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The 39 Steps poster

Movies that feel likeThe 39 Steps (1935)

Richard Hanney has a rude awakening when a glamorous female spy falls into his bed - with a knife in her back. Having a bit of trouble explaining it all to Scotland Yard, he heads for the hills of Scotland to try to clear his name by locating the spy ring known as The 39 Steps.

If you loved The 39 Steps, the closest films we have are The Lady Vanishes (1938), Shadow of a Doubt (1943) and Foreign Correspondent (1940). All three share The 39 Steps' twisty and tense feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Young and Innocent (1937).

🍅 96% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.6 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Alfred Hitchcocktwistytenseparanoidatmospheric
10 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max · Amazon Prime Video · Criterion Channel

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If The 39 Steps hit the spot, these will too

The Lady Vanishes poster
The Lady Vanishes
1938 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 98%★ 7.7mystery · thrillerMax

Alfred Hitchcock working the same nerve twice

The difference: Takes it somewhere less atmospheric than The 39 Steps does

On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country, young Iris befriends elderly Miss Froy. When the train resumes, Iris suffers a bout of unconsciousness and wakes to find the old woman has disappeared. The other passengers ominously deny Miss Froy ever existed, so Iris begins to investigate with another traveler and, as the pair sleuth, romantic sparks fly.

Shadow of a Doubt poster
Shadow of a Doubt
1943 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 100%★ 7.8thriller · mystery · crime

Alfred Hitchcock directing both, with the same fingerprints on each

The difference: Trades the paranoia of The 39 Steps for an angle of its own

In sleepy Santa Rosa, restless young Charlie’s world brightens when her sophisticated Uncle Charlie arrives for a long visit. But as his behavior grows increasingly strange, she begins to suspect that her beloved uncle may be hiding a terrible secret—and that danger has quietly entered her home.

Foreign Correspondent poster
Foreign Correspondent
1940 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 95%★ 7.4thriller · mystery · actionMax

Two things both keep coming back to: conspiracy and black and white

The difference: Sits closer to action than The 39 Steps does

American crime reporter John Jones is reassigned to Europe as a foreign correspondent to cover the imminent war. When he walks into the middle of an assassination and stumbles on a spy ring, he seeks help from a beautiful politician’s daughter and an urbane English journalist to uncover the truth.

The Man Who Knew Too Much poster
The Man Who Knew Too Much
1956 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 89%★ 7.4thriller · mystery · drama

Both are built on the same subject: scotland yard

The difference: Leans harder into drama than The 39 Steps does

An American doctor and his wife, a former singing star, witness a murder while vacationing in Morocco, and are drawn into a twisting plot of international intrigue when their young son is kidnapped.

Saboteur poster
Saboteur
1942 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 81%★ 7.1thriller · mystery

The same preoccupation in both: falsely accused

Aircraft factory worker Barry Kane flees across the United States after he is wrongly accused of starting the fire that killed his best friend.

The Man Who Knew Too Much poster
The Man Who Knew Too Much
1934 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 88%★ 6.7thriller · mysteryPrime VideoMax

One thread runs through both: murder

While vacationing in St. Moritz, a British couple receive a clue to an imminent assassination attempt, only to learn that their daughter has been kidnapped to keep them quiet.

Rebecca poster
Rebecca
1940 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 98%★ 8mystery · romance · thriller

Common ground: film noir

Story of a young woman who marries a fascinating widower only to find out that she must live in the shadow of his former wife, Rebecca, who died mysteriously several years earlier. The young wife must come to grips with the terrible secret of her handsome, cold husband, Max De Winter. She must also deal with the jealous, obsessed Mrs. Danvers, the housekeeper, who will not accept her as the mistress of the house.

Dark Passage poster
Dark Passage
1947 · dir. Delmer Daves
🍅 90%★ 7.5thriller · mystery

Both keep coming back to the same thing: film noir

A man convicted of murdering his wife escapes from prison and works with a woman to try and prove his innocence.

Young and Innocent poster
Young and Innocent
1937 · dir. Alfred Hitchcock
🍅 100%★ 6.8thriller · romance · mystery

Different title, same corner of the shelf

When a young writer is falsely accused of murdering a famous actress, he escapes custody and joins forces with the daughter of a police constable to prove his innocence.

The Third Man poster
The Third Man
1949 · dir. Carol Reed
🍅 99%★ 8.1thriller · mystery

Common ground: black and white

In postwar Vienna, Austria, Holly Martins, a writer of pulp Westerns, arrives penniless as a guest of his childhood chum Harry Lime, only to learn he has died. Martins develops a conspiracy theory after learning of a "third man" present at the time of Harry's death, running into interference from British officer Major Calloway, and falling head-over-heels for Harry's grief-stricken lover, Anna.

The Naked City poster
The Naked City
1948 · dir. Jules Dassin
🍅 85%★ 7.5crime · mystery · thrillerMax

Both land twists and tension at once

After a former model is drowned in her bathtub, Detective James Halloran and Lieutenant Dan Muldoon attempt to piece together her murder.

The Big Sleep poster
The Big Sleep
1946 · dir. Howard Hawks
🍅 96%★ 7.9mystery · crime · thriller

Mystery with a pulse of atmosphere, in both cases

Private Investigator Philip Marlowe is hired by wealthy General Sternwood regarding a matter involving his youngest daughter Carmen. Before the complex case is over, Marlowe sees murder, blackmail, deception, and what might be love.

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The best-reviewed films that share The 39 Steps’ defining feeling.