If you want a really twisty movie, now you will have something to choose from. The list includes classics that you have probably already seen or at least heard of, but there will probably also be new ones. Spoiler-free!
It is not a requirement that a film can only be good if it has a twist that makes the viewers feel that they have been led by the nose all along, but a well thought out and structured twist can make a movie experience very memorable. We have now collected 25 of our favorites that deserve a place on a movie bucket list.
Lust and Penance – 2007
Story: Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) falsely accuses the housekeeper’s son (James McAvoy) of raping her cousin when she becomes jealous of his relationship with her older sister (Keira Knightley). The man goes to prison, but World War II intervenes, so he is released to be drafted. We see the romance of beautiful people amidst beautiful scenery – only to be hit hard in the face by reality.
The Empire Strikes Back – 1980
Story: Even those who haven’t seen the movie are probably aware of the story and the twist, but let’s face it, when it was released, it must have been a huge surprise to everyone. After all, one of the main villains of Star Wars was Darth Vader all along, and the main hero was Luke Skywalker, only to find out that father and son were fighting each other all along.
Fighters Club – 1999
Story: The worlds of the film’s insomniac narrator (Edward Norton) and Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt) collide when they found an underground club that allows frustrated ordinary people to beat each other up. However, the club soon strays into the territory of terrorism, and everything starts to slip out of the leaders’ control.
Play today – 1997
Story: Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) is a wealthy businessman who becomes part of a terrifying psychological game. Throughout the game, he is buried alive and even contemplates suicide after accidentally killing his brother. But the truth is more shocking than he ever imagined.
Disappear – 2017
Story: Rose (Allison Williams), a white woman, brings her black boyfriend Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) home for the first time to meet his family. Chris soon discovers that the new relatives are hiding a dark secret, and he tries to convince his girlfriend to disappear from the ever-shrinking cage as soon as possible, but escaping from fate is not so easy.
Holtodiglan – 2014
Story: When Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike) goes missing, her husband Nick (Ben Affleck) becomes the number one suspect. However, this is not a paper murder case.
Good night, mom! – 2014
Story: Two brothers, Elias and Lukas (played by the brothers Elias and Lukas Schwarz), believe that their mother is an impostor, as a car accident required a complete facelift. The boys take the (rather confusing) matter into their own hands.
Identity – 2003
Story: A criminal convicted of multiple murders is awaiting execution, while ten strangers are stranded in a remote Nevada motel during a storm. Then they start killing them one by one. The two plots have a lot to do with each other, and here too it turns out that appearances can sometimes be deceiving.
Death list – 2011
Story: Two assassins are given a list of people they need to kill. Their journey leads to a cult ritual where one of the men, Jay (Neil Maskell), must kill one final victim called the Hunchback. The task also tests the experienced killer.
Memento – 2000
Story: Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce)’s life is guided by one goal: to find the person who killed and raped his wife and to avenge her death. However, Leonard suffers from a strange incurable disease. An amnesiac who is unable to remember recent experiences. He is sure of only one thing: he wants revenge. However, his illness makes this particularly difficult.
Old Boy – 2003
Story: Oh Dae-Su (Choi Min-sik) is unexpectedly kidnapped one day and held captive in a mysterious place for 15 years. When he is finally freed, he seeks revenge with the help of a young girl, Mi-Do (Kang Hye-jung), with whom he falls in time. However, at the end of the film, both he and the viewers get an answer to everything – even if it wasn’t meant to be.
Orphan (2009)
Story: The plot centers on a married couple who, after the death of their unborn child, adopt a mysterious nine-year-old girl, Esther (Isabelle Furhman). After taking the little girl home, the new parents find themselves faced with a series of strange things.
Another World – 2001
Story: Nicole Kidman plays Grace, a mother who tries to protect her two children from supernatural forces in their Victorian mansion, but is not at all sure that ghosts are the biggest threat to the family.
The Perfect Trick – 2006
Story: The film follows the rivalry between two magicians, Alfred Borden (Christian Bale) and Rupert Angier (Hugh Jackman), who do their best to outwit each other and raise the stakes ever higher with their breathtaking tricks. However, there is someone who does not play fair.
Planet of the Apes – 1968
Story: Hundreds of years after going into space, three scientists wake up to find that they have landed on a planet where primates rule over humans and treat them as slaves.
Innermost Fear – 1996
Story: A defense attorney (Richard Gere) is convinced that his stammering minister boy client (Edward Norton) is not guilty of murdering an influential Catholic archbishop. He is later found not guilty by reason of insanity after being diagnosed with multiple personality disorder. Need we say more?
Psycho – 1960
Story: As a viewer, you initially think that the film will be about a theft committed by Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), but the motel is also an ominous omen in this case. While on the run, she stays at a motel owned by Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins). We didn’t expect it, but even a black-and-white film can give you goosebumps.
Saw – 2004
Story: After being chained by the Saw Killer in a dilapidated bathroom – where a corpse lies in the middle of the room – photographer Adam (Leigh Whannell) is able to overpower and kill his captor. He rummages through his pockets, looking for the key that will unlock the chain around his leg, convinced that the nightmare is finally over.
Seventh – 1995
Story: David Mills (Brad Pitt) and William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), a detective about to retire, track down the serial killer John Doe (Kevin Spacey), who commits his murders along the lines of the seven deadly sins, and then in the finale breaks all the rules transgress.
Storm Island – 2010
Story American police officer Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his partner (Mark Ruffalo) arrive at a mental institution to find an escaped murderer who drowned his three children. However, the perpetrator is closer than we think.
The Sixth Sense – 1999
Story: A young boy comes to child psychologist Malcolm Crowe (Bruce Willis) to decipher how the child can see dead people.
The skin I live in
Story: Dr. Robert Ledgard (Antonio Banderas) is a successful and talented plastic surgeon who tries to save the lives of burn victims by developing new skin after his wife, Vera, is also burned in a car accident. However, good intentions are often just appearances.
The Invulnerable – 2000
Story: David Dunn survives a train crash that kills 130 passengers and begins to believe he has special abilities. Her life soon becomes intertwined with the owner of a comic book store, Elijah (Samuel L Jackson), who suffers from a rare bone disorder, which makes him very vulnerable. She helps David discover that he can see the crimes of those he comes in contact with.
Angel of Death – 1983
Story: Introverted Angela (Felissa Rose) begins to fear when a murderer stages a massacre in the same camp where her brother Peter was killed eight years earlier. Real 80s horror with a twist worth an evening if you like the genre. The chills are guaranteed.
Common Criminals – 1995
Story: The sole survivor of a pier shooting recounts how a notorious criminal influenced the events that began with five criminals meeting in a seemingly random police encounter. Kint (Kevin Spacey) uncovers the criminal plan invented by the infamous Keyser Soze, and thanks to this he is released – of course, we can guess that the matter is not so obvious.
