List of films featuring surveillance

There is a significant body of films that feature surveillance as a theme or as a plot arc.

List of films

Film Year Description
19712014The documentary film features the Citizens' Commission to Investigate the FBI and how it broke into a satellite FBI office. The group discovered and released documents about COINTELPRO, a secret domestic surveillance program that targeted "dissident groups, civil rights leaders and anti-Vietnam War activists".[1]
19841956The film is set in a totalitarian society in the future where the population may be monitored at any time.[2]
231998Hackers sell their research to Russians, but because the Russians want military data instead, the hackers have to elude them.[2]
Aelita: Queen of Mars1924Surveillance is used by the upper class to oversee the working class.[3]
American Pie1999In the comedy film, a key scene has the teenage protagonist setting up his webcam so his friends can see a girl changing clothes. The webcast is shared publicly to his peers.[4]
The Anderson Tapes1971Burglars use a luxury apartment's surveillance technology to break in but are unaware of being under surveillance themselves.[3]
Antitrust2001The protagonist learns that his company has an extensive surveillance system to observe and steal code.[5]
Bedroom Eyes1984A young businessman and avid jogger finds a prime voyeurism spot on his nightly route. After some time spying he witnesses a murder instead.
Blow Out1981A sound technician inadvertently records a murder and learns that it is part of ongoing political corruption.[6]
Blowup1966A fashion photographer unwittingly takes photographs of a murder and investigates the circumstances.[6]
Blue Thunder1983The film features a military helicopter with high-tech surveillance equipment.[3]
Body Double1984The protagonist, staying at a friend's apartment, is able to spy on the neighbor but winds up witnessing her murder.[7]
The Bourne Identity2002Amnesiac spy Jason Bourne eludes people from his program trying to track him down.[7]
The Bourne Supremacy2004Amnesiac spy Jason Bourne eludes people from his program trying to track him down.[7]
The Bourne Ultimatum2007Amnesiac spy Jason Bourne eludes people from his program trying to track him down.[8]
Jason Bourne2016Amnesiac spy Jason Bourne eludes people from his program trying to track him down.[8][7]
Brazil1985The science fiction fantasy film follows a government clerk who works for a totalitarian and bureaucratic government of Orwellian proportions.[9]
The Cabin in the Woods 2012 A group of college students who retreat to a remote forest cabin where they fall victim to backwoods zombies, and two scientists who manipulate the ongoing events from an underground facility.
Caché2005A couple finds on their front porch videotapes of them in their home and tries to find out who is recording them.[9]
Cape Fear1962A released criminal follows the family of the man who testified against him.[9]
Captain America: The Winter Soldier2014The superhero Captain America, resurrected in the 21st century, combats a conspiracy in the surveillance state of his country.[10]
The Circle2017A powerful Internet company attempts to create a utopian society by deploying widespread surveillance accessible to all.
Citizenfour2014The documentary features Edward Snowden and his initiation of global surveillance disclosures in 2013.[11]
Closed Circuit2013A pair of lawyers in Great Britain discover "an unsavory alliance" between its secret service and the criminal justice system and have to evade the surveillance state.[12]
Code 462003In the near future, personal travel between countries is limited and controlled by technological means, but counterfeiting allows circumvention of these controls.[13]
Cold Eyes2013A South Korean surveillance unit attempts to track down a criminal leader in Seoul.[14]
The Conversation1974A surveillance expert is hired to combine wiretapped recordings of a couple and tries to interpret their conversations.[6]
The Dark Knight2008The vigilante superhero Batman hacks every cell phone in Gotham City to set up a sonar system to find the criminal the Joker.[8]
Death in the Terminal2016A reconstruction in so-called Rashomon style, with several eyewitnesses offering their own perspectives on a single tragic event, a terror attack in the Beer Sheva bus station after which a bystander assumed to be the perpetrator was lynched.
Death Watch1980In the future, the protagonist has a camera implanted in his brain and is enlisted to probe a dying woman's subconscious.[15]
Déjà Vu2006A detective tries to save a woman's life by utilizing advanced surveillance equipment.
Demolition Man1993The science fiction film depicts a 2032 "San Angeles" where everyone's behavior is under surveillance.[16]
The Den2013In the found-footage horror film, a teenage girl witnesses a murder via webcam, and the killer tracks her down. The film is shown through different screens including that of surveillance cameras.[17]
Disturbia2007A teenager under house arrest spies on his neighbor and suspects him of being a killer.[9]
Eagle Eye2008Two strangers meet via a strange phone call and are then tracked by someone using everyday technology.[4]
Echelon Conspiracy2009An American engineer gets a cell phone that gives him unlimited wealth, but he is then pursued by security agents.[18]
EDtv1999Ed is a video store clerk whose daily life is broadcast by a company trying to save its cable channel.[18]
The End of Violence1997A film producer is targeted to keep secret a satellite surveillance program to combat crime.[19]
Enemy of the State1998The main character is pursued by the National Security Agency, which uses an array of surveillance technologies.[4]
Equilibrium2002In a futuristic city where emotions are suppressed through surveillance and control, a law enforcement officer begins experiencing emotions himself.[20]
Das Experiment2001A journalist joins a curious psychological experiment and records the experiment in secret.[20]
Eye in the Sky2007In Hong Kong, a police surveillance unit monitors a master criminal without realizing the criminal is watching them as well.[21]
Eyeborgs2009In the United States, the "Freedom of Observation Act" is passed allowing for the creation of ODIN (Optical Defense Intelligence Network). This leads to "eyeborgs" being created, a mobile camera drone administered by the Department for Homeland Security.[22]
The Final Cut2004An editor cuts together footage from a device implanted in one's body that can record an entire life, and he finds footage that has a connection with his own past.[23]
Firewall2006A technology executive is coerced to rob a bank by criminals holding his family hostage.[23]
Fortress1993The science fiction film follows a couple with an illegal second child through a panopticonal society.[24]
The Fortune Cookie1966A private eye secretly films a man who is feigning an injury in an attempt to collect a large amount of money through a lawsuit.[25]
Freeze Frame2004The protagonist is acquitted from the wrongful accusation of killing his wife and children, but due to the media's portrayal, he maintains video surveillance of his own life to ensure having an alibi.[26]
Furious 72015In the action film, a team of drivers tracks down a hacker to recover a surveillance device called God's Eye that can locate anyone in the world within seconds.[27]
Gattaca1997In the near future, an aspiring astronaut uses a cover identity in training and has to evade genetic screenings used as a surveillance mechanism.[28]
Giant2009A security guard at a supermarket watches a cleaning woman through video surveillance and begins stalking her outside work.[29]
Hackers1995A group of hackers break into a company's supercomputer and have to evade the U.S. Secret Service.[29]
Halloween: Resurrection2002A group of college students are trapped inside a home with a serial killer, and the killer broadcasts the subsequent events online through multiple cameras.[29]
Headhunters2011High-tech surveillance is used in a showdown between a headhunter who moonlights as an art thief and a potential recruit with a military background.[30]
Hi, Mom!1970A Vietnam War veteran attempts to make "peep art" by filming people who live across from his apartment building.[31]
I Love You All / Aus Liebe Zum Volk2004This is a film about surveillance and blindness, about faith and disillusion.[32]
Infernal Affairs2002A cop works undercover in a triad, and a triad member works undercover in the police department. Each is ordered to track down the mole in the very organization he infiltrated.[33]
The Listening2006An art gallery employee discovers a briefcase of classified documents about surveillance technology made by one of the NSA's suppliers, and the supplier goes after her to protect its secrets. A NSA operative blows his cover to protect the woman.[34]
The Lives of Others2006In East Germany in the 1980s, a Stasi officer spies on a playwright.[9]
Logan's Run1976Citizens of a futuristic city are controlled by the use of a crystal on their right palm
Lost Highway1997In part of the film, a couple receives videotapes recording the outside then the inside of their home.[19]
Look2007The film shows surveillance camera footage of events surrounding San Fernando Valley denizens.[35]
Loving1970George Segal as a philandering husband trysts with a pick-up in a child's playhouse in the back yard of the upscale house where he and his wife are attending a party, unaware that a group of men are watching with interest over a closed circuit TV monitor.[36]
M1931A city in pursuit of a child murderer has both cops and criminals engaging in surveillance and snooping on one another.[8]
Menace II Society1993A shopkeeper keeps close surveillance on two young black men.[3]
Metropolis1927The master of the city, Fredersen, keeps close surveillance on the city's workers.[3]
Minority Report2002The science fiction film depicts a futuristic society under total surveillance.[4]
Modern Times1936A factory worker is demented by the sped-up assembly line and the constant video surveillance.[3]
My Little Eye2002In the horror film, five twentysomethings live together to win a prize but are subsequently targeted by a serial killer.[37]
The Net1995A computer programmer in unknowing possession of secret software is tracked by assailants.[3]
The Net 2.02006A computer technician who takes a job in Istanbul finds herself in pursuit by criminals who try to erase her identity from the Internet.[38]
Nineteen Eighty-Four1984The film is set in a totalitarian state where citizens are under complete surveillance.[3]
One Hour Photo2002An employee at a photo processing department processes a family's photos and imagines himself to be their uncle.[38]
The Osterman Weekend1983A television host allows the Central Intelligence Agency to wire his home for video surveillance since his visiting friends are suspected to be spies.[19]
Overheard2009The Hong Kong Police Force's Commercial Crime Bureau uses surveillance to monitor for suspected price fixing.[39]
Panic Room2002A woman and her daughter use closed-circuit television to follow the movements of criminals invading their home.[40]
Paranoia2013A technology expert infiltrates a company to spy on it, but the company begins to spy on him.[41]
The Parallax View1974A journalist investigates the assassination of a United States Senator and infiltrates the responsible corporation.[42]
Peeping Tom1960A photographer hunts down women and records their reactions as he kills them.[19]
The Perfect Dictatorship2014Recordings made by hidden cameras and microphones are used to both expose and perpetuate political corruption in Mexico.[43]
Pi1998A mathematician finds out that a new 216 digit number is the key to the stock market and religion and is targeted by several organizations.[9]
The President's Analyst1967In the satire film, an analyst for the President of the United States becomes expendable and teams up with two allies. Meanwhile, a telephone company seeks to implant electronic devices in people's brains.[44]
Rear Window1954The wheelchair-bound main character spies on people in his apartment complex and thinks one of them is a murderer.[9]
Red Road2006In Scotland, a woman who is paid to watch a dangerous corner of North Glasgow tracks a former criminal and begins stalking him.[8]
Le Samouraï1967The film's hit man resides in a flat that is bugged by the police who suspects him of being responsible for a contract killing.[8]
A Scanner Darkly2006An undercover cop is ordered to spy on his associates as a paranoid government monitors its citizens.[4]
The Secret Cinema1968A woman is manipulated by people around her so a director can film her to screen the results in a theater.[45]
Sharky's Machine1981A detective spies on a high-end prostitute through her apartment windows, develops an attraction and witnesses her murder.
The Simpsons Movie2007The Simpsons are on the run from the law, but the National Security Agency is able to eavesdrop on everyday conversation and locate them.[46]
Sliver1993The main character is spied on by one of her fellow apartment tenants.[3]
Snake Eyes1998A homicide detective investigates an assassination attempt at a boxing match.[19]
Sneakers1992A team of computer hackers is contracted by the government to steal a code-breaking machine.[6]
Snowden2016A biographical film on Edward Snowden.
Spectre2015In the spy film featuring James Bond, the secret agent in pursuit of a villain learns that he is responsible for funding the multinational surveillance program to use for his criminal organization.[47]
Surveillance2008Two FBI agents hunting a serial killer come across a mass shooting in a small town, and they use video surveillance to uncover the truth of the shooting.[48]
Surveillance 24/72007Filmed through surveillance cameras, a teacher takes home a lover and wakes up to find him murdered.[48]
Sweet Bunch1983A group of four misfits live together in a house and, disillusioned with life, experiment in crime. They are put under surveillance by the authorities, who wait for a misstep.[49]
Takedown 2000 The story is based on the search for computer hacker Kevin Mitnick.
Thelma & Louise1991Surveillance cameras record Thelma and Louise as they commit crimes.[3]
The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse1960German police investigate unsolved murders at a hotel, which is rigged with a sophisticated TV system.[48]
Thegidi2014The Tamil film features a rookie detective sent to collect daily activities of a set of people, soon realizes that people are being killed using details of the surveillance report he submitted. He tries to save the next targets and eventually tries to trace the killer.[50]
THX 11381971The film is set in a dystopian society where citizens are drugged and under surveillance.[3]
Timecode2000The experimental film displays a split screen of four cameras following different people in a film production office.[51]
The Truman Show1998The main character is unaware that his small-town life is constructed and is recorded 24 hours a day and aired to TV viewers.[8]
V for Vendetta2006The film is set in a future England ruled by a totalitarian regime that uses surveillance to monitor the citizens.[52]
Vacancy2007A couple staying at a motel begin watching low-budget horror movies available on tape and realize the movies were filmed in their own motel room.[53]
We Live in Public2009A film about the internet pioneer Josh Harris and his experiment: placed more than 100 artists in a human terrarium under New York City, with myriad webcams following and capturing every move the artists made.[54]
World Without a Mask1934An engineer invents technology that can see through walls. The technology is pursued by criminals from the underworld.[3]
La Zona2007A group of disadvantaged teenagers break into a gated community that is heavily under surveillance.[31]

References

  1. ↑ Coyle, Jake (April 18, 2014). "In '1971,' an analog precursor to NSA, Snowden". bigstory.ap.org. Associated Press. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
  2. 1 2 Kammerer 2010, p. 1
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Ball, Haggerty & Lyon 2012, p. 102
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Susman, Gary (June 15, 2013). "Spy Games: 10 Memorable Surveillance Movies". Time.
  5. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 2
  6. 1 2 3 4 Turner 1998, p. 96
  7. 1 2 3 4 Kammerer 2010, p. 3
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ebiri, Bilge (June 13, 2013). "NSA, CIA, FBI, Everyone — A Timeline of Surveillance in the Movies". Vulture.com. New York Media LLC. Retrieved July 26, 2013.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Gray, John Seaborn (January 24, 2011). "Top Five: The Lives of Others and More Great Surveillance-Themed Movies". Houston Press. Retrieved December 6, 2012.
  10. ↑ Orr, Christopher (April 4, 2014). "A Somber, Super Captain America: The Winter Soldier". The Atlantic. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
  11. ↑ Cieply, Michael (October 17, 2014). "Snowden Film Tests Hollywood Obama Backers". The New York Times. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  12. ↑ Taylor, Ella (August 28, 2013). "'Closed Circuit' Targets Big Brother, But Swings Pretty Wide". NPR. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
  13. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 4
  14. ↑ Bechervaise, Jason (August 1, 2013). "Cold Eyes | Review | Screen". Screen Daily. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  15. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 5
  16. ↑ Turner 1998, p. 114
  17. ↑ Scheck, Frank (March 17, 2014). "The Den: Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  18. 1 2 Kammerer 2010, p. 6
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 Kammerer 2003, p. 468
  20. 1 2 Kammerer 2010, p. 7
  21. ↑ Staff (August 9, 2013). "Ten Surveillance Films That Will Have You Looking Over Your Shoulder". focusfeatures.com. Focus Features. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  22. ↑ Shoyer, Scott (July 20, 2010). "Eyeborgs: DVD Review". Cinefantastique. Retrieved September 7, 2014.
  23. 1 2 Kammerer 2010, p. 8
  24. ↑ Turner 1998, p. 111
  25. ↑ "Screen in Review: Lemmon Flavors 'Fortune Cookie'" by Francis Raffetto. The Dallas Morning News (subscription), 26 Oct 1966.
  26. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 9
  27. ↑ Brody, Richard (April 4, 2015). "The Simple Joy and Sincere Wonder of 'Furious 7'". The New Yorker. Retrieved April 12, 2015.
  28. ↑ Turner 1998, p. 113
  29. 1 2 3 Kammerer 2010, p. 10
  30. ↑ Rapold, Nicolas (April 26, 2012). "A Corporate Big Shot With a Sideline in Art Theft". The New York Times.
  31. 1 2 Kammerer 2010, p. 11
  32. ↑ "eyalsivan.net". Retrieved 29 October 2016.
  33. ↑ Cameron, Allan; Cubitt, Sean (2009). "Infernal Affairs and the Ethics of Complex Narrative". In Buckland, Warren. Puzzle Films: Complex Storytelling in Contemporary Cinema. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 153–154. ISBN 978-1-4051-6862-5.
  34. ↑ "The Listening (2006)". The New York Times. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
  35. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 12
  36. ↑ Wikipedia
  37. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 13
  38. 1 2 Kammerer 2010, p. 14
  39. ↑ Elley, Derek (November 18, 2009). "Review: 'Overheard'". Variety. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
  40. ↑ Kammerer 2003, p. 469
  41. ↑ Zeitchik, Steven (August 19, 2013). "Are films like 'Paranoia' the start of a post-Snowden movie moment?". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  42. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 15
  43. ↑ "Mexico's Perfect Dictatorship". Foreign Affairs.
  44. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 16
  45. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 17
  46. ↑ Nicks, Denver (August 10, 2014). "Surveillance in the Movies: Fact vs. Fiction". Time. Retrieved August 29, 2014.
  47. ↑ Rosenberg, Alyssa (November 14, 2015). "Spectre of surveillance". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
  48. 1 2 3 Kammerer 2010, p. 19
  49. ↑ Karalis, Vrasidas (2012). A History of Greek Cinema. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1-4411-9447-3.
  50. ↑ Rangan, Baradwaj (March 1, 2014). "Thegidi: Licence to thrill". The Hindu. Retrieved May 14, 2014.
  51. ↑ Kammerer 2003, p. 466
  52. ↑ "About the Story". warnerbros.co.uk. Warner Bros. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
  53. ↑ Kammerer 2010, p. 21
  54. ↑ We Live in Public

Bibliography

  • Ball, Kirstie; Haggerty, Kevin; Lyon, David (2012). Routledge Handbook of Surveillance Studies. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-58883-6.
  • Kammerer, Dietmar (July 2010). "Surveillance Feature Films" (PDF). The Surveillance Studies Network. pp. 1–21. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
  • Kammerer, Dietmar (2003). "Video Surveillance in Hollywood Movies" (PDF). Surveillance & Society. 2 (2/3). ISSN 1477-7487.
  • Lefait, Sébastian (2013). Surveillance on screen: Monitoring contemporary films and television programs. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-810-88590-5.
  • Stewart, Garrett (2015). Closed circuits: Screening narrative surveillance. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-20149-8.
  • Turner, John S. (October 1998). "Collapsing the Interior/Exterior Distinction: Surveillance, Spectacle, and Suspense in Popular Cinema". Wide Angle. 20 (4): 93–123. doi:10.1353/wan.1998.0042.
  • Zimmer, Catherine (2015). Surveillance cinema. New York University Press. ISBN 978-1-479-83667-3.
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