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Equilibrium poster

Movies that feel likeEquilibrium (2002)

In a dystopian future, a totalitarian regime maintains peace by subduing the populace with a drug, and displays of emotion are punishable by death. A man in charge of enforcing the law rises to overthrow the system.

If you loved Equilibrium, the closest films we have are District B13 (2004), eXistenZ (1999) and Escape from New York (1981). All three share Equilibrium's kinetic and cerebral feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is They Live (1988).

🍅 40% Rotten Tomatoes★ 7.3 IMDb ↗TMDB ↗dir. Kurt Wimmerkineticcerebraltensebleak
10 of 12 streaming nowAmazon Prime Video · Paramount Plus Premium · AMC

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If Equilibrium hit the spot, these will too

District B13 poster
District B13
2004 · dir. Pierre Morel
🍅 81%★ 7.1action · thriller · science fictionPrime Video

Both are working the same pair: martial arts, dystopia

The difference: Reviewed even better

Set in the ghettos of Paris in 2010, an undercover cop and ex-thug try to infiltrate a gang in order to defuse a neutron bomb.

eXistenZ poster
eXistenZ
1999 · dir. David Cronenberg
🍅 77%★ 6.8action · thriller · science fiction

The same preoccupation in both: dystopia

A game designer on the run from assassins must play her latest virtual reality creation with a marketing trainee to determine if the game has been damaged.

Escape from New York poster
Escape from New York
1981 · dir. John Carpenter
🍅 70%★ 7.1action · thriller · science fiction

One thread runs through both: anti hero

The difference: Made in the 1980s, in a different era of the craft

In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam free. After the US president crash-lands inside, war hero Snake Plissken has 24 hours to bring him back.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines poster
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
2003 · dir. Jonathan Mostow
🍅 70%★ 6.3action · thriller · science fiction

Both land momentum and ideas at once

It's been 10 years since John Connor saved Earth from Judgment Day, and he's now living under the radar, steering clear of using anything Skynet can trace. That is, until he encounters T-X, a robotic assassin ordered to finish what T-1000 started. Good thing Connor's former nemesis, the Terminator, is back to aid the now-adult Connor … just like he promised.

They Live poster
They Live
1988 · dir. John Carpenter
🍅 86%★ 7.2science fiction · action · thrillerPrime Video

Tense where it counts, bleak underneath

A lone drifter stumbles upon a unique pair of sunglasses that reveal aliens are systematically gaining control of the Earth by masquerading as humans and lulling the public into submission.

Children of Men poster
Children of Men
2006 · dir. Alfonso Cuarón
🍅 92%★ 7.9science fiction · thriller · action

Action built on momentum, twice over

In 2027, in a chaotic world in which humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child's birth may help scientists save the future of humankind.

Death Race poster
Death Race
2008 · dir. Paul W. S. Anderson
🍅 41%★ 6.4action · thriller · science fictionStarz

Common ground: martial arts

Terminal Island, New York: 2020. Overcrowding in the US penal system has reached a breaking point. Prisons have been turned over to a monolithic Weyland Corporation, which sees jails full of thugs as an opportunity for televised sport. Adrenalized inmates, a global audience hungry for violence and a spectacular, enclosed arena come together to form the 'Death Race', the biggest, most brutal event.

Surrogates poster
Surrogates
2009 · dir. Jonathan Mostow
🍅 37%★ 6.3science fiction · action · thriller

Both lean on ideas more than on science fiction

Set in a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and interact through surrogate robots, a cop is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others' surrogates.

The Book of Eli poster
The Book of Eli
2010 · dir. Allen Hughes
🍅 46%★ 6.8action · thriller · science fiction

Thriller with a pulse of tension, in both cases

A post-apocalyptic tale, in which a lone man fights his way across America in order to protect a sacred book that holds the secrets to saving humankind.

Gamer poster
Gamer
2009 · dir. Brian Taylor
🍅 29%★ 5.7action · thriller · science fiction

Bleak action, and it commits to that

Mind-control technology has taken society by a storm, a multiplayer on-line game called "Slayers" allows players to control human prisoners in mass-scale. Simon controls Kable, the online champion of the game. Kable's ultimate challenge becomes regaining his identity and independence by defeating the game's mastermind.

RoboCop poster
RoboCop
1987 · dir. Paul Verhoeven
🍅 84%★ 7.6action · thriller · science fiction

Kinetic science fiction in both cases

In a violent, near-apocalyptic Detroit, evil corporation Omni Consumer Products wins a contract from the city government to privatize the police force. To test their crime-eradicating cyborgs, the company leads street cop Alex Murphy into an armed confrontation with crime lord Boddicker so they can use his body to support their untested RoboCop prototype. But when RoboCop learns of the company's nefarious plans, he turns on his masters.

The Running Man poster
The Running Man
1987 · dir. Paul Michael Glaser
🍅 59%★ 6.6action · thriller · science fictionParamount+Starz

Thriller built on ideas, twice over

By 2017, the global economy has collapsed and U.S. society has become a totalitarian police state, censoring all cultural activity. The government pacifies the populace by broadcasting a number of game shows in which convicted criminals fight for their lives, including the gladiator-style The Running Man, hosted by the ruthless Damon Killian, where “runners” attempt to evade “stalkers” and certain death for a chance to be pardoned and set free.

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The best-reviewed films that share Equilibrium’s defining feeling.