Movies Like Without a Trace (1983)

Without a Trace is a 1983 drama, mystery film from Stanley R. Jaffe with a MovieMagicScore of 5.2/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with Mother's Day and The Imposter.

Drama Mystery

Mother's Day

2023

Nina, a former NATO special operations agent living in hiding, has to use all her deadly skills to rescue her son who has been kidnapped by ruthless gangsters. Finding Max is a double opportunity for her. A chance to feel the adrenaline rush again, and an opportunity to get back into the life of the son she had to abandon years ago.

5.8

MagicScore

The Imposter

2012

In 1994 a 13-year-old boy disappeared without a trace from his home in San Antonio, Texas. Three-and-a-half years later he is found alive thousands of miles away in a village in southern Spain with a horrifying story of kidnap and torture. His family is overjoyed to bring him home. But all is not quite as it seems.

7.3

MagicScore

Never Let Go

2015

Former FBI agent, now single mother Lisa Brennan, takes a holiday to escape an unhappy love affair and painful family memories. But in a heartbeat, she is not only faced with a daughter kidnapped by human traffickers, but also faces murder charges and must keep one step ahead of the foreign police.

5.7

MagicScore

Sidewalk Stories

1989

A New York City street artist rescues a baby girl after her father is murdered. He then sets off to find the mother, but has to first learn how to care for the child. Ultimately he ends up in a horse drawn chase for the murderers.

7.4

MagicScore

Changeling

2008

Los Angeles, 1928. When single mother Christine Collins leaves for work, her son vanishes without a trace. Five months later, the police reunite mother and son. But when Christine suspects that the boy returned to her isn't her child, her quest for truth exposes a world of corruption.

7.6

MagicScore

A Mother's Instinct

2015

When a woman’s son goes missing and the prime suspect is released due to lack of evidence, she and her teenage daughter decide to play vigilante.

4.8

MagicScore

Stolen by Their Father

2022

The story of a mother whose two young daughters are kidnapped by her abusive ex-husband—and her all-consuming fight to get them back.

7.8

MagicScore

Double Jeopardy

1999

Libby Parsons, wrongly convicted for her husband Nick's murder, thinks he is still alive and wants to settle the score and find their son. As she has been tried for the crime, she cannot be re-prosecuted if she finds and kills Nick.

6.6

MagicScore

Don't Say a Word

2001

When the daughter of a psychiatrist is kidnapped, he is horrified to discover that the abductors' demand is that he break through to a young woman, suffering from PTSD, who knows a secret six digit code number.

6.3

MagicScore

#10

The Emerald Forest

1985

For ten years, engineer Bill Markham has searched tirelessly for his son Tommy who disappeared from the edge of the Brazilian rainforest. Miraculously, he finds the boy living among the reclusive Amazon tribe who adopted him. And that's when Bill's adventure truly begins. For his son is now a grown tribesman who moves skillfully through this beautiful-but-dangerous terrain, fearful only of those who would exploit it. And as Bill attempts to "rescue" him from the savagery of the untamed jungle, Tommy challenges Bill's idea of true civilization and his notions about who needs rescuing.

6.6

MagicScore

#11

Switchback

1997

After FBI agent Frank Lacrosse believes his son was kidnapped by a notorious serial killer, he travels to Amarillo, Texas, where he believes the murderer is in hiding. Although officially taken off the case because of its personal significance to him, Frank continues to pursue the killer, causing concern for local sheriff Buck Olmstead. When another victim pops up at a nearby car garage, Frank knows that he is as close as he'll ever be to tracking down the elusive killer.

6.0

MagicScore

#12

Brooklyn's Finest

2010

Enforcing the law within the notoriously rough Brownsville section of the city and especially within the Van Dyke housing projects is the NYPD's sixty-fifth precinct. Three police officers struggle with the sometimes fine line between right and wrong.

6.3

MagicScore

#13

GoodFellas

1990

The true story of Henry Hill, a half-Irish, half-Sicilian Brooklyn kid who is adopted by neighbourhood gangsters at an early age and climbs the ranks of a Mafia family under the guidance of Jimmy Conway.

8.5

MagicScore

#14

Who Took Johnny

2014

An examination of the infamous thirty-year-old cold case of Iowa paperboy Johnny Gosch, the first missing child to appear on a milk carton. The film focuses on Johnny’s mother, Noreen Gosch, and her relentless quest to find the truth about what happened to her son. Along the way there have been mysterious sightings, bizarre revelations, and a confrontation with a person who claims to have helped abduct Johnny.

6.8

MagicScore

#15

The Bone Collector

1999

Lincoln Rhyme was the department's top homicide detective and leading expert in criminal forensics until an injury left him paralyzed, depressed, and incapable of working. But when a gruesome murder in Manhattan leaves detectives baffled, they call on Rhyme to help solve the mystery. Amelia Donaghy, a rookie cop whose quick thinking preserved a gruesome murder scene, is enlisted by Rhyme to be his on-the-scene forensics expert. With Amelia reluctantly acting as Rhyme's able-bodied go-between, the pair piece together cryptic clues the killer leaves behind at the scene of the crime, hoping to catch the grisly serial killer.

6.8

MagicScore

#16

The Water Diviner

2014

In 1919, Australian farmer Joshua Connor travels to Turkey to discover the fate of his three sons, reported missing in action. Holding on to hope, Joshua must travel across the war-torn landscape to find the truth and his own peace.

6.8

MagicScore

#17

Cop Land

1997

Freddy Heflin is the sheriff of a place everyone calls “Cop Land” — a small and seemingly peaceful town populated by the big city police officers he’s long admired. Yet something ugly is taking place behind the town’s peaceful facade. And when Freddy uncovers a massive, deadly conspiracy among these local residents, he is forced to take action and make a dangerous choice between protecting his idols and upholding the law.

6.8

MagicScore

#18

21 Bridges

2019

An embattled NYPD detective, is thrust into a citywide manhunt for a pair of cop killers after uncovering a massive and unexpected conspiracy. As the night unfolds, lines become blurred on who he is pursuing, and who is in pursuit of him.

6.8

MagicScore

#19

Cruising

1980

When New York is caught in the grip of a sadistic serial killer who preys on patrons of the city's underground bars, young rookie Steve Burns infiltrates the S&M subculture to try and lure him out of the shadows.

6.6

MagicScore

#20

Money Monster

2016

Financial TV host Lee Gates and his producer Patty are put in an extreme situation when an irate investor takes over their studio.

6.4

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like Without a Trace?

The top films similar to Without a Trace by MovieMagicScore are Mother's Day (5.8), The Imposter (7.3), Never Let Go (5.7). Each shares drama/mystery themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is Without a Trace worth watching?

Without a Trace holds a MovieMagicScore of 5.2/10 from 29 viewer ratings.

What kind of movie is Without a Trace?

Without a Trace (1983) is a drama, mystery film directed by Stanley R. Jaffe, starring Kate Nelligan, Judd Hirsch, David Dukes.

Where can I find more recommendations like Without a Trace?

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

Keep exploring

Movies like Mother's Day Movies like The Imposter Movies like Never Let Go Movies like Sidewalk Stories Movies like Changeling Movies like A Mother's Instinct

About movies like Without a Trace

This ranked list pairs Without a Trace (1983), a drama and mystery film from Stanley R. Jaffe, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Kate Nelligan 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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