MesmeroWatch list, 0 saved

Movie
Poster for Detective Story

Detective Story

1951 · 103 min

A taut, claustrophobic day in a police station that tightens like a vise around one man's rigid morality.

Tagline
The love story of a man whose wife was more woman than angel!
Overview
Tells the story of one day in the lives of the various people who populate a police detective squad. An embittered cop, Det. Jim McLeod, leads a precinct of characters in their grim daily battle with the city's lowlife. The characters who pass through the precinct over the course of the day include a young petty embezzler, a pair of burglars, and a naive shoplifter.

Search YouTube for the trailer

Rent or buy in the UK
  • Apple TV Store
  • Amazon Video
  • Sky Store
More options Data from JustWatch
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 3 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 2 of 3
  • earneststrength 1 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • justice
  • morality
  • obsession
  • betrayal
  • guilt
Places
  • workplace
  • big city
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • ensemble
  • single location
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action3
Horror2
Humour2
Realism7
Romance3
Tension7
Darkness8
Complexity6
Emotional weight8

More like this

Titles like Detective Story

Movie

Where the Sidewalk Ends

1950

A tense, shadowy descent into guilt and cover-up, where every choice tightens the screw.

Dark, tense · about justice and obsession

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • justice
  • obsession
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
95 min
Details In your watch list
Where the Sidewalk EndsHidden from your suggestions.
TV series

Perry Mason

1957–1966

A steady, talky courtroom puzzle that rewards patience, building quiet suspense until the satisfying reveal and a wry closing joke.

Tense · about justice and morality

Via
  • tense
  • justice
  • morality
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Seasons
9
Details In your watch list
Perry MasonHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

High and Low

1963

A slow-burning moral thriller that moves from a tense domestic standoff to a meticulous police procedural, ending on a haunting note of class resentment.

Dark, tense · about justice and morality

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • justice
  • morality
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
142 min
Details In your watch list
High and LowHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Letter

1940

A slow-burning, atmospheric noir that tightens like a noose, with a chilling central performance and a fatalistic pull.

Same director: William Wyler · Dark, tense · about justice and betrayal

Also
Same director: William Wyler
Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • justice
  • betrayal
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
95 min
Details In your watch list
The LetterHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Seven

1995

A grimy, rain-soaked descent into human depravity that leaves you tense, unsettled and quietly devastated long after it ends.

Dark, tense · about morality and obsession

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • morality
  • obsession
Pacing
measured
Attention
demanding
Runtime
127 min
Details In your watch list
SevenHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Heat

1995

A cool, controlled crime epic that builds tension through meticulous detail and quiet character moments, culminating in explosive set pieces and a haunting sense of inevitability.

Dark, tense · about obsession and betrayal · ensemble

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • obsession
  • betrayal
  • ensemble
Pacing
measured
Attention
demanding
Runtime
170 min
Details In your watch list
HeatHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Blue Dahlia

1946

A moody, rain-slicked noir that keeps you guessing, with sharp dialogue and a brooding sense of doom.

Dark, tense · about justice and obsession

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • justice
  • obsession
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
99 min
Details In your watch list
The Blue DahliaHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

I Confess

1953

A morally anguished thriller that tightens like a vise, balancing spiritual crisis with suspenseful set pieces and a brooding atmosphere.

Dark, tense · about justice and morality

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • justice
  • morality
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
95 min
Details In your watch list
I ConfessHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Insomnia

2002

A slow, suffocating descent into guilt and sleeplessness, where endless daylight and moral compromise blur together.

Dark, tense · about justice and morality

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • justice
  • morality
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Runtime
118 min
Details In your watch list
InsomniaHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Big Combo

1955

A shadowy, obsessive noir that tightens like a vise, with brutal bursts and a fog-drenched finale.

Same writer: Philip Yordan · Dark, tense · about obsession and betrayal

Also
Same writer: Philip Yordan
Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • obsession
  • betrayal
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
88 min
Details In your watch list
The Big ComboHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Detective

1968

A gritty, morally complex procedural that feels heavy with institutional corruption and personal guilt, unfolding at a deliberate pace.

Dark, tense · about morality and betrayal

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • morality
  • betrayal
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
114 min
Details In your watch list
The DetectiveHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Double Indemnity

1944

A sleek, shadowy descent into temptation and betrayal, told with sharp wit and mounting dread.

Dark, tense · about obsession and betrayal · single location

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • obsession
  • betrayal
  • single location
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
107 min
Details In your watch list
Double IndemnityHidden from your suggestions.

Where to watch in the UK

Rent or buy
  • Apple TV Store
  • Amazon Video
  • Sky Store
  • YouTube

Streaming data from JustWatch.All options on TMDB

Details

Genres
crime, drama
Directed by
William Wyler
Written by
Philip Yordan, Robert Wyler
Starring
Kirk Douglas, Eleanor Parker, William Bendix, Cathy O'Donnell, George Macready, Horace McMahon, Gladys George, Joseph Wiseman
Cinematography
Lee Garmes
Runtime
103 min
Country
United States of America
Languages
English

TMDBIMDbLetterboxdWikipediaWikidata

Something wrong on this page? Tell us.