14 incredibly cool films about programmers and hackers

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Intense thrillers, biographical dramas and even one very funny comedy await you.

1. Throne

• USA, 1982.
• Action, science fiction, cyberpunk.
• Duration: 96 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 8.

Talented programmer Kevin Flynn loses his job due to the fact that Ed Dillinger, his new colleague, owns his best ideas. Trying to prove that he was robbed, the hero gets into the company's database. But suddenly he finds himself inside the system, where he has to fight in the arena against the evil program "Master Control".

The significance of Stephen Leesberger's film to the film industry is enormous: it is in fact the first live action tape, almost entirely created on a computer. Of course, Tron's graphics are outdated today and seem funny. But if you remember that the picture was released in 1982, the attitude towards it immediately changes.

In addition, a very young Jeff Bridges played the main role, and fans of The Big Lebowski will certainly be interested to see their favorite in such an unexpected way.

2. War games

• USA, 1983.
• Thriller, drama.
• Duration: 114 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 1.

Teenage hacker Dave Lightman hacks into the US Department of Defense's computer network and finds some interesting military simulators among the files. The guy decides to play on the side of the USSR and almost becomes the culprit of the Third World War - after all, he took for a game a simulation capable of initiating the launch of real nuclear missiles.

The film became the second in the career of young Matthew Broderick and opened his way to big cinema. After that, the actor starred in the iconic youth comedies Ferris Bueller Takes a Day Off and She's Having a Baby.

In addition, the War Games have had a powerful impact on popular culture. So, thanks to the picture, the abbreviation DEFCON (the scale of the readiness of the US armed forces) came into use, and later the game was called so based on the film.

3. Hackers

• USA, 1995.
• Thriller, crime, detective, comedy.
• Duration: 107 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

11-year-old genius Dade Murphy managed to sow panic on the New York Stock Exchange, so until he comes of age he is prohibited from using a computer. Having entered college, the guy instantly takes up the old and meets a company of like-minded people. Together they accidentally go out to the professional hacker Eugene Belford, nicknamed Plague, who has started a robbery of a large oil corporation, and try to ruin his plans.

Ian Softley's painting went almost unnoticed at the box office, but after a while it became cult. The audience fell in love not only with the dynamic plot about the confrontation between good and bad hackers, but also the heroes themselves, who look like typical teenagers of the first half of the 90s.

4. Network

• USA, 1995.
• Crime, thriller.
• Duration: 114 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 0.

Programmer Angela Bennett falls prey to hackers who call themselves Praetorians. Criminals steal her data and replace them with false information, according to which the heroine is on the federal wanted list.

Director Irwin Winkler's film starring '90s rising star Sandra Bullock plays on the viewer's fear of technology. Indeed, the thought that one can literally destroy an individual by pressing a key makes it somehow uncomfortable.

5. 23

• Germany, 1998.
• Thriller, drama.
• Duration: 99 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 3.

After reading Wilson's novel The Illuminati, a young and capable Karl begins to believe in a worldwide secret conspiracy. Looking for like-minded people, the hero meets people who do not mind using his mind for their own purposes. Gradually, the guy ceases to distinguish between reality and fantasy and becomes a criminal.

The film is based on the true story of the young hacker Karl Koch from Germany. And the tape perfectly shows what an obsession with an idea can lead to. After all, the hero himself did not understand how he went beyond the bounds of his passion for the book and crossed the dangerous line.

6. Matrix

• USA, Australia, 1999.
• Science fiction, cyberpunk, action.
• Duration: 136 minutes.
• IMDb: 8, 7.

During the day, Thomas Anderson is an ordinary office worker, and at night he is an elusive hacker. One day the hero finds out that the world around is not real, and people are only batteries to power evil machines. However, he can change everything.

The Matrix has become more than just a popular film franchise. Wachowski's films almost immediately became cult, and fans over 20 years managed to come up with many of their own theories and interpretations.

7. Pirates of Silicon Valley

• USA, 1999.
• Biography, drama.
• Duration: 95 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 3.

The early 70s, the computer industry is just beginning to develop. Two dreamers - Bill Gates and Steve Jobs - are going to build their own empires and change the lives of ordinary people forever.

Some of the details in Martin Burke's film are not entirely accurate. But still, this is primarily a work of fiction, and inaccuracy is forgivable for him. But the actors in it are surprisingly similar to the real Jobs and Gates.

8. Hacking

• USA, 2000.
• Biography, thriller.
• Duration: 92 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

Legendary hacker Kevin Mitnick breaks into the computer of the American information security specialist Tsutoma Sumomura and steals the files he needs. The problem is that in addition to them, he has a virus that can destroy all known Internet systems. Sumomura has no choice but to try to catch Mitnick together with the FBI.

The painting in the spirit of "Catch me if you can" recreates real events quite accurately. Sumomura is more likely to be a positive hero here (no wonder, because the film was based on his book), but the authors also showed Mitnik with a share of sympathy.

9. The Dangerous Truth

• USA, 2001.
• Thriller, drama, crime.
• Duration: 109 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 1.

Milo Hoffman, a young, capable programmer, joins a large computer company. But behind the scenes of the company something is clearly going on, and the hero begins to suspect that the bosses had a hand in the death of his friend.

The creators showed a very believable and realistic IT world, which is quite rare in films about programmers. A skillfully constructed intrigue keeps you in suspense and makes you watch the film to the end.

10. Social network

• USA, 2010.
• Biography, drama.
• Duration: 121 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 7.

Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg quarrels with a girl and, in spite of her, creates a website to discuss pictures of pretty classmates there. This is where the Facebook story begins, and Zuckerberg himself becomes the world's youngest billionaire.

David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin told the story of a man who invented a powerful tool for communication, but himself did not make new friends and ruined relationships with old ones. In general, the founder of Facebook was shown not in the best possible light.

11. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

• USA, Sweden, UK, Germany, 2011.
• Detective, thriller.
• Duration: 158 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 8.

Journalist Mikael Blomkvist is investigating a murder 40 years ago. The man takes the hacker Lisbeth Salander with a photographic memory as his assistant.

This isn't the first time a Stig Larsson novel has been brought to the screen, but David Fincher was the one who did it best. The film came out amazing, and there are many reasons to watch it. But first of all, it should be done for the sake of Rooney Mara, who here is completely different from herself in ordinary life. And also - to appreciate the emotional performance of Bond star Daniel Craig.

12. Personnel

• USA, 2013.
• Comedy.
• Duration: 119 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 3.

Best friends Billy and Nick have been in sales all their lives, but they lost their jobs due to total computerization. And then the heroes go on a summer internship for young people at the famous Google company.

It is a rare case when programmers are filmed not a thriller or a biographical drama, but a comedy. Moreover, director Sean Levy ("Night at the Museum") managed to create a very cute movie with great humor based on a very simple story.

13. Out of the car

• UK, 2014.
• Science fiction, thriller.
• Duration: 108 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 7.

Programmer Caleb, at the invitation of his boss Nathan, comes to his luxurious house to test a female robot named Ava. But during the experiment, the guy falls in love with artificial intelligence.

The director of "Developers" and "Annihilation" Alex Garland makes very unusual films. They are difficult to understand the first time, and they skillfully combine social issues and scientific issues.

14. Who am I

• Germany, 2014.
• Thriller.
• Duration: 102 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 5.

Benjamin Engel is a rather reserved guy, but everything changes when he meets the charismatic Max. Together they create a hacker group and commit a series of daring cybercrimes. However, because of this, the police are interested in them.

The film in the spirit of "Fight Club" received many national awards, and for good reason. The picture is really captivating, and its plot twists are unlikely to leave viewers indifferent.