10 Best Movies If You Love Whodunits, According To Reddit

Now that Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett’s excellent and unpredictable Scream is in theaters, audiences are probably hungry for even more mystery. Fortunately, the movie industry has provided whodunit fans with plenty of choices.

If someone were to take the word of those on the internet, quite a few of those choices are well worth watching. From horror mysteries like the aforementioned Ghostface saga to tongue-in-cheek comedies with a throwback twist, there are numerous cinematic puzzles worthy of viewers’ time and extra attentiveness.

Clue (1985)

On a thread posted by someone looking for the best whodunit, Looseball said “Without a doubt, Clue. The movie. The one with Tim Curry (there have been several, this is the only good one).”

1985’s Clue is actually the only existing movie based on the board game, so the “several” others the Redditor mentions are a mystery. They could mean the film’s multiple endings (though all of them involve Curry’s Wadsworth) that were sent to theaters upon release. That kind of unique trickiness, along with the film’s sharp humor, has helped the movie become a cult favorite.

The Usual Suspects (1995)

Time has arguably led to a difference of opinion on Bryan Singer’s The Usual Suspects. If going by Reddit, this is primarily due to the inclusion of both Singer as well as Kevin Spacey. But, even if their presence is one thing about The Usual Suspects that hasn’t aged well, the movie works more often than not. The ending is notorious, but, like the ending of Se7en, it’s famous because it’s extremely effective.

Ziggyranchodas, for instance, said, “The Usual Suspects, one of the all-time best.” Then, a couple of Redditors agreed (though one surprisingly said they actually found it predictable).

No Way Out (1987)

A very surprising common mention on whodunit subreddits is the late 80s Kevin Costner-Gene Hackman military thriller No Way Out. It’s always been underseen, perhaps even ranking among Kevin Costner’s best movies, but it’s unlike anything else he’s done: a military-related murder mystery (though with more emphasis on the mystery aspect than A Few Good Men, for instance).

A Redditor corroborated how it isn’t a typical Costner film: “No Way Out is great. Not even a Kevin Costner fan really, but he’s really good in that movie. Also, Gene Hackman and Will Patton are perfect in their roles.” Another Redditor posited that it’s more thriller than a whodunit, but No Way Out straddles the line just enough to be considered the latter.

Murder By Death (1976)

This send-up of murder mysteries takes place on a millionaire’s island and contains plays on famous detectives’ names. David Niven and Maggie Smith, for instance, play characters modeled on Nick and Nora Charles (The Thin Man) while Sam Spade (Casablanca), Miss Marple, and Hercule Poirot are also satirized. Peter Sellers also plays a character based on Charlie Chan, but it’s best to focus on the movie’s more positive aspects.

Shh04 said of the movie: “Murder by Death is a great parody of the whodunit genre and features a great performance by Truman Capote.” FrankyCentaur then came in with “I’ll second Murder by Death. It’s a comedy and its characters are all based off of famous novel/television detectives, but it’s hilarious and a great deconstruction of the genre.”

Identity (2003)

Identity got the most surprising amount of Redditor love of any whodunit. It was once just considered a middle-of-the-road John Cusack thriller from the early aughts, but time has shown the film to be something of both a cult favorite as well as a solid mystery-slasher.

SentrySappinMahSpy had this to say: “I loved Identity and feel like it’s mostly been forgotten. But it’s got a great cast and solid performances.” In a separate thread entirely, doublesailorsandcola said, “I love Identity! Every actor in it is fabulous and it’s perfectly paced, IMO.”

Valentine (2001)

One of the many lesser Scream copycats, Valentine apparently has its fans. ToneTenSeven, for instance, mentioned this film as well as one of a similar ilk: “Valentine and Urban Legend aren’t the most unpredictable but still great whodunit movies–They make for a great double feature as well.”

The Redditor is right in that those two make for a fine double feature (especially with their Scream Factory Collecter’s Editions), but Valentine‘s twist is clear as day early on. Even still, some seem to enjoy the mystery movie (which is bolstered by an excellent Marley Shelton lead performance).

The Hateful Eight (2015)

While one Redditor posited Reservoir Dogs as their favorite Tarantino whodunit, his The Hateful Eight is technically more in line with the subgenre.

A hybridization of Western, mystery, and John Carpenter throwback, Dave-os posited this of the film: “I think The Hateful Eight falls under this category and even though it’s a little newer than some of the other classics it’s still one of my favorites.” Hateful may not be seen as the best Quentin Tarantino movie, but it absolutely has its merits (performances, cinematography, score).

Brick (2005)

Before Rian Johnson pulled the Knives Out, he was working with a Brick. Johnson’s directorial debut starred Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a high school-aged hardboiled detective trying to solve the death of his ex-girlfriend.

The murder mystery has gained a cult following over the years, and apparently, some of them are on Reddit. As EricFtw said, “I really enjoyed Brick. Watched it recently and it holds up fantastically.” Hopefully, more viewers end up doing the same, because it deserves to find a larger audience.

Primal Fear (1996)

While he is far from being the most likable Edward Norton character, Aaron Stampler still earned the actor an Oscar nomination. It was also his first movie.

The entire whodunit aspect of Primal Fear, which is a major throughline in the film, rests on Norton’s shoulders. His performance is multi-layered in a different way, essentially playing two very different characters at once. Apparently, he sold Redditors, because MammothEase gave it as an example, to which loud_culture added “Primal Fear is insane.”

Scream (1996) & Scream 2 (1997)

Bozzaholic was simple in their suggestion of worthwhile whodunits: “Scream.” Wearegoingin added “2 IMO is just as worthy, if not better. It’s such a perfect escalation without feeling too much.”

Both Scream and Scream 2 were beloved by fans and critics alike. There’s always been a debate about which film is objectively better. But Scream set the bar so high that not even Scream 2 could top it. Woodsboro managed to feel lived in immediately, the twist was unpredictable (particularly at the time) and the casting was so perfect that any sequels without them just wouldn’t have been Scream.

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Ben Hathaway
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Ben Hathaway is a Senior Writer (Lists) for Screen Rant. A former Therapeutic Day Treatment counselor, Ben is now a career writer. When not working, he is writing and self-publishing (on Amazon) novels under the name Scott Gray. In his spare time, he’s reading on the porch or watching every film under the sun. Ben can be contacted at [email protected].

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