Everyone knows about The Godfather, Making a Murderer, Breaking Bad, No Country for Old Men, Good Will Hunting, Black Mirror, or even Birdbox. But here are some titles that you may have missed, and likely won’t show up in the “Trending Now” section, along with a Netflixian subgenre descriptor (and more usefully, here are the real category codes).
1. Hard Boiled High School Indie Film Noir: Brick (2005)
2. Thrilling Frozen Tundra Murder Mystery: Wind River (2017)
3. Whodunit Documentary about 90s Singaporean Filmmaking: Shirkers (2018)
4. 80s Asian American Coming of Age: Seoul Searching (2015)
5. Mumblecore Rom Com: Drinking Buddies (2013)
6. Whimsical Millennial Adulting Indie: Frances Ha (2012)
7. Fast-Paced Public Transportation Zombie Movie: Train to Busan (2016)
8. Sharp Crime Unraveling Drama: Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007)
9. Violent Claustrophobic Genre Thriller: Green Room (2015)
10. Because you watched The Raid Redemption: Headshot (2016)
11. Real Life Friday Night Lights: Undefeated (2011)
12. Rousing, Crowd Pleasing Bollywood Sports Movie with no Singing or Dancing: Dangal (2016)
13. Brazilian Favela Gangster Epic: City of God (2002)
14. Realistic and Charming Teenage Coming of Age Movie: The Spectacular Now (2014)
15. If Cabin in the Woods was a Comedy: Tucker and Dale Vs Evil (2010)
16. Exploring the 1965 Indonesian Genocide: The Look of Silence (2014)
17. Humorous Superhero Anime Parody – One Punch Man (2015)
18. Smart Modern Western Heist Two Hander: Hell or High Water (2016)
19. Gritty Dystopian Film with Stunning Long Takes: Children of Men (2006)
20. Intense Mother-Son Drama: Room (2015)
21. Asian American Legal Drama Documentary: Abacus: Small Enough to Jail (2017)
22. Independent Cringey Manchild Dramedy: Donald Cried (2016)
23. Fascinating Look into the World of Wine: Somm (2012)
24. For Your English Lit Major Friend: The End of the Tour (2015)
25. The Big Sick in Real Life: Meet the Patels (2014)
26. Because you added Trophy Kids to your list: The Short Game (2013)
27. Authentic, Compassionate Movie about Kids in a Group Home: Short Term 12 (2013)
28. Engrossing English Football Fan Docuseries: Sunderland ’til I Die (2018)
29. European Dark Comedy with Harry Potter Actors: In Bruges (2008)
30. Wine Heist Documentary: Sour Grapes (2016)
31. Enigmatic Existentialist Doppleganger Headscratcher: Enemy (2013)
32. Honest and Empathetic Fertility Dramedy: Private Life (2018)
32. Evocative, Food-Centered Vignettes: Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories (2016)
34. For Kubrick Fans: Filmworker (2018)
35. Tom Hardy Driving a Car: Locke (2013)
