It's been only a month since Netflix released Reptile, a crime thriller film that marked Grant Singer's feature directorial debut. This movie, co-written by him with Benjamin Brewer and Benicio del Toro, introduces Tom Nichols, a detective with a troubled past who sets out to investigate the ruthless murder of a young real estate agent. But as he gets deeper and deeper into the investigation, the case starts to take some unexpected twists that make him reconsider everything he thought he knew about his own life.
Del Toro leads the cast of this production, joined by Justin Timberlake, Alicia Silverstone, Eric Bogosian, Ato Essandoh, and Michael Carmen Pitt. While the film was met with mixed reviews for being both too slow and unnecessarily lengthy, everybody seems to agree that Del Toro's performance is what drives the film forward, and that the rest of the cast perfectly complements the production's tense atmosphere. If you enjoyed Reptile, here are 10 Netflix movies you can watch next.
10 1922
1922
- Release Date
- October 20, 2017
- Director
- Zak Hilditch
- Cast
- Thomas Jane, Molly Parker, Brian D'Arcy James, Neal McDonough, Dylan Schmid, Roan Curtis
- Main Genre
- Thriller
In the film adaptation of Stephen King's novel 1922, Thomas Jane plays Wilf, a farmer who conspires with his teenage son to murder his wife to keep her from selling the farm and moving to the city. But what seems to be the perfect crime is not so clear-cut after all, and soon after, a horde of rats start preying on him, sending him into a downward spiral of madness as he confronts his deepest fears.
How It's like Reptile
Like Reptile, 1922 plunges the audience into a dark atmosphere full of unexpected twists and turns that constantly keeps them on the edge of their seat, even when they know from the very beginning of the film who is responsible for the crime. Furthermore, the lead actor's performance is, unquestionably, the highlight of this production, and the main contributor in driving it forward.
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9 Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
- Release Date
- December 23, 2022
- Director
- Rian Johnson
- Cast
- Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, Janelle Monae, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr.
- Rating
- PG-13
In 2022, Netflix released Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, the standalone sequel to Knives Out, with Rian Johnson once again at the helm and Daniel Craig returning to play private investigator Benoit Blanc. In it, tycoon Miles Bron invites some friends to a murder mystery game hosted at his mansion on a Greek island. But when this innocent game actually results in murder, Detective Benoit Blanc (whom nobody knows exactly how he got there in the first place) sets out to peel back the layers of the real mystery.
How It's like Reptile
Even though Glass Onion is much more humorous and light-hearted than Reptile, they do share certain similarities, such as the introduction of a criminal case full of twists and turns that, at one point or another, makes everyone look suspicious. Plus, its cast also features some of the most talented stars in the industry, which is always a delightful thing to watch.
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8 Luckiest Girl Alive
Luckiest Girl Alive is a 2022 film based on Jessica Knoll's best-selling novel of the same name. In it, Mila Kunis stars as Ani, a writer who has the perfect life and is about to marry her sweetheart. But things are not quite as they seem, and after a filmmaker invites her to take part in a documentary about crimes that occurred when she was a teenager, Ani is left with no choice but to confront the ghosts of her past, even if that threatens her current life.
How It's like Reptile
This Mike Barker film shares many things with Reptile, most notably Kunis' solid performance in the lead role and the addition of a mystery in which nothing is as it seems: Ani leads a life that would make anyone envious, but as the film unfolds, the audience is presented with revelations that utterly change their perspective on things, adding an extra layer of complexity to the story.
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7 The Good Nurse
The Good Nurse
- Release Date
- October 26, 2022
- Director
- Tobias Lindholm
- Cast
- Jessica Chastain, Eddie Redmayne, Kim Dickens, Noah Emmerich, Malik Yoba
- Rating
- R
- Main Genre
- Biography
In 2022, Tobias Lindholm took the helm of The Good Nurse, a drama film starring Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne. In it, Chastain plays Amy, a nurse who puts her life on the line after discovering that her close friend and fellow nurse may be responsible for the string of unexplained deaths taking place at their hospital.
How It's like Reptile
Despite the fact that it is based on a true story and doesn't feature a mystery per se, The Good Nurse delivers a story as terrifying as it is gripping, keeping you hooked to the screen from start to finish, with tension-filled moments that are further heightened by Chastain and Redmayne's solid performances as leads.
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6 The Stranger
Based on a real crime from the early-2000s, the Australian film The Stranger hit Netflix in 2022, with Thomas M. Wright at the helm and Joel Edgerton and Sean Harris leading the cast. This production follows a cop that strikes up a friendship with a man who is suspected of kidnapping and murdering a child in order to get a confession out of him, an assignment in which the stakes are way too high.
How It's like Reptile
Like Reptile, The Stranger is a film that many people might find a bit slow. Still, it manages to convey a tense atmosphere full of unexpected turns in which, at times, one does not fully understand what is going on, while featuring characters that seem to be capable of anything, remarkably carried out by the cast's main actors.
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5 The Crimes That Bind
The Crimes That Bind is a 2020 film starring some of the best actors in the Argentine film industry. In it, Cecilia Roth plays Alicia, a woman whose life is turned upside down when her son Daniel is accused of attempting to murder his ex-wife, which could send him to prison forever. Although Alicia refuses to consider the possibility that Daniel could be a criminal, several secrets that come to light during the investigation force her to confront a horrific reality that turns her life into a nightmare.
How It's like Reptile
The Crimes That Bind stands out primarily from the solid performances of the ensemble cast, who portray both compelling and believable characters. In addition, its similar pacing to Reptile also has the audience navigating a sinister twist-filled story that doesn't get resolved until the very end.
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4 The Weekend Away
In 2022, Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester took the lead in The Weekend Away, a thriller film by Kim Farrant based on a novel that Sarah Alderson published two years earlier. In it, she plays Beth, a woman who embarks on a weekend getaway to Croatia with her best friend, only to become the prime suspect in an investigation when the latter is found dead in the wake of a night that no one remembers much about.
How It's like Reptile
One thing is certain: neither The Weekend Away nor Reptile are the finest thriller films in the history of cinema. Still, both productions deliver the right dose of mystery to keep you on your toes from start to finish, making them excellent choices to stream while curled up on the couch on any Friday night. This Kim Farrant film also boasts a solid performance from its lead actress while featuring dreamlike scenery that makes following along even worthier.
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3 The Woman in the Window
The Woman in the Window
An agoraphobic woman living alone in New York begins spying on her new neighbors, only to witness a disturbing act of violence. Starring Amy Adams and Gary Oldman.
- Release Date
- May 14, 2021
- Director
- joe wright
- Cast
- Amy Adams, Gary Oldman, Julianne Moore, Anthony Mackie, Wyatt Russell, Brian Tyree Henry
- Rating
- R
- Main Genre
- Crime
The 2021 film The Woman in the Window is based on A. J. Finn's popular book, and features an all-star cast led by Amy Adams alongside Gary Oldman, Julianne Moore, and Anthony Mackie. The film stars Adams as Anna, an agoraphobic woman who spends her days secluded in her home spying on her neighbors from across the street. This is how she became a key witness to the murder of one of them, even though no one seems to believe that this crime really happened. Thus, Anna is left with no other choice but to face her demons in order to solve the murder on her own, something that may jeopardize her own life.
How It's like Reptile
Much like Del Toro's character, Adams' Anna finds herself going through several personal struggles, which in one way or another intersect with the investigation she is trying to undertake. Her performance was among the highlights of this production, which emerged as one of Netflix's most successful films of 2021 even despite its mixed reviews.
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2 The Pale Blue Eye
The Pale Blue Eye
Follows a veteran detective who investigates the murders, helped by a detail-oriented young cadet who will later become a world famous author, Edgar Allan Poe. Starring Christian Bale.
- Release Date
- January 6, 2023
- Director
- Scott Cooper
- Cast
- Christian Bale, Lucy Boynton, Harry Melling, Gillian Anderson, Robert Duvall
- Rating
- R
- Main Genre
- Crime
The 2022 film The Pale Blue Eye adapts Louis Bayard's 2006 novel to film with lead performances by Christian Bale and Harry Melling backed by an all-star cast. It takes the audience back to 1830, as retired detective Augustus Landor takes the lead in the investigation of a series of odd murders occurring at the United States Military Academy. Due to the nature of the case, he enlists the help of Edgar Allan Poe, the renowned writer who, back then, was a young military cadet.
How It's like Reptile
Boasting masterful performances by a stellar cast that includes Gillian Anderson, Lucy Boynton, and Charlotte Gainsbourg, The Pale Blue Eye immerses the audience in an intricate plot that never stops exposing new secrets, even when it seems that everything has been figured out. That, combined with an amazing setting, helps Scott Cooper's film maintain the audience's interest all the way to the end.
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1 The Guilty
Rounding out this list is The Guilty, an Antoine Fuqua production that serves as a remake of the 2018 Danish film of the same name. It stars Jake Gyllenhaal alongside Riley Keough, Ethan Hawke, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Paul Dano, and Peter Sarsgaard in the voice cast. In the film, Gyllenhaal plays Joe Baylor, a 911 call center operator attempting to save the life of a female caller seemingly in danger. But as he is drawn into the case, he realizes that things are not quite as they seem, not even in his own life.
How It's like Reptile
Although The Guilty did not achieve as much acclaim as the original film, it still proved to be a very popular Netflix production thanks to its captivating story that plays tricks on the viewer's mind. The main character's backstory, at the same time, bears a certain resemblance to Reptile's: from the very beginning, the audience knows that something weird is going on with Joe Baylor, but to find out exactly what it is, they need to stick to the screen until the pieces of the puzzle start falling into place.
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