I love a good thriller movie, but the only thing I love more than a compelling thriller is one that takes place entirely within one setting. There’s something about the claustrophobic nature of a single location that reels me in every single time.
Single-location movies are among my favorite subgenres, and fortunately, Netflix has a pretty great selection of flicks that take place primarily in the same setting. Yes, some of my picks below open and/or close in a different place, but for the most part, all the action is contained to just the one spot, whether that’s a plush holiday home or a futuristic tower block prison.
So, if you also have a love for movies confined to just one setting, here are the best single-location thrillers that you can watch on Netflix right now.
‘Gerald’s Game’ (2017)
![Gerald's Game | Official Trailer [HD] | Netflix - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/twbGU2CqqQU/maxresdefault.jpg)
“Gerald’s Game” is a rare psychological thriller that has forced me to avert my eyes from the screen as one truly wince-inducing moment had me feeling a little queasy. To dive into specifics would encroach on spoiler territory, but I’ll just say ... maybe don’t munch on snacks during this one.
Based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, it comes from Mike Flanagan, a real titan in the horror genre after his Netflix series “The Haunting of Hill House,” “Midnight Mass” and “The Fall of the House of Usher,” it’s a tense exploration of one womens drive to survive.
Carla Gugino plays Jessie, a frustrated wife looking to spice up her struggling marriage by bringing some playfulness into the bedroom. Only her attempts to inject some excitement result in her being stuck handcuffed to a bed in an isolated holiday house with no means of escape.
What follows is a desperate attempt to free herself, both literally and metaphorically, as the flick explores not just her dire present circumstances but also her past trauma and the demons that have haunted her whole life.
Watch "Gerald's Game" on Netflix now
‘Rear Window’ (1954)
In many ways, “Rear Window” is the single-location thriller. This Alfred Hitchcock masterpiece has been gripping audiences for more than 70 years, and while decades have passed since it originally hit theaters, none of its potency has been lost.
Starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly, it centers on a photojournalist who is cooped up in his sweltering apartment after breaking his leg. He passes time by watching his neighbors out of a large window, but soon becomes convinced that something sinister is afoot and that the man across the courtyard from him is a murderer.
Combining paranoia with eager curiosity, “Rear Window” plays on the fact that we often only see a snapshot of other people’s lives, and that hiding behind closed curtains can be some pretty dark secrets. It all ratchets up to a suspenseful ending and is often cited as one of the best movies ever made.
Watch "Rear Window" on Netflix now
‘Circle’ (2015)
How is this for a hooky premise for a sci-fi thriller: 50 people awaken in a dark room, standing in two large concentric circles. Every two minutes, one of them randomly dies. Soon, the remaining survivors realize they can select who is killed, and now each participant in this deadly game must make a desperate case for why they shouldn’t be chosen as the next victim.
“Circle” is extremely minimalistic. The setting is a single dark room with ominous red lights on the floor, and a large white skylight overhead (which somehow manages to make bright light feel threatening). The focus is very much on increasingly erratic and hostile conversations.
Kudos to the movie’s creatives for managing to make such a simple premise hold your attention for 90 minutes. Unfortunately, the ending is more than a little outlandish. It’s a shame “Circle” ends on a disappointing bum note. But, still, the journey to get there is never less than engaging.
Watch "Circle" on Netflix now
‘Windfall’ (2022)
I’ve long ranked “Windfall” as one of Netflix’s most overlooked original movies, so I’m thrilled to have another chance to highlight it here. Released in 2022, it stars Jesse Plemons, Jason Segel and Lilly Collins, and mixes effective crime thrills with biting dark comedy.
Segel plays a desperate man, who breaks into the vacation home of a wealthy CEO (Plemons) only to get in way over his head when the unnamed CEO and his wife (Collins) arrive for a relaxing trip. Forced to take them hostage and demand a ransom in exchange for their freedom, events spiral out of control as the burglar tries to keep things under his control, and his motives are revealed.
The chemistry between the three leads is just right in “Windfall,” and the movie gets great mileage out of its habit of making you question who the true villains and victims of the piece are. Plus, its comedic streak is remarkably effective, but not so overbearing as to take away from the drama.
Watch "Windfall" on Netflix now
‘The Platform’ (2019)
“The Platform” (and its sequel, "The Platform 2") are excellent dystopian thrillers that center on a tower block prison where inmates are paired up across dozens of individual vertical levels and fed each day via a slowly descending concrete platform. The people at the top enjoy a lush banquet, while those towards the bottom are lucky if there’s even scraps left by the time it reaches them.
OK, so the political allegory here isn’t exactly subtle. And frankly, lacking subtlety is a sort of running theme in “The Platform,” but the bones of the movie are very solid, and watching protagonist Goreng (Iván Massagué) attempt to survive this nightmare prison is gripping.
This is another one where you definitely won’t want to be eating while watching. The scenes of inmates on the lower floors having to pick the remaining morsels of already chewed-up chicken bones and lick dirty plates clean just for meager sustenance are pretty revolting.
Watch "The Platform" on Netflix now
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