I think it’s safe to say that we would all love to know what comes next.
To be able to see the future, to see what our world might be like in 20, or even 50
years in the future.
However, there have been many people throughout history that have possessed the ability of
foresight, people he knew exactly what was coming our way, and some of them even make
movies.
So today on Top 10 Beyond The Screen, I’m going to be counting down our list of the
Top 10 Movies That Predicted Real Life Events.
Let’s jump in.
10 Blade Runner (1982) - Digital Billboards For those living under a rock, Blade Runner,
released in 1982, follows Deckard who is forced by the police Boss to continue his old job
as Replicant Hunter.
His assignment: eliminate four escaped Replicants from the colonies who have returned to Earth.
Before starting his job, Deckard meets a replicant girl he falls in love with.
Now, during the making of Blade Runner, digital billboards didn’t exist, and were nothing
more than science fiction -- however, if you live in a big city, specifically one like
Tokyo, New York or Toronto, you are more than accustomed to seeing a digital billboard,
to the point that you can’t imagine living in a city without them.
9 Airplane II: The Sequel (1982) - Airport Body Scanners
This 1982 sci-fi/disaster movie follows pilot Ted Striker, who -- through haunted combat
memories -- agrees to return to the cockpit to man the controls of Mayflower One, America’s
first commercial spacecraft.
However, as soon as Mayflower One lifts off, an electrical malfunction sends the ship veering
off course, and a shaken Strike struggles to guide the shuttle through a treacherous
asteroid belt, tame its failing computer system and stop the disgruntled Joe Seluchi from
detonating a deadly bomb on board.
Now, a few of you may be laughing at the idea that this comedy could in any way predict
the future, however, it happened, and it surprised me more than anyone.
This satirical comedy proved prescient when it came to airport security, with the film
aptly showing off the first body scanner on screen.
8 The Man (1972) - First Black President This drama follows James Earl Jones who plays
Senate President Pro Tempore Douglas Dilman who must step up and lead, becoming the first
black man to occupy the Oval Office when the president and Speak of the House are killed
in a building collapse.
I mean, there are no two ways about this one, Barack Obama became the first Black president
through democratice elections but one way or another, the fact did still remain that
the Man predicted there would at least be a black president all the way back in 1972.
7 You’ve Got Mail (1998) - Online Dating This 1998 romance stars Tom Hanks and Meg
Ryan and follows a struggling boutique bookseller Kathleen, who hates Joe, the owner of a corporate
Foxbooks chain store that moved in across the street.
However, when they meet online they begin an intense and anonymous Internet romance,
oblivious of each other's true identity.
The film is iconic, and one of the greatest of our time, but when it came out, You’ve
Got Mail attempted something that not many (if any) had attempted to try: online romance.
That’s right.
This RomCom directed by Nora Ephron predicted the rise of internet dating, and now 20 years
later, most of us can’t imagine a world without it.
6 Minority Report (2002) - Face Recognition and Personalized Ads
This Tom Cruise Drama released back in 2002 is set in Washington DC in 2054, where police
utilize a psychic technology to arrest and convict murderers before they commit their
crime.
Now this film was once again in pop culture back in 2014, when the FBI announced the completion
of its new facial recognition technology, in turn moving the world one step closer to
the vision of 2054 in Minority Report, which showed off interactive interfaces that could
be manipulated via hand gestures.
However, that wasn’t the only thing the film predicted, personalized advertisement
was another -- and as any avid internet user will know, personalized retargeting makes
up most of the ads we see today.
5 Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2003) - Memory Eraser
Released back in 2004, this drama/sci-fi follows a couple after a painful breakup, with Clementine
undergoing a procedure to erase all the memories of her former boyfriend Joel.
And, when Joel finds out about this procedure, he undergoes the same treatment and slowly
begins to forget about the woman he once loved.
Now, what makes this film interesting is that just 11 years after its release, a team of
researchers in cooperation with the American Psychological Association proudly announced
that memory erasure for people who suffer from post-trauma stress and similar conditions.
4 The Truman Show (1998) - Reality TV This 1998 drama fantasy follows Truman Burbank,
a man who has no idea that his entire life is part of a massive TV set, with executive
producers orchestrating a live broadcast of Truman’s every move captured by hidden cameras.
Now, when we hear this, you think reality TV.
You think Big Brother, maybe even Real World.
However, back in the 90’s when The Truman Show was released, reality TV did not exist,
and was instead a mere fantasy scenario in films.
I kind off miss the 90’s, I want back in that timeline.
Now, while our current crop of Reality TV hasn’t quite reached the level of manipulation
seen in The Truman Show, the mere idea of having a show based on the real life of man
isn’t that far fetched.
3 Super Mario Bros. (1993) - 9/11 Yes, this is a live action movie about our
favorite video game plumber.
Released in 1993 this sci-fi/fantasy follows Brooklyn plumbers Mario and Luigi who are
forced to rescue Princess Daisy from King Koopa and the Goombas in a dinosaur world.
Now, despite the film being a critical and commercial flop, developed a strong fan base
over the years, leading to some fans being unable to shake the movie’s unsettling evocation
of 9/11.
That’s right.
This film predicted 9/11 eight years before it ever happened.
Toward the end of the film New York city and that of the Koopas world collide, resulting
in reality over the Big Apple cracking, to the point that the twin towers slowly reveal
structural damage before phasing out of sight completely.
How terrifying is that?
2 Face/Off (1997) - Face Transplant This action/thriller was released back in
1997 and followed FBI Agent Sean Archer who is obsessed with bringing terrorist Castor
Troy to justice.
However, things take a turn when Sean Archer tracks down Troy who has boarded a place in
LA which ultimately crashes, leading to Archer undergoing surgery to remove his face and
replace it with Troy’s in order to elicit information about a bomb from Troy’s brother
-- during which time the real Troy wakes from a coma and forces the doctor who performed
the surgery to give him Archer’s face.
Now, the film is ridiculous, yes, but highly entertaining, and, like the rest of our list,
predicted the future.
In 2010, a team of thirty Spanish doctors performed the first successful full face transplant
on a patient who was injured during a shooting mishap.
The full transplant including functioning eyelids and tear ducts, which is absolutely
terrifying to imagine.
1 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - Everything This sci-fi/fantasy released all the way back
in 1968 follows an imposing black structure that provides a connection between the past
and the future.
When Dr. Dave Bowman and other astronauts are sent on a mission, their ship’s computer
system HAL begins to display strange behaviors, leading to an incredibly tense showdown through
time and space.
Now, many consider 2001: A Space Odyssey to be one of the greatest films in cinematic
history, and they’re not wrong, however, what’s more impressive is that Director
Stanley Kubrick has turned out to be the cinematic equivalent of Nostradamus, with the acclaimed
director predicting several things, including: tablet computing, the International Space
Station, Space Tourism, and Siri, HAL is essentially Siri.
I think we’re all just silently praying that he’s not correct about technology turning
on Man -- but let’s be real, of course that’s going to happen.
Well, there we have it!
Do you guys agree with our list?
Were there any movies that we missed?
Leave us all your thoughts and feelings in the comments down below and perhaps we can
do a part 2.
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turn on notifications so you never miss another Beyond The Screen vid, and until next time,
see ya later.