Movies - TV
Must-See Detective Movies That Should Already Be On Your Watchlist
By SlashFilm Staff
Blade Runner
"Blade Runner" was initially set in 1992, but the film is moved to 2019. Both dates have obviously come and gone without even a whiff of flying cars or bipedal AI.
However, given the rapid computer advancements, the deeper question the movie poses about what differentiates artificial minds from real ones has never been more relevant.
The Maltese Falcon
To modern eyes, Humphrey Bogart's fast-talking turn as private detective Sam Spade is anything but naturalistic, but "The Maltese Falcon" has gone down in film history.
Alfred Hitchcock purposely stylized the innovative shadowy cinematography, creating the film noir aesthetic. Shades of this gritty style can be seen in every movie on this list.
Brick
"Brick," is a meta-noir in the tongue-in-cheek style of "The Third Man" that envelopes a bunch of high school kids who all seem to know how to play their archetypal parts.
The director has these teens emulating Humphrey Bogart; the stylized conceit is an amusing way to highlight the tropes that have long been the basis of the detective genre.
Inherent Vice
Not all detectives are clever, sometimes they're just lucky. This is the case of "Doc" Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix) in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Inherent Vice."
There are a few mysteries unfolding simultaneously and Doc rarely seems able to keep them apart. Operating on bad instincts and weed-fueled powers, he only gets by on sheer chance.
The Fugitive
"The Fugitive" is a story about a morally upright citizen-detective who has to expose the corrupt medical establishment to find justice for himself and his patients.
The 1993 remake is mostly a thrilling popcorn movie, but it's also in Hollywood's tradition of skepticism about big pharma and the corrupting influence of all that cash.