The horror thriller Nanny is written and directed by Nikyatu Jusu. Starring Anna Diop and Michelle Monaghan, the film follows the life of immigrant Aisha as she strives to fulfill her American dream. She works as a nanny in New York’s Upper East Side to take care of a child. Meanwhile, her personal life is thrown off balance as visions and mystical creatures haunt her.
From an immigrant’s difficult journey and his struggles to adjust to a strange new place, Nanny provides such elements to bring about the film’s plot. If you want to see films that revolve around themes such as an immigrant’s experiences and their will to make it big and achieve their goals, then the following suggestions are perfect for you. You can watch most of these movies similar to Nanny on Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime.
8. Undocumented (2010)
A group of illegal immigrants is picked up by a gang of vicious extremists in New Mexico. This thwarts the plans of the documentary film team accompanying them. Written and directed by Chris Peckover, the film explores the sadistic methods of rival gangs in the ungoverned parts of some countries. Undocumented stars Scott Mechlowicz, Alona Tal and Yancey Arias. In both Nanny and Undocumented, the work and professional life of migrant workers is adequately portrayed.
7. Emelie (2015)
The horror thriller, starring Sarah Bolger, Carly Adams and Elisha Ali, uses an eerie and mysterious aura to build frightening situations. When a couple’s backup babysitter takes the kids on a series of bizarre antics, they realize they got more than they bargained for. Michael Thelin is the director of the film. It reflects the relationship between a nanny and the children. The latter are very perceptive and can sometimes see what the adults miss. Aisha is also a nanny in the movie ‘Nanny’. Also, both nannies in the films appear to have had scary experiences in their professional lives.
6. Beneath Us (2019)
Co-written and directed by Max Pachman, the horror thriller depicts the reality of migrant workers in the modern world. The American dream turns into a nightmare for a group of illegal day laborers employed by a wealthy couple. What they thought was their greatest reward turns out to be a terrifying struggle for survival. Starring Lynn Collins, Rigo Sanchez and Josue Aguirre, the film stays true to its core. Like Nanny, Beneath Us is a film about an immigrant’s journey to the American Dream.
5. Things Heard & Seen (2021)
Amanda Seyfried gives a haunting, brilliant performance as the lead in the horror mystery film Things Heard & Seen. Catherine and George move into a new house. But sinister occurrences threaten to destroy both their house and their married life. The film is based on the novel All Things Cease to Appear by Elizabeth Brundage. Directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, the film portrays the unsettling elements of a new place and how difficult it is to adjust to a whole new world. Like Aisha, Catherine has a hard time adjusting to another place. In addition, the lives of the two protagonists are accompanied by evil and terrible events.
4. No One Gets Out Alive (2021)
The novel by Adam Nevill forms the basis for this horror mystery film. An immigrant looking for the American Dream is thrown into a nightmare after being forced into a room at a boarding house. Santiago Menghini directed the film, which revolves around the protagonist’s struggles to find a home in a strange place. In addition, both Nanny and No One Gets Out Alive address the exploitation by wealthy people who are looking for cheap labor in the form of immigrants. The journey to fulfilling the American dream is also a theme in both films.
3. His House (2020)
A war-torn South Sudanese refugee couple makes a perilous escape, only to struggle to adjust to their new life in an English village where evil lurks in the shadows. The horror thriller, directed and written by Remi Weekes, reflects the harrowing reality of immigrants. Cruel working conditions, poor pay and being away from home are a frightening reality for many immigrants. So does Aisha in Nanny feel underpaid and overworked like the immigrants in His House.
2. The Turn (2020)
Directed by Floria Sigismondi, ‘The Turning’ is a horror thriller. An orphaned daughter is placed in the care of a young governess, but when the girl’s troublesome brother returns, old truths are uncovered. It is a contemporary interpretation of Henry James’ 1898 book The Turn of the Screw. Instead of being scary, the film uses spooky and dark scenes to punctuate the unsettling setting. Aisha and the Governess find themselves in similar situations where they are confronted with mysterious circumstances. Also, both are unable to make sense of what is happening around them.
1. Nocebo (2022)
Christine is a fashion designer. Her life is great until she gets a strange illness that confuses her doctors and frustrates her husband. When Diana, a nanny, comes to take care of her child, she ends up helping Christine too. The Filipino caregiver uses traditional folk remedies, which in turn reveal a horrifying reality. Directed by Lorcan Finnegan, the thriller Nocebo focuses on the trials of immigrant life. Like Aisha in Nanny, Diana is a nanny from another country. She finds it difficult to adjust to her new life in a strange place. The hauntings and mysteries that surround them make both films even more interesting.
