Film

See How They Run

Name: See How They Run
Genre: Mystery, Comedy, Crime
Released: 2022
Cast: Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, Adrien Brody, Ruth Wilson, Reece Shearsmith

A 1950s London murder mystery wrapped in theater world glamour and comedy. Sam Rockwell's weary detective and Saoirse Ronan's bright rookie constable make an unlikely team as they untangle a case backstage at the West End. It's playful without being precious, funny without losing the plot—a whodunit that knows it's a whodunit and has fun with the form.

TMDb rating

3.2

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like whodunits that wink at their own genre, where the pleasure is in clever banter, theatrical costume and a detective pair who bicker their way toward the truth.

Skip it if you want a tightly plotted puzzle that rewards close attention; here the jokes often outrun the clues, and the mystery stays deliberately loose and playful.

What it asks of you: Under ninety minutes and quick on its feet, it keeps switching between backstage farce and detective work, so you can relax into it rather than having to track every line.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Knives Out2019

A mystery that loves mysteries, with a stellar cast riffing on genre tropes. Daniel Craig's detective steals every scene, and the script delights in being clever without making you feel stupid for not guessing the end.

But If you want genuine shock and surprise, the plot does telegraph itself fairly loudly. Some find the self-aware tone exhausting rather than charming.

Murder on the Orient Express1974

Kenneth Branagh's recent remake gets the attention, but Lumet's original is the template: a locked-room mystery with a perfect ensemble cast solving an impossible crime. Pure puzzle-box pleasure, gorgeously shot.

But The pacing is measured and the solution depends on information you might not prioritize. Requires patience and attention.

In Bruges2008

Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson in a darkly funny crime story set in a medieval town. Sharply written, unexpectedly moving, and it has that same energy of character trumping plot mechanics that makes See How They Run sing.

But It careens between tones—brutal violence sits next to whimsy. That tonal whiplash is the point, but it won't work for everyone.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from See How They Run

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

A Night to Remember1958

Both films understand that mystery and atmosphere come from accumulated detail and overlapping perspectives, not from a single protagonist's journey.

The Titanic disaster told with documentary precision and an ensemble cast, released a decade before Cameron's version and infinitely more restrained. It's proof that you don't need spectacle to generate dread—the facts are enough. Same era as See How They Run, similar commitment to period detail and multiple intersecting stories.

But No romance, no modern sensibilities. It plays like a procedural, and if you need emotional anchors or A-list romantic subplots, you'll find it austere.

The Death of Stalin2017

Iannucci's film is a murder mystery disguised as political satire, with an ensemble cast playing it straight while the world around them is absurd. Same energy: plot propels character comedy rather than the reverse.

But The farcical tone and rapid-fire dialogue can feel exhausting. If you need your stories to play it straight, this will feel like you're being mocked.

Gosford Park2001

An ensemble mystery set in a grand manor where servants and aristocrats intersect. Altman orchestrates a cast of dozens with such precision that the murder almost feels incidental to the pleasure of watching them all collide.

But The tangle of characters and subplots is deliberately byzantine. You may need to rewatch to catch everything, and some find that off-putting rather than rewarding.

Brick2006

A noir detective story transplanted to a California high school, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the hard-boiled hero. It plays the genre completely straight despite the setting, and the puzzle is genuinely satisfying.

But The affectation of the concept can wear thin. Some see it as a clever gimmick rather than a fully realized world.

Moonlight Mile2002

Jake Gyllenhaal and Dustin Hoffman in a quiet, character-driven mystery about grief masquerading as a detective story. It's melancholy and observant, more interested in how people process loss than in plot mechanics.

But Very slow and meditative. If you came for a puzzle, you'll be disappointed by a film more interested in mood than mystery.

Tucker and Dale vs. Evil2010

A horror-comedy that subverts expectations by making the 'villains' the heroes. Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk are charming and goofy, and the script delights in the audience's genre assumptions being completely wrong.

But The premise wears thin if it doesn't hook you immediately. Some find the humor too broad and the execution uneven.

PEN152019

Both are about ensembles performing for the camera, aware of being watched, finding comedy in the gap between genre expectations and reality.

A mockumentary about a satirical magazine trying to launch in the 1980s, with an ensemble cast committing hard to the mockery. It has the same theatrical energy as See How They Run—people in rooms riffing on genre and structure, but applied to absurdist comedy rather than whodunit.

But Extremely crude humor that aims at shock as much as wit. The mock-documentary format becomes repetitive, and if the first sketch doesn't land for you, the next two hours won't convert you.

The Lavender Hill Mob1951

Both are British comedies about crime that prioritize character warmth and period detail over plot mechanics, and both trust the audience to enjoy watching good actors be delighted by their own material.

Ealing comedy about a bank heist, made the year before See How They Run and in the same London milieu. It's lighter in tone but equally delighted by its own cleverness, with Alec Guinness leading a cast of lovable incompetents through a lark.

But Very much of its moment—the humor is genteel and the pacing glacial by modern standards. Some find Ealing comedies quaint rather than funny.