Rosamund Pike looking at the camera in Gone Girl
Plot twists have been employed in fiction since its earliest forms. Many twists can be quite a shock , and there are plenty of movies with terrific twist endings, while others can lose their appeal after revealing their twist, making repeat viewings feel more like a march towards disappointment than a game of eager anticipation.
Some of the best plot twists are the ones that change the entire movies that surround them. Whether by recontextualizing everything that came before or completely reconfiguring how the movie proceeds from it, a good twist changes things for the better and can enhance or sometimes even save a movie. Like an awkward game of twister, these ten movies feature twists that change everything. 10 'Shutter Island' Directed by Martin Scorsese Shutter Island adapts Dennis Lehane's mystery novel into an unpredictable thriller that follows Leonardo DiCaprio as a U.S. Marshal dispatched to investigate the disappearance of a patient from a psychiatric hospital situated on the titular island. Naturally, things are not what they seem and DiCaprio's Daniels digs deep into what he believes is a conspiracy on the island involving the mysterious 67th patient. What DiCaprio ends up discovering, though, is that he is the 67th patient and that his entire investigation has been a fiction created in his mind to avoid confronting a harsh reality, where he murdered his wife after she drowned their children during a manic episode. Not only is it a heartbreaking twist, it also completely brings into focus many of the odd inconsistencies and seemingly nonsensical occurrences throughout the film prior to the reveal. It makes the entire film come together and is only outdone by the emotional denouement where DiCaprio feigns regression into his fantasy so that he will be lobotomized, an ending that lingers just as much as the twist that proceeds it. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Shutter Island R Mystery Thriller Drama Release Date February 19, 2010 Runtime 138 minutes Cast See All Teddy Daniels and Chuck Aule, two US marshals, are sent to an asylum on a remote island in order to investigate the disappearance of a patient, where Teddy uncovers a shocking truth about the place. Director Martin Scorsese Writers Laeta Kalogridis, Dennis Lehane Main Genre Drama Budget $80 million Studio Paramount Pictures Distributor Paramount Pictures Powered by Expand Collapse 9 'The Prestige' Directed by Christopher Nolan Christopher Nolan is a filmmaker who loves a good twist more than most and even his non-mystery films play with time and chronology to create labyrinthine plots that take multiple viewings to dissect. The director's greatest twist, though, came in one of his most overlooked films, The Prestige. Starring Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale as competing magicians turned bitter rivals in Victorian London, the film is filled with sleights and misdirects, like any good magic trick. When the film turns to science fiction by introducing Nikola Tesla and a machine capable of creating exact copies of a human being, one might think the magic is over, but, like any good magician, Nolan has one last trick up his sleeve, revealing that Bale's character has had a twin all along, and he's been right in front of the audience's face the entire time. A twin reveal isn't necessarily what one might consider novel, and it's a trick that's been used in a variety of films and series, from Gravity Falls to Glass Onion. What makes Nolan's employment of it so effective is how ingeniously it has been foreshadowed throughout the film, through visuals and hints of dialogue, without ever giving it away. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved The Prestige PG-13 Sci-Fi Mystery Thriller Drama Release Date October 20, 2006 Runtime 130 minutes Cast See All After a tragic accident, two stage magicians in 1890s London engage in a battle to create the ultimate illusion while sacrificing everything they have to outwit each other. Director Christopher Nolan Writers Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan Main Genre Sci-Fi Budget $40 Million Studio Warner Bros. Pictures Distributor Warner Bros. Pictures Powered by Expand Collapse 8 'Gone Girl' Directed by David Fincher Another director who has a career filled with wicked twists, David Fincher's meticulous direction and intricate plotting have made for some of the biggest cinematic shocks of the last few decades. Gone Girl, based on Gillian Flynn's novel, begins as an intriguing mystery, focusing on the efforts of Ben Affleck's Nick Dunne to aid in the investigation of the disappearance of his wife Amy , even though all the evidence seems to point to him as the prime suspect. Fincher gives the rug beneath the audience a few good tugs before he fully yanks it out from under them midway through the movie. Amy, played with devilish intent by Rosamund Pike, is revealed not only to be alive and well, but also to have orchestrated a perfect frame-up of her husband for her disappearance. It's a twist that not only changes the audience's understanding of the movie up to that point, but also sets them on a completely different course than they were expecting to follow. What was a mystery has now become a compelling psychological thriller, and it only gets more twisted from there. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Gone Girl 9.50 Drama Documentary Mystery Thriller 10/10 Release Date October 1, 2014 Runtime 2h 29m Cast See All With his wife's disappearance having become the focus of an intense media circus, a man sees the spotlight turned on him when it's suspected that he may not be innocent. Director David Fincher Writers Gillian Flynn Budget 61 million Studio 20th Century Distributor 20th Century Powered by Expand Collapse 7 'Fight Club' Directed by David Fincher There can't be a discussion of twists and Fincher without mentioning his most plot-altering in the counterculture cult classic, Fight Club. Edward Norton's narrator is completely lost in life until he meets Brad Pitt's charismatic Tyler Durden, who introduces him to a whole new perspective on life. Together, they form an underground fight club for other disenfranchised men that quickly turns into a radical terrorist group intent on toppling the social order. The narrator's attempt to stop Tyler from carrying out the full extent of his plans is complicated by one simple issue: they're the same person, insert preferred mind-blown meme here. The reveal not only underscores the mental instability of the lead character, but perfectly encapsulates the battle between his more repressed superego and his toxic unhinged id. Fight Club is an unpredictable movie from frame one, always taking unexpected turns in its plot, but its greatest turns the entire thing upside down. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Fight Club R Drama 10/10 Release Date October 15, 1999 Runtime 139 minutes Cast See All An insomniac office worker and a devil-may-care soap maker form an underground fight club that evolves into much more. Director David Fincher Writers Jim Uhls Franchise Fight Club Main Genre Drama Budget $63 million Studio 20th Century Distributor 20th Century Powered by Expand Collapse 6 'The Sixth Sense' Directed by M. Night Shymalan Another must-watch film released in 1999, The Sixth Sense overshadowed Fight Club's twist with one that goes supernatural. Bruce Willis plays child psychologist Malcolm Crowe, who survived a violent attack by a former patient and has now taken on a new one in young Cole , who has the unfortunate ability to see dead people. Anyone reading this now might see where it's going, but back in 1999, the reveal that Bruce Willis' character was in fact a ghost absolutely astonished audiences, spreading word-of-mouth on the movie like wildfire and turning it into one of the highest-grossing films of the year. While plenty of internet know-it-alls like to claim they figured the twist out early on, that hasn't diminished the power of the shocking ending since the movie's release, and it absolutely has only made viewers even more attentive to it upon repeat viewings. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved The Sixth Sense PG-13 Thriller Drama Horror Mystery 10/10 Release Date August 6, 1999 Runtime 107 minutes Cast See All Directed by M. Night Shyamalan, The Sixth Sense is a psychological thriller about a young boy who can see and communicate with ghosts. Bruce Willis as Dr. Malcolm Crowe, a child psychologist who tries to help Cole, played by Haley Joel Osment, while grappling with his own personal demons. The movie features a twist ending that has become iconic in pop culture. Director M. Night Shyamalan Writers M. Night Shyamalan Budget $40 Million Studio Disney Distributor Disney, Dimension Films Powered by Expand Collapse 5 'Dead Man's Shoes' Directed by Shane Meadows Shane Meadows is a filmmaker whose work has been noted for following the spirit of kitchen sink realism, and his 2004 revenge thriller Dead Man's Shoes' gritty aesthetic seems to follow in that style, which makes its plot twist all the more unexpected and unsettling. Paddy Considine plays Richard, a military man who has returned to his hometown to mete out justice, in the form of psychological torture and physical violence, against a local group of drug dealers who had been tormenting Richard's mentally impaired brother Anthony, played by Toby Kebbell. Anthony is seen by Richard's side throughout his waging war on the drug dealers, and his abuse at their hands is detailed in flashbacks which eventually reveal that Anthony in fact took his own life and Richard has been imagining his brother the entire time. More than just a reveal for mere shock value, this is more of an emotional plot twist that exposes Richard's own frayed mental state as well as the guilt he feels for having ever felt ashamed of his brother. Watching the movie a second time turns Richard's revenge story into an even greater tragedy and re-frames his kills as acts of contrition. Dead Man's Shoes is a lesser-known revenge film but deserves to be counted among other underrated movies with iconic plot twists. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Dead Man's Shoes R Drama Thriller Crime Release Date September 29, 2004 Runtime 90 minutes Cast Director Shane Meadows Writers Paddy Considine Producers Mark Herbert, Tessa Ross, Peter Carlton, Will Clarke Main Genre Crime Character Richard, Anthony, Sonny, Herbie, Soz, Tuff, Big Al, Gypsy John, Mark, Elvis, Patti, Marie Powered by Expand Collapse 4 'Psycho' Directed by Alfred Hitchcock Alfred Hitchcock's classic horror film Psycho has more than just one twist in its plot, and the ending twist is a doozy that certainly made audiences look at Norman Bates very differently, but it's eclipsed by one of the most shocking mid-movie plot twists of all time. The movie begins like a typical Hitchcock thriller, focusing on Janet Leigh's Marion Crane after she steals money from her employer and goes on the run. She makes it all the way to a remote motel run by Anthony Perkins' awkward Bates, where she settles in for the night and steps into a shower . When Marion is unceremoniously killed in the shower by a shadowy assailant wielding a kitchen knife, it completely changes the entire narrative of the movie audiences were expecting. The protagonist is dead, and now they are left to follow Bates as he covers up her murder. False protagonists have popped up in plenty of films and TV series since, but Hitchcock's use of the technique to disorient audiences is still the most effective, and the director famously mandated that audiences could not be admitted to the film late in order to preserve the shock of its first twist. It was a daring marketing technique, but it worked beautifully and Psycho continues to hold its place in cinematic history. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Psycho R Horror Mystery Thriller 9/10 Release Date September 8, 1960 Runtime 109 minutes Cast See All A Phoenix secretary embezzles $40,000 from her employer's client, goes on the run and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother. Director Alfred Hitchcock Writers Joseph Stefano, Robert Bloch Sequel Psycho 2 Franchise Psychonauts Main Genre Horror Sequel Psycho 2, Psycho 4: The Beginning, Psycho 3 Budget $806 thousand Studio Universal Pictures Distributor Universal Pictures Powered by Expand Collapse 3 'Parasite' Directed by Bong Joon Ho Bong Joon Ho's Best Picture-winner Parasite is a twisted black comedy that follows a low-income family from Seoul who scheme their way into the home of a wealthy family by gaining positions as tutors, a driver and a housekeeper. Their cushy positions become threatened when the former housekeeper, who they had removed, becomes aware of their con. That complication comes along with the film's biggest twist, which reveals that the housekeeper has also been keeping her husband secreted away in the house's underground bunker. It's a crazy plot twist that not only brings clarity to previous events, but also shifts the plot into a thriller progressing towards an inevitable violent conclusion. The reveal of a family physically existing on a lower level adds another layer to Bong's satire of social classes, and puts Parasite on a whole new level as one of the most compelling films of the 21st century. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Parasite R Comedy Thriller Drama Release Date November 8, 2019 Runtime 132 minutes Cast See All Greed and class discrimination threatens the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan. Director Bong Joon Ho Writers Jin Won Han, Bong Joon Ho Main Genre Drama Budget $15 million Studio Barunson E&A Distributor CJ Entertainment Powered by Expand Collapse 2 'Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back' Directed by Irvin Kershner One of the most unforgettable plot twists in film history was one that also had far-reaching consequences in a galaxy far, far away. Darth Vader revealing himself as Luke Skywalker's father in Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back was a twist that not only took audiences by complete surprise, it also turned the entire Star Wars saga from a simple space opera into a familial one whose connections would continue to define it through prequels, sequels and spin-offs. While there is conflicting information as to how far back George Lucas had planned his parental plot twist, the final result still holds up, particularly in comparison to the much less satisfying reveal of Leia as Luke's sister, which resulted in one of the franchise's most unfortunate flaws. The Empire Strikes Back is an empirically better sequel to its predecessor with much higher emotional stakes, and its major plot twist is one of the main reasons why. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back PG Adventure Action Science Fiction 10/10 Release Date May 20, 1980 Runtime 124 minutes Cast See All After the Rebels are overpowered by the Empire, Luke Skywalker begins his Jedi training with Yoda, while his friends are pursued across the galaxy by Darth Vader and bounty hunter Boba Fett. Director Irvin Kershner Writers Lawrence Kasdan, Leigh Brackett, George Lucas Producers Gary Kurtz, George Lucas, Howard G. Kazanjian Prequel Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace, Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones, Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, Solo: A Star Wars Story, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope Sequel Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi, Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker Franchise Star Wars Main Genre Sci-Fi Character Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian, C-3PO, Darth Vader, Chewbacca, R2-D2, Yoda , Obi-Wan Kenobi, Boba Fett, Boba Fett , Lando's Aide, Chief Ugnaught, Snow Creature, Performing Assistant for Yoda, Emperor , Emperor , Admiral Piett, General Veers, Admiral Ozzel, Captain Needa, Captain Lennox, Bewil, Commander Nemet Budget $30.5 Million Studio Lucasfilm Distributor 20th Century Powered by Expand Collapse 1 'Planet of the Apes' Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner The Empire Strikes Back might hold the spot of greatest sci-fi plot twist, but it has some stiff competition from the entire Planet of the Apes in one of the most devastating endings ever. Based on Pierre Boulle's novel of the same name, the film version made a number of notable changes to the plot, including the infamous ending, which came courtesy of The Twilight Zone creator Rod Serling, who had a hand in drafting the screenplay. What begins as a sci-fi adventure, as Charlton Heston's astronaut crash lands on a seemingly unknown planet populated by intelligent apes, turns into an apocalyptic nightmare when he discovers that the planet he's on is actually a future Earth, where most of humanity has been wiped out by nuclear war, allowing for the simian uprising. The iconic image of a ruined Statue of Liberty has so permeated into pop culture that the ending can no longer be considered a surprise , but it still manages to have an impact on first viewing and colors the rest of the film in a much more severe pallor. Your Rating close 10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Rate Now 0/10 Your comment has not been saved Planet of the Apes G Sci-Fi Adventure Release Date April 3, 1968 Runtime 112 minutes Cast See All Astronaut Leo Davidson whips through space and time to a world where apes and gorillas rule the humans. Captured, he is nurtured by Ari and hunted by General Thade as he leads a rebel group of humans and chimpanzees in search of his downed craft. This is his only hope of escape and, ironically, the planet's only hope of shaking off the tyranny of the gorillas, allowing peaceful humans and chimpanzees to co-exist. Director Franklin J. Schaffner Writers Rod Serling, Michael Wilson Prequel Rise of the Planet of the Apes, dawn of the Planet of the apes movie, War for the Planet of the Apes, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Sequel Beneath the Planet of the Apes, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, Battle for the Planet of the Apes Franchise Planet of the Apes Budget $5.8 million Studio 20th Century Powered by Expand Collapse NEXT: The 10 Best Movie Twists of 2024, Ranked
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
10 Most Shocking 'The Walking Dead' Plot Twists, RankedChristine is an experienced writer and editor with more than a decade covering the entertainment space and decades watching every genre of TV show.
Read more »
10 Biggest Supervillain Plot Twists In Comic Book HistoryCustom image of the Mandarin, Adrian Toomes, and Homelander looking sinister on a green textured backdrop
Read more »
10 Best 'The Twilight Zone' Plot Twists, RankedAndrea Ciriaco is a senior writer for Collider who is an expert in Hollywood history and all things Classic Movies.
Read more »
10 Most Shocking 'Game of Thrones' Plot Twists, RankedBorn with Autism (formerly classified as Asperger syndrome), Tyler B. Searle has been obsessed with storytelling since he was old enough to speak. He gravitated towards fairy tales, mythology, the fantasy genre, and animated movies and shows aimed at family audiences.
Read more »
If You Like Surprises, These 8 Anime Took Plot Twists to the Next Levelanime better with a rewatch featured image with Subaru from Re Zero, Madoka, and Light and L from Death Note
Read more »
10 Most Iconic TV Plot Twists of All Time, RankedSome iconic TV plot twists are so memorable that most people know them even before watching the show, as seen in series like Game of Thrones and Lost.
Read more »