A Glean movie guide
Hidden Gems of Mystery
Beyond the mainstream.
Overlooked thrillers and clever puzzles that deserve a spot on your watchlist.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
The Kid Detective
A sharp, dark comedy that perfectly balances a genuine, gritty mystery with a cynical edge.
A once-celebrated kid detective, now 31, continues to solve the same trivial mysteries between hangovers and bouts of self-pity. Until a naive client brings him his first 'adult' case, to find out who brutally murdered her boyfriend.
- 02
Brick
This stylized neo-noir breathes new life into the genre by placing hardboiled tropes in a high school setting.
A teenage loner pushes his way into the underworld of a high school crime ring to investigate the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend.
- 03
Coherence
A masterclass in low-budget filmmaking that uses a simple dinner party to create an intense, reality-bending puzzle.
Four couples gather for dinner the night a mysterious and powerful comet passes overhead.
- 04
Cure
An atmospheric and deeply unsettling Japanese psychological mystery that lingers long after the credits roll.
A frustrated detective deals with the case of several gruesome murders committed by people who have no recollection of what they've done.
- 05
Searching
An innovative 'screenlife' thriller that keeps the tension high through a unique, modern visual format.
After David Kim's 16-year-old daughter goes missing, a local investigation is opened and a detective is assigned to the case. But 37 hours later and without a single lead, David decides to search the one place no one has looked yet, where all secrets are kept today: his daughter's laptop.
- 06
The Invitation
A masterfully crafted slow-burn that turns a simple dinner party into a nerve-wracking experience.
Will and his new girlfriend Kira are invited to a dinner with old friends at the house of Will’s ex Eden and her new partner David. Although the evening appears to be relaxed, Will soon gets a creeping suspicion that their charming host David is up to something.
- 07
Devil in a Blue Dress
A beautifully shot, classic noir that captures the atmosphere of 1948 Los Angeles with authentic grit.
In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright, a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet, who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city's black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.
- 08
Frailty
A chilling, character-driven mystery that builds toward a truly unforgettable narrative twist.
A mysterious man arrives at the offices of an FBI agent and recounts his childhood: how his religious fanatic father received visions telling him to kill people who were in fact "demons."