Film

The Stranger

Name: The Stranger
Genre: Thriller, Horror, Mystery
Released: 2014
Cast: Cristo Montt, Nicolás Durán, Lorenza Izzo, Luis Gnecco, Ariel Levy

Other titles called The Stranger: the 1946 film, the 1967 film, the 2020 series (Quibi).

A Chilean-Canadian supernatural thriller set in a frozen northern town. When a mysterious stranger arrives seeking his wife, he discovers she's dead—and his presence triggers a cascade of violence involving corrupt cops, local thugs, and the town's darkest secrets. Tense, atmospheric, and genuinely unsettling.

TMDb rating

2.4

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy slow, snowballing small-town mysteries where a supernatural premise turns into a study of guilt, violence and the people who look away.

Skip it if the flashbacks arrive in a scattered order and the gore is heavy, so anyone wanting tidy scares or a straightforward plot will likely feel stalled.

What it asks of you: Expect to commit close attention for about an hour and a half, with a slow, cold build and violence that lands hard when it finally breaks loose.

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

If you liked this

Let the Right One In2008

A vampire film that treats its premise with absolute seriousness and emotional weight. The relationship between the two leads is tender and devastating; the violence, when it comes, feels earned and consequential.

But Deliberately paced, often quiet. If you need constant action or jumpscares, the long stretches of stillness will test your patience.

The Wailing2016

A Korean mystery-thriller that keeps pivoting the ground beneath you. You never quite know who to trust or what's really happening, and the final revelation reframes everything. Masterfully constructed.

But Nearly three hours long and unapologetic about withholding answers. The ambiguity frustrates some viewers; others find it the whole point.

A Dark Song2016

An occult thriller about grief and desperation. Two strangers trapped together performing a dangerous ritual. Intimate, claustrophobic, and unexpectedly moving—the horror comes from character, not effects.

But Slow-burn to the point of silence. Long scenes of ritual repetition; minimal dialogue. Requires patience and emotional openness.

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

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Fargo1996

Both are about how violence enters a closed community through an outsider, and how geography—isolation, cold, remoteness—shapes moral collapse.

A small-town crime story where ordinary people make terrible decisions and the snow becomes almost another character. If The Stranger appeals because of its isolated setting and moral corruption, Fargo shares that DNA but arrives via dark comedy instead of supernatural dread.

But The Midwest accent can feel like affectation on first viewing. The pacing is deliberate, and the violence, though present, is often played for dark humor rather than horror.

Green Room2016

A visceral, tightly wound thriller where a punk band finds themselves trapped in a white supremacist venue after witnessing something they shouldn't. Brutal, intelligent, relentless tension.

But Graphic violence without flinching. The gore serves the story, but it's genuinely hard to watch in places.

Starry Eyes2014

A supernatural horror about an actress willing to do anything for success. Body horror, corruption, Faustian bargains. It's both a genre film and a scathing Hollywood critique.

But The body horror is extreme and prolonged. Some find it exploitative; others find it the point. Either way, it doesn't look away.

It Comes at Night2017

Paranoia and dread in an isolated house during a plague. What's threatening—virus, strangers, or your own suspicion? The ambiguity is the horror. Slow, atmospheric, psychologically sophisticated.

But Virtually no payoff in traditional terms. If you watch horror for scares or clear answers, you'll feel cheated.

Raw2017

A French-Belgian film about a young woman discovering she's a cannibal. Coming-of-age body horror. It's visceral, funny, and genuinely disturbing—a film that trusts its audience's intelligence.

But Graphic cannibalism and sexual violence. Not exploitative, but not comfortable either. Requires a strong stomach and an open mind.

The Invisible Guest2017

A Spanish thriller with a locked-room mystery structure. Plot twists that actually land because they're earned. Clever without being smug; tense without relying on gore.

But Dependent on the twist. If you guess it early or resent plot mechanics, the whole thing collapses for you.

Goodnight Mommy2015

An Austrian horror film about two boys and their mother, whose face is bandaged after surgery. Deeply unsettling and visually striking. An assured debut that knows exactly how to unsettle you.

But The final twist divides viewers sharply. Some find it revelatory; others feel punished. Also: genuine body horror and child endangerment onscreen.

The Night House2021

Both explore how an outsider or presence can reveal a community's or person's hidden rot. Both treat supernatural premises as metaphors for something already broken.

A widow in a house on a dark lake, followed by something unseen. Ambiguously supernatural—is it grief, or is it real? A film about loss that uses horror language to excavate emotional devastation. Rebecca Hall is extraordinary.

But More psychological horror than visceral. If you need external threats and clear antagonists, the real enemy here is internal. Some find that essential; others find it thin.

We Need to Talk About Kevin2011

Like The Stranger, it's a slow-reveal about how violence is always already present, waiting. Both ask: what do you do when you realize you're living alongside danger you can't fully comprehend?

A mother's aftermath: her son committed a terrible act, and she's trying to understand how and why. Uses fragmented chronology and mounting dread. Profoundly disturbing not because of gore but because of what it asks about parental love, complicity, and inherited violence.

But Bleak, punishing, and offers no catharsis or easy answers. Watching it feels like an ordeal. If you need resolution or hope, this film actively withholds it.