‘A House of Dynamite’

By Anna Menta

A House of Dynamite on Netflix is the scariest movie I’ve watched in years, and it’s not even a horror film. This new political thriller from Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow is a bone-chilling look at what might happen if—or when, as the movie’s tagline suggests—one of the U.S.’s many enemies decides to launch a nuclear war head at the country. The premise is simple: A missile has been launched. It’s projected to hit the continental U.S. No one knows who sent it. The government and military’s top people have 18 minutes to respond. Everyone stays calm. Everyone follows the protocol. But in the end, will that matter? Anchored by gut-wrenching performances from Rebecca Ferguson, Idris Elba, and Jared Harris, A House of Dynamite is as compelling as it is terrifying.

Photo: ©Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection