Hollywood loves a good thriller. It’s one of those genres that can easily pair with all kinds of stories and is a guaranteed win on paper. Tension and suspense sell like no other. Unfortunately, though, most mainstream thrillers tend to follow a structure that only gets more predictable. There’s no denying that these are high-concept, fast-paced stories, but they barely take any risks, and where’s the fun in that?
Every so often, though, the audience is treated with a thriller that refuses to follow the template. Unfortunately, a lot of these riskier stories are overshadowed by flashier releases, but that doesn’t mean they can’t still be appreciated. Here is a list of six of the greatest thriller movies everyone has been sleeping on.
1
‘Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead’ (2007)
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is Sidney Lumet’s final film, and it is quite the note to go out on. The film opens with a simple premise, but it slowly spirals into a family drama like no other. The story follows brothers Andy (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and Hank (Ethan Hawke), who are both struggling with their own demons, and decide to rob their parents’ jewelry store. They are convinced that it’s a victimless crime because insurance will cover it. However, the film wastes no time in proving them dead wrong. The robbery goes catastrophically wrong, and from there, the film becomes less about the crime and more about the fallout. Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead tells this story in a nonlinear structure through different perspectives.
However, that format never feels confusing because each return to the event adds new context that completely reframes the whole thing. Hoffman is the star of the show with the volatility he brings to his character, who slowly realizes that he is losing control of his plan and his family. His dynamic with Hank is messy and complex, but deeply human at the same time. What hits the audience the hardest, though, is when the emotional center of the film shifts to their father Charles (Albert Finney), whose suspicion takes a cold and calculating turn that no one sees coming. Despite all the twists and revelations, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead remains grounded in real consequences, and that makes the film gripping until the very end.
2
‘Fracture’ (2007)
Image via New Line Cinema
Fracture is an underrated crime thriller that only gets better with time. The film, directed by Gregory Hoblit, follows Ted Crawford (Anthony Hopkins), a wealthy engineer who shoots his unfaithful wife and then confesses to the crime. Though what looks like an open-and-shut case is far from it. The file is assigned to assistant district attorney Willy Beachum (Ryan Gosling), who sees it as one last easy win before moving on to a prestigious private law job that’s waiting for him. However, things start to unravel almost immediately. Turns out that the gun doesn’t match the evidence, and the confession is thrown out the window.
That leads to a courtroom procedural that feels like a slow chess match where people are always trying to outwit each other. Hopkins delivers a chilling performance and brings an eerie playfulness to his character. He toys with Beachum in open court and behaves as though he already knows the outcome of the trial. Don’t be fooled, though, because Gosling definitely holds his own and his character evolves as the story progresses. Fracture is fast-paced and filled with clever twists that leave the viewers scratching their heads. It’s a thriller that feels both chaotic and controlled, and is exactly the kind of film that deserves to be rediscovered.
3
‘Copycat’ (1995)
<em>Copycat </em>arrived at a time when The Silence of the Lambs and Se7en had already revolutionized the serial killer genre. However, on its own, the film is genuinely one of the most under-appreciated thrillers of the ’90s. Copycat, directed by Jon Amiel, follows Dr. Helen Hudson (Sigourney Weaver), a renowned criminal psychologist who specializes in profiling serial killers. However, there are layers to her characters. She has survived a brutal attack by one of her subjects, an experience that leaves her with severe agoraphobia. She responds by locking herself inside her apartment and living through computer screens.
However, when a new killer begins carefully recreating murders inspired by Helen’s infamous subjects, she is forced to team up with Inspector M.J. Monahan (Holly Hunter) to solve the case. For starters, the film does a great job of showing an evolving partnership between two women navigating violence in a male-dominated space. Both women are layered, fully realized characters, and Copycat never glamorizes the violence its narrative revolves around. The film shifts the focus back to the victims and the psychological toll on those hunting the murderer down. Copycat had the potential to become an era-defining thriller that broke the norms, and it definitely deserves all the praise it can get.
4
‘The Invisible Man’ (2020)
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