Top 10 Most Unconventional Mystery Movies

Added: 2026-05-09

[00:00:00]I know when Ronnie Hollings was murdered and I know who the real killer was. No more. Go on. The mystery will be solved when I read the ending tomorrow.

[00:00:10]>> Welcome to Miz Mojo and today we're looking at movies that take an unconventional approach to the mystery genre. Don't worry, we'll keep any spoilers to a minimum.

[00:00:20]>> So, this wolf, he was dressed as your grandmother.

[00:00:24]>> Yes.

[00:00:24]>> I'm your grandma. And you bought that?

[00:00:27]>> No, not really.

[00:00:30]Number 10, searching.

[00:00:32]>> Let's take a picture. One. You say cheese. Okay. One, two, >> cheese.

[00:00:38]>> Of all the screen life films that have come out in the past several years, Anish Chaganti's searching is arguably the most effective. While the desktop drama can come off as gimmicky in other films, it's a feat of visual storytelling here. The approach also demonstrates how the internet has seen a rise in amateur sleuths who sometimes notice more than the authorities. Has anyone even considered the possibility that it was an absolute stranger? Some sick perve? Piecing together clues through social media and archived videos. The screenplay is clever as well, full of twists and turns that add up without feeling forced.

[00:01:13]>> From the moment she volunteered to lead it to the way she handled the investigation and really dealt with the media. I mean, >> hey, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

[00:01:20]You did, did you say volunteered?

[00:01:25]>> Sorry. You you you said she volunteered.

[00:01:29]No, I I I was led to believe that she she was assigned to the case, right? She was assigned.

[00:01:34]>> At the center is possibly a career best performance from John Cho as a father who has already lost one of the most important people in his life and can't bear to lose another.

[00:01:43]>> That she would come to you in the middle of the night and you would give her weed and DO GOD KNOWS WHAT ELSE.

[00:01:47]>> That's it.

[00:01:49]>> We get high and talk. I swear.

[00:01:53]>> Number nine, Zootopia. Audiences were not only surprised to find how timely this animated feature was, but also that it told an engaging mystery.

[00:02:02]>> Find my Emit. Bring him home to me and my babies, please.

[00:02:07]>> Possessing an ambiance reminiscent of Chinatown, the buddy cop dynamic and central theme of prejudice call to mind in the heat of the night as well.

[00:02:14]>> Everyone comes to Zootopia thinking they can be anything they want. Well, you can't. You can only be what you are. Sly fox, dumb bunny. I am not a dumb bunny.

[00:02:27]>> Right.

[00:02:28]>> The main difference is that our crimesolving duo is a bunny and a fox.

[00:02:32]Although they're more fleshed out than you'd expect. The same can be said about the world of Zootopia, which has more shades of gray than your average Disney film. Even the most pure-hearted character can be more narrow-minded than they thought. While the criminal mastermind can have identifiable motivations behind their actions, we found out what's happening. Someone's starting predators with a serum. That's what's making them go savage. I'm so proud of you, Judy. You did just a super job. Thank you, ma'am.

[00:03:02]How did you know where to find us?

[00:03:04]>> I'll go ahead and I'll take that case now.

[00:03:05]>> Like the mystery, there is more to these animals than meets the eye.

[00:03:09]>> I really am just a dumb bunny.

[00:03:12]>> Don't worry, Carrots. I'll let you race it.

[00:03:15]>> Number eight, charade.

[00:03:20]Madame Charl.

[00:03:22]>> Yes, >> I'm Inspector Edar Grampier of the Police Judiciary.

[00:03:26]>> With a pairing like Carrie Grant and Audrey Hepburn, you might expect Charade to be a romantic screwball comedy. It is, but it's also a Hitchcockian and thriller.

[00:03:35]>> Charles was mixed up in something terrible.

[00:03:38]What am I going to do?

[00:03:39]>> At its center is a mystery involving murder, deceit, and missing money. It's impressive just how well Charade balances all of these tones. The leads have genuine chemistry, and the humor is sharply timed.

[00:03:51]>> Don't you know it's impolite to leave someone holding the phone?

[00:03:56]>> What happened?

[00:03:57]>> Oh, I met a man with sharp nails.

[00:04:02]>> Scobby.

[00:04:03]>> Mhm. I left him hanging around the American Express. In a heartbeat, though, it can go from light-hearted escapism to nailbiting suspense, making the audience feel the stakes as the characters find themselves in life-threatening situations. Set against an elegant Paris backdrop, Stanley Donan's film is as exciting as it is sweeping. As the title suggests, it's a guessing game that threads the needle between playful and intense.

[00:04:28]>> He killed them all.

[00:04:30]>> Are you sure?

[00:04:31]>> Yes, I'm sure. Tex wrote the word dial before he died.

[00:04:39]He's the murderer, I tell you.

[00:04:41]>> Number seven, Batman: Mask of the Fantasm. Batman is a detective on par with Sherlock Holmes, although many of his theatrical features forget this.

[00:04:50]Even the Batman films that lean more into his detective roots don't always have mysteries that keep us guessing.

[00:04:56]>> Well, Bruce, here goes.

[00:04:59]>> Let's blow this pop stand.

[00:05:06]on your stomachs. Arms spread.

[00:05:08]>> Who's this clown?

[00:05:09]>> You heard me.

[00:05:10]>> Yeah, you heard him, boys.

[00:05:12]>> Batman Mask of the Fantasm still stands out with its layered mystery as Bruce Wayne tracks down a mysterious foe targeting Gotham's criminals. Beyond the Fantasm's true identity, the question that haunts Batman the most is what might have been. As the past and present collide, so does the future that never was.

[00:05:30]>> Alfred, what's wrong? This just arrived, sir.

[00:05:43]>> Left with dad.

[00:05:45]>> For 1993 in particular, there wasn't an American animated feature or superhero movie quite like this one. Mixing film noir, tragic romance, and a mystery that treated its audience like adults.

[00:05:58]>> Vengeance blackens the soul. Bruce, I always feared you would become that which you fought against. You walked the edge of that abyss every night, but you haven't fallen in, and I thank heaven for that.

[00:06:11]>> Number six, knives out.

[00:06:13]>> I read a tweet about a New Yorker article about you, the last of the gentleman's sleuththes. You solved that case with the tennis champ.

[00:06:22]You're famous. At first glance, Knives Out seems like it'll be a traditional Who Done It with its colorful cast of potential suspects. While you can certainly sense the impact of mystery writers like Agatha Christie, writer director Ryan Johnson quickly establishes that we're playing a very different game.

[00:06:39]>> At 11:30 and left at midnight, think very carefully and with as much detail as possible, tell us what happened in that half hour.

[00:06:56]Right off the bat, the film gives away what one would expect to be its biggest twist, revealing how it happened in great detail. Since the film isn't even halfway over, the real mystery is trying to figure out where the story can go from here. At the same time, there's still a who done it going on in the background. Although only detective Benois Blanc seems aware that there's more to the story than we realize.

[00:07:18]>> You're a pack of vultures AT THE FEAST.

[00:07:21]KNIVES OUT, BEAKS BLOODY. WELL, you're not getting bailed out. Not this time. Miss Cabrera has decided definitively not to renounce the inheritance.

[00:07:33]>> Number five, Sleuth.

[00:07:35]>> Tell me, do you agree that the detective story is a normal recreation of noble minds?

[00:07:42]>> The less you know about this film going in, the better. We suppose that's the case for any mystery movie. Even if you look up the full cast list for Sleuth, though, it'll hint at crucial details.

[00:07:52]What we can say without spoiling anything is that Lawrence Olivier and Michael Kaine deserved their Oscar nominations for their performances in this adaptation of the Tony winning play.

[00:08:01]>> There is no such ANIMAL AS INSPECTOR PLUNDER OUTSIDE YOUR DETECTIVE STORIES.

[00:08:06]IT'LL PROBABLY BE SOME SHARPEYED BLOKE WHO KNOWS HIS JOB DOWN TO THE LAST DETAIL. YOU CAN BET ON THAT. WE'D SAY THAT SLEUTH is like a game of cat and mouse, but we constantly shift between who's the predator and who's the prey.

[00:08:18]By the end, they're almost interchangeable in a battle of wits where both men may be too clever for THEIR OWN GOOD.

[00:08:25]>> I KNOW IT'S A PAIR OF SHOES. IN THIS CASE, ONE LADY'S left black shoe, size six.

[00:08:32]The other, I need hardly add, is on's foot.

[00:08:36]>> It has all the hallmarks of a classic mystery, yet it's unlike any other.

[00:08:41]Number four, Clue. You wouldn't expect a movie based on a board game to be as witty, thrilling, and creative as Clue is. That's one of the reasons it's such an unconventional mystery.

[00:08:52]>> Good evening. Good evening. I don't know.

[00:08:54]>> Yes, indeed, sir. You are expected Colonel.

[00:08:57]>> May I take your kit?

[00:08:58]>> It is Colonel Mustard, isn't it?

[00:08:59]>> No, that's not my name. My name is Sir, >> but tonight you may well feel obliged to my employer for the use of an alias.

[00:09:07]What makes it especially unique is the ending or endings. All three are now on home media. For the select few lucky enough to catch Clue when it hit theaters in 1985, you'd have to buy multiple tickets to see every outcome.

[00:09:21]It would have been worth it.

[00:09:22]>> It was her employer, Miss Garlet.

[00:09:24]>> That's a lie.

[00:09:25]>> Is it?

[00:09:27]You used her the way you always used her. You killed the motorist when we split up to search the house.

[00:09:32]>> How could I have known about the secret passage?

[00:09:34]>> Easy. Iette told you. The film as a whole is such a hoot that it demands repeat viewings. Every actor in the A-list ensemble is at the top of their game, especially Tim Curry. The >> doorbell rang and it was you.

[00:09:50]>> Yes, I asked you for your coat and I recognized you as Colonel Mustard and I prevented you from telling me your real name because I didn't want any of you to use any name other than your pseudonym and I introduced myself to you as the butler and I run ACROSS THE HALL OF THE LIBRARY.

[00:09:59]>> Even with so many characters and deadly weapons in the air, Clue masterfully pulls off its juggling act. It was only one shot they got the chandelier. That's 1 plus 2 plus 1 plus 1.

[00:10:08]>> Even if you were right, that would be 1 plus 1 plus 2 plus 1, not 1 plus 2 plus 1 plus 1.

[00:10:12]>> Number three, Momento. Momento is a film that simply shouldn't work. It's largely told in reverse order, which is already like playing with fire.

[00:10:21]>> Discount in Natalie.

[00:10:28]My car Teddy >> being a film that starts at the end and concludes at the beginning, we know what fate certain characters will ultimately meet. Yet unraveling how they got to this point is a compelling mystery in and of itself.

[00:10:43]>> You called me. You said you needed my help. You know, I've had more rewarding friendships than this one.

[00:10:50]>> Although I do get to keep telling the same jokes.

[00:10:53]>> The more that's peeled back, the more the plot thickens. Just when it appears the pieces are all coming together, we get to the finale or we guess the opening which makes us reconsider everything we just watched. For many film buffs, this is the moment that confirmed Christopher Nolan is in a league of his own, making a tangled web of storytelling flow naturally.

[00:11:13]>> You tell everybody about Sammy.

[00:11:15]Everybody will listen. Remember Sammy Jacus? Remember Sammy Jacus? Great story gets better every time you tell it.

[00:11:22]>> Number two, psycho. I almost had an accident last night from sleepiness, so I decided to pull over.

[00:11:29]>> You slept here all night?

[00:11:31]>> Yes. As I said, I couldn't keep my eyes open.

[00:11:34]>> There are plenty of motel in this area.

[00:11:36]>> This is the film that broke every rule and rewrote them in the process. Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho doesn't even start as a mystery, per se. Initially, the film is about a woman on the run. Once Marian Crane meets Norman Bates, Psycho shifts gears as we slowly realize that much of what seemed so important in the first act is actually inconsequential. Why don't you go away?

[00:11:59]>> To a private island like you?

[00:12:05]>> No, not like me.

[00:12:07]>> Whether or not the film's most iconic scene has already been spoiled for you, it's just one of numerous curveballs that Hitchcock throws.

[00:12:23]There's still so much left to uncover as we contemplate what exactly is going on at the Bates Motel. What ensues didn't just redefine the murder mystery, but also how cinematic stories could be told.

[00:12:34]>> His mother was a clinging, demanding woman.

[00:12:39]And for years, the two of them lived as if there was no one else in the world.

[00:12:44]Then she met a man.

[00:12:46]>> Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. Weapons. From the opening, you know you're in store for something twisted. But how twisted?

[00:12:55]>> The night before at 2:17 in the morning, every other kid woke up, got out of bed, walked downstairs, opened the front door, walked across the front yard, and into the dark. A simple favor. Stylishly balancing soap opera and dark satire.

[00:13:18]>> I want to know your secret. Tell me.

[00:13:22]>> My dad died when I was a senior in high school.

[00:13:25]And this boy showed up to the funeral.

[00:13:31]His name was Chris.

[00:13:33]And I guess he was the spitting image of my father 30 years younger.

[00:13:38]>> Who framed Roger Rabbit? The real mystery is how the technical wizardry on screen was executed.

[00:13:44]>> Does condemn have anything to say before his sentence is carried out?

[00:13:48]>> Oh, YEAH.

[00:13:54]>> Dolores bourbon. I'm making a double.

[00:13:58]>> Fine. Time for a drink, Eddie. Maybe you'd like a bowl of pretzels to go with it.

[00:14:02]>> Long legs. Not the silence of the lamb's retread you anticipated.

[00:14:06]>> It's funny.

[00:14:10]The day you decided to go into law enforcement, you were 20.

[00:14:20]We had such a big laugh about it.

[00:14:23]>> Witness for the prosecution, a courtroom mystery that doesn't end with the verdict.

[00:14:27]>> On the night of October the 14th, last between 9:30 and 10, Mrs. French was murdered.

[00:14:35]Medical testimony will be introduced to prove the death was caused by a blow from a blunt and heavy instrument.

[00:14:49]Before we continue, check out this single from Sound Mojo's album Balance.

[00:14:53]Classical music reimagined as rock, hard rock, and metal. Check out the full track and album below.

[00:15:02]and ruin night and all our prisoners of the moon.

[00:15:13]Number one, Mullhalland Drive.

[00:15:15]>> What are you doing? We don't stop here.

[00:15:30]Get out of the car.

[00:15:32]>> Few filmmakers were more unconventional than David Lynch. Mhalland Drive is his masterpiece of surrealism. While the entire film is draped in a dreamlike ambiance, it can be broken into two parts that are quite different.

[00:15:44]>> There's sometimes a buggy.

[00:15:47]How many drivers does a buggy have?

[00:15:51]>> One.

[00:15:52]So, let's just say I'm driving this buggy, and if you fix your attitude, you can ride along.

[00:15:59]>> The first almost plays like a traditional film noir. As multiple mysteries are introduced, just as it seems Lynch may pull back the curtain, he raises more questions for us to wrap our brains around. By the credits, the true mystery is what exactly we've just watched. Many have their theories, but the lack of clear-cut answers is what makes Mulland Drive one of a kind. You won't understand at first or possibly ever. If you take a step back, though, you'll recognize the beautiful madness on display.

[00:16:26]>> What's it open?

[00:16:35]>> What are some other unconventional mystery movies? Let us know in the comments.