● Trending in the US
MOVIEPIQ · MYSTERY · CURATED LIST

Best Mystery Movies After A Breakup From The 2000S That Will Make You Cry

These mystery picks were hand-selected for after a breakup, not pulled from a popularity chart. Every pick is chosen for emotional and situational fit, not streaming popularity or critic scores.

The best mystery movies after a breakup from the 2000s that will make you cry. Includes Oldboy, The Prestige, Memento and more - curated by Moviepiq.

The best films to watch after a breakup are the ones that make you forget, then make you feel something that has nothing to do with what just happened.

Looking back, the 2000s were a golden era for this kind of filmmaking - studios still willing to fund serious work, directors still pushing at the edges of what was expected.

The best mystery films do something no other genre can: they make you a detective without leaving your seat.

Oldboy movie poster
1
2003 · ★★★★☆ 8.2/10

With no clue how he came to be imprisoned, drugged and tortured for 15 years, a desperate man seeks revenge on his captors.

The Prestige movie poster
2
2006 · ★★★★☆ 8.2/10

A mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy -- full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.

Memento movie poster
3
2000 · ★★★★☆ 8.2/10

Leonard Shelby is tracking down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The difficulty of locating his wife's killer, however, is compounded by the fact that he suffers from a rare, untreatable form of short-term memory loss. Although he can recall details of life before his accident, Leonard cannot remember what happened fifteen minutes ago, where he's going, or why.

The Secret in Their Eyes movie poster
4
2009 · ★★★★☆ 8.0/10

Hoping to put to rest years of unease concerning a past case, retired criminal investigator Benjamín begins writing a novel based on the unsolved mystery of a newlywed's rape and murder. With the help of a former colleague, judge Irene, he attempts to make sense of the past.

Infernal Affairs movie poster
5
2002 · ★★★½☆ 7.8/10

Chan Wing Yan, a young police officer, has been sent undercover as a mole in the local mafia. Lau Kin Ming, a young mafia member, infiltrates the police force. Years later, their older counterparts, Chen Wing Yan and Inspector Lau Kin Ming, respectively, race against time to expose the mole within their midst.

A great mystery never cheats. These films play fair - which makes it all the more impressive when they still manage to surprise you.

Mulholland Drive movie poster
6
2001 · ★★★½☆ 7.8/10

Blonde Betty Elms has only just arrived in Hollywood to become a movie star when she meets an enigmatic brunette with amnesia. Meanwhile, as the two set off to solve the second woman's identity, filmmaker Adam Kesher runs into ominous trouble while casting his latest project.

Donnie Darko movie poster
7
2001 · ★★★½☆ 7.8/10

After narrowly escaping a bizarre accident, a troubled teenager is plagued by visions of a large bunny rabbit that manipulates him to commit a series of crimes.

Mystic River movie poster
8
2003 · ★★★½☆ 7.7/10

The lives of three men who were childhood friends are shattered when one of them suffers a family tragedy.

Mother movie poster
9
2009 · ★★★½☆ 7.7/10

A mother lives quietly with her son. One day, a girl is brutally killed, and the boy is charged with the murder. Now, it's his mother's mission to prove him innocent.

The Others movie poster
10
2001 · ★★★½☆ 7.6/10

Grace is a woman who lives in an old house kept dark because her two children, Anne and Nicholas, have a rare sensitivity to light. When the family begins to suspect the house is haunted, Grace fights to protect her children at any cost in the face of strange events and disturbing visions.

A film earns your tears by making you believe in its characters first. These films do that work thoroughly, then use it.

Few things are more satisfying than a mystery that respects your intelligence, plants its clues fairly, and still manages to surprise you.

From the Blog

READ Movies With Plot Twists Worth Rewinding
READ Movies When You Just Got Dumped
READ Movies When You're Bored & Tired

You Might Also Like

ENERGY Mystery Movies after A Long Week
MINDSTATE Mystery Movies overstimulated Brain
GENRE Animation Movies after A Breakup
DEEPER Cant Sleep 3am
EDITORIAL Movies With Plot Twists Worth Rewinding
Tell us one film you love - we'll find your next one.TRY IT