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Twelve Monkeys poster

Movies that feel likeTwelve Monkeys (1995)

In the year 2035, convict James Cole reluctantly volunteers to be sent back in time to discover the origin of a deadly virus that wiped out nearly all of the earth's population and forced the survivors into underground communities. But when Cole is mistakenly sent to 1990 instead of 1996, he's arrested and locked up in a mental hospital. There he meets psychiatrist Dr. Kathryn Railly and the son of a famous virus expert who may hold the key to the Army of the 12 Monkeys; thought to be responsible for unleashing the killer disease.

If you loved Twelve Monkeys, the closest films we have are Dark City (1998), What Happened to Monday (2017) and Soylent Green (1973). All three share Twelve Monkeys' cerebral and twisty feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Pi (1998).

🍅 88% Rotten Tomatoes★ 8 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Terry Gilliamcerebraltensetwistybleakparanoid
8 of 12 streaming nowNetflix · Amazon Prime Video · Paramount Plus Premium

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If Twelve Monkeys hit the spot, these will too

Dark City poster
Dark City
1998 · dir. Alex Proyas
★ 7.5mystery · science fiction

Reality itself feels rigged, and remembering is the only way out

The difference: Pure noir dreamscape — no time travel and no ticking plague

A man struggles with memories of his past, including a wife he cannot remember, in a nightmarish world with no sun and run by beings with telekinetic powers who seek the souls of humans.

What Happened to Monday poster
What Happened to Monday
2017 · dir. Tommy Wirkola
🍅 62%★ 6.8science fiction · thriller · mysteryNetflix

A grim future built on population control, with identity as the trap

The difference: Trades ambiguity for action set pieces and a blunter script

In a world where families are limited to one child due to overpopulation, a set of identical septuplets must avoid being put to a long sleep by the government and dangerous infighting while investigating the disappearance of one of their own.

Soylent Green poster
Soylent Green
1973 · dir. Richard Fleischer
🍅 73%★ 7science fiction · crime · mystery

A doomed investigator digging toward a truth nobody wants found

The difference: Creaky '70s pacing before the famous gut-punch ending

In the year 2022, overcrowding, pollution, and resource depletion have reduced society’s leaders to finding food for the teeming masses. The answer is Soylent Green.

Minority Report poster
Minority Report
2002 · dir. Steven Spielberg
🍅 89%★ 7.6science fiction · action · thrillerPrime VideoParamount+

A man racing a future that's already been written for him

The difference: Spielberg gloss and chase logic smooth over the madness

John Anderton is a top 'Precrime' cop in the late-21st century, when technology can predict crimes before they're committed. But Anderton becomes the quarry when another investigator targets him for a murder charge.

Pi poster
Pi
1998 · dir. Darren Aronofsky
🍅 88%★ 7.3mystery · drama · thrillerPrime Video

One man's genius and madness become impossible to tell apart

The difference: Scratchy lo-fi and abrasive — a headache by design

A mathematical genius discovers a link between numbers and reality, and thus believes he can predict the future.

Lost Highway poster
Lost Highway
1997 · dir. David Lynch
🍅 70%★ 7.6drama · thriller · mystery

A fractured mind you can never fully trust, sliding between identities

The difference: Refuses answers entirely — Gilliam's puzzle at least has rules

A tormented jazz musician finds himself lost in an enigmatic story involving murder, surveillance, gangsters, doppelgängers, and an impossible transformation inside a prison cell.

Red Eye poster
Red Eye
2005 · dir. Wes Craven
🍅 80%★ 6.4thriller · mysteryParamount+

Paranoia compressed into one seat you cannot leave

The difference: Lean and disposable — a taut ride, not a puzzle to live in

An overnight flight to Miami quickly becomes a battle for survival when Lisa realizes her seatmate plans to use her as part of a chilling assassination plot against the Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security. If she refuses to cooperate, her own father will be killed. As the miles tick by, she's in a race against time to find a way to warn the potential victims before it's too late.

The Game poster
The Game
1997 · dir. David Fincher
🍅 77%★ 7.7drama · thriller · mystery

A man losing his grip on what's real, staged by unseen hands

The difference: Sleek corporate paranoia; the apocalypse never enters the room

In honor of his birthday, San Francisco banker Nicholas Van Orton, a financial genius and a cold-hearted loner, receives an unusual present from his younger brother, Conrad: a gift certificate to play a unique kind of game. In nary a nanosecond, Nicholas finds himself consumed by a dangerous set of ever-changing rules, unable to distinguish where the charade ends and reality begins.

Disturbia poster
Disturbia
2007 · dir. D.J. Caruso
🍅 69%★ 6.8thriller · drama · mysteryParamount+

Watching from confinement, sure of a truth no adult will credit

The difference: Teen-thriller stakes — sanity is never really in doubt

Kale has a life most teenagers would envy. He spends his days endlessly playing video games, surfing the net, eating junk food and watching cable. He has complete free reign of the house, and a beautiful young hottie named Ashley has just moved in next door. There’s only one problem—he’s not allowed to leave the house. Kale’s under court-ordered house arrest for three months, and if he takes one step beyond a 100-foot perimeter of the house, his next confinement will be in a real prison.

The Island poster
The Island
2005 · dir. Michael Bay
★ 6.8action · thriller · science fictionParamount+

One thread runs through both: dystopia

The difference: Takes it somewhere less twisty than Twelve Monkeys does

In 2019, Lincoln Six-Echo is a resident of a seemingly "Utopian" but contained facility. Like all of the inhabitants of this carefully-controlled environment, Lincoln hopes to be chosen to go to The Island — reportedly the last uncontaminated location on the planet. But Lincoln soon discovers that everything about his existence is a lie.

Allegiant poster
Allegiant
2016 · dir. Robert Schwentke
🍅 11%★ 5.7adventure · science fiction · action

Dystopian survivors discovering who's really running the experiment

The difference: Franchise-finale autopilot — the weakest film on this list

Beatrice Prior and Tobias Eaton venture into the world outside of the fence and are taken into protective custody by a mysterious agency known as the Bureau of Genetic Welfare.

Angels & Demons poster
Angels & Demons
2009 · dir. Ron Howard
🍅 36%★ 6.7thriller · mysteryNetflixStarz

Tense and twisty in the same breath

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is recruited by the Vatican to investigate the apparent return of the Illuminati – a secret, underground organization – after four cardinals are kidnapped on the night of the papal conclave.

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The best-reviewed films that share Twelve Monkeys’ defining feeling.