Most Underrated Movies You Should Watch on Netflix Right Now

If you have scrolled past some gems on Netflix, this list makes it easy to find a great watch tonight without the usual picks. These movies cover thrillers, horror, sci fi, action, and quiet dramas, and they deliver tight stories with memorable performances. Each one is easy to start and rewarding by the end, whether you want a late night chill or a tense ride. You will also see who brought each film to screens, as Netflix quietly released many of these under its own banner.

‘Calibre’ (2018)

Released by Netflix in 2018, this Scottish thriller follows two friends whose hunting trip spirals after a split second mistake. Jack Lowden and Martin McCann lead a story set in the Highlands that keeps its focus on consequences and small town pressure. The film runs lean and uses its rural setting to raise the stakes scene by scene. Director Matt Palmer builds tension with grounded choices and sharp pacing.

‘His House’ (2020)

Distributed by Netflix, this horror drama tracks a refugee couple from South Sudan as they settle into government housing in England. The story blends immigration bureaucracy with a haunting that draws on personal trauma and folklore. Wunmi Mosaku and Ṣọpẹ́ Dìrísù carry the film with detailed, restrained performances. Remi Weekes uses the house itself to deliver scares while exploring memory and grief.

‘The Platform’ (2019)

Brought to audiences by Netflix, this Spanish sci fi chiller takes place in a vertical prison where food descends level by level. The design of the platform and the bare rooms gives the film a stark look that supports its social experiment setup. Iván Massagué anchors the story as the system changes him over time. Director Galder Gaztelu Urrutia uses simple rules and precise edits to push the concept forward.

‘I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore’ (2017)

Released by Netflix, this offbeat crime story follows a nursing assistant who teams up with a neighbor after her house is robbed. Melanie Lynskey and Elijah Wood share an awkward partnership that moves from small leads to a dangerous break in. The film balances quiet character moments with sudden bursts of chaos. Writer director Macon Blair keeps the focus on ordinary people stumbling into serious trouble.

‘Cam’ (2018)

Distributed by Netflix, this techno thriller centers on a cam performer who discovers her channel stolen by a lookalike. The script draws on real platform mechanics and security frustrations to build its mystery. Madeline Brewer plays the lead with sharp shifts between confidence and fear. Director Daniel Goldhaber uses color and mirrored frames to track identity and control.

‘The Night Comes for Us’ (2018)

Released by Netflix, this Indonesian action film follows an enforcer who goes on the run to protect a child. Joe Taslim and Iko Uwais bring bone crunching fight choreography to cramped rooms and warehouses. The story moves through gangs and safe houses with a focus on momentum. Timo Tjahjanto stages practical effects and long takes that showcase brutal hand to hand combat.

‘Apostle’ (2018)

Distributed by Netflix, this period thriller sends a man to a remote island to rescue his sister from a cult. Dan Stevens leads a cast that navigates rituals, hidden chambers, and a growing sense of dread. The production design uses mud, wood, and candlelight to build a lived in world. Director Gareth Evans blends folk elements with grisly set pieces for a slow burn that erupts late.

‘Hush’ (2016)

Released by Netflix, this home invasion nail biter centers on a deaf writer who must outthink a masked intruder. The film uses sound dropouts and visual cues to put viewers inside her perspective. Kate Siegel conveys the character’s planning and fear through movement and expression. Director Mike Flanagan keeps the setting tight and the timeline short for a clean, efficient thriller.

‘The Ritual’ (2017)

Brought to streaming by Netflix, this survival horror follows four friends hiking through a Swedish forest after a tragedy. The route takes them to a derelict cabin and then deeper into territory marked by ominous symbols. The creature design appears slowly through trees and antlers before a full reveal. Director David Bruckner uses night walks and warped dreams to build unease.

‘Paddleton’ (2019)

Distributed by Netflix, this quiet drama follows two neighbors who bond while facing a terminal diagnosis. Ray Romano and Mark Duplass spend time on small routines like pizza, movies, and a homemade game. The script treats medical choices with clarity and compassion. Director Alex Lehmann keeps the camerawork simple to let conversations carry the weight.

‘Shimmer Lake’ (2017)

Released by Netflix, this crime story unfolds in reverse as a small town sheriff tracks a bank robbery. Each step backward reveals why suspects made their choices across a long weekend. The cast includes Benjamin Walker, Wyatt Russell, and Rainn Wilson in straight faced roles. Director Oren Uziel uses the structure to drop new context into familiar scenes.

‘The Half of It’ (2020)

Distributed by Netflix, this coming of age story follows Ellie Chu as she writes letters for a classmate to help him woo a crush. The small town setting and school hallways frame a gentle story about family and identity. Leah Lewis, Daniel Diemer, and Alexxis Lemire share quiet moments that feel lived in. Writer director Alice Wu uses notes, texts, and music practice to move relationships forward.

‘I Am Mother’ (2019)

Released by Netflix, this sci fi chamber piece features a teen raised by a robot in a sealed facility. The film explores trust when a stranger arrives and shares a different version of the outside world. Clara Rugaard, Rose Byrne’s voice work, and Hilary Swank create a tight three character dynamic. Director Grant Sputore leans on practical robotics and clean production design to sell the setting.

‘The Discovery’ (2017)

Brought out by Netflix, this speculative drama imagines a world where the afterlife has been scientifically proven. The story follows a researcher’s son as he joins a secluded facility studying the consequences. Jason Segel, Rooney Mara, and Robert Redford ground the high concept with restrained performances. Director Charlie McDowell uses tapes, monitors, and low key sets to keep the focus on the idea.

‘ARQ’ (2016)

Distributed by Netflix, this sci fi thriller traps two characters in a time loop during a break in at a hidden lab. Robbie Amell and Rachael Taylor repeat the same attack while learning the rules and shifting alliances. The story uses labels, duct tape, and coded messages to track progress through resets. Director Tony Elliott keeps the scope small and the pacing brisk inside a single location.

‘Wheelman’ (2017)

Distributed by Netflix, this lean thriller follows a getaway driver who is double crossed mid job and has only a phone and a battered car to sort out who set him up. The story unfolds almost entirely from inside the vehicle as calls route him between rival crews. Boston streets and tight time windows keep the route unpredictable. The script uses names, locations, and shifting instructions to chart the driver’s choices in real time.

‘Spectral’ (2016)

Released by Netflix, this military sci fi film tracks a DARPA engineer embedded with US soldiers in a war torn city facing an unknown spectral threat. Custom camera rigs and hyperspectral goggles become key tools as the squad maps what the entities can and cannot do. The production mixes practical armor and digital effects to stage urban assaults. The plot moves through labs, sewers, and power hubs to reverse engineer the phenomenon.

‘The Siege of Jadotville’ (2016)

Distributed by Netflix, this historical drama recounts the 1961 standoff where Irish UN peacekeepers held off superior forces in the Congo. The film lays out radio orders, supply limits, and defensive positions around the mining town. Field tactics like trench placement and rationing drive each firefight. Archival style titles clarify the political backdrop and the unit’s post battle recognition.

‘The Perfection’ (2019)

Released by Netflix, this twisty thriller follows two elite cellists whose reunion on a tour turns into a dangerous pursuit across cities and borders. Timeline jumps and chapter cards reveal how each woman’s training shaped her next move. Performance scenes use close ups of hands and bow work to underline pressure and precision. The narrative pieces together motives through bus rides, medical stops, and a final performance hall.

‘Gerald’s Game’ (2017)

Distributed by Netflix, this Stephen King adaptation centers on a woman handcuffed to a bed in a remote lake house after a role play goes wrong. The film tracks hydration, circulation, and the tools within reach as she calculates an escape. Hallucinated conversations unpack history while the camera studies small survival steps. Day to night light shifts mark time and rising physical risk.

‘Time to Hunt’ (2020)

Released globally by Netflix, this Korean thriller follows three friends who pull a heist and trigger a relentless manhunt led by a single tracker. The story maps their escape through ports, warehouses, and tenement rooftops with attention to cash drops and forged IDs. Gunfire is sparse, with long stretches of surveillance and tailing. Subtle sound cues like elevator dings and radio chatter mark the hunter’s approach.

‘Hold the Dark’ (2018)

Distributed by Netflix, this Alaskan set mystery brings a wolf expert to a village after a child goes missing, then veers into a wider pattern of violence. Sparse dialogue and snowbound terrain shape the search, with tracks and spent casings guiding each lead. The film moves between Native communities, police briefings, and backcountry ridges. Ballistics, military records, and family ties gradually connect the threads.

‘Cargo’ (2017)

Released by Netflix internationally, this Australian post pandemic drama follows a father racing to place his infant with safe caregivers before time runs out on his infection. The film outlines improvised routes along river systems, abandoned roadhouses, and Indigenous settlements. Hand written maps, coded warnings, and curated survival kits explain how people adapted. Cultural protocols become as crucial as medicine for securing the child’s future.

‘I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House’ (2016)

Distributed by Netflix, this gothic chiller places a live in nurse in an author’s creaking New England home where an unfinished novel mirrors events in the corridors. The film catalogs objects like dresses, mold blooms, and corded phones to build a quiet case history. Chapters and voiceover track months of small disturbances. Architectural details such as long hallways and sealed doors shape how the haunting presents itself.

‘The White Tiger’ (2021)

Released by Netflix, this adaptation of Aravind Adiga’s novel follows a driver who narrates his rise from village poverty into the urban elite’s orbit. Letters to a visiting dignitary frame the timeline as he explains bribes, caste dynamics, and business pivots. The film maps Delhi and Bangalore through offices, call centers, and cramped quarters. Contracts, invoices, and debt records show how leverage changes hands.

‘The Dig’ (2021)

Distributed by Netflix, this period drama covers the 1939 Sutton Hoo excavation, detailing permits, museum claims, and field methods. The film shows trench grids, soil layers, and the painstaking unearthing of a ship burial. Letters and telegrams capture the tug of war between local ownership and national institutions. Weather delays and wartime pressures shape the schedule and the final handover.

‘The Red Sea Diving Resort’ (2019)

Released by Netflix, this espionage drama dramatizes a covert operation that used a seaside hotel as cover to extract refugees to safety. The film tracks falsified paperwork, cargo routes, and shifting checkpoints across borders. Operational briefings outline risk windows and backup plans. Beachside tourist routines provide a front while night convoys and airlifts carry the real work.

‘The Guilty’ (2021)

Distributed by Netflix, this single location thriller follows a 911 call center operator who works a kidnapping through phones, databases, and dispatch channels. CAD screens, location pings, and call transfers become the primary tools on screen. Policy constraints and jurisdiction lines complicate each decision. The timeline is marked by shift changes, wildfire updates, and incoming reports from units on the ground.

‘The Call’ (2020)

Released globally by Netflix, this Korean thriller connects two women through a landline linking the same house in different years. The film uses phone logs, property records, and family histories to show how each change alters the present. Set dressing tracks renovations and small artifacts that appear or vanish with each call. Police reports and case files fill in gaps as the timeline fractures.

‘1922’ (2017)

Distributed by Netflix, this Stephen King adaptation follows a Nebraska farmer who records a confession about a crime that reshaped his land and family. The film details wills, property boundaries, and the economics of selling to a meatpacking company. Seasonal harvests and livestock losses mark time after the deed. Letters and bank notices tighten the pressure as the farmer’s account unspools.

‘Imperial Dreams’ (2014)

Released by Netflix, this drama follows a young father in Los Angeles who tries to restart his life after prison while caring for his son. The film traces his attempts to navigate housing forms, parole check ins, and the pull of old debts. Laptops, manuscripts, and library time show how writing becomes his path forward. Bus routes and motel stops mark the thin margin he lives on.

‘Tallulah’ (2016)

Distributed by Netflix, this story centers on a drifter who rescues a neglected toddler and seeks help from her ex boyfriend’s mother. The film moves between a Manhattan hotel, a cramped apartment, and family court offices as the situation grows complicated. Phone calls and forged notes become temporary fixes that collapse under scrutiny. The script uses missed appointments and custody rules to raise the stakes.

‘The Fundamentals of Caring’ (2016)

Released by Netflix, this road movie pairs a retired writer turned caregiver with a teen who has muscular dystrophy on a trip to odd roadside attractions. Maps, medication schedules, and a carefully planned itinerary anchor every stop. Conversations in diners and rest areas fill in how each person manages fear and routine. The story tracks mileage, service stations, and detours as they push farther from home.

‘First They Killed My Father’ (2017)

Distributed by Netflix, this Cambodia set memoir follows a child’s experience under the Khmer Rouge. The film documents relocations, ration lines, and the separation of families into labor camps. Field drills, code words, and hidden routes show how people tried to survive. Dates, uniforms, and training sequences quietly outline the machinery of the regime.

‘Kodachrome’ (2017)

Released by Netflix, this drama follows a father and son on a deadline trip to the last lab processing Kodachrome film. The journey uses a stack of old canisters, a road atlas, and a calendar window before the lab shuts down. Gallery contacts and music industry meetings add pressure at each stop. The final handoff at the small Midwestern facility ties the photos to long buried conversations.

‘The Titan’ (2018)

Distributed by Netflix, this sci fi thriller follows a military family taking part in a human adaptation experiment aimed at life on Saturn’s moon. Medical protocols, performance tests, and base security rules drive each phase. The film tracks changes through biometric readouts and training logs. Briefings and risk disclosures widen the gap between official goals and personal limits.

‘Tau’ (2018)

Released by Netflix, this contained sci fi story keeps a captive inventor inside a smart home run by an AI with a growing sense of self. Floor plans, access codes, and sensor grids shape every attempt to escape. Research notebooks and prototype chips explain the stakes for the project. Conversations with the AI shift as it collects data and rewrites its priorities.

‘Polar’ (2019)

Distributed by Netflix, this graphic novel adaptation follows a retired assassin who is pulled back into conflict by his former employers. Bank accounts, offshore records, and burner phones track how he prepares for the hit squads. The plot moves through cabins, seedy motels, and corporate offices with clear objectives. Training routines and surveillance footage frame each confrontation.

‘Fractured’ (2019)

Released by Netflix, this thriller follows a father who arrives at a hospital after an accident and cannot find any record of his wife and daughter. Intake forms, imaging orders, and triage protocols become clues as he searches the facility. Security cameras, basement corridors, and locked departments map the maze. Discrepancies in names and timestamps narrow the possible explanations.

‘In the Tall Grass’ (2019)

Distributed by Netflix, this Stephen King and Joe Hill adaptation strands travelers in a field where voices draw them into shifting paths. A central rock, a church, and a roadside lot serve as fixed points that change meaning with each pass. Watches, phone calls, and car mileage fail to track time the way they should. The film uses compass directions and footprints to test the rules of the space.

‘A Sun’ (2019)

Released by Netflix internationally, this Taiwanese family drama follows two brothers as their choices ripple through school, work, and the justice system. Court hearings, motorcycle repair shifts, and cram school schedules show how time gets divided. Hospital corridors and apartment balconies become recurring meeting points. Letters and report cards trace expectations that clash with reality.

‘Blood Red Sky’ (2021)

Distributed by Netflix, this airborne thriller begins with a transatlantic flight that is hijacked and then veers into a survival scenario with a viral twist. The film uses cargo manifolds, flight decks, and emergency procedures to stage each turn. Ground control responses and runway closures add external pressure. Medical kits and improvised barriers mark how passengers adapt at altitude.

‘A Classic Horror Story’ (2021)

Released by Netflix, this Italian chiller strands a group after a roadside crash at night in the forest. Road flares, a missing signpost, and a cabin with ritual objects set the rules of the place. The story catalogs masks, symbols, and recordings that point to a local cult. Maps and compass checks keep sending the group in circles back to the same clearing.

‘Dead Kids’ (2019)

Distributed by Netflix, this Filipino thriller follows a group of students whose kidnapping scheme spirals beyond their plan. The plot leans on class schedules, campus meet ups, and a series of text threads to coordinate moves. Cash drops, SIM swaps, and CCTV blind spots become key technical steps. Police bulletins and social media chatter close in as the night unfolds.

‘The Decline’ (2020)

Released by Netflix, this Quebec survival thriller begins at an off grid training camp where an accident triggers a standoff. The film lays out drills, gear lists, and escape routes that become contested once trust breaks. Snowmobile paths, shooting ranges, and storage caches define the terrain. Radio codes and perimeter traps turn the site into a tactical puzzle.

Share your own sleeper picks on Netflix in the comments so everyone can add a few more hidden gems to their watchlist.