Movies Like The Yellow Balloon

If you liked The Yellow Balloon (1953), a thriller and crime movie directed by J. Lee Thompson, 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
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.
2
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…
3
Plunder Road (1957)
★ 6.9/10Also crime and drama
A spectacular heist starts to unravel as the crooks take it on the lam.
4
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.
5
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.
6
The Truth About Emanuel (2013)
★ 6/10Also drama and thriller
A troubled young woman becomes obsessed with her mysterious new neighbor, who bears a striking resemblance to the girl's dead mother.
7
The Locket (1946)
★ 6.3/10Also drama and crime
A dark personal secret drives a young woman to use every man she encounters.
8
Point Blank (1967)
★ 7.1/10Also crime and thriller
After being double-crossed and left for dead, a mysterious man named Walker single-mindedly tries to retrieve the rather inconsequential sum of money that was stolen from him.
9
Sleep, My Love (1948)
★ 6.3/10Also thriller and drama
A woman wakes up in the middle of the night on board a train, but she can't remember how she got there. Danger and suspense ensue.
10
Indemnity (2022)
★ 6.6/10Also thriller and crime
An ex-fireman with PTSD goes on the run when accused of a crime he doesn't even remember committing, leading him down a rabbit hole of conspiracy to the highest degree.
11
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.
12
Footsteps in the Fog (1955)
★ 7/10Also thriller and drama
A Victorian-era murder mystery about a parlour maid who discovers that her employer may have killed his first wife.
13
They Made Me a Fugitive (1947)
★ 6.6/10Also drama and thriller
After being framed for a policeman's murder, a criminal escapes prison and sets out for revenge.
14
5 Against the House (1955)
★ 5.9/10Also crime and drama
Former war-time Army buddies now students in college decide to rip off a Reno casino.
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
The Blue Lamp (1950)
★ 6.6/10Also crime and thriller
P.C. George Dixon is a long-serving traditional copper who is due to retire shortly. He takes a new recruit under his aegis and introduces him to the easy-going night beat. Dixon is a classic ordinary hero but also…
17
Nightfall (1956)
★ 6.9/10Also crime and thriller
An innocent man turns fugitive as he reconstructs events that implicate him for a murder and robbery he did not commit.
18
A Kiss Before Dying (1956)
★ 6.3/10Also thriller and drama
A college student tries to get rich quick by wooing two wealthy sisters.
19
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…
20
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…