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Movies that feel like Yojimbo (1961)

If you loved Yojimbo, the closest films we have are A Man Escaped (1956), No Way Out (1987) and The Lives of Others (2006). All three share Yojimbo'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 Criterion Channel, Amazon Prime Video and Amazon Prime Video with Ads and others, checked against today's data.

A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master, enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival businessmen are struggling for control of the local gambling trade. Taking the name Sanjuro Kuwabatake, the ronin convinces both silk merchant Tazaemon and sake merchant Tokuemon to hire him as a personal bodyguard, then artfully sets in motion a full-scale gang war between the two ambitious and unscrupulous men.

πŸ… 96% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 8.2 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Akira Kurosawacontemplativetense

When is Yojimbo streaming? β†’

If Yojimbo hit the spot, these will too

A Man Escaped poster
A Man Escaped
1956 Β· dir. Robert Bresson
πŸ… 100%β˜… 8.2drama Β· thriller

Both circle black and white and period drama

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

Feels alike?
No Way Out poster
No Way Out
1987 Β· dir. Roger Donaldson
πŸ… 92%β˜… 7.1thriller Β· drama

Contemplative where it counts, tense underneath

The difference: 26 years apart, and the 1980s show

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.

Feels alike?
The Lives of Others poster
The Lives of Others
2006 Β· dir. Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck
πŸ… 92%β˜… 8.4drama Β· thriller

Contemplative drama, and it commits to that

In 1984 East Berlin, dedicated Stasi officer Gerd Wiesler begins spying on a famous playwright and his actress-lover Christa-Maria. Wiesler becomes unexpectedly sympathetic to the couple, and faces conflicting loyalties when his superior takes a liking to Christa-Maria.

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Argo poster
Argo
2012 Β· dir. Ben Affleck
πŸ… 96%β˜… 7.7drama Β· thriller

Thriller built on tension, twice over

As the Iranian revolution reaches a boiling point, a CIA 'exfiltration' specialist concocts a risky plan to free six Americans who have found shelter at the home of the Canadian ambassador.

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Bridge of Spies poster
Bridge of Spies
2015 Β· dir. Steven Spielberg
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.6thriller Β· drama

Drama with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union captures U.S. pilot Francis Gary Powers after shooting down his U-2 spy plane. Sentenced to 10 years in prison, Powers' only hope is New York lawyer James Donovan, recruited by a CIA operative to negotiate his release. Donovan boards a plane to Berlin, hoping to win the young man's freedom through a prisoner exchange. If all goes well, the Russians would get Rudolf Abel, the convicted spy who Donovan defended in court.

Feels alike?
The Machinist poster
The Machinist
2004 Β· dir. Brad Anderson
πŸ… 77%β˜… 7.6thriller Β· drama

Both trade on tension more than on being thriller

Trevor, an insomniac lathe operator, experiences unusual occurrences at work and home. A strange man follows him everywhere, but no one else seems to notice him.

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Zero Dark Thirty poster
Zero Dark Thirty
2012 Β· dir. Kathryn Bigelow
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.4thriller Β· drama

Both are drama through and through

A chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May, 2011.

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Locke poster
Locke
2014 Β· dir. Steven Knight
πŸ… 91%β˜… 7.1drama Β· thriller

Thriller approached the same way

Ivan Locke has worked hard to craft a good life for himself. Tonight, that life will collapse around him. On the eve of the biggest challenge of his career, Ivan receives a phone call that sets in motion a series of events that will unravel his family, job, and soul.

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Hard Candy poster
Hard Candy
2006 Β· dir. David Slade
πŸ… 67%β˜… 7drama Β· thriller

The same drama instincts

The difference: Reviewed a good deal more coolly

Hayley’s a smart, charming teenage girl. Jeff’s a handsome, smooth fashion photographer. An Internet chat, a coffee shop meet-up, an impromptu fashion shoot back at Jeff’s place. Jeff thinks it’s his lucky night. He’s in for a surprise.

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Detour poster
Detour
1945 Β· dir. Edgar G. Ulmer
πŸ… 98%β˜… 7.3drama Β· thriller

Cut from the same thriller cloth

The life of Al Roberts, a pianist in a New York nightclub, turns into a nightmare when he decides to hitchhike to Los Angeles to visit his girlfriend.

Feels alike?
Fight Club poster
Fight Club
1999 Β· dir. David Fincher
πŸ… 81%β˜… 8.8drama Β· thriller

The same drama instincts

A ticking-time-bomb insomniac and a slippery soap salesman channel primal male aggression into a shocking new form of therapy. Their concept catches on, with underground "fight clubs" forming in every town, until an eccentric gets in the way and ignites an out-of-control spiral toward oblivion.

Feels alike?
Room poster
Room
2015 Β· dir. Lenny Abrahamson
πŸ… 93%β˜… 8.1drama Β· thriller

Both are thriller through and through

Held captive for 7 years in an enclosed space, a woman and her young son finally gain their freedom, allowing the boy to experience the outside world for the first time.

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In the mood for more contemplative?

all contemplative movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share Yojimbo's defining feeling.