Here Are the Six Trippiest Movies on Netflix (2024)

Forget the rabbit hole. Dive headfirst into a dead star’s vortex with our curated list of trippy movies on Netflix. These cinematic gems will warp your perception with twisted narratives, mind-melting visuals, and cacophonous soundtracks that will leave you questioning reality. From dream-laden masterpieces to sci-fi brain-benders, here’s our map to a supernova of otherworldly realms that will blow your mind — and expand your consciousness.

On the Chill Side of Netflix:

Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

Forget a heroic dose of mushrooms, Everything Everywhere All at Once is your one-stop shop for a cinematic trip that’ll leave you saying “whoa” more than Keanu Reeves coming off a weed-brownie binge.

Imagine this: You’re Evelyn, a stressed-out laundromat owner who is two tax audits away from a meltdown (and possibly prison). Then BAM! The multiverse explodes in your face like a piñata stuffed with alternate realities. Suddenly, you can tap into the skills of all the Evelyns you could have been: opera singer Evelyn, hot dog-fingered kung fu Evelyn, even an Evelyn who can only communicate with inanimate objects through googly eyes.

Everything Everywhere All at Once is a jumpkickin’, jam-packed joyride through parallel universes, each one weirder than the last. Think “Rick & Morty” meets “The Matrix” with a dash of existential dread and a whole lot of hot dog fingers. You’ll be dodging butt plug trophies, singing karaoke with sentient rocks, and yes, even learning how to fight with those aforementioned hot dog fingers.

But here’s the real trip: Under all the craziness, it’s a heartwarming story about family, love and finding purpose in the infinite chaos of existence. So, grab your business receipts, hold onto your sanity (or lack thereof), and get ready for a brain-bending odyssey that will leave you questioning everything you thought you knew about the meaning of life… and laundry.

Waking Life (2001)

This animated masterpiece explores dreams, reality, and the ultimate meaning of everything through a series of interconnected conversations. Waking Life is kind of like a cross between Inception and A Scanner Darkly, with a rotoscoped animation style that will make you feel like you’re perpetually falling down–and up–a rabbit hole.

A Trip to Infinity (2022)

Buckle up for a boggling but insightful journey through the mathematical concept of infinity. Through interviews with philosophers, mathematicians and physicists, this documentary explores the vastness of the universe, the complexities of existence, and your own personal failings at math.

The Midnight Gospel (2020)

This animated series from the creator of “Adventure Time” is a wild ride through space with a healthy dose of existential pondering. Each episode features a cat-headed podcaster interviewing a different character across the multiverse, with animation styles that shift and morph to reflect the content. Prepare for philosophical discussions, bizarre creatures, and enough absolutely whacked out visuals to leave you feeling like you just downloaded a new reality.

And On the Darker Side of Netflix:

Hey, you knew it was coming: That section at the end of the list where we throw a bloody bone to those who enjoy a bit of the ol’… ultraviolence.

Mandy (2018)

In Mandy, meme machine Nicolas Cage unleashes his most unhinged, eye-popping glory in this red-tinted revenge fantasy.

Cage plays Red Miller, a lumberjack whose girlfriend Mandy is kidnapped by a demonic, acid-tripping biker gang. True to his roots, he forges a battle ax, loads up on bolts and a crossbow, and rolls some heads (literally). The dookie truly hits the fan when he stumbles on the gang’s magical LSD stash–and that’s when the movie really starts.

Mandy feels like those groggy moments in a fever dream, the paralyzing intersections between the sleeping and the waking worlds, with a soundtrack reminiscent of two malfunctioning robots banging on the Nostromo. Prepare for gratuitous gore, flaming tigers, and more WTF moments than you can shake a chainsaw at.

Beyond the Black Rainbow (2010)

Forget sunshine and a pot of gold, Beyond the Black Rainbow is a psychedelic nightmare tailor-made for the mindfuck movie buff. Taking place in 1983, a mad scientist conducts psychic experiments on a girl named Elena. Though she’s desperate to escape and return to her family, she’s been drugged to keep her abilities in check. If you’ve ever seen Scanners or Akira, you can guess where this goes next. (Get the barf bags ready…)

Directed by Italian-Canadian filmmaker Panos Cosmatos, the film’s retro look and feel draws from Michael Mann’s Manhunter (where we got Dr. Hannibal Lecter’s first on-screen appearance), John Carpenter’s Dark Star, George Lucas’ THX 1138, and Stanley Kubrick (pick one). The slow-paced-yet-jumpy editorial style, along with the film’s approach to a non-linear narrative, are Cosmatos’ own.