No two Danny Boyle movies look or feel the same, and yet every one of them is unmistakably his.
This list ranks 13 of his best films. Some are polished and crowd-pleasing, others raw and risky, but all of them speak of a filmmaker who never settles for safe.
13. Trance (2013)
Written by: Joe Ahearne and John Hodge
Trance follows Simon (James McAvoy), an auctioneer who gets knocked on the head during a heist and forgets where he hid a priceless Goya painting. To recover it, criminal mastermind Franck (Vincent Cassel) brings in hypnotherapist Elizabeth (Rosario Dawson), who dives into Simon’s subconscious.
This is Boyle’s most tangled narrative. It looks gorgeous, thanks to Anthony Dod Mantle’s cinematography and the slick production design. But the story spirals so deeply into its own twists that clarity becomes a casualty.
The film shows how stunning visuals can't save a muddled narrative. For filmmakers, it’s a reminder to ground complexity in emotional stakes. Mystery isn’t always about withholding.
12. 28 Years Later (2025)
Written by: Alex Garland
Set decades after the original outbreak, 28 Years Later picks up in a radically altered world—one where the Rage Virus has evolved, governments have collapsed and rebounded, and survivors now live with trauma. The story follows a new generation grappling with legacy and survival as a new strain of the virus begins to surface.
This long-awaited sequel mutates the original’s DNA. Gone is the frenetic desperation of 28 Days Later. Boyle leans into tension. His use of eerie silences, wide dystopian vistas, and slow-burn horror brings maturity to the franchise.
Emerging filmmakers can take notes on how to revisit a world without repeating it. Instead of retelling the same story louder, 28 Years Later recontextualizes its themes and shifts the emotional register.
11. The Beach (2000)
Written by: John Hodge | Based on the novel by: Alex Garland
The Beach follows Richard (Leonardo DiCaprio), a disillusioned American traveler in Thailand who stumbles upon a hidden island community that promises paradise, and slowly reveals itself as something far darker. With Francoise (Virginie Ledoyen) and Étienne (Guillaume Canet) by his side, Richard gets seduced by the utopia's surface while watching its cracks widen.
Years later, The Beach plays like a time capsule of turn-of-the-millennium dread. Boyle’s camera romanticizes the jungle in one breath and turns it into a nightmare in the next. It’s a tonal juggling act that doesn’t always land perfectly but never stops being interesting.
What makes this film valuable is its refusal to simplify. We can learn how to lean into discomfort, both thematically and visually. Boyle isn’t afraid to let his characters become unlikable or his paradise turn ugly.
10. Yesterday (2019)
Written by: Richard Curtis
When a global blackout erases the Beatles from everyone’s memory, struggling musician Jack Malik (Himesh Patel) becomes the only person who remembers their music. He passes off the songs as his own and rockets to fame, all while grappling with guilt, identity, and his feelings for childhood friend Ellie (Lily James).
This premise could’ve easily turned into syrupy fluff, but Boyle and screenwriter Richard Curtis find just the right mix of charm and self-awareness. Patel brings vulnerability and grounded humor to a potentially gimmicky role, and Boyle wisely underplays the fantasy, focusing instead on personal stakes.
Filmmakers seeking to balance high-concept ideas with human emotion will find Yesterday instructive. The sci-fi hook is the ticket in, but the emotional arc keeps the audience seated.
9. Millions (2004)
Written by: Frank Cottrell-Boyce
Millions centers on Damian (Alex Etel), a deeply spiritual 7-year-old who believes in saints and miracles. Days before the U.K. switches to the euro, he discovers a bag stuffed with stolen cash that he thinks was sent from heaven. His older brother Anthony (Lewis Owen McGibbon) wants to spend it fast. Their opposing ideas of right and wrong unfold into a fable-like tale about generosity, grief, and moral ambiguity.
The film blends magical realism with grounded emotion, balancing Damian’s saintly visions with the very adult world of banks, robbers, and loss. It also shows how Boyle can dial down the intensity without losing any cinematic flair.
What’s refreshing here is the emotional honesty beneath the whimsy. For storytellers working with young protagonists, Millions is a sharp reminder that children’s stories don’t have to be talked down to or sugarcoated. It respects its characters’ innocence while also acknowledging their complexity.
8. T2 Trainspotting (2017)
Written by: John Hodge | Based on the novels by: Irvine Welsh
Two decades after Trainspotting, Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor) returns to Edinburgh to find his old friends, Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), Spud (Ewen Bremner), and Begbie (Robert Carlyle), trapped in their own versions of middle-aged malaise.
With T2, Boyle could have tried to recapture the lightning of the first film. Instead, he makes it about living with the burn scars. He laces the film with callbacks, but not as fan service; they’re emotional echoes. The editing mimics the original’s frenetic pace, but now there’s a melancholy underneath, a sense of people who peaked young and are trying to find something resembling purpose.
There’s a valuable lesson here about revisiting characters without betraying them. T2 shows how sequels can deepen rather than dilute, especially when filmmakers approach them with reflection, not just continuation.
7. Sunshine (2007)
Written by: Alex Garland
Set in a future where the sun is dying, Sunshine follows a crew of scientists and astronauts tasked with reigniting the star using a nuclear payload. As they approach their destination, technical failures, psychological pressure, and cosmic dread begin to unravel the mission and the crew.
This is arguably Boyle’s most visually ambitious work. From the golden glare of solar flares to the stark contrasts of deep space, every frame pulses with atmosphere. Alex Garland’s script injects existential weight, and the first two acts move with precision, until the third pivots hard into horror. That tonal shift divided audiences, but Boyle commits to it fully, turning awe into terror with startling effectiveness.
For genre filmmakers, Sunshine is a bold example of mixing moods and playing with structure. The transition from science fiction to metaphysical horror won’t work for everyone, but it’s a daring reminder that tension doesn’t always need explosions.
6. Shallow Grave (1994)
Written by: John Hodge
Flatmates Alex (Ewan McGregor), David (Christopher Eccleston), and Juliet (Kerry Fox) find their new tenant dead—and sitting on a suitcase full of cash. Instead of calling the police, they decide to keep the money, dismember the body, and bury the consequences. Paranoia, guilt, and suspicion slowly rot their once-tight bond.
Boyle’s directorial debut is lean, nasty, and weirdly charming. It wastes no time: within minutes, we’re knee-deep in morally gray decisions. The film’s dark humor slashes through the tension, and the erratic, voyeuristic camerawork makes every apartment corner feel menacing. It’s also a coming-out party for the talent involved. McGregor is magnetic, and Eccleston’s descent into madness still chills.
New filmmakers can see how much can be done with a tight script, a single location, and a twisted premise. Shallow Grave proves that budget is no excuse for bland. If anything, limitations can sharpen the edge, forcing inventiveness, tightening the tension, and leaving no room for fat.
5. Steve Jobs (2015)
Written by: Aaron Sorkin | Based on the biography by: Walter Isaacson
Structured around three high-stakes product launches, Steve Jobs follows the Apple co-founder (Michael Fassbender) in the 40 minutes leading up to each presentation, with confrontations from colleagues and family. His interactions with marketing exec Joanna Hoffman (Kate Winslet), Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (Seth Rogen), and estranged daughter Lisa (played at various ages) peel back layers of myth and ego.
Boyle lets Sorkin’s firecracker dialogue take the lead, but he injects it with cinematic energy, cutting between timelines, and shifting film stock from 16mm to digital. Fassbender doesn’t look like Jobs and doesn’t try to, but he embodies the volatile intellect, obsession, and contradictions at the man’s core.
What stands out here is how Boyle transforms a dense, talk-heavy script into something visually alive. For filmmakers, Steve Jobs is proof that structure is your friend, not your enemy. To build tension effectively, you simply need sharp writing and a director who knows when to let silence do the work.
4. 127 Hours (2010)
Written by: Danny Boyle and Simon Beaufoy | Based on the memoir by: Aron Ralston
Adventurer Aron Ralston (James Franco) sets off solo into Utah’s Blue John Canyon and ends up trapped by a boulder that pins his arm. With no way out and no one coming, he spends five harrowing days recording video messages, hallucinating memories, and ultimately making a horrific decision to survive.
How do you make a movie where the protagonist is stuck in one spot for most of the runtime? If you’re Boyle, you break every rule. The film bursts with energy—split screens, subjective sound design, surreal flashbacks—all while never leaving that canyon. Franco gives a blistering performance that holds the screen through despair, humor, and delirium.
The takeaway here? Constraints can breed creativity. Boyle takes a static premise and infuses it with emotional momentum. If you’re a filmmaker worried about “limited settings,” watch how 127 Hours turns a single rock into a narrative engine.
3. 28 Days Later (2002)
Written by: Alex Garland
Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up from a coma in an abandoned hospital, only to find London eerily empty, its population ravaged by the Rage Virus. As he joins survivors Selena (Naomie Harris) and Frank (Brendan Gleeson), the group searches for safety.
Boyle reinvented the zombie genre without using the Z-word. Shot largely on digital DV, the film has a raw, docu-style intensity that mirrors the post-9/11 anxieties of its time. Murphy’s performance launched a career.
This is required viewing for anyone writing apocalyptic fiction. 28 Days Later proves that horror is most effective when it reflects real fear. Boyle didn’t stop after infecting the humans and turning them into monsters. He showed them as systems breaking down and civility unraveling. He turned them into a terrifying idea that survival might not be the point.
2. Slumdog Millionaire (2008)
Written by: Simon Beaufoy | Based on the novel by: Vikas Swarup
Jamal (Dev Patel), a teen from Mumbai’s slums, becomes a contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and stuns the nation by answering every question correctly. As police interrogate him for suspected cheating, he recounts his life story, with each answer linked to a moment of survival, heartbreak, or luck.
The film blends Bollywood colors with British storytelling rhythm, stitched together by A.R. Rahman’s soundtrack. It swept the 2009 Oscars with eight wins, including Best Picture and Best Director. Patel’s charm carries the film, but the real genius lies in its structure—a love story, thriller, and socio-political drama all rolled into one.
More than anything, Slumdog is a lesson in tonal fusion. It shows that global stories can have universal resonance when told with emotional honesty. Style doesn’t have to sacrifice substance.
1. Trainspotting (1996)
Written by: John Hodge | Based on the novel by: Irvine Welsh
Renton (Ewan McGregor) and his band of heroin-addicted friends, Spud (Ewen Bremner), Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), and the volatile Begbie (Robert Carlyle), stagger through the underbelly of Edinburgh, chasing highs. It’s a story of addiction that’s as much about escape as it is about entrapment.
Trainspotting practically changed the landscape of British cinema. The “Choose Life” monologue, the toilet dive, and the pulsating soundtrack —every piece of it became iconic. Boyle’s direction captures the rush and rot of drug culture without glamorizing it. Every performance is electric, but McGregor rules.
This is one of those rare films that feels alive. It’s no exaggeration to say that Trainspotting made a generation of young filmmakers believe anything was possible with the right voice, the right cut, and a refusal to play it safe.
