As of late, Hollywood has taken a sparkle to programmers, with programmers showing up in verging on each heist or puzzle motion picture now. This can be both great and terrible for our calling. As we probably am aware, whichever way Hollywood chooses to portray our calling is the manner by which a great many people will see it.The good news is that not all of Hollywood’s depictions of hackers are negative, despite the overwhelming perception by the masses that our profession is a malicious one.
In trying to determine the ten best hacker movies, I tried to only use those films where people are actually entering into other peoples’ or organizations’ computers for good or ill. Very often, reviewers of this genre include any movie with computer “stuff” as a “hacker movie.” In my definition of a hacker movie, someone must be using advanced skills to access someone else’s computer, without their consent or knowledge, for good or ill.
Takedown (also known as Trackdown) is a B-grade movie—a fictionalized and sensationalized account of the tracking and capture of probably the most infamous U.S. hacker, Kevin Mitnick. Based upon the book and written by his nemesis, Tsutomu Shimomura, the story tends to glorify Shimomura. Mitnick operated in the 1980s and ’90s and eventually went to prison for a couple of years. Now, he is a highly paid IT security consultant, speaker, and writer.
This movie has low production values, despite having some relatively well-known actors (Skeet Ulrich, Tom Berenger, and Amanda Peet, among others). Don’t expect to learn much hacking from this movie, though, as nearly the entire 1 hour and 36 minutes is a story about tracking down Kevin Mitnick as the FBI and Shimomura searches for him across the states.
Unfortunately, the hacking is forgettable and far from reality. Jackman’s character is seen breaking into highly secure systems within seconds, while gyrating geometric objects appear on his screen. Very little depiction of the actual hard work that goes into hacking is seen, and they make it look like a computer game.
The most memorable part of this movie is Halle Berry’s topless scene. Although it has nothing to do with hacking, it does make this movie memorable.
In trying to determine the ten best hacker movies, I tried to only use those films where people are actually entering into other peoples’ or organizations’ computers for good or ill. Very often, reviewers of this genre include any movie with computer “stuff” as a “hacker movie.” In my definition of a hacker movie, someone must be using advanced skills to access someone else’s computer, without their consent or knowledge, for good or ill.
Takedown
Takedown (also known as Trackdown) is a B-grade movie—a fictionalized and sensationalized account of the tracking and capture of probably the most infamous U.S. hacker, Kevin Mitnick. Based upon the book and written by his nemesis, Tsutomu Shimomura, the story tends to glorify Shimomura. Mitnick operated in the 1980s and ’90s and eventually went to prison for a couple of years. Now, he is a highly paid IT security consultant, speaker, and writer.
This movie has low production values, despite having some relatively well-known actors (Skeet Ulrich, Tom Berenger, and Amanda Peet, among others). Don’t expect to learn much hacking from this movie, though, as nearly the entire 1 hour and 36 minutes is a story about tracking down Kevin Mitnick as the FBI and Shimomura searches for him across the states.
Swordfish
In Swordfish, Hugh Jackman plays a retired, elite hacker who has been released from a long prison term and is now working in the oil fields and living in a trailer. He is approached by an organized crime figure played by John Travolta, and is forced to do one last hacking job against his will.Unfortunately, the hacking is forgettable and far from reality. Jackman’s character is seen breaking into highly secure systems within seconds, while gyrating geometric objects appear on his screen. Very little depiction of the actual hard work that goes into hacking is seen, and they make it look like a computer game.
The most memorable part of this movie is Halle Berry’s topless scene. Although it has nothing to do with hacking, it does make this movie memorable.
