Psychological thrillers have a reputation for inciting an unpredictable level of chills and thrills in audiences with suspenseful mysteries or shocking criminals who commit unspeakable crimes. Known as a sub-genre to the thriller film genre, the psychological thriller mainly focuses on exploring psychological and emotional aspects of its audience through suspense and intensity.
Through the years, there have been a significant number of notable psychological thrillers that are excellent contributions to the genre, but hits such as Rear Window, The Silence of the Lambs, and Zodiac, rank as essential psychological thrillers. While we could go on for days about must-see psychological thrillers, there’s a particular selection of popular titles, including Vertigo, Taxi Driver, and Inception, that everyone should see at least once in their lifetime.
11
‘Vertigo’ (1958)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock is known for his expertise in psychological thrillers and his 1958 classic, Vertigo, is one that didn’t have an initial major impact but, in recent years, it has been credited as one of the director’s greatest films. James Stewart stars as John Ferguson, a former police officer with a severe fear of heights who is hired to follow a friend’s troubled wife, Madeline (Kim Novak), in an effort to save her from possibly taking her own life.
Vertigo is the ultimate definition of a psychological thriller as it not only centers around a character’s irrational fear of heights but also dives deeper into the human mindset regarding disillusion and obsession. The movie gives the initial impression of being a practical plot, but in true Hitchcock fashion, the Master of Suspense slowly lures audiences into a blended world of fantasy and drama paired with his traditional touch of unbearable suspense and tension, making Vertigo a crucial psychological thriller.
A former San Francisco police detective juggles wrestling with his personal demons and becoming obsessed with the hauntingly beautiful woman he has been hired to trail, who may be deeply disturbed.
- Release Date
-
May 9, 1958
- Cast
-
Tom Helmore
, Barbara Bel Geddes
, Kim Novak
, James Stewart
, Henry Jones - Runtime
-
128 minutes
- Writers
-
Alec Coppel
, Samuel A. Taylor
10
‘Dressed to Kill’ (1980)
Directed by Brian De Palma
Brian De Palma‘s erotic psychological thriller, Dressed to Kill, is a subtle homage to Hitchcock’s classic, Psycho, but with much more sex appeal and slow-burn intensity that will have audiences on the edge of their seats. The movie follows a call-girl, Liz Blake (Nancy Allen), who witnesses a mysterious blonde woman brutally murder a woman (Angie Dickinson) in an elevator. When Blake becomes the police’s prime suspect in the case, she and the victim’s son set out to find the real killer before it’s too late.
Dressed to Kill starts with very little to no dialogue, which allows De Palma to meticulously build up an unbearable level of suspense, effectively hooking audiences into this stylish and sexy psychological thriller. While some would say Dressed to Kill is more of a sexpot who-dun-it than a psychological thriller, De Palma’s flawless execution of the film’s undeniable tone of terror, mystery, and elegance puts this 80s film in a category of its own.
A mysterious blonde woman kills one of a psychiatrist’s patients, and then goes after the high-class call girl who witnessed the murder.
- Release Date
-
July 25, 1980
- Cast
-
Michael Caine
, Angie Dickinson
, Nancy Allen
, Keith Gordon
, Dennis Franz
, David Margulies
, Ken Baker
, Susanna Clemm - Runtime
-
104 Minutes
9
‘Taxi Driver’ (1976)
Directed by Martin Scorsese
Taxi Driver is one of the most celebrated psychological thrillers starring Robert De Niro as a Vietnam veteran, Travis Bickle, who works as a cab driver in a morally decaying New York City. As Bickle slowly descends into madness, audiences are unable to pull their eyes away from what one can describe as a car crash in slow motion. Despite Bickle’s volatile and turbulent journey, it’s impossible not to watch and see the outcome.
Martin Scorsese beautifully taps into the complex mind of Bickle, who serves as a representation of many who experienced warfare and the psychological impact, as well as the change in culture at the time, conveying a tale of violence and chaos that is simply remarkable. While Bickle’s mental state is the core of the film, Scorsese’s vision also pulls audiences into a dream-like state, giving an additional boost to the film’s overall psychological impact that resonates long after the credits have rolled.
A mentally unstable veteran works as a nighttime taxi driver in New York City, where the perceived decadence and sleaze fuels his urge for violent action.
- Release Date
-
February 9, 1976
- Runtime
-
114 Minutes
- Writers
-
Paul Schrader
- Main Genre
-
Drama
8
‘Sleuth’ (1972)
Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz
The 1972 psychological thriller Sleuth is one of the most underrated films of the genre and is an intense game of wits with dangerously high stakes. Laurence Olivier stars as a successful crime novelist, Andrew Wyke, who seems content with his wife leaving him for another man, Milo Tindle (Michael Caine). When Wyke meets with Tindle, he presents an unusual proposition which ultimately sets an intense game of cat and mouse into motion.
For those who are fans of the infamous work of Agatha Christie, Joseph L. Mankiewicz‘s Sleuth is an absolute must-see. Caine and Olivier are a dashing and dangerously clever duo whose exceptional performances earned them both Oscar nominations for Best Actor. Sleuth is a riveting who-dun-it mystery tailored to an intense game of psychological warfare that keeps audiences in high anticipation at every move, deeming it to be a one-of-a-kind psychological thriller.
Sleuth (1972)
A man who loves games and theater invites his wife’s lover to meet him, setting up a battle of wits with potentially deadly results.
- Release Date
-
December 10, 1972
- Director
-
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
- Language
-
English
- Run Time
-
138 mins
- Actors
-
Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine
Buy on Amazon
7
‘Zodiac’ (2007)
Directed by David Fincher
David Fincher’s dark R-rated psychological thriller, Zodiac, lays out all the details and clues of one of America’s most notorious cold cases and killers, the Zodiac, who terrorized the Bay Area during the late 1960s and 1970s. The film centers around two San Fran detectives, Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr.) and Dave Toschi (Mark Ruffalo) and a local reporter, Robert Graysmith (Jake Gyllenhaal), who all become obsessed with identifying the Zodiac and stopping him before he claims more victims.
Based on the non-fiction book written by Grayson, Zodiac reaches deep into the audience’s psyche through sheer terror and unbearable suspense, ultimately conveying the terrifying toll the Zodiac had on the public and law enforcement at the time. Zodiac compensates for the lack of a resolution with a slew of information and potential suspects, allowing the audience to come to their own conclusion and opinion regarding the killer’s identity.
Between 1968 and 1983, a San Francisco cartoonist becomes an amateur detective obsessed with tracking down the Zodiac Killer, an unidentified individual who terrorizes Northern California with a killing spree.
- Release Date
-
March 2, 2007
- Runtime
-
157 minutes
- Writers
-
James Vanderbilt
- Main Genre
-
Crime
6
‘What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?’ (1962)
Directed by Robert Aldrich
Bette Davis and Joan Crawford star in What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? as sisters who, in an unfortunate twist of fate, are pitted against one another in a chilling fight for survival. The movie tells the story of a former child star, Baby Jane Hudson (Davis), whose sister, Blanche (Crawford), rose to stardom as her sister’s star faded. When a tragic accident leaves Blanche bound to a wheelchair, Jane is left to care for her, putting her helpless sister through an inescapable nightmare.
Despite their notorious off-screen rivalry, Davis and Crawford are sinfully delightful in this vital psychological thriller which depicts the dark side of stardom against a child-like delusional backdrop. While Crawford delivers a solid performance, Davis runs away with the film as Baby Jane. Davis gives a chilling portrayal of a woman confined to her child star persona, completely consumed by madness and unable to realize that her days in the spotlight are long gone.
Baby Jane Hudson, once a famous child actress, now resides in a dilapidated mansion with her sister Blanche, who was a successful actress until an accident left her paralyzed. Jane, whose mental health is declining, harbors intense envy and bitterness toward Blanche. As she subjects her sister to increasing cruelty and psychological abuse, the story delves into their troubled past and the dark dynamics of their relationship, culminating in shocking revelations and tragic consequences.
- Release Date
-
October 12, 1962
- Director
-
Robert Aldrich
- Cast
-
Bette Davis
, Joan Crawford
, Victor Buono
, Wesley Addy
, Julie Allred - Runtime
-
134 Minutes
- Writers
-
Lukas Heller
, Henry Farrell
Rent on Amazon Prime
5
‘Gaslight’ (1944)
Directed by George Cukor
Ingrid Bergman stars in George Cukor’s Gaslight as Paula Alquist, who, after the death of her famous opera singing aunt, travels to Italy to follow in her footsteps. There, she meets a sophisticated gentleman, Gregory Anton (Charles Boyer), and the two quickly marry. As they settle into their new life together, Paula begins to notice unusual occurrences and while she tries to maintain her sanity, her husband’s intentions are soon under suspicion.
If there was ever a definitive psychological thriller, it would be the Oscar-winning classic, Gaslight, which follows a traditional formula of psychological warfare that slowly unravels a murderous plot. The movie depicts a seemingly too-perfect love story that eventually spirals into revealing a tedious plan of theft and murder which is held off by Boyer’s deceptive mind games and charm. While the overall cast is exceptional, Bergman’s performance and transitions between spouts of hysteria, love, and panic is the heart and soul of this vital classic psychological thriller.
Paula Alquist, newly married to Gregory Anton, relocates to her inherited London townhouse, where she starts experiencing unsettling events like dimming gaslights and disappearing possessions. Gregory continually tells her that she is imagining these occurrences, leading her to doubt her own sanity. However, Gregory’s true motive is to drive Paula insane, hiding his quest to uncover her aunt’s hidden jewels. As Paula’s psychological torment intensifies, a determined police inspector begins to suspect the truth, aiming to save her from Gregory’s manipulative grasp.
- Release Date
-
May 4, 1944
- Director
-
George Cukor
- Cast
-
Charles Boyer
, Ingrid Bergman
, Joseph Cotten
, May Whitty
, Angela Lansbury - Runtime
-
114 Minutes
- Writers
-
John Van Druten
, Walter Reisch
, John L. Balderston
, Patrick Hamilton
4
‘Inception’ (2010)
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Christopher Nolan‘s 2010 hit Inception is essentially a dream within a dream, transcending audiences into a tizzy of deciphering what is reality and what is simply an illusion. Leonardo DiCaprio takes on the role of one of the best movie thieves, Dom Cobb, who has the ability to enter someone’s dreams and steal their secrets from their subconscious. When he agrees to plant an idea in someone’s mind (Cillian Murphy), the already impossible task is complicated even more by Cobb’s unresolved past.
Inception takes the concept of lucid-dreaming to a fascinating criminal level paired with an emotional backstory, making it an unconventional but exhilarating psychological thriller. The movie is an intricate labyrinth of the human mind and a cinematic game of chess that also has the ideal characteristics of a thrilling heist and an action-packed adventure, setting Inception apart from other modern psychological thrillers.
A thief who steals corporate secrets through the use of dream-sharing technology is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a C.E.O., but his tragic past may doom the project and his team to disaster.
- Release Date
-
July 16, 2010
- Cast
-
Leonardo DiCaprio
, Joseph Gordon-Levitt
, Elliot Page
, Tom Hardy
, Ken Watanabe
, Dileep Rao
, Cillian Murphy
, Tom Berenger
, Marion Cotillard
, Pete Postlethwaite
, Michael Caine
, Lukas Haas
, Tai-Li Lee
, Claire Geare
, Magnus Nolan
, Taylor Geare
, Johnathan Geare
, Tohoru Masamune
, Yuji Okumoto
, Earl Cameron
, Ryan Hayward
, Miranda Nolan
, Russ Fega
, Tim Kelleher - Runtime
-
148 minutes
3
‘Rebecca’ (1940)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock made his American debut with the 1940 classic, Rebecca, which stars Joan Fontaine as a young woman who is swept off her feet by a wealthy widower, Maxim de Winter (Laurence Olivier). After the two tie the knot, they return to Maxim’s grand estate, Mandalay, and as the new Mrs. de Winter settles into her new life, she soon becomes suspicious of the circumstances surrounding the demise of Maxim’s first wife.
Based on the 1938 novel by Daphne du Maurier, Rebecca is a whirlwind romance and psychological thriller that initially feels obvious but then takes a drastic turn in an unexpectedly different direction, completely catching audiences off guard. Fontaine brilliantly expresses an intensity of distress and naivety, infecting the audience with their own sense of concern and unsettling notion of Fontaine’s situation.
Buy on Amazon
2
‘The Silence of the Lambs’ (1991)
Directed by Jonathan Demme
Based on Thomas Harris’ 1988 novel, The Silence of the Lambs sent shock waves through movie goers with a sadistic serial killer and an intellectual madman with a young FBI agent stuck in between them. Jodie Foster takes on the role of Clarice Starling, an up-and-coming agent who meets with a brilliant psychiatrist and cannibalistic killer, Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) in an effort to find and stop an active serial killer known as Buffalo Bill (Ted Levine).
The Silence of the Lambs presents an initial intensity that is unlike any other psychological thriller to date. It opens with a shot of a desolate forest with a disturbing silence, ultimately setting a stage of suspense and tension. The film as a whole maintains a steady level of anticipation, but Hopkins brings an unnerving and perplexing energy to the film that is truly remarkable. Even just the slightest grin or a hallowed, empty stare, Hopkins’ performance sparks an undeniable fascination and curiosity in audiences that ultimately steals the entire show.
The Silence of the Lambs
A young F.B.I. cadet must receive the help of an incarcerated and manipulative cannibal killer to help catch another serial killer, a madman who skins his victims.
- Release Date
-
February 14, 1991
- Runtime
-
118 Minutes
- Writers
-
Thomas Harris
, Ted Tally
1
‘Rear Window’ (1954)
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
When people hear the term “psychological thriller,” almost every one immediately thinks of Alfred Hitchcock’s signature film, Rear Window, which is by far one of the greatest psychological thrillers in cinema history. James Stewart stars as a professional photographer, Jeff Jefferies, who, after breaking his leg, is confined to a wheelchair in his New York apartment. In an effort to pass the time, Jefferies begins watching his neighbors, but when he witnesses a heated argument between a married couple, the wife suddenly disappears, leading Jefferies to believe that her husband is responsible.
The beauty of Hitchcock’s Rear Window are the point-of-view shots which effortlessly immerse audiences into the film, giving them the notion of being part of Jefferies’ amateur sleuthing. This technique successfully infiltrates the minds of the audience and assists with gradually building the emotional tension and relentless suspense throughout the film. Between Hitchcock prioritizing action over dialogue and inciting audiences with a pure adrenaline rush, Rear Window is without a doubt a must-see first-rate psychological thriller.
A photographer in a wheelchair spies on his neighbors from his Greenwich Village courtyard apartment window, and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder, despite the skepticism of his fashion-model girlfriend.
- Release Date
-
September 1, 1954
- Cast
-
Thelma Ritter
, James Stewart
, Wendell Corey
, Grace Kelly
, Raymond Burr - Runtime
-
112 minutes
- Writers
-
John Michael Hayes
, Cornell Woolrich
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