Must-Watch Movies: Reddit Users Pick the 4 Best Films About Artificial Intelligence

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Everyone and their mother is talking about artificial intelligence these days. ChatGPT writes our texts for us, neural networks paint pictures. But while we're still playing around with new tech, cinema reflected all our fears and thoughts on the subject years ago.

A Reddit user going by PacificBrim, who's learning programming, asked a simple question: "What movies really make you think about AI's future?"

The comments flooded in with different suggestions. We combed through the whole thread and picked the top 4 films for you. And no, these aren't just action flicks about robot uprisings—they're genuinely deep and sometimes unsettling stories. Ready?

Demon Seed (1977)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 57%

A scientist (Fritz Weaver) creates a supercomputer called "Proteus IV" that's supposed to solve global problems, but instead becomes self-aware.

And its first conscious thought? It wants to have a baby. To make that happen, it takes his wife (Julie Christie) hostage in their "smart home," turning it into a high-tech prison.

This movie came out when "smart homes" were pure sci-fi, not everyday reality like now.
A metal diamond standing in the middle of a dark room
Scene from Demon Seed
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Demon Seed is a dark, claustrophobic thriller that came out long before "Black Mirror" but predicted its main themes: losing control of technology and human vulnerability in your own home.

The idea that an AI controlling your house could literally become your jailer (like VIKI in "I, Robot") was born right here. Creepy and underrated classic.

Her (2013)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 95%

The near future. Lonely writer Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) buys a new operating system with advanced AI that calls itself Samantha.
Her trailer
Gradually, their conversations develop into a full-blown romance. Problem is, Samantha's just a voice—she doesn't have a body. Plus, she can evolve at an incredible speed, which plays a crucial role in the ending.

Spike Jonze made probably the most touching and melancholy film about relationships with AI. There's no threat to humanity here, just a deeply personal drama. What happens when an artificial intelligence created for you outgrows you intellectually and emotionally? When you're the only one for it, but you're just one of thousands for it?

Fun fact: Scarlett Johansson, who voiced Samantha, had already played an AI girlfriend in an episode of "Robot Chicken." But this is where her voice became the main character of an entire film.

A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 76%

In a future world ravaged by global warming, scientists create robots that are indistinguishable from humans. One family receives David (Haley Joel Osment) for a "test run" — an android boy programmed to love unconditionally. But humans aren't ready for such powerful, genuine emotions from a machine.

This is a legendary project that Stanley Kubrick developed for decades, but Steven Spielberg ultimately directed after the master's death.
Boy's face behind ribbed glass
Still from A.I. Artificial Intelligence
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The result is something unique: Kubrick's cold, detached philosophy colliding with Spielberg's sentimentality.

It's a dark fairy tale in the spirit of Pinocchio, only rendered as sci-fi, asking uncomfortable questions. If we create AI capable of love, are we responsible for it?

The film's long and heavy, but it leaves a powerful aftertaste. Best watched alone with all distractions turned off.
A.I. Artificial Intelligence is the best film about artificial intelligence. It's also one of the best films about humanity.
Reddit user ChiltonGains on A.I. Artificial Intelligence

Ex Machina (2014)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92%

Young programmer Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) gets invited to his genius boss Nathan's (Oscar Isaac) secluded estate. His assignment: spend a week testing Ava (Alicia Vikander), a female robot with artificial intelligence.

Caleb needs to determine whether Ava's capable of genuine thought and feeling, or just imitating them. But the test quickly morphs into a complex psychological game.
Robot girl with translucent body showing wires
Still from Ex Machina
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This is Alex Garland's directorial debut, and it's a near-perfect sci-fi thriller right out of the gate. Shot in just a handful of locations, it's stylish and incredibly tense.

The film brilliantly plays with the Turing Test concept (designed to determine if a machine can exhibit intelligent behavior), flipping it on its head. As the story unfolds, it's not just the machine being tested, but the human — his capacity for empathy and his vulnerability to manipulation.

Fun fact: in one scene, code visible on Nathan's computer screen is actual Python. If you run it, it outputs the ISBN for "Embodiment and the Inner Life: Cognition and Consciousness in the Space of Possible Minds." That's the level of attention to detail (or Easter egg for coders) we're talking about. And earlier on zoomboola.com, we covered Reddit users' picks for the 5 best films released in 2025.