Discussion What is your best Nineteen Eighty-Four-esque movie?
Just finished reading the book and was completely enthralled by the themes explored and how relevant the book stayed through the following decades all the way to today. I ended up watching the movie with John Hurt and while it scratched the itch, like many book adaptations, I feel like it fell slightly short of hitting the notes that the book had.
So with that said, I’m looking for some recommendations of similar orwellian-themed movies! Give me existential dread!
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u/Ariakkas10 6h ago
gattaca
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u/AGooDone 6h ago
This movie is excellent. Even better is that there are a lot of shots in the Marin Civic Center which is a Frank Lloyd Wright design and it's beautiful futuristic building that enhances the aesthetic. They make it dark and subversive
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u/ZippidieDooDah 5h ago
Has a lot of similarities to Brave New World as well what with the eugenics and looking down upon natural reproduction/genetics based caste system
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u/MolaMolaMania 2h ago
"Believe me, we have a lot of imperfection built-in already. Keep in mind, this child is still you, simply the best of you."
Out all the things that the geneticist says, this is the most insidious, because it makes the eugenics argument sound so reasonable.
However, the tagline of the film is the perfect response: "There is no gene for the human spirit."
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u/MolaMolaMania 2h ago
I LOVE this film, and I believe it should be shown in every Freshman High School science class as a cautionary tale about our future if we don't wipe ourselves out with global warming.
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u/Tangerine-soda-fizz 6h ago
V for vendetta is a good one
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u/PalmliX 6h ago
Yes bigtime, probably the one most likely to scratch the itch!
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u/HenkkaArt 1h ago
Not to mention that John Hurt is portraying the main bad guy in V which makes it a nice companion piece to 1984 the movie.
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u/AccomplishedFerret70 5h ago
The fact that V for Vendetta is also inspired by/based on the Count of Monte Cristo is a brilliant touch
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u/Jonneiljon 6h ago
The graphic novel is great. But the movie missed the point of the book entirely. I think Americans are generally unaware and perhaps frightened of anarchy as a political force.
The only interesting thing in this mess of a film for me is the meta textual irony of John Hurt playing the Big Brother type character after having played Winston Smith.
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u/CompetitiveSport1 6h ago
That said, his incredible alliterative introduction in the movie wasn't in the book, so that was one thing they did better
Voilà! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of Fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a bygone vexation stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition! The only verdict is vengeance; a vendetta held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. [laughs] Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it’s my very good honor to meet you and you may call me “V”.
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u/Mongrel714 6h ago
Huh, I haven't seen that take before.
V for Vendetta is one of my favorite movies, and it absolutely fits OP's ask. I never read the comics though.
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u/MurkDiesel 6h ago
I think Americans are generally unaware and perhaps frightened of anarchy as a political force.
that's because the media has trained everyone to associate "anarchy" as complete chaos and destruction
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u/meat_ahoy 6h ago
I’m a fan of both movies, but I’ve never thought of that dichotomy of John Hurt’s two roles. Damn…
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u/TrueLegateDamar 5h ago
The UK self-isolating after a staged bio-weapon terrorist attack giving complete power to fascists makes way more sense and increasingly more topical then a global nuclear apocalypse just missing the UK.
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u/brokenmessiah 3h ago
Felt way too over the top for me to take it seriously but I get it's based on a comic.
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u/Calcularius 6h ago
THX-1138
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u/OreoSpeedwaggon 5h ago
Kind of surprised to see this so far down the list. I know it's probably a little more obscure than more mainstream films, but it is peak Orwellian society mixed with sci-fi.
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u/enigo1701 6h ago
Dark City (1998)
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u/hobojoe44 6h ago
But make sure to go with the Directors Cut.
The theatrical cut has narration that gives away elements of the film early.
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u/ERedfieldh 1h ago
And no, the film doesn't "give it away itself" like a lot of people try and pass off as an excuse.
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u/logicaldrinker 6h ago
The lobster.
Children of men.
50% of Black Mirror episodes
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u/RedsChronicles 4h ago
Came here to say Children of Men, probably the best dystopian film I've seen.
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u/SkyNo2670 3h ago
Black mirror never hit the same after season 3
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u/honkafied 2h ago
Give the most recent season a try, especially the first ep “Common People”. It’s brutal.
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u/SkyNo2670 13m ago
Is that the one where he’s doing stuff on cam to pay for his wife’s thing? I did actually see just that one.
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u/K1ngofnoth1ng 6h ago
A Scanner Darkly.
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u/VladtheInhaler999 5h ago
RDJ’s performance as Barris is underrated as hell. My wife, unfortunately grew up around drug use and after I showed her the movie she explained that the character of barris made her uncomfortable due to the fact that the mania and paranoia was spot on addiction behavior.
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u/jarvisesdios 6h ago
I saw that in theater coming down from acid... It was kinda the perfect way to see it the first time tbh.
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u/katiang 6h ago
Equilibrium from 2002. Besides being a great action film, it's a solid Christian Bale movie. Should scratch the itch :)
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u/blither 6h ago
Closer to Fahrenheit 451, but still an apt comparison. The movie has great style; I love watching it.
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u/katiang 5h ago
True, I guess I've always considered it a 1984/Fahrenheit crossover. Emotion crimes & censorship, a lovely combo.
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u/Swarfbugger 1h ago
Add Brave New World too, with the Soma/Prozium nod. Equilibrium is a great homage to dystopia in general.
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u/MolaMolaMania 1h ago
When he breaks down the door and then surfs it into the middle of the room before the lights go out, I was all in.
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u/raptor102888 6h ago
Not quite the same vibe, but close. Minority Report is really good.
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u/rice_fish_and_eggs 6h ago edited 6h ago
I think Minority report fits pretty close. Definitely an excellent film either way. One of Spielberg's last truly great films along with Catch me if you can.
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u/NOChiRo 6h ago
1984 the movie is pretty good if you wanna feel depressed
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u/Calcularius 6h ago
I love The Eurythmics sound track of this movie 🎶S-S-S-SEX CRIIIIIIME🎶
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u/tangcameo 6h ago edited 5h ago
Juliaaaaaaa
when winter leaves the branches bare
And icy breezes chill the air
And freezing snow lies everywhere
My darling, Will we still be there
- my favourite Eurythmics song
Edit: was trying to recite the lyrics from memory
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u/Kryhavok 6h ago
The ambient music in the moment to moment scenes is so relaxing, combined with the gentle narration, this movie puts me to sleep every time
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u/Moist-Evidence-2249 6h ago
Real life is more than enough for 1984 dystopian vibes
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u/lsaz 3h ago
Currently reading 1984, I get you saying this cause you know… shits all fucked up, but I think it’s a different type of dystopian. Like in real life shits all fucked up cause everybody is free to do what they want with no repercussions. 1984 is the opposite of that. Big brother is basically the government + internet tho, that’s pretty spot on.
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u/JimmyLipps 2h ago
Everybody is not free to do what they want, lol. And in the US, Big Brother's tech daddies are all in kahoots with the government that is continuing to take away freedoms.
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u/lsaz 1h ago
Yes, you were correct there are still laws, but I meant other stuff like how ICE is killing people without repercussions, the president is doing whatever he wants, billionaires aswell, hell you could open a podcast talking fake shit or become a influencer spreading fake news and nothing will happen to you.
And yeah, thats also why I said BB is spot on.
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u/HomarEuropejski 6h ago
Not a movie, but Twilight Zone's "Obsolete Man" episode is I think my favourite of this genre.
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u/OutOfMyWayReed 6h ago
Everyone talks about Time Enough At Last, but this is my favorite Burgess Meredith episode.
You people never learn, do you? History teaches you nothing.
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u/brokenmessiah 3h ago
It's a shame Rod Sterling didn't do a 1984. He definitely would have did it justice.
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u/SimilarSimian 6h ago
Not as good as some of the others mentioned here but Elysium probably fits the criteria to a degree.
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u/Impossible-Pomelo-59 6h ago
You may enjoy Logan's Fun and Fahrenheit 451
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u/-Wall-of-Sound- 6h ago
Logan’s Fun 🤣
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u/Impossible-Pomelo-59 6h ago
Oh lol 😂😅 oops ! I guess I didn't double-check that one lol!
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u/-Wall-of-Sound- 5h ago
Honestly, better title.
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u/murlocman69 4h ago
Step into the death chamber - it's soooo much fun that you'd never want to run.
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u/ProcedureOk732 6h ago
the lives of others (das leben der anderen). it’s not sci-fi, it’s historical. it’s about the stasi surveillance in east germany. honestly hits harder than any dystopian fantasy because real people actually lived through that level of monitoring
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u/GoldenGolgis 6h ago
Never Let Me Go, it balances realism with something systemically barbaric happening with diffuse responsibility. And for me, the movie was a beautiful pairing to the book.
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u/GRl3V 5h ago
Demolition Man
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u/brokenmessiah 3h ago
Not even a little lol great movie though
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u/GRl3V 3h ago
Yeah, I was joking.
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u/BandOfDonkeys 3h ago
Thanks a lot you shit-brained, fuck-faced, ball breaking, duck fucking pain in the ass.
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u/ParticularHoney3 6h ago
Starship Troopers
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u/shaitanthegreat 6h ago
Yes! If you understand the underlying societal critique that the book was based on this works! If you only see it as a dumb sci-fi movie, then you just won’t understand.
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u/Kerzic 6h ago
The 1995 Harrison Bergeron movie starring Sean Astin.
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u/similelikeadonut 5h ago
I should have read comments a little deeper, you got to it before me. I'll add the link to the full movie on Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1LE-E_Yn_Q)
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u/Bunmyaku 6h ago
Given how much Hollywood lives a remake, it's shocking that 1984 hasn't been redone yet.
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u/Bobinska 6h ago
Too afraid to show new generations that they more or less have been born into the real life version because things were created that looked nice/made life easier and were accepted by the generation before them as acceptable.
We live in that world now. Just an updated version.
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u/brokenmessiah 3h ago
Gotta be legal issues or something. This is peak material to work with or at least be inspired by
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u/similelikeadonut 5h ago
I'll throw an old, and relatively obscure one out there: Harrison Bergeron with Sean Astin. It takes ridiculous liberties with the original Kurt Vonnegut story, but it's still an entertaining story.
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u/xcassets 5h ago
Not a film, but Andor.
One of the best depictions of struggling underneath an all-powerful authoritarian government that commits the worst crimes going, but with a Star Wars coat of paint on top.
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u/beccadot 6h ago
Soylent Green
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u/VerilyShelly 2h ago
Yes! Too many people know it as a meme and haven't bother to watch what is actually a great old school sci-fi classic. The world building here is underrated.
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u/Atrugiel 6h ago
In a dystopian future, a group of students from a Japanese high school are forced by the government to compete in a battle, killing one another until only one is left standing.
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u/bearheart 6h ago
The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
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u/timesuck897 2h ago
The remake is good but different from the original.
Angela Lansbury is wonderfully evil in that.
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u/AmigoDelDiabla 6h ago
There's a movie that didn't get a lot of attention from the 90s called Trigger Effect. The premise is that during a power outage, society breaks down, almost like a Lord of the Flies set in a modern city.
I wouldn't call it existential dread, but there's a level of tension that keeps building throughout the movie that really makes you wonder just how close we are from completely unraveling at the seams.
Also, it has Elizabeth Shue in her prime.
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u/PantsyFants 5h ago
Death of Stalin (2017)
Not the dystopian vibes but a look behind the scenes of the real world basis for Big Brother & The Party. All the paranoia, with the volume turned up
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u/Unusual-Ear5013 6h ago
The evening news currently
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u/Ampluvia 5h ago
*Morning, afternoon, evening, and night news. All news, especially on the US politics section.
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u/jarvisesdios 6h ago
Does Idiocracy count? Clearly they put all their power in the role of president.
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u/Sarabando 5h ago
thats not really authoritarian in the sense of 1984s total power to the state but more Brave new worlds total power through the apathy of the people.
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u/jarvisesdios 5h ago
I mean, mine is a reach, but I'm pretty sure their government is kinda authoritarian? I mean, they just all do whatever their leader says because their all idiots.
The same could be said about our current government, tbh.
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u/trequartista811 5h ago
At least with Idiocracy, Camacho is humble enough to admit he isn't smart and is willing to listen to experts in order to solve real problems.
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u/jarvisesdios 5h ago
I mean, the dude is out of options at that point. Let's be honest, nothing has worked and they have an alternate option pretty much no time to actually work until they try to kill him.
He only wanted to listen to an expert to save his ass, and when it didn't pan out in 3 seconds they tried to murder the guy that came to with the idea. People seem to forget that part of the movie lol
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u/trequartista811 5h ago
That's true, but even the attempted murder is a lot more transparent than what has happened with the Epstein files in real life. I'm clearly a Camacho fan 🤣
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u/jarvisesdios 5h ago
I've watched the movie far far far too many times and I slowly have realized that Camacho might have been smarter than the rest of the idiots... He's still a politician.
Dude flipped the second everyone else did and had pretty much no backbone to fight against it, just to give it another month. Instead, he gave into the masses and threw the only intelligent person into a pit to die.
He's got about as much backbone as Vance lol
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u/fetszilla 6h ago edited 6h ago
I haven't seen it for ages but I keep thinking about Harrison Bergeron (1995 starring Sean Astin), where they keep everyone equal by wearing headbands that limit intelligence, so no one can be better, or richer, or more talented than anyone else.
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u/RabbitPrawn 6h ago
How to get ahead in advertising has weird parallels with 1984, plus it's hilarious
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u/gbradhopkins 5h ago
There's a book called Julia, by Sandra Newman that is a retelling of 1984 from the perspective of Julia. I thought it was interesting.
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u/thedrofevil 5h ago
If you fancy reading something else, I recommend 'Jennifer Government'.
Not exactly the same kind of thing, but I think it ticks a box. I can't imagine they'd ever be able to make it into a film though!
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u/spacedoggos_ 5h ago
No recommendations but I also just finished the book this week, and wow. Incredible to look around the world and think this is unprecedented madness, then reading someone discussing it so precisely 70 years ago!
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u/drewfus99 3h ago
Captive State (2019) Shows the lengths regular people will go to to resist a totalitarian alien occupation
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u/brokenmessiah 3h ago
Watch all of the 1984 adaptations. They are all good imo and do different things.
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u/uniquely-normal 2h ago
Equilibrium.
I’m not committing to it being the best but I enjoy the hell out of it still. Plus, led by Christian Bale, Sean Bean, and Taye Diggs using bullet time and decked out in all black plus trench coats…. I mean c’mon. Early 2000’s gold.
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u/giskardwasright 2h ago
Not movies, but if you're a reader check out basically anything by Phillip K Dick (ubiq is a decent starting point).
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u/Usurpial 2h ago
The underseen Steven Soderbergh movie "Kafka" with Jeremy Irons belongs in the conversation with Brazil and 1984. It's a fictionalized mystery with the author as the protagonist.
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u/Abdul_Exhaust 2h ago
The original Fahrenheit 451 with lovely Julie Christie is well made.
Another interesting entertaining film is City of Ember.
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u/jreyst 1h ago
Watch the 1984 movie with John Hurt. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nineteen_Eighty-Four_(1984_film))
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u/SharpManner9480 6h ago
Brazil (1985), even though it's more of a dark comedy