The best mysteries on Netflix right now

Luther: The Fallen Sun (2023)
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Genre

Thriller, Crime, Action, Drama

Stars

Idris Elba, Cynthia Erivo, Andy Serkis

Directed by

Jamie Payne

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Serving as a cinematic follow-up to the Luther series, Luther: The Fallen Sun follows the titular detective on an all-new adventure. After a stint behind bars, Luther is forced to plan a prison break when elusive serial killer David Robey (Andy Serkis) starts hunting people down. As the clock starts ticking and the bodies start piling up, Luther must make a series of harrowing decisions to track down and eliminate his foe before his evildoing becomes totally unstoppable.

For those dedicated viewers of the episodic run, The Fallen Sun plays like a silver screen extension of the series which precedes it. Gripping from start to finish, it’s not exactly changing the genre in any way, but The Fallen Sun certainly delivers an exceptional story with great characters.

The Pink Panther (2006)

Genre

Comedy, Mystery, Crime, Adventure, Family

Stars

Steve Martin, Jean Reno, Kevin Kline

Directed by

Shawn Levy

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Serving as a reboot for everyone’s favorite goofball private eye, 2006’s The Pink Panther stars Steve Martin as the iconic Jacques Clouseau. When renowned soccer coach Yves Gluant (played by an uncredited Jason Statham) is murdered and the incredible Pink Panther diamond goes missing, Inspector Clouseau is tasked with tracking down the coach’s killer and recovering the prized jewel. Will he triumph? Or will the caper make off with the treasure unscathed?

Steve Martin comfortably slips on the shoes and mustache made famous by Peter Sellers, and while this 2006 reimagining isn’t exactly award-worthy, it’s a fun-natured mystery flick that the whole family can enjoy.

Unknown (2011)

Genre

Action, Mystery, Thriller

Stars

Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones

Directed by

Jaume Collet-Serra

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Remember that time you woke up from a harrowing near-life-ending incident, only to discover your meddling doppelgänger has been wreaking havoc in your absence? Well it’s time to relive those wild days through the vantage of cinema’s grizzled gramps, Liam Neeson. The film in question is Unknown, where Neeson stars as Dr. Martin Harris. In the wake of a horrible car accident, Harris wakes up to a world where not even his friends and family can recall who he is.

And if that’s not a big enough bummer, it turns out he has a double that’s been using his name with ill purpose, and there are vicious mercenaries who want the real Harris dead. An exciting blend of action and thriller elements, Unknown punches above the typical Neeson-vehicle belt, and we must admit that we totally dig the results.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
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Genre

Mystery, Thriller, Comedy

Stars

Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe

Directed by

Rian Johnson

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With the original Knives Out becoming a smashing success, it was inevitable that we’d be getting a second helping. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery serves as a direct sequel to the original Rian Johnson film, with private eye Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) returning once again for an all-new dose of murder and mayhem. This time, the setting is a remote Greek island where a group of friends are convening for a get-together. But when one of them ends up dead, it’s unclear exactly who to point the finger at. Glass Onion is must-watch fun from one frame to the next, as Johnson proves that the whodunit formula is here to stay, and best served alongside immense A-list talents.

The Pale Blue Eye (2022)
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Genre

Mystery, Thriller, Horror, Crime

Stars

Christian Bale, Harry Melling, Lucy Boynton

Directed by

Scott Cooper

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Christian Bale and writer-director Scott Cooper unite once again for the latter’s latest feature, The Pale Blue Eye. Bale stars as Augustus Landor, an 1830s New York detective who is tasked with investigating a horrific murder at the United States Military Academy. Hoping to gain intel from a devoutly silent bunch of cadets, Landor takes on an assistant for the homicide case — a disillusioned recruit named Edgar Allan Poe (Harry Melling).

Together, the hardened vet and aspiring poet follow a series of leads that seem to point toward an especially sinister kind of black magic as the culprit. While Bale may be the reason we arrive to the film, the performance that will bewilder most viewers is that of Harry Melling, who delivers a defiant take on the classic American writer.

Enola Holmes 2 (2022)
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Genre

Mystery, Adventure, Crime

Stars

Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Louis Partridge

Directed by

Harry Bradbeer

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The game is afoot again! Millie Bobby Brown returns as Enola Holmes, still basking in the victory of solving her first case and ready to open her own agency — which of course, doesn’t seem to generate much business. Eventually, Enola is tasked with finding the sister of a matchstick girl, which leads her into a world more dangerous than she could’ve ever expected. It’s a fun mystery to ride along with, although it doesn’t always have the magic of the first installment.

The Nice Guys (2016)

Genre

Comedy, Crime, Action

Stars

Ryan Gosling, Russell Crowe, Angourie Rice

Directed by

Shane Black

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The Nice Guys flew under the radar when it came out in 2016, but it’s time for this witty mystery to get its due. Ryan Gosling stars as Holland, a private investigator and frequent drunk, while Russell Crowe is Jackson, an aging mercenary; surviving but not thriving. One is hired to find a woman; the other is hired to stop that from happening. Throwing these characters together is both funny and dark, but never bleak, and comedic mysteries are notoriously hard to pull off. The Nice Guys does a nice job of it.

Murder Mystery (2019)

Genre

Comedy

Stars

Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, Luke Evans

Directed by

Kyle Newacheck

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Adam Sandler’s Netflix-exclusive movies are admittedly an acquired taste, but Murder Mystery is arguably the best of them. Police officer Nick Spitz (Adam Sandler) takes his wife, Audrey (Jennifer Aniston), on a trip to Europe, which quickly gets sidetracked by a billionaire whose uncle is killed in their midst. As the Americans in the situation, the blame quickly falls on Nick and Audrey, who set out to prove their innocence. While not breaking any narrative ground, the dynamic between Sandler and Aniston is solid as ever, a reminder of when they both owned the comedy scene. For those who couldn’t get enough of the caper, a sequel is on the way.

Spenser Confidential (2020)

Genre

Comedy, Action, Thriller

Stars

Mark Wahlberg, Winston Duke, Alan Arkin

Directed by

Peter Berg

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Another entry in a prominent Netflix genre: the action-comedy-mystery. Mark Wahlberg plays Officer Spenser, a jailed cop who begins to investigate the murder of a police captain he was previously convicted of assaulting. The film cares plenty about its mystery, but it probably cares more about its action sequences, many revolving around a flashy yellow Corvette. The buddy-cop dynamic shared with Winston Duke is also a memorable combination. Like any half-decent Netflix film, Spenser Confidential also has a sequel en route.

A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)

Genre

Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller

Stars

Liam Neeson, Dan Stevens, David Harbour

Directed by

Scott Frank

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This movie could succinctly be described as Liam Neeson doing Liam Neeson things. Neeson plays Matt Scudder, a former NYPD detective serving as an unlicensed private detective, trying to solve the kidnapping and murder of a drug trafficker’s wife. As Scudder searches for answers, he proves to be unafraid of potentially crossing the line between criminal and compliant. The film can be as cliche as it gets, but Neeson embodies the noir of the whole thing well. The film is a gritty slow burn coming from Scott Frank, known for films such as Out of Sight and Minority Report.

In the Shadow of the Moon (2019)

Genre

Mystery, Science Fiction, Thriller

Stars

Boyd Holbrook, Cleopatra Coleman, Michael C. Hall

Directed by

Jim Mickle

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There’s a female serial killer on the loose in the film, In the Shadow of the Moon. But Detective Thomas Lockhart (Boyd Holbrook) can’t wrap his head around how the killer, Rya (Cleopatra Coleman), survived her own death only to reappear seemingly the same nearly a decade later. Naveen Rao (Rudi Dharmalingam) has a wild theory about Rya’s murders and the true agenda behind her actions. But it will cost Thomas everything he holds dear to get to the bottom of this case. And he won’t like what he finds when he uncovers the truth.

Forgotten (2017)

Genre

Thriller, Mystery, Drama, Horror, Crime

Stars

Kang Ha-neul, Kim Moo-yul, Moon Sung-keun

Directed by

Jang Hang-jun

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In the Korean thriller, Forgotten, Kang Ha-neul stars as Jin-seok, a young man living with his family in 1997. After moving into a new home, Jin witnesses the abduction of his brother, Yoo-seok (Kim Mu-yeol). Nineteen days later, Yoo is seemingly returned unharmed. And yet Jin becomes convinced that not only is his brother an impersonator, but so are their parents. Jin’s attempt to go for help leads to another shocking twist that completely destroys his world. There’s been a crime committed, but who is responsible and how is Jin connected to it?

Your Son (2018)

Genre

Drama, Thriller

Stars

Jose Coronado, Pol Monen, Ana Wagener

Directed by

Miguel Ángel Vivas

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Within the film Your Son, Jaime Jimenez (Jose Coronado) is a doctor whose gifts make him a marvelous surgeon. But those wondrous abilities fail Jaime when his own son, Marcos (Pol Monen), is brought into the operating room after suffering nearly life-threatening injuries. Jaime soon learns that Marcos was brutally beaten outside of a nightclub, and he turns vigilante in his quest to find the perpetrators and to get his revenge. Along the way, Jaime alienates his wife, Carmen (Ana Wagener), and their daughter, Sara (Asia Ortega), while slowly losing his moral compass and the qualities that made him a good man.

Fractured (2019)

Genre

Thriller

Stars

Sam Worthington, Lily Rabe, Stephen Tobolowsky

Directed by

Brad Anderson

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In Fractured, Sam Worthington stars as Ray Monroe with Lily Rabe as his wife, Joanne Monroe. While traveling with their daughter, Peri (Lucy Capri), Ray and Lily’s relationship problems lead to an argument and a potentially dangerous accident. At the hospital, Ray becomes suspicious when the staff seems eager to sign Peri up as an organ donor. And his suspicions seem well founded when both Peri and Joanne disappear at the hospital without a trace. The answers lie somewhere within, but even Ray’s not sure of what he saw or what he should do next.

Shimmer Lake (2017)

Genre

Thriller, Crime, Drama, Mystery

Stars

Rainn Wilson, Benjamin Walker, John Michael Higgins

Directed by

Oren Uziel

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Events are not necessarily what they appear to be in Shimmer Lake, a rare mystery that unfolds in reverse. That means we see the ending of the story before we understand how it relates to the main characters, and who is pulling the strings. Andy Sikes (Rainn Wilson) and his friends, Chris Morrow (Mark Rendall) and Ed Burton (Wyatt Russell), plot a bank robbery and blackmail Judge Brad Dawkins (John Michael Higgins) to get access to the money. This puts the trio in direct opposition to Andy’s brother, Zeke Sikes (Benjamin Walker), and nearly everyone involved in the crime is dying under very suspicious circumstances.

The Legacy of the Bones (2019)

Genre

Thriller, Crime

Stars

Marta Etura, Elvira Mínguez, Francesc Orella, Miren Gaztanaga, Marta Larralde

Directed by

Fernando González Molina

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The Legacy of the Bones is the middle chapter of the Spanish-language Baztán Trilogy, which started with The Invisible Guardian and ended with Offering to the Storm (both of which are also on Netflix). But if you’re willing to read subtitles, then you don’t have any reason to be intimidated by this largely stand-alone movie. All you really need to know is that Amaia Salazar (Marta Etura) is a detective who is married to James (Benn Northover), and she’s just given birth to their son, Ibai. Upon returning to active duty, Amaia is assigned to investigate a series of shocking suicides that are somehow connected. Unfortunately for Amaia, this mystery hits very close to home for her, as she discovers that her mother, Rosario (Miren Gaztanaga), is involved in a way that she could never have predicted.

I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2016)

Genre

Horror, Thriller

Stars

Ruth Wilson, Paula Prentiss, Bob Balaban

Directed by

Oz Perkins

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I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House is a ghost story … or perhaps Lily Saylor (Ruth Wilson) is just losing her mind. After being hired as a live-in nurse, Lily finds herself taking care of Iris Blum (Paula Prentiss), a world-famous horror novelist whose mind has largely been lost to dementia. Almost immediately, Lily begins noticing strange and unusual things happening in the house. She also suspects that the protagonist of Iris’ most popular novel, Polly Parsons (Lucy Boynton), may have been a real person — and a very real ghost. But who killed Polly? And why does her spirit linger?

Mindhorn (2016)

Genre

Comedy

Stars

Julian Barratt, Simon Farnaby, Essie Davis

Directed by

Sean Foley

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Although Mindhorn is admittedly a comedy first and foremost, there is a mystery at the heart of this film. Julian Barratt stars as Richard Thorncroft, a washed-up actor who once starred in a TV series as Detective Bruce Mindhorn, the man with an optical lie detector. Over two decades after Julian’s heyday, an escaped maniac, Paul Melly (Russell Tovey), demands a meeting with Detective Mindhorn. Julian seizes on the chance to be relevant again, and he quickly alienates the local police. However, not even Julian could predict that Paul has evidence of an actual crime that goes much higher than anyone believed. But can Julian really live up to his Mindhorn character and solve the mystery?

Enola Holmes (2020)

Genre

Mystery, Crime, Adventure

Stars

Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Sam Claflin

Directed by

Harry Bradbeer

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Teenager Enola Holmes (Millie Bobby Brown) is the exceptional younger sister of world-renowned detective Sherlock Holmes (Henry Cavill). When her mother disappears on Enola’s 16th birthday, the intelligent youth uses all of her mystery-solving abilities to track down the Holmes matriarch, all while unearthing a deeper conspiracy at play in Victorian-era London. Featuring a stellar lead performance from Brown as the titular character, Enola Holmes is a quick-on-its-feet adaptation of the first book in author Nancy Springer’s Enola Holmes Mysteries series. The sequel is finally here, too.

Earthquake Bird (2019)

Genre

Drama, Mystery, Romance, Thriller

Stars

Alicia Vikander, Riley Keough, Naoki Kobayashi

Directed by

Wash Westmoreland

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Lucy Fly (Alicia Vikander) is an American translator working at a Japanese manufacturing company. Suspected of foul play when her expat friend Lily (Riley Keough) goes missing, Lucy is questioned by authorities. But as the third person in a love triangle with Lily and a local photographer, Teiji Matsuda (Naoki Kobayashi), Lucy believes the latter to be at fault for Lily’s disappearance, a theory she’ll have a more-than-difficult time selling to Japanese law enforcement. A fine blend of mystery, melodrama, and thriller elements, Earthquake Bird is a Netflix exclusive, and a polished one at that. Slightly formulaic, its lack of groundbreaking originality is made up for by the acting chops of both Vikander and Keough.

Lost Girls (2020)

Genre

Drama, Mystery, Thriller, History

Stars

Amy Ryan, Thomasin McKenzie, Lola Kirke

Directed by

Liz Garbus

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Based on a true and long-spanning unsolved crime, Lost Girls stars Amy Ryan as Mari Gilbert, the mother of teenager Shannan Gilbert (Sarah Wisser). When her child goes missing, Mari urges Long Island authorities to track down the girl. Taking matters into her own hands, Mari discovers that her daughter’s whereabouts may be linked to a series of unsolved cases involving a number of murdered sex workers. A moody narrative that negates over-sensationalizing the crime that inspired it in favor of authentic character work, Lost Girls leans on the strength of its small ensemble cast and Liz Garbus’ minimalist directing style to ensnare, enrage, and devastate us.