In reality, being at the wrong place at the wrong time is inconvenient. In the movies, it can be life-changing in strange and even horrific ways. See for yourself by revisiting cinematic classics about people getting caught in some unexpected trouble.
North By Northwest (1959)
Many of Alfred Hitchcock’s best movies followed people who find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, with North by Northwest being a prime example. The awesome spy movie stars Cary Grant as an advertising executive who is suddenly forced to go on the run when he is mistaken for a government agent.
Robert Downey Jr.) accidentally walks into an audition for a movie role, has a breakdown on the spot that is mistaken for a dynamite performance, and is sent to Hollywood where he shadows a private investigator (played by Val Kilmer) as research.
Shia LaBeouf), who comes from a long line of men known for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, as part of a mysterious curse. For instance, Stanley happens to be standing right where a pair of missing shoes fall on his head and, in turn, is accused of stealing them, which is how he ends up at the brutal Camp Green Lake.
best Western movies of all time, including its brilliant use of themes like “decision and consequence.” In the Best Picture Oscar winner, Llewellyn Moss (Josh Brolin) comes across the aftermath of a drug deal turned deadly and decides to take $2 million left behind. His second and worse mistake is returning to deliver water to one of the dying victims at the scene, where he is spotted and soon forced to go on the run from the sadistic Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem).
Michael Mann’s gripping thriller, Collateral, points out that the plot “started out like any other night” before exploding into one of panic and violence. Had Max (Jamie Foxx) not apologized for accidentally ignoring Vincent (Tom Cruise) when he first approached his cab, it could have saved him from driving around Los Angeles with a sociopathic contract killer in his backseat.
acclaimed A24 movie, Green Room, put writer and director Jeremy Saulnier on the map as not just a master of heart-pounding tension, but of crafting compelling stories of ordinary people trapped in terrifying situations. The thriller follows an up-and-coming punk band forced to barricade themselves in the backroom at a bar crawling with Neo-nazis after witnessing a murder.
David Lynch’s best movies, Blue Velvet, is a cautionary tale about the potentially dangerous lure of curiosity. Kyle MacLachlan plays a college student who stumbles upon a severed ear in the middle of a field, convinces himself to investigate the matter on his own, and ends up crossing paths with a menacing group of people.
best horror movies are an exercise in characters being in the wrong place at the wrong time, but Psycho has to be the ultimate example of the theme’s unexpected nature. Of all of the places where she could have stopped on a stormy night, the on-the-run Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) chooses to take shelter at the Bates Motel, run by the criminally unhinged Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins).
Sylvester Stallone). Had the lonely, traumatized, and highly-skilled Vietnam veteran walked into any other town, he would not have been caught up in a war with local law enforcement.
Alan Rickman) takes them hostage on Christmas Eve in Die Hard. For this reason, the New York-based cop should be considered a godsend, but if given the chance, he would willfully pass on the responsibility onto someone else.
The Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont’s adaptation of Stephen King’s novella, the evidence is stacked against Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) regarding whether or not he murdered his wife and her lover. Considering he was at the scene of the crime with a revolver in hand, one would understandably assume he was guilty, until it is revealed that his cellmate, Elmo Batch (Bill Bolender), is the real killer, making this a case of unfortunate coincidence.
high school movie favorite Donnie Darko presents a unique reversal of sorts on the “wrong place, wrong time” theme, as Jake Gyllenhaal’s titular teen is spared from a tragic death by the rabbit-suited Frank (James Duval). However, avoiding this grisly fate proves to have catastrophic consequences for his family, his peers, and, potentially, the world.
dark comedy movie, at that. It stars Griffin Dunne as computer data entry worker Paul Hackett, who becomes embroiled in a series of uproarious and deadly situations that stem from a seemingly innocent conversation with a woman (played by Rosanna Arquette) at a cafe.
remake of his own 1934 film, is a classic film noir starring James Stewart and Doris Day as a married couple on a holiday in Paris when they happen to witness a murder. Making matters worse, soon after, their young son is suddenly kidnapped.
criminally overlooked ’80s movie Innerspace, a scientist makes the spur-of-the-moment decision to save Tuck Pendleton (Dennis Quaid), who has been miniaturized and placed into a syringe, by injecting him into the first person he sees. That person is anxious supermarket clerk Jack Putter (Martin Short), who is forced to ignore his doctor’s orders and embark on an adventure to help get his new friend back to his normal size before it is too late.
’90s thriller told in real time that deals with the concept of average people embroiled in above-average situations. Johnny Depp stars as an accountant approached at a train station by sinister individuals who coerce him into committing an assassination in exchange for his daughter’s life.
box office flop in the ’80s, it has since been reevaluated as a taut suspense thriller by many, including Quentin Tarantino, according to Far Out.
tragic original ending), Dante (Brian O’Halloran) repeatedly makes it clear that he “is not supposed to be here today” after being called into work at Quick Stop.
Death Sentence (2007)
Had Kevin Bacon’s Nick Hume not stopped at a gas station on the way back from his teenage son’s hockey game, the boy would still be alive, and he would not be motivated to wage a war against a violent gang in director James Wan’s thriller, Death Sentence.