Top 9 Must Watch Movies That Will Make You Intelligent And Smarter
Intelligence is something that is not only gained by years of study and learning, but also by new experiences. It might sound like a cliche but it’s true.
We may not be able to watch every single movie on this list, but we can work on reading more books and traveling more.
Do you need a little extra boost to your intelligence? Here are some movies we recommend:
1. A Beautiful Mind (2001 ‧ Drama/Romance ‧ 2h 15m)
A Beautiful Mind is a 2001 American biographical drama film based on the life of John Forbes Nash Jr., a Nobel Laureate in Economics.
The film stars Russell Crowe as John Nash, along with Jennifer Connelly, Ed Harris and Paul Bettany. It was directed by Ron Howard from a screenplay written by Akiva Goldsman. The story begins with a brief flashback to young mathematician Nash’s struggle with schizophrenia before he begins World War II service, then tells of his later struggle to hide his mental illness while he works on solving several problems related to military intelligence.
2. Sherlock Holmes (2009 ‧ Mystery/Mystery ‧ 2h 9m)
Sherlock Holmes is a 2009 British film based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic “Sherlock Holmes” story. The movie, the first of three Sherlock Holmes films, is directed by Guy Ritchie and stars Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes and Jude Law as Dr. John Watson, with Rachel McAdams as their former love interest Irene Adler.
The movie tells an action-packed story about how they team up to solve mysteries, save lives, and bring justice to those who deserve it most.
3. Inception (2010 ‧ Action/Sci-fi ‧ 2h 28m)
Inception is a 2010 science fiction action film written and directed by Christopher Nolan. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb, a skilled thief who steals information from people’s subconscious, while they are asleep, using his skills of entering their dreams.
The inception of the idea for the film came from Christopher Nolan’s desire to do a heist movie set in contemporary Los Angeles. A major influence on the idea of the dream-sharing technology at the heart of Inception was lucid dreaming, hence its connection with “inception” meaning “beginning“.
4. Lucy (2014 ‧ Action/Sci-fi ‧ 1h 29m)
Lucy is a movie that is set in the near future, where people have become so dependent on technology that they can no longer interact with each other.
This movie shows the dangers of addiction and how it can be used in negative ways. It also suggests that humans should be more in touch with themselves and not so reliant on technology.
5. The Theory of Everything (2014 ‧ Romance/Drama ‧ 2h 3m)
The Theory of Everything is a 2014 biographical romantic drama film. The script was written by Anthony McCarten and adapted from the memoir Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen, by Jane Wilde Hawking. The film stars Academy Award winners Eddie Redmayne and Felicity Jones.
The story follows the life of Cambridge University student Stephen Hawking for the period starting in 1963 when he experienced his first stroke at age 21 or 22, and “follows his academic career, personal life and marriage to his nurse, Jane Wilde.”
6. Interstellar (2014 ‧ Sci-fi/Adventure ‧ 2h 49m)
Interstellar is a 2014 epic science fiction film co-written, directed and produced by Christopher Nolan. The screenplay was written solely by him and Jonathan Nolan. The story centers on Cooper, an ex-NASA pilot who journeys through a wormhole in space in an attempt to save mankind. Matthew McConaughey plays the lead character of Cooper, with younger actors playing his children.
Through the wormhole, he travels to another galaxy where he is faced with the reality of an extinction event which happened in that galaxy 30 years ago. This event created over two dozen different planets made up of ice or dust where our astronauts are trying to find a new home for humanity before ours collapses through environmental disasters and overpopulation.
7. The Imitation Game (2014 ‧ War/Drama ‧ 1h 54m)
The Imitation Game is a 2014 biographical thriller film. The film is loosely based on the book Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges. Directed by Morten Tyldum, the film stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Alan Turing, Keira Knightley as Joan Clarke, and Matthew Goode as Hugh Alexander.
It follows British mathematician Alan Turing during his time at Bletchley Park in England in 1942-1943 when he was attempting to crack the Nazi’s “Enigma Code” with fellow mathematician Dilly Knox (Charles Dance) and colleagues Alastair Denniston (Mark Strong) and Hugh Alexander (Matthew Goode).
8. Arrival (2016 ‧ Sci-fi/Thriller ‧ 1h 56m)
Arrival is a 2016 American science fiction film directed by Denis Villeneuve and adapted by Eric Heisserer, based on the 1998 short story “Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang. The film stars Amy Adams as Dr. Louise Banks, a linguist who is recruited to communicate with aliens who have landed on Earth in twelve ships.
9. Tenet (2020 ‧ Action/Sci-fi ‧ 2h 30m)
Tenet is a 2020 science fiction action thriller film written and directed by Christopher Nolan. The title of the film is a word meaning “truth, reality, or an indisputable fact” in a religious context. The plot of the movie revolves around a group of scientists making contact with beings from another world.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly in May 2018, Nolan revealed that he described the film as being about “science being indistinguishable from magic.”
