Do you love detective movies? Then you need to check out Netflix’s growing list of detective films to watch. From the police procedural to international spy thrillers, there are plenty of options that will keep you glued to the screen and guessing right up until the end.

Netflix has introduced us to some great detective movies and TV shows, but we can all agree that some Netflix detectives stand out above the rest and help us learn valuable lessons about life.  

Here are the top five Netflix detective movies to watch and the five lessons each can teach you about life in general. These five Netflix films are so good that you need to watch them as soon as possible while they are streamed on Netflix.

Let’s dig in!

1) Shimmer Lake (2017)

Netflix has had a boom of detective movies, and they’ve come up with some pretty amazing and captivating stories. 

Shimmer Lake, directed by Oren Uziel, is one of those perfect examples. This small-town mystery serves as a horror thriller in addition to a drama. The movie is focused on relationships, exploring how people find themselves mixed up in webs of deceit. 

5 lessons we learn from Shimmer Lake:

  • Sometimes it’s better to let go. 
  • Don’t believe everything you see. 
  • Some people are better off dead. 
  • Pay attention to your surroundings. 
  • Trust your instincts.

2) The Highwaymen (2019)

Shot in 2019, The Highwaymen follows three Texas Rangers, Frank Hamer, Maney Gault, and Manny Gault, as they track down outlaws Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow.

This film is known as a captivating and thrilling take on a classic story. It begins with a slow play of interesting characters before building to explosive, fast-paced scenes where things do not go according to plan. 

The movie’s opening scene shows us that justice may have been swift for Bonnie and Clyde in their lifetimes, but it has caught up with them posthumously. 

Let’s look at a few lessons to learn from John Fusco’s The Highwaymen:

  • In this movie, viewers will learn never to underestimate their enemies. 
  • Also, it is best to plan ahead not to be faced with unexpected circumstances. People have been known to have an idea of what they will do but still end up not doing it due to unforeseen circumstances. 
  • Another lesson from this movie is not to be too emotional because it can cloud your judgment. 
  • You’ll also learn to pick and choose your battles carefully to make them worth it.
  • As for the last lesson, be careful about revealing your emotions to get what you want out of a situation.

3) The Irishman (2019)

The Irishman is one of many detective movies based on real-life criminals, except for De Niro, who plays Jimmy Hoffa. 

The movie starts with Jimmy Hoffa sitting in a car, telling a young boy they can do whatever they want because they’re tough.  From there, the film flashes back to show different parts of Hoffa’s life and builds up to his death by showing him testifying before Congress. 

His body goes missing while being transported home in 1977, which leads investigators like Pacino to dig through different leads and look at various characters’ motives behind wanting him dead.

For most of it, Pacino comes off as a corrupt cop, but toward the end, you start to see his character’s motive. 

Here are five lessons from the movie:

  • The first lesson in this movie is that life can be a lot of waiting. But, if you want something badly enough, even if it seems impossible, you’ll eventually find a way to get it. 
  • The second lesson is that it’s important to accept help when you need it. So often, we’re stuck trying to do everything ourselves without help, but things don’t always work out that way. 
  • The third lesson is patience. With any luck, bad guys will eventually make a mistake, and then all you have to do is use the right bait to catch them. 
  • The fourth lesson is about trust; it pays to be extra careful. When you aren’t sure of a person’s true identity, look them up on Nuwber instead of taking chances. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
  • The last lesson to take away from this movie is that justice isn’t supposed to come easily all the time.

4) The Guilty (2021)

The movie, The Guilty, is a Danish psychological thriller. It follows the trial of a kindergarten teacher accused of murder. The directors are Gustav Möller and Eskil Vogt; the main characters are the head judge, Håkan Kärgel, and Jacob Sommer.

There are five lessons to learn from this movie:

  • The first lesson is that it’s never too late to change your life for the better. There will be people who will help you if you only let them in and believe in yourself. 
  • Secondly, sometimes it takes time for people who are grieving to heal and feel whole again. 
  • Thirdly, friends don’t have to be around every day for them to matter just as much as family members do. 
  • Fourthly, even though we live on different continents or our paths cross briefly occasionally, we all still need one another’s love and support. 
  • Finally, children often know things adults don’t, so pay attention when they seem nervous or troubled about something. What may seem like a small thing might turn out to be much more serious than originally anticipated.

5) Enola Holmes (2020)

This is a Japanese live-action movie based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective stories. The main characters of Enola Holmes are the titular, bespectacled detective and her adoptive father, Sherlock Holmes. 

Other main characters include Moriarty, Moriarty’s daughter and the niece of Sherlock, and Inspector Lestrade. 

Five lessons to learn from this movie: 

  • Investigate what others might not be able to see. 
  • Look for patterns. 
  • Figure out who your enemy is.
  • Think outside the box. 
  • When you assume you have figured it all out, there’s something else you need to figure out.

Final Thoughts

Netflix has a wide selection of detective movies, so it can be difficult to know which ones to watch. Luckily, this article has narrowed it down to five best, with great lessons you can learn from each. 

It is not just the detective skills that we can learn from these films. These movies show us how to live our lives with bravery, passion, intelligence, and integrity. They teach us how important it is to believe in ourselves and that there are many good people out there. 

The best thing about these movies is that they show us not only the horrors of life but also the beauty.