Shubhabrata Dutta
Diksha Sundriyal
Have you ever wondered why we, as an audience, have a much higher affinity for plot twists than we do for those overtly romanticized happy endings? One could argue that there is a certain satisfaction in racking our brains to guess exactly what the twist will be. Or, we favor these movies simply because we love to be surprised. To drive the point home, while you may not always remember the hero getting the girl, you will always, always remember Keyser Soze correcting his limp and delivering that shudder-inducing monologue with which he began ‘The Usual Suspects.’
We seem to be content with films that are either able to blow our collective minds or leave us with a lingering question by the time the credits roll. Plus, what better way to get that jolt than from the comfort of our couches, courtesy of Netflix, anytime we want? Not to typecast, but it is surely a true thriller fan’s most vivid dream come true.
23. Mr. Harrigan’s Phone (2022)
In ‘Mr. Harrigan’s Phone,’ a horror drama film adapted from Stephen King‘s novella of the same name within the collection ‘If It Bleeds,’ written and directed by John Lee Hancock, a chilling narrative unfolds. Starring Donald Sutherland, Jaeden Martell, Joe Tippett, and Kirby Howell-Baptiste, the story centers on Craig and his profound connection with retired businessman John Harrigan. Their lives take a haunting turn when Craig wins a lottery, prompting both to embrace their first iPhones. Even after Harrigan’s passing, a supernatural bond persists through their phones, with one of them laid to rest alongside the departed friend. You can watch it here.
22. In The Shadow of The Moon (2019)
‘In the Shadow of the Moon’ is a gripping sci-fi thriller directed by Jim Mickle. The film stars Boyd Holbrook as a Philadelphia police officer tracking a serial killer whose crimes defy explanation. As the officer unravels the mystery, he discovers a bizarre pattern: the murders occur in nine-year cycles linked to a mysterious lunar event. The narrative seamlessly blends elements of crime, science fiction, and time travel, creating a suspenseful and thought-provoking experience. With a compelling plot, strong performances, and atmospheric direction, ‘In the Shadow of the Moon’ explores themes of obsession, fate, and the complexities of time in a riveting cinematic journey. Feel free to stream it here.
21. Before I Wake (2016)
This fantasy horror takes a look at Jessie and Mark Hobson, a couple that adopts 8-year-old Cody Morgan after unfortunately losing their child, Sean, who drowns in the bathtub. Starring Kate Bosworth, Thomas Jane, and Jacob Tremblay, the film is not your typical run-of-the-mill horror production. Furthermore, the script mixes the conventional elements of the genre with a beautiful and touching story. When everything is considered, ‘Before I Wake’ does not blend into the many movies that have preceded it in this field. You can watch the movie here.
20. The Woman in The Window (2021)
Child psychologist Anna Fox develops agoraphobia after her separation from her husband and lives alone in a Manhattan apartment. Unable to leave, she begins spying on her neighbors and notices a new family move in next door. Gradually, she befriends the matriarch as well as the child of the family and learns that the father might be a tad abusive. Determined to catch him in the act, Anna keeps spying and suddenly notices the mother, Jane Russell, being stabbed to death. Although she immediately calls the police, a different woman arrives on the scene and claims to be Jane, throwing the child psychologist’s mind in a spiral. As the plot progresses, Anna’s reality keeps falling apart, and she begins second-guessing and doubting herself, leading to a massive twist that viewers won’t see coming. You may watch the film here.
19. Lucid Dream (2017)
This South Korean sci-fi mystery chronicles the quest of a young journalist who is still searching for his son three years after he was kidnapped. As a last resort, the father turns to lucid dreaming to crack the case. The plot may remind you of ‘Inception,’ but at the end of the day, ‘Lucid Dream’ manages to differentiate itself from the Christopher Nolan production. (For one, the ending isn’t up for debate in the Korean movie). You can also check this film out for the stellar performances given by Kyung-gu Sol, Soo Go, and Hye-Jeong Kang. Feel free to check it out here.
18. Dangerous Lies (2020)
Katie lives quite a normal life and works as a wealthy elderly man’s caregiver. The film portrays her family as having fallen on hard times with Katie’s job making ends meet. However, fortune seems to smile on her all of a sudden as the caregiver inherits her patient’s massive estate, much to everyone’s surprise. However, with money comes trouble as she is drawn into a world of deception, murder, and crime, thereby unraveling an uneasy and suspenseful game of cat and mouse, which will keep the viewer guessing until the very end. You can check out the film here.
17. Apostle (2018)
Set in 1905, ‘Apostle’ follows Thomas Richardson as he travels to a remote Welsh island, intending to rescue his sister, who is held captive by a mysterious cult. Upon meeting the cult and its leader, he learns how the unfertile land was changed through animal sacrifices. He then realizes that his sister, Jennifer, was kidnapped for ransom as the cult can’t afford unlimited animals. However, problems follow him from the moment he sets foot on the island, including a terrifying assassination attempt on the cul leader, which leaves Thomas injured. Besides, while trying to hide from the natives, Thomas even comes across the island’s deity, an old woman engulfed in roots and trees. As the sinister plot unfolds, it pulls the city-dwelling Thomas into the dark world of blood sacrifice and paganism, leading to a mind-blowing twist at the very end. You can watch ‘Apostle’ here.
16. ARQ (2016)
Directed by Tony Elliott, this film premiered at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival and was later picked up by Netflix for international distribution. ‘ARQ’ is set at a certain point in time when the world’s energy resources are getting depleted. This has created an intense situation between big industries and governments.
The central character of the film is an engineer who, along with his girlfriend, is hiding with a machine that can generate unlimited energy. They realize their lives are in danger when several armed men break into their hiding spot. But each time the central character named Renton dies, he wakes up in the same room. This makes him realize that he is stuck in a time loop. The film uses this concept quite interestingly, and on top of it, ‘ARQ’ brings in a twist that immediately changes our perception of the situation. You may watch it here.
15. The Paramedic (2020)
The protagonist is Angel Hernandez, who works as a paramedic. His girlfriend, Vane, and he are trying to have a child together, but it turns out that he has fertility issues. He also hides this fact from his girlfriend. One day, while taking a patient to the hospital, the vehicle he is in meets with an accident, and consequently, he becomes paralyzed from the waist down. Soon, Angel turns into a man who becomes obsessed with tracking his girlfriend’s every move, and the movie explores how he copes with his disability. Although the premise may sound familiar to you, we believe that this film should be given a chance for the harrowing script. You may watch ‘The Paramedic’ here.
14. The Discovery (2017)
When it comes to this film, think of science fiction with undertones of romance. Robert Redford plays Dr. Thomas Harbor, a man who has conclusively proven that the afterlife does exist. However, suicide rates shoot up, and Will, his son, holds him accountable for this situation. On a ferry, Will (Jason Segel) meets Isla (Rooney Mara), and later, the two go to the compound where Dr. Harbor conducts his experiments. As they find out more about the father’s work, the two also fall in love. ‘The Discovery’ offers something a little different for its genre, and we believe that it could be the movie that you’ve been looking for. You can watch the movie here.
13. Eli (2019)
A Netflix original film directed by Ciaran Foy, the story of ‘Eli’ centers around a little boy who has been affected by a rather rare disease. This has made it impossible for him to step outside his house, which has led Eli to always live a life devoid of friends. After taking him to the best possible doctors and failing to come up with a solution for his problem, Eli’s parents appoint a doctor who is using a cutting-edge method to cure his disease. However, these methods are yet to be sanctioned by the government. As soon as Eli’s treatment begins, he realizes that the house where he is living is haunted and that there are several malicious spirits around him. His ordeal keeps getting worse till a shocking twist makes the reason behind his visions clear. Despite the climax catching you off guard, the only problem with the film is that it is much longer than what should have been its ideal running time. You may watch the film here.
12. Cam (2018)
‘Cam’ delves deep into the many dangers of the internet and how easily one can get trapped in a web of problems that are far beyond one’s control. The protagonist is a girl named Alice who secretly works as a cam girl. Her job is to film herself using a webcam as she indulges in erotic acts. Not satisfied with the number of viewers she gets every month, Alice decides that the best thing for her is to think of something out of the box. So, she comes up with the idea of live-streaming a fake suicide.
This video proves to be rather effective and gets Alice the popularity she has always craved. But things go haywire when a girl who looks exactly like her appears from nowhere and steals her thunder. Alice is rather shocked to see this and wants to pursue the matter to the very end. However, this leads her to a stupefying discovery that is about to change her perception of the internet forever. ‘Cam’ shows us the dangers we constantly need to avoid in the online world and how everything we do or say always leaves an imprint on the internet. Feel free to check out the movie here.
11. Bird Box (2018)
One of the most popular Netflix original films of 2018, ‘Bird Box’ stars Sandra Bullock in the lead role as a woman who is facing an apocalyptic threat while trying to protect the lives of her children. The film is set in a time when the world has been ravaged by the presence of a strange collection of entities that has a deadly effect on whoever lays eyes on them. The people who commit this mistake instantly lose their minds and kill themselves.
The only way to traverse through this deadly situation is by tying pieces of cloth around one’s eyes to avoid looking at the entities at all costs. Those who have survived this ordeal are heading towards a special community where they are safe from this nuisance. The woman in question also tries to take her children to the same site while navigating some extremely dangerous and violent situations. ‘Bird Box’ is a fresh approach to zombie apocalypse films, and its case as one of the best in the genre is also aided by Bullock’s fine performance. You can check out the film here.
10. The Perfection (2018)
A Netflix original, ‘The Perfection’ is a film that has its fair share of distortions. It boasts of several twists and turns throughout the narrative and makes for a rather exciting watch. The film starts with the story of Charlotte, a talented young cellist who quits her music school after her mother is suddenly hospitalized. Charlotte, a few years later, contacts her teacher, Anton, and heads off to Shanghai alongside him and some other musicians to join an elite music school. Once there, she comes across Lizzie, another one of Anton’s students. It is the meeting of these two characters that starts a chain of sinister events. ‘The Perfection’ might offer some genre cliches, but this is a film you should not miss out on at any cost. You may watch it here.
9. Velvet Buzzsaw (2019)
Love it or hate it, there is one thing that you absolutely cannot deny about this Netflix release: it is easily one of the most ludicrous films that you will catch, with an ending that gives the plot’s weirdness a run for its money. There is frankly so much going on: social commentary, art critique, critique on the act of critique, and spirits connected to the art, with Jake Gyllenhaal in the middle of it, that you will have little to think about as the film progresses. There is also enough craft involved from the sizeable lineup of actors involved. It is when the film ends that the inevitable questions start coming at you. If you can avoid those, ‘Velvet Buzzsaw’ can be a delightfully weird watch if you have the taste for it. You can watch the movie here.
8. Fractured (2019)
Netflix has created quite a niche for itself when it comes to producing intense thrillers, and 2019’s ‘Fractured‘ serves as another solid addition to its repertoire. The film centers around a family of three who are on vacation when a tragedy completely changes their lives. The horrific experience begins when the daughter, Peri, gets injured and has to be admitted to a hospital. While the father, Ray, is waiting in the lobby of the hospital, his wife, Joanne, takes Peri for some tests. Being extremely tired, Ray passes out, only to later find out that his wife and daughter are missing.
Nobody in the hospital can give him any information regarding this, and they even deny seeing Joanne and Peri in the first place. Ray realizes that a sinister conspiracy is at work, and he has to get hold of his family before something irreversible happens. The pacing of the film is brilliant, and it ticks off all the boxes of a psychological thriller. This riveting movie is elevated to a higher status by the powerful performance of Sam Worthington in the leading role. You can watch ‘Fractured’ here.
7. The Crimes That Bind (2020)
This Argentinean thriller follows a mother as both her son and her domestic help are fighting two separate legal cases at the same time. Cecilia Roth plays Alicia, whose maternal instincts guide her to protect her son, Daniel, at all costs, despite allegations of rape and domestic abuse being levied against him by his ex-wife. At the same time, her help, Gladys, is on trial for killing her second child after its birth. What makes this movie worth a watch is the fantastic character development, with some rather pertinent conversations about social issues in the backdrop. You may watch ‘The Crimes That Bind’ here.
6. Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (2018)
Talking of plot twists, this film doesn’t have just one. There are five main ones and close to 10-12 that you can reach if you are willing to spend the required amount of time. We all know ‘Black Mirror’ to be a favorite owing to its cerebral subject matter and innovative presentation techniques. However, with ‘Bandersnatch,’ both Netflix and the ‘Black Mirror’ team push the envelope to introduce a highly interactive TV to a curious audience.
Akin to an RPG, you are allowed to make choices that lead to separately devised narratives. These further lead to different endings, but you can also go back to make a different choice in case you reach a dead end. The marketing may have been more centered on the gimmicky nature of interactive TV and the need to sell that, but the plot is well thought out and tailored to deliver you the definitive ‘Black Mirror’ experience with an additional edge. You may watch the film here.
Read More: Most Disturbing Movies on Netflix
5. I’m Thinking of Ending Things (2020)
Directed and written by Charlie Kaufman, the movie follows a young woman who is traveling with her new boyfriend, Jake, to meet his parents. We keep learning more and more about the protagonist and why she is thinking of ending things with her beau as the movie progresses. But the script houses a certain misdirection that will stay with you even after the credits have rolled. We don’t want to say anything more and ruin the story for you, but be rest assured that ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things’ will have you racking your brain and pulling at every single thread that was presented during the film. Feel free to check it out here.
4. The Guilty (2021)
A film that brilliantly showcases Jake Gyllenhaal’s acting prowess, ‘The Guilty’ is a twist-filled, intriguing flick directed by Antoine Fuqua. The amount of thrill that the plot offers over the course of a single morning is inexplicable. Police officer Joe Baylor is demoted to the rank of a call operator at a 911 dispatch call center. While the job sounds boring, a call from a woman trapped in a car turns his morning into a race against time to get her the help she needs as soon as possible. And the only way for him to do that is via phone calls. You only see him and listen to him as he handles the entire situation throughout the movie. And yet, you will never expect the twists that await you in this approx 90-minute movie, although you will yearn for them. You can check out the film here.
3. The Platform (2019)
One has to hand it to writer David Desola, screenplay writers David Desola and Pedro Rivero, and director Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia for this one-of-a-kind experience. The Spanish film (‘El Hoyo’) shows a vertical jail called The Hole that has people who might as well be addressed as prisoners who are supposed to receive a higher social status after doing time. But why is the name of the film ‘The Platform’? Well, that’s because every level has one cell, and every cell has a hole in the center through which a platform carrying food descends, pausing for only two minutes per level. So the people at the top levels get more food while the ones at the bottom levels get almost nothing to no food at all. And you know what no food breeds? Cannibalism. If you want twists, this one offers them from start to finish, especially the finish. You can watch ‘The Platform’ here.
2. Oldboy (2003)
This Park Chan-wook-directed Korean revenge drama is a class apart, be it due to its psychological aspect, its action, its story, the performances, or the twist ending. ‘Oldboy’ follows Oh Dae-su (Choi Min-sik), who is set free 15 years after being kidnapped and held hostage in a small windowless room. His wife is dead, and his daughter has been adopted by someone else. All that he now has is himself and his past. With nothing to live for, he decides to find those responsible for his present state, no matter where it leads him. A must-watch film, ‘Oldboy,’ can be streamed right here.
1. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ follows detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) as he receives an invitation to join a murder mystery game on a private island in Greece hosted by the billionaire Miles Bron. Once inside the billionaire’s mansion on the private island, Benoit Blanc familiarizes himself with the other guests and settles down for a peaceful vacation. While the initial mystery game is pretty easy for Blanc to solve, one of the guests, Duke Cody, soon drops dead, followed by the murder of Bron’s ex-business partner, Andi Brand. Stuck on the private island with a mansion full of suspects, Blanc then takes on the responsibility of solving the murder, which culminates in a big twist that is only complemented by the humor that’s customary of a ‘Knives Out‘ movie, making this one top the list. You may watch it here.
Read More: Best Psychological Thriller Movies
