What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “philosophical film”? The Matrix, most likely, an obvious example of a movie—or franchise—that explores timeless questions: Who are we? What is reality? Are our lives nothing more than elaborate simulations programmed by hyperintelligent supercomputers? Okay, that last one may be of more recent vintage, but it’s closely related to that ancient cave allegory of Plato’s that asks us to consider whether our experiences of the world are nothing more than illusions emanating from a “real” world that lies hidden from view. Another influence on The Matrix is Rene Descartes, whose dualistic separation of consciousness and body receives the maximum of dramatic treatment.
But The Matrix is only one film among a great many that concern themselves with classic problems of philosophy. In a 2010 post for Mubi, Matt Whitlock compiled a list of 44 “Essential Movies for a Student of Philosophy.” Along with The Matrix, other films of the past couple decades get mentions—Richard Linklater’s Waking Life, The Truman Show (“the true home of Plato’s Cave in modern movies”), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, I Heart Huckabees, Being John Malkovich, Inception. Also appearing on the list are classics like Akira Kurosawa’s Rashomon and Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal—which illustrates, Whitlock writes, “The Angst of The Absurd.” All of these films appear under the subheading “Famous thought experiments or discussion of a famous philosophical problem.”
Another category on the list is “Movies featuring a philosopher.” The media-savvy Slavoj Žižek gets two mentions, for 2006’s The Pervert’s Guide to Cinema and 2005’s Žižek! (excerpt above). Since Whitlock compiled the list, Žižek has received yet another feature-length treatment—2012’s The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology. Astra Taylor, director of Žižek!, also included him in 2009’s The Examined Life, alongside Peter Singer, Michael Hardt, Judith Butler, Sunaura Taylor, and Cornel West. After the documentaries, we have “Movies with philosopher as a character,” including Derek Jarman’s Wittgenstein, with Clancy Chassay as the irascible logician, Roberto Rossellini’s 1958 Socrates, starring Jean Sylvere in the title role, and, of course, Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, with Tony Steedman as “So-Crates.”
The final three subcategories in Whitlock’s list are “Movies featuring the ideas of particular philosophers,” “Movies based on Novels written by famous philosophers,” and “Other.” In the last basket, Whitlock places the PBS string-theory documentary The Elegant Universe and Finnish performance artist M.A. Numminen’s bizarre adaptation of Wittgenstein’s Tractatus. Whitlock narrows the field by ruling out “movies that make you think deep crazy stuff” or those with “some new ‘existential twist’ on common topics.” Instead, he sticks to those films “that (seem to be) incarnations of classic philosophical thought experiments or movies that have a major philosophical problem as a main theme… that include topics that a serious student of philosophy needs to understand.”
Like most such lists, this one doesn’t claim to be definitive, and the four years since its compilation have produced several films that might warrant inclusion. Yet another reference from 2010—William G. Smith’s Socrates and Subtitles: A Philosopher’s Guide to 95 Thought-Provoking Movies from Around the World—casts a wider net. But Whitlock’s list seems to me a very useful starting point for thinking about the relationship between philosophy and film. Below, see the first ten films on the list:
Zizek! (2005)
Examined Life (2008)
Derrida (2002)
The Ister (2004)
The Pervert’s Guide To Cinema (2009)
Being In The World (2010)
Bill And Ted’s Excellent Adventure (2001)
When Nietzsche Wept (2007)
The Last Days Of Immanuel Kant (1994)
The Alchemist Of Happiness (2004)
Take a look at his full list here, and by all means, offer your own suggestions for films that fit the criteria in the comments section below.
Related Content:
Wittgenstein: Watch Derek Jarman’s Tribute to the Philosopher, Featuring Tilda Swinton (1993)
Watch The Reality of the Virtual: 74 Minutes of Pure Slavoj Žižek (2004)
Watch The Idea, the First Animated Film to Deal with Big, Philosophical Ideas (1932)
Daniel Dennett and Cornel West Decode the Philosophy of The Matrix in 2004 Film
Two Animations of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave: One Narrated by Orson Welles, Another Made with Clay
The Drinking Party, 1965 Film Adapts Plato’s Symposium to Modern Times
Download 100 Free Philosophy Courses and Start Living the Examined Life
Josh Jones is a writer and musician based in Durham, NC. Follow him at @jdmagness
Mindwalk
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100151/
Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0100519/
My Dinner With Andre
waking life and the man from earth.
Steppenwolf (1974) Fred Haines, Dir. Screenplay written with Herman Hesse
Wings of Desire (1987) Wim Wenders, Dir.
Cocteau’s Orphic Trilogy (Blood of a Poet 1930, Orphee 1950, Testament of Orpheus 1959) Jean Cocteau, Dir.
Possible Worlds (2000) Robert LePage, Dir.
The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976 – but find the uncut version) Nicolas Roeg, Dir.
Jodorowsky’s 1973 film The Holy Mountain
THX 1138 (1970) George Lucas, Dir.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0066434/reviews
funny..i was just about to write
Holy Mountain…so i concur…
99 Francs
Un Chien Andalou
Enter The Void
Waking Life
My Dinner With Andre
The Complete Works of Jan Svankmajer…for starters
Bill and ted came out in 1989.. Not 2001
Tarkovsky’s movies:
Andrei Rublev
Stalker,
…
Viva La Muerte by Fernando Arrabal
I Stand Alone by Gaspar Noe
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0280778/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfXtzBRX3sg
Good article…
Locke (2013) by Steven Knight
-written based on philosophy of John Locke.
First thing that came to mind was Mindwalk and My Dinner with André… so nice that other people noticed those two, too.
How about adding The Widow of St Pierre (La veuve de Saint-Pierre)? Excellent piece for thinking about ethics, law, right action, etc.
Orson Welles’ The Trial and Monty Python’s Life of Brian
I feel that Paris, Texas would be a good movie for this list. It’s a heart-wrenching tale of bad love, but it shows the redemption of a man who destroyed himself and those around him, and he saves them too.
Wonder Boys and Dead Poets Society
As usual, this stuff is probably over my head, so that leads me to anything by Bunuel. I am also surprised that Being There and Bladerunner didn’t make the list (not to mention they are aesthetically superior to Truman and AI, respectively).
And let us not forget Forrest Gump, for it likely remains a definitive example of Taoist theory set within a popular film.
Similarly, many of Ang Lee’s films share a consistent thread which can be traced to his own beliefs as a Buddhist. Crouching Tiger, Life of Pi, etc.
Chocolate
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter…and Spring
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0374546/
Beautiful movie.
Recomend Philip Warnells “Outlandish: Strange Foreign Bodies” staring Jean-Luc Nancy, about Nancys thinking which certainly makes it fall under both “Movies featuring the ideas of particular philosophers” as well as “Movies featuring a philosopher”. Also Claire Denis films inspired by Nancys philosophy is a treat. Safaa Fathys documentary about Derrida from late ninties is also alot better than the american one.
I think many things “philosophical” come to mind when watching the worst films. All bad films can be resources for philosophical discussion. And of course, the much fewer good films are richer material for the philosophy. And the filmmaker does not have to even name a character after a philosopher as in Antonioni’s The Passenger, Fellini’s 8 1/2 and others did. But a slight reference to a philosophical issue — as in Tarkovsky’s Rublev or Antonioni’s La notte or even Tarantino’s Kill Bill can re-frame the entire filmic discourse as a philosophical quest.
I think, there is a bit of a misconception concerning movies which are important for a philosophy student: It doesn’t mean that if a movie has as its explicit topic philosophy or philosophers, that this movie is philosophically very important.
I would rather say a really great movie always is a philosophical movie, always opens the path to important philosophical questions. (By the way, this is what you can learn from Zizek: his movies are on the list, but VERTIGO for example, which he considers a philosophical masterpiece, is not!)
El hombre mirando al sudeste, an argentinian film that explores about madness and common sense.
Fight Club 1999 Dir David Fincher
eXistenZ 1999 Dir David Cronenberg
The Sacrifice
Aguirre: The Wrath of God
Fantastic Planet
The Idiots
Jagal: The Act of Killing
The Hunt
Is the Man Who Is Tall Happy? by Michel Gondry. It must be for philosophers, because I understood none of it.
I would suggest Richard Linklator’s “Waking Life”; Jill Sprecher’s “13 Conversations About One Thing” and Philipp Saville’s “Metroland”.
Three of my favorites are from South Korean director Lee Chang Dong: Oasis, Secret Sunshine, and Poetry. I consider these an existentialist “trilogy” on perspective, the problem of evil, and the problem of world collapse or dying.
Play It as It Lays
Enemies, a Love Story
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
das leben der anderen
daisies
der name der rose
dogville
the fountain
network
bitter moon
gattaca
urga
fried green tomatoes
a face in the crowd
agora
the man who wasnt there
before the rain
brazil
blade runner
the life of david gale
–Character (Karakter) dir. Mike Van Diem
–Come And See dir. Elem Klimov
–Miller’s Crossing dir. Coen Bros. (Johnny Caspar: You double-cross once – where’s it all end? An interesting ethical question. And again: Johnny Caspar: I’m talkin’ about friendship. I’m talkin’ about character. I’m talkin’ about – hell. Leo, I ain’t embarrassed to use the word – I’m talkin’ about ethics.)
Monty Python & the Holy Grail (1975)
Monty Python & the Life of Brian (1979)
Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983)
Koyaanisqatsi (1982)
Waking Life
Maybe Logic: The Life and Ideas of Robert Anton Wilson
Why Not Now? The Alan Watts Documentary
Baraka
Samsara
The Tao of Steve
What the Bleep Do We Know
One: The Movie
I recommended The Edge with Anthony Hopkins and Alex Baldwin (1998 I believe) to a professor who was looking for a film to launch a discussion on philosophy in literature in film. It truly is one of the most powerful films.
Latcho Dron
One Eyed Jacks
Tarkovsky.
Groundhog Day
F for Fake
Into Eternity
Anything by Chris Marker, especially, The Last Bolshevik, Sunless, and La Jetée
Harun Farocki’s Images of the World and the Inscription of War
You cannot forget any film by Jean Luc Godard and Max Ophuls, both have created films touching on desire, infatuation,love, being, freedom, death, commodities and an endless list of other crucial philosophical issues.
Richard Linklater’s “Waking Life” extensively featuring philosophy professor Robert C. Solomon.
Ship of Thesus, by Anand Gandhi
During the time of Film Noir( black film)in America ,the movies made after WW11 reflected the works of this two Philosophers:Albert Camus and Jean Paul Sartre Existentialism ,including the works of Sigmund Freud.
Cornered
No way Out
Caged
The Dark Corner
In a Lonely Place
Detour
Armored Car Robbery
On Dangerous Ground
A Woman Secret
Follow me Quietly
Agora by Alejandro Amenabar. About Hypatia of Alexandria.
Yes!!!!
*Ugh- above comment was in reply to jamie, who suggested ‘My dinner with Andre’.It’s a goodun.
Why do replies end up at the bottom of the comments rather than directly below the comment to which we replied/ clicked ‘reply’? ( on of the more important philosophical questions of our times )
The Lives of Others
Please don’t forget Marshall Mcluhan’s brilliant cameo in Annie Hall
Don’t forget The Razor’s Edge. Saw Bill Murray’s depth in that one.
Films about Hannah Arendt:
“Hannah Arendt”: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1674773/
“Vita Activa: The Spirit of Hannah Arendt” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5358370/
Wim Wender’s, Wings of Desire is a must for any philosophy student.
Maybe Logic: The Lives and Ideas of Robert Anton Wilson.
Has anybody ever watched Treasure Of The Sierra Madre?
Syberberg’s 7-hour film “Hitler-A film from Germany”
Santa Sangre
Alejandro Jodorowsky
I am very needed to see the 44 movies of philosophy.
The Legend of Bagger Vance (a retelling of Bhagavad-gita).
The City of God (ethics) .. I second fight club (existentialism)
Also some movies by Bela Tar, such as “Satantango” and “Turin Horse” which is about Nietzsche’s last days, albeit an artistic film, much better than the one listed. Lookup the scene from Satantango “Order and freedom” which is an excellent philosophical stint somewhat about existentialism, will, passion, and justice.
The fountain
Ex machina
“Being There” and “Babette’s Feast”
Is “I Heart Huckabees” too on the nose?
“Terminator 2” and “Alien 3”.
Philosophical films are the type that make you ask yourself throughout “What am I watching?” and leave you without an answer as they draw to a close, so that you must ask yourself also “What did I just watch?”:
Cosmos – Andrzej Żuławski
Stalker – Andrei Tarkovsky
Anomalisa – Charlie Kaufman
“Paterson”, by Jarmusch, 2016
Meetings With Remarkable Men
Steppenwolf
Marat/Sade
Siddhartha
The Conformist
Inland Empire
Embrace of the Serpent.2015
I just watched Samsara again two nights ago, and it certainly put me into a philosophical spin. Ron Fricke’s films, including Baraka, are visually stunning, without dialogue or characters, simply a visual feast of nature and the human condition. In Samsara (which means the suffering from delusion), there are images of hundreds of thousands of Moslems praying around a big rock, Jews arguing with God at the Wall, Buddhists meditating and doing ceremony, Materialists going to work to earn the Almighty Dollar, and African tribesmen decorating their bodies, and holding automatic rifles. It is confronting to see it all up close and personal, as if you’re there. It spun me into thoughts of how absolutely crazy humanity is, and how precious humanity is. Highly recommended therapy for “normal” thoughts.
Yes the incredible lightness of being, I would say……..
I second ‘The Turin Horse’ and ‘Agora’
Woman in the Dunes
Meetings with remarkable men (1979)
cherry blossoms (German film)
Arrival
On Body and Soul
Talk to Her
Wall-e
Captain Fantastic
Great Beauty
The Qatsi trilogy is the informal name given to a series of non-narrative films produced by Godfrey Reggio and scored by Philip Glass:
Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance(1982)
Powaqqatsi: Life in Transformation(1988)
Naqoyqatsi: Life as War (2002)
The titles of all three motion pictures are words from the Hopi language, in which the word qatsi translates to “life.”
Poetry! this film! such a fully realized ontological beauty!
women and WOC and LGBTQ2S !
i’d love to watch more philosophical films written and directed by women+, or films featuring women+ thinkers. a couple on this list but asking the diggers out there for more suggestions?
Zelig……….adapting to your environment
Two For The Road……….how your perspective changes as you age
please don’t forget Zizek’s appearance in the excellent “Laibach: A Film from Slovenia”
Deconstructing Harrry … for giving us an “out of focus” Woody Allen if nothing else