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This mysterious thriller has Netflix fans on the edges of their seats

Published May 31st, 2022 4:01PM EDT
disappearance at clifton hill

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Netflix’s selection of movies has always been a bit of a mixed bag, with its Top 10 list generally dominated by random thirty-party titles, the streamer’s sometimes oddball original films, and new titles that rocket up the list as soon as they land on Netflix. The #1 title on the list in the US at the moment? Disappearance at Clifton Hill, a thriller released in 2020 starring Tuppence Middleton that managed to pull off the not-insignificant feat of supplanting Tom Cruise’s original Top Gun movie in the top spot.

In terms of the reaction to it, the film garnered slightly mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, for example, it’s got a 74 percent critics score at the moment (based on 46 reviews). Below, meanwhile, we’ll take a look at more details about the film, which might explain why it’s one of the top-ranked titles on Netflix right now.

Is Disappearance at Clifton Hill a true story?

The movie was apparently based in part on writer-director Albert Shin’s own life. According to news reports, Shin’s parents once owned a Niagara Falls-era motel. And Shin has memories from his childhood of what seemed at the time to be a kidnapping.

To a certain degree, some of those memories seem to have gotten baked into the plot of the movie. IFC Films summarizes Disappearance at Clifton Hill as follows. “Following the death of her mother, Abby (Tuppence Middleton), a troubled young woman with a checkered past, returns to her hometown of Niagara Falls and the dilapidated motel her family used to run. While there, she finds herself drawn once again into a mystery that has haunted her since childhood: What happened to the young boy she saw being violently abducted in the woods twenty-five years ago?”

As Abby sets out to find out the truth, the synopsis continues, she must face her own demons. As well as a dormant conspiracy that’s as deeply implanted in the community as the falls themselves.

IFC Films goes on to tease the movie as a “tantalizing psychological puzzle box,” which might explain why it rocketed to the top of Netflix’s movie chart.


Top 10 Netflix movies

In terms of what other movies are especially popular on Netflix right now, besides Disappearance at Clifton Hill, here’s a look at some of the other films that Netflix subscribers seem to be watching the most.

Given that Top Gun: Maverick is still dominating the box office, the original Top Gun movie is unsurprisingly still holding strong at #2 on Netflix. It’s followed by Rebel Wilson’s comedy Senior Year.

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(L to R) Sam Richardson as Seth and Rebel Wilson as Stephanie Conway in the Netflix movie “Senior Year.” Image source: Boris Martin/Netflix

Rounding out the latest Top 10 rankings are the following movies:


More Netflix coverage: For more Netflix news, check out the latest new Netflix movies and series to watch.

Andy Meek Trending News Editor

Andy Meek is a reporter based in Memphis who has covered media, entertainment, and culture for over 20 years. His work has appeared in outlets including The Guardian, Forbes, and The Financial Times, and he’s written for BGR since 2015. Andy's coverage includes technology and entertainment, and he has a particular interest in all things streaming.

Over the years, he’s interviewed legendary figures in entertainment and tech that range from Stan Lee to John McAfee, Peter Thiel, and Reed Hastings.