List of mystery films

A mystery film is a genre of film revolving around the solution to a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of a protagonist to solve the mystery by means of clues, investigation, and deduction.

This is a list of mystery films by decade.

1910s

• Sherlock Holmes (1916)^[1]
• Seven Keys to Baldpate (1917)

1920s

• Sherlock Holmes (1922)^[1]
• The Man from Beyond (1922)
• The Cat and the Canary (1927)
• The Lodger (1927)
• The Canary Murder Case (1929)
• The Greene Murder Case (1929)
• The Letter (1929)
• The Studio Murder Mystery (1929)

1930s

• The Bat Whispers (1930)
• The Benson Murder Case (1930)
• The Bishop Murder Case (1930)
• The Return of Dr. Fu Manchu (1930)
• The Black Camel (1931)
• Daughter of the Dragon (1931)
• The Maltese Falcon (1931)^[2]
• Mary (1931)
• The Sleeping Cardinal (1931)
• The Speckled Band (1931)
• Arsène Lupin (1932)
• Doctor X (1932)
• The Death Kiss (1932)
• The Lodger (1932)
• The Old Dark House (1932)
• The Phantom of Crestwood (1932)
• Sherlock Holmes (1932)
• The Sign of Four (1932)
• Thirteen Women (1932)
• A Study in Scarlet (1933)
• Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933)
• The Kennel Murder Case (1933)
• Lord Edgware Dies (1934)
• The Case of the Howling Dog (1934)
• Charlie Chan in London (1934)
• The Dragon Murder Case (1934)
• The Man Who Knew Too Much (1934)^[3]
• The Thin Man (1934)
• The 39 Steps (1935)
• The Case of the Curious Bride (1935)
• The Case of the Lucky Legs (1935)
• The Casino Murder Case (1935)
• Charlie Chan in Egypt (1935)
• Charlie Chan in Paris (1935)
• Charlie Chan in Shanghai (1935)
• The Glass Key (1935)
• The Mystery of Edwin Drood (1935)
• Remember Last Night? (1935)
• The Spanish Cape Mystery (1935), first Ellery Queen film
• The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes (1935)
• After the Thin Man (1936)
• The Case of the Black Cat (1936)
• The Case of the Velvet Claws (1936)
• Charlie Chan at the Circus (1936)
• Charlie Chan at the Opera (1936)
• Charlie Chan at the Race Track (1936)
• Charlie Chan's Secret (1936)
• The Garden Murder Case (1936)
• Murder on a Bridle Path (1936)
• The Plot Thickens (1936)
• The Preview Murder Mystery (1936)
• Satan Met a Lady (1936)
• Secret Agent (1936)
• The Case of the Stuttering Bishop (1937)
• The Hound of the Baskervilles (1937)
• The Man Who Was Sherlock Holmes (1937)
• Night of Mystery (1937)
• Silver Blaze (1937)
• Charlie Chan at the Olympics (1937)
• Charlie Chan on Broadway (1937)
• Young and Innocent (1937)
• Arsène Lupin Returns (1938)
• Charlie Chan at Monte Carlo (1938)
• The Lady Vanishes (1938)
• The Mad Miss Manton (1938)
• Mr. Moto's Gamble (1938)
• Mr. Wong, Detective (1938)
• Mysterious Mr. Moto (1938)
• Nancy Drew... Detective (1938)
• The Saint in New York (1938)
• Tom Sawyer, Detective (1938)
• The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939)
• The Arsenal Stadium Mystery (1939)
• The Cat and the Canary (1939)
• The Gracie Allen Murder Case (1939)
• The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)
• Mystery of Mr. Wong (1939)
• Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (1939)
• Nancy Drew... Reporter (1939)
• Nancy Drew… Trouble Shooter (1939)
• The Saint Strikes Back (1939)

1940s

An image from Citizen Kane

An image from The Maltese Falcon

• Calling Philo Vance (1940)
• Gaslight (1940)
• The Letter (1940)
• Rebecca (1940)^[4]
• The Black Cat (1941)
• Citizen Kane (1941)^[5]
• Footsteps in the Dark (1941)
• The Gay Falcon (1941)
• The Ghost Train (1941)
• The Maltese Falcon (1941)^[6]
• Shadow of the Thin Man (1941)
• Shadows on the Stairs (1941)
• Suspicion (1941)^[7]
• Topper Returns (1941)
• Eyes in the Night (1942)
• The Falcon Takes Over (1942)
• The Falcon's Brother (1942)
• The Glass Key (1942)
• Saboteur (1942)
• Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon (1942)
• The Voice of Terror (1942)
• Shadow of a Doubt (1943)
• Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1943)
• Sherlock Holmes in Washington (1943)
• Christmas Holiday (1944)
• Gaslight (1944)
• Laura (1944)^[8]
• The Lodger (1944)
• Murder, My Sweet (1944)
• The Pearl of Death (1944), Sherlock Holmes
• Phantom Lady (1944)
• The Scarlet Claw (1944), Sherlock Holmes
• The Spider Woman (1944)
• The Suspect (1944)
• And Then There Were None (1945)^[9]
• Hangover Square (1945)
• The Hidden Eye (1945)
• The Thin Man Goes Home (1945)
• Pursuit to Algiers (1945)
• The House of Fear (1945)
• Spellbound (1945)^[10]
• The Woman in Green (1945), Sherlock Holmes
• The Big Sleep (1946)
• The Blue Dahlia (1946)
• The Dark Corner (1946)
• Dressed to Kill (1946), Sherlock Holmes
• She-Wolf of London (1946)
• The Spiral Staircase (1946)
• The Stranger (1946)
• The Strange Woman (1946)
• Terror by Night (1946), Sherlock Holmes
• Crossfire (1947)
• Fear in the Night (1947)
• Johnny O'Clock (1947)
• The Lady from Shanghai (1947)
• Lady in the Lake (1947)
• Lured (1947)
• Out of the Past (1947)
• Philo Vance Returns (1947)
• Song of the Thin Man (1947)
• The Unfaithful (1947)
• They Won't Believe Me (1947)
• The Big Clock (1948), remade as No Way Out (1987)
• Rope (1948)^[11]
• Sleep, My Love (1948)
• Sorry Wrong Number (1948)
• Alias Nick Beal (1949)
• D.O.A. (1949)
• The Lady Gambles (1949)
• Manhandled (1949)
• The Third Man (1949)^[12]
• Too Late for Tears (1949)

1950s

• Mystery Street (1950)
• Stage Fright (1950)
• Union Station (1950)
• Strangers on a Train (1951)^[2]
• Phone Call from a Stranger (1952)
• A Blueprint for Murder (1953)
• The Blue Gardenia (1953)
• House of Wax (1953)
• Man in the Attic (1953)
• The Glass Web (1953)
• The Long Wait (1954)
• Rear Window (1954)^[13]
• Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
• Mr. Arkadin (1955)^[2]
• Julie (1956)
• The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)^[14]
• 23 Paces to Baker Street (1956)
• My Gun Is Quick (1957)
• Witness for the Prosecution (1957)^[2]
• Vertigo (1958)^[7]
• The Hound of the Baskervilles (1959)
• The 39 Steps (1959)^[15]
• North by Northwest (1959)^[2]

1960s

An image from Charade

• Psycho (1960)^[13]
• Midnight Lace (1960)
• Murder, She Said (1961)
• The Manchurian Candidate (1962)^[2]
• Sherlock Holmes and the Deadly Necklace (1962)
• The Trial (1962)
• The Birds (1963)^[2]
• Charade (1963)^[2]
• The Girl Hunters (1963)
• The List of Adrian Messenger (1963)
• The Old Dark House (1963)
• Murder at the Gallop (1963)
• The Pink Panther (1963)
• Marnie (1964)
• Murder Most Foul (1964)
• The Moon-Spinners (1964)
• Murder Ahoy! (1964)
• A Shot in the Dark (1964)
• The Alphabet Murders (1965)
• Alphaville (1965)
• A Study in Terror (1965)
• Sylvia (1965)
• Ten Little Indians (1965)
• That Darn Cat! (1965)
• The Third Day (1965)
• Blowup (1966)
• Berserk! (1967)
• Athey Kangal (1967)
• The Champagne Murders (1967)
• Gunn (1967)
• In the Heat of the Night (1967)^[13]
• Tony Rome (1967)
• Wait Until Dark (1967)
• Warning Shot (1967)
• Bullitt (1968)
• The Detective (1968)
• Inspector Clouseau (1968)
• Jigsaw (1968)
• Lady in Cement (1968)
• Madigan (1968)
• No Way to Treat a Lady (1968)
• P.J. (1968)
• The Big Bounce (1969)
• Marlowe (1969)

1970s

• Darker than Amber (1970)
• The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970)
• The Cat o' Nine Tails (1971)
• Gumshoe (1971)
• Klute (1971)
• Pretty Maids All in a Row (1971)
• The Carey Treatment (1972)
• Hickey & Boggs (1972)
• Frenzy (1972)
• Pulp (1972)
• Sleuth (1972)
• They Only Kill Their Masters (1972)
• Electra Glide in Blue (1973)
• The Last of Sheila (1973)
• The Legend of Hell House (1973)
• The Long Goodbye (1973)^[6]
• Shamus (1973)
• Chinatown (1974)^[2]
• The Conversation (1974)^[16]
• The Midnight Man (1974)
• Murder on the Orient Express (1974)^[9]
• The Adventure of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother (1975)
• The Black Bird (1975)
• Escape to Witch Mountain (1975)
• Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
• The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975)
• Night Moves (1975)
• One of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing (1975)
• The Return of the Pink Panther (1975)
• The Drowning Pool (1976)
• Family Plot (1976)^[2]
• Murder by Death (1976)^[2]
• The Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
• The Seven Percent Solution (1976)
• Sherlock Holmes in New York (1976)
• High Anxiety (1977)
• The Late Show (1977)
• The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It (1977)
• The Big Sleep (1978)
• The Cheap Detective (1978)
• Death on the Nile (1978)^[9]
• Eyes of Laura Mars (1978)
• The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978)
• Return from Witch Mountain (1978)
• Revenge of the Pink Panther (1978)
• The 39 Steps (1978)
• Murder by Decree (1979)
• The North Avenue Irregulars (1979)
• Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe? (1978)

1980s

• Cruising (1980)
• Dressed to Kill (1980)
• The Fog (1980)
• The Mirror Crack'd (1980)
• The Shining (1980)
• The Watcher in the Woods (1980)
• Blow Out (1981)^[17]
• Body Heat (1981)^[18]
• Cutter's Way (1981)
• The Great Muppet Caper (1981)
• Shock Treatment (1981)
• Strange Behavior (1981)
• True Confessions (1981)
• Blade Runner (1982)
• Deathtrap (1982)^[2]
• Evil Under the Sun (1982)
• I, the Jury (1982)
• The Thing (1982)
• Trail of the Pink Panther (1982)
• Curse of the Pink Panther (1983)
• Gorky Park (1983)
• Hammett (1983)
• Strange Invaders (1983)
• Against All Odds (1984), remake of Out of the Past
• Body Double (1984)
• Ordeal by Innocence (1984)
• A Soldier's Story (1984)
• Tightrope (1984)
• Clue (1985)^[13]
• Compromising Positions (1985)
• Jagged Edge (1985)
• Blue Velvet (film) (1986)
• The Great Mouse Detective (1986)^[18]
• Manhunter (1986)
• The Morning After (1986)
• The Name of the Rose (1986)
• Young Sherlock Holmes (1986)^[2]
• Angel Heart (1987)
• Black Widow (1987)
• No Way Out (1987), remake of The Big Clock (1948)
• The Rosary Murders (1987)
• The Stepford Children (1987)
• Tough Guys Don't Dance (1987)
• Appointment with Death (1988)
• The Dead Pool (1988)
• Masquerade (1988)
• Moving Target (1988)
• The Presidio (1988)
• Shakedown (1988)
• Sunset (1988)
• Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)^[9]
• Sea of Love (1989)

1990s

• Dick Tracy (1990)^[19]
• In the Spirit (1990)
• Presumed Innocent (1990)
• The Two Jakes (1990)
• Backdraft (1991)
• Cast a Deadly Spell (1991)^[20]
• Homicide (1991)
• Popcorn (1991)
• Shattered (1991)
• Under Suspicion (1991)
• V.I. Warshawski (1991)
• Basic Instinct (1992)^[21]
• Shadows and Fog (1992)^[2]
• White Sands (1992)
• Zipperface (1992)
• Body of Evidence (1993)
• The Good Son (1993)
• Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)^[21]
• Rising Sun (1993)^[21]
• Sliver (1993)
• Son of the Pink Panther (1993)
• Striking Distance (1993)
• Blink (1994)
• Clean Slate (1994)
• Color of Night (1994)
• Felidae (1994)
• Radioland Murders (1994)
• Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)^[22]
• Jade (1995)
• Money Train (1995)
• Seven (1995), a.k.a. Se7en^[21]
• Sudden Death (1995)
• The Usual Suspects (1995)^[21]
• The Chamber (1996)
• City Hall (1996)
• Courage Under Fire (1996)
• Heaven's Prisoners (1996)
• Lone Star (1996)^[23]
• Mulholland Falls (1996)
• Primal Fear (1996)^[21]
• Scream (1996)^[21]
• Unforgettable (1996)
• Cube (1997)^[24]
• The Devil's Advocate (1997)
• Kiss the Girls (1997)^[21]
• L.A. Confidential (1997)^[21]
• Murder at 1600 (1997)
• The Spanish Prisoner (1997)
• That Darn Cat (1997)
• Dark City (1998)^[25]
• Killers in the House (1998)
• Rear Window (1998)
• Shadow of Doubt (1998)
• Twilight (1998)
• Wild Things (1998)
• Zero Effect (1998)
• 8mm (film) (1998)
• Ring (1998)
• A Murder of Crows (film) (1999)
• The Blair Witch Project (1999)^[26]
• The Bone Collector (1999)^[21]
• Eyes Wide Shut (1999)^[27]
• The General's Daughter (1999)^[21]
• The Omega Code (1999)
• Sleepy Hollow (1999)^[2]

2000s

• Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2 (2000)
• Memento (2000)^[13]
• Mercy (2000)
• Under Suspicion (2000)
• What Lies Beneath (2000)
• Along Came a Spider (2001)
• The Cat's Meow (2001)^[18]
• Close Your Eyes (2001)
• From Hell (2001)
• Gosford Park (2001)^[9]
• Hannibal (2001)^[28]
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001)
• Megiddo: The Omega Code 2 (2001)
• The Pledge (2001)
• Blood Work (2002)
• Ghost Ship (2002)
• Minority Report (2002)^[13]
• Mulholland Drive (2002)^[13]
• Red Dragon (2002)
• The Ring (2002)
• The Truth About Charlie (2002)
• Basic (2003)^[18]
• Brotherhood of the Wolf (2003)
• Identity (2003)^[9]
• In the Cut (2003)
• Memories of Murder (2003)
• Mystic River (2003)^[29]
• Out of Time (2003)
• The Reckoning (2003)
• The Singing Detective (2003)
• The Manchurian Candidate (2004)^[30]
• The Perfect Husband: The Laci Peterson Story (2004)
• Brick (2005)^[6]
• Hide and Seek (2005)
• Flightplan (2005)
• Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005), from Brett Halliday's 1941 Michael Shayne novel, Bodies Are Where You Find Them^[9]
• Basic Instinct 2 (2006)
• The Black Dahlia (2006)
• The Da Vinci Code (2006)^[18]
• The Dead Girl (2006)
• Hollywoodland (2006)^[18]
• Tell No One (2006)^[31]
• The Alphabet Killer (2007)
• Gone Baby Gone (2007)
• I Know Who Killed Me (2007)
• In the Valley of Elah (2007)
• The Lookout (2007)
• Nancy Drew (2007)
• The Number 23 (2007)
• Perfect Stranger (2007)
• Thr3e (2007)
• Someone Behind You (2007)
• Vacancy (2007)
• Doubt (2008)^[32]
• The Oxford Murders (2008)
• Righteous Kill (2008)
• Transsiberian (2008)
• Angels & Demons (2009)^[33]
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009)
• Harper's Island (2009), TV miniseries
• The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)^[34]
• Sherlock Holmes (2009)^[13]
• State of Play (2009)^[35]
• The Uninvited (2009)

2010s

• The Ghost Writer (2010)^[36]
• Incendies (2010)^[37]
• Iron Doors (2010)
• Shanghai (2010)
• Shutter Island (2010)^[13]
• The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)^[13]
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 (2011)^[38]
• Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011)
• Unknown (2011)
• Segunda Mano (2011)
• Jack Reacher (2012)
• The Raven (2012)
• Sinister (2012)^[39]
• Broken City (2013)
• The Call (2013)
• Prisoners (2013)^[13]
• Side Effects (2013)^[13]
• Altar (2014)
• Big Hero 6 (2014)
• Gone Girl (2014)^[13]
• Veronica Mars (2014)
• Brimstone (2015)
• Crimson Peak (2015)
• Eiga ST Aka to Shirō no Sōsa File (2015)
• The Hateful Eight (2015)^[40]
• Pod (2015)
• Sicario (2015)^[1]
• Solomon's Perjury (2015)
• I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016)
• Zootopia (2016)
• Inferno (2016)^[1]
• Blade Runner 2049 (2017)^[41]
• Charlotte (2017)
• Coco (2017)^[42]
• The Covenant (2017)
• Get Out (2017)^[13]
• Wind River (2017)
• Murder on the Orient Express (2017)^[9]
• Debunkers, Inc. (2019)
• Knives Out (2019)^[13]
• Murder Mystery (2019)

2020s

• The Invisible Man (2020)^[1]
• Friend of the World (2020)^[43]
• Enola Holmes (2020)^[1]
• Enola Holmes 2 (2022)
• Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
• Death on the Nile (2022)
• Marlowe (2022)
• Shelby Oaks (2024)^[44][45]
• Wake Up Dead Man (2025)

Footnotes

1. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango.
2. Turner Classic Movies. Turner Classic Movies, Inc., 2021. 1 February 2021.
3. "Best Alfred Hitchcock Movies ...." Time Out.
4. Weldon, Glen. ["'Rebecca' on Netflix is ...."] National Public Radio. 21 October 2020. 1 February 2021.
5. "What’s so good about Citizen Kane?" BBC. 1 February 2021.
6. Lee, Anna Grace. "15 Best Murder Mystery Movies ...." Esquire. 8 January 2021. 1 February 2021.
7. "Best Alfred Hitchcock Movies ...." IndieWire. 13 August 2015. 1 February 2021.
8. "100 essential thrillers: 1940s." BFI. 1 February 2021.
9. Jeon, Hannah. "20 Best Murder Mystery Movies to Bring Out Your Inner Detective." Good Housekeeping. 26 October 2020. 31 January 2021.
10. Barson, Michael. "Alfred Hitchcock." Encyclopedia Britannica. 9 Aug. 2020. Accessed 1 February 2021.
11. Guerrasio, Jason. "Alfred Hitchcock movies you ...." Business Insider. 9 August 2017. 1 February 2021.
12. Crowther, Bolsey. [THE SCREEN IN REVIEW; 'The Third Man,' Carol Reed's Mystery-Thriller-Romance, Opens Run of Victoria."] New York Times. 3 February 1950. 1 February 2021.
13. Isaac, Paulina Jayne. "37 Best Mystery Movies That Will Keep You Guessing Until the Very End." Glamour. 24 June 2020. 31 January 2021.
14. "The Man Who Knew Too Much." Variety. 31 December 1955. 1 February 2021.
15. Hewitt, Chris. "7 Alfred Hitchcock films to stream when you’re in the mood for suspense." Chicago Tribune. 22 June 2020. 1 February 2021.
16. Rothkopf, Joshua, et al. "100 Best Thriller Films of All Time." Time Out. 8 January 2021. 1 February 2021.
17. "100 essential thrillers: 1980s." BFI. 1 February 2021.
18. AFI Catalog. American Film Institute. 1 February 2021.
19. Gleiberman, Owen. "Dick Tracy." EW.
20. "Cast a Deadly Spell (1991) - Martin Campbell | Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related | AllMovie".
21. Brayson, Johnny. "16 Murder Mystery Movies Of The '90s." Bustle. 16 January 2017. 30 January 2017.
22. Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Denzel Washington". Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Dec. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Denzel-Washington. Accessed 3 February 2021.
23. "Once Upon a Time Near Mexico." The Stanford University InfoLab. 1 February 2021.
24. "Lionsgate to Remake the Cult ...." EW. 30 April 2015. 2 February 2021.
25. Holden, Stephen. "FILM REVIEW; You Are Getting Sleepy: Who Are You, Anyway?" New York Times. 27 February 1998. 2 February 2021.
26. Sollosi, Mary. "The Blair Witch Project Legacy ...." EW. 14 July 2019. 2 February 2021.
27. "15 Years Later, New Details from Kubrick's Secretive Eyes Wide Shut Set". Vanity Fair. 17 July 2014.
28. Gleiberman. "Movie Review: 'Hannibal.' EW. 17 March 2020. 3 February 2021.
29. Morrison, Alan. "Mystic River Review." Empire. 1 January 2000. 3 February 2021.
30. Schwarzbaum, Lisa. "The Manchurian Candidate. EW. 17 March 2020. 3 February 2021.
31. "In Guillaume Canet's 'Tell No ...." New York Times.
32. Mondello, Bob. "In 'Doubt': Adapting A Parable Proves Problematic." National Public Radio. 11 December 2008.
33. "Angels & Demons -- Film Review." Hollywood Reporter. 4 May 2009. 4 February 2021.
34. Dargis, Manohla. "Cold Case, Warm Hearts: Death Leads to Romance." New York Times. 15 April 2010. 4 February 2021.
35. Scott, A.O. "Russell Crowe Puts the News ...." New York Times. 16 April 2009. 4 February 2021.
36. Dargis. "Polanski's Writer for Hire is a ...." New York Times. 18 February 2010. 4 Feb. 2021.
37. Scott. "'Incendies,' Based on Wajdi ...." New York Times. 21 April 2011. 4 February 2021.
38. Dargis. "Harry Potter and the Deathly ...." New York Times.
39. Dargis. "'Sinister,' Starring Ethan Hawke ...." New York Times. 11 October 2012. 4 February 2021.
40. "25 Best Thrillers on Netflix ...." Esquire. 8 January 2021. 30 January 2021.
41. Scott, A.O. "Review: In ‘Blade Runner 2049,’ Hunting Replicants Amid Strangeness." New York Times. 2 October 2017. 1 February 2021.
42. Scott. "Review: 'Coco' Brings the Pixar ...." New York Times. 21 November 2017. 4 February 2021.
43. Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango.
44. Wiseman, Andreas (March 21, 2022). "Chris Stuckmann Found-Footage Project Shelby Oaks Breaks Kickstarter Record For A Horror Movie". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 5, 2022.
45. Wiseman, Andreas (March 25, 2022). "Chris Stuckmann Horror Project Shelby Oaks Flies Past $1M On Kickstarter, Studios Come Calling". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 5, 2022.