TransSiberian

When you think of Woody Harrelson, your first thought is probably not one of the most hair-raising thrillers ever made. And to be fair, while he does lead the bill, the real star is the fantastic Emily Mortimer (although Woody is great in his own right). Padded out with Sir Ben Kingsly and a great supporting cast, this movie will, frankly, mess you up.

Following a brief prelude filmed in Russian, we get a proper introduction to our stars: a couple of Christian missionaries traveling home on the Trans-Siberian Express after some months work in China. Woody as the husband is a goofy but sweet train buff, and Emily is his used-to-be-a-bad-girl spouse. A cute couple on a vacation in Siberia. Nothing could go wrong.

Muted colors and bleak landscapes work wonderfully here, as the mounting tension of seeing what could go wrong next stands out all the more. Characters are tangible and extremely well acted, and the plot is a masterpiece in escalating psychological warfare. The plot twists are by turns surprising and inevitable in all the right places to keep that wonderful feeling of dread growing in the audience at a steady pace.

Better than Fargo, which is a pretty obvious comparison (Siberia actually seems more heavily populated than North Dakota, although probably colder). Absolutely worth watching multiple times.