A first date movie needs to do several things at once: be engaging enough to talk about, not so intense it kills the mood, and ideally leave you both with something to say when the credits roll.
Mystery cinema works because it turns passive watching into active thinking. Every frame is a question.
The lives of three men who were childhood friends are shattered when one of them suffers a family tragedy.
Batman has not been seen for ten years. A new breed of criminal ravages Gotham City, forcing 55-year-old Bruce Wayne back into the cape and cowl. But, does he still have what it takes to fight crime in a new era?
In order to help bring Nazis to justice, U.S. government agent T.R. Devlin recruits Alicia Huberman, the American daughter of a convicted German war criminal, as a spy. As they begin to fall for one another, Alicia is instructed to win the affections of Alexander Sebastian, a Nazi hiding out in Brazil. When Sebastian becomes serious about his relationship with Alicia, the stakes get higher, and Devlin must watch her slip further undercover.
An English pianist living in Rome witnesses the brutal murder of his psychic neighbor. With the help of a tenacious young reporter, he tries to discover the killer using very unconventional methods. The two are soon drawn into a shocking web of dementia and violence.
In the ruins of a strange city, a young girl takes care of a large egg she holds carefully in her arms. She bonds with a boy who is searching for a bird he saw in a dream.
A great mystery never cheats. These films play fair - which makes it all the more impressive when they still manage to surprise you.
A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.
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.
A man who loves games and theatre invites his wife's lover to meet, setting up a battle of wits with potentially deadly results.
Two FBI agents investigating the murder of civil rights workers during the 60s seek to breach the conspiracy of silence in a small Southern town where segregation divides black and white. The younger agent trained in FBI school runs up against the small town ways of his partner, a former sheriff.
After going their separate ways, Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, Velma, Daphne, and Fred reunite to investigate the ghost of Moonscar the pirate on a haunted bayou island, but it turns out the swashbuckler's spirit isn't the only creepy character on the island. The sleuths also meet up with cat creatures and zombies... and it looks like for the first time in their lives, these ghouls might actually be real.
These are films that earn their laughs - not through cheap gags, but through character, timing, and an understanding of what actually makes people laugh.
The best mystery films send you back to the beginning the moment they end. You want to watch them again knowing what you know.