With hundreds of films released each year, it is evident that a few gems will definitely fall under our radars. Whether due to poor marketing, due to the sheer digital airspace a few projects manage to take up, or just blatant shamelessness on our part to give new films a chance, there remain quite a few awesome movies that most audiences remain unfamiliar with year after year. Let's break down The 7 Best Movies You Haven’t Seen below.
1. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
Shane Black’s talent for writing sharp comedies is unparalleled, and nothing proves this more than his 2005 crime comedy Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Starring Robert Downey Jr. as Harry Lockhart, a thief who stumbles into a murder conspiracy, and Val Kilmer as private investigator Perry, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is insanely funny with twists and turns that are as natural as they are entertaining. Downey and Kilmer are in top form, and together, the duo turns this feature into a buddy comedy slash murder mystery that we will all remember for the ages. With a script that is as witty as it is violent, Black hits it out of the park on this one. Spoiler alert: it's best to go in blind.
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2. Blue Ruin (2013)
In an era where tense, tight revenge thrillers have become a dying breed, Jeremy Saulnier has managed to singlehandedly resurrect the genre from its ashes. Nowhere is this more apparent than in his second feature, Blue Ruin, which focuses on a drifter trying to get revenge on a man who killed his parents. A brutal and raw odyssey of righting the wrongs of the past, Blue Ruin takes a while to get started, but doesn't let go once it does. The act of killing is messy, and the film makes a significant point of that, allowing both parties to display their grievances before the inevitable takes hold solemnly. This is one film that you don't want to miss, and while you are at it, check out Saulnier’s later features (Green Room and Hold the Dark) as well.
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3. Following (1998)
Few people know that Christopher Nolan made his first feature on a budget of only $6000, and fewer still know that it puts most other neo-noirs to shame. 1998’s Following is the story of a man who follows strangers around, only to be drawn into a criminal conspiracy with deadly consequences. Following has all the hallmarks of a Nolan flick, and Nolan would revisit some of these aspects again and again in the future. While Following is by no means Chris Nolan’s best work, it does showcase the sheer talent the filmmaker had, enabling him to create a wonderful neo noir thriller on a budget most would consider to be practically zero. Thriller aficionados would do well to give this one a try, and as always, expect the unexpected.
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4. Incendies (2010)
Before Dennis Villeneuve made Blade Runner 2049 and the Dune Trilogy, he made a little-known gem called Incendies. Focusing on the horrors of the Lebanese Civil War in the 80s, Incendies is a tour de force in showcasing how conflicts destroy us from the inside out, with seemingly no resolution for the terror it causes upon millions.
As one act of violence travels through time and space across decades, Incendies might be difficult to digest but wholly important in the context of the world we see around us. Part a study of trauma and part a peek into what was probably the most complicated conflict of the 20th century, Villeneuve turns Incendies from a war survival story to something else entirely, leaving our collective jaws on the floor. With stunning cinematography and a razor-sharp screenplay, Incendies dares to go where no one has gone before, and its final twist is so horrific and surprising that it will probably scar you for life.
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5. The Ritual (2017)
Best Movies You Haven’t Seen
David Bruckner is quickly becoming one of the industry’s most prolific horror auteurs, and the man’s sheer talents for suspense and horror are profoundly on display in 2017’s The Ritual. The film follows four buddies who go on a camping trip, only for a harmless detour into the forest to turn into something that will destroy their lives. From its unique creature design to how quickly the film shifts gears, The Ritual takes well-established genre tropes and turns them inside out, presenting horror in its very raw form: visceral, bone-chilling, and destructive. This is a film that will stay with you long after it has ended.
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6. The Mosquito Coast (1986)
Best Movies You Haven’t Seen
Harrison Ford as an eccentric/crazy inventor who ditches the city for a jungle abode with his family? Sign us up right now. Acclaimed director Peter Weir’s adaptation of the 1981 Paul Theroux novel is fantastically acted, perfectly paced, and quite a faithful adaptation of one of the most famous literary works of the last century. It is also perhaps the only film of Ford’s entire career that bombed, but don't let that stop you from checking this one out. Ford is in top form here, and the film goes into plenty of unexpected places regarding both government conspiracies and patriarchal families.
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7. Stretch (2014)
Best Movies You Haven’t Seen
Famous for Smokin’ Aces and Boss Level, action auteur Joe Carnahan made a small movie called Stretch in 2014. Focusing on a down-on-his-luck limo driver (Patrick Wilson) who finds himself out of his depth when he takes on a crazy passenger, Stretch soars because it packages the unexpected into a dirty, crazy story set in LA. From chase scenes to gunfights, Carnahan stages each set piece in a way that accentuates the narrative, allowing Wilson to shine in a way that he had never done so before. Although it flew under the radar because it never received a theatrical release, Stretch is well worth your 90 minutes.
So, these are 7 gems that we think most people have not yet had a chance to see. Please let us know in the comments what other films you think have flown under the radar and deserve to be seen by more people.
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