Thrillers & Suspense
Thriller and Suspense Films promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra-heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve-wracking tension.
A genuine thriller is a film that relentlessly pursues a single-minded goal, to provide thrills and keep the audience cliff-hanging on the 'edge of their seats' as the plot builds towards a climax. Plots of thrillers often involve characters which come into conflict with each other or with outside forces - the menace is sometimes abstract or shadowy.
Below is a grand line-up of the best in contemporary Thrillers & Suspense made since 1965. Following a similar theme, with generally a darker look is the "Film Noir" feature, well worth checking out. The exploits of "James Bond 007" may also be accessed stage left.
Right: Frances McDormand makes an arrest in the Coen Bros "Fargo".
Smooth Talk (1985)
6.5/10
Director: Joyce Chopra
Starring: Treat Williams, Laura Dern, Mary Kay Place, Elizabeth Berridge
A free-spirited 15-year-old girl flirts with a dangerous stranger in the Northern California suburbs and must prepare herself for the frightening and... Read more
Smother (2021)
6.4/10
Starring: Dervla Kirwan
On the rugged coast of County Clare, Val Ahern's husband is found dead at the foot of a cliff the morning after a family party. The matriarch starts t... Read more
Snake Eyes (1998)
6/10
Director: Brian De Palma
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Gary Sinise, Carla Gugino, Stan Shaw
The U.S. Secretary of Defense is assassinated during an Atlantic City boxing match and corrupt cop Nicolas Cage and naval officer pal Gary Sinise take... Read more
Snakes on a Plane (2006)
5.5/10
Director: David R Ellis
Starring: Samuel L Jackson, Julianna Margulies, Nathan Phillips, Rachel Blanchard, Flex Al...
Samuel L. Jackson is FBI agent Neville Flynn, a no-nonsense professional bringing an important government witness across the Pacific Ocean. But the ba... Read more
Snatch (2000)
8.3/10
Director: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Dennis Farina, Vinnie Jones, Brad Pitt, Rade Serbedzija, Jason...
Following 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels', Guy Ritchie revisits that film's territory of London's criminal-ridden underbelly, with this labyrint... Read more
Snatch ( Blu-ray ) (2000)
8.3/10
Director: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Brad Pitt, Dennis Farina, Rade Serbedzija, Vinnie Jones, Jason...
Following 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels', Guy Ritchie revisits that film's territory of London's criminal-ridden underbelly, with this labyrint... Read more
Sneakers (1992)
7.1/10
Director: Phil Alden Robinson
Starring: Robert Redford, Dan Aykroyd, Ben Kingsley
An entertaining thriller starring Robert Redford as a computer wizard who has been living 'underground' since the 60's and leads a group of other 'hac... Read more
Sniper (1992)
6.1/10
Director: Luis Llosa
Starring: Tom Berenger, Billy Zane, J T Walsh, Aden Young
Tom Berenger is a hard-as-nails, and possibly slightly crazy, government assassin. When his partner is killed during a hit, the higher-ups send in sha... Read more
Sniper 2 (2002)
5.2/10
Director: Craig R Baxley
Starring: Tom Berenger, Bokeem Woodbine, Erika Marozsan
Sergeant Thomas Beckett (Berenger) is back - and this time he's teamed up with a death row inmate named B.J. Cole (Woodbine) on a suicide mission to t... Read more
Sniper: Assassin's End (2020)
6.1/10
Director: Kaare Andrews
Starring: Tom Berenger
Legendary sniper Thomas Beckett and his son, Special Ops Sniper Brandon Beckett, are on the run from the CIA, Russian Mercenaries, and a Yakuza-traine... Read more