What if the whole world is watching your life? 15 movies about psychological experiments

The nature of human behavior, actions and their motivation have always been of special interest in psychology and sociology. Some experiments were characterized by a certain sophistication and even caused a storm of indignation among the world’s leading psychologists. However, most of them have made a significant contribution to the science of studying human behavior.

“The Office Experiment”, USA, 2017.

Directed by Greg McLean

Starring: John Gallagher Jr., Tony Goldwyn

Age limit: 18+

80 employees of a huge office unwittingly become participants in a psychological experiment. A voice from the speakers dictates the rules: to survive, coworkers must fight for their lives. Literally. Colleagues and even friends in a stressful situation will show their true colors.

“The Truman Show”, USA, 1998.

Directed by: Peter Weir

Starring: Jim Carrey

Age limit: 12+

Truman Burbank is a humble insurance agent who leads an ideal life from all sides. He has a great job, a house and a wife. But everything in his world is so perfect and idealized that Truman himself begins to suspect something wrong. As it turns out, for good reason. Since his birth, he is the hero of a reality show, whose life is watched by the whole world.

“Exam”, Great Britain, 2009.

Directed by: Stuart Hazeldine

Starring: Adar Beck, Gemma Chan

Age limit: 16+

There are eight people competing for one vacant seat. All of them have passed the preliminary stages, and the final, decisive stage is left. The chosen eight find themselves in a closed room with video cameras. In front of each of them is a sheet of paper with a serial number and the task – to answer a single question.

“What Would You Do…”, USA, 2012.

Directed by: David Guy Levy

Starring: Brittany Snow, Jeffrey Combs

Age limit: 18+

The main character Iris takes care of her younger brother who has been diagnosed with a fatal illness. She really needs money for the operation, so she agrees to take part in a strange dinner party, which is more like an experiment. In the posh mansion of aristocrat Shepard Lambrik other participants gather. Everyone is ready to go all the way to the end in order to get an impressive cash prize. But will everyone live to see the morning …

“The Experiment”, Germany, 2000.

Directed by: Oliver Hirschbigel

Starring: Moritz Bleibtreu, Christian Berkel

Age limit: 18+

The movie is based on the events of the famous Stanford Prison Experiment. Professor Philip Zimbardo selected 12 volunteers. Some were to play the roles of prisoners, others – their wardens. The most controversial experiment made noise in the world of psychology and psychiatry, and Zimbardo showed how unpredictable human nature is. In 2010, an American adaptation with the same title was released with Adrien Brody in the title role.

“The Awakening”, USA, 1990.

Directed by: Penny Marshall

Starring: Robert De Niro, Robin Williams

Age limit: 12+

The movie is based on the memoirs of the famous neurologist Oliver Sacks and a real case from his practice. The hero of the film is Dr. Sayer, who studies patients who have suffered from lethargic encephalitis. Most of their lives they are in a state of catatonic stupor – they are as if in a coma, do not react to the outside world, do not talk and do not move. Sayer decides to test an experimental drug, and his patients begin to come out of stupor. But not all such a “return” is given easily, because almost all their lives they spent in sleep. And how long will last the effect of the miraculous drug …

“The Obedience Experiment”, USA, 2012.

Directed by: Craig Zobel

Starring: Ann Dowd, Matt Servitto

Age limit: 16+

In 2004, in the American town of Mount Washington, a real-life case occurred, which formed the basis of the movie. The manager of a café receives a call from someone who introduces himself as a police officer. He informs that one of the employees has committed a theft and the manager needs to follow his instructions in order to catch the girl in the crime. The manager locks the “criminal” in the storeroom and follows all the “policeman’s” orders.

“The Experimenter,” USA, 2015

Director: Michael Almereyda

Starring: Peter Sarsgaard, Winona Ryder

Age limit: 16+

Biographical film about the life of the famous psychologist Stanley Milgram, the author of the famous experiments of submission to authority and the “theory of six handshakes”. The movie tells about the toughest and rather scandalous experience – submission to authority. The psychologist wondered – can ordinary people cause suffering to innocents if it is simply part of their duties? Would the “subordinates” be able to stand up to the “superiors” and go for conflict?

“Parcel”, USA, 2009

Directed by: Richard Kelly

Starring: Cameron Diaz, James Marsden

Age limit: 12+

A married couple receives a mysterious parcel box. Inside it is a button. If you press it, you get $ 1 million, with one small condition: a stranger dies somewhere.

“Insomnia,” Spain-Argentina-Uruguay, 2017.

Directed by Gustavo Hernandez.

Starring: Belen Rueda, Eva De Dominici

Age limit: 16+

A theater company decides to stage an unusual play. The place of rehearsal is an old abandoned psychiatric hospital. The director’s condition is that all the actors must give up sleep in order to get into character. Soon exhausted people begin to see strange things and can not separate reality from their nightmares.

“Platform,” Spain, 2019.

Director: Galder Gastelu-Urrutia

Starring Ivan Massagué, Sorion Egileor

Age limit: 18+

The protagonist accepts an offer to participate in an experiment. He finds himself in the cell of a multi-story tower. There are two prisoners on each floor, and a platform with food passes through the center of the tower every day. The lower the floor, the less chance the experiment participants have of surviving. While the inhabitants of the top tier are satiated with food, the inhabitants of the lower tiers die of starvation.

“13 Sins,” USA, 2013.

Directed by Daniel Stamm

Starring: Mark Webber, Rutina Wesley

Age limit: 16+

A simple office worker, Elliot, has been going through a rough patch in recent weeks. He’s been fired from his job, a wedding is looming, and a sick brother is on the dole. One phone call changes his life. A voice invites him to complete 13 tasks, for each of which he will receive a cash reward. The first tasks are simple and the amounts increase. If Elliot refuses to perform the next task, all the prize money will be burned. How far will the protagonist go in pursuit of money?

“Philosophers: A Lesson in Survival”, USA – Indonesia, 2013.

Directed by: John Huddles

Starring: Sophie Lowe, James D’Arcy

Age limit: 12+

A philosophy teacher is conducting a kind of exam among his students. He offers 20 of his students an experiment: a nuclear catastrophe is coming to the world – which of the students will they take with them to a secret bunker? The saving shelter is designed for only 10 people …

“Orbit 9”, Spain – Colombia, 2016

Directed by Hatem Hraiche

Starring: Clara Lago, Alex Gonzalez

Age limit: 16+

20-year-old Helena has not seen a single human being since birth. After all, she is the only passenger of the space station “Orbit-9”, which flies through the universe to the planet Celeste. There she should be in 19 years. Until then, the girl shortens her days alone. One day a breakdown is discovered in the station’s design, and Alex the mechanic is sent to help Helena. Falling in love with the girl, he reveals to her a secret: there is no Orbit and Celeste, and Helena – an unwitting participant in a psychological experiment.

“Method”, Argentina – Spain – Italy, 2005.

Director: Marcelo Pinheiro

Starring: Eduardo Noriega, Naiva Nimri

Age limit: 16+

A screen adaptation of Jordi Galceran’s play “The Granholm Method”. Seven candidates for a vacant position have to make a decision on their own – who of them is superfluous. But no one intends to give up. Ahead are five tasks, each of which will tear the masks from the faces of seemingly decent people.

These movies clearly demonstrate how far people can go in different stressful situations. Some show all their negative sides, others do not forget about moral principles and do not give in to pressure. But all of them had to make difficult decisions.