Best Tamil Thriller Movies

120 films · 55 with 3+ critic reviews

Tautly plotted cat-and-mouse cinema. Malayalam and Tamil filmmakers have made this the most consistently well-reviewed popular genre in the country.

The best Tamil thriller movies, ranked by aggregated critic score.

01PapanasamTamil · 2015“'Papanasam' is a faithful, if not better remake. It's an exhilarating cocktail of family,…” — S. Shiva Kumar

7.5

19 criticsExceptional02VisaranaiTamil · 2016“A powerful, chilling drama about how the System toys with us...” — Baradwaj Rangan

7.2

12 criticsRecommended03ChithhaTamil · 2023“Arun Kumar makes powerful statements even with the smallest characters, treating them…” — Harshini S V

7.1

9 criticsRecommended04BaththaTamil · 2026“Baththa, which starts as any other gangster drama, truly comes to life during this…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

7.0

11 criticsRecommended05Thani OruvanTamil · 2015“A big flaw of Indian cinema is its tendency to stretch the script to a point where even…” — Gautaman Bhaskaran

6.6

10 criticsRecommended0624Tamil · 2016“However, the Sathya-Mani romance is silly to the core, and drags the narrative down by…” — Gautaman Bhaskaran

6.6

10 criticsRecommended07Por ThozhilTamil · 2023“Despite minor glitches, Por Thozhil is one of the best thrillers we've had in Tamil in a…” — Gopinath Rajendran

6.6

5 criticsRecommended08Yennai Arindhaal...Tamil · 2015“A rushed climax, a problematic organ trafficking angle, a repeated plot device, a…” — Sudhir Srinivasan

6.5

11 criticsRecommended09VidaamuyarchiTamil · 2025“Ajith Kumar’s underplayed performance elevates this offbeat road thriller” — Latha Srinivasan

6.3

10 criticsMixed10ThoongavanamTamil · 2015“Thoongaavanam is eminently watchable, even if that means keeping awake for a late night…” — Gautaman Bhaskaran

6.2

17 criticsMixed11Veera Dheera Sooran: Part 2Tamil · 2025“Where Veera Dheera Sooran stands out, for the most part, is how information is withheld…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

6.2

7 criticsMixed12MaamannanTamil · 2023“On the whole, Maamannan is an underwhelming political drama that's saved by its lead…” — Gopinath Rajendran

6.1

6 criticsMixed13The Dark HeavenTamil · 2026“The film keeps making the audience suspect the wrong person until the very end. Despite…” — Rohini M

6.1

4 criticsMixed14JailerTamil · 2023“Jailer might be far from perfect, but with the towering presence of Rajinikanth standing…” — Gopinath Rajendran

6.0

12 criticsMixed15Demonte ColonyTamil · 2015“Toting up, Demonte Colony made by talented technicians is worth a watch when you want to…” — Behindwoods Review Board

6.0

5 criticsMixed16BlastTamil · 2026“In a different film, where more ingenious ideas are spring-loaded for mass elevations,…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

6.0

7 criticsMixed17MaharajaTamil · 2024“Vijay Sethupathi shines in a realistic portrayal of Maharaja, while Anurag Kashyap…” — Latha Srinivasan

5.9

12 criticsMixed18SethupathiTamil · 2016“Sethupathi is one of those films with a second half so good that you are willing to…” — Vishal Menon

5.9

10 criticsMixed19Enna VilaiTamil · 2026“Enna Vilai tackles an important aspect of our judicial and bureaucratic system, but it…” — Avinash Ramachandran

5.9

5 criticsMixed20LeoTamil · 2023“Lokesh's Leo, to much disappointment, derails here, becoming his weakest film to date. It…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

5.8

11 criticsMixed21ThunivuTamil · 2023“Thunivu, unlike Gentleman, doesn't take itself too seriously and thankfully that's what…” — Haricharan Pudipeddi

5.8

7 criticsMixed22Demonte Colony 2Tamil · 2024“Demonte Colony 2 is arguably one of the most compelling sequels to come out in Tamil…” — The Times Of India

5.8

4 criticsMixed23VeeranTamil · 2023“Director ARK Saravan's Veeran is a superhero film that has many interesting ideas.…” — Janani K.

5.8

4 criticsMixed24Naaigal JaakirathaiTamil · 2014“However, despite these inspirations, there are quite a few genuinely enjoyable moments in…” — Sudhir Srinivasan

5.7

11 criticsMixed25Anbil AvanTamil · 2026“Anbil Avan, a romantic thriller set in a hill station in Tamil Nadu, begins well with a…” — Sanjana Ganesh

5.7

6 criticsMixed26KittiTamil · 2026“For those who want to spend some time relaxing, here is a movie by director Anantha Raju…” — The Times Of India

5.7

4 criticsMixed27KaraTamil · 2026“Kara did not try anything new with the movie, but tried to tell the existing story…” — Chetupelli Sanjiv Kumar

5.6

13 criticsMixed28RaayanTamil · 2024“Dhanush's directorial totally packs a punch. AR Rahman delivers a brilliant background…” — Latha Srinivasan

5.6

9 criticsMixed29PhotographerTamil · 2026“Ashraf clearly trusts the spell he's casting; a little less faith and a little more…” — The Times Of India

5.6

4 criticsMixed30RaTamil · 2014“Ra also shows good production values (especially in its VFX), and that's more than you…” — Sudhir Srinivasan

5.6

4 criticsMixed31MadharaasiTamil · 2025“Madharaasi, thankfully, comes as a saving grace, showing how impactful action can be when…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

5.5

9 criticsMixed32MaarganTamil · 2025“Despite such wild ideas in the mix, Leo John Paul's Maargan impressively brings it all…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

5.5

6 criticsMixed33UrumeenTamil · 2015“Urumeen doesn't have much by way of laughs. It doesn't need any. The way-over-the-top…” — Baradwaj Rangan

5.4

8 criticsMixed34Thirudan PoliceTamil · 2014“As you walk out, you can't but wonder if the director, after noting all the laughter at…” — Sudhir Srinivasan

5.4

6 criticsMixed35Aarathu SinamTamil · 2016“Characters come and go – a journalist who doesn't believe in research, a cop who doubts…” — Baradwaj Rangan

5.4

7 criticsMixed36MiruthanTamil · 2016“That's native, organic humour, but there isn't a lot of that in Miruthan, which suffers…” — Sudhir Srinivasan

5.3

10 criticsMixed37Vai Raja VaiTamil · 2015“With Vai Raja Vai, Aishwaryaa has gone unapologetically commercial and this time, her…” — Vishal Menon

5.3

7 criticsMixed38StephenTamil · 2025“Stephen spends much of its two-hour runtime appearing as a run-of-the-mill psychopath…” — Bhuvanesh Chandar

5.3

6 criticsMixed39ElevenTamil · 2025“This Naveen Chandra thriller tries to be different but ends up odd.” — Jayabhuvaneshwari B

5.3

3 criticsMixed40TestTamil · 2025“R Madhavan, Siddharth and Nayanthara are match-winners, but the story fails to clear the…” — Latha Srinivasan

5.2

12 criticsMixed41MaareesanTamil · 2025“Maareesan explores the aspect of dementia in good measure by taking up a protagonist who…” — Srinivasa Ramanujam

5.2

5 criticsMixed42Pathu ThalaTamil · 2023“Pathu Thala still works to a large extent because of Silambarasan, who leaves maximum…” — Haricharan Pudipeddi

5.0

6 criticsMixed43ImmortalTamil · 2026“There is always something refreshing about a horror film that knows how to entertain…” — Akshay Kumar

5.0

3 criticsMixed44KanguvaTamil · 2024“Kanguva showcases impressive technical aspects but struggles with excessive violence and…” — Latha Srinivasan

4.9

14 criticsMixed45VedalamTamil · 2015“At 157 minutes, Vedalam is but an Ajith Kumar show (all the way where Menon and Haasan…” — Gautaman Bhaskaran

4.8

12 criticsMixed46KanithanTamil · 2016“Like so many Tamil films, Kanithan begins with a fantastic idea and story, but Santosh…” — Gautaman Bhaskaran

4.8

10 criticsMixed47GethuTamil · 2016“But Gethu is definitely a welcome relief for those of us who wondered how long…” — Sudhir Srinivasan

4.8

7 criticsMixed48MasssTamil · 2015“Tamil cinema has been talked about because of its ability to present novel themes, but…” — Gautaman Bhaskaran

4.8

7 criticsMixed49The Greatest of All TimeTamil · 2024“The Greatest of All Time’aka Vijay’s The GOAT is nothing but passable and boring. Venkat…” — Arun Antony

4.8

4 criticsMixed50AaryanTamil · 2025“While the film has an interesting premise, it falters in its execution and skewed…” — Janani K.

4.8

4 criticsMixed

See all 120 Tamil thriller films →

Recent Tamil Thriller releases

5.7

Kitti

4 critics

5.7

Anbil Avan

6 critics

7.0

Baththa

11 critics

5.9

Enna Vilai

5 critics

6.1

The Dark Heaven

4 critics

4.4

Sardar 2

16 critics

← All genres