A Glean movie guide
Mind Games: The Best Psychological Thrillers
Don't trust your eyes.
Masterpieces of suspense that challenge your perception of reality.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
The Silence of the Lambs
A chilling masterclass in criminal profiling and the terrifying art of mental manipulation.
Clarice Starling is a top student at the FBI's training academy. Jack Crawford wants Clarice to interview Dr. Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist who is also a violent psychopath, serving life behind bars for various acts of murder and cannibalism. Crawford believes that Lecter may have insight into a case and that Starling, as an attractive young woman, may be just the bait to draw him out.
- 02
Se7en
A grim, atmospheric descent into a serial killer's ritualistic and calculated madness.
Two homicide detectives are on a desperate hunt for a serial killer whose crimes are based on the "seven deadly sins" in this dark and haunting film that takes viewers from the tortured remains of one victim to the next. The seasoned Det. Somerset researches each sin in an effort to get inside the killer's mind, while his novice partner, Mills, scoffs at his efforts to unravel the case.
- 03
Memento
A brilliant, fragmented puzzle that forces you to experience the protagonist's fractured memory in real-time.
Leonard Shelby is tracking down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The difficulty of locating his wife's killer, however, is compounded by the fact that he suffers from a rare, untreatable form of short-term memory loss. Although he can recall details of life before his accident, Leonard cannot remember what happened fifteen minutes ago, where he's going, or why.
- 04
Shutter Island
A haunting investigation where the line between reality and delusion becomes dangerously thin.
World War II soldier-turned-U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels investigates the disappearance of a patient from a hospital for the criminally insane, but his efforts are compromised by troubling visions and a mysterious doctor.
- 05
Gone Girl
A sharp, cynical look at the dark psychological undercurrents and deception within a toxic marriage.
With his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent.
- 06
Black Swan
A visceral portrayal of a dancer's descent into madness fueled by perfectionism and obsession.
A committed dancer struggles to maintain her sanity after winning the lead role in a production of Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake".
- 07
Get Out
A tense, socially conscious thriller that uses psychological manipulation to create deep-seated unease.
Chris and his girlfriend Rose go upstate to visit her parents for the weekend. At first, Chris reads the family's overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter's interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he never could have imagined.
- 08
The Prestige
A complex tale of rivalry and obsession where every secret comes with a devastating price.
A mysterious story of two magicians whose intense rivalry leads them on a life-long battle for supremacy -- full of obsession, deceit and jealousy with dangerous and deadly consequences.
- 09
Oldboy
A brutal and emotionally charged journey through the psychological wreckage of long-term isolation and revenge.
With no clue how he came to be imprisoned, drugged and tortured for 15 years, a desperate man seeks revenge on his captors.
- 10
Prisoners
A grueling, high-stakes mystery that explores the moral limits of a desperate father.
Keller Dover is facing every parent’s worst nightmare. His six-year-old daughter, Anna, is missing, together with her young friend, Joy, and as minutes turn to hours, panic sets in. The only lead is a dilapidated RV that had earlier been parked on their street.
- 11
Mulholland Drive
A surreal, dream-like odyssey that demands careful interpretation of its shifting identities and realities.
Blonde Betty Elms has only just arrived in Hollywood to become a movie star when she meets an enigmatic brunette with amnesia. Meanwhile, as the two set off to solve the second woman's identity, filmmaker Adam Kesher runs into ominous trouble while casting his latest project.
- 12
Perfect Blue
A groundbreaking animation that blurs the boundaries between a pop star's public persona and private reality.
Rising pop star Mima quits singing to pursue a career as an actress. After she takes up a role on a popular detective show, her handlers and collaborators begin turning up murdered. Harboring feelings of guilt and haunted by visions of her former self, Mima's reality and fantasy meld into a frenzied paranoia.