Everybody loves a good thriller. A movie that keeps viewers on the edge of their seats, hanging in suspense, biting their nails in anticipation of a shocking revelation, is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser. When an audience is captivated by an adrenaline-fueled cinematic thrill-ride, you can cut the tension with a knife, while a good twist ending can bring the house down.
As the 2010s ended, film fans were evaluating their favorite movies from the past 10 years and one thing that’s become clear in these rankings is that the decade had some fantastic thrillers... mostly.
Best: You Were Never Really Here (2017)
Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here will really get your blood pumping. Joaquin Phoenix stars as a modern-day Travis Bickle, a war veteran living with PTSD who saves young girls from sex traffickers.
He takes one unfortunate job, rescuing a politician’s daughter, that draws him deep into a widespread conspiracy. Phoenix gives a stellar performance as usual, while Ramsay’s blunt, ultra-realistic portrayal of brutal hammer-based violence is incredibly effective.
Worst: The Boy Next Door (2015)
If The Boy Next Door had been a schlock-tastic B-movie as promised, then it would’ve been possible to overlook the poor acting and inept writing. Instead, it plays like a Lifetime movie, and not even a so-bad-it’s-good Lifetime movie.
Jennifer Lopez stars as a high school teacher who has a one-night stand with her young neighbor, who then becomes dangerously obsessed with her. This could’ve been a gender-swapped Fatal Attraction, but it falls short on the thrills front.
Best: Gone Girl (2014)
David Fincher tapped Gillian Flynn to adapt her own novel for his movie version of Gone Girl, and as a result, the film captures the story and characters of the book perfectly. Flynn was faithful to her source material, but still cut what was necessary to streamline the movie.
Rosamund Pike and Ben Affleck were perfectly cast as a missing woman and her husband who becomes the top suspect in her disappearance following strange behavior.
Worst: Alex Cross (2012)
One day, someone might be able to make a successful movie franchise out of James Patterson’s Alex Cross character, but after two failed attempts, it doesn’t seem likely. Morgan Freeman’s two movies in the role were grisly for the sake of grisliness, but the 2012 reboot starring Tyler Perry made them look like passable crime thrillers.
Perry and his co-star Matthew Fox (yeah, the guy from Lost) both bring their A-game, but Rob Cohen’s listless direction and the sloppy screenplay adaptation let them down.
Best: Uncut Gems (2019)
The Safdie brothers’ Uncut Gems has been described as a two-hour anxiety attack, and that’s pretty apt. The poor decisions made by jewelry dealer Howard Ratner are infuriating but understandable, so the viewer remains hooked by his reckless behavior, terrified of how it’ll turn out.
Adam Sandler was seriously snubbed for a Best Actor nomination at the Oscars. His portrayal of Howard stands among the best of his career. He’s captivating, emotionally engaging, and quintessentially human.
Worst: Abduction (2011)
John Singleton directed some really great movies throughout his career, from his groundbreaking debut Boyz n the Hood to his shocking true-to-life drama Rosewood, but unfortunately, 2011’s Abduction was not one of them.
Starring Taylor Lautner at the height of his Twilight fame, Abduction is a lame-duck knockoff of The Bourne Identity with a much less compelling hook.
Best: Get Out (2017)
When it was announced that Jordan Peele’s directorial debut would be a thriller, fans who only knew him as annoying girlfriend Meegan and baseball player Rafi Benitez were skeptical that he could pull it off.
But Peele silenced those skeptics with a fiercely original movie with edge-of-your-seat thrills, unpredictable plot turns, and eye-opening social commentary.
Worst: Serenity (2019)
From Locke to Peaky Blinders, Steven Knight has been responsible for some truly great work in film and TV. Unfortunately, his latest movie, Serenity, was a tragic mistake. It would be forgettable, but it’s too bad to forget.
It starts off as a noir-ish thriller about a fisherman whose ex-wife has remarried. Her new husband is abusive and she pays her ex to kill him. However, with an absolutely insane twist ending, Knight sabotaged his own movie.
Best: Parasite (2019)
Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite was the first non-English-language movie to win the Academy Award for Best Picture, the first movie since 1955 to win both Best Picture and the Palme d’Or, and the highest-grossing South Korean film of all time.
It’s more than deserving of all these records. And all the critical acclaim hasn’t been exaggerated. In its nail-biting narrative, use of symbolism, and insightful take on class divisions, Parasite is a truly transcendent masterpiece.
Worst: The Snowman (2017)
The studio behind Tomas Alfredson’s adaptation of Jo Nesbø’s The Snowman didn’t give the filmmakers nearly enough time for pre-production... or production. As a result, at least 10% of the screenplay hadn’t been filmed when Alfredson was dragged out of Norway and pushed into the editing room.
With crucial scenes missing, the plot is a total mess. Michael Fassbender does his best in the lead role, but that doesn’t really matter when the story is literally incomplete.