Best Thriller Movies of 1988

The highest-rated thriller films from 1988, ranked by MovieMagicScore based on authentic viewer ratings.

Thriller 1987 Thriller 1989 All Time Thriller

Action Comedy Drama Horror Science Fiction Romance Animation Documentary Fantasy Crime

Die Hard

1988

NYPD cop John McClane's plan to reconcile with his estranged wife is thrown for a serious loop when, minutes after he arrives at her offices Christmas Party, the entire building is overtaken by a group of terrorists. With little help from the LAPD, wisecracking McClane sets out to single-handedly rescue the hostages and bring the bad guys down.

7.8

Mississippi Burning

1988

Two FBI agents investigating the murder of civil rights workers during the 60s seek to breach the conspiracy of silence in a small Southern town where segregation divides black and white. The younger agent trained in FBI school runs up against the small town ways of his partner, a former sheriff.

7.7

They Live

1988

A lone drifter stumbles upon a unique pair of sunglasses that reveal aliens are systematically gaining control of the Earth by masquerading as humans and lulling the public into submission.

7.3

The Vanishing

1988

Rex and Saskia, a young couple in love, are on vacation when they stop at a busy service station. Saskia is abducted in broad daylight and three years pass with no answers or closure surrounding her disappearance. Rex has nearly given up all hope when he suddenly begins receiving letters from her abductor.

7.4

Midnight Run

1988

A bounty hunter pursues a former Mafia accountant who is also being chased by a rival bounty hunter, the F.B.I., and his old mob boss after jumping bail.

7.2

Dead Ringers

1988

Elliot, a successful gynecologist, works at the same practice as his identical twin, Beverly. Elliot is attracted to many of his patients and has affairs with them. When he inevitably loses interest, he will give the woman over to Beverly, the meeker of the two, without the woman knowing the difference. Beverly falls hard for one of the patients, Claire, but when she inadvertently deceives him, he slips into a state of madness.

7.1

Bloodsport

1988

An American Army Major goes AWOL to Hong Kong for an outlawed martial arts contest called the Kumite.

7.0

Police Story 2

1988

The Hong Kong super-cop must stop a group of blackmailing bombers at the same time that the villains of the first Police Story are out for revenge.

7.1

1988

Pin, a plastic medical dummy, has been the fixation of Leon since youth. Now grown up and orphaned in an accident, Leon brings Pin home to live with him and his sister Ursula, much to her reluctance. Soon, however, Leon's fixation on Pin spirals out of control, and Ursula must face the devastating consequences.

6.7

#10

Shoot to Kill

1988

When a cunning murderer vanishes into the rugged mountains of the Pacific Northwest, pursuing FBI agent Warren Stantin must exchange familiar city streets for unknown wilderness trails. Completely out of his element, Stantin is forced to enlist the aid of expert tracker Jonathan Knox. It's a turbulent yet vital relationship they must maintain in order to survive... and one that becomes increasingly desperate when Knox's girlfriend Sarah becomes the killer's latest hostage!

6.6

#11

Colors

1988

A confident young cop is shown the ropes by a veteran partner in the dangerous gang-controlled barrios of Los Angeles, where the gang culture is enforced by the colors the members wear.

6.5

#12

The Serpent and the Rainbow

1988

A Harvard anthropologist is sent to Haiti to retrieve a strange powder that is said to have the power to bring human beings back from the dead. In his quest to find the miracle drug, the cynical scientist enters the rarely seen netherworld of walking zombies, blood rites and ancient curses. Based on the true life experiences of Wade Davis and filmed on location in Haiti, it's a frightening excursion into black magic and the supernatural.

6.4

#13

Cop

1988

An obsessive, insubordinate homicide cop is convinced a serial killer is loose in the Hollywood area and disobeys orders in order to catch him.

6.2

#14

Amsterdamned

1988

A mysterious diver hiding in Amsterdam's canal system embarks on a rampage of gruesome murders, terrifying city officials and leaving few clues for the city's best detective, who doesn't suspect that both his new girlfriend and twelve-year-old daughter may be closer than he is to finding the killer.

6.3

#15

Hellbound: Hellraiser II

1988

Now confined to a mental hospital, young Kirsty insists her supposedly dead father is actually stuck in Hell following his wife’s betrayal. Few believe the young woman’s lurid stories aside from the thrill-seeking Dr. Channard. Kirsty is undeterred and, with the help of a fellow patient, heads to Hell for a rescue.

6.4

#16

D.O.A.

1988

Dexter Cornell, an English Professor becomes embroiled in a series of murders involving people around him. Dexter has good reason to want to find the murderer but hasn't much time. He finds help and comfort from one of his student, Sydney Fuller.

6.3

#17

Monkey Shines

1988

A quadriplegic man is given a trained monkey help him with every day activities, until the little monkey begins to develop feelings, and rage, against its new master and those who get too close to him.

6.3

#18

Little Nikita

1988

An FBI agent works to uncover an all-American family as Soviet sleeper agents, and gets caught up in friendship with their oblivious teenage son.

6.1

#19

Lady in White

1988

Locked in a school closet during Halloween 1962, young Frank witnesses the ghost of a young girl and the man who murdered her years ago. Shortly afterward he finds himself stalked by the killer and is soon drawn to an old house where a mysterious Lady In White lives. As he discovers the secret of the woman he soon finds that the killer may be someone close to him.

6.1

#20

Appointment with Death

1988

Emily Boynton, the stepmother to three children, blackmails the family lawyer into destroying a second will of her late husband that would have freed the children from her dominating influence. She takes herself, the children, and her daughter-in-law on holiday to Europe and the Holy Land. At a dig, Emily is found dead and Hercule Poirot investigates.

6.1

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Best Thriller Movies of 1988

This ranking features the top thriller movies released in 1988, sorted by MovieMagicScore viewer ratings. Looking for more? Browse all genres from 1988 or see the best thriller movies of all time.