We discuss 10 Movies like Sherlock Holmes you must watch. Add these well-recommended films to your watch list.
Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes stars Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson but represents a bit of a radical take on the classic characters by Arthur Conan Doyle.
It is a whodunnit with Guy Ritchie’s style all over it; if you’ve seen it recently and are looking for some similar movies to watch next, here are ten of them.
10 Movies like Sherlock Holmes
M (1931)
We kick off a list of murder mystery detective films with an absolute classic. Fritz Lang’s iconic mystery thriller from 1931 follows the investigation of a series of child murders and abductions.
After the German police cannot zero in on the killer, other criminals from the city rally up to hunt him down. If that wasn’t enough, he sends a letter to a local newspaper for every crime he commits.
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Speaking of genre classics, film legend Humphrey Bogart stars in the on-screen definition of a McGuffin, an essential object to move the plot forward. It’s also an iconic crime thriller that follows the lead detective and his partner, who take on an assignment by a new client to look into her sister’s disappearance.
Clue (1985)
This black-comedy adaptation to the screen of the iconic board game has become a modern cult classic thanks to its unique humor, popular ensemble, and many twists and turns, which even involved shooting multiple different endings they sent out to the theaters.
The plot follows six guests invited anonymously to a house; once they find that the host has been killed, they must work together closely with the staff to find out who the killer is.
Seven (1995)
A modern classic of the detective genre, David Fincher’s Seven takes a close and disturbing look at humanity through the wrongdoings of a serial killer who goes around murdering one person per day with the common thread of the capital sins.
It stars Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt as two policemen, with Freeman acting as a mentor figure and Pitt playing the young recruit. All of this, of course, is done through David Fincher’s lens. It’s one for the ages.
The Usual Suspects (1995)
Scripted by Mission: Impossible – Fallout‘s Christopher McQuarrie, the story of The Usual Suspects follows the retelling of a twisted night by the sole survivor of a gun battle that took place on a boat.
The incident started after the police brought in five different people for a seemingly random lineup and has the figurative fingerprints of criminal mastermind Keyser Söze all over it.
LA Confidential (1997)
LA Confidential is a neo-noir crime thriller with a starry ensemble that focuses on the corruption of the LA police by elite Hollywood celebrities. It does so by looking at three policemen with vastly different approaches to the job who investigate a series of murders in Los Angeles.
It is an iconic film of the late 90s that continues to be remembered today among some of the best detective films and that launched the career of several of its cast members.
The Prestige (2006)
Perhaps one of the most underrated Christopher Nolan movies, The Prestige, is a unique mystery film with a science-fiction edge. It follows the battle between two magicians in the 19th century to out-perform the other as they seek the ultimate illusion.
It uses both science-fiction elements and real people to deliver a nail-biting story that can only end in the worst possible way.
Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of the iconic Agatha Christie novel may shine more because of its popular ensemble having a blast than it does because of its ability to elevate the original source material.
The plot follows world-renowned detective Hercules Poirot (Branagh) investigating a murder in the train he’s traveling in.
Knives Out (2019)
Rian Johnson’s Knives Out is essentially the adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel that was never written. It also stars a top-tier ensemble headlined by Daniel Craig as a Kentucky-born Hercules Poirot knockoff, Benoit Blanc, who a mysterious person calls to investigate the recent death of a high-profile author, played by Christopher Plummer.
It’s unclear whether this was a natural-cause death or a murder, and if so, who inside his family seems like had the most to gain from it?
The Gentlemen (2020)
We close up the list with something different but still similar to Sherlock Holmes. Our last entry in the list is another Guy Ritchie film populated with his style all over it.
There are many examples of this, but the first one that came to mind is 2020’s The Gentlemen, which follows the sale of a marijuana empire in London, and the chaos that ensues among the many interested parties.
Do you have any other recommendations for Movies like Sherlock Holmes? Let us know in the comments below.
