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No Way Out poster

Movies that feel likeNo Way Out (1987)

Navy Lt. Tom Farrell meets a young woman, Susan Atwell, and they share a passionate fling. Farrell then finds out that his superior, Defense Secretary David Brice, is also romantically involved with Atwell. When the young woman turns up dead, Farrell is put in charge of the murder investigation. He begins to uncover shocking clues about the case, but when details of his encounter with Susan surface, he becomes a suspect as well.

If you loved No Way Out, the closest films we have are Illustrious Corpses (1976), Army of Shadows (1969) and A Hijacking (2012). All three share No Way Out's tense feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is A Wednesday! (2008).

🍅 92% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.1 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Roger Donaldsontensecontemplative
7 of 12 streaming nowHBO Max · Amazon Prime Video · Paramount Plus Premium

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If No Way Out hit the spot, these will too

Illustrious Corpses poster
Illustrious Corpses
1976 · dir. Francesco Rosi
★ 7.3thriller

Thriller built on tension, twice over

The difference: Easier on the stillness than No Way Out

A detective is assigned to investigate the mysterious murders of some Supreme Court judges.

Army of Shadows poster
Army of Shadows
1969 · dir. Jean-Pierre Melville
🍅 97%★ 8.1drama · thriller

Contemplative drama in both cases

Betrayed by an informant, Philippe Gerbier finds himself trapped in a torturous Nazi prison camp. Though Gerbier escapes to rejoin the Resistance in occupied Marseilles, France, and exacts his revenge on the informant, he must continue a quiet, seemingly endless battle against the Nazis in an atmosphere of tension, paranoia and distrust.

A Hijacking poster
A Hijacking
2012 · dir. Tobias Lindholm
🍅 96%★ 7.1thriller · drama

Tense thriller, and it commits to that

The difference: Made in the 2010s, in a different era of the craft

Tensions are high after a Danish freighter is captured and held for ransom by Somali pirates, leading to weeks of high-stakes negotiations – and an escalating potential for explosive violence.

Knife in the Water poster
Knife in the Water
1962 · dir. Roman Polanski
🍅 97%★ 7.4drama · thrillerMax

Drama with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

On their way to an afternoon on the lake, husband and wife Andrzej and Krystyna nearly run over a young hitchhiker. Inviting the young man onto the boat with them, Andrzej begins to subtly torment him; the hitchhiker responds by making overtures toward Krystyna. When the hitchhiker is accidentally knocked overboard, the husband's panic results in unexpected consequences.

The Bank Job poster
The Bank Job
2008 · dir. Roger Donaldson
🍅 79%★ 7.2thriller · crime · dramaPrime Video

The same hand behind both of them: Roger Donaldson

The difference: Sits closer to crime than No Way Out does

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.

A Wednesday! poster
A Wednesday!
2008 · dir. Neeraj Pandey
★ 8.1drama · thriller

Both lean on tension more than on thriller

Prakash Rathod, a retired police commissioner recounts the most memorable case of his career wherein he was informed about a bomb scare in Mumbai by an ordinary commoner.

Tunnel poster
Tunnel
2016 · dir. Kim Seong-hun
🍅 100%★ 6.8thriller · dramaPrime Video

Drama built on stillness, twice over

A man is on his way home when the poorly constructed tunnel he is driving through collapses, leaving him trapped leaving himself for the unexpected whilst emergency services struggle to help.

To Kill a Man poster
To Kill a Man
2014 · dir. Alejandro Fernández Almendras
★ 6.3thriller · drama

Both are thriller through and through

Jorge is a peaceful hard-working man who seeks a simple, quiet life for himself and his family. One day, he is mugged and humiliated by a gang of thugs led by Kalule, a delinquent from his neighborhood. This event infuriates his son as much for Jorge’s meek acceptance as for the act itself. The son, looking for retribution, ends up getting himself shot. Kalule is sent to jail and when he gets out 18 months later, begins a campaign of terror against Jorge and his family. The authorities do nothing, so Jorge decides to take matters into his own hands.

The Hater poster
The Hater
2020 · dir. Jan Komasa
🍅 87%★ 7.1drama · thrillerRent or buy

Drama approached the same way

A duplicitous young man finds success in the dark world of social media smear tactics — but his virtual vitriol soon has violent real-life consequences.

Escape from Alcatraz poster
Escape from Alcatraz
1979 · dir. Don Siegel
🍅 97%★ 7.5drama · thrillerParamount+

Thriller in the same key

San Francisco Bay, January 18, 1960. Frank Lee Morris is transferred to Alcatraz, a maximum security prison located on a rocky island. Although no one has ever managed to escape from there, Frank and other inmates begin to carefully prepare an escape plan.

A Man Escaped poster
A Man Escaped
1956 · dir. Robert Bresson
🍅 100%★ 8.1drama · thriller

The drama is handled with the same confidence

A captured French Resistance fighter during World War II engineers a daunting escape from prison.

The Coldest Game poster
The Coldest Game
2019 · dir. Łukasz Kośmicki
🍅 17%★ 6.2drama · thriller

Both play thriller straight

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

Warsaw, Poland, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962. Josh Mansky, a troubled math genius and former US chess champion, is recruited to hold a dangerous public match against the Soviet champion, while playing the deadly game of espionage hidden in the darkest shadows of a hostile territory.

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The best-reviewed films that share No Way Out’s defining feeling.