1. “The Hand That Rocks the Cradle” (1992)
Starring Rebecca De Mornay as a babysitter gone psycho, this 1990s thriller contains many of the same elements as “The Girl on the Train”: There’s a baby, a nanny, an idyllic suburban setting, and a mentally disturbed lead character.
2. Fatal Attraction (1987)
An extramarital affair becomes life threatening in this six-time Oscar-nominated film starring Glenn Close and Michael Douglas. Also involving murderous themes and a mentally unbalanced leading lady, “The Girl on the Train” covers cheating, too.
3. “Single White Female” (1992)
Jennifer Jason Leigh plays a woman who takes her jealousy too far in this roommate-themed thriller. Anyone who’s seen “The Girl on the Train” knows Emily Blunt also plays a woman whose envy takes her over the edge.
4. “Gone Girl” (2014)
Like “The Girl on the Train,” this movie starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike is also based on a similarly-themed best-selling novel in which none of its lead characters are deeply flawed.
5. “Sleeping with the Enemy” (1991)
As in the new Emily Blunt thriller, this Julia Roberts movie about escaping an abusive husband also illustrates how appearances of domestic bliss can be deceiving.
6. “The Crush” (1993)
Before Alicia Silverstone starred in the teen classic “Clueless,” she played a 14-year-old bent on seducing a married writer, played by Cary Elwes. As he rebuffs her advances in the thriller, her unhealthy obsession turns dangerous — which is essentially the premise of “The Girl on the Train.”
