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Banner: the 57th Chicago International Film Festival Thriller
In-Person

A Lot of Nothing

Mo McRae  |   United States
Comedy, Social Commentary, Thriller

Fiercely committed performances drive this satirical hothouse thriller about a successful Black couple driven to take action after learning that their neighbor, a while policeman, is involved in the shooting of an unarmed youth.

In-Person

The Beasts (As bestas)

Rodrigo Sorogoyen  |   Spain, France
French, Galician, Spanish  
Drama, Thriller

In this gripping, primal thriller, a French couple living in rural Spain becomes embroiled in an escalating conflict with the local community that reaches a point of no return.

In-Person

Burning Days (Kurak Günler)

Emin Alper  |   Turkey, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Greece, Croatia
Turkish  
Crime, Drama, Thriller

In this crackling, politically-minded thriller, by-the-book prosecutor Emre discovers he has been sent into a viper’s nest of corruption, scandal, and homophobia at his new posting in a drought-plagued rural community.

In-Person

Butcher’s Crossing

Gabe Polsky  |   United States
Thriller, Western

In this compelling neo-Western, a Harvard-educated young man teams up with an impassioned buffalo hunter (Nicolas Cage) for an epic quest that unravels in a downward spiral of ego, obsession, and greed.

In-Person

Chile ’76

Manuela Martelli  |   Chile, Argentina, Qatar
Spanish  
Historical, Political, Thriller

In this taut, understated thriller, a woman of means treads dangerous ground when she agrees to care for an injured member of the political opposition during the Pinochet dictatorship.

In-Person

Decision to Leave (Heojil Kyolshim)

Park Chan-wook  |   South Korea
Chinese, Korean  
Crime, Mystery, Thriller

An ace detective falls for a magnetic murder suspect in this neo-noir masterpiece from South Korean auteur Park Chan-wook

In-Person

How to Blow Up a Pipeline

Daniel Goldhaber  |   United States
Political, Social Commentary, Thriller

Resonant and riveting, this eco-thriller sees a crew of young environmental activists plot to carry out a dangerous mission to sabotage an American oil pipeline.

In-Person
Virtual

The Killing of a Journalist

Matt Sarnecki  |   Denmark, United States, Czech Republic
English, Slovak  
Crime, Political, Thriller

This exposé of crime and corruption delves into the brutal murder of a reporter, implicating a brazen oligarch connected to the highest echelons of Slovakia’s government.

In-Person

Nanny

Nikyatu Jusu  |   United States
English, French, Wolof  
Social Commentary, Thriller, Women Centered

In a stunning performance, Anna Diop plays a Senegalese nanny increasingly haunted by the absence of the young son she left behind.

In-Person

R.M.N.

Cristian Mungiu  |   Romania, France, Belgium
Romanian  
Religion, Social Commentary, Thriller

A rural Transylvanian village is pushed to its breaking point by anger and xenophobia in this edge-of-your-seat small town thriller.

In-Person
Virtual

Rounding

Alex Thompson  |   United States
Drama, Mystery, Thriller

In this deftly directed psychological thriller, a promising young doctor loses his grasp on reality after developing an unhealthy obsession with a patient whose symptoms seem suspect.

In-Person

Sick

John Hyams  |   United States
Action, Horror, Thriller

In this homage to classic slasher films reimagined for the pandemic era, college friends Parker and Miri quarantine at a remote lake house, only to discover they are not entirely alone.

In-Person

A Wounded Fawn

Travis Stevens  |   United States
Horror, Sex and Sexuality, Thriller

When murderous Bruce invites fellow art aficionado Meredith to his house, the evening spirals into a surreal, bloody fantasia inspired by the Greek myth of the Furies.