Investigation Mystery backdrop

Investigation Mystery movies

Process-driven mystery: leads, interviews, contradictions, and evidence pressure solved through reasoning.

The Dry

31. The Dry

Crime Thriller Mystery Detective Mystery Crime Investigation Mystery
6.8

20211h 57min

Australia, United Kingdom

Director: Robert Connolly

Aaron Falk returns to his drought-stricken hometown to attend a tragic funeral. But his return opens a decades-old wound - the unsolved death of a teenage girl.

Themes

Small-town suspicion, Past trauma and memory, Financial crime and cover-up, Family tragedy and loss, Drought and hardship, Harassment and stigma

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Wailing

32. The Wailing

Horror Mystery Supernatural Horror Investigation Mystery
7.4

20162h 36min

South Korea

Director: Na Hong-jin

In a quiet Korean village, a string of strange and brutal incidents suddenly begins—some people fall ill or lose their minds. The locals link the mysterious sickness to a stranger who arrived in the village not long before.

Themes

Investigation under pressure, Family violence under threat, Isolation in small communities, Folk horror and superstition, Demon as social contagion, Possession and ritual conflict

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Remember

33. Remember

Drama Thriller Mystery Tragic Drama Investigation Suspense
7.5

20151h 34min

Canada, Germany

Director: Atom Egoyan

With the aid of a fellow Auschwitz survivor and a hand-written letter, an elderly man with dementia goes in search of the person responsible for the death of his family.

Themes

Legacy of violence, Vigilante justice, Memory and aging, Deception and revelation, War-time guilt, Duty vs vengeance

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Boston Strangler

34. Boston Strangler

Crime Mystery Thriller Serial Killer Crime Investigation Mystery
6.5

20231h 53min

United States

Director: Matt Ruskin

Reporters Loretta McLaughlin and Jean Cole bravely pursue the story of the Boston Strangler at great personal risk, putting their own lives on the line in their quest to uncover the truth.

Themes

Gender bias in newsroom, Investigative pressure and risk, Copycat crime dynamics, Pattern recognition and doubt, Media scrutiny of police, Truth seeking under sexism

Available on

Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Bad Times at the El Royale

35. Bad Times at the El Royale

Thriller Mystery Crime Drama Mind Game Thriller
7.1

20182h 21min

United States, Canada

Director: Drew Goddard

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.

Themes

1960s mood, Casino strategy, Vietnam war haunt, Audio tape manipulation, Motel room control, Hippie persona tension

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Secret in Their Eyes

36. The Secret in Their Eyes

Mystery Thriller Drama Investigation Mystery Investigation Suspense
8.2

20092h 10min

Argentina, Spain

Director: Juan José Campanella

Buenos Aires is shaken by the brutal rape and murder of a young woman, a case that is never truly solved. Many years later, court clerk Benjamín Espósito, who once worked on the investigation, decides to write a book about it. But the deeper he digs back into the crime, the more hidden truths and long-buried secrets come to light.

Themes

Deception and loyalty, Coercive power dynamics, Revenge and consequence, Unresolved past, Justice under pressure, Political faction influence

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Wonder

37. The Wonder

Drama Mystery Historical Drama Investigation Mystery
6.6

20221h 48min

Ireland, United Kingdom

Director: Sebastián Lelio

Haunted by her past, a nurse travels from England to a remote Irish village in 1862 to investigate a young girl's supposedly miraculous fast.

Themes

Power of observation, Famine memory heritage, Outsider legitimacy conflict, Devotion versus autonomy, Caregiver burden responsibility, Skepticism versus belief

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

38. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Thriller Crime Mystery Investigation Suspense Detective Mystery Crime
7.8

20112h 38min

Sweden, United States

Director: David Fincher

On a frozen private island still owned by a Nazi-stained dynasty, disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist digs into a girl’s 40-year-old disappearance while a brutal guardian cages hacker Lisbeth Salander. Together they pry at the family’s locked secrets, knowing that whoever sealed this past once will do anything to keep it buried again.

Themes

Abuse of power, Investigative journalism, Systemic corruption, Family secrecy, Nazism era past, Financial crime as leverage

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
fuboTV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

I See You

39. I See You

Horror Thriller Mystery Supernatural Horror Investigation Mystery
6.8

20191h 38min

United States

Director: Adam Randall

When a 10-year-old boy goes missing, lead investigator Greg Harper struggles to balance the pressure of the investigation and troubles with his wife, Jackie. Facing a recent affair, great strain is put on the family that slowly gnaws away at Jackie's grip on reality. But after a malicious presence manifests itself in their home and puts their son, Connor, in mortal danger, the cold, hard truth about evil in the Harper household is finally uncovered.

Themes

Deception and manipulation, Small town secrets, Home secrets and intrusion, Hidden victims and trauma cycles, Marital strain from affair, Investigative pressure and accountability

Available on

Apple TV
fuboTV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Everybody Knows

40. Everybody Knows

Crime Mystery Thriller Investigation Mystery Domestic Thriller
6.9

20182h 12min

Spain, France

Director: Asghar Farhadi

Laura, a Spanish woman living in Buenos Aires, returns to her hometown outside Madrid with her Argentinian husband and children. However, the trip is upset by unexpected events that bring secrets into the open.

Themes

Loyalty under strain, Trust vs suspicion, Family under pressure, Secrecy within kinship, Financial precarity and risk, Deception within kinship

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.