Best movies like Joshua
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
The arrival of a newborn girl causes the gradual disintegration of the Cairn family; particularly for 9-year-old Joshua, an eccentric boy whose proper upbringing and refined tastes both take a sinister turn.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing, psychological horror, suspense, sad
Best tv shows and movies like Joshua (2007):
Similar in 78%
Whisper (2007)
Plot Summary:
Convicted felon Max Truemont (played by Josh Holloway) is hired to execute a kidnapping of the son of one of the richest women in the state. Along with his fiancée Roxanne (played by Sarah Wayne Callies), Max joins two other strangers who were also hired by the same absent mastermind behind the kidnapping.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, UK
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: scary, bleak, serious, suspenseful, christmas horror, psychological, mind bending, suspense, demonic, psychological horror
Similar in 82%
Citadel (2012)
Plot Summary:
Citadel tells the story of widower and single father Tommy Cowley, a man inflicted with chronic agoraphobia since the day his wife was attacked. He was unable to protect her. He lives in Edenstown, the council estate from hell. Here he finds himself terrorized by a gang of syringe wielding feral children, who are intent on taking his baby daughter. With the help of a kind Nurse and a renegade Priest, Tommy learns the nightmarish truth surrounding these hooded children. He also learns that to be free of his fears, he must finally face the demons of his past and enter the one place he fears the most - The abandoned Tower block known as the Citadel.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Ireland, UK
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: scary, tense, suspenseful, serious, suspense, psychological, philosophical, political, grindhouse, hood
Similar in 80%
The Daisy Chain (2008)
Plot Summary:
A grieving couple move to a remote Irish village in the wake of their baby daughter's death. They soon take in an orphaned autistic girl, only to become involved in a series of strange occurrences.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Ireland, UK
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: suspense, psychological, serious, suspenseful, scary, realistic, surprise ending
Similar in 88%
The Cottage (2012)
Plot Summary:
A romance novelist (David Arquette) moves into a "cottage" behind the home of a composer and his family. He seems sweet, but what do they really know about him?.
IMDB Rating: 4.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: tense, suspenseful, serious, suspense, captivating, scary, realistic
Similar in 86%
First Born (2007)
Plot Summary:
Laura's expecting. Her husband, Steven's a loving guy but has little time for her. Her mom lives thousands of miles away. Forced to give up on her dreams, she's always been a bit edgy. A C-section drives her over the edge, making her see things in a different light. A creepy babysitter doesn't make things any better. She begins seeing things, trusts no one, as she goes into self-destruct mode.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, serious, suspenseful, tense, suspense
Similar in 80%
Adopting Terror (2012)
Plot Summary:
Tim and Cheryl Broadbent are excited to finally adopt Mona, a beautiful baby girl. But when the baby's biological father starts stalking them, their world turns upside down: through intimidation, manipulation, and violence, he is determined to take his daughter back. Written by Anonymous (IMDB.com).
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 956
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, rough, realistic, independent film
Similar in 76%
The Hamiltons (2006)
Plot Summary:
The Hamilton's seem to be an ordinary American family, living in a small town in Northern California and dealing with the problems of everyday life. They've also been recently adjusting to the untimely death of their parents, but since have moved on.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: psychological, scary, rough, serious, slasher, suspenseful, dark, sexy, bloody, suspense
Similar in 77%
Deadline (2009)
Plot Summary:
A screenwriter who travels to an abandoned house to finish a script on time, but a series of strange events lead her to a psychological breakdown.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: scary, bleak, psychological, suspenseful, atmospheric, serious, satanic, psychological thriller, suspense, psychological horror
Similar in 86%
The Disappointments Room (2016)
Plot Summary:
A mother and her young son release unimaginable horrors from the attic of their rural dream home.
IMDB Rating: 3.9
IMDB Votes: 10000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 91 min
Plot tags: scary, tense, serious, mysterious, suspense, psychological thriller, spooky, psychological
Similar in 89%
Mikey (1992)
Plot Summary:
Mikey just needs a good stable home. He's bounced from foster home to foster home his whole life. He finally lands himself with a new loving family, but their perfect little child is not what he appears to be. His previous caretakers all died of mysterious "accidents" that weren't really accidents at all. Mikey is a cold blooded killer, and it doesn't take long for him to aim his sights on his new adoptive family and anyone else who stands in his way.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: slasher, rough, serious, suspenseful, suspense, controversial, psychological, neo noir, disturbing, grindhouse
Similar in 84%
Daddy's Girl (1996)
Plot Summary:
A girl's bright smile masks a psychopathic soul that will eliminate anyone who comes between her and her doting father.
IMDB Rating: 4.8
IMDB Votes: 773
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: scary, realistic, suspenseful, rough, serious, suspense, terrifying, independent film, mind bending, slasher
Similar in 90%
Natural Enemy (1996)
Plot Summary:
William McNamara plays a young man who was given away by his mother at birth, seeking revenge on her for abandoning him.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 669
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Canada, USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, suspenseful, serious, realistic, disturbing, weird
Similar in 81%
Mother's Boys (1993)
Plot Summary:
Sexy but unstable wife and mother Jude walked out on her family three years ago. Now, just as suddenly, she is back. But her husband, Robert, has fallen in love with Callie, an assistant principal at his sons' school. He asks Jude for a divorce. She responds by trying to turn her three boys against Callie, then by slashing herself and blaming her rival and finally by drawing her 12-year-old, Kes, into a murderous plot.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: suspense, suspenseful, psychological, tense, realistic, neo noir, dark, independent film, serious
Similar in 86%
Swallow (2019)
Plot Summary:
Hunter, a newly pregnant housewife, finds herself increasingly compelled to consume dangerous objects. As her husband and his family tighten their control over her life, she must confront the dark secret behind her new obsession.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 27000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, France
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: art house, psychological, psychological thriller, suspense, dark, suspenseful, independent film, mindfuck, visually stunning, serious
Similar in 81%
Grace (2009)
Plot Summary:
In the wake of a horrific car accident that kills her husband, Michael, expectant mother Madeline Matheson discovers that her daughter, Grace, has died in the womb. Ignoring her doctor's warnings that the fetus must be removed from her body, a grief-stricken Matheson demands to carry the child to term -- even if it endangers her own life to do so. Curiously, little Grace emerges undead -- and with a craving for human blood.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspense, scary, suspenseful, disturbing, tense, controversial, captivating, surreal, mystic
Similar in 81%
Relative Fear (1994)
Plot Summary:
Linda and Peter Pratman's son Adam is autistic, but they still love him and hope that he'll at least start talking some day. However he's teased and abused by the kids of the neighborhood and his grandpa . When several people around Adam die an unexpected death, his parents start to suspect Adam - is he just simulating to be so ignorant about his environment?.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 369
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspenseful, scary, serious, suspense, detective, mystical, terrifying, independent film, mind bending
Similar in 82%
Bloody Birthday (1981)
Plot Summary:
In 1970, three children are born at the height of a total eclipse. Due to the sun and moon blocking Saturn, which controls emotions, they have become heartless killers ten years later, and are able to escape detection because of their youthful and innocent facades. A boy and his teenage sister become endangered when they stumble onto the bloody truth.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 6000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: slasher, psychological, suspenseful, scary, tense, rough, bleak, serious, bloody, slasher horror
Similar in 81%
Home Movie (2008)
Plot Summary:
Reverend David Poe and his psychiatrist wife trade hectic New York life for an idyllic rural farmhouse; the perfect place for 10 year old twins Jack & Emily to run, play and imagine. Documenting this lifestyle change, David decides to film every holiday and special family event. To the Poe's horror their home movies reveal an increasing malice and evil within their children and by Valentines Day, the children's sadism has turned to a blood lust for human prey.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 77 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, suspenseful, serious, mockumentary, suspense, disturbing, christmas horror, creepy, depressing
Similar in 78%
Hush (1998)
Plot Summary:
Jackson and Helen are in love and about to have their first child when they move in with Jackson's mother, Martha, in order to take care of the family estate. But all is not well in this household. Martha is jealous of her son's affection for Helen, and, despite her Southern smile, she's starting to act strangely. As Helen tries to create a happy home life, Martha attempts to divide the family so that Jackson will become hers alone.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, suspense, scary, emotional, serious, atmospheric, realistic, psychological thriller, dark, erotic
Similar in 80%
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992)
Plot Summary:
A suburban family chooses seemingly sweet Peyton Flanders as their newborn's nanny. Only much later does the infant's mother, Claire Bartel, realize Peyton's true intentions -- to destroy Claire and replace her in the family. The nail-biting suspense builds quickly in this chilling psychological thriller about deception and bitter revenge.
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 48000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, suspense, tense, psychological, neo noir, sexy, psychological thriller, serious, psychosexual thriller, dark
Similar in 80%
Mother's Day (2010)
Plot Summary:
Crazed members of a sadistic family return to their childhood home to terrorize the new owners.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 112 min
Plot tags: disturbing, scary, suspenseful, psychotronic, rough, serious, splatter, captivating, suspense, depressing
Similar in 79%
Alice Sweet Alice (1976)
Plot Summary:
Alice is a withdrawn 12-year-old who lives with her mother and her younger sister, Karen, who gets most of the attention from her mother, leaving Alice out of the spotlight. But when Karen is found brutally murdered in a church, suspicions start to turn toward Alice. But could a 12-year-old girl really be capable of such savagery?.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: slasher, disturbing, grindhouse, creepy, scary, bloody, suspense, controversial, frightening, terrifying
Similar in 86%
Audrey Rose (1977)
Plot Summary:
A man is convinced that a young girl is the reincarnation of his own daughter Audrey Rose, who died in a fiery car accident, along with his wife, two minutes before the girl was born.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: scary, suspense, psychological, tense, stylized, melancholic, disturbing, intense, serious, suspenseful
Similar in 87%
The Bleeding House (2011)
Plot Summary:
The Smiths -- a family with a secret past -- are visited by a sweet-talking southern gentleman who is looking for small town humanity. But they'll soon find out that kindness towards strangers is not always rewarded, and the secretive stranger will find redemption does not always come easy.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, rough, scary, serious, psychological, depressing, mysterious, surreal, mumblecore, southern gothic
Similar in 75%
Poltergeist (2015)
Plot Summary:
Legendary filmmaker Sam Raimi and director Gil Kenan reimagine and contemporize the classic tale about a family whose suburban home is invaded by angry spirits. When the terrifying apparitions escalate their attacks and take the youngest daughter, the family must come together to rescue her.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 61000
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, intense, suspense, suspenseful, serious, splatter, psychotronic, psychological thriller, spooky
Similar in 89%
Echo (2007)
Plot Summary:
A divorced policeman loses custody of his young son, only to kidnap his boy and retreat to a remote cottage, where his plan soon turns into a nightmare.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 453
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: Denmark
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 83%
We Are What We Are (2013)
Plot Summary:
In this reimagining of the 2010 Mexican film of the same name, director Jim Mickle paints a gruesome portrait of an introverted family struggling to keep their macabre traditions alive, giving us something we can really sink our teeth into.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA, France
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: scary, suspense, disturbing, psychological, suspenseful, tense, psychological thriller, creepy, serious, intense
Similar in 77%
Open Water (2003)
Plot Summary:
Two divers are left out at sea without a boat. There’s nothing but water for miles, unless they look at what’s underneath them.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 56000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 79 min
Plot tags: suspense, scary, suspenseful, disturbing, tense, psychological, stylized, rough, natural horror, clever
Similar in 80%
The Good Son (1993)
Plot Summary:
A young boy stays with his aunt and uncle, and befriends his cousin who's the same age. But his cousin begins showing increasing signs of psychotic behavior.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 45000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: suspenseful, suspense, psychological, scary, serious, psychological thriller, creepy, sad, terrifying, mind bending
Similar in 85%
Orphan (2009)
Plot Summary:
A married couple with a rocky past adopt 9-year old, Esther to fill the void created by a recently-stillborn baby. However, Esther is not quite who she seems.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 247000
Genere: Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA, Canada, Germany, France
Duration: 123 min
Plot tags: suspense, scary, psychological, twist ending, suspenseful, surprise ending, frightening, creepy, disturbing, serious