RestraintMovies like Restraint
- Key Features:
- Hostage situation, Fugitive, Psychological thriller, Survival, Crime, Violence-moderate, Power dynamics, Moral ambiguity, Claustrophobic, Desperation, Betrayal
- Tone:
- suspense-driven, gritty, serious
- Target Audience:
- Thriller fans, Crime drama enthusiasts, Fans of suspenseful narratives, Viewers interested in psychological studies
- Emotional Arc:
- Tension → Dread
Restraint

Two fugitives land in hot water when they take a hostage who poses a threat to their well-being.
Restraint
When a mafia accountant is taken hostage on his beat, a police officer – wracked by guilt from a prior stint as a negotiator – must negotiate the standoff, even as his own family is held captive by the mob.

Confined to a claustrophobic hotel room, the heir to a hotel empire and the dominatrix who has primed him for success become locked in a battle of wits and wills as he tries to end his relationship with her.

Snatched off the street and held for ransom, a bound and gagged woman uses her limited powers to derail her two masked abductors' carefully laid plans.

A couple's ailing marriage is put to the test when they are held hostage in an isolated vacation rental by an unseen Voice that commands their every move and threatens harm if they don’t obey.

When their daughter is abducted by experienced kidnappers, the Jennings turn the tables on their seemingly fool-proof plan.

An Australian couple takes a sailing trip in the Pacific to get over the recent loss of their son. While on the open sea, they come across a sinking ship with one survivor who is not at all what he seems.

In the dead of night, Rebecca wakes in a decrepit precinct, accused of a hit-and-run. But a deadly scuffle reveals a sinister plot. With nowhere to turn, she must uncover the truth before it consumes her. But Rebecca harbors secrets darker than they know.

The Driver is hired by the FBI to help defuse a hostage situation. A disgruntled employee has kidnapped a CEO and has hidden her, demanding $5,088,042. The Driver delivers the money, writing the sum on his hand as instructed by the hostage taker. After he is told that he holds the life of a person in his hand, he is ordered to burn the money. As he complies, the federal agents break in and attempt to subdue the man, who shoots himself in the head before he reveals where the woman is hidden. The Driver then tries to find the hostage before she drowns in the trunk of a sinking car. As a twist, the kidnapped woman is revealed to be the hostage taker's lover. She coldly taunts the dying man in the hospital.

Two ten year-old boys are detained by police under suspicion of abducting and murdering a toddler.

When a rich man's son is kidnapped, he cooperates with the police at first but then tries a unique tactic against the criminals.

Lewis is an outwardly ordinary guy, but in reality he is hiding an obsession – revenge – against Cathy. Lewis kidnaps Cathy in broad daylight and takes her to his home, where he locks her in a soundproof cell and attempts to extract a dark secret from her past.

The story centers on paroled white supremacist who has just killed a cop, and takes a black family hostage. Within hours of being released from 14 years of solitary confinement in maximum-security Pelican Bay State Prison, Garrett Tully is on the run again. When he finds a house off a dirt road and takes a family hostage, he thinks the Aryan Brotherhood has his back–and his kidnap victims are black. The family’s patriarch, Mr. Walker, is a jaded ex-con who hates cops so much he disavowed his own son for becoming one. Seeing a familiar desperation in Tully, Walker refuses to call the authorities for help, causing familial tensions to escalate, and soon grave missteps are made.

A boy kidnapped by two mismatched hitmen puts them at each other's throats while being driven to their employers, possibly to be killed. Cohen, an older professional becomes increasingly irritated with his partner Tate, a brutish killer, when their prisoner uses unnatural guile and resourcefulness to play them off against each other.

Carlo, a former mobster, is abducted by five privileged young men desperate to raise a $2 million ransom to save the sister of a friend. As Carlo plays mind games, however, his captors splinter -- each wondering whether one of their own had a hand in the crime.

Two drug dealers on the lam seek refuge inside their mentally unstable friend’s mansion. But in order to stay, they have to participate in her elaborate, and increasingly dangerous, game of permanent make-believe.

What should have been a romantic getaway turns into one hilarious debacle after another when Michael's woman dumps him in the desert where he gets carjacked by a teenager and he is taken hostage in a stickup at the local Sip and Zip.

When a gunman enters an Apple Store in the heart of Amsterdam, the police face a delicate challenge to resolve the standoff.

A counter-terrorism expert takes a job protecting a young heiress. After an attempted kidnapping puts both of their lives in danger, they must flee.

An innocent woman is forced to confront a dangerous kingpin who has kidnapped her young daughter and is holding her for ransom. She teams up with a corrupt Interpol agent, whose son is also being held hostage, to rip off various criminals to raise the ransom to save their offspring. Together they have one hour to save their families from the wrath of bigwig.

A savvy and free-spirited surfer is abducted by a shark-obsessed serial killer. Held captive on his boat, she must figure out how to escape before he carries out a ritualistic feeding to the sharks below.

Neighbors in a block wake one morning to find they have been sealed inside their apartments. Can they work together to find out why? Or will they destroy each other in their fight to escape?

Innocent lives hang on the whim of an elusive psychopathic murderer whose strange riddles and impossible timelines force three people into a mission to end the game before one or all of them die.

Recently fired and facing eviction, a new dad has his life turned upside down when he meets a wealthy couple who offer a path to financial security... but at a price.

A young woman, recently released from a mental hospital, gets a job as a secretary to a demanding lawyer, where their employer-employee relationship turns into a sexual, sadomasochistic one.

A young American couple’s Australian holiday takes a terrifying turn when they get lost in the outback. With only one another to rely on, the two are driven to extremes in order to stay alive in the harsh and unforgiving wilderness.

An upper-middle-class couple's life is destroyed when their only child is kidnapped and killed. Obsessed with revenge, the couple seizes an opportunity to kidnap the killer.

A serial killer kidnaps a young boy after murdering his mother, then raises him to be his accomplice. After years in captivity, the boy must choose between escaping or following in his captor's bloody footprints.

In an opulent vacation home, a mysterious intruder is forced to kidnap the property owners -- a wealthy CEO and his wife -- when they arrive unexpectedly.

A Secret Service Agent is held captive in the trunk of a car and endures high-speed mental and physical torture as terrorists attempt to extract needed information for their sinister plot.

A rich man's daughter is held captive in an abandoned apartment by two former convicts who abducted her and hold her ransom in exchange for her father's money.

When a drug heist swerves lethally out of control, a jaded cop fights his way through a corrupt city's criminal underworld to save a politician's son.

A young single mother is held captive along with her two children by a violent ex and must plot their escape before it’s too late.

A former Marine races against time to save a group of hostages -- including his young daughter and a congressman — when armed militants take over his stepfather's store.

A cop turns vigilante after his family is murdered, exacting vengeance on the killers - and then on all criminals who have slipped through the system.

After the FBI receives a threat that endangers the entire city, an interrogator and an I.T. specialist are plunged into a series of mind games with a criminal mastermind, desperately racing against time to uncover the villain's true agenda as they fight to protect thousands of lives.

Eight years after the disappearance of Cassandra, some disturbing incidents seem to indicate that she's still alive. Police, parents and Cassandra herself, will try to unravel the mystery of her disappearance.

While driving, an estranged couple's car is hit twice. A sheriff takes them to a motel where they hear disturbing noises from a room, realizing they're part of a deadly game.

A desperate, childless couple kidnap a pregnant woman and lead her husband to believe that she is dead.

Communication is the key to the survival for nine strangers who have been kidnapped by a masked gunman and told that one of them will die every ten minutes until they discover how they are all connected. Who of the nine lives and who dies?

Based on a miraculous true story that drew the attention of the entire nation, is the dramatic, thrilling, and spiritual journey of Ashley Smith and Brian Nichols. After being taken hostage by Brian in her own apartment, Ashley turns to Rick Warren’s inspirational book, The Purpose Driven Life, for guidance. In reading from the book, Ashley not only finds purpose in her own life, but helps Brian find a more peaceful resolution to a harrowing situation.

When his brother-in-law runs afoul of a drug lord, family man Chris Farraday turns to a skill he abandoned long ago—smuggling—to repay the debt. But the job goes wrong, and Farraday finds himself wanted by cops, crooks and killers alike.

Tensions are high after a Danish freighter is captured and held for ransom by Somali pirates, leading to weeks of high-stakes negotiations – and an escalating potential for explosive violence.

When Vicki Maloney is randomly abducted from a suburban street by a disturbed couple, she soon observes the dynamic between her captors and quickly realises she must drive a wedge between them if she is to survive.

A passionate holiday romance leads to an obsessive relationship when an Australian photojournalist wakes one morning in an abandoned Berlin apartment and is unable to leave.

Somewhere in Eastern Europe. Carole is a young nurse with a humanitarian aid group that has reached the end of its mission. But just then, the young woman and her two colleagues are kidnapped by strangers for mysterious reasons. Held captive, cared for and kept alive in an oppressive and sinister setting, the three prisoners soon discover with horror what their kidnappers truly have in store for them.

A psychiatrist faces his past, present and future when he finds himself involved in the treatment of a young man recently released from prison for a murder committed when the boy was just 11 years old.

When her son's alleged kidnapper is released for lack of solid evidence, a reputable and well-known attorney takes matters into her own hands with unintended and spectacularly disastrous consequences.

A hardened cop tries to unravel the past to discover whether a violent teenager was responsible for the murder of his family. A confused fifteen-year-old runaway becomes enthralled with the young man.

The relationships of two couples become complicated and deceitful when the man from one couple meets the woman of the other.

To escape her abusive boyfriend, Kat joins a wilderness expedition with a group of women, all of whom are struggling with the uncertainty of life. What was supposed to be an opportunity for personal discovery quickly becomes a fight for survival, forcing each one to discover the strength within themselves that they didn't even know they possessed. While being brazenly chased by a pack of predators, the strong quickly set themselves apart from the weak. In a battle of will, stamina, and heart, these very virtues present themselves at the most crucial moment. With death looming, each is left with what is truly important - the strength within oneself.

An ace crisis negotiator attempts to figure out the real motivation of a man who has kidnapped two people and crack his calm demeanour.

When a terrorist who specializes in explosives takes hold of an underground tunnel, he threatens to kill hostages if his demands are not met.

A group of teenagers suffer a terrible accident during a joy ride and get trapped at the bottom of a ravine.

Detective Breslin crosses paths with Calloway, a ruthless hacker desperate to find his wife, who has been kidnapped by a drug cartel. When Calloway escapes police custody, Breslin joins forces with a no-nonsense female cop to reclaim his prisoner. But is Calloway’s crime-boss father somehow involved in this explosive situation?

Five strangers face the unthinkable when they wake up and find themselves trapped. With no idea how they got there they frantically try to figure out how to escape. The disoriented group quickly realise the truth about their situation when they discover another room containing enough water to survive for 30 days… and a razor sharp surgical knife. The intention becomes quite clear. Whoever put them in this place wants to see just how long it will take before the hunger makes them commit unspeakable acts and cross a very deadly line.

After a dispute over a winning lottery ticket turns into a deadly hostage situation, the witnesses must decide exactly how far they’ll go—and how much blood they’re willing to spill—for a cut of the $156 million.

After being released from a mental hospital, a troubled young man tracks down an actress he once had sex with and forces her into captivity, determined to make her part of his life.

A police chief tries to solve a kidnapping that involves a bank robber holding a young boy hostage.

A blackout leaves those affected to consider what is necessary, what is legal, and what is questionable, in order to survive in a predatory environment.

When an armed, masked gang enter a Manhattan bank, lock the doors and take hostages, the detective assigned to effect their release enters negotiations preoccupied with corruption charges he is facing.

A desperate housewife discovers her husband is having an affair and kidnaps his unsuspecting mistress, but what starts as a prank quickly spirals out of control.

A young singer/songwriter, despite being married, becomes involved with her new guitarist, who she soon discovers has a dark past and may be a danger to her and those close to her.

The once unconditional friendship between police officers Vincke and Verstuyft hits a very rough patch when they come up against a series of gruesome murders. Complicating matters even further, a survivor of the killer drives a wedge between them when Verstuyft falls for her charms. Meanwhile, the serial killer has a new victim in sight...

An ambitious lawyer finds himself caught in a power struggle between a corrupt pharmaceutical executive and his firm’s senior partner. When the case takes a deadly turn, he must race to uncover the truth before he loses everything.

Majestic mountains, a still lake and venomous betrayals engulf a married couple attempting to celebrate their first anniversary.

The sought-after images of top model Jennifer adorn magazine covers and billboards worldwide. When alone at a club, she is abducted and incarcerated in a cell with another prisoner. When their captor subjects the two to torture, they commit to escaping the chamber of horrors before they're killed.

A once-abused woman devotes herself to ridding victims of their domestic abusers while hunting down the one she must kill to be truly free.

Former SWAT leader David Hendrix and hard-partying movie star Brody Walker must cut their ride-along short when a police training facility is attacked by a team of mercenaries.

A group of elite soldiers sent to infiltrate and extract the lead science team from Pine Gap, Australia's top secret underground military compound, after it comes under attack from unknown forces. The mission is compromised when they encounter a young woman with no memory of who she is or how she came to be there. As they try to escape, the group quickly discovers all is not as it seems and the facility has become a testing ground for something far more sinister.

Financial TV host Lee Gates and his producer Patty are put in an extreme situation when an irate investor takes over their studio.

Secret-service agent Vic Davis is on his way to pick up his estranged son, Sean, from his college campus when he finds himself in the middle of a high-stakes terrorist operation. His son's friend Erin Walton, the daughter of Supreme Court Justice Walton is the target, and this armed faction will stop at nothing to kidnap her and use her as leverage for a pending landmark legal case.

Two wealthy businessmen are about to get away with $5 million in ill-gotten money until their plans are revealed by an uninvited house guest.

A 17-year-old girl uses her wits, survival skills, and compassion to fight for her life, and those of her fellow classmates, against a group of live-streaming school shooters.

A prisoner in a state-of-the-art penitentiary begins to question the purpose of the emotion-controlling drugs he's testing for a pharmaceutical genius.

Hostage negotiator Alan Bender is called to rescue the president from a kidnapping, only to find himself also mediating to save his wife and marriage.

Taking his kids to school with the car, Berlin real estate developer Karl gets a call from a blackmailer: If he doesn’t pay up, the car will blow up. A deadly race against time begins.

Lonely, unstable gas station attendant Melinda is tired of being overshadowed by her more confident, outgoing co-worker Sheila. When the gas station is held up at gunpoint by Billy, a desperate man in need of quick cash, Melinda finds an opportunity to make a connection with the robber, regardless of who gets hurt.

When an Egyptian terrorism suspect "disappears" on a flight from Africa to Washington DC, his American wife and a CIA analyst find themselves caught up in a struggle to secure his release from a secret detention facility somewhere outside the US.

A man meets up with two "good guys" to recover what is unlawfully his, taking them on his whirlwind ride, doing things they never would have imagined, just to survive.

Three detectives become embroiled in a tense struggle after a tragic accident that leaves a child in critical condition. One is guilty of a crime, one will try to cover it up, and the other attempts to expose it. How far will these men go to disguise and unravel the truth?

Three hooded Eastern-European criminals burst into a home in a Madrid gated community, holding the family hostage in its own home, and forcing the father to empty his credit cards. But the family fights back - brutally.

After a heroic job of successfully landing his storm-damaged aircraft in a war zone, a fearless pilot finds himself between the agendas of multiple militias planning to take the plane and its passengers hostage.

Roper, a hostage negotiator catches a murderous bank robber after a blown heist. The bank robber escapes and immediately goes after the man who put him behind bars.

While being interrogated by a police psychiatrist, the near-catatonic Tabitha tries to explain why she and two of her childhood friends are being hunted by a serial killer. The truth that's dying to come out weaves together three tragic secrets from their past. Two of the girls' boyfriends become unwitting targets in their deadly game.

Nate takes his family for a camping trip to reconnect. When they pull off at a rest stop, a gang of thieves hides their stash from an armored car robbery among the family belongings. They soon find themselves on the run and the gang will stop at nothing to get their money back.

A bouncer with an anger management problem goes on a furious and resentful rampage after the murder of a friend.

While on a class observation trip at a local mental hospital, young psychology major Abby Jones, has a chilling encounter with high-risk patient, Harmon Porter. She returns home for an evening of normal study with her two roommates unaware of the darkness she’s awakened within him.

Jessica and her fiancé Evan just moved from the city into their dream home on a quiet suburban street. Soon after, Jessica catches her seemingly friendly new neighbor, Simon, in a strange lie and can't let her suspicions rest. The danger escalates when Simon lures her inside his home and imprisons Jessica in his secret bunker, meticulously decorated in the idealized style of the 1950's.

There is an old wives tale that you should hold your breath when passing by a cemetery because an evil spirit rejected by both heaven and hell can get inside of you when you inhale. Somewhere in a carload of college kids on holiday doesn't follow the rules when driving by a graveyard, allowing a spirit of a recently executed serial killer to get inside him/her to begin a killing spree of body-jumping carnage.

Although to the outside world he seems like the a perfectly normal insurance broker, Michael secretly keeps a 10-year-old boy, Wolfgang locked in a room in his soundproof basement.

Complete strangers stranded at a remote desert motel during a raging storm soon find themselves the target of a deranged murderer. As their numbers thin out, the travelers begin to turn on each other, as each tries to figure out who the killer is.

Kate and her daughter Beth live alone in an isolated farmhouse in the woods, but when Kate slowly begins to suspect that something sinister is happening, her motherly instincts are put to the test.

Arnulfo Rubio smuggles weapons from Arizona to Mexico for a drug cartel, but he is being investigated by agent Harris. When agent Harris blows his covers, he and Arnulfo end up in a journey where he will be the hostage of this young criminal.

A limo ride turns hellish as several kidnappers set their sights on the young people inside.

A heroic high school teacher leads a band of students trapped in school by violent drug-runners.

A grieving woman in a secluded forest encounters a killer who injects her with a paralytic drug. As her body shuts down, her fight for survival begins.

A man who returns home to find his wife cheating on him on their anniversary. He holds her and her naked and humiliated lover captive at gunpoint while he decides whether or not he's going to kill them. The story, inspired by true events, takes place over one day and is set in New Orleans during a stifling heat wave.


