Best movies like Son of Sam
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
This chilling tale recounts the late 70's in New York City, when a serial killer on the loose dubbed "Son of Sam" creates havoc. When arrested, "Son of Sam" tells police he was influenced by a satanic cult. New York would never be the same.
IMDB Rating: 1.8
IMDB Votes: 469
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, realistic, suspenseful, psychological thriller, slasher
Best tv shows and movies like Son of Sam (2008):
Similar in 75%
Rough Draft (1998)
Plot Summary:
A struggling freelance writer, while investigating the transvestite night life, stumbles across a serial killer in action. The two then strike up a bizarre partnership to document the killer's motives and handiwork as a possessed detective struggling with his own personal demons tries to solve the crimes.
IMDB Rating: 4.0
IMDB Votes: 849
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: independent film, scary, psychological, tense, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, detective
Similar in 89%
Sanctimony (2000)
Plot Summary:
A handsome, brilliant stock trader, bored with his existence, becomes a serial killer.
IMDB Rating: 2.8
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: Canada, Germany, USA
Duration: 87 min
Plot tags: scary, rough, realistic, suspenseful, serious, slasher, suspense, erotic, independent film, slasher horror
Similar in 87%
The Barber (2002)
Plot Summary:
In the small town of Revelstoke, Alaska, local barber Dexter is surprised to learn that the body of Lucy Waters has been discovered. Having killed this woman, days ago, he hoped her body wouldn't be found until spring. Through the eyes of a serial killer, we discover the chilling layer of a weary town whose only concern is another long, dark winter.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: Canada, UK
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, serious, suspenseful, suspense, christmas horror, scary, slasher
Similar in 77%
Quiet Kill (2004)
Plot Summary:
An attractive married woman and a member of the 'Country Club Tennis Set', is being neglected by her workaholic doctor husband, Jerry (Corbin Bernsen). Lonely and insecure, Amy foolishly falls for the seductive charms of a much younger man, Steve Sterns (Nicholas Celozzi) who is introduced to Amy by her good friend, Sheila. The love affair is very brief, as she realizes that Steve has a dark, sinister and obsessive side to his personality, or is it personalities? Amy tries to break off the relationship, only to find that her adulterous lover has become her stalker. She also fears that Steve is responsible for the numerous brutal murders of local prostitutes.
IMDB Rating: 3.6
IMDB Votes: 224
Genere: Crime, Romance, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, realistic, suspenseful, christian film, independent film, detective
Similar in 76%
No One Can Hear You (2001)
Plot Summary:
Families are dying and reporter Trish (Kelly McGillis) finds herself reporting on a serial killing spree. After her daughter Lisa's (Kate Elliott) best friends are killed, she fears that her family may be on the killers list. Sheriff Webster (Barry Corbin) is not listening to her concerns, which leads Trish to wonder is he or his deputy might be involved. Then Lisa, her boyfriend Ben and her sister Amy receive threats.
IMDB Rating: 4.4
IMDB Votes: 390
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, suspenseful, slasher, suspense, independent film, tense, realistic
Similar in 75%
Dark Asylum (2001)
Plot Summary:
Asylum is a taut psychological thriller about a deranged fearsome killer running lose in an abandoned high security Asylum. Pitting the county psychiatrist Dr. Maggie Belham against the psychotic maniac, Dr Belham is trapped in a maze of corridors, and her only help is the janitor, Quitz who may in fact be a forgotten asylum inmate.
IMDB Rating: 4.1
IMDB Votes: 931
Genere: Thriller, Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 83 min
Plot tags: slasher, psychological, serious, suspenseful, scary, independent film
Similar in 76%
Little Erin Merryweather (2003)
Plot Summary:
Once upon a time, death preyed upon a New England college campus. Rumors swirl that "if you see a flash of red, you're dead!" Local golden boy, Peter Bloom (David Morwick) investigates the grisly killings until the stakes grow higher and the body count mounts. Suddenly, Peter's search becomes a fight for survival in a fairy tale world full of nightmares.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 660
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: suspense, slasher, scary, serious, suspenseful, fairy tale, psychological thriller
Similar in 81%
Black Dahlia (2006)
Plot Summary:
Horror master Ulli Lommel is back with a terrifying tale of a copycat killer in Los Angeles. A young rookie cop and his team discover dismembered female bodies in L.A. similar to the Black Dahlia cold case from 1947. A serial killer seems to be copying the brutal massacre of 1940s Hollywood starlet Betty Short - The Black Dahlia. Ultimately his investigation leads him to a frightening lair of death and torture, all part of a terrifying fantasy that the killer is trying to bring to life.
IMDB Rating: 1.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, rough, serious, slasher, realistic, suspense, low-budget
Similar in 79%
Killer Nurse (2008)
Plot Summary:
He called himself the Angel of death but when the police department discovered that he was involved in over 40 deaths his name soon became Killer nurse in the beginning it was his story against theirs. Soon he gave up his version of the events and admitted to killing 43 patients in his care at St. Mary's hospital. Charles Cullen became one of the most notorious serial killers in the history of the US.
IMDB Rating: 1.9
IMDB Votes: 140
Genere: Crime, Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: rough, bleak, serious, realistic, talky, independent film
Similar in 84%
San Franpsycho (2006)
Plot Summary:
Two detectives hunt a serial killer who is sending cryptic messages about his crimes to a local reporter.
IMDB Rating: 2.5
IMDB Votes: 719
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, suspenseful, scary, serious, realistic, independent film
Similar in 83%
The Prodigy (2005)
Plot Summary:
"The Prodigy" tells the story of small-time enforcer Truman Fisher's vicious conflict with a sadistic assassin who has chosen the unwilling Truman to be his successor. The assassin, who goes by the alias Rains and whose exploits have become the source of legend among Truman's underworld colleagues, drives Truman, through the pressure of constant violence and grief, to understand his own capacity for both bloodshed and compassion. Ultimately this reveals to Truman that he as with all of us, must find our place in this world or as Rains would say "our place in this grand design." This action begins quickly as Truman meets with a turncoat from a rival gang. This tense showdown erupts quickly into mayhem, when Rains makes his unexpected entrance. In the wake of the ensuing bloodbath, Truman is forced to reevaluate his own role in the small, violent world he inhabits, suddenly aware that there are larger powers at work which he does not understand.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 921
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, suspenseful, suspense, independent film, serious, realistic, surprise ending
Similar in 80%
Curse of the Zodiac (2007)
Plot Summary:
Genre guru Ulli Lommel (THE BOOGEYMAN, BTK KILLER) directs this horror film about the infamous Zodiac killer. Though decades have passed since the multiple murderer held the state of California hostage with fear, the mystery of his identity has never been solved.
IMDB Rating: 1.3
IMDB Votes: 931
Genere: Crime, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, serious, suspenseful, mockbuster, psychological thriller
Similar in 90%
Confessions of a Serial Killer (1985)
Plot Summary:
After being arrested, a Texas man begins confessing to the brutal murder of over 200 women. He recounts his random selection of victims and his traveling companions, his friend and friend's sister. But the police can't be sure whether to believe him or not until he locates a body and shows them some polaroids. Based on the true story of Henry Lee Lucas.
IMDB Rating: 5.7
IMDB Votes: 779
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: slasher, controversial, psychological, detective, independent film, scary, rough, mind bending, bleak, serious
Similar in 80%
Green River Killer (2005)
Plot Summary:
Along twenty years, the deranged serial-killer Gary Ridgway has killed at least forty-eight prostitutes and dumped their bodies in Green River.
IMDB Rating: 1.9
IMDB Votes: 998
Genere: Crime, Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 83 min
Plot tags: scary, rough, serious, slasher, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, detective, independent film
Similar in 75%
Nightstalker (2002)
Plot Summary:
A stylish horror film based on the life of Richard Ramirez, aka the Nightstalker, who terrorized people in Los Angeles during the 1980s.
IMDB Rating: 3.4
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Horror
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: suspense, slasher, scary, rough, bleak, serious, suspenseful, disturbing, realistic, detective
Similar in 84%
Mummy Maniac (2007)
Plot Summary:
Based on true events, tells how a serial murderer, kidnaps and tortures then bandaging girls like mummies.
IMDB Rating: 1.3
IMDB Votes: 317
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: scary, psychological, rough, slasher, psychotronic, suspenseful, exciting, tense, funny, suspense
Similar in 80%
Next Time I'll Aim for the Heart (2014)
Plot Summary:
Between 1978 and 1979, the inhabitants of the Oise are in fear of a maniac who kills several hitchhikers and escape the police. He was then dubbed "the killer of the Oise" is actually a shy young policeman who will investigate his own murder, only to lose control of the situation.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: France
Duration: 111 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, realistic, bloody, suspense, neo western, weird
Similar in 87%
Starkweather (2004)
Plot Summary:
In 1958 Nebraska 19 year old garbageman Charles Starkweather goes on a murder spree with his 14 year old girlfriend Caril Ann Fugate killing 11 people in three months, introducing America to spree killing.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 861
Genere: Action, Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 92 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, detective, road movie
Similar in 76%
Out of the Darkness (1985)
Plot Summary:
A gripping thriller telling the true story of the hunt and capture of David Berkowitz, a.k.a. "Son of Sam" — the infamous serial killer who stalked New York in the 70s.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 471
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 94 min
Plot tags: psychological, detective, rough, mind bending, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 81%
Zodiac Killer (2005)
Plot Summary:
A young man who works at a nursing home uses the legendary Zodiac killer's M.O. to kill people who neglect their elderly relatives.
IMDB Rating: 2.1
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 83 min
Plot tags: slasher, rough, serious, suspenseful, disturbing, suspense, scary, bleak
Similar in 76%
Kemper (2008)
Plot Summary:
A film based on the true story of Ed Kemper, a serial killer who murdered ten in Santa Cruz, CA during the late sixties and early seventies.
IMDB Rating: 3.0
IMDB Votes: 599
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, slasher, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, scary
Similar in 86%
Bundy: An American Icon (2009)
Plot Summary:
Bundy, starring Corin Nemec in the title role and co-starring Kane Hodder, details the dark psyche and previously unexplored motivations of the man who became known as one of the most notorious serial killers to leave behind a legacy of evil.
IMDB Rating: 3.7
IMDB Votes: 922
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, slasher, suspenseful, disturbing, scary, realistic
Similar in 85%
Rampage: The Hillside Strangler Murders (2006)
Plot Summary:
Kenneth Bianchi, one of the two serial rapists and killers who terrorized the Los Angeles area in the late 1970s, is giving police station interviews to psychiatrist Samantha Stone, who has disquieting lifestyle issues of her own. It falls to her to delve into the details of the case to determine the veracity of Bianchi's claims of multiple personality disorder, but in so doing, she is forced to relive the horrific crimes, one of which occurs at her very doorstep.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 863
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: psychological, rough, realistic, suspenseful, bleak, erotic, suspense, tense, serious, surprise ending
Similar in 88%
Ed Gein: The Butcher of Plainfield (2007)
Plot Summary:
Inspired by the true story of one of the most gruesome killers in American history. Now, years after inspiring "Psycho's" Norman Bates, "The Silence Of The Lambs'" Buffalo Bill and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre's" Leatherface, the story of real life serial killer Ed Gein is told once again. Nicknamed "The Butcher Of Plainfield," Gein was responsible for a rash of gory murders that sent shock waves through his rural Wisconsin town, and across America, in the late 1950's. Prepare to enter the evil mind and twisted world of "The Butcher Of Plainfield.".
IMDB Rating: 3.7
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: disturbing, scary, rough, serious, slasher, suspenseful, suspense, realistic
Similar in 90%
B.T.K. Killer (2005)
Plot Summary:
Veteran Boogey Man and Zodiac Killer director Ulli Lommel continues his long tradition of delivering tense thrills with this relentless look at the life of the elusive, Kansas-based serial killer known to authorities only as "B.T.K." before his arrest.
IMDB Rating: 1.5
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Biography, Crime, Drama, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, suspenseful, scary, bleak, realistic, slasher
Similar in 80%
Borderline Cult (2007)
Plot Summary:
Three serial killers team up at the US/Mexican border town of Juarez and go on a killing spree.
IMDB Rating: 1.7
IMDB Votes: 416
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: scary, rough, serious, realistic, suspense, independent film
Similar in 85%
Henry II: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1996)
Plot Summary:
Henry has wandered into a small town looking for work and a place to stay. He gets a job delivering and cleaning porto-potties and moves in with a co-worker until he gets his feet off of the ground. Henry and his new friend soon start to kill.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Crime, Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 84 min
Plot tags: slasher, disturbing, scary, psychological, terrifying, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 77%
Nightstalker (2009)
Plot Summary:
Richard Ramirez, dubbed "The Night Stalker" by the media, a serial killer who killed somewhere in the neighborhood of 16 souls during his reign of terror in Los Angeles back in the Eighties.
IMDB Rating: 1.9
IMDB Votes: 319
Genere: Horror, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 80 min
Plot tags: scary, rough, serious, realistic, suspense, slasher
Similar in 77%
Gone but Not Forgotten (2005)
Plot Summary:
An Oregon woman vanishes. In her wake remains a single black rose & a note reading gone but not forgotten. Now a man stands accused: a private eye has gone missing: a detective knows more than she lets on: & a tough female attorney has entered a web of duplicity revenge & multiple murder.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 705
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 150 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, psychological, serious, suspenseful
Similar in 77%
The Zodiac (2005)
Plot Summary:
An elusive serial killer known as the Zodiac terrorizes the San Francisco Bay in the late 1960s, while detectives aim to stop him before he claims more victims. Based on a true story.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 158 min
Plot tags: rough, psychological, bleak, scary, serious, suspenseful, neo noir, detective, independent film, realistic