The Somali government holds a key vote, so both Korean governments send representatives to make their case. Set in 1991, the movie takes place in a time where both the North and South Korean governments were lobbying hard to be added as United Nations members.
TE Escape From MogadishuĬast: Kim Yoon-seok, Jo In-sung, Heo Joon-hoĪ tightly wound political thriller set during the start of the Somali Civil War, Ryoo Seung-wan’s Escape From Mogadishu doubles as an exciting action movie and a moving plea for the world to move past superficial divisions that prevent us from helping each other. If that weren’t enough, the ending to Blow Out is arguably one of the most remarkable and devastating of its era, with a twist so well-executed you’ll be left scratching your head in astonishment as to how you never saw (or heard) it coming. Befriending Sally (Nancy Allen), a distressed call girl and the sole principal witness of the assassination, Jack attempts to unravel and expose the insidious conspiracy behind the killing before the perpetrators can murder her and cover up their involvement.īased on Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1966 film Blowup, De Palma’s film is an inspired contemporary reinvention of an old classic defined by its inventive use of split diopter lenses to achieve focus between foreground and background elements, impressive cinematography that emphasizes the elements of sound design and music inherent to the plot, and a trio of fantastic performances by Travolta, Allen, and John Lithgow as a sadistic hitman hellbent on completing his mission. John Travolta stars in Brian De Palma’s 1981 mystery thriller Blow Out as Jack Terry, a sound effects technician living in Philadelphia who inadvertently stumbles across a political assassination while recording background noise for a sleazy teen slasher flick. Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Apple TV Toussaint EganĬast: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow A brutal, remarkable movie about corruption, redemption, and society on the brink of collapse, Strange Days is requisite viewing for any avowed thriller fan. Set in a dystopian Los Angeles at the turn of the century, Strange Days is a visually striking and inventive film, employing point-of-view photography to simulate the film’s futuristic memory-storing technology. Together with his friend Mace (Angela Bassett), a body guard and limousine driver, Nero must unravel the conspiracy behind the recording and expose the truth before it’s too late. Ralph Fiennes stars as Lenny Nero, a former LAPD officer turned black marketeer in illicit virtual reality technology, who inadvertently comes into possession of a recording that could cause major social uproar if made public.
Inspired by the 1992 Los Angeles riots that erupted in the wake of the Rodney King trials, Strange Days is a electrifying sci-fi noir that puts systemic racism and media voyeurism squarely in its crosshairs. It’s also the rare example of a movie whose cultural impact is subtle yet ubiquitous enough to be directly referenced in disparate works like Fatboy Slim’s 1999 single “ Right Here, Right Now” and the 2002 anime Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Kathryn Bigelow’s 1995 sci-fi thriller is one of the most criminally underseen cyberpunk classics of its era. Image: 20th Century Fox Home EntertainmentĬast: Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis If you’re looking to keep the adrenaline pumping, feel free to also take a look at our list of the best heist movies available to stream or our list of great horror movies you can watch at home. These are movies that’ll keep your eyes glued to the screen and your palms wrapped around your seat. Looking for something exciting and cerebral to watch this weekend? We’ve pulled together a list of our favorite thrillers available to stream on Netflix, Hulu, Max, Criterion Channel, free services like Tubi, and more. That’s the mark of a good thriller, and it’s what the movies on this list have in common.įrom classic thrillers like John Cassavetes’ The Killing of a Chinese Bookie and Michael Mann’s Heat to underseen gems like Ryoo Seung-wan’s Escape from Mogadishu or the Antonio Banderas mall cop thriller Security, the genre boasts a rich and expansive selection made for every sort of audience you can think of. Thrillers can touch on many different subgenres, but they live and die on whether they make viewers feel suspense, anxiety, tension, and surprise. If you’re enjoying a thriller, your body might know before your mind does.