100 best film noir movies

A list of the best film noir films, selected by visitors to our site: Drive, L.A. Confidential, Altered Carbon: Resleeved, Vertigo, Dial M for Murder, Under the Silver Lake, Rebecca, Strangers on a Train, Double Indemnity, The Maltese Falcon, The Killing, The Third Man, Spellbound, Gaslight, Touch of Evil, Notorious, Shadow of a Doubt, Ace in the Hole, The Big Sleep, The Lost Weekend
Markimdb: 7.8
Genrethriller, drama, crime, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:40
CharactersHeroes
PlotRobbery, Racing, Adventure, Chase
PlaceUSA, Los Angeles
StyleAction, Atmospheric, Fascinating, Heavy, Gloomy

A Hollywood stunt performer who moonlights as a wheelman for criminals discovers that a contract has been put on him after a heist gone wrong.

Duration02:18
CharactersMillionaires, Criminals, Detectives
PlotSkirmishes, Chase, Rivalry
PlaceUSA, Los Angeles
StyleAction, Fascinating

Three detectives in the corrupt and brutal L.A. police force of the 1950s use differing methods to uncover a conspiracy behind the shotgun slayings of the patrons at an all-night diner.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genrefantastic, action, cartoon, detective, film noir, anime
CountryUSA, Japan
CharactersYakuza
PlotArtificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, Weapon
PlaceHotels, Night Clubs
StyleCyberpunk

On the planet Latimer, Takeshi Kovacs must protect a tattooist while investigating the death of a yakuza boss alongside a no-nonsense CTAC.

Duration02:09
PlotLove, Investigation, Obsession, Cheating
StyleRomantic, Psychological problems, Twisted plot, Atmospheric, Disturbing

A retired San Francisco detective suffering from acrophobia investigates the strange activities of an old friend's wife, all the while becoming dangerously obsessed with her.

Markimdb: 8.2
Genrethriller, crime, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:45
CharactersThieves
PlotJealousy, Blackmail
PlaceCourt, London
StylePsychological problems, Action, Twisted plot, Smart, Tense

An ex-tennis pro carries out a plot to have his wife murdered after discovering she is having an affair, and assumes she will soon leave him for the other man anyway. When things go wrong, he improvises a new plan - to frame her for murder instead.

Markimdb: 6.5
Genrecomedy, crime, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration02:18
CharactersDogs, Pirates, Cannibals, Billionaires, Celebrities
PlotDancing, Investigation, Obsession, Dolls, Weapon
PlaceCaves, Party, Cemetery, USA
StyleAction, Atmospheric, Fascinating

Young and disenchanted Sam meets a mysterious and beautiful woman who's swimming in his building's pool one night. When she suddenly vanishes the next morning, Sam embarks on a surreal quest across Los Angeles to decode the secret behind her disappearance, leading him into the murkiest depths of mystery, scandal and conspiracy.

Markimdb: 8.1
Genrethriller, melodrama, drama, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration02:10
PlotObsession, Love with age difference, Mystery, Cheating, Fear
PlaceEstate
StyleRomantic, Psychological problems, Twisted plot, Fascinating, Tense

Story of a young woman who marries a fascinating widower only to find out that she must live in the shadow of his former wife, Rebecca, who died mysteriously several years earlier. The young wife must come to grips with the terrible secret of her handsome, cold husband, Max De Winter. She must also deal with the jealous, obsessed Mrs. Danvers, the housekeeper, who will not accept her as the mistress of the house.

Duration01:41
PlotInvestigation, Obsession, Tennis, Divorce, Blackmail
PlaceIslands, Trains
StyleExciting, Action, Tense, Noir, Disturbing

A psychotic socialite confronts a pro tennis star with a theory on how two complete strangers can get away with murder...a theory that he plans to implement.

Markimdb: 8.3
Genrethriller, drama, crime, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:47
PlotPassion, Investigation, Obsession
StyleAction, Atmospheric, Depressive, Noir, Disturbing

A rich woman and a calculating insurance agent plot to kill her unsuspecting husband after he signs a double indemnity policy. Against a backdrop of distinctly Californian settings, the partners in crime plan the perfect murder to collect the insurance, which pays double if the death is accidental.

Duration01:40
PlotInvestigation, Intrigue, Mystery, Cheating
PlaceUSA
StyleAction, Twisted plot, Atmospheric, Fascinating, Tense

A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.

Markimdb: 8
Genrethriller, drama, crime, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:25
CharactersThieves
PlotRobbery, Money
StyleAction, By books, Atmospheric, Tense, Serious

Career criminal Johnny Clay recruits a sharpshooter, a crooked police officer, a bartender and a betting teller named George, among others, for one last job before he goes straight and gets married. But when George tells his restless wife about the scheme to steal millions from the racetrack where he works, she hatches a plot of her own.

Markimdb: 8.1
Genrethriller, detective, film noir
CountryUnited Kingdom
Duration01:44
CharactersSpy, Writers, Actors
PlotInvestigation, Conspiracies, Mystery, Funeral
PlaceCemetery
StyleAction, Twisted plot, Atmospheric, Smart, Gloomy

In postwar Vienna, Austria, Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime, only to learn he has died. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Major Calloway, and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genrethriller, melodrama, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:51
CharactersPsychologists
PlotInvestigation, Mental disorders, Mystery, Lost memory
PlacePsychiatric hospitals, USA
StyleRomantic, Psychological problems, Action, By books, Atmospheric

When Dr. Anthony Edwardes arrives at a Vermont mental hospital to replace the outgoing hospital director, Dr. Constance Peterson, a psychoanalyst, discovers Edwardes is actually an impostor. The man confesses that the real Dr. Edwardes is dead and fears he may have killed him, but cannot recall anything. Dr. Peterson, however is convinced his impostor is innocent of the man's murder, and joins him on a quest to unravel his amnesia through psychoanalysis.

Markimdb: 7.8
Genrethriller, drama, crime, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:54
CharactersMonsters, Maids, Pianists
PlotObsession, Inheritance, Mystery, Gems
PlaceItaly, Deserts, London, Laboratory, Small cities
Time19th century
StyleAction, Serious, Disturbing

In the late 19th century, Paula Alquist is studying music in Italy, but ends up abandoning her classes because she's fallen in love with the gallant Gregory Anton. The couple marries and moves to England to live in a home inherited by Paula from her aunt, herself a famous singer, who was mysteriously murdered in the house ten years before. Though Paula is certain that she sees the house's gaslights dim every evening and that there are strange noises coming from the attic, Gregory convinces Paula that she's imagining things. Meanwhile, a Scotland Yard inspector, Brian Cameron, becomes sympathetic to Paula's plight.

Markimdb: 8
Genrethriller, drama, crime, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:46
CharactersLawyers
PlotInvestigation, Border, Mystery, Blackmail
PlaceHotels, Small cities
TimeHoneymoon
StyleAction, Atmospheric, Depressive, Disturbing

When a car bomb explodes on the American side of the U.S./Mexico border, Mexican drug enforcement agent Miguel Vargas begins his investigation, along with American police captain Hank Quinlan. When Vargas begins to suspect that Quinlan and his shady partner, Menzies, are planting evidence to frame an innocent man, his investigations into their possible corruption quickly put himself and his new bride, Susie, in jeopardy.

Markimdb: 7.9
Genrethriller, melodrama, drama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:41
CharactersSpy, Scientists
PlotBetrayal, Jealousy, Double life
PlaceParty
StyleRomantic, Action, Patriotic, Tense, Noir

In order to help bring Nazis to justice, U.S. government agent T.R. Devlin recruits Alicia Huberman, the American daughter of a convicted German war criminal, as a spy. As they begin to fall for one another, Alicia is instructed to win the affections of Alexander Sebastian, a Nazi hiding out in Brazil. When Sebastian becomes serious about his relationship with Alicia, the stakes get higher, and Devlin must watch her slip further undercover.

Duration01:48
CharactersSerial killers, Widows
PlaceTrains, California, Small cities
StyleAtmospheric

A bored teen living in Santa Rosa, California, Charlotte "Charlie" Newton, is frustrated because nothing seems to be happening in her life and that of her family. Then, she receives wonderful news: her uncle (for whom she was named), Charlie Oakley, is arriving for a visit. But Uncle Charlie may not be the man he seems to be.

Markimdb: 8.1
Genredrama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:51
CharactersReporters, Sheriffs
PlotOn real events
PlaceCaves, Deserts, USA, Small cities
StyleAtmospheric, Smart, Tense, Makes me think, Depressive

A frustrated former big-city journalist now stuck working for an Albuquerque newspaper exploits a story about a man trapped in a cave to revitalize his career, but the situation quickly escalates into an out-of-control media circus.

Markimdb: 7.9
Genrethriller, crime, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:49
CharactersGangsters
PlotGambling, Passion, Investigation, Drug addict, Seduction
PlaceLos Angeles
StyleBy books, Gloomy, For men

Private Investigator Philip Marlowe is hired by wealthy General Sternwood regarding a matter involving his youngest daughter Carmen. Before the complex case is over, Marlowe sees murder, blackmail, deception, and what might be love.

Markimdb: 7.9
Genredrama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:41
CharactersWriters, Alcoholics, Bartenders
PlaceUSA, New York
StyleSoulful, By books, Fascinating, Gloomy, Depressive

Don Birnam, a long-time alcoholic, has been sober for ten days and appears to be over the worst... but his craving has just become more insidious. Evading a country weekend planned by his brother and girlfriend, he begins a four-day bender that just might be his last - one way or another.

Markimdb: 7.4
Genrethriller, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:39
PlotGambling, Money, Investigation, Inheritance, Mystery
TimeHoneymoon
StyleRomantic, Psychological problems, By books, Atmospheric, Tense

Wealthy, sheltered Lina McLaidlaw is swept off her feet by charming ne'er-do-well Johnnie Aysgarth. Though warned that Johnnie is little more than a fortune hunter, Lina marries him anyway and remains loyal to her irresponsible husband as he plows his way from one disreputable business scheme to another. Gradually Lina comes to the conclusion that Johnnie intends to kill her in order to collect her inheritance. The suspicion seems confirmed when Johnnie's business partner dies under mysterious circumstances.

Markimdb: 7.4
Genredrama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:45
CharactersMusicians
PlotOn real events, Robbery, False accusations
PlaceUSA, New York
StylePsychological problems, Soulful, By books, Tense, Makes me think

In 1953, an innocent man named Christopher Emmanuel "Manny" Balestrero is arrested after being mistaken for an armed robber.

Markimdb: 7.3
Genredrama, crime, film noir
CountryBulgaria
Duration01:32
CharactersLosers
PlaceCemetery
StylePsychological problems, Action, Atmospheric, Heavy, Gloomy

Moth is freed on parole after spending time in prison on wrongful conviction of murder. Jailed shortly before the Bulgarian communist coup of 1944, he now finds himself in a new and alien world - the totalitarian Sofia of the 60s. His first night of freedom draws the map of a diabolical city full of decaying neighborhoods, gloomy streets and a bizarre parade of characters.

Markimdb: 7
Genrethriller, drama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:32
PlotPursuit, Chase
TimeHoneymoon

Rose Loomis and her older, gloomier husband, George, are vacationing at a cabin in Niagara Falls, N.Y. The couple befriend Polly and Ray Cutler, who are honeymooning in the area. Polly begins to suspect that something is amiss between Rose and George, and her suspicions grow when she sees Rose in the arms of another man. While Ray initially thinks Polly is overreacting, things between George and Rose soon take a shockingly dark turn.

Markimdb: 7.9
Genredrama, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:28
CharactersModels, Maids
PlotInvestigation, Obsession, Jealousy, Mystery
PlaceUSA, New York
StyleRomantic, By books, Atmospheric, Smart, Gloomy

A police detective falls in love with the woman whose murder he's investigating.

Markimdb: 7.6
Genrethriller, drama, crime, detective, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:27
CharactersHired assassins
PlotMystery
PlaceCourt, Yachts, Mexico, USA, New York
StyleAction, By books, Atmospheric, Smart, Serious

A romantic drifter gets caught between a corrupt tycoon and his voluptuous wife.

Markimdb: 7.9
Genrethriller, drama, crime, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:37
CharactersGangsters, Priests
PlotFriendship
PlaceCasino, Night Clubs, New York
StyleAction, Fascinating, Tense, Serious

In New York, the boys Rocky Sullivan and Jerry Connelly are best friends and small time thieves. After a robbery, Rocky is arrested and sent to a reformatory school, where he begins his criminal career. Jerry escapes and later becomes a priest. After three years in prison, Rocky is released and demands the return of $100,000 deposited with his solicitor - prior to his jail term.

Markimdb: 7.1
Genrethriller, detective, film noir
CountryUnited Kingdom
Duration01:50
PlotInvestigation, Chase, Mystery, Pads
StyleTwisted plot, Disturbing

A struggling actress tries to help a friend prove his innocence when he's accused of murdering the husband of a high-society entertainer.

Markimdb: 7.5
Genrethriller, drama, crime, film noir
CountryFrance
Duration01:25
CharactersGangsters, Thieves, Pianists
PlaceParis, France
StyleBy comics, Gloomy, Serious

Charlie is a former classical pianist who has changed his name and now plays jazz in a grimy Paris bar. When Charlie's brothers, Richard and Chico, surface and ask for Charlie's help while on the run from gangsters they have scammed, he aids their escape. Soon Charlie and Lena, a waitress at the same bar, face trouble when the gangsters arrive, looking for his brothers.

Markimdb: 7.6
Genrethriller, melodrama, drama, film noir
CountryUSA
Duration01:50
CharactersGangsters
PlotGambling, Revenge, Passion, Friendship, Love triangle
PlaceCasino, Night Clubs
TimeWorld War II
StyleAction, Atmospheric, Smart, Noir

A gambler discovers an old flame while in Argentina, but she's married to his new boss.





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