13 Best Neo-Noir Films

By Vlad Zakh · February 2, 2026

United States Arthouse slow and atmosphericintense

Chinatown remains the high point of the genre, cynical and meticulously plotted from first scene to last, and Drive showed decades later that the mood could feel fresh with the right style. Nightmare Alley is a carnival-to-high-society throwback, Under the Skin is a cold, alien-perspective mood piece unlike almost anything else, and Nightcrawler is an unsettling character study dressed as media satire. A Simple Favor is the lighter, twistier option. Sin City, Brick, Body Heat, Blood Simple, Se7en, Blade Runner and L.A. Confidential round out the list.

Nightmare Alley (2021) 01

Nightmare Alley (2021)

TMDB ★ 6.7

An ambitious carnival worker's con-artist scheme as a fake spiritualist spirals towards his own ruin.

Directed by Guillermo del Toro · 2h 31m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Hulu, fuboTV, YouTube TV, FXNow · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
A Simple Favor (2018) 02

A Simple Favor (2018)

TMDB ★ 6.8

A mommy-blogger investigates the sudden disappearance of her glamorous best friend.

Directed by Paul Feig · 1h 57m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: fuboTV, Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Under the Skin (2013) 03

Under the Skin (2013)

TMDB ★ 6.3

An alien in human form hunts men across Scotland with almost no dialogue at all.

Directed by Jonathan Glazer · 1h 48m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, FlixFling

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Nightcrawler (2014) 04

Nightcrawler (2014)

IMDb ★ 7.8 RT 95% Metacritic 76

A sociopathic freelancer builds a career filming increasingly staged crime-scene footage.

Directed by Dan Gilroy · 1h 58m · Rated R

Nominated for 1 Oscar46 wins & 126 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, Sundance Now, Netflix Standard with Ads, Shout! Factory Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Sin City (2005) 05

Sin City (2005)

TMDB ★ 7.7

Stylised to the point of being a moving comic panel, and it works.

Directed by Robert Rodriguez & Frank Miller · 2h 04m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Brick (2005) 06

Brick (2005)

TMDB ★ 7.3

A high schooler investigates his ex-girlfriend's death using the language and logic of hardboiled noir.

Directed by Rian Johnson · 1h 50m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Body Heat (1981) 07

Body Heat (1981)

TMDB ★ 7.1

A small-town lawyer's passionate affair with a married woman draws him into a deadly scheme.

Directed by Lawrence Kasdan · 1h 53m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Blood Simple (1984) 08

Blood Simple (1984)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 94% Metacritic 84

The Coen brothers' debut, in which a bar owner's hired hit spirals into a chain of fatal misunderstandings.

Directed by Joel Coen · 1h 37m · Rated R

5 wins & 7 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Cinemax Amazon Channel, HBO Max, Cinemax Apple TV channel · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Se7en (1995) 09

Se7en (1995)

IMDb ★ 8.6 RT 84% Metacritic 65

One of the most atmospheric detective films ever made, and still unnerving.

Directed by David Fincher · 2h 07m · Rated R

Nominated for 1 Oscar29 wins & 44 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Blade Runner (1982) 10

Blade Runner (1982)

IMDb ★ 8.1 RT 89% Metacritic 84

A bounty hunter tracks down synthetic humans in a rain-soaked, neon-lit future Los Angeles.

Directed by Ridley Scott · 1h 58m · Rated R

Nominated for 2 Oscars13 wins & 22 nominations

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
L.A. Confidential (1997) 11

L.A. Confidential (1997)

IMDb ★ 8.2 RT 99% Metacritic 91

Three detectives with conflicting methods investigate a web of corruption tied to a brutal massacre.

Directed by Curtis Hanson · 2h 18m · Rated R

Won 2 Oscars91 wins & 86 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Drive (2011) 12

Drive (2011)

TMDB ★ 7.8

A getaway driver's growing attachment to his neighbour pulls him into a world of brutal violence.

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn · 1h 40m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd
Chinatown (1974) 13

Chinatown (1974)

IMDb ★ 8.1 RT 98% Metacritic 92

A private detective investigating an adultery case uncovers a vast conspiracy over Los Angeles's water supply.

Directed by Roman Polanski · 2h 10m · Rated R

Won 1 Oscar21 wins & 24 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, MGM Plus · Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

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Vlad Zakh

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.