Everyone loves to discover movies like The Butterfly Effect that mess with their head. They’re fun to thrash out and argue about afterwards, and great to revisit to examine the intricacies of the plot.
The Butterfly Effect is a grim and gripping sci-fi thriller about a young man who has suffered strange blackouts since childhood and discovers that he can travel back in time. However, his attempts to change events for the better have disastrous unforeseen circumstances…
If you love strange and trippy movies like The Butterfly Effect, strap yourself in for these great picks…
10 Mind-Bending Movies like The Butterfly Effect
1. 12 Monkeys (1995)
A convict is sent back in time to gather information about a deadly virus that wiped out most of mankind, but overshoots his destination year and kidnaps a psychiatrist to help him on his quest…
12 Monkeys is one of Terry Gilliam’s strongest films, toning back his usual wacky visuals in favor of riveting storytelling. He’s ably assisted by a nuanced Bruce Willis and a less-than-subtle performance from Brad Pitt.
The great thing about 12 Monkeys is that its plot is complex but never loses the viewer, making it the perfect place to start for those seeking more movies like The Butterfly Effect.
2. Coherence (2014)
If 12 Monkeys is totally clear, James Ward Byrkit’s low budget mind-scrambler Coherence is the kind of movie you need to sit down and draw a diagram afterwards to make sense of it.
Eight dinner party guests who witness a passing comet experience a power outage. Two of the guests head to a nearby house that still seems to have electricity, but discovers that the residents are doubles of themselves…
You’ll need to be on your toes to keep track of the labyrinthine plotting of Coherence, making it a great pick if you’re looking for movies like The Butterfly Effect.
3. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
A man discovers that his girlfriend had all memory of their relationship erased after they split up. Heartbroken, he decides to undergo the same procedure, but realizes at the last moment that he wants to keep his memories of her…
Michel Gondry brings a woozy vibe and his trademark lo-tech visual trickery to Charlie Kaufman’s screenplay, a warped romance in reverse. Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet play against type and are arguably never better as the mismatched lovers.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of the best movies of the past twenty years, and is essential viewing for anyone who loves mind-bending films.
4. Donnie Darko (2001)
A troubled teenager is saved from a freak accident by a man dressed as a sinister rabbit, which is only the start of the strange events he experiences over the next few doomladen days…
Richard Kelly assembled an impressive cast for his first feature-length film including Jake & Maggie Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze, and Jena Malone.Â
Donnie Darko is one of the quintessential head-scratchers. Its slyly funny circular narrative has kept viewers pondering for the last two decades, and should be sought out if you love movies like The Butterfly Effect.
5. Upstream Color (2013)
It is best to approach Upstream Color knowing as little about it as possible, because a mere summary does nothing to convey the plot, themes, and atmosphere of this truly one-off film.
Shane Carruth’s follow-up to his intensely confusing debut Primer is superior in every way – a bizarre tale that is bewildering, beautiful, and ultimately deeply satisfying.
Upstream Color is a true original and should delight intrepid viewers who enjoy movies like The Butterfly Effect.
6. Predestination (2014)
A temporal agent takes one last job, pursuing an elusive criminal through time, falling foul of a deadly bomber, and getting caught in an endless time loop…
The Spierig Brothers keep piling on the paradoxes until your head pops in this fiendishly intelligent future-noir, starring the ever-reliable Ethan Hawke as the soulful time detective.
Predestination is an impressively stylish mind-bender with a plot that will keep you thinking for days.
7. Memento (2000)
A man with an inability to form new memories is on the trail of the man who killed his wife, tattooing vital clues on his skin so he doesn’t forget. Can he trust anyone as he searches for the murderer?
Christopher Nolan announced himself as a true talent with this clever psychological thriller, telling the story backwards as well as forwards. Guy Pearce is fantastic as the amnesiac amateur sleuth, with solid support from Carrie-Anne Moss and Joe Pantolino.
Memento has a playfulness and sense of dark humor that is often missing from Nolan’s later films, making it one of his best works to date.
8. Arrival (2016)
When twelve huge alien spacecraft arrive on earth, a grieving linguist is enlisted by the military to help translate the occupant’s language…
Denis Villeneuve cemented his reputation as one of today’s top directors with this gripping and powerful sci-fi drama. Amy Adams should have received an Oscar nomination for her outstanding performance.
Arrival is an unusually intelligent and emotionally resonant sci-fi blockbuster with a twist that gives you plenty to ponder.
9. Frequency (2000)
A strange anomaly allows a New York detective to communicate with his dead father 30 years earlier. After saving his life, they must now work together across time to stop a serial killer…
Gregory Hoblit’s good-natured sci-fi thriller shamelessly piles on the plot, and it works a treat. Jim Caviezel and Dennis Quaid make a very appealing father-and-son duo.
Movies like The Butterfly Effect often focus on people changing time to saved loved ones, and Frequency is another supremely entertaining example.
10. Vanilla Sky (2001)
A masked playboy is charged with murder, and tells the story about how a jealous lover left him with a disfigured face. As the story progresses, he struggles to distinguish which events happened in real life, and which are part of his nightmares…
Cameron Crowe stylishly directs this English-language remake of the Spanish hit Open Your Eyes, with a sexy cast of Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz, and Penelope Cruz giving it plenty of star power.
Like most of the other picks, nothing is quite as it seems in this good-looking sci-fi thriller, making it a great way to complete our list of movies like The Butterfly Effect.