Many of the best thrillers ever made are over 50 years old, and there seems to have been a shift in the genre’s prevailing style in the last few decades. The genre has its roots in film noir, with oldclassics likeThe Third Man, The Big SleepandDouble Indemnity.Since these formative hits, the genre has branched out.
The thriller genre can be hard to define in some cases, especially sincethere are psychological thrillers, crime thrillers, action thrillers and more which all come under the same umbrella. The only real requirement for a thriller is to keep the audience in suspense, with high stakes and a narrative that’s hard to predict.
Thrillers are often some of the most popular movies, because they’re designed to provoke audiences on a deep level. The best thrillers of the last 50 years all do this in one way or another, but there’s still a wide variety of films that qualify for this distinction, ranging from tense 1980s crime dramas to recentBest Picture winners.
10Mulholland Drive (2001)
David Lynch’s moviesare known for their surreal style, with audiences often left to interpret meaning from a series of abstract vignettes and confronting images.Mulholland Driveis no different.Over two decades later, there are still many conflicting readings of the mystery thriller.
Mulholland Driveis the kind of movie that needs a few viewings to get Lynch’s unorthodox storytelling, although it also has a huge impact on a first watch. It may not appeal to everyone’s tastes, butMulholland Driveis still a fascinating journey into the nature of dreams, the subconscious, and American culture for those who can appreciate it.
9The Departed (2006)
The Departedwas the movie that finally saw Martin Scorsese the Oscar for Best Director, and it ranks as one of his best and most entertaining. It’s a knotty crime thriller set in Boston, with a criminal syndicate and a police department at war with one another, each with moles inside the other’s operation.
The Departedshowcases Scorsese’s hilarious brand of dark humor, but it’s also an excruciatingly tense thriller. The witty lines fall away during the third act, as the game of cat-and-mouse reaches a frantic crescendo, piling up twist after twist in a thoroughly satisfying climax.
8The Handmaiden (2016)
Oldboymay be the most famous ofPark Chan-wook’s movies, but there’s a serious case to be made thatThe Handmaidenis the best. It’s a completely different kind of thriller, moving away from action to create a subversive period romance, using the visual appeal of the genre as a guise for something much more sinister.
The Handmaidenis split into three parts, with seismic twists breaking up the narrative.The unconventional structure allows Park to show the action from new perspectives, revealing the shifting allegiances and hidden truths at the heart of the story.The Handmaidenis unpredictable in the best way possible, and shocking in more ways than one.
7Get Out (2017)
Jordan Peele’s supremely confident directorial debut has the feel of an instant classic.Get Outhas already influenced several other socially-conscious horror thrillers, and it shows no signs yet of losing its potency as the years pass. WhilePeele’s next movieremains shrouded in mystery, he’s putting together an outstanding filmography.
Get Outdisplays Peele’s roots in comedy, although he weaponizes his ability to shock audiences for more sinister purposes.Get Outis a beautifully scripted domestic thriller that feels decidedly modern both in its subject matter and its darkly comedic style. It’s even enjoyable when all the major twists have been spoiled.
6Memento (2000)
Many ofChristopher Nolan’s best moviesare thrillers of some kind. WhileInception, DunkirkandTheDark Knighttrilogy could all count by one definition or another,Mementois probably the best of Nolan’s “pure” thrillers.It was just Nolan’s second movie, but it already demonstrates many of his stylistic quirks.
Mementois a unique thriller, thanks to Nolan’s love of non-linear storytelling and the protagonist’s rare form of amnesia. Nolan combines these elements into an unpredictable and constantly surprising narrative, which builds up to a remarkable twist that changes the complexion of the entire movie.
5Black Swan (2010)
Black Swanis everything that a good psychological thriller should be: tense, bewildering and darkly poetic.Not many movies have been able to project a sense of mental fragility as powerfully asBlack Swan, which keeps the audience guessing as to what’s real just as much as its protagonist.
Thanks to a powerhouse performance from Natalie Portman,Black Swangets inside the mind of its tortured protagonist, a ballerina struggling with the internal and external pressure of landing the role of a lifetime. The sweeping romanticism of the ballet is the perfect backdrop for her own personal crisis, both aesthetically and thematically.
4Se7en (1995)
David Fincher’s filmographyis filled with stunning thrillers, from detective mysteries likeZodiacto Hitchcockian domestic thrillers likeGone Girl. Se7enmay be his most captivating and thematically rich of all, with Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman forming a compelling dynamic as two mismatched cops trailing a serial killer.
Se7enworks on multiple levels, paying just as much attention to the personalities of its main characters as it does to their investigation into a twisted criminal mind. These two threads come together in an unforgettable finale with heartbreaking raw poeticism.
3Parasite (2019)
Bong Joon-ho’sParasiteis a little hard to categorize. Although it starts off as a comedy with all the mischievous glee of a crime caper, it quickly morphs into a much darker and more dangerous kind of story. As the Kim family learn more about the truth in the Park home,Parasitereveals itself to be a lethal crime thriller.
AlthoughParasitefocuses on economic inequality in Korea,its themes have resonated with a global audience. This is a testament to Bong’s talents as a filmmaker, andParasitealso benefits from a script that blends a personal story with a critique of broader society.
2Blow Out (1981)
Brian De Palma is probably the most faithful disciple of Alfred Hitchcock, and many of his thrillers have the same DNA as movies likeVertigo, Rear WindowandPsycho. Blow Outfeels like an updated take on Hitchcock, with a murkier and more disturbing plot, but many of the same elements.
Blow Outpushes a classic narrative of a bystander getting tangled up in a dangerous criminal conspiracy to strange and surprising places. It takes a skeptical look at American society, especially the way that the media and politics influence one another. Ultimately, the truth is just another factor at play, not a silver bullet.
1The Silence Of The Lambs (1991)
The Silence of the Lambsachieved the rare distinction of winning the “Big Five” categories at the Oscars, which underlines its miraculous combination of a great script, intelligent direction, and two superb lead performances.Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter has become one of cinema’s most iconic monsters, but he’s just one part of this masterpiece.
The Silence of the Lambs is often frantic but it also knows just when to slow things down. Some of the most captivating scenes are the quiet moments shared between Hannibal and FBI trainee Clarice Starling. Jonathan Demme uses POV shots to draw attention to Hannibal’s piercing gaze, although Clarice is often subject to interrogation from the men around her.
