There are many subcategories of the thriller genre, including action thrillers, crime thrillers, legal thrillers, and even erotic thrillers. But some of the most famous films of all time fall into the psychological thriller subgenre which includes films like The Silence of the Lambs and Mulholland Drive. No titles of that caliber or name value — or anything by Alfred Hitchcock, to drive the point home — qualify for this list.

Through keen eyes for camerawork, a vast understanding of pacing, and widespread dedication to the art of building suspense, plenty of these directors should without a doubt be regarded as masters of the psychological thriller subgenre. Also, there are a ton of fantastic psychological thrillers from regions like South Korea like The Handmaiden and Burning deserve to be watched, regardless of language barriers. For your enjoyment, these are the most underrated psychological thrillers of all time.

Updated on August 23rd, 2023 by Federico Furzan: This article has been updated with additional content to keep the discussion fresh and relevant with even more information and new entries.

17 Insomnia (2002)

Al Pacino and Robin Williams in Insomnia
Warner Bros. Pictures / Summit Entertainment

Kicking things off with a film by Christopher Nolan — an absolute juggernaut of the industry both critically and commercially — Insomnia also holds tremendous name value regarding its cast. Al Pacino plays Detective Will Dormer, who goes head-to-head with a young adult author named Walter Finch.

Of course, those who watched this undoubtedly recall the latter’s indelible portrayal by Robin Williams, who was commonly cast in comedic roles. And as underrated as the product is from a modern perspective, it’s more well-known than a majority of the list. It was well-regarded by critics upon release, in fact, and even garnered decent results at the box office. It was Nolan's later more high-profile works that seemingly shadowed Insomnia.

16 The Experiment (2001)

the experiment 2001
Senator Film

There's a bunch of films based on the social experiment that took place at Stanford in 1971, and which had to end abruptly after abuse became the norm in the scenario where regular people played prisoners and guards in a prison-like setting.

However, Oliver Hirschbiegel's version of The Experiment (Das Experiment) stands above the rest because of how well-performed the film is, and the prominently raw aspect of the script. Moritz Bleibtreu's role as one of the prisoners is the best of his career.

15 One Hour Photo (2002)

One Hour Photo movie with Robin Williams
Fox Searchlight Pictures

A film from the same year as Insomnia, but what’s more about One Hour Photo is that it also stars Robin Williams going against typecasting to an extent. He plays a photo technician who, after working for a family for years, begins to obsess over them in a very strange fashion.

The result was a psychological thrill ride from the film’s opening frame until the eventual rolling of the credits. Critics were actually rather high on the product upon release, and the film also raked in impressive results at the box office.

14 Dead Ringers (1988)

Jeremy Irons in Dead Ringers
Astral Films / 20th Century Fox

Starring Jeremy Irons in a dual role as twin gynecologists, this project was directed by David Cronenberg. And while most of you may recognize that filmmaker’s name for his work in the body horror subgenre, he was hard at work here with Dead Ringers to create a massively underrated psychological thriller.

It’s worth noting that this is only truly overlooked from a more modern perspective. See, while it garnered great reviews from critics upon release, it’s not like Dead Ringers exactly raked in millions upon millions of dollars at the worldwide box office or anything. The story was adapted recently in a rather successful TV show, starring Rachel Weisz.

13 Green Room (2015)

Anton Yelchin and Imogen Poots in Green Room
A24 

Jeremy Saulnier's Green Room is an astonishing, jarring, and impressive piece of work by the film director with a specific visual style that puts him above many other directors in modern cinema. It tells the story of a punk band who get invited to play in a club, much like any other they've played in the past.

However, they slowly realize they're in a haven for neo-nazis and things take a dark turn when people start getting hurt. Extremely violent and original, this is possibly Saulnier's best film to date, and easily his most accessible for new fans.

Related: 10 Thrillers That Have a Bummer Ending

12 Frailty (2001)

Bill Paxton Frailty
Lions Gate Films

Starring Bill Paxton, who also produced and directed the film, Frailty follows a father who's convinced he has been chosen by God to kill demons that are walking around earth posing as people. He recruits his two sons to help with the killing, resulting in an obviously twisted narrative that will truly compel most audiences from start to finish.

With an impressive supporting cast of guys like Matthew McConaughey and Powers Boothe, it’s also worth noting just how much there is to write home about from a technical perspective in this regard. But it’s best you check it out for yourself.

11 The Brave One (2007)

the brave one jodie foster
Warner Bros. Pictures / Roadshow Films

Although the name of director Neil Jordan may not ring many bells even for more hardcore film fans, you’ll undoubtedly remember works like The Crying Game and Interview With a Vampire from earlier on in his career. Those hold great name value today, particularly the latter, and they picked up a couple of nominations at their respective Academy Awards ceremonies.

The Crying Game even won for Best Original Screenplay, in fact. But with The Brave One from over a decade later, Jordan made his most underappreciated project to date. It features Jodie Foster in the lead role as a radio host becoming a vigilante after her partner is killed by thugs. There’s no telling how this one is still flying below everyone’s radar.

10 Take Shelter (2011)

Michael Shannon in Take Shelter
Sony Pictures Classics

Starring Michael Shannon as a husband and father who begins having visions of an apocalypse, Take Shelter really only went underappreciated by moviegoers, as critics had wonderful things to say on its behalf. But it barely made back its $4.75 million budget.

It also features Jessica Chastain as the aforementioned character’s wife, and it was written and directed by Jeff Nichols. And although that particular filmmaker doesn’t hold the name value of most on this list, Chastain is one of the absolute hottest stars of her generation. It’s a shame most fans didn’t get to see her or Shannon in this very underrated psychological thriller.

9 The Game (1997)

The Game David Fincher Michael Douglas
PolyGram Films

Directed by David Fincher, this thriller fan’s delight flew under the public radar perhaps because it released between two of the most famous titles of the director’s filmography — Se7en and Fight Club. And while The Game may pale slightly in comparison to those two classics of the subgenre, Fincher’s proven track record should almost speak for itself in this regard.

It’s truly criminal that more fans haven’t indulged in this mind-bending journey of an investment banker (played by Michael Douglass) who receives a birthday gift from his brother that turns his life upside down. That’s a vague synopsis, but it’s best you experience it all for yourself.

8 Nocturnal Animals (2016)

Gyllenhaal in Nocturnal Animals
Focus Features

Written and directed by Tom Ford, this psychological thriller can also be cozily classified as a neo-noir film. It stars Amy Adams alongside Jake Gyllenhaal, and despite solid performances with an overall narrative of similar quality, critics weren’t exactly over the moon with regard to Nocturnal Animals.

Plus, it only made $33 million at the worldwide box office on a budget of $23 million. Audiences have come around over time, but when it released, this was overlooked by every party involved. It follows an art gallery owner named Susan (Adams), and a novelist named Edward (Gyllenhaal), the former reading the latter’s most recent manuscript, and the woman realizing the horrific novel may have something to do with her. You should go blind into this one.

Related: 10 Alfred Hitchcock Thrillers That Could Use a Modern Remake

7 The Machinist (2004)

Christian Bale in The Machinist
Paramount Classics

This one is well-regarded by plenty of fans and critics, but you’ll never see it among any list of the greatest psychological thrillers. It didn’t exactly make waves at the box office upon release, either. But it makes the list almost for Christian Bale’s performance alone.

Of course, he’s a method actor, and there may not be a more famous instance of that fact than here with The Machinist. Bale cut almost half his body weight to properly portray Trevor Reznik, the lead character of the film suffering from lack of sleep and hallucinations.

6 Enemy (2013)

Enemy Gyllenhaal
Entertainment One / Alfa Pictures / Condor Entertainment

Directed by Denis Villeneuve, Enemy is another entry that stars Jake Gyllenhaal — in a dual role, no less, as one of his characters (Adam Bell, a professor) notices a striking similarity between himself and a relatively famous actor named Anthony Clair.

It also features Mélanie Laurent, who provides a performance just as underrated as the overall product itself. This is another example of a psychological thriller that almost sells itself in the premise alone. If you weren’t at all intrigued after a brief synopsis, it may not be for you, as it wasn’t for many audiences, be it fans who bought tickets, or critics who reviewed it.

5 I Saw the Devil (2010)

I Saw The Devil cast
Showbox / Magnet Releasing

A South Korean import, Kim Jee-woon's I Saw the Devil is arguably a revenge masterpiece that not many people have seen and most should. It tells the story of an intelligence agent whose wife gets brutally murdered by a serial killer.

Upon finding out the identity of the killer, the agent finds the guy, and teaches him a lesson that most will find to be unbelievable: he lets him go. Of course, right then a cat-and-mouse hunt begins in one of the best South Korean films ever made.

4 Obsession (1976)

Obsession de palma
Columbia Pictures

No stranger to underrated releases, Brian De Palma released Obsession to decent numbers in theaters, but it didn’t exactly make waves with critics. It starts with a haunting score — composed by Bernard Hermann — which off the bat sets the tone for the overall project.

It follows a businessman from New Orleans whose wife and daughter are killed during a botched rescue attempt following their kidnapping. This makes for a fantastic neo-noir thriller right out of the gate, and things take a psychological twist following those early events in the story. It undoubtedly deserves more attention no matter how much time has passed since its release — check it out, if you haven’t.

3 Hard Candy (2005)

A Still from Hard Candy
Vulcan Productions

With meaningful themes for a film of such a grisly nature, Hard Candy hits home on an emotional level around just about every single corner of its dark and thrilling plot. It features slow and thoughtful camerawork, which seems fitting for a film that to a degree revolves around that very subject.

But it also has brilliant performances from everyone involved, with smooth dialogue and tangible development to boot. It may not help for the sake of popularity that this came out less than two years before Juno, which truly put Elliott Page on the Hollywood map. But critics were also just so-so on the film, which was undoubtedly unwarranted in hindsight. It tells the story of a grown man who agrees to go on a date with a teenager, only to find out she has a plan to teach him a lesson about pedophilia.

Related: Best Revenge Movies of All Time, Ranked

2 The Gift (2015)

The gift dinner scene
STX Entertainment / Roadshow Films

Joel Edgerton's The Gift is a modern thriller that doesn't often show up in "best of" lists, which is pretty weird. It stars three great actors, and the story is a great exercise in psychological thriller with a heavy dose of realism injected into it. It tells a story that could happen to almost anybody.

When a couple moves to Los Angeles, they reunite with one of the husband's acquaintances from the past. The thing is he didn't treat the guy very well back then, and the stranger is hungry for revenge. You will never guess where this goes, and you will never trust old friends who suddenly contact you again to reconnect.

1 Stoker (2013)

Stoker 2013 kidman wasikowska
Fox Searchlight Pictures 

Park Chan-wook, director of the Vengeance Trilogy, directs a script by Wentworth Miller, and accomplishes a modern masterpiece called Stoker. Most critics loved it, but the box-office wasn't as kind. Perhaps, an unknown director in the US was enough for people to stay away.

Regardless, you should watch this right away. It tells the story of a girl whose father has recently died. While she's able to deal with the tragedy, her mother isn't. It doesn't help that suddenly, a new uncle shows up out of nowhere and begins a weird relationship with the family. Hithcock's influence is tangible in this outstanding piece.