Videodrome

When TV producer Max Renn discovers the pirate broadcast of a seemingly real torture show, he finds himself drawn into a dangerous and increasingly hallucinatory conspiracy to indoctrinate the North American viewing public. Cronenberg’s film is both extreme and compelling. A dark, McLuhan-inspired satire on media overreach, it embraces the filmmaker’s interest in the physical fusion of the human body and machinery, along with a touch of sadomasochism.

Contains distressing scenes.

BFI Film Academy Recommends

BFI Film Academy Recommends highlights films and events for young people aged 16-25, picked by the BFI Film Academy Young Programmers.

Prophetic, disturbing and thought-provoking, Videodrome masterfully blends notions of physical desire with society’s insatiable need for digital mass consumption, eerily predicting the modern media landscape. As James Woods’ character plunges into a nightmarish virtual world, Cronenberg explores the allure of visual media and the disturbing images we’re drawn to. Decades before the internet’s explosion and the rise of unlimited social media, the prescience of Videodrome makes it essential viewing in understanding the true horror of our digital cravings.

Young Programmer, Elijah Smith-Ayton