Movies like Playing with Fire (1985)
The best movies like Playing with Fire (1985) are Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Haunted By Murder (2022), Flower Shop Mystery: Snipped in the Bud (2016) and Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: The Disappearing Game (2018). If Playing with Fire hooked you with its tv movie and crime, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedGirl in the Basement (2021)7.6/10 from 912 votes
- NewestBuquí (2024)Released 2024
Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Haunted By Murder (2022)
A murder investigation is reignited in a house that is considered haunted by the Lawrenceton locals and where years ago Aurora and Sally, as teenagers, discovered a body.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFlower Shop Mystery: Snipped in the Bud (2016)
Former attorney-turned-small-town-florist, Abby Knight, has a nose for sleuthing, quickly embroiled in a murder investigation, grateful for the help when she teams with retired private eye, Marco Salvare, who now owns a local bar and grill.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAurora Teagarden Mysteries: The Disappearing Game (2018)
Crime-solving librarian Aurora Teagarden leaps headfirst into Lawrenceton’s latest murder investigation when her nephew Phillip and his college roommate go missing after the roommate’s girlfriend is found dead. Enlisting the help of her Real Murders pals, and the handsome college professor Nick Miller who just moved in across the street from her, Roe uncovers a kidnapping plot gone awry.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisCrossword Mysteries: Riddle Me Dead (2021)
Tess gets invited to be a part of a popular game show, but when the host is unexpectedly murdered, she and Detective Logan O'Connor seek to uncover who was behind it all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAurora Teagarden Mysteries: Reunited and It Feels So Deadly (2020)
Aurora's high school reunion turns deadly when a body is found in the hotel pool. Aurora and her Real Murders Club help investigate which classmate was most likely to kill.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisMiss Marple: The Murder at the Vicarage (1986)
Faced with two false confessions and numerous suspects after a despised civil magistrate is found shot in the local vicarage, Detective Inspector Slack reluctantly accepts help from Miss Marple.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRay Donovan: The Movie (2022)
A showdown decades in the making brings the Donovan family legacy full circle. As the events that made Ray who he is today finally come to light, the Donovans find themselves drawn back to Boston to face the past. Each of them struggles to overcome their violent upbringing, but destiny dies hard, and only their fierce love for each other keeps them in the fight.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisRed Riding: The Year of Our Lord 1983 (2009)
Detective Chief Superintendent Maurice Jobson is forced to remember the very similar disappearance of Clare Kemplay, who was found dead in 1974, and the subsequent imprisonment of local boy Michael Myshkin. Washed-up local solicitor John Piggott becomes convinced of Myshkin's innocence and begins to fight on his behalf, unwittingly providing a catalyst for Jobson to start to right some wrongs.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGirl in the Basement (2021)
Sara is a teen girl who is looking forward to her 18th birthday to move away from her controlling father Don. But before she could even blow out the candles, Don imprisons her in the basement of their home.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAurora Teagarden Mysteries: How to Con A Con (2021)
When Aida Teagarden's real estate client is found murdered, her sleuthing daughter Aurora sets out with her fiancé Nick and the Real Murders Club to solve the murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisGarage Sale Mystery (2013)
Jennifer Shannon can always find a diamond in the rough, when it comes to garage sales, that is. Whether it's a new antique to sell at her consignment shop, an Atari game for her son or a piece of furniture for her handy husband Jason to refurbish, she has made a career out of her treasure hunting prowess. When a string of burglaries hits her town, Jennifer's keen eye for detail and her natural problem solving instincts even help her see the connection between these burglaries and local garage sales! Jennifer works with Detective Adam Iverson to investigate her theory that the perpetrators of the burglaries are fellow garage sale regulars. The case escalates to dangerous levels when Jennifer discovers the dead body of her friend. Even though the deceased's husband, Ben Douglas, finds nothing missing in their house, and the police label the death as accidental, Jennifer suspects that the death may be related to the burglaries.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBackdraft (1991)
Two feuding siblings carrying on a heroic family tradition as Chicago firefighters. But when a puzzling series of arson attacks is reported, they are forced to set aside their differences to solve the mystery surrounding these crimes.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLocke & Key (2011)
Three children become the caretakers of a New England mansion that is home to a bevy of secrets and magic.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBackdraft 2 (2019)
Years after the original Backdraft, Sean, son of the late Steve "Bull" McCaffrey, is assigned to investigate a deadly fire only to realize it is something much more sinister.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAurora Teagarden Mysteries: Til Death Do Us Part (2021)
Just days before Aurora’s wedding, a body is discovered, and she fears her father may be a suspect. She and Nick race to solve the cold case before they walk down the aisle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSeeds of Yesterday (2015)
The Sheffield family reveal and go through some home truths as their middle child inherits the Foxworth mansion. The family's ghosts looming over, and more tragedies are in store as the curse lives on.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCrossword Mysteries: Proposing Murder (2019)
When an old friend of New York Sentinel Crosswords editor Tess Harper is found murdered on the very day her puzzle includes his proposal of marriage, Tess unofficially teams up with Detective Logan O’Connor to find the killer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisAurora Teagarden Mysteries: Heist and Seek (2020)
When a priceless crown is stolen during a benefit gala held by the Lawrenceton library, Aurora and the Real Murders Club must investigate who would kill to get their hands on it.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisChronicle Mysteries: Vines that Bind (2019)
The latest edition of Alex McPherson’s true crime podcast leads her and most of the Chronicle staff to nearby Macklin, where they investigate the death of a vintner that was ruled an accident by the local police.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisThe Substitute 2: School's Out (1998)
When teacher Randall Thomasson is killed during a carjacking, an unexpected visitor shows up at his funeral - his estranged brother, Karl Thomasson. An ex-Green Beret turned mercenary, Karl signs on as a new substitute teacher in order to investigate Randall's murder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSatan in the Suburbs (2000)
Satan in the Suburbs tells the shocking story of a grisly ritualistic murder in the quiet bedroom community of Northport, Long Island in the summer of 1984. The killing, it soon emerged, was linked to a teen satanic cult. Perhaps more disturbing than the details of the murder itself was the revelation of a conspiracy of silence among the town's teenagers, many of whom had been aware of the, e killing in the two weeks before an anonymous call finally tipped off local police. 17- year-old Ricky Kasso was arrested and confessed to the crime; five days later, he hung himself in his holding cell. Kasso's friend Jimmy Troiano also. confessed, but was acquitted after jurors learned that he was beaten by local police. The murder shocked the local community and reverberated nationally, with some uninformed observers rushing to scapegoat rock music as the cause.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Trial by Fire (2019)
The tragic and controversial story of Cameron Todd Willingham, who was executed in Texas for killing his three children after scientific evidence and expert testimony that bolstered his claims of innocence were suppressed.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisDeath of a Salesman: A DELTARUNE Short FIlm (2024)
What happens when a deal gone wrong turns into a matter of life and death? Can bygones stay by-gone, or will they go up in flames?
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama & crime
The Unholy Three (1930)
A trio of former sideshow performers double as the "Unholy Three" in a scam to nab some shiny rocks.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & drama
Savage Fire (2017)
In the city of Cajamar, in the middle of ruined nature, lonely characters deal with the police, rodeos and mysterious fires.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
The Vourdalak (2023)
The Marquis d’Urfé finds refuge in the home of a strange family after becoming lost in a hostile forest while working as an emissary for the King of France.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Nines (2007)
A troubled actor, a television show runner, and an acclaimed videogame designer find their lives intertwining in mysterious and unsettling ways.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisYou the Rich (1948)
Pepe el Toro is married to Celia la Chorreada and they have two children.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Worth the HypeMovies like thisOut of the Fog (1941)
A Brooklyn pier racketeer bullies boat-owners into paying protection money but two fed-up fishermen decide to eliminate the gangster themselves rather than complain to the police.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBuquí (2024)
Manuel, a young Dominican chef, has the opportunity to fulfill his dream when a businesswoman asks him for a dish that will impress her. But, he has to deal with his inner voice that torments him in order to make it.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both drama
Like Playing with Fire and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Playing with Fire?
The closest matches to Playing with Fire are Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Haunted By Murder (2022), Flower Shop Mystery: Snipped in the Bud (2016) and Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: The Disappearing Game (2018). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Playing with Fire?
Start with Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Haunted By Murder (2022), the closest match to Playing with Fire.
What is the highest-rated movie like Playing with Fire?
Girl in the Basement (2021), rated 7.6/10 by 912 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Playing with Fire?
Buquí (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Playing with Fire?
Yes: Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: Haunted By Murder (2022), Flower Shop Mystery: Snipped in the Bud (2016) and Aurora Teagarden Mysteries: The Disappearing Game (2018).
How are movies similar to Playing with Fire chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Playing with Fire, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.