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Detour poster

Movies that feel likeDetour (1945)

The life of Al Roberts, a pianist in a New York nightclub, turns into a nightmare when he decides to hitchhike to Los Angeles to visit his girlfriend.

If you loved Detour, the closest films we have are Odd Man Out (1947), Blast of Silence (1961) and Killer's Kiss (1955). All three share Detour's contemplative and tense feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Odds Against Tomorrow (1959).

πŸ… 98% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.3 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Edgar G. Ulmercontemplativetenseatmospheric
8 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max Β· Amazon Prime Video Β· Criterion Channel

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If Detour hit the spot, these will too

Odd Man Out poster
Odd Man Out
1947 Β· dir. Carol Reed
πŸ… 100%β˜… 7.6crime Β· drama Β· thrillerMax

Both are built on the same subject: film noir

The difference: Leans harder into crime than Detour does

Belfast police conduct a door-to-door manhunt for an IRA gunman wounded in a daring robbery.

Blast of Silence poster
Blast of Silence
1961 Β· dir. Allen Baron
πŸ… 83%β˜… 7.4crime Β· drama Β· thriller

Both keep coming back to the same thing: film noir

A hired killer from Cleveland has a job to do on a second-string mob boss in New York. But a special girl from his past and a fat gun dealer with pet rats get in his way.

Killer's Kiss poster
Killer's Kiss
1955 Β· dir. Stanley Kubrick
πŸ… 83%β˜… 6.5thriller Β· crime Β· dramaPrime Video

The same mix in both: stillness, then tension

Davey Gordon, a New York City boxer at the end of his career, falls for dancer Gloria Price. However, their budding relationship is interrupted by Gloria's violent boss, Vincent Rapallo, who has eyes for Gloria. The two decide to skip town, but before they can, Vincent and his thugs abduct Gloria, and Davey is forced to search for her among the most squalid corners of the city, with his enemy hiding in the shadows.

Criss Cross poster
Criss Cross
1949 Β· dir. Robert Siodmak
πŸ… 86%β˜… 7.4crime Β· thriller

Both lean on atmosphere more than on thriller

The difference: Takes it somewhere less contemplative than Detour does

An armored-car guard must join a robbery after being caught with his ex-wife by her gangster husband.

High Sierra poster
High Sierra
1941 Β· dir. Raoul Walsh
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.5crime Β· drama Β· action

Drama built on stillness, twice over

Given a pardon from jail, Roy Earle gets back into the swing of things as he robs a swanky resort.

The Big Clock poster
The Big Clock
1948 Β· dir. John Farrow
πŸ… 100%β˜… 7.6crime Β· thriller

Tense thriller in both cases

George Stroud, a crime magazine's crusading editor, has to postpone a vacation with his wife - again - when a glamorous blonde is murdered and he is assigned by his publishing boss to find the killer. As the investigation proceeds to its conclusion, Stroud must try to disrupt his ordinarily brilliant investigative team as they increasingly build evidence that he is the killer.

Leave Her to Heaven poster
Leave Her to Heaven
1945 Β· dir. John M. Stahl
πŸ… 85%β˜… 7.6drama Β· thriller Β· romance

Atmospheric drama, and it commits to that

A socialite marries a prominent novelist, which spurs a violent, obsessive, and dangerous jealousy in her.

Odds Against Tomorrow poster
Odds Against Tomorrow
1959 Β· dir. Robert Wise
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.4crime Β· drama Β· thriller

Drama with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

An old-time crook plans a heist. When one of his two partners is found out to be a black man tensions flare.

Shoot the Piano Player poster
Shoot the Piano Player
1960 Β· dir. FranΓ§ois Truffaut
πŸ… 90%β˜… 7.4drama Β· thriller Β· crimeMax

Thriller built on tension, twice over

Charlie is a former classical pianist who has changed his name and now plays jazz in a grimy Paris bar. When Charlie's brothers, Richard and Chico, surface and ask for Charlie's help while on the run from gangsters they have scammed, he aids their escape. Soon Charlie and Lena, a waitress at the same bar, face trouble when the gangsters arrive, looking for his brothers.

The Woman in the Window poster
The Woman in the Window
1944 Β· dir. Fritz Lang
πŸ… 83%β˜… 7.6crime Β· drama Β· thrillerPrime Video

Both run atmospheric where it counts

A seductive woman gets an innocent professor mixed up in murder.

Sweet Smell of Success poster
Sweet Smell of Success
1957 Β· dir. Alexander Mackendrick
πŸ… 98%β˜… 8dramaPrime Video

Both play drama straight

New York City newspaper writer J.J. Hunsecker holds considerable sway over public opinion with his Broadway column, but one thing that he can't control is his younger sister, Susan, who is in a relationship with aspiring jazz guitarist Steve Dallas. Hunsecker strongly disapproves of the romance and recruits publicist Sidney Falco to find a way to split the couple, no matter how ruthless the method.

White Heat poster
White Heat
1949 Β· dir. Raoul Walsh
πŸ… 94%β˜… 8.1crime Β· drama Β· thriller

Thriller of the same temperament

A psychopathic criminal with a mother complex makes a daring break from prison and then leads his old gang in a chemical plant payroll heist. After the heist, events take a crazy turn.

In the mood for more contemplative?

all contemplative movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share Detour’s defining feeling.