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16 mystery movies like Glass Onion to check out before the Knives Out sequel
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is one of the most highly anticipated Netflix original movies of the year. Knives Out was a big hit in 2019, and the streamer pounced on the chance to get in on the action, securing the exclusive rights to two sequels in 2020.
Check out: The best Netflix movies
The first sequel to Rian Johnson’s 2019 smash hit sends famed investigator Benoit Blanc on a new case, this time in Greece. A tech billionaire invites his friends to his private island for a special getaway. When one of them turns up dead, everyone is a suspect, and Blanc is called in to solve the mystery. Daniel Craig returns as the private eye, joined by an all-star cast including Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Kate Hudson, and Dave Bautista.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery will premiere on Netflix December 23 following a one-week limited theatrical run in November. You can check it out at the link below.
Movies like Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Knives Out (2019)
Perhaps an obvious choice, but if you haven’t already seen Knives Out, it’s the ultimate movie like Glass Onion, and you’ll likely want to check it out before the sequel. When a rich crime novelist dies under mysterious circumstances, his eccentric family all have obvious motives. Benoit Blanc is called upon to help root out the killer in this hilarious mystery and social satire that will keep you guessing — and laughing.
Brick (2005)
Rian Johnson was no stranger to the mystery genre when he made Knives Out. His first feature, Brick, is a teen drama told as a noire mystery. It stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a high schooler trying to get to the bottom of his ex-girlfriend’s death. That means infiltrating cliques and entering a teen criminal underworld that stand in his way. Clever dialogue, dark themes, and top-notch performances make this a must-see for fans of Johnson and the mystery genre.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Much darker in tone than Knives Out or Glass Onion, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is a tremendous thriller from director David Fincher, and it stars Daniel Craig as a man investigating a crime involving a rich and difunctional family. The late Christopher Plummer also happens to feature as patriarch in a role that looks forward to his turn in Knives Out. Based on the bestselling Swedish novel of the same name by Stieg Larsson, the film sees a disgraced reporter working with a troubled, brilliant hacker to find out what happened to a woman who disappeared 40 years earlier.
Murder on The Orient Express (1974)
Benoit Blanc clearly owes a debt to past fictional investigators, but perhaps none as much as Hercule Poirot. In this first adaptation of the famous story, Poirot is heading home aboard the famous Orient Express after solving a big case. But his quiet journey is interrupted when a fellow passenger is killed and Poirot must get to work. Soon, he realizes that every passenger has a motive in the murder of the billionaire victim. The isolated setting and rich victim make Murder on the Orient Express an obvious choice among movies like Glass Onion.
A Simple Favor (2018)
Blending comedy and mystery quite beautifully, the underrated A Simple Favor is directed by Bridesmaids’ Paul Feig and stars Anna Kendrick, Blake Lively, and Henry Golding. When a vlogger’s glamourous new friend mysteriously disappears, she takes it upon herself to investigate. But she may not be ready for the deluge of revelations in store.
Clue (1985)
Based on the famous board game, Clue sees six blackmail victims brought together to a mansion where they will be the guests of someone who knows their dark secrets and threatens to use them. But when their host dies, suddenly all of the guests are suspects with equally damning motives.
Confess, Fletch (2022)
Based on Gregory Mcdonald’s 1976 novel of the same name, Confess, Fletch is the third film in the Fletch franchise, with Jon Hamm taking over in the title role from Chevy Chase. In it, Fletch becomes the prime suspect in a murder case while investigating an art heist. Now, he has to prove his own innocence.
The Nice Guys (2016)
Shane Black brings his signature dark humor to this sleazy murder mystery starring Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling. A missing woman brings together an unlucky private eye and an enforcer who soon realize they’ve gotten themselves embroiled in a dangerous conspiracy in this buddy comedy with a twist.
The Big Lebowski (1998)
Perhaps the best noire comedy of all time, the Coen brothers’ The Big Lebowski offers a comedic twist on Raymond Chandler’s hard-boiled detective novels like The Big Sleep. With the sharp private eye replaced here by a hapless slacker, the mystery of a missing trophy wife brings together larger-than-life characters as “The Dude” tries to figure out who’s pulling the strings.
Murder by Death (1976)
Five famous sleuths are assembled for a dinner party where their host reveals that he plans an unsolvable murder. If one of them can crack it, the winner will take home $1 million. But before the deadline, their host’s butler is killed, complicating the already difficult case.
The Long Goodbye (1973)
One of the best detective films of all time, Robert Altman’s The Long Goodbye is based on the novel of the same name by Raymond Chandler and features The Big Sleep’s detective Philip Marlowe. After helping his old friend, Marlowe discovers the man’s wife has been killed. Now, he has to figure out what happened and whether he’s an accessory, all while working a case for a woman with a past with his friend.
Rope (1948)
An Alfred Hitchcock classic often celebrated for its queer subtext, Rope is a stunning bit of filmmaking, shot to seem like one continuous take. Before hosting a dinner party, two men murder their friend, strangling him with a piece of rope, and hide the body in a chest which then serves as a buffet table for their guests, including the philosophy professor who inspired the murder. Can the evening go to plan without anyone discovering their crime?
Ready or Not (2019)
An eat-the-rich movie like Glass Onion and the original Knives Out, Ready or Not goes the horror route rather than mystery, though there’s more than a bit of comedy here too. A young woman marrying into a rich family has to fight for her life on her wedding night. Believing in a generations-old pact with a spirit, the family periodically has to hunt its newest members to the death to ensure its continued prosperity. This one may not be so easy to kill though.
Murder Mystery (2019)
With Glass Onion moving the Knives Out Franchise over to Netflix, it’s only fitting that we include another Netflix murder mystery from the streamer’s reigning posterboy: funnyman Adam Sandler. In Murder Mystery, a New York City cop and his hairdresser wife (played by Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, respectively) are trying to enjoy a vacation when they’re roped into helping solve a murder on a billionaire’s yacht.
Game Night (2018)
An outrageous comedy, Game Night sees a group of friends embark on a massive murder mystery quest, but they soon realize the game may not be staged at all, and they may all be in very real danger if they don’t get to the bottom of the mystery using their game-night skills.
Zero Effect (1998)
Not particularly well received when it came out in the 90s, Zero Effect is nevertheless an interesting and entertaining mystery-comedy. It stars Ben Stiller and Bill Paxton. Based somewhat loosely on the Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes short story “A Scandal in Bohemia,” the film sees an eccentric private investigator and his assistant trying to solve a blackmail case involving a businessman.
Those are just a few of the mystery movies like Glass Onion that are worth checking out if you’re a fan of Knives Out.
What are your favorite murder mysteries? Let us know in the comments.
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