MesmeroWatch list, 0 saved

Movie
Poster for The Dying Gaul

The Dying Gaul

2005 · 95 min

A slow, uncomfortable plunge into grief and manipulation, where every conversation feels like a trap waiting to spring.

Directed by
Craig Lucas
Genres
Drama
Tagline
"Woe to him who seeks to please rather than appall."
Overview
A grief-stricken screenwriter unknowingly enters a three-way relationship with a woman and her film executive husband - to chilling results.

Your rating is saved. See your suggestions, or find titles like this one below.

Rate it, and Mesmero finds titles that feel like it. You do not need an account.

Search YouTube for a trailer

Add to a list: The Dying Gaul

You have no lists yet. Name one, and this title goes into it.

All your lists

In the USNot loaded yet.
Directed by
Craig Lucas
Genres
Drama
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 3 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • cynicalstrength 2 of 3
Pacing
slow-burn, 1 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
demanding, 4 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • grief
  • deception
  • betrayal
  • identity
  • obsession
Places
  • big city
  • single country house
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • twist ending
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language strong
  • Violence mild
  • Sex strong
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action1
Horror2
Humour2
Realism7
Romance4
Tension7
Darkness8
Complexity8
Emotional weight8

More like this

Titles like The Dying Gaul

Movie

Gone Girl

2014

A cold, gripping plunge into a poisonous marriage where every scene tightens the screw and nothing can be trusted.

Dark, tense · about deception and betrayal · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • deception
  • betrayal
  • twist ending
Pacing
measured
Attention
demanding
Runtime
149 min
Details
Gone GirlHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Sunset Boulevard

1950

A haunting, darkly funny descent into delusion and faded glamour, with a bitter, tragic sting.

Dark, melancholic · about betrayal and identity · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • betrayal
  • identity
  • twist ending
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
110 min
Details
Sunset BoulevardHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Verity

2026

A sleek, chilly thriller that keeps you uneasy, constantly second-guessing what's real and who's lying.

Dark, tense · about grief and deception · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • grief
  • deception
  • twist ending
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
117 min
Details
VerityHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Betrayal

2012

A slow, uneasy plunge into suspicion and grief, where small confessions detonate quietly and no one quite says what they mean.

Dark, melancholic, slow-burn · about grief and deception · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • grief
  • deception
  • twist ending
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
115 min
Details
BetrayalHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Twinless

2025

A cringe-inducing, tender black comedy about grief and obsession that keeps you squirming and aching for its lonely characters.

Dark, melancholic · about grief and deception · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • grief
  • deception
  • twist ending
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
100 min
Details
TwinlessHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Match Point

2005

A slow-burn psychological thriller that keeps you tense with moral ambiguity and the unsettling weight of luck and guilt.

Dark, tense · about betrayal and obsession · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • betrayal
  • obsession
  • twist ending
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
124 min
Details
Match PointHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Blue Jasmine

2013

A slow, uncomfortable character study that mixes sharp social satire with a portrait of a woman unraveling, leaving you tense and uneasy.

Dark, melancholic · about grief and deception

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • grief
  • deception
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
99 min
Details
Blue JasmineHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Talented Mr. Ripley

1999

A sun-drenched, seductive descent into obsession and deceit, where beauty and menace intertwine, leaving a lingering chill.

Dark, melancholic, slow-burn · about deception and identity

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • deception
  • identity
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
140 min
Details
The Talented Mr. RipleyHidden from your suggestions.
TV series

House of Cards

2013–2018

Cold, calculating and quietly vicious, it draws you into a world of polished corridors where every smile hides a knife.

Dark, tense, slow-burn · about deception and betrayal

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • deception
  • betrayal
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Seasons
6
Details
House of CardsHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Bad Education

2004

A labyrinthine, emotionally charged noir that keeps shifting beneath you, demanding close attention as it blurs memory, fiction, and desire.

Dark, melancholic · about betrayal and identity · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • betrayal
  • identity
  • twist ending
Pacing
measured
Attention
demanding
Runtime
105 min
Details
Bad EducationHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

A Perfect Man

2015

A slow-burning, tense psychological thriller that keeps you uneasy as a lie spirals into guilt and paranoia.

Dark, tense · about deception and betrayal

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • deception
  • betrayal
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
103 min
Details
A Perfect ManHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

In a Lonely Place

1950

A slow-burning, tense romance that curdles into dread, anchored by a volatile performance and a pervasive sense of unease.

Dark, melancholic, slow-burn · about betrayal and obsession · twist ending

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • betrayal
  • obsession
  • twist ending
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Runtime
93 min
Details
In a Lonely PlaceHidden from your suggestions.

Cast

Where to watch in the US

Change country

We have not loaded where to watch in the US for this title yet. Check again in a day or two.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
drama
Directed by
Craig Lucas
Written by
Craig Lucas
Starring
Peter Sarsgaard, Patricia Clarkson, Campbell Scott, Ryan Miller, Robin Bartlett, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Kelli O'Hara, Dee Dee Flores
Music
Steve Reich
Cinematography
Bobby Bukowski
Runtime
95 min
Country
United States of America
Languages
English

TMDBIMDbLetterboxdWikipediaWikidata

Something wrong on this page? Tell us.