A mother’s love might just be the most powerful weapon there is. If hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, crank that up to 11 when a mom’s protecting her child. Tyler Perry's "Straw" dives into the crime thriller genre and packs in as many maternal gut punches as it does literal ones.
After its release on June 6, the Netflix original skyrocketed up the top 10 movie list and holds the No. 1 spot as of writing. The intense psychological thriller is just the latest of Perry's hits for the platform.
Taraji P. Henson stars as a single mom who can’t seem to catch a break. Janiyah is just trying to cash a check at the bank so she can buy her sick daughter’s medicine — except everything that can go wrong does and suddenly she’s in a full-on hostage situation.
Like so many mothers in this genre, Janiyah will do whatever it takes to care for her child. Looking for more thrillers with rage-fueled moms? From "Peppermint" to "Panic Room," here are five movies like "Straw."
'Peppermint'
The 2018 film “Peppermint” is basically “Straw" if you double the body count. Grief-stricken mothers are just as fiery as moms actively fighting for their kids. Given that they basically have nothing to lose, action moms who lose a child are ready to savagely dish out the pain to the guilty parties.
In “Peppermint,” Riley’s (Jennifer Garner) daughter and husband are gunned down. After the justice system fails to live up to its name, Riley disappears for five years. She returns with a fiery vengeance. The catch? She’s now a trained killer. While “Straw” is grounded in moral ambiguity, “Peppermint” is more about the stylized vigilante carnage vibes. The movie turns raw grief into unfiltered rage, exploring the lengths a mother will go to avenge their child. In Riley’s case? It’s pretty damn far.
Watch on AMC Plus
'Lou'
The dark, rainy forest setting in 2022’s “Lou” is a far cry from the bank location of "Straw." However, the movies could basically be cousins, sharing a similarly bleak tone. “Lou” hits the same emotionally-charged nuances as “Straw” — just with a few more knives.
In “Lou,” Hannah (Jurnee Smollett) is out of options when her daughter is kidnapped. During her plight to save her daughter, she has no one left to turn to. That is, until a reclusive loner named Lou (Allison Janney) reluctantly saves the day. As it turns out, she’s CIA-trained.
While “Straw” centers on a mother taking things into her own hands, Hannah gets by with a little help from her reluctant new "friend." Between generational trauma and getting screwed over by the system, Hannah and Janiyah would be fast friends.
Watch on Netflix
'Breaking In'
![Breaking In - Official Trailer [HD] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/DsDVOt3M7OM/maxresdefault.jpg)
Being trapped with your kids during a home invasion is bad enough, but imagine having to watch it from the outside. That’s precisely what Shaun (Gabrielle Union) contends with in the aptly-titled 2018 movie "Breaking In.”
Not only are Shaun’s kids trapped, but they’re held hostage by burglars inside a high-tech fortress. Yet that’s not enough to keep Shaun from her kids; they need to break out, so she decides to break in.
Shaun scales walls, dodges bullets, and dishes out rage-fueled ass-kickings to rescue her kids — all without backup (not that she needs any). Everyone who underestimates her is very quickly humbled.
'Set it Off'
When a heist meets a mother’s revenge story, you’ve got the makings of “Set it Off.” The film follows T.T. (Kimberly Elise), a struggling single mom who feels abandoned by a system that’s set up to watch her fail. T.T. doesn’t see any other options when she and her friends turn to bank robbery to survive.
Much like “Straw,” the 1996 movie hinges on the characters' desperation. If you ask them, when society shuts the door on you, it’s time to break the damn thing down — with shotguns. Plenty of bullets take center stage, but heavy emotion and a relatable feeling of hopelessness are the real main characters. The cast of the F. Gary Gray-directed movie includes Queen Latifah (Cleo), Jada Pinkett Smith (Stony), and Vivica A. Fox (Frankie).
'Panic Room'
David Fincher’s 2002 movie “Panic Room” is a masterclass on the impact of simmering tension and desperation. Meg (Jodie Foster) and her diabetic daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart) get trapped in a supposedly impenetrable panic room by a couple of not-so-bright burglars.
As far as settings go, “Panic Room” is simplistic in design, as much of the movie takes place in a small, enclosed area. Yet that only amplifies the tension. Meg’s primal fight to keep her daughter alive is as stressful for audiences as it is for Meg. Not only are they fearing for their lives at the hands of intruders, but Sarah’s lack of insulin is also a potent threat.
While “Straw” is all about moral complexity, “Panic Room” is a raw, stripped-down depiction of survival instincts and a mother’s protection. Meg declares war on the attackers, which is certainly something Janiyah can relate to in “Straw.”
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