Best movies like Return to Sender
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
While fighting for a woman who sits on death row, a lawyer happens upon new information which brings into question the motives of a man associated with her client.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Denmark, USA, UK
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspenseful, sincere, suspense, serious, realistic
Best tv shows and movies like Return to Sender (2004):
Similar in 79%
A Killer Within (2004)
Plot Summary:
Addison Terrill, a former district attorney now in a lucrative private practice, has what seems to be the perfect life. But life as he knows it is turned upside down when he arrives home from work late one night to find his wife brutally murdered and his son unconscious in critical condition at the hospital. Now, fingered as a suspect by the police, Addison must race to find the real killer and prove his innocence before it's too late.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 834
Genere: Thriller, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, mind bending, tense, rough, serious, psychological, bleak, realistic, surprise ending
Similar in 76%
Loved (1997)
Plot Summary:
After a husband is accused of droving his third wife to suicide, his first wife Hedda, a troubled woman who can't hate or hurt others even if they had wronged her, is subpoenaed to testify on his abusive behavior during their marriage.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 728
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, sincere, thought provoking, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic, disturbing, contemplative
Similar in 79%
Without Evidence (1995)
Plot Summary:
It is based on the true story of Michael Francke, who was the Head of Corrections for the state of Oregon before being murdered. Just before his murder, Francke visits his brother and informs him of a drug ring involving his prison colleagues. When Michael is killed, his brother begins his own investigation into the murder, leading him to more lies and deceit.
IMDB Rating: 3.9
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Thriller, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: spectacular, independent film, tense, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 84%
On the Inside (2011)
Plot Summary:
A decent but troubled young man is sent to a psychiatric institution for the criminally insane and soon finds himself in a fight for his life battling ghosts inside his head and very real enemies all around him.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspenseful, tense, rough, serious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 88%
The Trial (1993)
Plot Summary:
Joseph K. awakes one morning, to find two strange men in his room, telling him he has been arrested. Joseph is not told what he is charged with, and despite being "arrested," is allowed to remain free and go to work. But despite the strange nature of his arrest, Joseph soon learns that his trial, however odd, is very real, and tries desperately to spare himself from the court's judgement.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: tense, atmospheric, bleak, suspenseful, serious, surreal, psychological, realistic, psychotronic, independent film
Similar in 79%
Sins of the Preacher (2013)
Plot Summary:
After the apparent suicide of her daughter, a woman tries to prove that her son-in-law killed her.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 343
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: disturbing, tense, enigmatic, captivating, suspense, rough, mind bending, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 86%
Blood Crime (2002)
Plot Summary:
For burned-out Seattle cop Daniel Pruitt, a camping trip turns hellish when his wife, Jessica, is savagely attacked in the forest. En route to the hospital, the Pruitts collide with a semi, and Jessica identifies the driver as her assailant. Enraged, Pruitt pummels the man. Once at the ER, however, she changes her mind and names a male nurse as her attacker. But before Pruitt can make amends, he learns that his victim, the son of Sheriff Morgan McKenna, is dead.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 670
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense
Similar in 80%
Perry Mason: The Case of the Maligned Mobster (1991)
Plot Summary:
A gangster who has commited all kinds of crimes is accused to have killed his wife. As he was not the murderer in this case Perry Mason intents to find the killer.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 373
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: mind bending, serious, realistic, suspenseful, detective
Similar in 81%
Confession (2005)
Plot Summary:
In a small Catholic boarding school an unspeakable act has been committed. When High School student, Luther Scott, confesses to Father Michael Kelly, Kelly is bound silent to the particulars of a grisly murder. Now, framed guilty by the desperate teen, Kelly must decide to keep his silence or throw away everything the priesthood holds sacred.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 679
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, independent film, detective
Similar in 79%
Shot in the Heart (2001)
Plot Summary:
AND YOU'RE TO BLAME! Honey, you give love a bad name. (The story of a man coming to terms with the sins and secrets of his notorious brother and, in the process, exploring the legacy of violence in his own family.).
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 654
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: disturbing, tense, realistic, suspenseful, bleak, serious, talky, gloomy
Similar in 80%
The Dead Will Tell (2004)
Plot Summary:
Emily Parker is haunted by visions of a woman from the past soon after receiving an antique engagement ring from her fiancé.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 739
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, suspenseful, tense, mind bending
Similar in 88%
Blind Injustice (2005)
Plot Summary:
A blind woman finds herself the target of an attacker again after the person originally convicted of her rape is found to be innocent of the crime.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 236
Genere: Thriller, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense
Similar in 77%
Lockdown (2000)
Plot Summary:
Avery (Jones) returns to college as a competitive swimmer after getting his life back on track. But his life takes another unexpected turn when he and his two friends (Bonds, Casseus) are wrongly accused of murder and end up in prison.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: disturbing, rough, serious, realistic, hood, crime drama, bleak, independent film
Similar in 85%
Nuts (1987)
Plot Summary:
A high-class call girl kills a customer in self-defense. To avoid scandal, her parents try to have her declared mentally incompetent. Not helping matters is that she is very distrustful of everybody, including her court-appointed attorney, and is very disruptive during her court hearings.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: psychological, hilarious, psychological thriller, tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing, crying
Similar in 87%
Perfect Witness (1989)
Plot Summary:
A witness to a mob killing has second thoughts about testifying when he realizes his family might become a target.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 479
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 85%
Mistrial (1996)
Plot Summary:
When a cop-killer goes free, a detective's search for personal justice veers dangerously out of control. Declaring a mistrial, he takes the accused, the judge and the jury hostage...and begins a trial of his own.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 939
Genere: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: psychological, realistic, suspenseful, rough, serious, psychological thriller, psycho film
Similar in 79%
Complicity (2000)
Plot Summary:
Local journalist, Cameron Colley writes articles that are idealistic, from the viewpoint of the underdog. A twisted serial killer seems to have some motives. His brutal murders are also committed on behalf of the underdog. The stories begin to merge and Cameron find himself inextricably and inextricably implicated by the brutal killer. The arms dealer that Cameron plans to expose is found literally 'disarmed' before he can put pen to paper. The brewery chief, loathed by Cameron, who sold up at the expense of his workers, finds himself permanently unemployable. The police are convened of Cameron's guilt and so are half his friends and colleagues. Cameron is forced to employ all his investigative skills to find the real killer and his motive.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 897
Genere: Thriller, Drama
Country: UK
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, tense, bleak, serious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 89%
The Interrogation of Michael Crowe (2002)
Plot Summary:
The lives of Escondido, California residents Cheryl and Stephen Crowe change one morning when they find their twelve year old daughter Stephanie Crowe stabbed to death in her bedroom. As procedure dictates, the police take each member of the household away individually to be questioned, and the remaining children - fourteen year old Michael Crowe and adolescent Shannon Crowe - are taken into protective custody until Cheryl and Stephen can be cleared. The police end up placing much of their focus on the sullen Michael, who they question without counsel and without discussion with his parents. The tone of the police questioning is that they believe Michael did kill his sister, the police lying, harassing and coercing in the process. Under the barrage of questioning, Michael eventually confesses, as do two of his friends, both questioned under the same threatening tone. Cheryl and Stephen, who are finally made aware of the questioning and the confessions.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: psychological, disturbing, rough, serious, sincere, thought provoking, emotional, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 84%
Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker (1994)
Plot Summary:
The story of Johnson Whittaker, one of the first African-American cadets admitted to West Point. Tied down and beaten by his fellow cadets.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 572
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic
Similar in 86%
Last Dance (1996)
Plot Summary:
Upon taking a new job, young lawyer Rick Hayes is assigned to the clemency case of Cindy Liggett, a woman convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to death. As Hayes investigates the background for her case, the two begin to form a deep friendship, while all the while the date for her execution draws nearer.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: emotional, talky, intense, tense, serious, suspenseful, suspense, erotic, detective, black and white
Similar in 82%
Reversible Errors (2004)
Plot Summary:
A corporate lawyer's interest in a decade-old murder case is piqued by a new confession that could clear the convicted killer, who sits on death row.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 803
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 173 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, disturbing, intense
Similar in 82%
Whitewash: The Clarence Brandley Story (2002)
Plot Summary:
Based on the true story of Clarence Brandley, a black man wrongly accused in 1980 of the murder of a 16-year-old white high school girl named Cheryl Ferguson. Brandley worked at Conroe High School, where Ferguson was visiting as a member of the Belleville High School volleyball team. Three days after her body was discovered, Brandley was arrested as the murderer. Jew Don Boney, a popular activist and Houston city council member, leads the fight to uncover the truth about the Ferguson murder. Mike DeGeurin, a Texas attorney, is brought in to act as the head defense attorney for Brandley, and is joined by a former minister, Jim McCloskey. The lawyers discover that not only is there a complete lack of evidence against Brandley, but the District Attorney, James Keeshan, has been strategizing with the presiding judge. After nine years in prison, three trials and a stay of execution that saved Brandley's life, justice finally prevails as Brandley is granted his freedom.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 165
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: disturbing, emotional, realistic, suspenseful, tense, serious
Similar in 89%
Fatal Secrets (2009)
Plot Summary:
"BALANCING THE BOOKS" is a character-driven suspense drama about an attractive woman who enlists the help of her two best friends to confront a traumatic experience she can no longer deny. Julia, divorced and successfully self-employed, seems to have it all - except the right guy in her life. Her friends urge her to "get back out there." But they don't yet know about Scott - a charming man with a secret background whose true colors paint a streak of pain and fear through Julia's life. When Scott's effect on Julia reaches the breaking point, she and her friends take matters into their own hands... and underestimate the consequences. The outcome forces all of them into a desperate situation. Everyone pays the price.
IMDB Rating: 3.8
IMDB Votes: 394
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, suspense, captivating, serious, realistic, suspenseful, independent film
Similar in 76%
Fault (2001)
Plot Summary:
The film starts with the murder of Priti (Divya Dutta), wife of Shekhar (Aftab Shivdasani), a well-known journalist. Inspector Lokhande (Ashutosh Rana) investigates the case and accuses Shekhar of the murder, saying he has enough evidences to arrest him. Upon getting bail from the court, Shekhar's lawyer tells him that he will not be able to fight his case because he is a corporate lawyer. He asks him to contact Simran Bhargav (Lisa Ray), who is a criminal lawyer to fight his case.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: India
Duration: 151 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, tense, captivating, melancholic, surprise ending, remake of american film
Similar in 76%
One Angry Juror (2010)
Plot Summary:
Based on the true story of Sarah Walsh, a tough New Orleans attorney who serves on a murder trial jury and does some investigating of her own.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 279
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, captivating, realistic, tense, independent film
Similar in 79%
The Confession (1999)
Plot Summary:
After his young son dies from the negligience of medical professionals at a hospital, Harry Fertig (Kinglsey) takes matters into his own hands and kills the negligent doctors responsible. Slick lawyer Roy Bleakie (Baldwin), looking only to win a case and not caring of the matters involved, is assigned Fertig's case. Shocked to hear that his client wants to plead guilty, the case causes Bleakie to question his own morals by defending an honorable man.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, psychological, captivating, suspense, inspirational, independent film
Similar in 82%
Return to Paradise (1998)
Plot Summary:
Lewis, Sheriff and Tony are three friends vacationing in Malaysia. Sheriff and Tony eventually leave to pursue careers in New York, but Lewis stays behind to work with orangutans. Two years later, Sheriff and Tony learn that, because of their past actions, Lewis has been arrested for drug possession. With Lewis facing a death sentence, the friends are left with a difficult decision: return to Malaysia and split Lewis' sentence, or let him die.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Drama, Romance, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: realistic, suspense, sad, weeping, sincere, rough, thought provoking, bleak, serious, captivating
Similar in 85%
Murder in the First (1995)
Plot Summary:
Inspired by a true story. A petty criminal sent to Alcatraz in the 1930s is caught attempting to make an escape. As punishment he is put in solitary confinement. The maximum stay is supposed to be 19 days, but Henri spends years alone, cold and in complete darkness, only to emerge a madman and soon to be a murderer. The story follows a rookie lawyer attempting to prove that Alcatraz was to blame.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 30000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, France
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: suspense, dramatic, emotional, depressing, sincere, dark, period piece, crime drama, historical drama, suspense thriller
Similar in 89%
The Chamber (1996)
Plot Summary:
Having survived the hatred and bigotry that was his Klansman grandfather's only legacy, young attorney Adam Hall seeks at the last minute to appeal the old man's death sentence for the murder of two small Jewish boys 30 years before. Only four weeks before Sam Cayhall is to be executed, Adam meets his grandfather for the first time in the Mississippi prison which has held him since the crime. The meeting is predictably tense when the educated, young Mr. "Hall" confronts his venom-spewing elder, Mr. "Cayhall," about the murders. The next day, headlines run proclaiming Adam the grandson who has come to the state to save his grandfather, the infamous Ku Klux Klan bomber. While the old man's life lies in the balance, Adam's motivation in fighting this battle becomes clear as the story unfolds. Not only does he fight for his grandfather, but perhaps for himself as well. He has come to heal the wounds of his own father's suicide.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: emotional, suspense, thought provoking, realistic, rough, serious, suspenseful, talky, anamorphic, contemplative
Similar in 88%
Class Action (1991)
Plot Summary:
Liberal activist lawyer Jedediah alienated daughter Maggie years ago when she discovered his many affairs. Now a conservative corporate lawyer, Maggie agrees to go up against her father in court. To gain promotion, she must defend an auto manufacturer against charges that their explosion-prone station wagons are unsafe. As her mother begs for peace, Maggie takes on her dad in a trial that turns increasingly personal and nasty.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: suspense, thought provoking, touching, serious, realistic, talky, emotional, clever, contemplative, exciting