List Rules Don't list movies that are merely strange, surreal, or incomprehensible.
Movies that mess with your mind, plots that reveal radically different realities; things are seldom what they seem in these stories, for the protagonist or the viewer. Technically referred to as paranoid fictions or paranoid fantasies, the (albeit crass) term 'mindfuck' appears to be a more common (and arguably more descriptive) label for these movies.
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1
Shutter Island Leonardo DiCaprio, Michelle Williams, Mark Ruffalo
Released: 2010
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Shutter Island is a 2010 American psychological thriller film directed by Martin Scorsese. The film is based on Dennis Lehane's 2003 novel of the same name. Production started in March 2008. ...more
Inception Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard
Released: 2010
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Inception is a 2010 science fiction thriller film written, produced, and directed by Christopher Nolan. The film stars a large ensemble cast that includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Joseph ...more
Predestination is a 2014 Australian science fiction film, written and directed by Michael and Peter Spierig. The film is based on the Robert A. Heinlein short story "—All You ...more
Fight Club Brad Pitt, Jared Leto, Helena Bonham Carter
Released: 1999
Directed by: David Fincher
Fight Club is a 1999 film based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Chuck Palahniuk. The film was directed by David Fincher, and stars Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena Bonham Carter. Norton ...more
Memento Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano
Released: 2000
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Memento is a 2000 American neo-noir psychological thriller film directed by Christopher Nolan. The screenplay was written by Nolan based on his younger brother Jonathan Nolan's short story ...more
The Prestige Scarlett Johansson, David Bowie, Hugh Jackman
Released: 2006
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
The Prestige is a 2006 mystery drama film directed by Christopher Nolan, from a screenplay adapted by him and his brother Jonathan Nolan from Christopher Priest's 1995 World Fantasy ...more
Interstellar Anne Hathaway, Matthew McConaughey, Matt Damon
Released: 2014
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
Interstellar is a British-American 2014 science fiction epic film directed by Christopher Nolan, starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Michael Caine. The film ...more
Donnie Darko is a 2001 American supernatural drama film written and directed by Richard Kelly and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Noah Wyle, Jena ...more
The Sixth Sense Bruce Willis, Mischa Barton, Haley Joel Osment
Released: 1999
Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
The Sixth Sense is a 1999 American supernatural thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film tells the story of Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment), a troubled, isolated boy who ...more
The Matrix Keanu Reeves, Hugo Weaving, Carrie-Anne Moss
Released: 1999
Directed by: Andy Wachowski, Lana Wachowski
The Matrix is a 1999 American-Australian science fiction action film written and directed by The Wachowskis, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe ...more
Coherence Nicholas Brendon, Elizabeth Gracen, Lorene Scafaria
Released: 2013
Directed by: James Ward Byrkit
Watch for Free with Amazon Prime Free Trial Coherence is a 2013 American-British science fiction thriller film directed by James Ward Byrkit in his directorial debut. The film had its world debut on September 19, 2013 at the Austin ...more
Watch for Free with Amazon Prime Free Trial Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is a 2004 American romantic science-fiction comedy-drama film about an estranged couple who have each other erased from their memories, written by Charlie ...more
The Machinist Christian Bale, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Michael Ironside
Released: 2004
Directed by: Brad Anderson
The Machinist is a 2004 English-language Spanish psychological thriller film directed by Brad Anderson and written by Scott Kosar. The film stars Christian Bale with Jennifer Jason Leigh, John ...more
The Game is a 1997 American mystery thriller film directed by David Fincher, starring Michael Douglas and Sean Penn, and produced by Propaganda Films and PolyGram Filmed Entertainment. It tells ...more
The Usual Suspects is a 1995 German-American neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Bryan Singer and written by Christopher McQuarrie. It stars Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio del ...more
Triangle Melissa George, Michael Dorman, Rachael Carpani
Triangle is a 2009 psychological horror thriller film written and directed by Christopher Smith. Jess (Melissa George) plays a single mother who goes on a boating trip with several friends. When ...more
The Butterfly Effect is a 2004 American psychological thriller film that was written and directed by Eric Bress and J. Mackye Gruber. The title refers to the butterfly effect, a popular ...more
Source Code Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga
Released: 2011
Directed by: Duncan Jones
Source Code is a 2011 science fiction film directed by Duncan Jones, written by Ben Ripley, and starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Monaghan, Vera Farmiga, and Jeffrey Wright. The film had its ...more
Jacob's Ladder Macaulay Culkin, Tim Robbins, Jason Alexander
Released: 1990
Directed by: Adrian Lyne
Jacob's Ladder is a 1990 American psychological horror film directed by Adrian Lyne, written and produced by Bruce Joel Rubin and starring Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Peña and Danny Aiello. ...more
Primer Shane Carruth, David Sullivan, Keith Bradshaw
Released: 2004
Directed by: Shane Carruth
Primer is a 2004 American science fiction drama film about the accidental discovery of a means of time travel. The film was written, directed, produced, edited and scored by Shane Carruth, who ...more
The Others Nicole Kidman, Christopher Eccleston, Michelle Fairley
Released: 2001
Directed by: Alejandro Amenábar
The Others is a 2001 horror-thriller film written, directed and scored by Alejandro Amenábar. It stars Nicole Kidman and Fionnula Flanagan. It won eight Goya Awards, including awards for ...more
Mr. Nobody is a 2009 science fiction drama film. It was written and directed by Jaco Van Dormael, produced by Philippe Godeau, and starred Jared Leto, Sarah Polley, Diane Kruger, Linh Dan Pham, ...more
Oldboy is a 2003 South Korean mystery thriller neo-noir film directed by Park Chan-wook, based on the Japanese manga by Garon Tsuchiya. After being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh ...more
The Truman Show is a 1998 American satirical social science fiction comedy-drama film directed by Peter Weir and written by Andrew Niccol. The cast includes Jim Carrey as Truman Burbank, Laura ...more
Eva Jančovičová added Mulholland Drive Naomi Watts, Billy Ray Cyrus, Melissa George
Released: 2001
Directed by: David Lynch
Mulholland Drive is a 2001 American neo-noir mystery film written and directed by David Lynch and starring Naomi Watts, Laura Harring, and Justin Theroux. It tells the story of an aspiring ...more
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