25 Best Mystery Movies of All Time!
From 'A Simple Favor' to 'What Lies Beneath,' Moviefone counts down the 25 greatest mystery movies ever made.
Daniel Craig as Detective Benoit Blanc on the set of 'Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.' Photo: Courtesy of John Wilson/Netflix © 2022.
Everyone loves a good mystery, right?
The rise in the genre's popularity is a result of box office successes like Kenneth Branagh's Hercule Poirot series, including 'Murder on the Orient Express' and 'Death on the Nile,' and director Rian Johnson's 'Knives Out,' and its new sequel, 'Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,' which is currently in theaters and premieres on Netflix December 23rd.
In honor of 'Glass Onion's release, Moviefone is counting down the 25 greatest mystery movies of all time!
Without further ado, grab your detective hat and let's begin!
25. Mystic River (2003)
24. Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)
Lake Tahoe, 1969. Seven strangers, each one with a secret to bury, meet at El Royale, a decadent motel with a dark past. In the course of a fateful night, everyone will have one last shot at redemption. Starring Jeff Bridges, Cynthia Erivo, Dakota Johnson, Jon Hamm, and Chris Hemsworth.
23. Death on the Nile (2022)
Based on the 1937 novel by Agatha Christie, “Death on the Nile” is a daring mystery-thriller about the emotional chaos and deadly consequences triggered by obsessive love. Kenneth Branagh, back as the iconic detective Hercule Poirot, is joined by Tom Bateman, four-time Oscar® nominee Annette Bening, Russell Brand, Ali Fazal, Dawn French, Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Rose Leslie, Emma Mackey, Sophie Okonedo, Jennifer Saunders and Letitia Wright.
22. Murder Mystery (2019)
On a long-awaited trip to Europe, a New York City cop (Adam Sandler) and his hairdresser wife (Jennifer Aniston) scramble to solve a baffling murder aboard a billionaire's yacht.
Murder Mystery
21. Pokémon Detective Pikachu (2019)
In a world where people collect pocket-size monsters (Pokémon) to do battle, a boy (Justice Smith) comes across an intelligent monster (Ryan Reynolds) who seeks to be a detective.
20. Sherlock Holmes (2009)
Warner Bros. Pictures
Eccentric consulting detective Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and Doctor John Watson (Jude Law) battle to bring down a new nemesis and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy England.
19. What Lies Beneath (2000)
When Claire Spencer (Michelle Pfeiffer) starts hearing ghostly voices and seeing spooky images, she wonders if an otherworldly spirit is trying to contact her. All the while, her husband (Harrison Ford) tries to reassure her by telling her it's all in her head. But as Claire investigates, she discovers that the man she loves might know more than he's letting on.
What Lies Beneath
18. A Simple Favor (2018)
Stephanie (Anna Kendrick), a dedicated mother and popular vlogger, befriends Emily (Blake Lively), a mysterious upper-class woman whose son Nicky attends the same school as Miles, Stephanie's son. When Emily asks her to pick Nicky up from school and then disappears, Stephanie undertakes an investigation that will dive deep into Emily's cloudy past.
17. Prisoners (2013)
Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) faces a parent's worst nightmare when his 6-year-old daughter, Anna (Erin Gerasimovich), and her friend go missing. The only lead is an old motorhome that had been parked on their street. The head of the investigation, Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), arrests the driver, but a lack of evidence forces Loki to release his only suspect. Dover, knowing that his daughter's life is at stake, decides that he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands.
16. Charade (1963)
After Regina Lampert (Audrey Hepburn) falls for the dashing Peter Joshua (Cary Grant) on a skiing holiday in the French Alps, she discovers upon her return to Paris that her husband has been murdered. Soon, she and Peter are giving chase to three of her late husband's World War II cronies, Tex (James Coburn), Scobie (George Kennedy) and Gideon (Ned Glass), who are after a quarter of a million dollars the quartet stole while behind enemy lines. But why does Peter keep changing his name?
15. Shutter Island (2010)
Paramount Pictures
14. Gosford Park (2002)
Directed by Robert Altman, in 1930’s England, a group of pretentious rich and famous gather together for a weekend of relaxation at a hunting resort. But when a murder occurs, each one of these interesting characters becomes a suspect.
Gosford Park
13. The Great Muppet Caper (1981)
Kermit and Fozzie are newspaper reporters sent to London to interview Lady Holiday (Diana Rigg), a wealthy fashion designer whose priceless diamond necklace is stolen. Kermit meets and falls in love with her secretary, Miss Piggy. The jewel thieves strike again, and this time frame Miss Piggy. It's up to Kermit and Muppets to bring the real culprits to justice.
The Great Muppet Caper
12. Gone Girl (2014)
With his wife's (Rosamund Pike) disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man (Ben Affleck) sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent.
Gone Girl
11. Laura (1944)
A police detective (Dana Andrews) falls in love with the woman (Gene Tierney) whose murder he's investigating.
Laura
10. Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
20th Century Fox
Genius Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) investigates the murder of an American tycoon aboard the Orient Express train.
9. The Nice Guys (2016)
A private eye (Ryan Gosling) and a thug (Russell Crowe) investigate the apparent suicide of a fading porn star in 1970s Los Angeles and uncovers a conspiracy.
8. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
This English-language adaptation of the Swedish novel by Stieg Larsson follows a disgraced journalist, Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig), as he investigates the disappearance of a weary patriarch's niece from 40 years ago. He is aided by the pierced, tattooed, punk computer hacker named Lisbeth Salander (Rooney Mara). As they work together in the investigation, Blomkvist and Salander uncover immense corruption beyond anything they have ever imagined.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
7. Se7en (1995)
Two homicide detectives are on a desperate hunt for a serial killer (Kevin Spacey) whose crimes are based on the "seven deadly sins" in this dark and haunting film that takes viewers from the tortured remains of one victim to the next. The seasoned Det. Sommerset (Morgan Freeman) researches each sin in an effort to get inside the killer's mind, while his novice partner, Mills (Brad Pitt), scoffs at his efforts to unravel the case.
6. Memento (2001)
Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) is tracking down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The difficulty of locating his wife's killer, however, is compounded by the fact that he suffers from a rare, untreatable form of short-term memory loss. Although he can recall details of life before his accident, Leonard cannot remember what happened fifteen minutes ago, where he's going, or why.
5. Brick (2006)
Focus Features
4. Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
Murder on the Orient Express
3. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
A petty thief (Robert Downey Jr.) posing as an actor is brought to Los Angeles for an unlikely audition and finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation along with his high school dream girl (Michelle Monaghan) and a detective (Val Kilmer) who's been training him for his upcoming role...
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
2. Knives Out (2019)
When renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead at his estate just after his 85th birthday, the inquisitive and debonair Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is mysteriously enlisted to investigate. From Harlan's dysfunctional family to his devoted staff, Blanc sifts through a web of red herrings and self-serving lies to uncover the truth behind Harlan's untimely death.
1. Clue (1985)
Paramount Pictures
Clue finds six colorful dinner guests (Eileen Brennan, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, and Lesley Ann Warren) gathered at the mansion of their host, Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving) -- who turns up dead after his secret is exposed: He was blackmailing all of them. With the killer among them, the guests and Boddy's chatty butler (Tim Curry) must suss out the culprit before the body count rises.
