Great Thriller Movies
by nanch | created - 28 Aug 2014 | updated - 28 Aug 2014 | PublicThriller movies are my bread & butter. There's some crossover on this list, some humor, a bit of horror, not everything on here is a masterpiece, but they're all worth watching.
In no particular order.
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1. Cutter's Way (1981)
R | 109 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Richard spots a man dumping a body, and decides to expose the man he thinks is the culprit with his friend Alex Cutter.
Director: Ivan Passer | Stars: Jeff Bridges, John Heard, Lisa Eichhorn, Ann Dusenberry
Votes: 7,632 | Gross: $1.73M
2. Point Blank (2010)
R | 84 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Samuel, a male nurse, saves the life of a thief whose henchmen take Samuel's wife hostage and force him to spring their boss.
Director: Fred Cavayé | Stars: Gilles Lellouche, Roschdy Zem, Gérard Lanvin, Elena Anaya
Votes: 14,641 | Gross: $0.71M
3. Compliance (2012)
R | 90 min | Crime, Drama, History
A normal Friday service at a fast food restaurant becomes interrupted by a police officer who claims an employee stole from a customer, but something more sinister is going on.
Director: Craig Zobel | Stars: Ann Dowd, Dreama Walker, Pat Healy, Bill Camp
Votes: 37,283 | Gross: $0.32M
4. Cold in July (2014)
R | 109 min | Crime, Thriller
When a protective father meets a murderous ex-con, both need to deviate from the path they are on as they soon find themselves entangled in a downwards spiral of lies and violence while having to confront their own inner psyche.
Director: Jim Mickle | Stars: Michael C. Hall, Sam Shepard, Don Johnson, Vinessa Shaw
Votes: 37,626 | Gross: $0.41M
5. Coherence (2013)
Not Rated | 89 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Strange things begin to happen when a group of friends gather for a dinner party on an evening when a comet is passing overhead.
Director: James Ward Byrkit | Stars: Emily Baldoni, Maury Sterling, Nicholas Brendon, Elizabeth Gracen
Votes: 145,845 | Gross: $0.07M
6. Klute (1971)
R | 114 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A small-town detective searching for a missing man has only one lead: a connection with a New York prostitute.
Director: Alan J. Pakula | Stars: Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, Charles Cioffi, Roy Scheider
Votes: 29,612 | Gross: $17.44M
7. Hardcore (1979)
R | 108 min | Crime, Drama
A religious businessman from Michigan has to venture into the world of pornography in California, desperately searching for his runaway teenage daughter.
Director: Paul Schrader | Stars: George C. Scott, Peter Boyle, Season Hubley, Dick Sargent
Votes: 13,779
8. Shotgun Stories (2007)
PG-13 | 92 min | Drama, Thriller
Set in Arkansas, this poetic and powerful film directed by Jeff Nichols (Mud, Take Shelter) tracks a blood feud that erupts when two sets of half-brothers come to blows at their father's funeral.
Director: Jeff Nichols | Stars: Michael Shannon, Douglas Ligon, Barlow Jacobs, Michael Abbott Jr.
Votes: 11,238 | Gross: $0.05M
9. Enemy (2013)
R | 91 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
A man seeks out his exact look-alike after spotting him in a movie.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mélanie Laurent, Sarah Gadon, Isabella Rossellini
Votes: 215,101 | Gross: $1.01M
10. Bug (2006)
R | 102 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
An unhinged war veteran holes up with a lonely woman in a spooky Oklahoma motel room. The line between reality and delusion is blurred as they discover a bug infestation.
Director: William Friedkin | Stars: Ashley Judd, Michael Shannon, Harry Connick Jr., Lynn Collins
Votes: 37,802 | Gross: $7.01M
11. Primal Fear (1996)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An altar boy is accused of murdering a priest, and the truth is buried several layers deep.
Director: Gregory Hoblit | Stars: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Edward Norton, John Mahoney
Votes: 246,938 | Gross: $56.12M
12. Insomnia (1997)
Not Rated | 96 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
In a Norwegian city with a 24-hour daylight cycle a Swedish murder investigator has been brought in on a special case. Sleep deprived, he makes a horrible mistake which is discovered by the killer he has been hunting.
Director: Erik Skjoldbjærg | Stars: Stellan Skarsgård, Sverre Anker Ousdal, Maria Mathiesen, Gisken Armand
Votes: 15,582 | Gross: $0.22M
13. 13 Sins (2014)
R | 93 min | Comedy, Horror, Thriller
A cryptic phone call sets off a dangerous game of risks for Elliot, a down-on-his-luck salesman. The game promises increasing rewards for completing 13 tasks, each more sinister than the last.
Director: Daniel Stamm | Stars: Mark Webber, Devon Graye, Tom Bower, Rutina Wesley
Votes: 38,982 | Gross: $0.01M
14. Cheap Thrills (I) (2013)
Not Rated | 88 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A scheming couple put a struggling family man and his old friend through a series of increasingly twisted dares over the course of an evening at a local bar.
Director: E.L. Katz | Stars: Pat Healy, Ethan Embry, Sara Paxton, David Koechner
Votes: 20,435 | Gross: $0.06M
15. You're Next (2011)
R | 95 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
When the Davison family comes under attack during their wedding anniversary getaway, the gang of mysterious killers soon learns that one of the victims harbors a secret talent for fighting back.
Director: Adam Wingard | Stars: Sharni Vinson, Joe Swanberg, AJ Bowen, Nicholas Tucci
Votes: 109,411 | Gross: $18.47M
16. Prisoners (2013)
R | 153 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
When Keller Dover's daughter and her friend go missing, he takes matters into his own hands as the police pursue multiple leads and the pressure mounts.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Melissa Leo
Votes: 809,124 | Gross: $61.00M
17. Captain Phillips (2013)
PG-13 | 134 min | Action, Biography, Crime
The true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the U.S.-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years.
Director: Paul Greengrass | Stars: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Catherine Keener
Votes: 492,506 | Gross: $107.10M
18. A Hijacking (2012)
R | 103 min | Drama, Thriller
The crew of a Danish cargo ship is hijacked by Somali pirates who proceed to engage in escalating negotiations with authorities in Copenhagen.
Director: Tobias Lindholm | Stars: Pilou Asbæk, Søren Malling, Dar Salim, Roland Møller
Votes: 17,440 | Gross: $0.41M
19. Juggernaut (1974)
PG | 109 min | Action, Drama, Thriller
A blackmailer demands a huge ransom in exchange for information on how to disarm the seven bombs he placed aboard the transatlantic liner Britannic.
Director: Richard Lester | Stars: Richard Harris, Omar Sharif, David Hemmings, Anthony Hopkins
Votes: 6,317 | Gross: $1.56M
20. Unknown (I) (2006)
Not Rated | 85 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Five men wake up in a locked-down warehouse with no memory of who they are. They are forced to figure out who is good and who is bad to stay alive.
Director: Simon Brand | Stars: Jim Caviezel, Greg Kinnear, Bridget Moynahan, Joe Pantoliano
Votes: 31,453 | Gross: $0.14M
21. Timecrimes (2007)
R | 92 min | Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A man accidentally gets into a time machine and travels back in time nearly an hour. Finding himself will be the first of a series of disasters of unforeseeable consequences.
Director: Nacho Vigalondo | Stars: Karra Elejalde, Candela Fernández, Bárbara Goenaga, Nacho Vigalondo
Votes: 68,755 | Gross: $0.04M
22. The Cooler (2003)
R | 101 min | Drama, Romance
In an old school Las Vegas casino, its top gambling jinx breaks his curse when he falls in love, much to his boss' consternation.
Director: Wayne Kramer | Stars: William H. Macy, Maria Bello, Alec Baldwin, Shawn Hatosy
Votes: 35,499 | Gross: $8.24M
23. The Mechanic (1972)
PG | 100 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
An aging hitman befriends a young man who wants to be a professional killer. Eventually it becomes clear that someone has betrayed them.
Director: Michael Winner | Stars: Charles Bronson, Jan-Michael Vincent, Keenan Wynn, Jill Ireland
Votes: 15,743 | Gross: $7.30M
24. End of Watch (2012)
R | 109 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Shot documentary-style, this film follows the daily grind of two young police officers in LA who are partners and friends and what happens when they meet criminal forces greater than themselves.
Director: David Ayer | Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Peña, Anna Kendrick, America Ferrera
Votes: 268,994 | Gross: $41.00M
25. Argo (2012)
R | 120 min | Biography, Drama, History
Acting under the cover of a Hollywood producer scouting a location for a science fiction film, a CIA agent launches a dangerous operation to rescue six Americans in Tehran during the U.S. hostage crisis in Iran in 1979.
Director: Ben Affleck | Stars: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Alan Arkin
Votes: 638,980 | Gross: $136.03M
26. Salvador (1986)
R | 122 min | Drama, History, Thriller
A burnt-out photojournalist becomes involved in a Central American revolution.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: James Woods, Jim Belushi, Michael Murphy, John Savage
Votes: 23,141
27. The Baader Meinhof Complex (2008)
R | 150 min | Action, Biography, Crime
A look at Germany's terrorist group, The Red Army Faction (RAF), which organized bombings, robberies, kidnappings, and assassinations in the late 1960s and '70s.
Director: Uli Edel | Stars: Martina Gedeck, Moritz Bleibtreu, Johanna Wokalek, Bruno Ganz
Votes: 40,114 | Gross: $0.48M
28. Stuck (I) (2007)
R | 85 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A young woman commits a hit-and-run, then finds her fate tied to her victim.
Director: Stuart Gordon | Stars: Mena Suvari, Stephen Rea, Russell Hornsby, Rukiya Bernard
Votes: 10,268 | Gross: $0.07M
29. Transsiberian (2008)
R | 111 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A Transsiberian train journey from China to Moscow becomes a thrilling chase of deception and murder when an American couple encounters a mysterious pair of fellow travelers.
Director: Brad Anderson | Stars: Woody Harrelson, Emily Mortimer, Ben Kingsley, Kate Mara
Votes: 54,731 | Gross: $2.20M
30. Seven Days in May (1964)
Approved | 118 min | Drama, Thriller
United States military leaders plot to overthrow the President because he supports a nuclear disarmament treaty and they fear a Soviet sneak attack.
Director: John Frankenheimer | Stars: Burt Lancaster, Kirk Douglas, Fredric March, Ava Gardner
Votes: 17,327 | Gross: $7.96M
31. One False Move (1991)
R | 105 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A small town police chief awaits the arrival of a gang of killers.
Director: Carl Franklin | Stars: Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, Cynda Williams, Michael Beach
Votes: 13,961 | Gross: $1.54M
32. Hustle (1975)
R | 120 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
At the instigation of a grieving father, a Los Angeles cop investigates the suspicious circumstances of a girl's apparent suicide.
Director: Robert Aldrich | Stars: Burt Reynolds, Catherine Deneuve, Ben Johnson, Paul Winfield
Votes: 2,920
33. The Hole (1960)
Not Rated | 131 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Distrust and uncertainty arise when four long-term inmates cautiously induct a new prisoner into their elaborate prison-break scheme.
Director: Jacques Becker | Stars: André Bervil, Jean Keraudy, Michel Constantin, Philippe Leroy
Votes: 20,361 | Gross: $0.03M
34. Dark Blue (2002)
R | 118 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A robbery homicide investigation triggers a series of events that will cause a corrupt LAPD officer to question his tactics.
Director: Ron Shelton | Stars: Kurt Russell, Ving Rhames, Scott Speedman, Michael Michele
Votes: 24,062 | Gross: $9.06M
35. Seconds (1966)
R | 106 min | Sci-Fi, Thriller
An unhappy middle-aged banker agrees to a procedure that will fake his death and give him a completely new look and identity - one that comes with its own price.
Director: John Frankenheimer | Stars: Rock Hudson, Frank Campanella, John Randolph, Frances Reid
Votes: 22,187
36. The Hit (1984)
R | 98 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Ten years after ratting on his old mobster friends in exchange for personal immunity, two hit men drive a hardened criminal to Paris for his execution. However, while on the way, whatever can go wrong, does go wrong.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: Freddie Stuart, Ralph Brown, A.J. Clarke, Terence Stamp
Votes: 9,535 | Gross: $0.88M
37. Control (2003)
R | 111 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A tale about a strange young man, Bulcsú, the fellow inspectors on his team, all without exception likable characters, a rival ticket inspection team and racing along the tracks - and a tale about love.
Director: Nimród Antal | Stars: Sándor Csányi, Eszter Balla, Zoltán Mucsi, Csaba Pindroch
Votes: 27,069 | Gross: $0.24M
38. The General (1998)
R | 124 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
The real-life story of Dublin folk hero and criminal Martin Cahill, who pulled off two daring robberies in Ireland with his team, but attracted unwanted attention from the police, the I.R.A., the U.V.F., and members of his own team.
Director: John Boorman | Stars: Brendan Gleeson, Adrian Dunbar, Sean McGinley, Maria Doyle Kennedy
Votes: 9,242 | Gross: $1.21M
39. Tell No One (2006)
Not Rated | 131 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An accidental discovery near a doctor's estate stirs up some painful memories eight years after his wife's hideous murder, and now, things are bound to take a turn for the unexpected. Does the good doctor know more than he's letting on?
Director: Guillaume Canet | Stars: François Cluzet, Marie-Josée Croze, André Dussollier, Kristin Scott Thomas
Votes: 57,975 | Gross: $6.18M
40. The Ax (2005)
Not Rated | 117 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
A chemist (Garcia) loses his job to outsourcing. Two years later and still jobless, he hits on a solution: to genuinely eliminate his competition.
Director: Costa-Gavras | Stars: José Garcia, Karin Viard, Geordy Couturiau, Ulrich Tukur
Votes: 8,415
41. Breach (2007)
PG-13 | 110 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
FBI upstart Eric O'Neill enters into a power game with his boss, Robert Hanssen, an agent who was put on trial for selling secrets to the Soviet Union.
Director: Billy Ray | Stars: Chris Cooper, Ryan Phillippe, Dennis Haysbert, Laura Linney
Votes: 61,756 | Gross: $33.23M
42. The Jacket (2005)
R | 103 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
A Gulf war veteran is wrongly sent to a mental institution for insane criminals, where he becomes the object of a doctor's experiments, and his life is completely affected by them.
Director: John Maybury | Stars: Adrien Brody, Keira Knightley, Daniel Craig, Kris Kristofferson
Votes: 119,256 | Gross: $6.30M
43. Pusher II (2004)
Not Rated | 100 min | Action, Crime, Drama
Tonny is released from prison - again. This time he has his mind set on changing his broken down life, but that is easier said than done.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Mads Mikkelsen, Leif Sylvester, Anne Sørensen, Øyvind Hagen-Traberg
Votes: 24,994
44. Pusher III (2005)
Not Rated | 108 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Milo tries to be a family man and run his criminal organization, but a wrong drug shipment endangers everything.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Zlatko Buric, Marinela Dekic, Slavko Labovic, Ramadan Huseini
Votes: 18,051
45. Pusher (1996)
Not Rated | 110 min | Crime, Thriller
A drug pusher grows increasingly desperate after a botched deal leaves him with a large debt to a ruthless drug lord.
Director: Nicolas Winding Refn | Stars: Kim Bodnia, Zlatko Buric, Laura Drasbæk, Slavko Labovic
Votes: 44,525 | Gross: $0.00M
46. Presumed Innocent (1990)
R | 127 min | Mystery, Thriller
As a lawyer investigates the murder of a colleague, he finds himself more connected to the crime than anyone else.
Director: Alan J. Pakula | Stars: Harrison Ford, Raul Julia, Greta Scacchi, Brian Dennehy
Votes: 45,777 | Gross: $86.30M
47. The Yakuza (1974)
R | 112 min | Action, Crime, Drama
American private-eye Harry Kilmer returns to Japan to rescue a friend's kidnapped daughter from the clutches of the Yakuza.
Director: Sydney Pollack | Stars: Robert Mitchum, Ken Takakura, Eiji Okada, Herb Edelman
Votes: 10,444
48. Blow Out (1981)
R | 108 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A movie sound recordist accidentally records the evidence that proves that a car accident was actually murder and consequently finds himself in danger.
Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz
Votes: 63,225 | Gross: $13.75M
49. Rules of Engagement (2000)
R | 128 min | Drama, Thriller, War
An attorney defends an officer on trial for ordering his troops to fire on civilians after they stormed a U.S. embassy in a Middle Eastern country.
Director: William Friedkin | Stars: Tommy Lee Jones, Samuel L. Jackson, Guy Pearce, Ben Kingsley
Votes: 50,312 | Gross: $61.34M
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