Hackersis one of the mostunderrated movies of the 1990s, and while it is popular with audiences, its Rotten Tomatoes score is surprisingly low.Hackerswas not an immediate success, but it has become a cult hit over time. Many of the best-known 1990s movies contain a cast that was already famous at the time, butHackersis unusual as it features several early-career appearances of actors who went on to become major stars.Hackersis often considered one ofAngelia Jolie’s best 1990s moviesand also stars Jonny Lee Miller, Laurence Mason, and Matthew Lillard.
Hackersis about a group of high school students who use their tech skills to stop an evil corporation from taking over the worldusing a computer virus. It is one of the earliest movies to explore the potential behind modern computers, for better or worse. WhileHackerscontains many examples ofthings movies get wrong about hacking, its themes around privacy are still highly relevant today. Many of its ideas, like the concept of online anonymity, are now part of everyday life, but for a modern audience,Hackersis a nostalgic look into 1990s culture.
Hackers Oddly Encapsulates The Culture Of The 1990s
The Ideas In Hackers Are Common Knowledge Now, But They Were New In The 1990s
Virtually every aspect ofHackersserves as a homage to the 1990s, from its fashion to its music. The soundtrack features huge techno artists of the 1990s, and the main characters wear tiny sunglasses, tank tops, and neon punk accessories with an extra futuristic twist. The visuals might be outdated today, but they were cutting-edge at the time and represented the glamorized view of hacking that was popular in the 1990s. However,Hackersdoesn’t just encapsulate the 1990s aesthetic; it also reflects the mindset concerning the use of computers.
Hackerscharacters use 1990s-sounding screen names, but the computer mainframe is called Gibson as a tribute to cyberpunk author William Gibson, who coined the term “cyberspace.”
Hackersproposes ideas that were groundbreaking at the time it was madebut are considered common knowledge today. This is especially true whenThe Hacker Manifestois quoted: “This is our world now… the world of the electron and the switch… We exist without skin color, without nationality, without religious bias…” The idea that people could create an entirely new online identity was new and fascinating in the 1990s, while it is an accepted truth now. From its philosophies to its aesthetics, it is not surprising thatHackersis acult classic for perfectly capturing the 1990s.
Why Hackers Wasn’t More Appreciated Upon Release
At the time of release,Hackersfeatured no big names; one of the reasons it draws attention today is the early appearances of major stars. It might be considered agreat 1990s sci-fi movienow, but the sci-fi genre looked very different back then, with action movies likeThe TerminatorandJurassic Parkreigning supreme. A movie likeHackers,aimed at young adults and with fewer big-budget action scenes, did not fit in with other popular 1990s sci-fi movies.Hackersis extremely dated but remains a cult classic as the 1990s aesthetic has become popular.
10 Sci-Fi Movies That Aged Poorly Thanks To Real Tech
From the worst to the best sci-fi movies of all time, depictions of advanced technologies have aged poorly due to rapid real-world developments.
Hackersis not an accurate representation of hacking, and many of the ideas it presents about the role that computers would later play in our lives are simply wrong. Yet it is still extremely entertaining, and themovie serves as a time capsule from the 1990s. WhileHackershas a 33% critical rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it is much more popular with audiences, who have given it a 68% rating. A few years later, the 1990s sci-fi moviesThe MatrixandExistenzwere released to critical acclaim, suggesting thatHackers' problem is that it was simply released too early.
Hackers
Cast
Hackers is a cult classic thriller where a group of high school students use their tech knowledge to stop an evil corporation from causing a global disaster with a computer virus. Starring Angelina Jolie and Jonny Lee Miller, Hackers was one of the earliest movies to explore the potential of modern computers in 1995.
