For a marathon to work, you need a few films that people already love, at least one genuine discovery, and something that sparks a conversation at the end.
Despite everything, the 2020s have produced some genuinely remarkable cinema. Films made under pressure that somehow carry none of it.
The best thrillers work because the tension is internal as much as external. The characters are fighting themselves as much as any external threat.
When a hostage rescue mission creates a new enemy, Capt. Guerrero and his elite soldiers must face an ambush by a criminal group.
After an outburst at school involving her son, a concerned single mother demands answers, triggering a sequence of deepening suspicion and turmoil.
Hutch Mansell, a suburban dad, overlooked husband, nothing neighbor - a "nobody." When two thieves break into his home one night, Hutch's unknown long-simmering rage is ignited and propels him on a brutal path that will uncover dark secrets he fought to leave behind.
Based on the true nail-biting mission that captivated the world. Twelve boys and the coach of a Thai soccer team explore the Tham Luang cave when an unexpected rainstorm traps them in a chamber inside the mountain. Entombed behind a maze of flooded cave tunnels, they face impossible odds. A team of world-class divers navigate through miles of dangerous cave networks to discover that finding the boys is only the beginning.
While three of the fiercest warriors in human history-a Viking raider, a ninja in feudal Japan, and a WWII pilot-are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent: the ultimate killer of killers.
What these films understand is that the best threat isn't the one that's fastest â it's the one that's closest. These films know exactly where to put it.
Noah must leave her city, boyfriend, and friends to move into William Leister's mansion, the flashy and wealthy husband of her mother Rafaela. As a proud and independent 17 year old, Noah resists living in a mansion surrounded by luxury. However, it is there where she meets Nick, her new stepbrother, and the clash of their strong personalities becomes evident from the very beginning.
In 2006, a group of thieves performed what is considered one of the most famous and smart bank heists in the history of Argentina. How they robbed the Rio bank is as surprising as what happened afterwards. This is their story.
During the war in Afghanistan, a local interpreter risks his own life to carry an injured sergeant across miles of grueling terrain.
What will be her last straw? A devastatingly bad day pushes a hardworking single mother to the breaking point - and into a shocking act of desperation.
With the price on his head ever increasing, John Wick uncovers a path to defeating The High Table. But before he can earn his freedom, Wick must face off against a new enemy with powerful alliances across the globe and forces that turn old friends into foes.
The best endings don't resolve - they resonate. You're still thinking about them on the way to bed. These qualify.
The best thriller films leave you uncertain â about the characters, about the world, about what you would have done. That uncertainty is the point.