The film industry has always been an excellent equalizer when it comes to storytelling, but there's never been more innovation present with the cinematic experience. Admittedly, superhero cinema, connected film franchises, and legacy sequels now dominate the box office, but these blockbusters have also pushed forward a more ambitious style of genre programming. There are now not nearly as many reservations that surround science fiction epics, and there's a deeper fascination in alternate realities and the advancement of technology.
Some movies beautifully combine these ideas together into subversive stories that explore virtual worlds that rival that of reality. The lines continue to blur between virtual reality and the real world, making it the perfect time to revisit these evocative tales about unbelievable simulations.
9 Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle Is A Family-Friendly Simulated Reality Spectacle
The Jumanji franchise likely isn't the film property that comes to mind when the discussion shifts towards simulated realities, but it definitely fits under this umbrella. The original Jumanji uses its heightened board game to bring chaos into the real world, whereas Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, as well as its sequel, send its characters into a virtual world.
2017's Jumanji leans hard into video game logic and a major novelty lies in the characters' alternate video game avatars and how actors like Jack Black and The Rock depict these new personalities. It's also appropriate for the whole family.
8 Vanilla Sky Sends Tom Cruise On A Dark And Disturbing Night Of The Soul
Cameron Crowe and Tom Cruise won audiences over with the very people-pleasing and optimistic Jerry Maguire. Vanilla Sky marks their reunion, and it very much feels like the antithesis to their previous cinematic collaboration. A remake of Abre Les Ojos, Vanilla Sky contains a tour de force performance by Cruise as his spoiled and narcissistic character ends up in a car accident that leaves him disfigured and reality begins to bend in himself.
Vanilla Sky's simulated reality developments are largely left to the film's final act, but they all hit quite hard and culminate in a powerful finish that makes this surreal trip worth the journey.
7 Ready Player One Creates A Virtual Reality Free-For-All Where Anyone Can Be A Hero
Ernest Cline's Ready Player One has gained major visibility after being turned into a feature film by Steven Spielberg. Spielberg incorporates his own passions and obsessions into this virtual reality scavenger hunt, much like the movie's eccentric Halliday who is responsible for the central virtual reality conceit.
Ready Player One operates like a sci-fi Charlie and the Chocolate Factory as people get an opportunity to inherit a vast fortune to whoever can discover the secrets behind Halliday's virtual reality universe, OASIS. Spielberg effortlessly mixes genres in this collision of pop culture that celebrates the escapism of virtual worlds.
6 Inception Redefines The Action Film With Its Injection Of Dream Logic
Christopher Nolan has become one of this generation's most prolific filmmakers, and his name alone has practically become a brand in and of itself. Nolan's projects have connected on varying levels of success, but Inception is his breakthrough picture in many ways, as well as a movie that's gone on to inspire many other sci-fi/action hybrids.
Inception embraces dream logic and the complex, layered nature of the subconscious to inspire an extremely inventive and visually thrilling action movie. Inception's separate worlds are technically internal worlds instead of virtual projections, but many of the same principles apply.
5 Existenz Is A Trippy Virtual Reality Pursuit That Keeps The Audience Guessing
The Matrix broke barriers in 1999, so it's just a shame that David Cronenberg's fascinating eXistenZ had to suffer the fate of being released only a few months after The Matrix. There's a lot of the same visual language between these movies, but Cronenberg unsurprisingly turns body ports and synthetic weapons into disturbing opportunities for body horror.
A video game designer needs to use a compromised version of her eXistenZ virtual reality game as she goes on the run alongside an overwhelmed ally. It's a gross, yet thought-provoking movie that blurs reality with virtual fabrications right up until the end.
4 The Tron World Is Ready For Another World
1980s' TRON is a true classic and the ultimate fantasy for any computer engineer who's dreamed about getting sucked into their own work. There's a simple yet effective structure to TRON where its protagonist goes up against virtual threats, but the movie's true strength lies within its groundbreaking visual effects and distinct aesthetic.
It may not have initially connected on the level that Disney expected, but 2010's TRON: Legacy is also an extremely satisfying sequel that further fleshes out this virtual world in compelling ways. A third entry, or even a Disney+ limited series, is deserved.
3 The Cell Loses Its Audience In A Visceral Nightmare
Tarsem Singh is a revolutionary visual filmmaker who has largely flown under the radar, but even when his films don't work as a whole, they're consistently impressive on an aesthetic level. The Cell is Singh's directorial debut, and it's an absolutely horrifying dive into the mind of a serial killer through a new form of experimental meditation therapy.
The simulated reality that represents a killer's subconscious is uniquely unnerving, and its imagery is still haunting two decades later. The movie also contains some excellent performances from Jennifer Lopez and Vince Vaughn as they operate outside of their comfort zones.
2 Paprika Is Psychologically Surreal Adventure Through The Human Mind
Satoshi Kon is an anime auteur who sadly passed away far too early, but he's responsible for a staggering amount of material across his brief career, a lot of which has inspired American movies like Black Swan. Some might argue that Inception owes a lot to Paprika, an anime film that follows a "dream detective" who uses an experimental new form of technology to aid psychologically impaired patients.
Nefarious forces attempt to exploit this technology to destroy people's subconscious and what follows is an amazing journey through the mind. Paprika is as visually rich as it is psychologically challenging. It's a must-see even for those who don't watch anime as a habit.
1 The Matrix Is Far More Than An Action Film And Its Legacy Is Undeniable
The Matrix remains one of the most revolutionary science fiction films of all time. The original movie, and the world that the Wachowskis have subsequently fleshed out, is a comforting home for so many people. It's easy to praise The Matrix for its iconic action sequences, but it's a movie that features theology and allegories that are even richer.
Thomas Anderson's "awakening" has had seismic repercussions for some viewers. 2021's The Matrix: Resurrections is certainly a polarizing sequel, but it completely plays by its own rules and doesn't bend to conformity. In many respects, it's the absolute perfect return and coda to the legendary franchise.