Movies Like West of Zanzibar

If you liked West of Zanzibar (1928), a drama and thriller movie directed by Tod Browning, 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 Deep End of the Ocean (1999)
★ 6.6/10Also drama and mystery
A three-year-old boy disappears during his mother's high school reunion. Nine years later, by chance, he turns up in the town in which the family has just relocated.
2
Ballistic (2026)
★ 5.8/10Also thriller and drama
When a soldier's mother discovers the bullet that killed her son in Afghanistan was made at the factory where she works, she sets out on a path of revenge against those responsible.
3
Time Without Pity (1957)
★ 6.5/10Also thriller and mystery
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
Nightmare Alley (1947)
★ 7.2/10Also drama and thriller
A roustabout joins a traveling carny and schemes to figure out the mind-reading act of Mademoiselle Zeena and her alcoholic husband.
5
Brand Upon the Brain! (2007)
★ 6.6/10Also drama and mystery
After returning home to his long-estranged mother upon a request from her deathbed, a man raised by his parents in an orphanage has to confront the childhood memories that have long haunted him.
6
Framed for Murder: A Fixer Upper Mystery (2017)
★ 6.6/10Also drama and mystery
In the small resort town of Lighthouse Cove, everyone knows that the best man for the job is a woman. And that woman is Shannon Hughes, owner of a construction company and an expert in Victorian home restoration and…
7
Gaslight (1944)
★ 7.5/10Also thriller and drama
A newlywed fears she's going mad when strange things start happening at the family mansion.
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
The Locket (1946)
★ 6.3/10Also drama and thriller
A dark personal secret drives a young woman to use every man she encounters.
10
The Assault (2014)
★ 6.8/10Also mystery and drama
After a cheerleader is sexually assaulted by the high school football team, she must overcome her shame and use the evidence gathered from the subsequent social media firestorm to piece together the night that she…
11
Point Blank (1967)
★ 7.1/10Also thriller and drama
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.
12
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.
13
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.
14
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".
15
Dark City (1950)
★ 6.5/10Also drama and thriller
War hero Danny Haley fleeces out-of-town dupes in a rigged poker game. He and his pals see Arthur Winant as an easy mark, but they've reckoned without Winant's homicidal brother, who wants revenge after Arthur commits…
16
Garage Sale Mystery: A Case Of Murder (2017)
★ 7/10Also mystery and drama
Jenn buys an old reel-to-reel recorder at a garage sale only to find that it includes the sound of a man pleading for his life. When the former owner of the recorder, a retired therapist, is found murdered in a…
17
The Glass Key (1942)
★ 6.7/10Also mystery 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
Sleep, My Love (1948)
★ 6.3/10Also thriller and mystery
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.
19
Each Dawn I Die (1939)
★ 6.9/10Also drama and thriller
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.
20
Perfect Sisters (2014)
★ 5.8/10Also thriller and drama
Tired of their mother's alcoholism and a string of her abusive boyfriends, two sisters plot to kill her.