Film

Headhunters

Name: Headhunters
Genre: Thriller, Crime, Action
Released: 2011
Cast: Aksel Hennie, Synnøve Macody Lund, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Julie R. Ølgaard, Kyrre Haugen Sydness

A slick Norwegian thriller about a cocky corporate headhunter who steals priceless art to fund his lavish lifestyle—until he targets the wrong man. It's a propulsive game of escalating deception and violence, shot with style and darkly funny momentum. For anyone who loves a con artist finally meeting his match.

TMDb rating

3.6

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like a lean crime caper where a smug, clever man's schemes keep getting more dangerous, and dark comedy sits comfortably beside the violence.

Skip it if you want a slow-burn character study; this moves briskly and its violence is sudden and bloody, so the squeamish should keep clear.

What it asks of you: At a hundred minutes it is brisk and tightly wound, rewarding close attention to who is lying to whom while it rarely lets the pressure drop.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

In Bruges2008

Two hitmen hide out in a medieval Belgian city after a job goes catastrophically wrong. Moody, violent, brilliantly funny, and genuinely moving—it understands that its characters are terrible people who deserve better anyway.

But If you need constant plot momentum, the middle section lags as the story sits with its characters and the atmosphere. Some find the philosophy heavy-handed.

Drive2011

A getaway driver caught between criminals develops a doomed connection with his neighbour. Hypnotic, gorgeously composed, and almost entirely told through mood and body language rather than exposition. Minimal dialogue, maximum tension.

But It's deliberately slow and contemplative. The violence, when it comes, is brutally real—not cathartic action. If you want constant thrills, you'll find it punishing.

The Killing2011

A Danish detective hunts a killer through Copenhagen's grey streets over twenty episodes. Meticulous, patient, genuinely suspenseful—you'll believe every step of the investigation. The slow burn works because it earns every revelation.

But Twenty episodes is a commitment. The pacing is deliberately methodical, which some find glacial. Subtitles required, and the Nordic gloom can feel relentless.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Headhunters

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Lair of the White Worm1988

Both explore how intelligence and preparation count for nothing when you've misjudged your opponent; one through crime, one through cosmic horror.

Ken Russell's delirious adaptation of Stoker's novel: surreal, sexual, utterly deranged—a headhunter uses technology to commit the heist; this uses supernatural fever dream logic to the same escalating end. Both are about men overconfident in systems that will betray them.

But It's not a thriller. It's avant-garde camp that trades momentum for weirdness. If you watch Headhunters for the plot, this will feel like torture.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang2005

A failed actor becomes a private detective's sidekick in LA. Wildly clever, self-aware, funny without winking at the audience, and genuinely thrilling. Shane Black writes smart crooks and makes failure look humane.

But The narrative voice is intrusive and some find it exhausting. The plot doubles back on itself deliberately, which frustrates people who want linear storytelling.

Sexy Beast2001

A retired gangster's Spanish idyll is shattered when a psychopath arrives. Visually stunning and deeply unsettling—it's a masterclass in how to make menace feel inevitable and claustrophobic. Every frame is composed like a nightmare.

But It's abstract and dreamlike, which means plot takes a back seat to mood and dread. If you need a story that moves like a thriller, this is the opposite thing.

Collateral2004

A taxi driver spends a night ferrying a contract killer across Los Angeles. Tense, intelligent, and formally brilliant—Tom Cruise plays against type as a predator, and the city becomes a character. Mann's direction is surgical.

But Dialogue-heavy in stretches. The philosophical debates between killer and driver won't interest everyone, and the final act feels slightly rushed compared to what came before.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy2011

A retired spy is recalled to identify a Soviet mole in the British Secret Service. It's a puzzle box of suppressed emotion and intricate espionage tradecraft. Slow, intelligent, and rewards absolute attention.

But Deliberately opaque and oblique. Plot details are never explained; you're expected to follow. If you need clarity and forward momentum, this will frustrate you deeply.

Hell or High Water2016

Two brothers rob banks across Texas while a ranger closes in. Economical, thrilling, morally complex—it's a western dressed as a crime film. Every character feels three-dimensional and the tension never breaks.

But The climax is sudden and downbeat. Viewers expecting a traditional shootout or grand finale find it deflating. The Texas setting and dialogue won't appeal to everyone.

A Prophet2009

A young man enters prison and transforms himself into a powerful figure. Gripping prison drama about survival, manipulation, and reinvention. It's European crime cinema at its smartest and most propulsive.

But It's a French-language prison film, which means subtitles and a setting that can feel bleak and repetitive. The violence is realistic rather than stylised.

Bodyguard2018

Both are about intelligent people trying to outmanoeuvre each other in closed systems. Both have a protagonist who thinks he's in control and learns otherwise.

A soldier becomes a protection officer for a politician and uncovers conspiracy. British political thriller that breathes down your neck for six hours. It's Headhunters' cousin—contained, claustrophobic, everyone lying to everyone else.

But Six episodes means commitment. The ending divides people sharply. British TV pacing and accent work is essential; no time wasted on exposition.

The Grifters1990

Both feature a protagonist whose confidence in his own intelligence and charm becomes his fatal blindness. Both suggest that thinking you're the smartest person in the room is the quickest path to ruin.

Three con artists—a mother and son and the son's girlfriend—work scams that collapse into betrayal and violence. Bleak, stylish, and propulsive. It's about theft and ego in a 1950s-inflected present tense. Same engine as Headhunters: how ambition makes you stupid.

But It's cynical to the bone and deeply unglamorous. No one wins, everyone suffers, and the film takes no pleasure in that. Some find it depressing rather than thrilling.