11 nail-biting movies like 'Carry-On' for fans of one-location suspense
Movies like Carry-On prove that suspense thrives in limited spaces with high stakes. Set mostly in one location and a matter of life and death plot, they masterfully blend tension with adrenaline.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Key takeaways
- Popular one-location thrillers include The Commuter, Panic Room, The Guilty, Red Eye, Non-Stop, Speed, and Phone Booth.
- Carry-On (2024) features top stars, including Taron Egerton, Jason Bateman, and Sofia Carson.
- Aired on Netflix on December 13, 2024, Carry-On centres on a TSA officer battling terrorists to stop a nerve agent attack during a Christmas Eve flight.
- Carry-On was directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, known for directing other action-thrillers such as The Commuter and Non-Stop.
Exploring movies like Carry-On
Like Carry-On, the movies in this list primarily unfold in a single location. They have been noted for their tense, confined settings and intense plotlines, similar in structure to Carry-On. Ratings from Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, and Metacritic provide an overview of critical and audience reception.
Movies | Year of release | IMDb rating |
Speed | 1994 | 7.3/10 |
Phone Booth | 2002 | 7.1/10 |
Buried | 2010 | 7.0/10 |
Non-Stop | 2014 | 6.9/10 |
Panic Room | 2002 | 6.8/10 |
Unknown | 2011 | 6.8/10 |
Exam | 2009 | 6.7/10 |
Red Eye | 2005 | 6.4/10 |
The Guilty | 2021 | 6.3/10 |
The Commuter | 2018 | 6.3/10 |
Grand Piano | 2013 | 5.9/10 |
1. Speed
- IMDb rating: 7.3/10
- Running time: 1 hour 56 min
- Date of release: 1994
- Director: Jan de Bont
- Cast: Keanu Reeves, Dennis Hopper, and Sandra Bullock
Set mainly on a city bus rigged with a bomb, Speed is a classic thriller that was filmed in a moving location. Its use of time creates suspense very much like Carry-On’s tension-filled environment.
2. Phone Booth
- IMDb rating: 7.1/10
- Running time: 1 hour 21 min
- Date of release: 2002
- Director: Joel Schumacher
- Cast: Colin Farrell, Kiefer Sutherland, and Forest Whitaker
A classic example of single-location suspense, Phone Booth is set almost entirely in a phone booth. Stu Shepherd, a publicist, is trapped and terrorised by a sniper who has extensive knowledge of his private life.
3. Buried
- IMDb rating: 7.0/10
- Running time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Date of release: 2010
- Director: Rodrigo Cortés
- Cast: Ryan Reynolds, José Luis García-Pérez, and Robert Paterson Jr.
Entirely set inside a coffin, Buried follows a man buried alive trying to escape. Its claustrophobic tension and desperate stakes align with the emotional pressure cooker of Carry-On.
4. Non-Stop
- IMDb rating: 6.9/10
- Running time: 1 hour 46 min
- Date of release: 2014
- Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
- Cast: Liam Neeson, Julianne Moore, and Scoot McNairy
Non-Stop is a similar Carry-On movie with a tight setting and escalating tension. Bill Marks, an alcoholic, ex-NYPD officer turned United States Air Marshal, must do what it takes to stop a real-time terror attack after receiving a shocking series of text messages.
5. Panic Room
- IMDb rating: 6.8/10
- Running time: 1 hour 52 minutes
- Date of release: 2002
- Director: David Fincher
- Cast: Jodie Foster, Kristen Stewart, and Forest Whitaker
Panic Room is one of the best movies like Carry-On. The film takes its audience on a rollercoaster of suspense, utilising clever tension and a confined location. It creates fear when a divorced woman and her diabetic child take refuge in a panic room in their new house after armed men break in.
6. Unknown
- IMDb rating: 6.8/10
- Running time: 1 hour 53 min
- Date of release: 2011
- Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
- Cast: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, and January Jones
Unknown is a psychological thriller starring Liam Neeson as Dr Martin Harris, a biochemist who wakes up from a coma after a serious car accident in Berlin. Upon recovery, he finds that another man has assumed his identity, and even his wife does not recognise him. Desperate to prove who he is, Martin teams up with a taxi driver and a former Stasi agent to uncover a conspiracy involving an assassination plot.
7. Exam
- IMDb rating: 6.7/10
- Running time: 1 hour 41 min
- Date of release: 2009
- Director: Stuart Hazeldine
- Cast: Adar Beck, Luke Mably, and Gemma Chan
Inside a single room, candidates for a highly sought-after corporate job take a mysterious exam with strict rules. It does not take long for the psychological pressure and confined setting to deliver twists and tension similar to Carry-On.
8. Red Eye
- IMDb rating: 6.4/10
- Running time: 1 hour 25 min
- Date of release: 2005
- Director: Wes Craven
- Cast: Rachel McAdams, Cillian Murphy, and Brian Cox
Red Eye is an American psychological thriller that follows the story of Lisa, a hotel manager ensnared in an assassination attempt aboard a red-eye flight. Lisa is befriended by a fellow passenger who turns out to be a terrorist. He forces her to help him conduct an assassination of a key government official.
9. The Guilty
- IMDb rating: 6.3/10
- Running time: 1 hour 30 min
- Date of release: 2021
- Director: Antoine Fuqua
- Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Riley Keough, and Peter Sarsgaard
The Guilty is a similar movie to Carry-On. Set primarily in a police dispatch office, this 2021 Netflix film follows an emergency call operator as she attempts to rescue a kidnapped woman.
10. The Commuter
- IMDb rating: 6.3/10
- Running time:1 hour 44 min
- Date of release: 2018
- Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
- Cast: Liam Neeson, Vera Farmiga, and Patrick Wilson
Michael MacCauley, a former police officer turned insurance salesman, faces danger on his daily train commute. A mysterious woman offers him money to identify a passenger named Prynne on the train. As Michael searches, he uncovers a conspiracy involving corruption and a key witness.
11. Grand Piano
- IMDb rating: 5.9/10
- Running time: 1 hour 30 min
- Date of release: 2013
- Director: Eugenio Mira
- Cast: Elijah Wood, John Cusack, and Kerry Bishé
This thriller centres on a pianist who must play perfectly during a concert or face death. Much of the tension and adrenaline unfold in one concert hall, combining suspense and high stakes with a ticking clock.
A look at the cast of Carry-On
The film features a strong ensemble cast. Here is a look at some of the cast members and their roles:
- Taron Egerton as Ethan Kopek
- Curtiss Cook as Lionel Williams
- Josh Brener as Herschel
- Jason Bateman as The Traveller
- Tonatiuh as Mateo Flores
- Sinqua Walls as Jason Noble
- Reisha Reynolds as Nina
- Michael Scott as Samir
- Sofia Carson as Nora Parisi
- Danielle Deadwyler as Elene Cole
- Theo Rossi as The Watcher
- Logan Marshall-Green as Agent John Alcott.
FAQs
Below are the frequently asked questions about nail-biting movies, such as Carry-On. They include:
Which is the No. 1 suspense movie?
There is no number 1 suspense movie, as ranking depends on personal preferences. However, films like The Dark Knight, Joker, Inception, and Alice in Borderland rank among the best suspense movies.
What is the most heartwarming movie ever?
The most heartwarming movie ever is subjective to personal preferences. However, some films, such as It’s a Wonderful Life, Tokyo Godfathers, Amélie, and Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, are among the most heart-warming films.
Is the Carry-On movie unrealistic?
Carry-On is entertaining but not very realistic. The movie takes significant creative liberties with airport security protocols, showing multiple plot holes and unrealistic scenarios.
In an interview, TSA spokesman R. Carter Langston stated that the film was made for entertainment purposes, and what it depicts is far from the truth. He said,
The film is meant to be entertaining as a fictional film, and not as a reflection of reality.
When was the movie Carry-On released?
Carry-On is available on Netflix and was released on December 13, 2024. It quickly gained popularity, becoming one of the most-watched films of that year on the platform, with over 97 million views within the first ten days and reaching 149.5 million views by January 2025.
How is the Carry-On movie ending?
The film concludes with Ethan and his girlfriend, Nora, enjoying a vacation in Tahiti with their newborn child. Additionally, he has realised his lifelong dream of becoming a LAPD officer.
Trivia
- Liam Neeson has starred in multiple one-location thrillers similar to Carry-On, such as The Commuter and Unknown.
- One-location films rely heavily on tight pacing to maintain gripping suspense throughout a single setting.
Wrapping up
The power of movies like Carry-On lies in their ability to create suspense from a single location. These tightly wound thrillers are perfect for viewers craving focused, high-tension narratives that deliver heart-racing thrills with unforgettable characters trapped in high-stakes situations.
READ MORE: Top 20 list of shows like Snowfall you can binge-watch
Briefly.co.za shared an article featuring a list of shows, such as Snowfall, that you can binge-watch. Snowfall is a popular American TV series, praised for its realistic portrayal of the drug trade in America since it premiered in 2017.
Despite being a blockbuster, the show wrapped up its final season in 2023. However, there are multiple films, including Breaking Bad, The Power, and The Wire, that you can watch to evoke the same excitement.
Source: Briefly News
