Thriller backdrop

Thriller movies

Edge-of-your-seat suspense and psychological tension that keeps your heart racing from start to finish.

Subgenres include: Mind Game Thriller, Domestic Thriller, Cover-Up Thriller.

The Returned

1861. The Returned

Horror Thriller Drama Zombie Horror Mind Game Thriller
5.9

20131h 38min

Spain, Canada

Director: Manuel Carballo

In a post-zombie world, where the infected live normal lives, their retroviral drug is running out.

Themes

Discrimination against the infected, Civil liberties under quarantine, Fear-driven violence in crisis, Rumors and social fracture, Resource scarcity in healthcare, Ethical dilemmas in treatment access

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Oldboy

1862. Oldboy

Drama Thriller Mystery Action Kidnapping & Captivity Thriller
5.8

20131h 44min

United States

Director: Spike Lee

A man has only three and a half days and limited resources to discover why he was imprisoned in a nondescript room for 20 years without any explanation.

Themes

Deception and suspicion, Perception versus reality, Isolation and resilience, Revenge and consequence, Confinement and autonomy, Power dynamics in control

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Out of the Furnace

1863. Out of the Furnace

Thriller Drama Crime Organized Crime Revenge Thriller
6.7

20131h 56min

United States, United Kingdom

Director: Scott Cooper

Two brothers live in the economically-depressed Rust Belt, when a cruel twist of fate lands one in prison. His brother is then lured into one of the most violent crime rings in the Northeast.

Themes

Trauma shaping behavior, Economic precarity under debt, Crime networks exploit debt, Rust belt decay under strain, Justice through retaliation, Family obligation under danger

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Homefront

1864. Homefront

Action Thriller One-Person Army Domestic Thriller
6.5

20131h 40min

United States

Director: Gary Fleder

Phil Broker is a former DEA agent who has gone through a crisis after his action against a biker gang went horribly wrong and it cost the life of his boss' son. He is recently widowed and is left with a 9-years-old daughter, Maddy. He decides to quit the turbulent and demanding life of thrill for Maddy's sake and retires to a small town. His daughter fights off a boy who was bullying her at school and this sets in motion a round of events that end in his direct confrontation with the local Meth drug lord. His past history with the biker gang also enters the arena, making matters more complex. But he has a mission in his mind to protect his daughter and he is ready to pay any cost that it demands.

Themes

Loyalty under danger, Parent-child protection, Crime-network retaliation, Intimidation and escalation, Outsider threat to community, Trust vs vigilance

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Banshee Chapter

1865. Banshee Chapter

Horror Thriller Psychological Horror Mind Game Thriller
5.4

20131h 27min

United States, Germany

Director: Blair Erickson

On the trail of a missing friend who had been experimenting with mind-altering drugs, a young journalist - aided by a rogue counter-culture writer, finds herself drawn into the dangerous world of top-secret government chemical research and the mystery of a disturbing radio signal of unknown origin.

Themes

Desert isolation, Conspiracy and control, Radio signal intrusion, Government experimentation, Media deception, Mind altering chemistry

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Commitment

1866. Commitment

Action Thriller Drama
6.6

20131h 53min

Director: Park Hong-soo

The son of a North Korean spy decides to follow in his father's footsteps to protect his little sister.


Haunter

1867. Haunter

Horror Mystery Thriller Supernatural Horror Whodunit
5.9

20131h 37min

Canada, France

Director: Vincenzo Natali

A teenager is stuck in a time loop that is not quite the same each time. She must uncover the truth but her actions have consequences for herself and others.

Themes

Intergenerational trauma, House as liminal space, Time loop confinement, Dead teen agency, Possession by killer, Spirits of victims

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Kill Your Darlings

1868. Kill Your Darlings

Drama Romance Thriller Historical Drama Investigation Suspense
6.4

20131h 43min

United States

Director: John Krokidas

A murder in 1944 draws together the great poets of the beat generation: Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs.

Themes

Academic pressure, Youth rebellion, Identity and sexuality, Confession and deposition, Creative movement influence, Anti establishment tension

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Anna

1869. Anna

Thriller Drama Mind Game Thriller Psychological Drama
6.4

20131h 39min

Canada, France

Director: Jorge Dorado

A man with the ability to enter peoples' memories takes on the case of a brilliant, troubled sixteen-year-old girl to determine whether she is a sociopath or a victim of trauma.

Themes

Memory manipulation ethics, Trust under manipulation, Youth vulnerability, Deception and memory, Trauma versus agency, Institutional tension in care

Available on

Amazon Prime Video
Amazon Video
Kanopy
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Fifth Estate

1870. The Fifth Estate

Drama Thriller Political Drama Political Thriller
6.2

20132h 8min

India, United States

Director: Bill Condon

A look at the relationship between WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and his early supporter and eventual colleague Daniel Domscheit-Berg, and how the website's growth and influence led to an irreparable rift between the two friends.

Themes

Trust and betrayal dynamics, Power and responsibility, Information ethics and activism, Public accountability and secrecy, Insider leverage and paranoia, Leadership isolation

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.