Best-Reviewed Thrillers 2020

Critics Consensus: Clever, funny, and original, Blow the Man Down is a cinematic journey that's not to be missed.

Synopsis: Welcome to Easter Cove, a salty fishing village on the far reaches of Maine's rocky coast. Grieving the loss of their mother and facing an... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Morgan Saylor, Sophie Lowe, Margo Martindale, Will Brittain

Directed By: Bridget Savage Cole, Danielle Krudy

Critics Consensus: Formally thrilling and narratively daring, Bacurau draws on modern Brazilian sociopolitical concerns to deliver a hard-hitting, genre-blurring drama.

Synopsis: A few years from now... Bacurau, a small village in the Brazilian sertão, mourns the loss of its matriarch, Carmelita, who lived to be 94.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sônia Braga, Udo Kier, Barbara Colen, Julia Marie Peterson

Directed By: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano Dornelles

Critics Consensus: A satisfyingly dark noir elevated by stellar acting and a sharp screenplay, Blood on Her Name thrills in the moment and lingers in the memory.

Synopsis: A woman's panicked decision to cover up an accidental killing spins out of control when her conscience demands she return the dead man's body to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Bethany Anne Lind, Will Patton, Elisabeth Röhm, Jared Ivers

Directed By: Matthew Pope

Critics Consensus: An effective pairing of period setting and timeless themes, The Nest wrings additional tension out of its unsettling story with an outstanding pair of lead performances.

Synopsis: An entrepreneur and his family begin to unravel after moving into an old country manor in England in the 1980s.

Starring: Jude Law, Carrie Coon, Oona Roche, Charlie Shotwell

Directed By: Sean Durkin

Critics Consensus: Bloody and brutal, Hunter Hunter is a hard-hitting survivalist thriller that ratchets its tension with precision.

Synopsis: HUNTER HUNTER follows a family living in the remote wilderness earning a living as fur trappers. Joseph Mersault (Devon Sawa), his wife Anne (Camille Sullivan),... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Camille Sullivan, Devon Sawa, Summer H. Howell, Nick Stahl

Directed By: Shawn Linden

Critics Consensus: Alone's minimalistic approach makes this heightened thriller a gripping and suspenseful experience.

Synopsis: A cold-blooded killer hunts a widow in the wilderness after she escapes from his remote cabin in the Pacific Northwest.

Starring: Jules Willcox, Marc Menchaca, Anthony Heald, Jonathan Rosenthal

Directed By: John Hyams

Critics Consensus: Smart and stylish, The Wild Goose Lake blends B-movie thrills with bold filmmaking choices and thought-provoking social commentary.

Synopsis: A gangster ends up making a mistake that causes every gun on both sides of the law to point at him. While on the run,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Fan Liao, Ge Hu, Lun-Mei Gwei, Regina Wan

Directed By: Diao Yinan

Critics Consensus: Solid acting and expertly ratcheted tension help Run transcend its familiar trappings to deliver a delightfully suspenseful thriller.

Synopsis: An isolated teen discovers her mother's sinister secret.

Starring: Sarah Paulson, Kiera Allen, Onalee Ames, Pat Healy

Directed By: Aneesh Chaganty

Critics Consensus: A Good Woman Is Hard to Find, but it isn't difficult to see a star in the making while watching Sarah Bolger's powerful performance in this gritty thriller.

Synopsis: A recently widowed young mother will go to great lengths to protect her children as she seeks the truth behind her husband's murder.

Starring: Sarah Bolger, Edward Hogg, Andrew Simpson, Jane Brennan

Directed By: Abner Pastoll

Critics Consensus: Aided by stellar performances from Jessie Buckley and Jesse Plemons, I'm Thinking of Ending Things finds writer-director Charlie Kaufman grappling with the human condition as only he can.

Synopsis: Full of misgivings, a young woman travels with her new boyfriend to his parents' secluded farm.

Starring: Jesse Plemons, Jessie Buckley, Toni Collette, David Thewlis

Directed By: Charlie Kaufman