Mindbending films
If you love second guessing your assumptions, being surprised by twists and turns of the plot, and perhaps like a bit of the supernatural to creep into the plot now and then, these are movies for you.
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22 titles
- DirectorJaco Van DormaelStarsJared LetoSarah PolleyDiane KrugerA boy stands on a station platform as a train is about to leave. Should he go with his mother or stay with his father? Infinite possibilities arise from this decision. As long as he doesn't choose, anything is possible.One of the most cerebral films about alternate timelines and the end results of the choices we make at pivotal moments of our lives, as told by a 120 year old man and his 9 year old self. Fascinating and moving.
- DirectorJames MangoldStarsJohn CusackRay LiottaAmanda PeetStranded at a desolate Nevada motel during a nasty rain storm, ten strangers become acquainted with each other when they realize that they're being killed off one by one.Psychological mind bender with a stellar cast.
- DirectorM. Night ShyamalanStarsBruce WillisHaley Joel OsmentToni ColletteMalcolm Crowe, a child psychologist, starts treating a young boy, Cole, who encounters dead people and convinces him to help them. In turn, Cole helps Malcolm reconcile with his estranged wife.So well known it's almost become a cliché, but the Sixth Sense did have a shocking plot twist when it was out in theaters ..back in the day.
- DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsKiefer SutherlandKevin BaconJulia RobertsFive medical students experiment with "near death" experiences, until the dark consequences of past tragedies begin to jeopardize their lives.A little creepy at times. Great build of suspense, solid performances by all involved.
- DirectorMarc ForsterStarsEwan McGregorNaomi WattsRyan GoslingA psychiatrist attempts to prevent one of his patients from committing suicide while trying to maintain his own grip on reality.This film has a wonderful twist and it just resonates with me for some reason.
- DirectorTom TykwerLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsTom HanksHalle BerryHugh GrantAn exploration of how the actions of individual lives impact one another in the past, present and future, as one soul is shaped from a killer into a hero, and an act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution.Using the same core group of actors, this film allows them to play different characters at different points in history. The themes of moral evolution and awakening consciousness are well explored.
- DirectorLana WachowskiLilly WachowskiStarsKeanu ReevesLaurence FishburneCarrie-Anne MossWhen a beautiful stranger leads computer hacker Neo to a forbidding underworld, he discovers the shocking truth--the life he knows is the elaborate deception of an evil cyber-intelligence.Classic existentialism, and a great visual film to boot.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsJack NanceCharlotte StewartAllen JosephHenry Spencer tries to survive his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend, and the unbearable screams of his newly born mutant child.Disturbing and brilliant. I still haven't made up my mind about this one.
- DirectorChristopher NolanStarsLeonardo DiCaprioJoseph Gordon-LevittElliot PageA thief who steals corporate secrets through the use of dream-sharing technology is given the inverse task of planting an idea into the mind of a C.E.O., but his tragic past may doom the project and his team to disaster.You could debate endlessly about the final outcome of Inception. Intricately plotted, and boasting great performances from a dream cast.
- DirectorChristopher NolanStarsChristian BaleHugh JackmanScarlett JohanssonAfter a tragic accident, two stage magicians in 1890s London engage in a battle to create the ultimate illusion while sacrificing everything they have to outwit each other.Another Nolan masterpiece. The reveal at the end will have you questioning -- could the magic have been real?
- DirectorPhillip NoyceStarsBrenton ThwaitesJeff BridgesMeryl StreepIn a seemingly perfect community without war, pain, suffering, differences or choices, a young boy is chosen to learn from an elderly man, the true pain and pleasure of the "real" world.When this comes out in theaters next month, I will have more to comment on. Meanwhile, if it follows the book at all, it will be a fantastic mind bender.
- DirectorMichel GondryStarsJim CarreyKate WinsletTom WilkinsonWhen their relationship turns sour, a couple undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories forever.I didn't like this film at first, but each viewing showed more to appreciate about how well thought out it was, as well as the great visual tricks employed by the director. And of course, Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet are wonderful.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsSuraj SharmaIrrfan KhanAdil HussainA young man who survives a disaster at sea is hurtled into an epic journey of adventure and discovery. While cast away, he forms an unexpected connection with another survivor: a fearsome Bengal tiger.Simply a gorgeous film in every way, and also leaves you questioning which version of reality was the "true" version.
- DirectorAlejandro AmenábarStarsNicole KidmanChristopher EcclestonFionnula FlanaganIn 1945, immediately following the end of Second World War, a woman who lives with her two photosensitive children on her darkened old family estate in the Channel Islands becomes convinced that the home is haunted.Deliciously creepy ghost story...awesome twist.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsBrad PittEdward NortonMeat LoafAn insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soap maker form an underground fight club that evolves into much more.The ultimate "didn't see it coming" for me..
- CreatorKyle KillenStarsJason IsaacsLaura AllenSteve HarrisAfter a car accident takes the life of a family member, a police detective lives two alternating parallel lives, one with his wife and one with his son. Is one of his "realities" merely a dream?Yes a tv series, but fits perfectly into the mindbending theme. I wish it had been renewed for another season.
- DirectorAdrian LyneStarsTim RobbinsElizabeth PeñaDanny AielloMourning his dead child, a haunted Vietnam War veteran attempts to uncover his past while suffering from a severe case of dissociation. To do so, he must decipher reality and life from his own dreams, delusions, and perceptions of death.gritty and fascinating, choose your reality.
- DirectorDavid CronenbergStarsPeter WellerJudy DavisIan HolmAfter developing an addiction to the substance he uses to kill bugs, an exterminator accidentally kills his wife and becomes involved in a secret government plot being orchestrated by giant bugs in a port town in North Africa.Kafka.
- DirectorVincenzo NataliStarsAbigail BreslinPeter OuterbridgeMichelle NoldenA teenager is stuck in a time loop that is not quite the same each time. She must uncover the truth, but her actions have consequences for herself and others.A not-bad ghost story with a twist. Light mind-bending..
- DirectorJoe CarnahanStarsLiam NeesonDermot MulroneyFrank GrilloAfter their plane crashes in Alaska, six oil workers are led by a skilled huntsman to survival, but a pack of merciless wolves haunts their every step.Heavy symbolism in a gritty survivor story. Strange use of CGI instead of real animals, adds to the surreal elements of this tale.
- DirectorZack SnyderStarsEmily BrowningVanessa HudgensAbbie CornishA young girl institutionalized by her abusive stepfather retreats to an alternative reality as a coping strategy and envisions a plan to help her escape.Apparently I'm in the minority who thought this was a very good movie: loved the action, the visual effects, the soundtrack; and the plot kept me guessing. Perhaps because I hadn't heard of the comic on which it was based, I had not preconceived ideas about how Sucker Punch "should" have been, and I enjoyed it greatly.
- DirectorCharles GuardThomas GuardStarsEmily BrowningArielle KebbelElizabeth BanksAnna returns home after a stint in a mental hospital, but her recovery is jeopardized by her father's new girlfriend and ghastly visions of her dead mother.On the surface, a ghost story. Try to outguess what's really going on here.