6. The Aura (2005)
During a hunting trip, Esteban Espinosa (Ricardo Darín) accidentally shoots a man named Dietrich (Manuel Rodal). Esteban discovers that Dietrich was planning an armoured truck heist and decides to carry it out himself.
An unconventional caper, The Aura was the last of only two films by Argentine crime auteur Fabián Bielinsky, before his death in 2006. A mature improvement from his debut, slow burn, character study The Aura is rich with atmosphere and mood. Writing the script since the eighties, Bielinsky illustrates his protagonist with specific details which make the film unique.
For instance, Esteban is a taxidermist and an epileptic, with a photographic memory. He is embodied by one of Argentina’s finest actors, Ricardo Darín, who stuns with his versatility and emotionality. Another of The Aura’s advantages is its non-formulaic unpredictability. Unlike many films, the events cannot be anticipated from the outset, resulting in refreshing, engaging viewing.
7. The Hunter (2011)
Mercenary Martin (Willem Dafoe) is dispatched to Tasmania by a biotech company. He must hunt down and kill the Tasmanian tiger, which is believed to be extinct.
Unusual and tragic, The Hunter is helmed by the typically fantastic acting of Willem Dafoe. Sam Neill and Frances O’Connor also deliver stellar work. The Hunter utilises the underrepresented, dramatic scenery of Tasmania, in a tale which examines environmental themes and the finance and politics surrounding it.
The Tasmanian tiger is arguably a metaphor for the environment at-large. Martin is faced with a moral dilemma: should he follow orders and kill the creature, or do what he instinctually believes is right? What is more, The Hunter also offers a criticism of the localism and jingoism of Australian society. It is an under-discussed, yet impactful experience, which deserves to be seen by a wider audience.
8. A Single Shot (2013)
John Moon (Sam Rockwell) accidentally kills a woman whilst hunting. At her camp, he finds a bag of money. The owners of the bag soon come looking for John.
The tone of A Single Shot is as bleak, grey and wintery as its West Virginia Appalachian Mountains setting. Using a simple storyline, it is intimate and character-driven, speaking to the hopelessness and desolation of impoverished southerners. As adept at drama as he is at comedy, Sam Rockwell is makes a fascinating leading man. Fargo’s (1996) William H. Macy captures an accurate regionality in his portrayal of a limping lawyer.
However, Jeffrey Wright’s role as John’s alcoholic friend Simon is the most poignant. With clearly detailed preparation and backstory, Wright’s construction is layered and complex, with an idiomatic character that is anything but generic. A Single Shot is valuable because it reveals the multifaceted nature of human beings. On one hand, John Moon is lazy and a murderer, yet he is also a loving father and attains pathos.
9. Sweet Virginia (2017)
In a small Alaskan town, Lila Mccabe (Imogen Poots) employs Elwood (Christopher Abbott) to murder her husband for the insurance money. It does not go to plan and Elwood spirals out of control.
Firstly, Sweet Virginia is individual for its impressionistic, unconventionally framed cinematography. Its moody noir lighting referencing Edward Hopper and 1940s cinema. This is contained by a story that pays respect to neo-noir, yet carves an original path, with its quiet menace and introspection. Sweet Virginia is easily the film that best exhibits both Christopher Abbott and Jon Bernthal’s faculties.
Abbott is chilling as an intense, reactionary, over-sharing killer with peculiar speech, whilst Bernthal is relatable, kindly and humane. The same praise can be attributed to Imogen Poots and Rosemarie DeWitt. For its cocktail of character drama, visual poetry and expansion of the crime palette, Sweet Virginia is advisable to individuals seeking something new from the thriller genre.
10. Riders of Justice (2020)
In Denmark, Markus (Mads Mikkelsen) loses his wife in a train crash. Otto, a survivor, persuades Markus that it was in fact a murder. With the help of Otto’s hacker friends Lennart (Lars Brygmann) and Emmenthaler (Nicolas Bro) they attempt to uncover the mystery and take revenge against the perpetrators.
Initially, Riders of Justice is tearjerking, setting the expectation for a film with a serious tone. Later, with the introduction of the eccentric Otto, Lennart and Emmenthaler, the movie takes a bizarre twist into comedic territory. The squabbles between the hackers and their personal quirks proves to provide hilarious material throughout, making Riders of Justice a great comedy.
Meanwhile, Mads Mikkelsen, at his all-time toughest and most-violent, supplies the film’s grittier element, whereas his daughter, Mathilde (Andrea Heick Gadeberg), is the heart. Alongside the revenge action, Riders of Justice is also an uplifting, compassionate film, as it sees an ensemble of wounded and misunderstood misfits band together to form a sweet community. The movie’s tonal complexity and unexpected use of dry Scandinavian humour makes it unlike any other thriller.