8 Amazing Movies That Only Feature One Actor

1. All Is Lost

ryan reynolds buried
Lionsgate

Quick, what's the most terrifying scenario you can imagine? Does it involve being lost at sea, all alone, with nothing but your own wits and cunning to guide you to safety? And maybe somebody's filming it from really nearby but refuses to help you because the footage is a shoe-in for an Oscar?

All Is Lost isn't actually a documentary, but the raw emotions and Robert Redford's unwavering commitment to making sure this story is told as bleakly as possible sure make it feel like one.

This is story of a man literally battling the sea, and nothing more. There's no convoluted backstory, just one brief flashback that shows us the exact moment that Redford's situation took a nosedive. The dedication to simplicity, limiting any insight into this guy's life before it was overtaken by the unforgiving Indian Ocean, adds enough intrigue to make up for any emotional shortcomings.

Not that there are many of those. Redford may exude a certain stoicism for much of the picture, but once things start to ramp up, he has a way of letting a light shine through his pragmatism right into his inner dread. His trials on the high sea slowly reveal more and more layers of his psyche.

This is one survival tale that will stick with you for weeks after the final, ambiguous image fades away.

What other great movies have only one actor? Share any we missed down in the comments.

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Jacob is a part-time contributor for WhatCulture, specializing in music, movies, and really, really dumb humor.