Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Clare-Hope Ashitey, David Tennant, Hayley Atwell, Isabella Laughland, Katherine Kelly, Lee Ingleby, Mark Stanley, Nicholas Pinnock, Rochenda Sandall, Shubham Saraf, Youssef Kerkour
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Clare-Hope Ashitey, David Tennant, Hayley Atwell, Isabella Laughland, Katherine Kelly, Lee Ingleby, Mark Stanley, Nicholas Pinnock, Rochenda Sandall, Shubham Saraf, Youssef Kerkour
It looks like something you’ve already seen before: a student genius turns a simple high school cheating scheme into a full-blown, high-stakes heist. But layered with great acting, taut writing, and sharp observations about the ways in which education (and society in general) fails its students, Bad Genius turns a familiar premise into something genuinely exciting and impressively affecting. It’s everything you want a caper movie to be: smart and thrilling, with almost no moment to breathe, and of course, peppered with characters you can’t help but root and be nervous and excited for.
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama, Thriller
Actor: Aokbab Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying, Chanon Santinatornkul, Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying, Ego Mikitas, Eisaya Hosuwan, Kanjana Vinaipanid, Nopawat Likitwong, Pasin Kuansataporn, Sahajak Boonthanakit, Sarinrat Thomas, Suquan Bulakul, Teeradon Supapunpinyo, Thaneth Warakulnukroh, Valerie Bentson, Vittawin Veeravidhayanant
Director: Nattawut Poonpiriya
Ashkal takes an audaciously hybrid approach to genre: it’s part-noir, part-supernatural thriller, and full political allegory. The investigation at the center of this slow-burn Tunisian police procedural is a gripping one, as burnt naked bodies keep turning up in abandoned construction sites in Tunis with no trace of a struggle or even a combustible on them. In post-revolution Tunisia, the deaths are an uncomfortable reminder of recent history: it was a young Tunisian man’s self-immolation that sparked the Arab Spring, after all.
The revolution’s complicated legacy looms over the film, as we watch the country’s Truth and Dignity Commission begin its work of uncovering the former government’s corruption and abuses. Ashkal’s two protagonists — the young Fatma (Fatma Oussaifi) and her more seasoned police partner Batal (Mohamed Grayaa) — find themselves on opposite sides of that political divide, he having been implicated in the abuses of power that are now being investigated by Fatma’s father. There are fascinating elements at play here, and the results of Ashkal’s ambitious genre experiment are mostly inspired. Much of the film’s energies are spent on building a paranoid atmosphere — efforts that can, at times, frustratingly slacken the tension — but its fantastical touches tauten things up enough to make it a haunting political commentary in the end.
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Director: Youssef Chebbi
Child kidnapping is any parent’s nightmare, and it’s the nightmare that drives the events of Spanish crime thriller The Snow Girl. Based on the 2020 novel of the same name, the limited series takes a unique double-pronged approach to the case at hand. The show goes through the regular police investigations we’ve seen previously, but it also comes mainly from the perspective of journalist Miren Rojo, whose previous trauma understandably limits her trust with the authorities. As the show moves the story from New York to Malaga, and switches between perspectives, and timelines, The Snow Girl adeptly maintains the novel’s original suspense, without over sensationalizing the crime at hand.
Genre: Crime, Mystery
Actor: Aixa Villagrán, José Coronado, Loreto Mauleón, Milena Smit, Tristán Ulloa
The Outfit doesn’t need to do a lot to be as sleek and surprising as it is. In fact, much of the film takes place in a single place while consisting of only a few (albeit memorable) characters. It’s deceptively simple, but the tricks it hides up its sleeves are plentiful and pleasurable. It’s a well-made and even better-performed gangster movie. Led by a quietly powerful Mark Rylance (who plays Leonard, the tailor with hidden depths), the actors are serious enough to lend it gravitas but easygoing enough to make it light on its feet.
All in all, The Outfit is an agile action film with twists that will keep you at the edge of your seat right till the very end.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Dylan O'Brien, Johnathan McClain, Johnny Flynn, Mark Rylance, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Scoop Wasserstein, Simon Russell Beale, Zoey Deutch
Director: Graham Moore
When Big Tech and trolls have all but villainized the internet, it's hard to forget that good can come out of it sometimes. But Missing makes a case for its usefulness by making it the sole means by which an 18-year-old tries to find her missing mother. Played by Storm Reid, June Allen is endlessly creative in the digital sphere, which makes sense given she's from a generation that grew up with cutting-edge technology. She makes use of geotrackers, earth cams, and even digital watches to get ahead of the authorities, who for their part, are tied down by legalities and red tape. Missing shows us the potential of the internet, what it can do if used resourcefully and for good, and it's a refreshing take given the (understandably) many films that are fearful of tech.
Missing embraces all this newness and builds a solid thriller out of it, making it a worthy and possibly seminal entry in the screenlife genre.
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Amy Landecker, Briana McLean, Dalila Ali Rajah, Daniel Henney, Danielle Nottingham, Esteban Dager, Jalil Jay Lynch, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Javier Grajeda, Jill Remez, Jill Smith, Joaquim de Almeida, Karina Noelle Castillo, Kelly Stables, Ken Leung, Kimberly Cheng, Lisa Yamada, Mauricio Mendoza, Megan Suri, Michael Segovia, Monica Bhatnagar, Nia Long, Oscar Camacho, Rick Chambers, Roy Abramsohn, Scott Menville, Sean O'Bryan, Storm Reid, Thomas Barbusca, Tim Griffin, Tracy Vilar, Wolfie Trausch, Zeke Alton
Director: Nicholas D. Johnson, Will Merrick
Genre: Crime, Drama, Romance
Actor: Aldis Hodge, Camila Morrone, Hans Christopher, Joe Keery, Ozioma Akagha, Susan Brava, Wayne Duvall
Director: Keir O'Donnell
This is a really weird movie starring Colin Farrell and Nicole Kidman. They play a wholesome and well-off couple where Farrell is a heart surgeon. The movie starts with him taking care of a teenager called Martin, who's not related to him or seems to have any real connection with him. It later turns out that Martin shares a special bond with the surgeon, a bond that will threaten his family in unexpected ways. The camera work and direction by Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster, The Favourite) offset the weirdness to offer an intriguing experience.
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Alicia Silverstone, Anita Farmer Bergman, Barry G. Bernson, Barry Keoghan, Beverly Kristy, Bill Camp, Bryant Bentley, Carly Tamborski, Charles Poole, Colin Farrell, David Pittinger, Denise Dal Vera, Drew Logan, Dylan Keith Adams, Herb Caillouet, Jerry Pope, Joanne Popolin, John Newsom, John W. Harden, Lea Hutton Beasmore, Megan Chelf Fisher, Michelle Dobrozsi, Ming Wang, Nicole Kidman, Raffey Cassidy, Robert Gerding, Steven Schraub, Sunny Suljic, William C. Ingram
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
A thrilling and fun film about a British working class bunch who find themselves in confrontation with the rich and powerful. This happens when their once-in -a-lifetime job lands them not on ly the expected money and jewelry, but documents with big secrets. The phrase "the good version of Jason Statham" applies not only to the actor but to the whole film - as it is enjoyable like all similar heist movies but adds that sadly forgotten thing called character. If you liked The Italian Job, The Town, or even films like Argo; you will love The Bank Job.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Alistair Petrie, Alki David, Andrew Brooke, Angus Wright, Antony Gabriel, Bronson Webb, Colin Salmon, Craig Fairbrass, Daniel Mays, David Suchet, Don Gallagher, Dylan Charles, Georgia Taylor, Gerard Horan, Hattie Morahan, James Faulkner, Jason Statham, Julian Firth, Julian Lewis Jones, Keeley Hawes, Michael Jibson, Mick Jagger, Peter Bowles, Peter de Jersey, Richard Lintern, Rupert Frazer, Rupert Vansittart, Saffron Burrows, Sharon Maughan, Stephen Campbell Moore
Director: Roger Donaldson
Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime, Thriller
Actor: Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Arben Bala, Arthur Berning, Atle Antonsen, Birgitte Hjort Sørensen, Birgitte Hjort Sorensen, Bjørn Moan, Bruno Ganz, David Sakurai, Espen Reboli Bjerke, Gard B. Eidsvold, Goran Navojec, Hildegun Riise, Jack Moland, Jakob Oftebro, Jan Gunnar Røise, Jon Øigarden, Jon Øigarden, Julia Bache-Wiig, Kåre Conradi, Kristofer Hivju, Leo Ajkic, Martin Furulund, Miodrag 'Miki' Krstović, Miodrag Krstović, Ola G. Furuseth, Pål Sverre Hagen, Peter Andersson, Sergej Trifunović, Stellan Skarsgård, Stig Henrik Hoff, Thomas Hildebrand, Tobias Santelmann
Director: Hans Petter Moland
With plenty of familiar elements, Flex X Cop should feel unoriginal. After all, a rich heir that plays at being a cop to capture bad guys in response to his mother’s death? That’s practically Batman. But the show is more fun and breezy, with Ahn Bo-hyun as the charismatic Jin Yi-soo pulling out chaotic mischief that somehow doesn’t get him in trouble, paired with Park Ji-hyun in her first action role as a more stern, by-the-book detective Lee Kang-hyun. It’s an interesting buddy cop dynamic that leans more on lighthearted comedy than serious thriller, but the opening sequence hints at a more serious side, still full of action sequences expected from the genre. Flex X Cop may have plenty of familiar tropes, but the way it’s remixed feels novel and entertaining enough to watch.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Actor: Ahn Bo-hyun, Kang Sang-jun, Kim Shin-bi, Lee Na-eun, Park Ji-hyun
Director: Kim Jae-hong
Before, then, and now — these are the three points in time that twisty TV heist thriller Culprits zips between. That remixed chronology (the convergent point of which is an audacious £100 million robbery) is both a strength and a stumbling block for the series. While it helps liven things up, it also takes some getting used to, which means the first episode requires more effort than expected as we work to get our bearings. By the time we’re on Culprits’ wavelength, though, the other attractions of the show reveal themselves: an intrigue-infused plot, charismatic characters, and adrenaline-pumping action.
The one constant in this whirlwind is David (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) — or Joe, or Muscle, all names he goes by depending on the timeline. A London-dwelling bodyguard recruited to undertake a mega-heist by shady mastermind Dianne (Gemma Arterton), we actually meet him long after it’s (seemingly) completed. Now living in Washington and sporting a just-passable American accent, he’s a family man who goes by Joe and bears no signs of his criminal past. Piecing together the puzzle of his transformation — and the threats that have somehow followed him across the globe — is Culprits’ greatest pull, one that wouldn’t be possible without its nonlinear storytelling, an initial hurdle that’s worth jumping over.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Eddie Izzard, Gemma Arterton, Kamel ElBasha, Kevin Vidal, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Ned Dennehy, Niamh Algar, Tara Abboud
Any parent would defend their kid in court, though, sometimes it depends on the case. A Nearly Normal Family brings one such Swedish family through a case, as their nineteen year old daughter is accused of murdering a man, four years after the family decides not to prosecute their daughter’s rapist without evidence. The thriller series unfolds into a compelling murder mystery, as the show plays with the family members’ different perspectives that expands and continues the show’s intrigue, even if you think you have it all figured out. And as the investigation continues, the family’s secrets slowly get unveiled, threatening to break the Sandells apart, with their conflicting morals and unresolved trauma. While some viewers might not appreciate the slow burn, it’s an interesting crime thriller-family drama mix that questions how far we’re willing to go for our loved ones.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Alexandra Karlsson Tyrefors, Björn Bengtsson, Christian Fandango Sundgren, Lo Kauppi, Melisa Ferhatovic
Borrowing heavily from yakuza films of the past, The Blood of Wolves feels like a movie plucked straight out of the 1970s and given a slick coat of 2010s neo-noir shine. The film never tries to reinvent the recipe it's working with, but it doesn't have to when its violence is still satisfyingly brutal, its plot endlessly twisty, and its morality grey. At the center is a brash and sleazy performance from the great Koji Yakusho, whom you can never really clock as being in control or out of his depth. It might only hold special value for hardcore fans of the genre, but it provides enough solid thrills for the more casual viewer.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Actor: Abe Junko, Eiji Takigawa, Gorō Ibuki, Hajime Inoue, Issei Okihara, Joey Iwanaga, Junko Abe, Katsuya, Ken'ichi Yajima, Kenichi Takito, Kenichi Takitoh, Kōji Yakusho, Kyūsaku Shimada, Marie Machida, Megumi, Pierre Taki, Renji Ishibashi, Ryuji Sainei, Shidô Nakamura, Shun Nakayama, Takahiro Kuroishi, Takaki Uda, Takamitsu Nonaka, Taketo Tanaka, Takuma Otoo, Taro Suruga, Tomorowo Taguchi, Tomoya Nakamura, Tori Matsuzaka, Yôko Maki, Yosuke Eguchi, Yutaka Takenouchi
Director: Kazuya Shiraishi
Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker, The Town, Arrival) plays Gary Webb, a journalist in investigating the American government’s possible involvement in cocaine trafficking in Latin America. Based on a true story, it’s in the same vein as other recent movies on investigative journalism. Jeremy Renner’s performance is the main reason to watch this movie. Even as the story spins into deeper levels of complexity, he remains a coherent, steady point of reference. It was his chance to prove to directors that he can carry a big-budget movie and he nailed it.
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Actor: Andy Garcia, Barry Pepper, Dan Futterman, David Alessi, David de Vries, David Lee Garver, Gil Bellows, Jen Harper, Jena Sims, Jeremy Renner, Joshua Close, Lucas Hedges, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Matt Lintz, Matthew Lintz, Michael Cuesta, Michael Kenneth Williams, Michael Sheen, Nancy Davis Reagan, Nancy Reagan, Oliver Platt, Paz Vega, Ray Liotta, Rhoda Griffis, Richard Schiff, Robert Patrick, Robert Pralgo, Rosemarie DeWitt, Shaira Barton, Steve Coulter, Susan Walters, Tim Blake Nelson, Yul Vazquez
Director: Michael Cuesta