When it comes to the cool factor, it’s hard to beat a cynical, hardened detective with a sharp eye, a sharper tongue, and a penchant for danger. Whether it’s the striking outline of Humphrey Bogart in black-and-white, orClint Eastwood’slethal squint-eyed gaze, the aura of a detective with style and a cool head has prevailed through various types of movies for decades.
Not all detectives have that cool factor, though. And if this was an article about thebestdetectives, the quirky Belgian private eye Hercule Poirot would compete with the brilliant Sherlock Holmes for the top spot. But this list is about thecoolestdetectives, of which Hercule Poirot is decidedly not.
So with the cool factor in mind, who are the coolest detectives in movies?
10Clarice Starling - Silence of the Lambs (1991)
It takes a remarkably cool head and strength of will to walk down the nightmare prison hallway that leads to the infamous Hannibal Lecter - and FBI Agent Clarice Starling has both in spades. Ever since the release ofThe Silence of the Lambsin 1991, both Agent Starling (Jodie Foster) and the terrifying cannibal Dr. Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) have been an iconic and fascinating duo. Though nottechnicallya detective, Agent Starling definitely has to use her investigate skills to not only pull information from Lecter, but to know and follow the right lead, which brings her into the den of serial killer Buffalo Bill. Trapped in pitch-black darkness and clearly terrified, she still has the cool presence of mind to use her hearing to locate and shoot the killer, and rescue the daughter of a senator. This role made Jodie Foster so iconic as a relentless investigator that she’s even starring in theupcoming True Detective Season 4.
9Easy Rawlins - Devil in a Blue Dress (1995)
Denzel Washingtonplayed a modern LA noir detective in the movieDevil in a Blue Dresslike he was born for it. With his lazy manner of speaking and the character’s hardcore history, he fit the role of private investigator Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins effortlessly.
Rawlins starts off reluctant to pursue the mystery that falls into his lap - to find a missing woman. He follows a few leads for the sake of the money, but there is a great moment where he is questioning a person of interest, Todd Carter, and he shifts from confusion into that sharp-witted determination that we recognize in the best of detectives. Washington’s performance as the endearing Rawlins was excellent, and the charactershould have gotten more than one movie.
8Benoit Blanc - Knives Out (2019)
As the star of the gritty modern reboot ofJames Bond,Daniel Craighas the modern, rugged, and cool feeling down pat. In the excellent murder mysteryKnives Out, Craig plays Benoit Blanc, the intrepid detective with a southern drawl who is also an homage to the iconic Hercule Poirot. Benoit is hired as a private detective to investigate the death of the elderly patriarch of a large family. He is relaxed and confident as he navigates his interviews with the family members, eventually partnering with the nurse, Marta Cabrera, in a delightful team up that leads them to one of the more entertaining and surprising endings of any murder mystery. Craig’s performance was so fun and endearing that there aretwo sequels now in the works.
Related:Best Detective Movies from the 80s, Ranked
7Jake Gittes - Chinatown (1974)
Chinatownis a wildly successful movie. With an impressive 99% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, 11 Oscar nominations, and now listed as the second greatest mystery film everas ranked by AFI,Chinatownis an undeniable classic and considered one of the greatest films of all time. The movie starsJack Nicholsonas Jake Gittes, a rough and perpetually injured noir detective who always seems to find trouble, and somehow be one step behind at every turn. Yet he still manages to look cool even through layers of bandage that cover half his face. He is endearingly human and flawed, getting things wrong and finding himself in over his head throughout the twisting plot that is set in and around the always-corrupt Chinatown in Los Angeles. There’s an especially fun nod to the classic noir detective movies of old, with the director ofThe Maltese Falcon,John Huston, playing the murderous antagonist Noah Cross.
6Rick Deckard - Blade Runner (1982)
Sci-fi noir is a genre thatdoesn’t get enough love, and one of the best examples of this style of movie isBlade Runner. The film starsHarrison Fordas the jaded Rick Deckard, a “blade runner” who is dedicated to hunting and killing self-aware biological robots known as replicants. With Ridley Scott as director, and a story adapted from the prolific Philip K. Dick, the movie was a phenomenal success, and is a firmly rooted part of sci-fi to this day. A large part of why it worked so well was Ford’s noir portrayal of Deckard. He comes off as both cool and somehow resigned; in the midst of a dying world and a grim job; he still somehow seems to find it in him to care.
5Sherlock Holmes - Sherlock Holmes (2009)
Sherlock Holmes is the most well-known detective in the entire genre, defining what it even means tobea detective in many ways. He’s been adapted more than any other fictional investigator as well (almost always with his faithful sidekick Dr. Watson), but none of them had the cool factor quite likeRobert Downey Jr.’s portrayal did.
The movieSherlock Holmeswas released just one year afterIron Man, and Downey Jr. would seem to have brought all of that cocky style into his Sherlock performance. The film received fairly high praise, in part because of Downey Jr., who took the legendary detective and gave him a modern style and a sharp grin that matched his razor wit.
Related:Best Murder Mystery Movies Based on Books, Ranked
4Harry Callahan - Dirty Harry (1971)
Inspector Harry Callahan of the San Francisco PD, as depicted byClint Eastwood, was so iconic that even the grisly nickname “Dirty Harry” has become slang for a ruthless police officer. Released in 1971, the movieDirty Harryinfluenced cop films for years afterwards. The nickname comes from Callahan’s tendency to be assigned every “dirty” job that comes along. And in perhaps one of the coolest and most iconic scenes of any cop movie, he stares down a bank robber and, casually musing over whether he has a bullet left in his gun, he tells the criminal, “You’ve got to ask yourself one question: ‘Do I feel lucky?’ Well, do ya, punk?” Eastwood’s growling voice and badass demeanor cement both his fame, and the fame of this movie.
3Philip Marlowe - The Big Sleep
Did ever a man have more suave and style thanHumphrey Bogart? FromCasablancatoThe African Queen, “Bogie,” as he’s affectionately known, absolutely dripped with cool, and is largely responsible for defining film noir as it is today. And his role inThe Big Sleepas detective Philip Marlowe, opposite his soon-to-be-wife Lauren Bacall, was absolutely alive with cool lines and sexual tension. Detective Marlowe, gruff, cynical, charming, and sometimes violent, would be portrayed by almost a dozen different actors over time, but Bogart gave the character his unique suave style. It is Philip Marlowe, as played by Bogart and complete with fedora, whisky, coffee and cigarettes, that represents the familiar classic noir detective archetype more than anyone else.
The plot ofThe Big Sleepgets a bit convoluted, with writer Raymond Chandler himself unable to answer how the ending happens. But the acting between Bogart and Bacall is electric, and the dialogue is, as Roger Ebert put it, “wickedly clever.”
2Frank Bullitt - Bullitt (1968)
Steve McQueenis aptly known as “The King of Cool”, and this movie may be peak coolness for McQueen more than any other. With a jazzy music score and the backdrop of ’60s San Francisco, it is no wonder thatBullittwas McQueen’s favorite, especially because of its epic car chase,considered one of the best in movie history, which is riveting in its excitement as all music is dropped, and we hear nothing but screeching tires and revving engines. Steven Spielberg himself is even directingan upcoming remake.
1Sam Spade - The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Humphrey Bogartas Philip Marlowe is fantastic, and the reason for that is because he drew on his earlier role in the marvelous classic filmThe Maltese Falcon,which was the first noir film ever, and definitively made the genre what it is. It is considered today to be one of the greatest and most culturally significant films ever made. Bogart’s portrayal as the smooth-talking and misanthropic private detective Sam Spade is a large part of why. Spade comes across as both wearily cynical and yet with an air of sincerity, as he seeks out the truth, while surrounded by nothing but liars. He’s less dark and violent than Marlowe, and the movie is mostly dialogue rather than action, but it manages to feel thrilling anyway due to the fast pace of the editing and plot, as well as Bogart’s captivating performance.
There is nothing cooler than the utterly original and genre-defining style that Bogart brings to the role of Sam Spade. And in the end, it’s only Spade, jaded yet romantic, who seems to see things clearly. When a detective, holding the heavy titular statue, asks what exactly the Maltese Falcon is, Spade replies with a signature melancholy: “The stuff that dreams are made of.”
