feelsalike.comSign in

Movies that feel like John Q (2002)

If you loved John Q, the closest films we have are We Own the Night (2007), Layer Cake (2004) and Primal Fear (1996). All three share John Q's contemplative and tense feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 7 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Amazon Prime Video, Paramount Plus Premium and Criterion Channel and others, checked against today's data.

John Quincy Archibald is a father and husband whose son is diagnosed with an enlarged heart and then finds out he cannot receive a transplant because HMO insurance will not cover it. Therefore, he decides to take a hospital full of patients hostage until the hospital puts his son's name on the donor's list.

πŸ… 26% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.1 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Nick Cassavetescontemplativetensegritty
Stream it:Starz β†—
See it on the map

When is John Q streaming? β†’

If John Q hit the spot, these will too

We Own the Night poster
We Own the Night
2007 Β· dir. James Gray
πŸ… 57%β˜… 6.8drama Β· crime Β· thriller

The same two preoccupations: parents and children, and hospital

The difference: Critics rated this one higher still

A New York nightclub manager tries to save his brother and father from Russian mafia hitmen.

Layer Cake poster
Layer Cake
2004 Β· dir. Matthew Vaughn
πŸ… 81%β˜… 7.2drama Β· thriller Β· crime

One thread runs through both: kidnapping

When a seemingly straight-forward drug deal goes awry, XXXX has to break his die-hard rules and turn up the heat, not only to outwit the old regime and come out on top, but to save his own skin...

Primal Fear poster
Primal Fear
1996 Β· dir. Gregory Hoblit
πŸ… 77%β˜… 7.7crime Β· drama Β· thriller

The same preoccupation in both: chicago, illinois

Defense attorney Martin Vail takes on jobs for money and prestige rather than any sense of the greater good. His latest case involves an altar boy, accused of brutally murdering the archbishop of Chicago. Vail finds himself up against his ex-pupil and ex-lover, but as the case progresses and the Church's dark secrets are revealed, Vail finds that what appeared a simple case takes on a darker, more dangerous aspect.

Good Time poster
Good Time
2017 Β· dir. Josh Safdie
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.3crime Β· thriller Β· drama

Both keep coming back to the same thing: hospital

After a botched bank robbery lands his younger brother in prison, Connie Nikas embarks on a twisted odyssey through New York City's underworld to get his brother Nick out of jail.

36th Precinct poster
36th Precinct
2004 Β· dir. Olivier Marchal
πŸ… 100%β˜… 7.1crime Β· drama Β· thriller

Contemplative where it counts, tense underneath

In Paris, two cops are competing for the vacant job of chief of police, in the middle of the search for a gang of violent thieves. The movie is directed by Olivier Marchal, a former police officer who spent 12 years with the French police before creating this story, taken in part from real events of the 1980s.

The Hit poster
The Hit
1984 Β· dir. Stephen Frears
πŸ… 89%β˜… 7drama Β· thriller Β· crime

Common ground: kidnapping

Ten years after ratting on his old mobster friends in exchange for personal immunity, two hit men drive a hardened criminal to Paris for his execution. However, while on the way, whatever can go wrong, does go wrong.

Traffic poster
Traffic
2000 Β· dir. Steven Soderbergh
πŸ… 93%β˜… 7.5thriller Β· drama Β· crime

Drama with a pulse of grit, in both cases

An exploration of the United States of America's war on drugs from multiple perspectives. For the new head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the war becomes personal when he discovers his well-educated daughter is abusing cocaine within their comfortable suburban home. In Mexico, a flawed, but noble policeman agrees to testify against a powerful general in league with a cartel, and in San Diego, a drug kingpin's sheltered trophy wife must learn her husband's ruthless business after he is arrested, endangering her luxurious lifestyle.

Irreversible poster
Irreversible
2002 Β· dir. Gaspar NoΓ©
πŸ… 60%β˜… 7.3drama Β· thriller Β· crime

Thriller built on stillness, twice over

A woman’s lover and her ex-boyfriend take justice into their own hands after she becomes the victim of a rapist. Because some acts can’t be undone. Because man is an animal. Because the desire for vengeance is a natural impulse. Because most crimes remain unpunished.

The Bank Job poster
The Bank Job
2008 Β· dir. Roger Donaldson
πŸ… 79%β˜… 7.2thriller Β· crime Β· drama

Both lean on tension more than on crime

Terry is a small-time car dealer trying to leave his shady past behind and start a family. Martine is a beautiful model from Terry's old neighbourhood who knows that Terry is no angel. When Martine proposes a foolproof plan to rob a bank, Terry recognises the danger but realises this may be the opportunity of a lifetime.

The Yellow Sea poster
The Yellow Sea
2010 Β· dir. Na Hong-jin
πŸ… 88%β˜… 7.3drama Β· thriller Β· crime

Gritty drama in both cases

A Korean man in China takes an assassination job in South Korea to make money and find his missing wife. But when the job is botched, he is forced to go on the run from the police and the gangsters who paid him.

The Silence poster
The Silence
2010 Β· dir. Baran bo Odar
πŸ… 87%β˜… 6.9crime Β· thriller Β· drama

Contemplative thriller, and it commits to that

13-year-old Sinikka vanishes on a hot summer night. Her bicycle is found in the exact place where a girl was killed 23 years ago. The dramatic present forces those involved in the original case to face their past.

Red Rock West poster
Red Rock West
1993 Β· dir. John Dahl
πŸ… 95%β˜… 7crime Β· drama Β· thriller

Crime with a pulse of tension, in both cases

When a promised job for Texan Michael fails to materialize in Wyoming, Mike is mistaken by Wayne to be the hitman he hired to kill his unfaithful wife, Suzanne. Mike takes full advantage of the situation, collects the money, and runs. During his getaway, things go wrong, and soon get worse when he runs into the real hitman, Lyle.

In the mood for more contemplative?

all contemplative movies β†’

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