4.6 KiB
[Q] Can anyone think of any good examples of rationalist films?
-
Author: u/ThatMarsGuy Chaos Legion*
-
URL: https://www.reddit.com/r/rational/comments/1wzd2t/q_can_anyone_think_of_any_good_examples_of/
-
Score: 12
-
Created: 2014-02-04T13:02:21
Post:
Having been thinking about the desolation of Smaug film again recently, and thinking about just how incredibly stupid the majority of the characters seem to act, can anyone point me in the direction of some good-quality films that serve as great examples of rationalist fiction?
Comments:
u/alexanderwales [+12] Time flies like an arrow (3 hours later)
My list from last time:
- Primer - two engineers invent a time machine
- The Man From Earth - a college professor claims to be immortal at a going away party
- Limitless - a man finds a drug that makes him smarter
- The Prestige - duelling stage magicians, but fails the Idiot Ball test
- Moneyball - a stats geek baseball manager uses stats to build a better team
Limitless is sort of borderline, but I give it points because it's one of the few pieces of fiction that doesn't present enhanced intelligence as some terrible thing - there's no Cave Man Science Fiction going on.
The biggest thing that films tend to fail on is the protagonist. The film can be a puzzle that you can figure out, but so often the protagonist just does the dumbest, most boneheaded things, or reacts in some animal or emotional way that's really really not in their best interests.
There are also probably a ton of detective/mystery movies that I'm missing here, though it's relatively rare to get one that's a fair play whodunnit in film.
u/None [+2] (14 hours later)
Thanks for recommending The Man From Earth, I had it on my HD for a long time and your post finally pushed me to watch it. I loved it, and I second the recommendation.
u/None [+1] (a day later)
Limitless bothered me because it never explained what "intelligence" actually is (within the movie) and treated it as "everything that isn't directly related to brawn."
u/None [+1] (7 days later)
[deleted]
u/dysfunctionz [+1] (17 days later)
I agree. What are the odds of spoiler Plus John being spoiler
Even so I highly recommend the movie. The first 2/3 are great, and while the ending fails on a rational level, it's not terrible from a narrative standpoint; merely a bit overwrought.
u/AmeteurOpinions [+2] Finally, everyone was working together. (18 minutes later)
Here is the thread from the last time this question was asked. Use the search bar first next time.
u/jaiwithani [+10] Insufficient data for a meaningful answer (17 hours later)
This is a rapidly-growing sub; Periodic reposts are probably healthy and expose a lot of new people to things they would not otherwise have seen. Posts like this one that solicit information will benefit even more from occasional reposts.
u/alexanderwales [+5] Time flies like an arrow (2 hours later)
Man, I was about to make a list, only to realize that I already did it last time.
u/None [+4] (2 hours later)
But surely we can ask this question again? I thought this sub was also about discussion and not purely about listing works of rational fiction.
u/AmeteurOpinions [+3] Finally, everyone was working together. (2 hours later)
Of course, but it always helps to keep the past discussions on hand for reference.
u/trifith [+10] Man plans, god laughs. Like the ant and the grasshopper. (4 hours later)
The tone of your first comment comes across as dismissive of OP. I'm going to assume you were attempting to be helpful, but I would recommend you remember that text based communication channels will tend to be read in a negative light, despite the intentions of the writer.
Edit: Words are hard, mmmKay
u/ThatMarsGuy [+2] Chaos Legion (19 minutes later)
Cheers, sorry. Spur of the moment thing.