Angelina Jolie’s Underrated Crime Thriller Is Giving Strong 90s Vibes

Gangs, intrigues and elaborate frauds — this is what we love about 90s crime flicks. We bet you have seen at least one of them, maybe Martin Scorcese’s Goodfellas (1990), Quentin Tarantino ’s Reservoir Dogs (1992) or, maybe, the Coens’ Fargo ( 1996).

However, there is a unique crime thriller that was unfairly forgotten by the audience. Yes, it’s quite clichéd and relies too much on the already outdated visuals, but it’s still a must-watch for its representation of the 1990s and even The Matrix ’s techno vibe.

The film’s plot revolves around Dade aka Zero Cool, a teenage hacker who was accused of crashing over lots of Wall Street computers at the age of only 11. Seven years later, he ends up involved in a risky theft of millions of dollars from a powerful corporation.

This time Zero Cool teams up with other high school hackers, including Kate aka Acid Burn (played by Angelina Jolie), for whom he immediately falls. However, their affair is threatened by the severe troubles they get during their new hacking exploits.

Made in the mid-1990s, this flick was heavily inspired by the back-then development of the Internet and the radical ideas around new technologies. These include the notorious Hacker Manifesto that is even quoted in one of the movie’s coolest moments.

Disappointingly, the 1995 thriller fell victim to critics’ strict judgment, earning a shameful score of 33% on Rotten Tomatoes. It is panned for being unintentionally funny and generic, while the young cast isn’t capable of delivering convincing performances.

Titled Hackers, it is in fact loved by simple viewers, who claim it offers a nostalgic portrayal of the rise of the Internet era and the whole decade of the 1990s.

“I absolutely love it. Its about as accurate on hacking/cybersecurity as Call of Duty is for war or NCIS is for law enforcement. But its so dumb, stupid, and 90s that I love it,” says Redditor @j1mmyava1on about this flick, rated 68% by the audience on RT.

You will definitely enjoy it if you’re a fan of other titles about hacking, such as Sandra Bullock’s The Net (1995) and Rami Malek’s Mr. Robot series (2015 - 2018).

Check out whether this 90s thriller is a guilty pleasure or truly an overlooked gem that deserves to be reassessed, as Hackers is available for streaming on Prime and Apple TV+ .