Conspiracy Films

[Van Dammage]

I've always been fairly interested in Conspiracy theories and all that even though I think most of them are insane[nb]but quite interesting[/nb] And I watched The conspiracy last night[nb]How inventive[/nb] (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2330322/) and found it a decent watch. So now I'm looking for other films (and Documentaries) about Conspiracies and Conspiracy theories, large or small scale. Anything like the above mentioned film, or ones like the Parallax view or even Kill List. (creepy vibe and everyone seems to know something about the protaganist, like the lads in the hotel.) I've since downloaded The Institute, I as in Icarus, Some documentary called Resurrect Dead and also the first season of Utopia. Any suggestions for films like these or any other good conspiracy related films?

EDIT : I don't mind if they are grounded in reality or extremely outlandish, as long as it's interesting.

[Steven]

Most obvious one JFK

The Manchurian Candidate

Chinatown

The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie

The Long Goodbye

Marathon Man

Winter Kills

Mona Lisa

A Simple Plan

The Conversation

Arlington Road

Wag The Dog

Blow Out

[Van Dammage]

Most obvious one JFK

The Manchurian Candidate

Chinatown

The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie

The Long Goodbye

Marathon Man

Winter Kills

Mona Lisa

A Simple Plan

The Conversation

Arlington Road

Wag The Dog

Blow Out

Cheers. Crossed off the ones I have seen. I'll give the Long Goodbye a look first.

[GeeWhiz]

Three Days of the Condor is a pretty fab slice of 70s paranoia. As is Capricorn One.

I also quite like Tony Scott's hysterical Enemy of the State - enjoyable if you can overcome all that swooshy bloody camera work.

[Blumf]

I'll give the Long Goodbye a look first.

It really should be a better known film that. successfully turns the usual Philip Marlowe noir style on it's head, giving us sun bleached shots instead of the dark city streets.

Also a funny surprise when

Spoiler alert

Arnold Schwarzenegger

[close]

turns up for an early, uncredited, role.

I note you haven't seen The Conversation either. Put that on priority. Gene Hackman gives an intense character study, showing a man dealing with his guilt and paranoia. (Enemy of the State has a reference to him in it, so if possible see The Conversation first, so you can enjoy the ref)

On a lighter note, Cypher has a good conspiracy vibe running through it. Lots of double/triple/n-tuple agent confusion, combined with a rather nice woozy ambience on how the agents operate. Kind of PKD in style.

Speaking of which, A Scanner Darkly is possibly the most out and out conspiracy film based on a Philip K. Dick story. But, I can't say I liked it that much, so... <shrug>

[Hollow]

Capricorn One.

[Van Dammage]

I note you haven't seen The Conversation either. Put that on priority. Gene Hackman gives an intense character study, showing a man dealing with his guilt and paranoia. (Enemy of the State has a reference to him in it, so if possible see The Conversation first, so you can enjoy the ref)

I've actually had this one on my watch list for a while since I realised that John Cazale was in it. Love him.

I've tracked down pretty much everything mentioned in here so far so I'll have a busy week or two now.

[biggytitbo]

All the Presidents Men gives JFK a run for its money, it's a pretty stellar film, albeit really shitty history.


A slightly obscure British one is Defense of the Realm.

[Danger Man]

oops!

[Glebe]

The Box is another one. Didn't really like it, though.

[Dex Sawash]

Three Days of the Condor is a pretty fab slice of 70s paranoia.

3 days is one of my favorites,  watch it asap. 

[Van Dammage]

The Box is another one. Didn't really like it, though.

The box was fucking wank and also proved that the director was a one hit wonder.

[Catalogue Trousers]

Sneakers. It's a feelgood conspiracy thriller, but a damn good one. On a darker note, Kiss Me Deadly.

[phantom_power]

The box was fucking wank and also proved that the director was a one hit wonder.

You obviously haven't seen a little masterpiece called Southland Tales.

The Long Goodbye and The Conversation are two of the best films of the 70s, and therefore ever.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and most other Shane Black films fit the conspiracy bill quite well.

[Steven]

The Long Goodbye and The Conversation are two of the best films of the 70s, and therefore ever.

The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie is massively undersung, a really realistic gritty as fuck examination of the low end of the greaseball Mafia shit that goes on, the shittiness and awfulness of the gambling underworld, the divisiveness of the lower end crooks using desperate people for their own advantage, all offset by the malaise-ridden softcore sex-shows dressed up as a Revue of clubland.

[Funcrusher]

Most obvious one JFK

The Manchurian Candidate

Chinatown

The Killing Of A Chinese Bookie

The Long Goodbye

Marathon Man

Winter Kills

Mona Lisa

A Simple Plan

The Conversation

Arlington Road

Wag The Dog

Blow Out

Really scratching my head as to how some of these are conspiracy films. Killing of a Chinese Bookie is one of my all time favourite films, but I'm not really getting how it's a conspiracy film.

[Van Dammage]

You obviously haven't seen a little masterpiece called Southland Tales.

The Long Goodbye and The Conversation are two of the best films of the 70s, and therefore ever.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and most other Shane Black films fit the conspiracy bill quite well.

I heard southland tales was shite. Is it actually good?

[Steven]

Really scratching my head as to how some of these are conspiracy films. Killing of a Chinese Bookie is one of my all time favourite films, but I'm not really getting how it's a conspiracy film.

I'm gonna have to Spoiler this?

Spoiler alert

Vitelli has gambling debts so to pay them off the gangsters aggressing on him tell him to kill some Chinese Bookie downtown to absolve the debt, but he's actually a very rich Chinese gangster boss they send him on a fool's errand as he'll probably either kill him and be shot immediately of just wind up dead in the process, and they all knew this and then they try and kill Vitelli after the fact to keep the whole thing quiet.

[close]

[Funcrusher]

Yeah, but conspiracy means a large and hidden usually political conspiracy, not just some people conspiring. I wouldn't really call Chinatown a conspiracy either - it's just corrupt local politics really.

[monkfromhavana]

I'd also struggle to class The Long Goodbye as a conspiracy film, as good as it is.

[Steven]

A conspiracy means literally two or more people working together in secret. The thread title wasn't Political Conspiracy Films, or Conspiracy Films Not About Local Politics, and if you think Chinatown isn't a Conspiracy Film then God Help You.

[thraxx]

A conspiracy means literally two or more people working together in secret.

i.e. Brokeback Mountain.

[Funcrusher]

This has the potential to be the silliest argument ever on CAB. You are wrong though. Is Bilko a conspiracy series?

[Funcrusher]

The thread title wasn't Political Conspiracy Films, or Conspiracy Films Not About Local Politics, and if you think Chinatown isn't a Conspiracy Film then God Help You.

I don't think the thread starter had realised that level of explanation would be necessary.

[Blumf]

A conspiracy means literally two or more people working together in secret. The thread title wasn't Political Conspiracy Films, or Conspiracy Films Not About Local Politics, and if you think Chinatown isn't a Conspiracy Film then God Help You.

It so is a conspiracy film, a political conspiracy film at that too. Maybe not a paranoia inducing psychological thriller like The Parallax View, but still involves digging into murky government corruption. The real world basis for the story still negatively affecting California to this day.

[Mark Steels Stockbroker]

Edge Of Darkness, but the film's got Mel Gibson and is thus shit.

[Brundle-Fly]

Brian Yuzna's Society (1989), if you want surreal conspiracy theory

[Blumf]

Edge Of Darkness, but the film's got Mel Gibson and is thus shit.

I bet Mel doesn't even kiss the vibrator like Bob Peck did.

[Mini]

Rosemary's Baby.

[Pepotamo1985]

Hidden Agenda is just about OK. Parallax View I never really liked, it becomes cartoonish and plodding after its excellent opening.