tense backdrop

Movies with tense vibe

Barbie stars as Rapunzel, a young girl who is entrapped by a magical barrier by the wicked, Gothel. Rapunzel finds an escape where she finds a Prince and a feud between two kingdoms which goes back to the day she was kidnapped as a child.

Themes

Deception and trust, Missing daughter tension, Feuding two kingdoms, Art as expression, Secret tunnel escape, Dragon companionship

Available on

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

Evelyn

3692. Evelyn

Drama Family Drama
7.0

20021h 32min

Ireland, United States

Director: Bruce Beresford

Desmond Doyle is devastated when his wife abandons their family on the day after Christmas. His unemployment, and the fact that there is no woman in the house to care for the children—Evelyn, Dermot and Maurice—make it clear to the authorities this is an untenable situation. The Catholic Church and the Irish courts decide to put the Doyle children into Church-run orphanages.

Themes

Economic precarity, Institutional control, State custody conflict, Public pressure, Religious authority, Legal reform

Available on

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

Gerry

3693. Gerry

Drama Adventure Mystery Survival Adventure Psychological Drama
6.0

20021h 43min

Argentina, Switzerland

Director: Gus Van Sant

Two friends named Gerry become lost in the desert after taking a wrong turn. Their attempts to find their way home only lead them into further trouble.

Themes

Survival under isolation, Strain on friendship, Trust under pressure, Danger in wilderness, Miscommunication and anger, Dependency and resilience

Available on

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

Millennium Actress

3694. Millennium Actress

Drama Animation Romance Fantasy Psychological Drama
7.8

20021h 27min

Japan

Director: Satoshi Kon

Documentary filmmaker Genya Tachibana has tracked down the legendary actress Chiyoko Fujiwara, who mysteriously vanished at the height of her career. When he presents her with a key she had lost and thought was gone forever, the filmmaker could not have imagined that it would not only unlock the long-held secrets of Chiyoko’s life... but also his own.

Themes

Memory vs forgetting, Pursuit of art across decades, Memory as performance, Story within the story, Surreal dreamlike imagery, Aging cinema and studio decay

Available on

Apple TV
Crunchyroll
HBO Max
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Igby Goes Down

3695. Igby Goes Down

Comedy Drama Dark Comedy Coming-of-Age Drama
6.8

20021h 37min

Germany, United States

Director: Burr Steers

Igby Slocumb, a rebellious and sarcastic 17-year-old boy, is at war with the stifling world of old money privilege he was born into. With a schizophrenic father, a self-absorbed, distant mother, and a shark-like young Republican big brother, Igby figures there must be a better life out there -- and sets about finding it.

Themes

Class inequality, Parent child tension, Rebellion and escape, Flight from family, Bohemian underworld temptations, Old money privilege

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
The Roku Channel
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Sweet Sixteen

3696. Sweet Sixteen

Crime Drama Coming-of-Age Drama
7.4

20021h 46min

United Kingdom, Germany

Director: Ken Loach

Determined to have a normal family life once his mother gets out of prison, a Scottish teenager from a tough background sets out to raise the money for a home.

Themes

Family loyalty under pressure, Peer influence and belonging, Poverty and crime as livelihood, Parental absence and dependence, Identity in street subculture, Violence as survival strategy

Available on

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

Open Hearts

3697. Open Hearts

Drama Romance Bittersweet Romance Relationship Drama
7.5

20021h 53min

Denmark

Director: Susanne Bier

Cecilie and Joachim are about to get married when a freak car accident leaves Joachim disabled, throwing their lives into a spin. The driver of the other car, Marie, and her family don’t get off lightly, either. Her husband Niels works in the hospital where he meets Cecilie and falls madly in love with her.

Themes

Marital strain under crisis, Extramarital affair, Secret love, Wedding vows disruption, Divorce pressure, Loyalty questioned in crisis

Available on

Tubi TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Dirty Pretty Things

3698. Dirty Pretty Things

Crime Drama Thriller Organized Crime Psychological Drama
7.2

20021h 37min

United Kingdom, United States

Director: Stephen Frears

An undocumented immigrant finds a human heart in one of the toilets of the west London hotel where he works with other undocumented immigrants.

Themes

Illegal labor economy, Organ trade coercion, Immigrant precarity, Asylum seeking tension, Passport deception, Illegal hotel operation

Available on

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

Ripley's Game

3699. Ripley's Game

Crime Thriller Con Artist Crime Mind Game Thriller
6.6

20021h 50min

United Kingdom, United States

Director: Liliana Cavani

Tom Ripley - cool, urbane, wealthy, and murderous - lives in a villa in the Veneto with Luisa, his harpsichord-playing girlfriend. A former business associate from Berlin's underworld pays a call asking Ripley's help in killing a rival. Ripley - ever a student of human nature - initiates a game to turn a mild and innocent local picture framer into a hit man. The artisan, Jonathan Trevanny, who's dying of cancer, has a wife, young son, and little to leave them. If Ripley draws Jonathan into the game, can Ripley maintain control? Does it stop at one killing? What if Ripley develops a conscience?

Themes

Deception as strategy, Loyalty under coercion, Reputation at stake, Family protection vs crime, Moral ambiguity under pressure, Power through manipulation

Available on

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

Returner

3700. Returner

Action Adventure Science Fiction Alien Invasion Sci-Fi Adventure Epic
6.4

20021h 56min

Japan

Director: Takashi Yamazaki

A young woman from the future forces a local gunman to help her stop an impending alien invasion which will wipe out the human race.

Themes

Deception and coercion, Time travel ethics, Uneasy alliance, Weaponized alien tech, Exploitation of alien power, War sparked by human actions

Available on

Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.