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List of films featuring drones

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There is a body of films featuring unmanned aerial vehicles colloquially known as drones. The Hollywood Reporter wrote in February 2016, "There has been no shortage of films dealing with drones over the last few years... audiences have recently had the occasion to explore a form of modern warfare whose true repercussions are yet to be fully understood, let alone divulged to the general public."[1] The Wall Street Journal's Caryn James said of drone technology, "Movies and television shows increasingly grapple with those unprecedented aspects of war," highlighting Good Kill's release in 2015. James said, "These new films and shows have to keep the action going in situation rooms full of computers, rather than in trenches and on battlefields. And they address moral and strategic questions that old-fashioned World War II movies never had to."[2]

Henry Barnes wrote in The Guardian in April 2016, "In real life, drone warfare has prompted protests, legal action and revolt. Until now, films about drones haven't properly engaged in the debate. They either forget there's someone at the controls, emphasising the alien nature of a remote, robotic death, or, like London Has Fallen, use drones as just another weapon in the arsenal; a cool tool to make bigger, badder bangs." Barnes highlighted Eye in the Sky (2015) as an example of "one of the first drone movies to work in the grey areas" of drone warfare.[3] Jason Bourque wrote in The New York Times of Good Kill and Eye in the Sky, "Those films examined the moral struggles of military personnel as they conduct missions with clinical precision while far removed from danger."[4]

List of films

Film Year Description
American Ultra 2015 The stoner comedy film features an exaggerated Central Intelligence Agency that carries out drone strikes on American shopping malls.[5]
Angel Has Fallen 2019 The action film features drones attacking the President of the United States in an opening scene.[6]
Babylon A.D. 2008 In the science fiction film, the protagonists are attacked by aerial drones, patrolling the Alaskan-Canadian border.[7]
Back to the Future Part II 1989 In the science fiction film, a future timeline depicts a news outlet drone videotaping the arrest of a criminal.[8]
Blade Runner 2049 2017 In the science fiction film, LAPD officer K has a flying car equipped with a detachable drone that he can control via voice command. The drone is able to survey areas, including what is underground.[9]
Blair Witch 2016 In the horror film, the main characters bring a drone-mounted camera into the woods with them.[10]
Body of Lies 2008 The spy film features extensive use of drone surveillance.[11]
The Bourne Legacy 2012 Aaron Cross, an agent of a Central Intelligence Agency program living in the woods, is targeted in a U.S. drone strike.[12][13]
Captain America: The Winter Soldier 2014 In the superhero film, a government program called Project Insight creates three Helicarriers that have the capability of killing autonomously.[13][14][15]
Captain Phillips 2013 In the thriller film based on a true story, a Boeing Insitu ScanEagle is used by the United States Navy to monitor the situation involving a hijacked ship.[16]
The Chamber 2016 In the survival film, a four-person submersible crew attempts to find and destroy a crashed RQ-170 surveillance drone lost in the Yellow Sea before North Korea can recover it.[17]
Chappie 2015 In the science fiction film, a villain deploys drones to track down and attack the protagonist.[18]
Dirty Wars 2013 The documentary investigates targeted killings carried out by the United States government, including those executed by drones.[19]
The Divergent Series: Allegiant 2016 The dystopian film features miniature drones that obey finger commands.[20][21]
Drone 2014 The documentary explores the use of drones in warfare.[22][23]
Drone 2017 In the thriller film, an American drone pilot is confronted by a Pakistani businessman seeking revenge.[24]
The Drone 2019 The horror film features a serial killer whose consciousness is uploaded to a consumer drone, and the killer terrorizes a pair of newlyweds as the drone.[25]
Drones 2013 Two United States Air Force personnel wrestle with executing a drone strike on an apparent terrorist at the cost of civilian lives.[26]
Eagle Eye 2008 In the thriller film, a Predator drone is flown into a Washington, DC tunnel to kill the film's protagonist.[27]
Elysium 2013 In the science fiction film, a sleeper agent deploys drones to track down and attack the protagonist.[28]
Eye in the Sky 2015 The film features drones operated by the U.S. and British governments that fire Hellfire missiles and insect-/bird-sized drones that infiltrate terrorist compounds.[15][23][29]
Force Majeure 2014 In the Swedish film, a family of four on a ski trip bring with them a toy drone. In a dramatic scene, the drone's appearance invokes a comical feeling to break the heavy social pressure of the scene.[30]
Four Lions 2010 In the black comedy film, a terrorist at a suicide bomber training camp attempts to shoot down a drone with a rocket launcher but has it backwards and instead kills his fellow terrorists.[31]
From the Sky 2014 In the short film, an Arab father and son travel through a region frequently targeted in drone strikes.[32]
Full Contact 2015 A French drone pilot flies drones in the Middle East from Nevada in the United States. He carries out a drone strike on a building to kill a terrorist inside, but he discovers afterward that the building was a school for boys.[23][33]
Furious 7 2015 In the film's climax, the protagonists drive through the streets of Los Angeles to evade a weaponized drone.[34]
The Giver 2014 In the dystopian film, drones monitor citizens and inform them of rule-breaking.[35]
Good Kill 2014 A United States Air Force pilot, participating in the Central Intelligence Agency's drone program in the war in Afghanistan, struggles with the ethics of attacking targets from afar.[15][23][29]
Hummingbird 2013 A former Special Forces officer, struggling for redemption, is paranoid about having been watched by drones ("hummingbirds") in his Afghanistan operations as well as his life on the streets in London.[36]
Inferno 2016 In a scene from the thriller film, a symbology professor and his sidekick evade a drone hunting them in Florence's Boboli Gardens.[37]
Leave the World Behind 2023 In the post-apocalyptic thriller film, one of the characters encounters on the road a drone dropping leaflets with Arabic writing, thematically tied to one of the film's notions of "sowing 'synchronized chaos' with misinformation".[38]
London Fields 2015 The drama film, with a nonlinear narrative, features a military drone as part of intercut scenes.[39]
London Has Fallen 2016 The action film begins with a drone strike targeting a terrorist but only killing his family, leading him to seek revenge.[3]
Interstellar 2014 At the beginning of the science fiction film, the protagonist tracks down and commandeers a renegade drone formerly belonging to the Indian Air Force.[40]
Iron Man 2 2010 During the superhero film, the villain Justin Hammer builds weaponized humanoid drones based on Iron Man's suit technology.[41]
The Interview 2014 In the comedy film, a drone delivers a replacement strip of poison to Kim Jong-un's fortress for the protagonists to use to kill him.[42]
Kill Command 2016 The science fiction film features artificial intelligence-controlled drones who attack a team of soldiers on a military training island.[43]
Mission: Impossible III 2006 In the spy film, a convoy traveling across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge is targeted by a drone.[44]
Mobile Suit Gundam F91 1991 In the sci-fi mecha anime film, the Crossbone Empire uses drones known as Bugs, equipped with whirling blades along their edges, which are designed to saw through whatever they encounter. They can also split open to deploy "Child" Bugs, smaller Action Bombs with a small beam gun that can go into smaller places(like houses).
Mohajer 1990 A man who controls RC airplanes to detect Iraq's front line, is put in danger of not being able to return.[45]
National Bird 2016 In the documentary film, three whistleblowers warn about the consequences of military drone strikes.[46]
Oblivion 2013 In the science fiction film, drones monitor a ruined Earth in 2077.[47]
Olympus Has Fallen 2013 In the action thriller film, North Korean terrorists launched a small drone to be on a lookout for any military incursion teams.
The Other Side 2012 The short film depicts a child who experiences drone attacks in Pakistan by the United States government and consequently joins a terrorist group.[48]
Poltergeist 2015 In the horror film, a toy drone plays a key role in the climax.[49]
The Purge: Election Year 2016 The horror film features drone warfare.[50]
RoboCop 2014 In the science fiction film, the beginning depicts drones used as part of a U.S. military operation to subjugate a Middle Eastern country.[13]
Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling 2019 In this animated film, characters travel on drone-propelled chairs.[51]
Rotor DR1 2015 In the science fiction film, a young man in a post-apocalyptic world attempts to track down his father, traveling under a sky populated with autonomous drones.[52]
Sentinel 2017 In the science fiction short film, a man wakes up in an empty field and is chased by a flying drone.[53]
Skyline 2010 In the science fiction film, Predator drones are deployed with stealth bombers to fight an aerial battle with enemy aliens.[54]
Slaughterbots 2017 The short film, a collaboration between professor Stuart J. Russell and the Future of Life Institute, depicts a dystopian future in which palm-sized drones are able to carry out massacres with facial-recognition technology and on-board explosives. The film was produced to encourage a global ban on autonomous weapons systems.[55]
The Spymasters 2015 In the documentary film, Directors of the Central Intelligence Agency are interviewed about the agency's approach to terrorism, including the use of drone strikes.[56]
Stealth 2005 In the action film, an unmanned air combat vehicle developed by the United States military is taken over by a built-in artificial intelligence, and three Navy pilots work together to stop the vehicle.[57]
Sleep Dealer 2008 In the science fiction film, the setting is a near-future dystopia where the water supply is privately controlled by corporations and warfare is waged with drones. The inclusion of drones was inspired by the 1997 science fiction novel Forever Peace.[58]
Spider-Man: Far From Home 2019 In the superhero film, Mysterio uses drones masked by holographic images to create cataclysmic threats that he thwarts in order to prop himself up as a superhero to the public.[59]
Spider-Man: Homecoming 2017 In the superhero film, Spider-Man utilizes a bug-sized drone provided to him by Iron Man.[60]
Spies in Disguise 2019 In this animated film, agents from H.T.U.V. battle a terrorist who employs hundreds of drones in battle.[61]
Star Trek: Insurrection 1998 In the science fiction film, unmanned remote controlled drones controlled by the Sona would locate and target persons on a planet surface and transport them onto a starship above.[62]
Syriana 2005 In the geopolitical thriller, a Predator drone is used by the Central Intelligence Agency to assassinate an emirate's foreign minister.[29]
This Means War 2012 In the romantic comedy film, two Central Intelligence Agency men compete over a woman, and one agent shoots down a surveillance drone the other agent deployed to spy on him.[63]
Transformers: Age of Extinction 2014 In the action film based on the robot toy line, miniature drones are featured as part of the group of villains.[64]
Unmanned: America's Drone Wars 2013 The documentary film investigates the impact of U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan and elsewhere.[65]
Venom 2018 There is a scene in which several unmanned quadcopters chase down the protagonist
X-Men: Days of Future Past 2014 In the superhero film, the future timeline features airborne killer robots called Sentinels that hunt down and kill mutants.[13]

References

  1. ^ Mintzer, Jordan (February 14, 2016). "'National Bird': Berlin Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 15, 2016.
  2. ^ James, Caryn (March 3, 2016). "'Eye in the Sky': How Drones Are Changing War Movies". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  3. ^ a b Barnes, Henry (April 14, 2016). "Kill shots: why cinema has drone warfare in its sights". The Guardian. Retrieved April 14, 2016.
  4. ^ Bourque, Jason (May 24, 2017). "Review: In 'Drone,' Confronting Sins and a Vengeful Visitor". The New York Times. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  5. ^ Lunegaard, Erik (August 20, 2015). "'American Ultra': Jesse Eisenberg lights up this tale". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  6. ^ Kenigsberg, Ben (August 22, 2019). "'Angel Has Fallen' Review: Returning to Grace, One Bullet at a Time". The New York Times. Retrieved August 27, 2019.
  7. ^ Bielik, Alain (September 2, 2008). "'Babylon A.D.': New Solutions for a Post Apocalyptic Journey". VFXWorld. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  8. ^ Robehmed, Natalie (October 21, 2015). "Five Things 'Back To The Future Part II' Got Right About 2015 Technology". Forbes. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  9. ^ Epstein, Adam; Murphy, Mike (October 7, 2017). "How realistic is the incredible futuristic technology in 'Blade Runner 2049'?". Quartz. Retrieved October 9, 2017.
  10. ^ Jenkins, Mark (September 15, 2016). "Blair Witch is the most disappointing horror movie of the year". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  11. ^ Thompson, Patricia (October 2008). "Middle East Intrigue". American Cinematographer. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  12. ^ Corliss, Richard (August 9, 2012). "The Bourne Legacy: Spy vs. Drones — Which Is Which?". Time. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  13. ^ a b c d Romano, Andrew (May 23, 2014). "Hollywood's War on Drones". The Daily Beast. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  14. ^ Suebsaeng, Asawin (April 4, 2014). "'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' Is About Obama's Terror-Suspect Kill List, Say the Film's Directors". Mother Jones. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  15. ^ a b c McClintock, Pamela; Anderson, Ariston (September 5, 2014). "Toronto: First Controversial Drone Movie Strikes, Questions U.S. Policy". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  16. ^ Robbins, Gary (October 22, 2013). "Spy drone subtly stars in 'Captain Phillips'". U-T San Diego. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  17. ^ Warren, Tamara (February 24, 2018). "The Chamber is a new film set in a sinking submarine". The Verge. Retrieved March 9, 2018.
  18. ^ Kilkenny, Katie (September 9, 2015). "Humans Are Terrible in Chappie, and That's the Point". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
  19. ^ Egner, Jeremy (June 6, 2013). "His Target Is Assassinations". The New York Times. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  20. ^ Turan, Kenneth (March 17, 2016). "Review: The confusing latest 'Divergent' installment 'Allegiant' is strictly for devoted fans". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  21. ^ Mintzer, Jordan (March 5, 2016). "'The Divergent Series: Allegiant': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 1, 2016.
  22. ^ Keslassy, Elsa (January 30, 2014). "LevelK Unleashes 'Drone' At Goteborg". Variety. Retrieved February 13, 2015.
  23. ^ a b c d Knight, Chris (November 19, 2015). "Drone review: Hope gets grounded". National Post. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
  24. ^ Lang, Brent (April 11, 2017). "Sean Bean's 'Drone' Lands at Screen Media Films (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved April 12, 2017.
  25. ^ Collis, Clark (January 1, 2019). "Zombeavers director returns with trailer for horror film The Drone". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
  26. ^ Harvey, Dennis (June 26, 2014). "Film Review: 'Drones'". Variety. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  27. ^ Tucker, Neely (September 26, 2008). "'Eagle Eye': Zooming In on Too Many Explosions". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  28. ^ Evans, Claire L. (August 14, 2013). "Big Smart Objects: Drone Culture and Elysium". Grantland. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  29. ^ a b c Siegel, Robert (December 6, 2005). "Ex-CIA Agent Robert Baer, Inspiration for 'Syriana'". npr.org. National Public Radio. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  30. ^ Lattanzio, Ryan (January 2, 2015). "Ruben Östlund on Directing and Messing with Gender Roles in 'Force Majeure'". Thompson on Hollywood. Indiewire. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
  31. ^ Prigge, Matt (April 27, 2013). "That hilarious British comedy about terrorists targeting a marathon". metro.us. Metro International. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
  32. ^ Pathan, Nabila (October 17, 2014). "Peace or PTSD in the Middle East? U.S. drone drama to hit Vimeo". english.alarabiya.net. Al Arabiya. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  33. ^ Ford, Rebecca (September 13, 2015). "TIFF: Drone Pic 'Full Contact' Looks at Cost of War". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  34. ^ Lambie, Ryan (April 10, 2015). "Andrew Niccol Interview: Good Kill, Drones, Lord Of War". Den of Geek!. DoGTech. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  35. ^ DeFore, John (August 11, 2014). "'The Giver': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 25, 2015.
  36. ^ Debruge, Peter (June 20, 2013). "Film Review: 'Redemption'". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  37. ^ Collins, Katie (October 26, 2016). "'Inferno' director Ron Howard talks drones, Dante, Dan Brown". CNET. Retrieved October 28, 2016.
  38. ^ King, Jack (December 13, 2023). "Director Sam Esmail explains the ambiguous ending of Leave the World Behind: 'The point is that it lingers'". GQ. Retrieved May 20, 2024.
  39. ^ Cieply, Michael (September 15, 2015). "'London Fields' Premiere in Toronto Troubled by Creative Rift". The New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2015.
  40. ^ Anthikad-Chhibber, Mini (November 9, 2014). "Reaching for the stars". The Hindu. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  41. ^ Capps, Robert (May 6, 2010). "Review: Fun Iron Man 2 Pits Witty Hero Against Juicy Villains". Wired. Retrieved September 9, 2015.
  42. ^ Rich, Katey; Hoffman, Jordan (December 17, 2014). "The 10 Best Things You Won't Get to See in The Interview". Vanity Fair. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  43. ^ Bradshaw, Peter (May 12, 2016). "Kill Command review – superior sci-fi action thriller". The Guardian. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  44. ^ Staff. "The 'Mission: Impossible' Films – Part 3". filmsite.org. AMC Networks. Retrieved October 23, 2014.
  45. ^ "Mohajer". IMDb. 19 October 1990.
  46. ^ Roddy, Michael (February 13, 2016). "Berlin film 'National Bird' gives whistleblower view of drones". reuters.com. Reuters. Retrieved February 14, 2016.
  47. ^ Corliss, Richard (April 19, 2013). "Tom Cruise in Oblivion: Drones and Clones on Planet Earth". Time. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
  48. ^ Mahmood, Rafay (May 17, 2012). "The Other Side: Shooting drones". Archived from the original on 21 May 2012. Retrieved September 6, 2014.
  49. ^ Trendacosta, Katharine (May 29, 2015). "The New Poltergeist Has One Redeeming Feature: It's Only 90 Minutes Long". io9. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
  50. ^ Chang, Justin (June 30, 2016). "Review: Pulp gets political, and messy, in 'The Purge: Election Year'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
  51. ^ Matar, Joe (August 7, 2019). "Rocko's Modern Life: Static Cling Review (Spoiler-Free)". Den of Geek. Den of Geek World Limited. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  52. ^ Pick, Rachel (October 16, 2015). "A Group of Drone Enthusiasts Made a Sci-Fi Film About How Great Drones Are". Motherboard. Vice. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
  53. ^ Liptak, Andrew (December 24, 2017). "A man evades relentless drones in this action-packed science fiction film". The Verge. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
  54. ^ Ditzian, Eric (November 12, 2010). "'Skyline': The Early Reviews Are In". MTV News. Retrieved January 17, 2015.
  55. ^ McFarland, Matt (November 14, 2017). "'Slaughterbots' film shows potential horrors of killer drones". cnn.com. CNN. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
  56. ^ Mazzetti, Mark (November 27, 2015). "Review: In 'The Spymasters,' C.I.A. Leaders Recount Tactics of the Post-9/11 Years". The New York Times. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  57. ^ Staff (July 29, 2005). "The Science of Stealth". Popular Science. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  58. ^ Miranda, Carolina A. (August 2, 2014). "'Border drones and labor-bots: Alex Rivera's prescient 'Sleep Dealer'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 21, 2015.
  59. ^ Polo, Susana (July 2, 2019). "Spider-Man: Far From Home is the first Marvel movie to number the multiverse". Polygon. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
  60. ^ Miller, Matt (March 29, 2017). "What's Spider-Man Going To Do With His New Unnecessary Suit Upgrade?". Esquire. Retrieved March 29, 2017.
  61. ^ Erbland, Kate (December 16, 2019). "'Spies in Disguise' Review: Will Smith Sends Up James Bond in Pro-Pigeon, Anti-Drone Animated Offering". IndieWire. NYC, USA. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  62. ^ Franich, Darren (June 24, 2016). "Star Trek: Insurrection and the aging process onscreen". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 12, 2021.
  63. ^ Rozen, Leah (February 17, 2012). "'This Means War': Is Tom Hardy Leading Man Material?". bbcamerica.com. BBC America. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
  64. ^ Scioli, Tom (June 30, 2014). "Plot Is Overrated: Scioli On 'Transformers: Age of Extinction'". Comics Alliance. ScreenCrush Network. Archived from the original on July 16, 2014. Retrieved September 27, 2014.
  65. ^ Brown, David W. (August 5, 2013). "Interview: Robert Greenwald's war on drones". The Week. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
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