Top 10 Movies That You Have To Watch Twice
#10: “The Usual Suspects” (1995)
Kicking off our list is the film that follows the interrogation of Kevin Spacey as a small time con man, the lone survivor of a brutal massacre. We’re then given flashbacks and a story presented by his unreliable narrator, one that tells the tale of a mythical crime boss. The second viewing is completely different, once you’ve learned truth behind Keyser Söze.
#9: “Open Your Eyes” a.k.a. “Abre los ojos” (1997)
Next up is the original Spanish film that hastily was remade into the Tom Cruise vehicle “Vanilla Sky”, which also co-starred actress Penélope Cruz. Here, a handsome man caught in a love triangle is forced to have his face reconstructed after a grisly accident. Since the twist “scene” is woven into the narrative seamlessly, upon a second viewing you’ll definitely be paying extra close attention.
#8: “Jacob’s Ladder” (1990)
A psychological horror, this one centers on a shell-shocked Vietnam vet mourning the loss of his child. The hook here is that he must also deal with severe disassociation, which has broken him from reality. This leads to his various attempts to make sense of delusions and dreams. As you may have imagined, this adds up to a film that’s both hard to follow the first time around, but one that’s frighteningly hypnotic none the less.
#7: “Mulholland Drive” (2001)
Next up is the surrealist neo-noir about an aspiring actress who befriends an amnesiac. There are several ways to interpret the movie. This is due to its focus on elements that are seemingly unconnected, while never letting you make up your mind on whether or not a scene is real, a dream or even a metaphor. Simply put, there is no consensus to be found here, especially in the second half, and that’s the fun.
#6: “Fight Club” (1999)
We can never say enough about this WatchMojo favorite. Perhaps that’s because it inherently needs to be re-watched. On the surface, it’s all about Norton as an insomniac office worker who befriends a charismatic, soap making, fist fighting anarchist. However, once we learn the truth about his new friend, its time to hit rewind and search for all the clues you surely missed. On top of it all, director David Fincher adds in subliminal frames throughout, expertly blurring form with function.
#5: “Inception” (2010)
Leave it to Christopher Nolan to try as hard as he can to lose us. Here, DiCaprio and company are hired to use their experimental technology to enter their target’s dreams. Although the initial concept is enough to make your eyes cross, this film heavily relies on the concept of dreams within dreams, plays with the flow of time, and then has the cahones to leave you guessing at the end. But, the top wobbled!
#4: “Donnie Darko” (2001)
This supernatural flick is a cult classic for a reason. It’s plot focuses on Jake Gyllenhaal’s Donnie narrowly surviving a jet engine landing on his bedroom. He then goes down the rabbit hole, in a story about hypnosis, wormholes, and alternate timelines. There’s even a creepy man-sized bunny named Frank. Deliberately weird, Donnie Darko is a delightful mind bender.
#3: “The Sixth Sense” (1999)
In this brilliant psychological horror, we’re introduced to a boy who can see dead people the dedicated child psychologist that’s trying to help him. If you’ve been hiding under a rock for 15 years and you don’t know the twist we won’t ruin it in this clip. But suffice to say that there are countless hints throughout, and it takes multiple viewings to notice them. Either way, after seeing the end, you wont be able to watch it the same way again.
#2: “Primer” (2004)
In this film, a group of scientists working out of a garage accidentally create a machine capable of time travel, but each timeline remains totally distinct. It would be an understatement to say that said interpretation of time travel was at all straightforward. The result is a movie that is so mind-bending and devilishly complex that moviegoers have created diagrams just to try and grasp what they saw.
With so many great films to choose from, we had to draw the line somewhere. Here are some of the honorable mentions.
#1: “Memento” (2000)
Taking the top spot on our list is the masterful film by the Dark Knight and Inception director Christopher Nolan. A movie presented in reverse order, it further confuses with a protagonist that can’t create new memories who’s out to find his wife’s killer. Ultimately, this psychological neo-noir thriller will keep you guessing, deciphering and sorting out events long after your first viewing. And n, watching it backwards probably won’t help.
Agree with our list? Which movie did you have to re-watch to fully understand and appreciate? For more thrilling top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.
