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The 25 Best Thrillers Streaming on Netflix [Spring 2021]

The 25 Best Thrillers Streaming on Netflix [Spring 2021]

Netflix is filled with classic dramas, superhero action, and comedies for the whole family, but nothing picks you up on a quiet Saturday afternoon quite like a thriller. Filled with suspense and excitement, thrillers keep you on the edge of your seat unlike anything else, guessing what’s going to happen right up to the end of the film.

With elements of horror, action, and mystery, it’s no wonder Netflix has dozens of classic thrillers to choose from, and we’ve narrowed down twenty-five of the best on the service this spring. Let’s dive in.

Gerald's Game

Gerald's Game

By Mike Flanagan

star 6.5/10

by IMDb Rating

The best Stephen King adaptations of the past five years also happens to be a Netflix Original film. Gerald’s Game was released in 2017 just weeks after It hit theaters, so you would be excused if you missed out on catching this film. Based on the novel of the same name, Gerald’s Game follows Jessie (Carla Gugino, Spy Kids) and Gerald (Bruce Greenwood, Star Trek), a married couple that seek out an isolated lakehouse in Alabama to work on their failing relationship. While engaging in some light bondage, during which Jessie is handcuffed to the bed, the couple devolves into an argument about their marriage. Gerald, having taken two Viagra, suffers a heart attack, falling dead on the floor of the remote lakehouse and leaving Jessie handcuffed to her bed. The film follows the psychological effects that haunt Jessie as she lays trapped in bed.

The Invitation

The Invitation

By Karyn Kusama

star 6.6/10

by IMDb Rating

Mysteries and thrillers are perfect for dark and stormy nights, and The Invitation might be the ideal film to chill you to your core. The film stars Logan Marshall-Green as Will, a divorcee who drive his girlfriend Kira to a dinner party hosted by his ex-wife at his old house in the Hollywood Hills. Will’s ex, Eden, alongside her new husband David, welcomes Will and Kira to the party, though immediately, something feels wrong. As Will continues to deal with the grief of his deceased son (the reason Eden and him split up), he begins to feel like something is wrong with his ex-wife and her husband’s motivations. The tale is dark and grim, and as the night advances, you’ll begin to put the pieces together in this thrilling tale of mystery and murder.

Hold the Dark

Hold the Dark

By Jeremy Saulnier

star 5.6/10

by IMDb Rating
The Perfection

The Perfection

By Richard Shepard

star 6.2/10

by IMDb Rating
Snowpiercer

Snowpiercer

By Zak Hilditch

star 6.2/10

by IMDb Rating
Burning

Burning

By Lee Chang-dong

star 7.5/10

by IMDb Rating
The Hateful Eight

The Hateful Eight

By Quentin Tarantino

star 7.8/10

by IMDb Rating
Cargo

Cargo

By

star 6.3/10

by IMDb Rating

Cargo is a fresh spin on the zombie genre that will leave you on the edge of your seat. Part horror film, part post-apocalyptic thriller, Cargo follows a man named Andy (Martin Freeman, Black PantherThe Hobbit) who finds himself stranded in Australia with his wife and child following an outbreak of a zombie virus, which manages to take over the world in less than 48 hours. Though they originally find hope in a houseboat, Andy’s wife Kay is eventually attacked, leaving Andy alone with his one-year-old infant daughter Rosie. Stranded in rural Australia, Andy must attempt to protect his daughter from the threats surrounding them—a task that manages to grow more difficult as time progresses. Directed by Yolanda Ramke and Ben Howling, the film is based on the short of the same name created by those two filmmakers in 2013, and received positive reviews for its character-driven approach to the genre.

The Irishman

The Irishman

By Martin Scorsese

star 7.8/10

by IMDb Rating
Zodiac

Zodiac

By David Fincher

star 7.7/10

by IMDb Rating
Velvet Buzzsaw

Velvet Buzzsaw

By Dan Gilroy

star 5.7/10

by IMDb Rating

By Zak Hilditch

star 6.2/10

by IMDb Rating
Uncut Gems

Uncut Gems

By

star 7.4/10

by IMDb Rating

Not only is Uncut Gems one of the best films of 2019, it’s also one of Adam Sandler’s best on-screen performances of his career. After wowing audiences with his turn in Punch-Drunk Love back in 2002, Sandler returns to drama for the first time since The Meyerowitz Stories. In the film, directed by the Safdie Brothers (Heaven Knows What, Good Time), Sandler plays Howard Ratner, a jeweler in New York who is addicted to gambling and has found himself under a pile of debts he can’t pay. After scoring a rare Ethiopian black opal that promises to sell for millions of dollars at auction, Ratner loses control of the situation after lending the gem to NBA star Kevin Garnett. As the tension rises, Ratner has to make a series of high-risk bets to get back on top of the situation.

Nightcrawler

Nightcrawler

By Dan Gilroy

star 7.8/10

by IMDb Rating
The Guest

The Guest

By Adam Wingard

star 6.7/10

by IMDb Rating
Good Time

Good Time

By

star 7.4/10

by IMDb Rating
Casino Royale

Casino Royale

By Martin Campbell

star 8.0/10

by IMDb Rating
The Killing of a Sacred Deer

The Killing of a Sacred Deer

By Yorgos Lanthimos

star 7.0/10

by IMDb Rating

Yorgos Lathimos is a distinct flavor of director, especially when he’s working from his own scripts. If you loved the dry, sarcastic tone of The Lobster, or you found yourself hoping for an even more dreadful time while watching The Favorite in theaters, The Killing of a Sacred Deer is the film for you. Starring Colin Farrell as Dr. Steven Murphy, a renowned cardiovascular surgeon and strict father of two, the film finds Dr. Murphy meeting Martin, a fatherless teenager who seems to see Martin as his own family. When Martin’s familiarity becomes overly intense, it becomes clear that his intentions are for more sinister than anyone could imagine.

Triple 9

Triple 9

By John Hillcoat

star 6.3/10

by IMDb Rating

A psychological thriller might keep you rapt on the edge of your seat, but who doesn’t love a good ol’ fashioned action-thriller to switch up the pace? Triple 9 is a surprisingly solid action flick featuring a stacked ensemble cast, including Casey Affleck, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Anthony Mackie, Aaron Paul, Norman Reedus, Michael K. Williams, Gal Gadot, Woody Harrelson, and Kate Winslet. The film follows a botched getaway on the Atlanta freeway as armed thieves perform a bank robbery in broad daylight. After failing to make their boss happy, the group plans one final heist, planning to use crooked cop Marcus Belmont’s new partner as a pawn in their scheme.

The Departed

The Departed

By Martin Scorsese

star 8.5/10

by IMDb Rating

In this Best Picture-winning crime drama, Martin Scorsese directs an A-list cast in this remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film Internal Affairs. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Billy Costigan Jr, a student at a police academy who is recruited to go undercover in a crime syndicate in South Boston, thanks to his family ties that make him the perfect candidate. Years prior to that, Colin Costello (Matt Damon) is introduced to that same crime life by Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson), who grooms Costello to become a mole inside the Massachusetts State Police. As each man infiltrates their respective targets, the two men will start to chase each other, each having to protect both their own life and the lives of those they care about. Also starring Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin, and Vera Farmiga, The Departed was both a critical and commercial success, and is a much-see entry in Scorsese’s filmography.

Taxi Driver

Taxi Driver

By Martin Scorsese

star 8.2/10

by IMDb Rating

Taxi Driver is a landmark film for a dozen or more reasons. It’s one of the best of Martin Scorsese’s storied career; it features Robert De Niro in one of his best roles of his life; the supporting cast is absolutely stacked, including Harvey Keitel, Albert Brooks, Cybil Shepard, and Peter Boyle; and the film established Jodie Foster as a child prodigy in Hollywood. The film follows a loner veteran, Travis Bickle, who was dishonorably discharged from the military following the Vietnam War, as he lives in a decaying and morally bankrupt New York City. Bickle picks up work as a taxi driver, working through the night as he struggles with insomnia. Slowly descending into insanity, Bickle plots to assassinate both a presidential candidate and the pimp of an underage prostitute he befriends at night.

Shutter Island

Shutter Island

By Martin Scorsese

star 8.2/10

by IMDb Rating

The fourth team-up between director Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio, Shutter Island is an adaptation of the Dennis Lehane (Gone Baby Gone, Mystic River) novel of the same name. Set in 1954, the film follows U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels (DiCaprio) and his new partner, Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo), as they travel to Ashecliffe Hospital on Shutter Island in the Boston harbor. Traveling to investigate the disappearance of patient Rachel Solando, a woman incriminated for drowning her three children, the two are confused to discover she escaped seemingly from a locked room, with only a single clue left behind in her wake: a note reading “The law of 4; who is 67?” Trapped on the island during a storm, Teddy will begin to find the management team on the island is seemingly hiding something, leading him to push harder into the mysterious disappearance of Rachel, and to even confront his own dark reality.

Inception

Inception

By Christopher Nolan

star 8.8/10

by IMDb Rating

One of the most inventive and creative blockbusters of the 2010s, Inception was director Christopher Nolan’s follow-up to The Dark Knight, as he cashed in the check from one of the most critically acclaimed superhero films ever made to make an insane big-budget thriller. The film follows Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio), a thief who can enter the dreams of his marks in order to steal secrets from their subconscious. Though his skill has made him popular in the world of corporate espionage, it has cost him his family and his access to the United States. Cobb gets a chance at redemption when he is offered a seemingly impossible task: instead of stealing a secret, he has to plant an idea, making it seem as though the mark had it on their own. If he succeeds, he’ll be allowed to return to his home, but the memory of Cobb’s late wife threatens to destroy the mission.

Leaves Netflix March 31st 

Midnight Special

Midnight Special

By Jeff Nichols

star 6.6/10

by IMDb Rating

Director Jeff Nichols is no stranger to critical acclaim, with both Take Shelter and Mud being placed on numerous best-of lists during their year of release. The filmmaker managed to get two of his films released in 2016, and while Loving is a quiet bio-drama about race relations in the 1960s, Midnight Special is the sci-fi film that earns its spot on our list. Reunited with Michael Shannon (Take Shelter), Midnight Special tells the story of a man and his son (Jaeden Lieberher) who head out on the run from both religious extremists and the government, after the boy demonstrates his ability to hold supernatural powers.

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes

By Guy Ritchie

star 7.4/10

by IMDb Rating

Guy Ritchie has always infused his films with a certain sense of masculine bravado, no matter the subject matter, and that continued with his 2009 adaptation of Sherlock Holmes. Starring Robert Downey Jr., hot off his Hollywood comeback with Iron Man, Sherlock Holmes is a brand-new take on the detective, following him as he swaggers through London solving crimes. When a string of brutal murders begin to line up, Holmes and his partner Dr. Watson (Jude Law) immediately identify Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong) as the killer. But Blackwood has a bigger scheme in mind, and despite an execution for his crimes, Blackwood seemingly rises from the grave. Holmes and Watson are forced to enter a strange new world to solve their latest mystery.

William Sattelberg

Mar 2, 2021

William has been with TechJunkie since 2017, writing about smartphones, games, streaming media, and anything else that technology touches in our current age. He also works as a video producer, writing and recording scripts for our video team and editing videos for TechJunkie's YouTube channel. William graduated from SUNY Fredonia in 2016 with a degree in Video Production, and lives in Buffalo, NY.

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