Movies Like The Punishment Tapes

If you liked The Punishment Tapes (2026), a thriller and crime movie directed by John Theissen Jr., here are 20 movies with a similar feel, based on TMDB's recommendations. Each one links to its cast, trailer and where it's streaming.

1
Maniac (1963)
★ 6.2/10Also crime and horror
When a stranger enters a quiet, country town and is seduced by a sensuous married woman he unwittingly finds himself at the centre of a storm of sexual guilt and murder.
2
The Naked City (1948)
★ 7.2/10Also crime and thriller
After a former model is drowned in her bathtub, Detective James Halloran and Lieutenant Dan Muldoon attempt to piece together her murder.
3
Time Without Pity (1957)
★ 6.5/10Also crime and thriller
Alec Graham is sentenced to death for the murder of his girlfriend Jennie, with whom he spent a weekend at the English country home of the parents of his friend Brian Stanford. Alec’s father, David Graham, a…
4
The Quiller Memorandum (1966)
★ 5.9/10Also thriller and drama
After two British Secret Intelligence Service agents are murdered at the hands of a cryptic neo-Nazi group known as Phoenix, the suave agent Quiller is sent to Berlin to investigate.
5
The Night Stalker (1972)
★ 6.9/10Also horror and thriller
Wisecracking reporter Carl Kolchak investigates a string of murders in Las Vegas and suspects the culprit is a vampire. His editor thinks he's crazy and the police think he's a nuisance, so Kolchak takes matters into…
6
Plunder Road (1957)
★ 6.9/10Also crime and drama
A spectacular heist starts to unravel as the crooks take it on the lam.
7
The Night Strangler (1973)
★ 6.7/10Also horror and crime
After being run out of Las Vegas, reporter Carl Kolchak heads for Seattle and another reporting job with the local paper. It's not long before he’s on the trail of another string of bizarre murders. It seems that every…
8
Islands (2025)
★ 6.1/10Also thriller and drama
In this twisty thriller, a tennis coach at a tropical resort finds himself at the center of a missing persons mystery. Tom teaches tennis during the day and parties at night. When an enigmatic tourist arrives, Tom is…
9
Lady in the Lake (1946)
★ 6.1/10Also thriller and crime
Private eye Phillip Marlowe wants to get out of the detective racket and into crime writing. But when he's called to the office of editor Adrienne Fromsett, it's not to talk about his story ideas — she wants him to…
10
The Mirror Crack'd (1980)
★ 6.1/10Also crime and thriller
Jane Marple solves the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
11
Oscar Shaw (2026)
★ 6.6/10Also crime and thriller
After retiring from the police force, a relentless detective haunted by the tragic loss of his closest friend sets out on a perilous quest for vengeance, seeking redemption and fighting to restore justice to the…
12
Quicksand (2023)
★ 6.1/10Also thriller and horror
A married couple on the brink of divorce becomes trapped in quicksand while hiking through a Colombian rainforest. It’s a struggle for survival as they battle the elements of the jungle and must work together in order…
13
The Interview (1998)
★ 6.8/10Also crime and drama
A duel between a suspected murderer and a detective pressed by people who want results. But whose skin is really wanted?
14
Each Dawn I Die (1939)
★ 6.9/10Also crime and drama
A corrupt D.A. with governatorial ambitions is annoyed by an investigative reporter's criticism of his criminal activities and decides to frame the reporter for manslaughter in order to silence him.
15
Murder in Three Acts (1986)
★ 6/10Also crime and drama
In Acapulco, Hercule Poirot attends a dinner party in which one of the guests clutches his throat and suddenly dies. The causes seem to be natural until another party with most of the same guests produces another corpse.
16
Pickup on South Street (1953)
★ 7.4/10Also thriller and crime
In New York City, an insolent pickpocket, Skip McCoy, inadvertently sets off a chain of events when he targets ex-prostitute Candy and steals her wallet. Unaware that she has been making deliveries of highly classified…
17
The Glass Key (1942)
★ 6.7/10Also crime and thriller
A crooked politician finds himself being accused of murder by a gangster from whom he refused help during a re-election campaign.
18
The Young Savages (1961)
★ 6.5/10Also crime and drama
A district attorney investigates the racially charged case of three teenagers accused of the murder of a blind Puerto Rican boy.
19
While the City Sleeps (1956)
★ 6.9/10Also thriller and drama
Newspaper men compete against each other to find a serial killer dubbed "The Lipstick Killer".
20
Witness to Murder (1954)
★ 6.3/10Also crime and drama
A woman fights to convince the police that she witnessed a murder while looking out her bedroom window.