brune-Franklin). The Tourist seems designed to reel in broad viewers with different tastes, and it does just that thanks to its strong performances and nicely balanced tone.Genre: Drama, Mystery
Actor: Conor MacNeill, Danielle Macdonald, Diarmaid Murtagh, Francis Magee, Greg Larsen, Jamie Dornan, Mark McKenna, Nessa Matthews, Olwen Fouéré, Victoria Haralabidou
Rating: TV-MA

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178. The Night Agent, 2023

There's a reason why despite little marketing and only a handful of stars to its name, The Night Agent became the most-watched series on Netflix upon its release. The show is a solid political thriller that recalls the likes of 24, Jack Reacher, and the Bourne series; beneath layers of top secrets and twists is a well-known (and well-liked) formula supercharged with pure action and thrills. It even finds a surprise star in Gabriel Basso, who provides a star-making turn as the simple but rootable Peter Sutherland.

Sure, it's not the most complex thriller out there, but The Night Agent deserves a spot on your to-watch list for the familiar rush, bingeable suspense, and impressive performances it delivers.

Genre: Drama, Mystery

Actor: D.B. Woodside, Enrique Murciano, Eve Harlow, Fola Evans-Akingbola, Gabriel Basso, Hong Chau, Luciane Buchanan, Phoenix Raei, Sarah Desjardins

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179. The Miniaturist, 2017

The Miniaturist is a three-part period piece that demands your attention, not necessarily because of the eloquence of its dialogue or the depth of its characters, but because of the careful intricacy of its set pieces, costumes, and performances. Taylor-Joy is like Vermeer’s Pearl painting come to life, while the dollhouse at the center of everything gives Barbie’s Dreamhouse a run for its money. The performances are aptly subtle and stoic, only going big when the event asks for it. Again, the writing and characterizations may leave you wanting more, but the performances, the details, and even the drama and mystery that move the whole thing more than make up for these low points.

Genre: Drama, Mystery

Actor: Alex Hassell, Anya Taylor-Joy, Hayley Squires, Paapa Essiedu, Romola Garai

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180. The Kidnapping Day, 2023

Genuinely exciting but with more than enough heart to keep its genre trappings from overwhelming the story, The Kidnapping Day wastes no time setting the stakes and its plot into motion. Several crimes occur seemingly at the same time, which not only keeps the show's various mysteries equally interesting, but emphasizes how our protagonist (the kidnapper Myeong-joon) is ultimately just a naive person caught in the crosshairs of something larger. But because of his poverty and desperation, he becomes a natural target of suspicion by the people who don't know his full story.

And accompanying Myeong-joon from the beginning of the series is 11-year-old Ro-hee, who wakes from a dazed state with no recollection of who she is, but with knowledge beyond her years. The somewhat antagonistic but tender bond she gradually forms with her reluctant kidnapper is the furthest thing from Stockholm syndrome. Instead, their relationship becomes a window into a particular class dynamic that runs throughout The Kidnapping Day (as well as a host of other South Korean films and shows). In these first two episodes watched for this review, the series already presents a world characterized by a deep yet normalized divide between the rich and the poor.

Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Mystery

Actor: Jeon Yu-na, Kim Sang-ho, Kim Shin-rock, Park Sung-hoon, Yoon Kye-sang

Director: Park Yoo-young

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