Crime stories and mysteries go hand in hand. Following a crime, the investigation stage can be both fascinating and frustrating as the stories that capture our interest are often filled with twists, false leads and red herrings. Sometimes there is no arrest and the case goes cold — leaving us with a mystery to solve.
Some mysteries have nothing to do with a crime. They involve disappearances, strange creatures, or the supernatural. That certainly doesn’t make them less interesting. People have always been intrigued by things we can’t explain. After all, it’s the process of figuring out the clues, and the thrill of discovery that makes a good mystery. Here are the 10 Best Movies Based on Real Life Mysteries & Unsolved Crimes.
THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES (2002)
John Klein (Richard Gere) is a journalist whose life spirals out of control after his wife is involved in a car accident while trying to avoid a mysterious flying creature. A short while later she dies from a brain tumor and John finds drawings of the creature from the accident.
John becomes obsessed with the strange beast. His research brings him to the town of Point Pleasant, West Virginia, where residents have reported seeing a similar creature — described as a winged beast with glowing red eyes — later dubbed The Mothman. It seems every time there is a Mothman sighting a tragedy soon follows.
The Mothman Prophecies is based on a 1975 book of the same name. The events in the novel are reportedly based on actual events that took place in Point Pleasant in the late 1960s including the collapse of the Silver Bridge.
THE ENTITY (1982)
The Entity is a chilling film about a woman who is sexually assaulted by an invisible being. Barbara Hershey stars as Carla Moran, a single mother living in Los Angeles with her three children. One night Carla is attacked by an unseen force. After visiting a doctor who doubts the supernatural tale she is put in contact with a sympathetic therapist. When Carla returns home the attacks continue and are witnessed by her children and friends. Eventually, Carla meets a team of parapsychologists who agree to help rid her home of the entity which leads to a terrifying showdown.
The film is adapted from a 1978 novel of the same name by Frank De Felitta. The events are based on the actual 1974 case of Doris Blither, a woman who claimed to have been sexually assaulted by an invisible being.
ALL GOOD THINGS (2010)
The film is loosely based on accused murderer Robert Durst, a real estate tycoon who is suspected of killing his wife, friend, and neighbor. Upon seeing the movie Durst was compelled to contact the director, Andrew Jarecki, and give his version of the story.
Ryan Gosling plays David Marks, reportedly based on Durst, while Kirsten Dunst stars as Katie McCarthy, Mark’s wife. Eventually, Katie wants out of the marriage and out of the Marks family for good but disappears after threatening to expose financial secrets. Adding to Marks’ troubles, a friend and neighbor soon end up dead. The film gives its version of events but whether Marks is responsible is ultimately left for the viewer to decide.
FROM HELL (2001)
The Jack The Ripper case gets the big movie treatment in From Hell, a mystery horror film directed by the Hughes Brothers. Johnny Depp plays Frederick Abberline, the real-life investigator of the Ripper murders. From Hell portrays Abberline as an opium addict who often relies on psychic visions to solve cases. The film puts its own spin on the historic case with suspects ranging from the Freemasons to members of the Royal Family. While the Hughes Brothers version of events is rather far fetched it at least presents a valid argument as to why the actual Ripper murders were never solved.
From Hell is based, in part, on the graphic novel of the same name by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell. Moore has several works that were adapted into movies including The Watchmen, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and V For Vendetta.
THE AMITYVILLE HORROR (1979)
In 1975 Ronald DeFeo Jr. murdered his family while they slept. A year later the Lutz family moved in but soon left, claiming the house was haunted. The house itself, located in Amityville, New York, would become a popular destination for ghost hunters and fans of true crime. The events became the subject of several books and movies, perhaps none more famous than The Amityville Horror.
While it’s ultimately left to the viewer to decide if you believe the story, the film depicts the alleged hauntings as truth. The Amityville Horror leaves no bloody stone unturned as it weaves its supernatural tale. The film has many scares and gross-out moments including creepy voices, red eyes without a face and blood oozing from the walls.
THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN (1976)
Based on the unsolved Texarkana Moonlight Murders of 1946, The Town That Dreaded Sundown is one of the earliest “slasher films,” coming before such horror classics as Halloween and Friday the 13th.
The Town That Dreaded Sundown plays like an R-rated episode of Dateline — complete with a narrator detailing the facts of the case. In 1946 the town of Texarkana is terrorized by a hooded serial killer dubbed “The Phantom.” The murderer targets couples in parked cars and later in their homes before disappearing as police close in. The narrator suggests the killer is still at large and could be living in plain sight.
THE IRISHMAN (2019)
The latest film from Martin Scorsese attempts to answer one of America’s enduring mysteries — What happened to Jimmy Hoffa? James Riddle Hoffa was the President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. He was a controversial figure with ties to the mob who vanished without a trace in 1975.
Scorsese gets the gang back together for The Irishman. Robert Deniro stars in the title role of Frank Sheeran, a labor union member who becomes Hoffa’s, right-hand man. Al Pacino stars as Hoffa while Joe Pesci comes out of retirement to play mob boss Russell Bufalino. The film is long, clocking in at nearly three-and-a-half hours but, unlike real life, The Irishman lets viewers know the fate of the missing teamster.
WOLF CREEK (2005)
The Australian horror film claims to be based on true events and contains similarities to the actual murders of several backpackers killed in the Australian outback between 1989 and 1993.
The film follows a trio of hikers who become stranded in Wolf Creek National Park after their car breaks down. A local man, who introduces himself as Mick Taylor, stumbles upon the group and offers assistance. At first Mick seems like a stereotypical Australian character - a slovenly version of Crocodile Dundee. The trio soon realizes Mick has more in common with Jason Vorhees than any Aussie film star.
FIRE IN THE SKY (1993)
In the fall of 1975 logger, Travis Walton disappeared while working in the woods of Snowflake, Arizona. His co-workers told police he was taken by an alien spacecraft. Authorities suspected Walton was the victim of foul play at the hands of his fellow loggers and dismissed the UFO abduction story as an elaborate cover-up. Residents of Snowflake, along with police, were shocked when Walton turned up alive five days later.
Fire In The Sky is told from both Walton’s point of view and that of his fellow loggers. The film’s most terrifying sequence takes place aboard the alien ship as Walton details his abduction while under hypnosis.
ZODIAC (2007)
Who was the Zodiac Killer? It is perhaps the most famous of all unsolved murder cases. Zodiac is a serial killer who terrorized Northern California in the late 1960s. The suspect taunted police with a series of letters sent to area news agencies. The letters often included threats, admissions of guilt and cryptograms.
The film follows the exploits of police detectives as they investigate a series of dead ends while trying to track down Zodiac. Meanwhile, a cartoonist at the San Francisco Chronicle successfully solves one of Zodiac’s puzzles. He is initially mocked until crime reporter Paul Avery (Robert Downey Junior) realizes he may be on to something.
