Movies Like Harper (1966)

Harper is a 1966 crime, mystery, thriller film from Jack Smight with a MovieMagicScore of 6.6/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with The Drowning Pool and The Big Sleep.

Crime Mystery Thriller

The Drowning Pool

1975

Harper is brought to Louisiana to investigate an attempted blackmail scheme. He soon finds out that it involves an old flame of his and her daughter. He eventually finds himself caught in a power struggle between the matriarch of the family and a greedy oil baron, who wants their property. Poor Harper! Things are not as straight-forward as they initially appeared.

6.3

MagicScore

The Big Sleep

1946

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.

7.6

MagicScore

Kiss the Girls

1997

Forensic psychologist and detective Alex Cross travels to North Carolina and teams with escaped kidnap victim Kate McTiernan to hunt down "Casanova," a serial killer who abducts strong-willed women and forces them to submit to his demands. The trail leads to Los Angeles, where the duo discovers that the psychopath may not be working alone.

6.5

MagicScore

Devil in a Blue Dress

1995

In late 1940s Los Angeles, Easy Rawlins is an unemployed black World War II veteran with few job prospects. At a bar, Easy meets DeWitt Albright, a mysterious white man looking for someone to investigate the disappearance of a missing white woman named Daphne Monet, who he suspects is hiding out in one of the city's black jazz clubs. Strapped for money and facing house payments, Easy takes the job, but soon finds himself in over his head.

6.5

MagicScore

Let's Be Cops

2014

Best pals Ryan and Justin are stalled in their respective careers -- a fact that is painfully driven home when they go to a college reunion. Dressed as police in the mistaken belief that they were to attend a costume party, Ryan and Justin find that the uniforms earn them much respect and attention. Although Justin is uncomfortable with the idea, Ryan decides to continue with the charade, putting them both in increasingly dangerous situations. When these newly-minted “heroes” get tangled in a real life web of mobsters and dirty detectives, they must put their fake badges on the line.

6.5

MagicScore

The Maltese Falcon

1941

A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.

7.7

MagicScore

After the Thin Man

1936

Nick and Nora Charles investigate when Nora's cousin reports her disreputable husband is missing, and find themselves in a mystery involving the shady owners of a popular nightclub, a singer and her dark brother, the cousin's forsaken true love, and Nora's bombastic and controlling aunt.

7.3

MagicScore

Angel Heart

1987

A down-and-out Brooklyn detective is hired to track down a singer on an odyssey that will take him through the desperate streets of Harlem, the smoke-filled jazz clubs of New Orleans, and the swamps of Louisiana and its seedy underworld of voodoo.

7.1

MagicScore

Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

1982

Juliet Forrest is convinced that the reported death of her father in a mountain car crash was no accident. Her father was a prominent cheese scientist working on a secret recipe. To prove it was murder, she enlists the services of private eye Rigby Reardon. He finds a slip of paper containing a list of people who are 'The Friends and Enemies of Carlotta'.

6.6

MagicScore

#10

Possession

1981

A young woman left her family for an unspecified reason. The husband determines to find out the truth and starts following his wife. At first, he suspects that a man is involved. But gradually, he finds out more and more strange behaviors and bizarre incidents that indicate something more than a possessed love affair.

7.3

MagicScore

#11

8 Million Ways to Die

1986

Scudder is a detective with the Sheriff's Department who is forced to shoot a violent suspect during a narcotics raid. The ensuing psychological aftermath of this shooting worsens his drinking problem and this alcoholism causes him to lose his job, as well as his marriage.

5.4

MagicScore

#12

Under Suspicion

1991

In the late 1950s, British police officer Tony Aaron resigns from the force after sleeping with Hazel, wife of the man whose house he was supposed to guard. In his new job as a fake private investigator, he helps couples get divorces by photographing Hazel having "affairs" with the husband. When she is murdered during a job, Tony begins having an affair with the dead man's mistress, Angeline, while trying to prove his innocence.

5.9

MagicScore

#13

City of Tiny Lights

2016

In the teeming, multicultural metropolis of modern-day London, a seemingly straightforward missing-person case launches a down-at-heel private eye into a dangerous world of religious fanaticism and political intrigue.

5.2

MagicScore

#14

I See You

2019

When a 10-year-old boy goes missing, lead investigator Greg Harper struggles to balance the pressure of the investigation and troubles with his wife, Jackie. Facing a recent affair, great strain is put on the family that slowly gnaws away at Jackie's grip on reality. But after a malicious presence manifests itself in their home and puts their son, Connor, in mortal danger, the cold, hard truth about evil in the Harper household is finally uncovered.

7.0

MagicScore

#15

The Thin Man

1934

A husband and wife detective team takes on the search for a missing inventor and almost get killed for their efforts.

7.5

MagicScore

#16

The Awful Truth

1937

Unfounded suspicions lead a married couple to begin divorce proceedings, whereupon they start undermining each other's attempts to find new romance.

7.2

MagicScore

#17

The Missing Person

2009

John Rosow drinks to forget. He is a former New York City cop turned Chicago-based private investigator. At the last minute, he is hired by someone he's never met to follow a middle-aged male subject on the soon-departing California Zephyr train to Los Angeles.

5.8

MagicScore

#18

The Last Boy Scout

1991

Somewhere in Los Angeles, the city of broken dreams, a stripper is murdered. Now, the private detective she had hired and her ex-footballer boyfriend are going to find her murderer... if they don't kill each other first. But the more they dig, the deeper they become enmeshed in a web of extortion, blackmail and corrupt politics hidden beneath the surface of professional football.

6.8

MagicScore

#19

The Long Goodbye

1973

In 1970s Hollywood, Detective Philip Marlowe tries to help a friend who is accused of murdering his wife.

7.4

MagicScore

#20

Marlowe

2023

Private detective Philip Marlowe becomes embroiled in an investigation involving a wealthy Californian family after a beautiful blonde hires him to track down her former lover.

5.7

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Harper?

The top films similar to Harper by MovieMagicScore are The Drowning Pool (6.3), The Big Sleep (7.6), Kiss the Girls (6.5). Each shares crime/mystery/thriller themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Harper worth watching?

Harper holds a MovieMagicScore of 6.6/10 from 178 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Harper?

Harper (1966) is a crime, mystery, thriller film directed by Jack Smight, starring Paul Newman, Lauren Bacall, Julie Harris.

Where can I find more recommendations like Harper?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more crime recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

Movies like The Drowning Pool Movies like The Big Sleep Movies like Kiss the Girls Movies like Devil in a Blue Dress Movies like Let's Be Cops Movies like The Maltese Falcon

About movies like Harper

This ranked list pairs Harper (1966), a crime and mystery and thriller film from Jack Smight, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Paul Newman take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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