Best movies like The Idealist
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
A whistle blower attempts to reveal the secret behind a nuclear disaster that occurred during the height of the Cold War.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Thriller
Country: Denmark, USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized, suspense, tense
Best tv shows and movies like The Idealist (2015):
Similar in 79%
The Crossing (2012)
Plot Summary:
Lola Arendt, 8, vanishes while on vacation on a wild Scottish island. Shattered by her disappearance, her parents, Sarah and Martin, separate. Two years later, Lola is found at the exact same spot. Martin returns to the island to bring her home. His delight at being reunited with Lola soon gives way to suspicion and fear. Why won't Lola talk? Who are these men watching them? What did Sarah know about Lola's disappearance? And who is beautiful and mysterious Norah Kross? When the weather conspires to stop them leaving, Martin and Lola embark on a journey across the island with Norah, headed for a tragic discovery.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 192
Genere: Thriller
Country: France, Luxembourg, Belgium
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: serious, psychological, realistic, suspenseful, tense, atmospheric
Similar in 77%
The Skulls II (2002)
Plot Summary:
After joining the Skulls, Ryan Sommers (Robin Dunne) is warned not to betray any secrets about the organization or its high-powered members. However, when Ryan witnesses a murder within the Skulls' private chambers, he finds that the closer he gets to revealing the truth - the more dangerous life becomes.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, slasher, independent film
Similar in 88%
The Art of Losing (2004)
Plot Summary:
A body is discovered impaled on a stake near a scenic lake near Bogota. A journalist try to find what happened. With a friend, they set about to find the cause of the crime and uncover an intricate real estate fraud involving corrupt politicians, emerald hunters, nudists... Written by Lyse Lefebvre.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 822
Genere: Thriller
Country: Colombia, Spain
Duration: 105 min
Plot tags: realistic, serious, suspenseful, psychological, tense, disturbing, sexy, twisted
Similar in 90%
The Candidate (2008)
Plot Summary:
Jonas Bechmann, a defense attorney, is a man of the system. Until the day he himself is accused of murder. Taking matters into his own hands, he throws himself into the hunt for a group of blackmailers who threaten to expose him as the killer. But nothing is what it appears to be, and the blackmail links back to his father's death under mysterious circumstances a year and a half earlier.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Thriller
Country: Denmark
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, suspenseful, realistic
Similar in 78%
The Key (2007)
Plot Summary:
Depuis peu Eric Vincent, trentenaire sans histoire, a un fort sentiment de malaise. Est-ce la peur d'avoir un enfant ou celle de voir brutalement resurgir le fantôme d'un père qu'il n'a jamais connu ? Un matin, un inconnu l'appelle pour lui proposer de récupérer les cendres de son père. D'abord réticent, il finit par accepter et se retrouve plongé au coeur d'une machination infernale.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 661
Genere: Thriller
Country: France
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: psychological, serious, suspenseful, neo noir, suspense, tense, realistic, extraordinary
Similar in 86%
Dark Blood (2012)
Plot Summary:
Filmed in 1993 but never completed due to River Phoenix's death, Dark Blood tells the story of Boy, a young widower living on a nuclear testing site in the desert. Boy is waiting for the end of the world and carves Katchina dolls that supposedly contain magical powers. Boy's solitude is interrupted when a Hollywood jet-set couple who are travelling across the desert become stranded after their car breaks down. The couple are rescued by Boy, who then holds them prisoner because of his desire for the woman and his ambition to create a better world with her.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA, UK, Netherlands
Duration: 86 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, suspenseful, captivating, suspense, stylized, realistic, independent film, neo western
Similar in 80%
White Lie (2013)
Plot Summary:
A young writer has his book stolen by his mentor.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 12
Genere: Thriller
Country: UK, France
Duration: 75 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, realistic, suspenseful, neo noir
Similar in 79%
Borderline Murder (2011)
Plot Summary:
A young law student, Abby Porter, suspects that her sister, a stripper, may have been murdered. She discovers an illegal network of cross border plastic surgery centers providing crude, but inexpensive cosmetic surgery to young women in the United States.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 442
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, captivating, tense, suspense, rough, humorous, realistic
Similar in 82%
BlackMale (2000)
Plot Summary:
The Plot is actually pretty crafty and full of (surprisingly) unsuspecting twists. The special effects are actually quite realistic which is surprising for such a low budget movie. Bokeeem Woodbine plays his role with a serious emotion that only adds to the hilariousness of the movie. Justin Pierce (R.I.P) is hilarious as a guy who has possibly the worst day of his entire life. The comedy of the movie culminates in the final 10 minutes that have had me and everyone else watching the movie rolling on the floor for hours. This movie is a classic and deserves more respect.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 398
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: realistic, suspenseful, serious, suspense, tense, hood, independent film
Similar in 78%
From the Inside (2010)
Plot Summary:
Alone in their isolated home where no cars pass and no one lives nearby, Vincent and Tally suffer together in a loveless marriage. But what they don't know is that they are not as alone as they think -- a criminal and his psychotic brother are watching them through binoculars. They stare lustfully at Tally through the windows and plan something horrible for the unhappy couple when night falls.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 40
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 82 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, suspenseful, suspense, realistic, independent film
Similar in 86%
Naked Lie (1989)
Plot Summary:
They are the perfect, and politically correct, couple. He is a judge, she is a high profile attorney. When she takes on a sensational murder case, the trail leads right to her own front door.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 124
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: erotic, tense, sexy, serious, realistic, suspenseful, sexual
Similar in 78%
Defense of the Realm (1985)
Plot Summary:
A reporter Mullen 'stumbles' on a story linking a prominent Member of Parliament to a KGB agent. In fact it is also linked to a near Nuclear disaster involving a teenage runaway and an Americal USAF base. Has there been a Government cover-up,Mullen teams up with Vernon Bayliss, an old hack, and Nina Beckam the MP's assistant to find out the truth.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: political thriller, noir, neo noir, political, cult classic, tense, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 77%
Cover Story (2002)
Plot Summary:
An ambitious magazine editor gets too caught up in a high-stakes sex scandal and is framed for murder.
IMDB Rating: 3.9
IMDB Votes: 304
Genere: Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 96 min
Plot tags: realistic, suspenseful, tense, serious
Similar in 88%
Formosa Betrayed (2009)
Plot Summary:
In the early 1980s, an FBI Agent is assigned to investigate the murder of a respected professor. Through his investigation, he unearths a spider web of international secrets that has been thriving within college campuses across America for decades. His investigation takes him across the Pacific to the island nation of Taiwan, where with the help of the outspoken widow and an unlikely spy, he learns that the Professor's killing was not a random act, but a desperate move by a scandalous government intent on keeping its nefarious activities under wraps. Our detective soon finds himself on a collision course against the U.S. State Department, the Chinese Mafia, and the Nationalist Chinese Government - in a land where the truth is not what it seems and the only people he can trust, cannot be trusted at all. Inspired by actual events.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, suspenseful, clever, captivating, realistic
Similar in 83%
Everything Will Be Fine (2010)
Plot Summary:
A writer-director known for becoming obsessed with his own stories, Jacob Falk stumbles upon photographs of prisoners of war being tortured by Danish soldiers.Suspecting a political conspiracy, Falk falls into a frenetic chase to reveal the mystery behind the photos which leads him to discover a truth more disturbing than he imagined.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 843
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Denmark, Sweden, France
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: exciting, realistic, tense, serious, suspenseful, fast, psychological thriller, political thriller
Similar in 75%
The Clearstream Affair (2014)
Plot Summary:
Journalist Denis Robert sparked a storm in the world of European finance by denouncing the murky operations of banking firm Clearstream. His quest to reveal the truth behind a secret world of shadowy multinational banking puts him in contact with an ever-expanding anti-corruption investigation carried out by Judge Renaud Van Ruymbeke. Their paths will lead them to the heart of a political/financial intrigue named the which will rock the foundations of the Europe and the French government itself.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 989
Genere: Thriller
Country: France, Luxembourg, Belgium
Duration: 106 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, captivating, realistic
Similar in 86%
A Dark Reflection (2015)
Plot Summary:
A journalist digs deep into the world of aviation and discovers some uncomfortable truths. And a conspiracy trail dating back to 1954. But why is no one saying anything?.
IMDB Rating: 5.2
IMDB Votes: 659
Genere: Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, captivating, suspenseful, realistic
Similar in 75%
Killer Reality (2013)
Plot Summary:
Hayley, a producer on the hit reality show LOVE EVER AFTER, unwillingly falls for The Bachelor on this marriage elimination series. Things become complicated very quickly, especially when one of the female contestants turns up dead. That's when work becomes downright murder.
IMDB Rating: 4.5
IMDB Votes: 272
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 88 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, tense, psychological, captivating, suspense, rough, sexual
Similar in 86%
Nexus (2010)
Plot Summary:
Holly is a struggling singer whose life is torn apart when she loses custody of her daughter, Chloe. When she travels to her soon to be ex-husbands estate in the country, for a weekend visit with Chloe, she is shocked to discover that he is missing. The police are called and the following day, Holly is accused of the murder of her husband. Holly unwittingly finds herself at the center of a small town conspiracy and must harness all her inner strength to save her daughter and clear her name.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 89
Genere: Thriller
Country: Canada
Duration: 81 min
Plot tags: neo noir, serious, realistic, tense, captivating, psychological, suspense, independent film, rough, suspenseful
Similar in 89%
Fatal Call (2012)
Plot Summary:
Leaving his small-town roots to start a new life, Mitch meets the beautiful and seductive Amy at a happy hour and begins a tantalizing romance. Before long, Mitch learns that nothing is as it appears and, unable to trust anyone, finds himself on a nightmarish roller coaster ride, accused of murder and running from the law and a mysterious stranger out to kill him. Surviving by quick thinking and his wits, Mitch must confront both his past and present and find a solution before time runs out!.
IMDB Rating: 4.2
IMDB Votes: 575
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 93 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, captivating, suspense, realistic
Similar in 80%
The House on Carroll Street (1988)
Plot Summary:
Emily Crane is fired after refusing to give names to a 1951 House Un-American Activities Committee, and takes a part-time job as companion to an old lady. One day her attention is drawn to a noisy argument being conducted largely in German in a neighbouring house, the more so since one of those involved is her main senator prosecutor. Starting to look into things, she gradually enlists the help of FBI officer Cochran who was initially detailed to check her out. Just as well when things turn nasty.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 101 min
Plot tags: political thriller, suspenseful, suspense, realistic, serious, exciting, neo noir, clever, contemplative, gloomy
Similar in 90%
The Only Witness (2002)
Plot Summary:
After witnessing a brutal murder, a little girl is quickly surrounded by a group of law-enforcement professionals and a psychologist.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 283
Genere: Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, realistic, suspenseful, independent film, bleak
Similar in 79%
The Fourth State (2012)
Plot Summary:
A journalist gets caught up in a terrorist plot in Moscow while investigating the Russian secret service.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Thriller
Country: Germany
Duration: 115 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense
Similar in 78%
Chosen (2014)
Plot Summary:
The film follows Michael Todd, a lonely college student, with no direction in his life; he is assigned a research paper about a local New Orleans legend, the tale of Erica Fisc, a girl who disappeared some twenty years prior. As he looks into the truth behind what really happened to the girl, he finds the truth is more sinister then he could have ever imagined. And now, those who killed her begin to come after him. Some mysteries are better left unsolved because now Mike must run for his life, and his soul.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 104
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, serious, suspenseful, independent film, realistic
Similar in 86%
The Activist (2014)
Plot Summary:
A political thriller taking place during the Wounded Knee insurrection in 1973. Two activists are arrested and in the custody of the local sheriff's office. During their stay they are visited by a Nixon advisor, a lawyer, a senator and a movie star who is also an activist.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 118
Genere: Thriller
Country: France, USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, psychological, captivating, political, bleak, serious, suspenseful, independent film
Similar in 86%
Favor (2013)
Plot Summary:
Kip's perfect life is put in jeopardy when the waitress with whom he's having a casual fling is accidentally killed in their motel room. Desperate, he turns to childhood friend and loser, Marvin, to help get rid of the body. Marvin agrees which begins the unraveling of their friendship and ultimately leads both to murderous acts they never thought themselves capable of.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 102 min
Plot tags: serious, suspenseful, tense, suspense, captivating, twisted, realistic, independent film
Similar in 88%
Who's Got the Black Box? (1967)
Plot Summary:
The widow of a murdered undercover NATO officer in Greece is the prime suspect in his killing. She finds herself embroiled in a bigger conspiracy about the sabotage of U.S. radar installations while trying to prove her innocence.
IMDB Rating: 5.1
IMDB Votes: 582
Genere: Thriller
Country: France, Italy, Greece
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: exciting, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, eurospy
Similar in 90%
The Whistle Blower (1986)
Plot Summary:
A war veteran tries to investigate the murder of his son who was working as a Russian translator for the British intelligence service during the Cold War. He meets a web of deception and paranoia that seems impenetrable.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 100 min
Plot tags: political thriller, political, tense, rough, clever, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 81%
The Pentagon Papers (2003)
Plot Summary:
This compelling political drama is based on the true story of high-ranking Pentagon official Daniel Ellsberg, who, during the Nixon era, strove to preserve American democracy by leaking top-secret documents to the New York Times and Washington Post. The documents in question would eventually become famous as the Pentagon Papers, which revealed the true reasons for U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, History, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 99 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, disturbing, captivating, realistic, political, bleak
Similar in 79%
King's Game (2004)
Plot Summary:
Starting a new job as a political journalist at a leading newspaper, Ulrik Torp witnesses a brutal struggle for power in the Midparty's ranks -- a struggle that coincides with the charismatic party leader's involvement in a near fatal car accident. A flurry of lies and media speculation surrounds the incident. Gradually, Ulrik unearths a ruthless conspiracy involving the incumbent prime minister.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Sweden, Denmark
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: political thriller, serious, realistic, suspenseful, stylized, political