Red Sparrow
2018 · TMDB 6.5/10 · 6,410 votes
Prima ballerina Dominika Egorova faces a bleak and uncertain future after she suffers an injury that ends her career. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Curated by SceneIt · United States
Tense Movies
This SceneIt list helps you quickly choose thrillers with sustained tension and strong audience response. Results are selected for the United States and balance audience response with practical watchability.
Updated 2026-08-03 · Ratings from TMDB
How we chose these titles
We rank eligible titles using TMDB audience ratings, vote confidence, relevance to the theme, and current popularity. Ratings can change as new votes are added.
The Grey
2012 · TMDB 6.6/10 · 4,186 votes
After their plane crashes in Alaska, six oil workers are led by a skilled huntsman to survival, but a pack of merciless wolves haunts their every step. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
A Haunting in Venice
2023 · TMDB 6.6/10 · 2,908 votes
Celebrated sleuth Hercule Poirot, now retired and living in self-imposed exile in Venice, reluctantly attends a Halloween séance at a decaying, haunted palazzo. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Homefront
2013 · TMDB 6.9/10 · 3,905 votes
Phil Broker, a retired DEA agent, leads a quiet life with his daughter Maddy, until a school bullying incident draws them into a conflict with Morgan “Gator” Bodine, a local crime boss. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Crank
2006 · TMDB 6.7/10 · 4,287 votes
Chev Chelios, a hit man wanting to go straight, lets his latest target slip away. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
As Above, So Below
2014 · TMDB 6.7/10 · 3,917 votes
When a team of explorers venture into the catacombs that lie beneath the streets of Paris, they uncover the dark secret that lies within this city of the dead. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Lost Highway
1997 · TMDB 7.5/10 · 2,987 votes
A tormented jazz musician finds himself lost in an enigmatic story involving murder, surveillance, gangsters, doppelgängers, and an impossible transformation inside a prison cell. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Anna
2019 · TMDB 6.7/10 · 3,043 votes
Beneath Anna Poliatova's striking beauty lies a secret that will unleash her indelible strength and skill to become one of the world's most feared government assassins. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
The Untouchables
1987 · TMDB 7.8/10 · 6,247 votes
Elliot Ness, an ambitious prohibition agent, is determined to take down Al Capone. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
The Outfit
2022 · TMDB 7.1/10 · 1,406 votes
Leonard is an English tailor who used to craft suits on London’s world-famous Savile Row. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
2011 · TMDB 6.6/10 · 2,964 votes
George Smiley, the aging master spy of the Cold War and once heir apparent to Control, is brought back out of retirement to flush out a top level mole within the Circus. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Legend
2015 · TMDB 7.0/10 · 4,340 votes
Suave, charming and volatile, Reggie Kray and his unstable twin brother Ronnie start to leave their mark on the London underworld in the 1960s. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Day Shift
2022 · TMDB 6.7/10 · 2,244 votes
An LA vampire hunter has a week to come up with the cash to pay for his kid's tuition and braces. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Escape from New York
1981 · TMDB 7.0/10 · 3,572 votes
In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam free. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Lord of War
2005 · TMDB 7.3/10 · 5,437 votes
Yuri Orlov is a globetrotting arms dealer and, through some of the deadliest war zones, he struggles to stay one step ahead of a relentless Interpol agent, his business rivals and even some of his customers who include many of the world's most notorious dictators. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Serenity
2005 · TMDB 7.4/10 · 3,930 votes
A group of rebels travel the outskirts of space evading the sinister Alliance regime. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Fracture
2007 · TMDB 7.3/10 · 4,399 votes
A husband is on trial for the attempted murder of his wife, in what is seemingly an open/shut case for the ambitious district attorney trying to put him away. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Infernal Affairs
2002 · TMDB 7.8/10 · 1,891 votes
Chan Wing Yan, a young police officer, has been sent undercover as a mole in the local mafia. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Peninsula
2020 · TMDB 6.7/10 · 2,621 votes
A soldier and his team battle hordes of post-apocalyptic zombies in the wastelands of the Korean Peninsula. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.
Insidious: Chapter 2
2013 · TMDB 6.7/10 · 4,643 votes
The haunted Lambert family seeks to uncover the mysterious childhood secret that has left them dangerously connected to the spirit world. This title fits the list's theme and selection thresholds.