Thrillers can easily make for some of the most heart-pounding and audience-engaging experiences on the big screen, creating more tension and high stakes than any other genre. Thrillers have had a long and monumental history over the years, yet the genre continues to have exceptional and iconic entries created in the modern era.2023 showed more than any other year just how emphatic and powerful a good thriller can be, providing some of the most celebrated examples in recent memory.
With so many different streaming services and studios releasing original content, there has been no shortage of engaging thrillers this year. Ranging from massive box-office blockbuster success stories to smaller-scale and more intimate stories, there has been a great deal of diversity and nuance in this year’s line-up of cinematic shockers. 2023 will easily go down as one of the best years for thriller movies, thanks to these stellar and acclaimed efforts.
15’Inside'
Director: Vasilis Katsoupis
Insidefollows the story of art thief Nemo (Willem Dafoe), who, in a heist gone wrong, finds himself completely trapped and alone in a New York penthouse, left to fend for himself while the owner shows no signs of returning. He attempts to survive in any way that he can as days turn into weeks turn into months, using the extremely limited tools at his disposal to survive through wit and determination alone. All the while, his mental state slowly begins to deteriorate more and more, as the only thing accompanying him is these works of priceless fine art.
More than anything else,Insideacts asa great one-man showby Dafoe, who makes the most of this terrifying nightmare of a premiseand runs wild with the slow determination of a man’s psyche. The film reaches the truest potential of its premise, finding increasingly creative ways for one to survive and thrive in this seemingly impossible task, making it all the more satisfying as more difficulties are brought to the surface.
Watch on Amazon Prime
14’Eileen' (2023)
Director: William Oldroyd
Eileentakes place in 1960s Massachusetts and sees unhappy prison secretary Eileen (Thomasin McKenzie) have her life suddenly sprung with excitement and life after forming a friendship with new co-worker Rebecca (Anne Hathaway). Eileen is soon enticed by Rebecca to help her pull off an unexpectedly dangerous crime, proving to go well beyond Eileen’s wildest imaginations. As she gets a taste for this new life of crime, however, it proves to be a lifestyle that she will not easily give up, despite all of the betrayal and risk that comes with it.
Eileensucceeds thanks to its pivotal duo ofperformances from McKenzie and Hathaway, who both do a tremendous job at bringing to life this enthralling crime thriller.Eileenis also filled with a great number of twists and turns that make the entire viewing experience increasingly tense, unpredictable, and overall perfect for a modern crime thriller.The film is able to build upon its initially simple premise to deliver a highly entertaining and enthralling experience that will do wonders for anyone looking for a great, underappreciated thriller.
Rent on Amazon Prime
13’Raging Grace'
Director: Paris Zarcilla
Raging Gracefollows the story of undocumented Filipina immigrant Joy (Max Eigenmann), who in order to create a better life for her and her daughter, Grace (Jaeden Boadilla), accepts a job as a caseworker for a terminally old man. However, it becomes apparent that the job is as far from what was originally expected, as a mixture of dark secrets, mysterious dreams, and an overall feeling of anguish make the job much more difficult. It comes to a point where the small family’s livelihoods become in danger, as Joy and Grace now have to navigate this strange, almost supernatural occurrence.
Raging Gracedoes a highly effective job of combining its seemingly horror-oriented premise with a powerful thriller tone and masterful themes of class divide and abuse of power.It all comes to a head with its highly unpredictable and intense ending, where everything is weaved together to create a satisfying and explosive final chapter to this insightful story. The film is easily one of themost underrated thrillers of 2023, although it will surely gain notoriety in the years to come thanks to its exceptional and insightful qualities.
Rent on Amazon
12’The Royal Hotel'
Director: Kitty Green
The Royal Hotelfollows the story of best friends Hanna and Liv (Julia GarnerandJessica Henwick), who, after having completely drained their finances on a backpacking trip, end up paying it off by working at the Royal Hotel. They are forced to continuously deal with the struggles of the primarily male locals who find ways to frequently cross well beyond the lines of comfort. The duo of girls soon find themselves in a terrifying and unnerving situation that is continuously growing rapidly out of control.
Much like director Kitty Green’s previous film,The Assistant,The Royal Hotelearns a great deal of its thrills and terrors from its depiction of everyday horrors.The Royal Hotelweaves together a powerful storythat manages to be filled with genuine twists and turns while still being highly grounded in harsh and depressing realism.The film also features several great performances, not just from Garner and Henwick, but also from the likes ofHugo Weaving.
The Royal Hotel
While exploring the Australian outback, two friends end up at the Royal Hotel, a run-down and isolated inn that holds more than a few secrets. Initially seeking only shelter, they soon find themselves entangled in a web of mystery and danger.
11’Master Gardener'
Director: Paul Schrader
Master Gardenerfollows the story of Narvel Roth, a meticulous horticulturist who has devoted the recent years of his life to tending the grounds of a gorgeous out-of-this-world estate. Roth is constantly having to pander to his wealthy employer, Mrs. Haverhill, who takes her requests too far when she asks him to take care of her troubled niece. This seemingly innocuous task proves itself to be an opening of Pandora’s box for Roth, unleashing truths and secrets from his mysterious and violent past to the surface.
Paul Schraderhas done an excellent job in recent years creating powerful and resonating thrillers that deal with pained and troubled protagonists, andMaster Gardeneris no different. The way that the film slowly but surely reveals more and more about Roth’s painful past to the audience and other characters works wonders and adds suspense and intrigue to the story.Master Gardner’s themes of self-forgiveness and hopegrant it a more sympathetic tonethat makes it stand out compared to Schrader’s recent work.
Master Gardener
Watch on Hulu
10’Leave the World Behind'
Director: Sam Esmail
Leave the World Behindfollows a family’s getaway vacation to a luxurious rental home taking a mysterious and ominous turn after a cyberattack knocks out all of their devices. Suddenly, two strangers appear at their door, asking if they can stay the night, as the power outage has seemingly affected the entire city. After reluctantly allowing them refuge, it soon becomes apparent that the blackout is a much greater threat than any of them could have previously considered.
While directorSam Esmailis most commonly known for his work in television, creating the phenomenal seriesMr. Robot, he brings the same high tension to the silver screen inLeave the World Behind. Part of what makesLeave the World Behindso enticing and enthralling is the mystery and unknown that is ever present in the premise, as twists and changes come like a flash and leave drastic and massive impacts in their wake. Although it leaves a lot up to interpretation andEsmail’s movie doesn’t answer every question,Leave the World Behindstill finds ways to engage and thrill the audience.
Leave the World Behind
Watch on Netflix
Director: Jon S. Baird
Tetristells the wild and unpredictable real-life story of how the worldwide phenomenon video gameTetriswas brought to audiences worldwide from its origin country of 1988 Soviet Union. As video game salesman Henk Rogers (Taron Egerton) discoversTetrisand realizes just how masterful it is, he does everything he can to get it into the hands of the public. However, it soon becomes a Herculean task in itself as he enters a wild and convoluted web of corruption, lies, corporate bullying, and chaos, finding his entire livelihood at risk.
Tetriswas easily one of the biggest pleasant surprises when it came to thrillers in 2023,as nobody would have expected thata movie aboutTetriswould be such an engaging and heart-pumping thriller. The film is filled with numerous engaging twists and turns as Rogers delves deeper and deeper into the terrifying rabbit hole that is corruption within the crumbling Soviet Union. The film features great performances from both Egerton andNikita Efremov, as well as an excellent score that transforms the classicTetrismusic to fit the tense, high-stakes story.
Watch on Apple TV+
8’Missing'
Directors: Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick
A continuation and stand-alone sequel to the amazingSearching,Missingis another screen-life thriller that follows its main character unraveling the mystery disappearance of a family member. The film follows June, a teenager whose mother goes missing while on vacation in Colombia. After discovering some inconsistencies and having nowhere else to turn, June attempts to solve the case of her mother’s disappearance on her own.
Searchingwas already a fantastic and highly creative rendition of a classic thriller, andMissingfurther expands on the promise and excitement that screen life provides. The film successfully adapts all notions of modern technology into its mystery, from VPN networks and cross-country Facetime to secret live streams and virtual assistants like Siri.Missingis a highly engaging and unpredictable mystery filled with twists and turns, directly placing the audience in the perspective of its endlessly relatable main character.
7’Saltburn'
Director: Emerald Fennell
Saltburnfollows the story of social outcast Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan), who is having a difficult time finding his place while attending Oxford University. However, this changes when he forms a friendship with the charming and highly popular Felix Catton, who invites him to his family’s estate, Saltburn, over the summer. However, life at Saltburn is anything but simple, and Oliver’s time at the estate soon descends into chaos, infighting, and a constant struggle to stay afloat.
While it takes its sweet time before truly delving into its more thrilling aspects,Saltburntakes a turn in the second half, fully embracing its status as a shock value psychosexual thriller. This second half of the film is filled with numerous defining moments that, while cumbersome and abrasive to some, are easily the most jaw-dropping in the film. What truly elevatesSaltburninto being so effective is its collection of all-star performances, especially Keoghan and the ever-reliableRosamund Pike.
6’Reality'
Director: Tina Satter
Realityfollows the story of 25-year-old Reality Winner (Sydney Sweeney), who, after returning home from running errands, finds two FBI agents awaiting her at her home. What follows is a grueling and cumbersome 2-hour long experience where she’s questioned about her work as an intelligence contractor. It soon becomes apparent that Reality is the most likely candidate to have leaked a classified document about Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. elections.
Sydney Sweeney’s career-best performance powersReality, taking the events surrounding a modern and incredibly recent story and painting a gripping, highly tense narrative from their retelling.Realityexpertly recaptures and creates intrigue and suspense from its incredibly small scale and cast, working a highly interpersonal and emotional story. It’s impressive just how well the film crafts sequences filled with tension and dread simply through the powerful usage of strong performances and chilling dialogue.
