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The Wave poster

Movies that feel likeThe Wave (2008)

A school teacher discusses types of government with his class. His students find it too boring to repeatedly go over national socialism and believe that dictatorship cannot be established in modern Germany. He starts an experiment to show how easily the masses can become manipulated.

If you loved The Wave, the closest films we have are We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011), A Wednesday! (2008) and A Hijacking (2012). All three share The Wave's contemplative and tense feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Tunnel (2016).

πŸ… 67% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.6 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Dennis Ganselcontemplativetense
7 of 12 streaming nowNetflix Β· Amazon Prime Video Β· Paramount Plus Premium

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See it on the Mood Map

If The Wave hit the spot, these will too

We Need to Talk About Kevin poster
We Need to Talk About Kevin
2011 Β· dir. Lynne Ramsay
πŸ… 74%β˜… 7.4drama Β· thrillerPrime VideoPeacock

Common ground: violence in schools

After her son Kevin commits a horrific act, troubled mother Eva reflects on her complicated relationship with her disturbed son as he grew from a toddler into a teenager.

A Wednesday! poster
A Wednesday!
2008 Β· dir. Neeraj Pandey
β˜… 8.1drama Β· thriller

Contemplative where it counts, tense underneath

Prakash Rathod, a retired police commissioner recounts the most memorable case of his career wherein he was informed about a bomb scare in Mumbai by an ordinary commoner.

A Hijacking poster
A Hijacking
2012 Β· dir. Tobias Lindholm
πŸ… 96%β˜… 7.1thriller Β· drama

Drama with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

The difference: Critics rated this one higher still

Tensions are high after a Danish freighter is captured and held for ransom by Somali pirates, leading to weeks of high-stakes negotiations – and an escalating potential for explosive violence.

Locke poster
Locke
2014 Β· dir. Steven Knight
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.1drama Β· thriller

Both lean on tension more than on thriller

Ivan Locke has worked hard to craft a good life for himself. Tonight, that life will collapse around him. On the eve of the biggest challenge of his career, Ivan receives a phone call that sets in motion a series of events that will unravel his family, job, and soul.

Buried poster
Buried
2010 Β· dir. Rodrigo CortΓ©s
πŸ… 87%β˜… 6.9thrillerPrime Video

Tense thriller in both cases

The difference: Easier on the stillness than The Wave

As an American civilian truck driver working in Iraq, Paul Conroy's convoy is attacked by a group of Iraqi insurgents. Some time later, Paul awakes in a coffin with only a lighter, a cell phone, and his ever-growing anxiety. Faced with a dwindling oxygen supply and a dying battery, he must fight panic, despair, and delirium as he races against time to escape the claustrophobic death trap.

Foxcatcher poster
Foxcatcher
2014 Β· dir. Bennett Miller
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7drama Β· thriller

Drama built on stillness, twice over

The greatest Olympic Wrestling Champion brother team joins Team Foxcatcher led by multimillionaire sponsor John E. du Pont as they train for the 1988 games in Seoul - a union that leads to unlikely circumstances.

The Lives of Others poster
The Lives of Others
2006 Β· dir. Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
πŸ… 92%β˜… 8.4drama Β· thriller

Both play drama straight

In 1984 East Berlin, dedicated Stasi officer Gerd Wiesler begins spying on a famous playwright and his actress-lover Christa-Maria. Wiesler becomes unexpectedly sympathetic to the couple, and faces conflicting loyalties when his superior takes a liking to Christa-Maria.

Who Am I poster
Who Am I
2014 Β· dir. Baran bo Odar
β˜… 7.4thriller

Both working the same thriller territory

Benjamin, a young German computer whiz, is invited to join a subversive hacker group that wants to be noticed on the world's stage.

Dark Waters poster
Dark Waters
2019 Β· dir. Todd Haynes
πŸ… 89%β˜… 7.6drama Β· thrillerRent or buy

Drama approached the same way

A tenacious attorney uncovers a dark secret that connects a growing number of unexplained deaths to one of the world's largest corporations. In the process, he risks everything β€” his future, his family, and his own life β€” to expose the truth.

Zero Dark Thirty poster
Zero Dark Thirty
2012 Β· dir. Kathryn Bigelow
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.4thriller Β· dramaNetflixParamount+

Cut from the same thriller cloth

A chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May, 2011.

The Place poster
The Place
2017 Β· dir. Paolo Genovese
β˜… 7drama Β· thriller

The drama is handled with the same confidence

The fates of an apparently random group of strangers who each come into contact with a mysterious figure who they believe possesses the power to grant any wish, in return for which they must carry out a task he assigns them.

Tunnel poster
Tunnel
2016 Β· dir. Kim Seong-hun
πŸ… 100%β˜… 6.8thriller Β· dramaPrime Video

Thriller in the same key

A man is on his way home when the poorly constructed tunnel he is driving through collapses, leaving him trapped leaving himself for the unexpected whilst emergency services struggle to help.

In the mood for more contemplative?

all contemplative movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share The Wave’s defining feeling.