While we at Murder & Mayhem enjoy mystery and thriller movies from beginning to end, we've got to admit, there's nothing better than a twist. And who can resist a twist you'll never see coming?
We've scoured the archives for the most bizarre cases of all time, offering surreal, mind-bending intrigue that will turn your expectations inside out.
From buggy conspiracies to a cartoon frame job, here are the weirdest mystery and thriller movies of all time!
Naked Lunch
Directer David Cronenberg is basically synonymous with “weird,” so you know you're going to be in for a wild ride.
Bill Lee (Peter Weller) is an exterminator who, after developing hallucinations from ingesting insecticide, murders his own wife. Naturally, this leads to him getting caught up in a government conspiracy led by giant bugs.
Death to Smoochy
Children's show host Rainbow Randolph (Robin Williams) is fired after getting arrested for criminal behavior. His replacement, Sheldon Mopes (Edward Norton) finds meteoric success as Smoochy the Rhino.
However, Randolph isn't so keen on letting go of his fame, and seeks vicious vengeance upon Sheldon and his show.
Eyes Wide Shut
In this erotic thriller from Stanley Kubrick, Manhattan doctor Bill Harford (Tom Cruise) embarks on a strange sexual quest after his wife (Nicole Kidman) admits to having unfulfilled desires.
Before long, he finds himself in a bizarre secret society, surrounded by prostitution and intimidation.
It's What's Inside
Leading up to a wedding, a group of friends gathers to celebrate with a party. However, the revelry soon gets derailed when an estranged friend shows up with a peculiar device.
This device causes the friends to swap bodies, leading to a revelatory night of hidden secrets, desires, and grudges.
Lost Highway
In this trippy David Lynch film, unmarked VHS tapes cause havoc in the life of musician Fred Madison (Bill Pullman). The footage shows imagery of their home and lives—until Fred is abruptly arrested for murder.
As he sits in prison, Fred is replaced by young mechanic Pete Dayton (Balthazar Getty), to even stranger results.
The Killing of a Sacred Deer
This tense film from director Yorgos Lanthimos, the story follows cardiothoracic surgeon Steven Murphy (Colin Farrell). His life is thrown into chaos when a teenager, Martin (Barry Keoghan), whose father died during surgery, gives him a disturbing ultimatum.
If he doesn't pick one member of his family to die to even the balance, then they will all fall mysteriously ill and perish.
Donnie Darko
After narrowly escaping death in a peculiar, inexplicable accident, troubled teen Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) is afflicted with visions of a man named Frank, who wears an ominous rabbit suit and manipulates him into a series of crimes.
But this rabbit also comes with an eerie warning: the world is going to end in 28 days.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit
Loosely based on Gary K. Wolf's novel Who Censored Roger Rabbit?, this film combines two unlikely genres: children's cartoons and hard-boiled detective fiction.
When depressed detective Eddie Valiant (Bob Hoskins) is hired to look into a potential affair between sexy toon Jessica Rabbit (Kathleen Turner) and Marvin Acme (Gerd Duwner), the owner of the Acme Corporation, he soon finds himself in the middle of a murder case when Marvin ends up dead.
The most likely suspect? Jessica's goofy rabbit toon husband, Roger (Charles Fleischer).
But as Roger Rabbit insists upon his innocence, he pleads with Eddie to help him prove his case.
