30. Gattaca
We’ve never actually watched “Gattaca,” we don’t think anyone has, but for some reason, we all know what it’s about. While genetic manipulation hasn’t been a major player in the end of the world so far, CRISPR is a thing, and there is still some time.
29. The Matrix
Technically “The Matrix” COULD be the most accurate movie on this list and we wouldn’t know it, but if this is “The Matrix” it seems unlikely that the robot overlords would let us watch “The Matrix.”
28. Equilibrium
Sort of like “Fahrenheit 451” but with gun-fu. Real-world anti-intellectualism is less book-burning assassins and more “Hey, look at TikTok!” but we’re putting it in the middle because honestly, it’s underrated. Go watch “Equilibrium,” it’s a good time.
27. Robocop
Between advances in technology and the growing hellscape of privatization, “Robocop” becomes more real every day. The only inaccurate part is Robocop himself, not because he’s a cyborg who regains his soul but because cops don’t have souls to begin with.
26. V For Vendetta
You gotta give this one points for predicting the whole “Let’s all dress like the V for Vendetta guy” trend, but the rest of the plot is a little hard to swallow after Covid. Considering how hard it was to get people to even take the vaccine, We don’t see Moderna installing a fascist regime anytime soon.
25. A Boy and His Dog
Possibly the most brutal telepathic dog movie ever made, and featuring some extremely hard-R plot lines, it’s definitely not for anyone remotely triggerable. Frankly, there’s a lot here we don’t even want to unpack, but one thing it was dead on about is America’s growing, obsessive desire to return to an idealized 1950s that never actually existed when faced with armageddon.
24. Clockwork Orange
Have you spoken to a teenager in the last three years? It’s terrifying. Plus as we all know, men will literally take drugs that make them sick with their eyes forced open watching ultra-violence before going to therapy.
23. The Stand (1994)
A charismatic Anti-Christ figure rises to power and galvanizes the most despicable people alive in the wake of a pandemic, but Randall Flag is actually a little more nuanced and 3-dimensional than Donald Trump was.
22. The Road
This movie doesn’t have much to say other than “Everything is bleak and shitty” which is enough to put it squarely in the middle.
21. Hunger Games
Another totalitarian game movie, this one gets a few more accuracy points for its reality TV/Influencer culture vibes. If the coming years do see the dawn of a brutal, sacrificial war game to crush the spirits of the lower classes, you can be sure that like Katniss, competitors will need to worry about keeping sponsors happy first and foremost.