The best thrillers to watch on Netflix in May

Greetings, Polygon Readers! We’re in the middle of May, and you know what that means, right? Barbecues and ball games are just around the corner and the weather is starting to warm up. And what better way to prepare for the season than watching some of the most intense action thrillers Netflix has to offer this month?

We have a wealth of great thrillers to choose from in May. From Michael Mann’s 1995 classic Heat and Spike Lee’s Rashomon-like robbery thriller Inside human starring Denzel Washington and Clive Owen to contemporary escapes like Ali Abbasi’s Holy spider and more, this month is littered with stone cold firecrackers. Let’s dive deep into it.

Heat

Year: 1995
Duration: 2h 50m
Director: Michael Mann
Form: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Val Kilmer

You’ve (hopefully) already watched Thieves hideoutDescribed by many, including our curation editor Pete Volk, as “dirtbag Heat.” But have you ever Actually Viewed Heat, Michael Mann’s classic 1995 crime thriller with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro? If somehow you haven’t, o-ho-ho-boy, you’re in for a treat.

Described by Mann himself as “a highly textured, realistic, symphonic drama”, Heat revolves around Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro), a career criminal and bank robber whose crew becomes the target of LAPD Detective Vincent Hanna (Al Pacino), whose obsessive fixation on catching criminals strains his personal life. The film is truly epic, a perfect crime drama, complete with an ensemble cast that includes Val Kilmer (Top gun), Tom Sizemore (Saving Private Ryan), and Amy Brenneman (The leftovers) delivering some of the best performances of their respective careers; a heart-pounding score composed by Elliot Goldenthal (Demolition man); and great action cinematography courtesy of Dante Spinotti (Manhunter).

The sound of every shot pounds like a war drum, every frame is impeccably composed, and the iconic scene of Hanna and McCauley staring at each other at a dinner table is overshadowed only by their inevitable and fatal confrontation in the film’s climax. Heat was literally the first movie I saw in theaters after the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions lifted, and honestly I couldn’t have wished for a better experience to remind myself why I fell in love with going to the theater in the first place to go theatre. —Toussaint Egan

High flying bird

Photo: Peter Andrews/Netflix

Year: 2019
Duration: 1h 30m
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Form: André Holland, Zazie Beetz, Melvin Gregg

In the real world, we’re in the midst of a very exciting NBA playoffs. LeBron James is still improbably doing his thing 20 years into his NBA career, while blossoming superstars Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid appear to be on a collision course in the NBA Finals. We are also in the middle of a strike by television and film writers seeking to improve their safety within a lucrative industry.

That means there’s no better time to watch High flying bird, Steven Soderbergh’s reinvention of the sports drama shot on an iPhone 8. The film follows ambitious sports agent Ray Burke (the excellent André Holland), who tries to put control back in the hands of the players during a lockout. This comes through his popular client Erick Scott (American Vandal‘s Melvin Gregg), with whom Burke works to create new opportunities and revenue streams for basketball outside of the league organization.

An exciting, stylish film with excellent performances and a strong script by Moonlight co-writer Tarell Alvin McCraney, High flying bird is a masterpiece of a modern sports film. —Piet Volk

Holy spider

Image: Utopia

Year: 2022
Duration: 1h 58m
Director: Ali Abbasi
Form: Mehdi Bajestani, Zar Amir-Ebrahimi, Arash Ashtiani

Inspired by the true story of an Iranian serial killer who murdered 16 women between 2000 and 2001, Ali Abbasi’s film follows the story of a journalist (Zar Amir-Ebrahimi) who investigates the disappearance of several women in the city of Mashhad. Her quest puts her directly in the crosshairs of the killer (Mehdi Bajestani), a troubled veteran of the Iran-Iraq War whose self-proclaimed “crusade” sparked heated division in his community over his actions.

More than a murder thriller, Holy spider is a brutal and poignant portrait of one woman’s struggle for justice for victims whose lives have been ignored by society, as she battles misogynistic accusations and behavior centered on her own character. Thoroughly unpacking his opponent’s mindset, the film explores the maelstrom of religious fervor, post-traumatic rage and gender hatred born of a desire to gain meaning through shame. Quietly released to streaming last month after its VOD premiere in January, Holy spider is worth seeking out and viewing, but be warned: it contains graphic images of violence against women. —Toussaint Egan

Inside human

Image: Universal Pictures

Year: 2006
Duration: 2 hours 9 minutes
Director: Spike Lee
Form: Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Jodie Foster

There’s no one better than Denzel. There’s no one better than Spike. And there’s nothing better than a great heist thriller. Add all these things up, and you have Inside humanone of the best movies of the 2000s and the rare twisty thriller worth many, many replays.

Clive Owen is the ringleader of a complicated bank robbery and Denzel Washington is the hostage negotiator tasked with resolving the situation. The excellent sprawling cast also includes Jodie Foster, Christopher Plummer, Willem Dafoe, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Written by first-time screenwriter Russell Gewirtz, a former lawyer, Denzel compared the role with many dialogues to that of Brutus in Julius Caesar, which he had recently performed on Broadway and credits to help him prepare for the role. Whatever he did, it worked – the two leads are both fantastic in one of the best heist movies ever made. —PV

The raid 2

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Year: 2014
Duration: 2h 30m
Director: Gareth Evans
Form: Iko Uwais, Arifin Putra, Oka Antara

The sequel to the smash (and we mean smash) 2011 hit The robberyGareth Evans’ 2014 sequel also packs a heavy punch (and some hammers). Shortly after the events of the first film, Rama (Iko Uwais, reprising his lead role) is sent undercover to expose the corruption in the Jakarta police. This involves him being sent to prison, surviving a prison riot and gaining favor with members of Jakarta’s underworld.

Filled with high-octane action sequences, lots of gore (there’s a kickass character named Hammer Girl who makes the most of that moniker), and breathtaking displays of the Indonesian martial art pencak silat, fans of The robbery should also check out the second iteration. There’s a lot of debate over which of the two movies is better, but we can all agree: they both reign. —PV