Movies like Murder by the Book (1987)
The best movies like Murder by the Book (1987) are Song of the Thin Man (1947), Another Thin Man (1939) and LaRoy, Texas (2024). If Murder by the Book hooked you with its comedy and crime, these 30 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedThe Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013)7.9/10 from 1,096 votes
- NewestLaRoy, Texas (2024)Released 2024
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 comedy & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAnother Thin Man (1939)
Nick and Nora Charles are back - and this time, they have a baby, a wealthy new client, and another murder to solve! Retired detective Nick is enjoying family life with Nora and their young son, Nick Jr., when eccentric industrialist Colonel MacFay asks for protection after receiving threatening messages. When MacFay is found dead at his isolated estate, Nick and Nora spring into action, questioning a houseful of suspicious guests and uncovering greed, blackmail, family secrets, and a dangerous inheritance plot. With their trademark wit and sophistication, the glamorous couple balances parenthood, parties, and peril as they race to expose the killer.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisLaRoy, Texas (2024)
Broke and depressed, Ray is mistaken for a dangerous hitman and given an envelope of cash. Along with his P.I. friend Skip, he must escape the actual hitman to make it out of LaRoy alive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & comedy
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Glass Key (1942)
A crooked politician finds himself being accused of murder by a gangster from whom he refused help during a re-election campaign.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both crime & mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisShadow of the Thin Man (1941)
While attending a major horse race with their young son, Nick Jr., Nick and Nora Charles witnesse a shocking murder from the crowded grandstand. What first appears to be an isolated killing soon leads to a maze of corruption, blackmail, gambling scandals, and criminal intrigue. As Nick investigates, he encounters suspicious bookmakers, dishonest officials, rival gangsters, and a mysterious killer determined to stay ahead of the law. Nora, as always, is never far from the action, bringing her quick wit and fearless curiosity to the case.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBlack Angel (1946)
A falsely convicted man's wife, Catherine, and an alcoholic composer and pianist, Martin, team up in an attempt to clear her husband of the murder of a blonde singer, who is Martin's wife.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisLady in the Lake (1946)
Private eye Phillip Marlowe wants to get out of the detective racket and into crime writing. But when he's called to the office of editor Adrienne Fromsett, it's not to talk about his story ideas — she wants him to locate the missing wife of her boss, Mr. Kingsby. The assignment quickly becomes complicated when bodies start turning up.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDeathtrap (1982)
A Broadway playwright puts murder in his plan to take credit for a student's script.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHailey Dean Mysteries: Deadly Estate (2017)
When Hailey helps her friend Pam sell her recently deceased parent’s estate, she becomes suspicious when Pam suddenly leaves town without notice. To make matters worse, Pam's boyfriend is the sudden victim of an accident and the man Hailey's dating, Assistant Medical Examiner Dr. Jonas McClellan, falls critically ill. Now Hailey must determine: Are all these events a coincidence?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Thin Man Goes Home (1944)
Hoping for a peaceful visit with his parents in the small town of Sycamore Springs, Nick Charles and his wife Nora soon find themselves surrounded by old rivalries, family tensions, and a mysterious murder. Nick’s father, a respected retired doctor, would much rather see his son give up detective work, but a suspicious shooting quickly draws Nick back into action. As Nick and Nora investigate, they uncover jealousy, deception, hidden motives, and a dangerous secret involving the town’s prominent citizens.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe 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
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisHailey Dean Mysteries: Murder, With Love (2016)
Former prosecutor-turned-therapist Hailey Dean is a powerhouse, Mensa bright, and acutely observant. During a tragic week, one of her patients loses her parents to separate fatal accidents along with millions of dollars that has seemingly vanished into thin air. When the police begin to question Hailey's patient, shes knows she is innocent. But who is the culprit?
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
When the bumbling Lieutenant Frank Drebin investigates events following the shooting of his partner, he stumbles upon an attempt to assassinate Queen Elizabeth II.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013)
While trying to prove to her family she can be mature and responsible, teen wizard Alex Russo conjures up a spell to rid herself of her bad qualities, unintentionally creating a Good and Evil Alex. When Evil Alex gets involved in a plan to take over the world by a dark wizard, Good Alex must find a way to save her family, humankind, and ultimately herself in an epic Good vs. Evil battle.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Absolute CinemaMovies like thisGarage Sale Mystery: All That Glitters (2014)
When her friend Martin turns up murdered just hours after auctioning off an abandoned storage unit full of unique items to Jennifer, she is immediately pulled on the case as a key eyewitness. Working with Detective Lynwood, Jennifer helps single out a disgruntled customer as the prime suspect, while she and her business partner, Danielle, sift through boxes from the auction.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Green Man (1956)
Unknown to everyone but his shady Middle Eastern bosses, watchmaker Hawkins is actually a professional hired assassin with a predilection for killing his targets with bombs. After disposing of a dictator and millionaire, Hawkins is assigned to kill a politician who is heading to a remote hotel, The Green Man, for a secret tryst with his secretary. There, however, Hawkins' plot is discovered by vacuum salesman William Blake, who determines to stop him.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & crime
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSee Spot Run (2001)
A drug sniffing agent canine is a target for an assassin boss so the FBI calls Witness Protection to send him somewhere else. Meanwhile a single Mom puts her 6 year old boy James in the care of her irresponsible, mailman, neighbor, Gordon, when the babysitter bails on her. Meanwhile, an assassin mob boss hires 2 goons to kill Agent 11. But when 11 escapes from the van when they tried to kill him, he hides in Gordon's Mailtruck that James is in too. And guess what they name him. Spot.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisGarage Sale Mystery: The Novel Murders (2016)
When Jennifer makes a home delivery for a customer, she finds the recipient has been murdered. She soon realizes that the victim's cold-blooded demise is a re-enactment of a murder in a classic mystery novel.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both mystery
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNate Bargatze: The Greatest Average American (2021)
Nate Bargatze touches on Zoom comedy shows, losing his phone, hotel breakfast fails, animal caddies, new math and much more in this special.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThe Pink Panther Strikes Again (1976)
Charles Dreyfus, who has finally cracked over inspector Clouseau's antics, escapes from a mental institution and launches an elaborate plan to get rid of Clouseau once and for all.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers · both comedy & crime
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisEvidence of Blood (1998)
When a brilliant crime writer investigates a 40-year-old murder, he confronts a small town's worst fears.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery & thriller
Duel (1971)
Traveling businessman David Mann angers the driver of a rusty tanker while crossing the California desert. A simple trip turns deadly, as Mann struggles to stay on the road while the tanker plays cat and mouse with his life.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
Worth the HypeMovies like thisWoman on the Run (2017)
After surviving an attempt on her life, a reclusive mystery author discovers that her nanny has stolen her identity, forcing her to go to extreme lengths to get her children back.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both thriller
Los cómplices del infierno (1995)
Sandra and Deborah are two women trying to escape from a tragic recent event. They go for a vacation on a beach house but are then followed by an evil cult.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & mystery
Budugu (2015)
Vamsi Krishna suffers from ADHD and therefore suffers miserably at school life. Due to his lack of performance in class and deviltry issues, he is constantly nagged by his parents. His studding mother Pooja spends time over his betterment but couldn’t comply with the difficulties of coping with a ADHD child since she has no clue what Bunny aka. Vamsi was going through. One fine day, parents decide to send him to boarding, thinking this to be the only viable option available for his improvement. And that’s where Bunny starts getting abnormal and starts getting connected to Diya. Who is Diya? Why did Parents consult a Psychiatrist Geetha? What happens next forms the rest of the story line.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery & thriller
Scooby-Doo! in Arabian Nights (1994)
Scooby-Doo and Shaggy travel to Arabia to become the Caliph's Royal Food Tasters. But they bite off more than they can chew and are forced to run for their lives! It's a wild magic carpet ride as Scooby-Doo, Shaggy and their genie (Yogi Bear) and a jolly sailor named Sinbad (Magilla Gorilla) take you on an adventure of mistaken identities, exotic locations and fun-filled action and surprises!
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery
Worth the HypeMovies like thisThree Days Later (2021)
A dystopian, post-modern retelling of the Easter story.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both crime & thriller
Secret Window (2004)
Mort Rainey, a writer just emerging from a painful divorce with his ex-wife, is stalked at his remote lake house by a psychotic stranger and would-be scribe who claims Rainey swiped his best story idea. But as Rainey endeavors to prove his innocence, he begins to question his own sanity.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both mystery & thriller
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Happiness Playbook (2023)
Journalist Amy goes undercover at a happiness retreat run by the handsome Paul. Sparks fly between the two, but when Amy learns Paul is secretly the son of a wealthy investor, she must choose between a career-making story or her growing feelings for Paul.
Why it matches: Similar story and style · both comedy
The Marvelous Land of Oz (1981)
The Marvelous Land of Oz is a 1981 musical play by Thomas W. Olson, Gary Briggle, and Richard Dworsky, based on the 1904 novel by L. Frank Baum. Not long after the events in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, a young boy named Tip is the unhappy servant of Old Mombi, a wicked Sorceress in the Land of the Gillikans (in the north of Oz). One day Tip escapes, after creating a walking stick figure with a jack-o-lantern head named Jack Pumpkinhead with a magic Powder of Life stolen from the witch. He goes to the Emerald City, now ruled by the Scarecrow, but unfortunately, a female Army of Revolt, 400 strong and led by General Jinjur, captures the city. The Scarecrow, Tip, Jack, and some other oddball characters flee the city and head west to the land of the Winkies, now ruled by the Scarecrow's old friend the Tin Woodman. They must recapture the Emerald City, defeat Old Mombi (who allies herself with Jinjur), and most of all, discover the true secret of unassuming young Tip.
Why it matches: Similar story and style
Like Murder by the Book and something else?
Blend two favourites and we’ll find the films in between.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Murder by the Book?
The closest matches to Murder by the Book are Song of the Thin Man (1947), Another Thin Man (1939) and LaRoy, Texas (2024). Below are 27 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Murder by the Book?
Start with Song of the Thin Man (1947), the closest match to Murder by the Book.
What is the highest-rated movie like Murder by the Book?
The Wizards Return: Alex vs. Alex (2013), rated 7.9/10 by 1,096 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Murder by the Book?
LaRoy, Texas (2024) is the most recent release on this list.
Are there English movies like Murder by the Book?
Yes: Song of the Thin Man (1947), Another Thin Man (1939) and LaRoy, Texas (2024).
How are movies similar to Murder by the Book chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Murder by the Book, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.