Strange Days (1995)
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Full plot (contains spoilers)
As 1999 ends, Los Angeles is a war zone. Lenny Nero, a former cop turned black marketer of SQUID recordings (which capture memories and sensations), acquires a recording of a robbery. Meanwhile, his friend Iris is hunted by police and eventually disappears. Lenny and his friend Mace find a discarded SQUID disc in Lenny's car. They later discover the disc contains a recording of Iris being murdered by an unknown assailant. The plot thickens as they realize the recording involves a music mogul, Philo Gant, and a conspiracy involving the police. Lenny and Mace eventually infiltrate a high-society party to confront the truth. In a final confrontation, Lenny faces off against his friend Max, who betrayed him. The film concludes with a massive riot in the streets as the new millennium begins, and Lenny and Mace share a moment of connection amidst the chaos.
- First release year
- 1995
- Runtime (minutes)
- 145
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Kathryn Bigelow
- Writers
- James Cameron · screenplay; Jay Cocks · screenplay; James Cameron · story
- Cast and characters
- Ralph Fiennes · Lenny Nero; Angela Bassett · Lornette "Mace" Mason; Juliette Lewis · Faith Justin; Tom Sizemore; Vincent D'Onofrio; Michael Wincott; Brigitte Bako · Iris
- Genres
- science fiction; thriller
- Themes
- racism; abuse of power; rape; voyeurism
- Tone and mood
- dystopian; noir
- Premise and plot tags
- cyberpunk; techno-thriller; tech-noir
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film polarized critics upon release, with some praising its visual style and others criticizing its portrayal of violence. It was a major commercial failure but has since gained a cult following and improved critical standing.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 71% · review count: 58; Metacritic · score: 66 · scale: 100 · review count: 30; CinemaScore · score: B · scale: A+ to F
- Awards and nominations
- Best Actress · Saturn Awards · 22nd · win; Best Director · Saturn Awards · 22nd · win
- Production trivia
- A line from the film was sampled by Fatboy Slim for his single 'Right Here, Right Now'.; The film's SQUID scenes required a specialized camera that took a full year to build.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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