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Thrillers are a kind of movies that appeal to people of all ages and places them in a state of constant suspense and stress. People enjoy a well-written thriller that keeps them on the edge of their seats, regardless of where they live—in the North, South, East, or West.

Regrettably, mainstream audiences continue to undervalue a great deal of the world’s top foreign thrillers. Some of these movies have received positive reviews from critics, yet their Letterboxd ratings are significantly less than 100,000. This is in sharp contrast to the massive popularity of contemporary Hollywood thrillers like Saw X and The Killer, which have received over 200,000 ratings. These gripping jewels, which range from contemporary hits like The Chaser and The Guilty to timeless masterpieces like The Vanishing and High and Low, need a much larger audience.

Japan’s High and Low (1963)
8.4 out of 10 on IMDb
96% of Rotten Tomatoes
Why You Must Watch It:
The crime thriller masterpiece High and Low by Akira Kurosawa centers on a businessman who finds himself in a difficult moral situation after his chauffeur’s son is unintentionally abducted. Known for its superb narrative and shot arrangement, High and Low is still an inspiration to filmmakers everywhere. It is now the sixth-highest-rated movie on Letterboxd with only 99,000 ratings, but it merits far more praise.

Hong Kong’s 1987 film City on Fire
7 out of 10 on IMDb
Tomato Rotten: 85%
Why You Must Watch It:
A classic of Hong Kong cinema, City on Fire by Ringo Lam narrates the suspenseful tale of an undercover police officer who infiltrates a group of jewel thieves. The movie, which starred the legendary Chow Yun-fat from Hong Kong, clearly influenced Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs. It has received praise and has won Best Actor and Best Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards, yet it only has about 12,000 Letterboxd ratings.

South Korea’s 2008 film The Chaser
7.8 out of 10 on IMDb
Turned Over Tomatoes: 82%
Why You Must Watch It:
With relentless brutality, Na Hong-jin’s The terrifying real-life murders of a South Korean serial killer served as the inspiration for The Chaser. This film, which follows a former police officer who becomes a pimp in his quest to find his lost girlfriends, is not for the timid. Despite winning multiple accolades and doing well at the box office, it nevertheless has a low rating of just 57,000 on Letterboxd.

Hong Kong – Infernal Affairs (2002)
Eight out of ten on IMDb
94% of rotten tomatoes
Why You Must Watch It:
There was Infernal Affairs before The Departed became an Oscar-winning success. A compelling game of cat and mouse is played out between an undercover police officer in the Triads and a mole in the police force in this Hong Kong thriller, which was co-directed by Andrew Lau and Alan Mak. Although Infernal Affairs only has 79,000 Letterboxd ratings, it is just as worthy of acclaim as The Departed, which has over a million.

Denmark’s The Guilty (2018)
IMDb: 7.5 out of 10.
Rationalized Tomatoes: 98%
Why You Must Watch It:
The Guilty, a minimalist thriller by Gustav Möller, is a masterwork of tension since it takes place solely in one spot and follows a police officer trying to contact a kidnapped woman and save her. Despite receiving multiple prizes for its outstanding sound design and a remarkable performance by Jakob Cedergren, this low-budget movie only has 72,000 ratings on Letterboxd, compared to 324,000 ratings for its subpar Hollywood version.

Poland’s Knife in the Water (1962)
7.4 out of 10 on IMDb
97% of Rotten Tomatoes
Why You Must Watch It:
Knife in the Water, the debut film from filmmaker Roman Polanski, is a suspenseful psychological thriller that takes place on a yacht with a married couple and an enigmatic hitchhiker. It was Poland’s first film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and it received widespread praise. Even though it’s a mainstay of Polish film, it barely has 30,000 Letterboxd ratings.

France’s Le Trou (1960)
8.5 out of 10 on IMDb
94% of rotten tomatoes
Why You Must Watch It:
One of the best jail escape thrillers ever produced is Jacques Becker’s Le Trou. The film is a masterwork of French cinema, based on a true story and starring a cast of primarily amateur actors, including one who actually participated in the jail break. Despite being praised as one of the 44th best-rated films on Letterboxd, it only has 31,000 ratings.

The Vanishing: The Netherlands (1988)
7.7 out of 10 on IMDb
96% of Rotten Tomatoes
Why You Must Watch It:
The Vanishing, according to Stanley Kubrick, is the scariest movie he has ever watched. This thriller from the Netherlands follows a man who becomes obsessed with finding his missing girlfriend when she disappears at a service station. Fans of thrillers should not miss The Vanishing, which has a frightening ending and spine-tingling intensity. Despite receiving 81,000 reviews on Letterboxd, movie is still unappreciated.

Z – France (1969)
8.2 out of 10 on IMDb
94% of rotten tomatoes
Why It’s a Must-See: Based on the killing of Greek politician Grigoris Lambrakis, Costa-Gavras’ political thriller Z is a historic picture. The movie triumphed at Cannes in addition to being a hit at the Academy Awards. Z, regarded as one of the greatest political thrillers ever produced, has only 39,000 ratings on Letterboxd, making it a glaringly underappreciated film.

South Korea’s Joint Security Area (2000)
7.7 out of 10 on IMDb
Rationalized Tomatoes: 88%
Why You Must Watch It:
A compelling mystery situated on the volatile border between North and South Korea is Park Chan-wook’s Joint Security Area. Despite being a huge box office success in South Korea, it has only received 55,000 ratings on Letterboxd and is still largely unknown elsewhere. It was hailed as one of the greatest movies of the previous 17 years by Quentin Tarantino.