10 Essential Movies On Netflix You've Probably Missed

9. Blue Ruin

There was a huge amount of buzz surrounding Blue Ruin last year after the low budget independent film did the film festival circuit, but if you don't pay attention to movies outside of the mainstream there's still a very good chance this gem of a thriller could have passed you by. Macon Blair stars as a loner who, after discovering the man who killed his parents has been released from prison, heads back to his home town seeking revenge. A plot synopsis like this might sound overly familiar, but in the hands of writer-director Jeremy Saulnier it is transformed into something more approaching an "anti-revenge" movie, turning conventions of their head as opposed to milking them for all they're worth. It's amazing to think that Blue Ruin wouldn't have been made were it not for crowdfunding and it stands as a remarkable example of just how good movies can be regardless of production and marketing budgets. There's been a wonderful resurgence of independent filmmaking over the last couple of years - Blue Ruin is a proud entry to this tradition.