51 suspense/ thriller movies of Hollywood that will boggle your mind

Movies have enthralled people ever since cinema as a medium became the ultimate form of entertainment. Suspense thriller movies in particular has created a special niche of its own that has its own unique, heightened appeal. Hollywood has time and again dished out such brilliant and thrilling movies that plays on your senses to the extent that you are left living in them long after you are done watching it. Here are 51 suspense/ thriller movies of Hollywood that will definitely boggle your mind-

#1 Now You See Me

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A 2013 blockbuster suspense movie, Now You See Me follows the track of an FBI agent and an Interpol detective following a team of illusionists at tow. Four street magicians who pull off bank heists during their performances and reward their audiences with the money are sought to be busted by the detectives along the course of this gripping thriller.

#2 The Da Vinci Code

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Among the 2006 suspense thriller movies of Hollywood, The Da Vinci Code is the adaptation of the novel of the same name. A closely guarded religious mystery that might put the continuation of a entire religion at stake is in danger of being unravelled as a murky murder inside the Louvre threatens to be led to its conclusion only through some clues embedded in Da Vinci paintings.

#3 Prisoners

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A distraught father Kellen Dover decides to search for his missing daughter and her friend after several attempts by the police to discover the duo went futile.

#4 Psycho

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Ranked among the greatest films of all times, Psycho is one of the suspense thriller movies Hollywood had produced at a time when violence and gore wasn’t so perpetuated even in cinemas. As a real estate secretary ends up at a secluded motel after being on the run from her employer for a case of money confiscation, a disturbing turn of events unfold wherein she is killed. As the mystery deepens only to unravel later, what emerges is a murderer living in the shadows that has been a serial killer as an alternate personality.

#5 Gone Girl

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The grieving husband of his recently dead wife finds himself under intense media speculation after rumours of him being embroiled in the murder start doing the rounds.

#6 Inception

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One of the best suspense thriller movies Hollywood has ever produced, the 2010 Christopher Nolan film is an intriguing play of mind games. Stealing information by making inroads into the subconscious, Inception is a film about a professional thief’s attempt to make amends by doing just the reverse of what he has done all along.

#7 V for Vendetta

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A political thriller film set ahead of its times adapted from a comics series of the same name, V for Vendetta explores the futuristic landscape of totalitarian Britain. An anarchist freedom fighter known by his initial V
employs elaborate terrorist acts to ignite a revolution against the oppressive policies of the government.

#8 Black Swan

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Emotions and music provide the somewhat ‘perfect’ backdrop for this ballet horror drama that insinuates your senses for its credibility as being amongst the best of suspense thriller movies Hollywood has to offer. The hysterics of the protagonist dwells somewhere in the realm of the surreal, as she struggles to achieve perfection in what turns out to be a nightmarish ride of desires and urges taking center stage.

#9 The Dark Knight

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The Dark Knight is a superhero film. Directed by creative genius Christopher Nolan, the film follows the Joker as he creates havoc in Gotham city. Batman /Bruce Wayne goes on a mission to stop this menacing character. He joins hands with District Attorney Harvey Dent and
Police Lieutenant James Gordon to save Gotham.

#10 Zodiac

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Among the 100 best films of the 21st century, Zodiac is a retelling of the spine chilling murder saga initiated by a serial killer who identified himself as the Zodiac. Sometime during the late 1960s and the early 1970s, the Zodiac had unleashed his reign of gore and terror along the area covering Northern California, taunting lawmakers by evading them even with disturbing evidences that included letters, bloodstained clothing and suggestive codes and puzzles. The film follows a San Francisco cartoonist who turns into an amateur detective obsessed with tracking down the serial killer.

#11 Alien

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Alien is a 1979 film that certainly counts as the best of those suspense thriller movies Hollywood is so adept at making. The thriller explores the dangers faced by the crew of a space merchant vessel after they are hit by a signal from an alien spacecraft. With extraterrestrial elements only enhancing the uncertainty and fear, Alien has also gained the recognition of being one of the greatest films of all times.

#12 Bird Box

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A 2018 post- apocalyptic thriller movie, Bird Box follows the story of a woman and her child along with one other kid as they stumble through forests and rivers blindfolded in a bid to avoid being the victims of a supposed supernatural entity that causes people who look at them to go insane before leading them to commit suicide.

#13 The Silence of the Lambs

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The elements that guides the devilish mind of a serial killer comes to the fore in this one of those suspense thriller movies Hollywood has masterfully created, that mixes horror with another greater fear- the well being or otherwise of the human mind. Delving into your mind as well as goading into your sights, The Silence of the Lambs is undoubtedly one classic offering that baffles your spirits with its every telling.

#14 Jaws

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The highest grossing movie of its time, Jaws is one of the most classic and intimidating films across all ages. As a ferocious killer shark attacks and kills people on a New England beach, the chief of police teams up with a marine biologist and a professional shark hunter to hunt down the havoc causing giant in this thriller film that undoubtedly has to be among the most phenomenally successful movies ever made.

#15 The Machinist

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One of the evocative suspense thriller movies Hollywood has dished out, this 2004 film is high on intrigue (and low on sleep). Insomnia leads the protagonist, who happens to be a machinist, into a maze of delusional happenings causing him to doubt his own stability and sanity.

#16 Se7en

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A rookie detective comes together with one of the veterans of the trade to track down a serial killer who seems to incorporate the seven deadly sins as his murder motives.

#17 Gone Baby Gone

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Another cinematic adaptation of a novel of the same name, Gone Baby Gone traces two private investigator on the lookout for an abducted little girl. Though on the face of it Gone Baby Gone seems to be just another classic suspense thriller movies Hollywood has generated, the element that sets to elevate this film into a league of its own is the crisis at play behind the surprising turn of events that has the ability of taking viewers aback.

#18 Don’t Breathe

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Touted as a horror thriller, Don’t Breathe is one of those suspense thriller movies of Hollywood that is in a league of its own. As a trio of friends break into the house of a blind but wealthy old man to acquire some money to assuage their worries, they unwittingly find themselves in a macabre mess.

#19 Coherence

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A science fiction thriller film, Coherence is somewhat of a twisted yet grippingly suspenseful Hollywood movie. A group of eight friends experience really strange and troubling events induced by the influence of a comet sighting when they met up for a dinner party.

#20 Casino Royale

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Casino Royale follows the beginning of MI6 Agent 007. The 2006 Bond film sees 007 go on an endeavor of making terrorist financier Le Chiffre go bankrupt. It is an adaptation of Ian Fleming’s popular novel of the same name. James Bond develops a love interest in Vesper Lynd amidst the suspense and action.

#21 Vertigo

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Perhaps the forebearer of the genre of psychological suspense thriller movies (Hollywood), this ultimate piece of cinematic beauty deals with a vertigo afflicted detective who comes out of a self induced retirement to follow the case of the possessed wife of one of his friends. Weighing down on the issues of recuperating from a bad case of a disease while struggling to hold the peace intact catapults this movie into the league of a masterpiece thriller.

#22 Mulholland Drive

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A woman who was rendered amnesiac after a car accident on the Mulholland Drive teams up with another woman, a Hollywood hopeful to find out the former’s true identity. Also one of the greatest films ever made, Mulholland Drive particularly teases with its jaw dropping climax that dares to venture beyond reality.

#23 Cube

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Six people from different walks of life engage in a thrilling quest after they all come together to escape imprisonment from inside a giant cube with thousands of possible rooms.

#24 The Illusionist

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A romantic mystery film, The Illusionist has the protagonist resorting to his other love- magic to win over the love of a woman far above his social standing and who had been engaged to a villainous prince. As the tale unfolds, what flows is love and magic, and the brilliant way in which the lovers unite while overruling the thrill of a murder suspense.

#25 Memento

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Another Christopher Nolan gem, Memento has to be one among the suspense thriller movies Hollywood has been blissfully graced by. As a man with short term memory loss vows to avenge his wife’s murder by tracking down the culprit, he finds himself in a dilemma of sorts, seriously determined yet woefully limited by his periodically waning memory.

#26 Panic Room

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As a recently divorced woman move in to their new house along with her daughter, the duo are petrified as three intruders who are out on a robbery spree take refuge there. The panicking mother- daughter duo move into the panic room and remain there in terror till they are finally rescued.

#27 Gravity

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The film focuses on two American astronauts left helpless in space. After their Space Shuttle absorbed unfathomable damage, the entire crew suuered death except these them. They embark on finding a way to get back home before time slows down their heart beat.

#28 Searching

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The film is the tale of how a desperate father takes it upon himself to trace his 16 year old daughter in the aftermath of her gone missing. Even as the police continue their search without any leads yet, the father digs into his child’s digital presence- her laptop which guards quite a few well kept secrets.

#29 The Imitation Game

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The film which released in 2014 revolves around cryptanalyst extraordinaire Alan Turing. It is based on the biography of the war years genius – Alan Turing: The Enigma. The British mathematician who played a major role in decrypting the German intelligence codes is beautifully portrayed by Hollywood favorite Benedict Cumberbatch.

#30 Blow Out

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With one of the best critics’ response for its scintillating display of brilliance, both cinematic and for effectively exploiting the raw veins of the human mind, Blow Out definitely ranks among those suspense thriller movies Hollywood should be proud of. The film tells the tale of a movie sound recordist who finds himself in trouble after accidentally acquiring the audio evidence of a purported car crash, which later turned out to be a high profile assassination involving a presidential hopeful.

#31 127 Hours

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127 Hours is based on Ralston’s memoir Between a Rock and a Hard Place’. Ralston goes on a hiking at Utah’s Canyonlands National Park. He gets stranded alone trapped in a slot canyon. The film covers the time of desperation where the protagonist fights to survive before rescuers arrive.

#32 Sherlock Holmes (2009)

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The most popular among all Sherlock Holmes movies, the 2009 detective thriller film has the eccentric detective Holmes and his companion Watson out in a bid to foil a supernatural plot that carries the power to seemingly destroy the whole of England of the late 19th century.

#33 The Conversation

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A paranoid surveillance expert who finds his world occupied with a serious dilemma, struggles to hold his life and brain intact as he stumbles on a young couple whose life may be ruined by one wrong step of his. Deliriously misleading and infinitely woven thrills to send shivers with its every move, The Conversation is a brilliant take on life ethics while exploring the realm of thrills woven in the expanse of those psychologically inciting suspense thriller movies of Hollywood.

#34 Following

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Ace director Christopher Nolan’s debut film Following has been among the most notable no-budget films of its time. The crime thriller follows a young story writer whose obsession of following people to gain realistic plots for his novels lead him into the dark confines of the underworld from which he can’t escape safe.

#35 Drive

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As a Hollywood stunt performer by day turned mechanic moonlight by night falls in love with his neighbour who is the wife of a convicted criminal, things start going awry. An attempted million dollar heist with the debt ridden man gets our protagonist in trouble as he vows to protect his lover.

#36 The Revenant

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Oscar nominated The Revenant counts among the finest suspense thriller movies Hollywood has adapted as a semi biographical tale on screen. American frontiersman Hugh Glass’ heart rendering tale is brought to life in the movie that explores the protagonist’s lone fight for survival after being abandoned by his team after he got mauled by a bear in a fur trading expedition.

#37 Eyes Wide Shut

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An erotic mystery film that is a definite thrill for the senses, Eyes Wide Shut follows a New York City doctor whose whole life is turned upside down after his wife reveals on how she had contemplated having an extra marital affair. As the distraught protagonist embarks on his own sexually charged adventures only to arrive at the realisation of letting the marriage survive, the film very effectively turns all of its intrigue to a greater yet far more simple thing- the love of family, ironically through exploring the psychosexual portrait of a marriage.

#38 Apocalypto

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Apocalypto explores the life of a young man of the Mayan civilization during its period of wane when the kingdom is under the torment of an invading force. Along a journey dotted by perils that might cost him his life, the man makes a desperate attempt to return to his family escaping the outside world dominated by fear and oppression.

#39 Zero Dark Thirty

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Zero Dark Thirty is a dramatized presentation of the decade long hunt for one of the most dreaded terrorist, Osama bin Laden. As a group of CIA operatives dedicatedly try to track down the al- Qaeda leader setting up a military raid that led to his death, one of the key perpetrators of the deadly 9/11 attacks is finally brought to justice years later on May 2011.

#40 Mystic River

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As a young girl is murdered under unknown circumstances, the lives of the three men gets intertwined once again, though distinctly. The three childhood friends go through their own inhibitions and recollections of crime as confusion and chaos leads this thriller to a definite, yet a subtle open ended conclusion.

#41 The Game

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As a wealthy merchant banker receives a strange voucher gift on his birthday from his brother, his entire life is set to witness a massive flip. The gift unravels the opportunity to participate in a mysterious game and as the banker gets more immersed in this game from where there is no escape, a larger conspiracy at the fore sets to rattle up his whole existence.

#42 Pi

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Another of those twisted suspense thriller movies that Hollywood churns out so well, Pi is a dramatically intelligent film that deals on a number of intertwining themes to deliver a wholesome imagery of the complexities that inhibits the world. A paranoid number freak and computer genius finds his life at stake after discovering a mysterious number that has the potential to unlock the universal patterns that could be the answer to many of nature’s deepest mysteries.

#43 The Devil’s Advocate

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As an adept attorney swiftly on the rise gets a high profile position at a leading law firm, what’s at offer is not just a lucrative career. As his wife starts encountering a series of haunting visualties, what emerges is a darker view of his employer, the devil whom he plans to torture.

#44 Insomnia

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Though a remake of a Norwegian film, the 2002 movie Insomnia is among the best suspense thriller movies Hollywood has churned out. As two detectives embark on to investigate the murder of a teen, the main suspect fiddles with the mind and sanity of one of the sleep deprived detectives. Chasing through the bewilderment of a cat and mouse game, this twisted tale keeps you anticipated on the next unexpected turn that will pop up to tease your senses.

#45 Unbreakable

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A deconstruction of the superhero genre, Unbreakable is a cult film of its times. As the sole survivor of a devastating accident, a man has his moments of dilemma as he tries to decipher exactly how he managed to escape with no visible sign of injury.

#46 Orphan

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As a couple dealing with the trauma of a lost child proceeds to adopt a seemingly nine year old girl, what unleashes is a series of sleazy, horrific incidents that threatens to put their entire life course out of gear.

#47 The World Is Not Enough

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The 19th film in the James Bond series, The World Is Not Enough has the detective on call to protect the daughter of billionaire Sir Robert King assassinated by the terrorist Renard. As he goes about his duties, what unravels is a scheme by the conspiring Renard to increase petroleum prices by triggering a nuclear meltdown in the waters of Istanbul by holding the oil heiress hostage.

#48 Split

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The first ever supervillain original story, Split is the sequel to the much touted sci- fi thriller Unbreakable. As three girls are kidnapped and imprisoned underground by a man who exhibits a staggering 23 distinctive personalities, it is imperative for their survival that the girls discover his friendly personas and escape before he unleashes horror with his 24th alter existence.

#49 Side Effects

Another of those suspense thriller movies of Hollywood that plays with your mind on different levels, Side Effects follows a young couple whose lives go haywire after a prescribed drug leads to unexpected side effects. As the wife who is suffering from anxiety takes on a new drug, a series of unexpected events unravel- the husband gets murdered while the drug prescribing psychiatrist’s career is also at stake.

#50 The Butterfly Effect

Even with an unfavourable critics’ response, sci- fi thriller movie The Butterfly Effect impacts with its strong psychological leanings. A young Evan Treborn who suffers occasional blackouts has this supernatural ability that enables him to travel to the past. As he time travels and attempts to change quite a few things, his present is visibly in distraught. As he attempts to restore all things in their rightful place, Evan does what he thinks is best to live a life of peace.

#51 Source Code

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Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, the science fiction action thriller is an intriguing watch. Gyllenhaal plays U.S. Army captain who gets sent into a computer simulated reality. With the mission to find a bomber, the captain enters the virtual world multiple times…each time getting closer to the enemy.