A Glean movie guide
Mind-Bending Sci-Fi (Without the Headache)
Big ideas, clear execution.
High-concept thrillers and reality-warping stories that keep the plot easy to follow.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Source Code
A high-concept thriller that uses a clear simulation mechanic to drive a tense, ticking-clock mission.
When decorated soldier Captain Colter Stevens wakes up in the body of an unknown man, he discovers he's part of a mission to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train.
- 02
The Matrix
The definitive simulated-reality epic that balances philosophical depth with a classic hero's journey.
Set in the 22nd century, The Matrix tells the story of a computer hacker who joins a group of underground insurgents fighting the vast and powerful computers who now rule the earth.
- 03
Edge of Tomorrow
A propulsive action film that uses a time-loop mechanic to create a clear, objective-based narrative.
Major Bill Cage is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously demoted and dropped into combat. Cage is killed within minutes, managing to take an alpha alien down with him. He awakens back at the beginning of the same day and is forced to fight and die again... and again - as physical contact with the alien has thrown him into a time loop.
- 04
Minority Report
A sleek futuristic mystery that uses high-tech concepts to tell a straightforward 'wrong man' story.
John Anderton is a top 'Precrime' cop in the late-21st century, when technology can predict crimes before they're committed. But Anderton becomes the quarry when another investigator targets him for a murder charge.
- 05
Looper
A grounded sci-fi thriller that explores time travel through personal stakes and visceral action.
In the year 2044, time travel has not yet been invented but in 30 years it will have been. When the mob wants to get rid of someone, they will send their target into the past where a looper, a hired gun, like Joe is waiting to mop up. Joe is getting rich and life is good until the day the mob decides to close the loop, sending back Joe's future self for assassination.
- 06
The Adjustment Bureau
A fast-paced chase movie where the rules of a hidden reality are clearly explained by those in control.
A man glimpses the future Fate has planned for him – and chooses to fight for his own destiny. Battling the powerful Adjustment Bureau across, under and through the streets of New York, he risks his destined greatness to be with the only woman he's ever loved.
- 07
Total Recall
A visceral action classic that questions the nature of memory while maintaining a direct, linear plot.
Construction worker Douglas Quaid's obsession with the planet Mars leads him to visit Recall, a company that manufactures memories. When his memory implant goes wrong, Doug can no longer be sure what is and isn't reality.
- 08
The Thirteenth Floor
A stylish noir mystery that explores nested realities through a traditional investigative lens.
In Los Angeles, a wealthy man, known as Mr. Fuller, discovers a shocking secret about the world he lives in. Fearing for his life, he leaves a desperate message for a friend of his in the most unexpected place.
- 09
Limitless
A sharp thriller about mental expansion that follows a clear, engaging rise-and-fall narrative.
The life of an unsuccessful writer is transformed by a top-secret 'smart drug' that allows him to use 100% of his brain and become a perfect version of himself. His enhanced abilities soon attract shadowy forces that threaten his new life.
- 10
Dark City
A moody mystery featuring shifting architecture and memory manipulation with a helpful, guiding narrative.
A man struggles with memories of his past, including a wife he cannot remember, in a nightmarish world with no sun and run by beings with telekinetic powers who seek the souls of humans.
- 11
The Game
A tense psychological thriller where the line between reality and a construct is always clear to the viewer.
In honor of his birthday, San Francisco banker Nicholas Van Orton, a financial genius and a cold-hearted loner, receives an unusual present from his younger brother, Conrad: a gift certificate to play a unique kind of game. In nary a nanosecond, Nicholas finds himself consumed by a dangerous set of ever-changing rules, unable to distinguish where the charade ends and reality begins.
- 12
The Truman Show
A foundational false-reality story that presents its high-concept premise with total clarity and heart.
An insurance salesman begins to suspect that his whole life is actually some sort of reality TV show.