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Movies like The Hotel of the Absent (1939)

The best movies like The Hotel of the Absent (1939) are The Limits of Control (2009), All the Devils Are Here (2025) and The Blue Gardenia (1953). If The Hotel of the Absent hooked you with its crime and mystery, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.

Quick picks

  1. The Limits of Control (2009)

    A mysterious stranger works outside the law and keeps his objectives hidden, trusting no one. While his demeanor is paradoxically focused and dreamlike all at once, he embarks on a journey that not only takes him across Spain, but also through his own consciousness.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  2. All the Devils Are Here (2025)

    After a heist, four criminals lay low in a remote safehouse, waiting for orders. As paranoia builds, one thing becomes clear — the real threat may not be outside, but among them.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  3. The Blue Gardenia (1953)

    Upon waking up to the news that the man she’d gone on a date with the previous night has been murdered, a young woman with only a faint memory of the night’s events begins to suspect that she murdered him while attempting to resist his advances.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  4. They Call Me Mister Tibbs! (1970)

    A police detective's investigation of a prostitute's murder points to his best friend.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

  5. The Girl in the Fog (2017)

    A gripping and chilling thriller that brings us to a hazy mountain village where an enigmatic detective is investigating the sudden disappearance of fifteen-year-old girl.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & crime

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  6. Song of the Thin Man (1947)

    While attending a glamorous jazz cruise on New York’s East River, Nick and Nora Charles witness the fatal shooting of a wealthy patron. When suspicion falls on a young bandleader and his musicians, the couple steps in to clear their friends and uncover the real killer. Their investigation leads through a lively world of jazz clubs, radio personalities, high society, and backstage rivalries, where almost everyone has a secret and the next clue may be hidden in the music.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  7. Kidnapping Mr. Heineken (2015)

    The true story of the kidnapping of Freddy Heineken, the grandson of the founder of the Heineken brewery, and his driver. They were released after a ransom of 35 million Dutch guilders was paid.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  8. A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)

    Private investigator Matthew Scudder is hired by a drug kingpin to find out who kidnapped and murdered his wife.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  9. What Have They Done to Your Daughters? (1974)

    An unidentified fifteen year-old girl is found hanged after an anonymous tip-off. The girl, Silvia Polvesi, is soon discovered to have been murdered. A peeping tom is caught with photos of her having sex with a teenage drop-out but he is later released due to lack of evidence. The investigation, conducted by Inspector Silvestri and the assistant public prosecutor Vittoria Stori, focuses on the girl's parents. Conspiracies and horrors pile up, as do the body parts.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  10. Thirteen at Dinner (1985)

    Actress Jane Wilkinson wants a divorce, but her husband, Lord Edgware, refuses. She convinces Hercule Poirot to use his famed tact and logic to make her case. Lord Edgware turns up murdered, a well-placed knife wound at the base of his neck. It will take the precise Poirot to sort out the lies from the alibis - and find the criminal before another victim dies.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

  11. The Locksmith (2023)

    A thief fresh out of prison, tries to work his way back into the life of his daughter and ex-fiancé. Determined, he is forced to use the skills he has as a gifted locksmith. Things take a tumultuous turn after an unexpected disappearance.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & crime

  12. Suburbicon (2017)

    In the quiet family town of Suburbicon during the 1950s, the best and worst of humanity is hilariously reflected through the deeds of seemingly ordinary people. When a home invasion turns deadly, a picture-perfect family turns to blackmail, revenge and murder.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

  13. The Seven-Ups (1973)

    A tough detective who is part of an elite New York City unit is trying to find out who killed his partner, but uncovers a plot to kidnap mobsters for money.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery

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  14. Killer Heat (2024)

    An expat PI is hired to investigate a suspicious death in Crete, Greece, where jealousies run deep amongst the victim's powerful family.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime

  15. Blindfire (2020)

    A police officer who while responding to a violent hostage call, kills the African American suspect only to later learn of his innocence. Sensing this was a set-up, and facing repercussions, he must track down the person responsible while examining his own accountability and the ingrained racism which brought him to this point.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime

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  16. Stowaway (2022)

    A tenacious party girl fights to survive after three thieves commandeer her luxury yacht. Unable to escape and trapped on the yacht at high seas, the prey becomes the hunter as she turns the tables on the intruders and takes matters into her own hands.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  17. Winged Creatures (2009)

    A psychotic man opens fire in a diner, murdering numerous people before killing himself. The survivors struggle in different ways following this horrendous event: a doctor doubts his own instincts and elects to use an experimental medical procedure on his wife, while a gambler believes he's on a lucky streak. A waitress begins engaging in promiscuous sex, and a young girl whose father is among the dead gains unexpected fame.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime

  18. God Is a Bullet (2023)

    Vice detective Bob Hightower finds his ex-wife murdered and daughter kidnapped by a cult. Frustrated by the botched official investigations, he quits the force and infiltrates the cult to hunt down the leader with the help of the cult’s only female victim escapee, Case Hardin.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime

    Popcorn FlickMovies like this
  19. Dead Man Down (2013)

    In New York City, a crime lord's right-hand man is seduced by a woman seeking retribution.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime

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  20. The Public Eye (1992)

    A crime photographer gets involved in a conspiracy.

    Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime

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Like The Hotel of the Absent and something else?

Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best movies like The Hotel of the Absent?

The closest matches to The Hotel of the Absent are The Limits of Control (2009), All the Devils Are Here (2025) and The Blue Gardenia (1953). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.

What should I watch after The Hotel of the Absent?

Start with The Limits of Control (2009), the closest match to The Hotel of the Absent.

What is the highest-rated movie like The Hotel of the Absent?

The Girl in the Fog (2017), rated 6.8/10 by 1,102 TMDB users.

What is the newest movie like The Hotel of the Absent?

All the Devils Are Here (2025) is the most recent release on this list.

Are there Italian movies like The Hotel of the Absent?

Yes: The Girl in the Fog (2017) and What Have They Done to Your Daughters? (1974).

How are movies similar to The Hotel of the Absent chosen?

First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside The Hotel of the Absent, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.

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