Comm 102
Stories and Philosophy
Suggested topics
for Research Papers
The Nature of Belief
Free Will/Choice
Ethics/Ethics and Law
Theories of Punishment
Causation
Political Theories
Desert and Responsibility
Deception
Happiness/Well being
Evil
Power
Egoism
Personal
Identity/Personhood
The State of
Game Theory
Language
Mind
Dystopia
Artificial intelligence
Duty
Values
Slavery
Consciousness
TOP POPULAR PHILOSOPHY MOVIES
A. The Matrix
Issues: radical deception/skepticism, metaphysics (See Dave Chalmers' "Envatment as a Metaphysical Hypothesis", aka "The Matrix as Metaphysics" for a compelling argument that the people in the Matrix have mostly true beliefs about the external world), free will and determinism, the existentialist theory of choice, postmodernism, assorted religious issues, Descartes' Meditations, metaphysical idealism and realism
B. Minority Report
Issues: free will and determinism, philosophy of law and theories of punishment, causation, political philosophy, desert and responsibility
C. Vanilla Sky
Issues: radical deception/skepticism, internalist/externalist theories of well-being, Nozick's experience machine
Open Your Eyes
D. Bruce Almighty
Issues: the problem of evil, with a mix of a free will and flawed/finite God defense; also some ethical issues about the use of power and egoism
E. Twelve Monkeys
Issues: coherent time travel, causal loops, metaphysics
F. Memento
Issues: personal identity, especially useful for memory-based theories such as Locke's.
G. The Lord of the Flies*
Issues: the state of nature, order and informal institutions, contractarianism, game theory and reputation-building, very good with Hobbes.
H. Jacob the Liar
Issues: deontology versus utilitarianism (should we deceive the doomed in order to ease their remaining days?), political philosophy and totalitarianism
I. 1984*
Issues: philosophy of language and mind, political philosophy and totalitarianism, dystopia
J. Cruel Intentions
Issues: prudent predator/immoralism, value nihilism (not the metaethical theory, but the perverse outlook that the good must be destroyed), egoism, sympathy and moral psychology (specifically, it can be used in conjunction with Korsgaard's The Sources of Normativity and questions about motivational rationalism versus sentimentalism)
K. Bicentennial Man*
Issues: Strong AI, philosophy of biology (what is life?), personhood (what does it take to be a moral agent and a moral patient?)
L. Bladerunner (recommended: director's cut)
Issues: requirements to be a moral agent and/or moral patient, duties to artificial beings, science and human values, playing God, slavery, consciousness, AI, postmodernism
M. The Fisher King
Issues: meaning of life, sin, redemption, tragedy
* (Read the book /story instead, if you can.)
The Matrix
Waking Life
The Truman Show
Existenz
The Thirteenth Floor
Vanilla Sky
Total Recall
The City of Lost Children
Vanilla Sky
Open Your Eyes
The Matrix
The Shape of Things
Les Miserables (especially version with Liam Neeson)
Minority Report (also good for phil. law and punishment theories)
Gattaca
Matrix Reloaded
Donnie Darko
The Vanishing, a.k.a. Spoorloos (Get the original version.)
Sophie's Choice
The Emperor's New Groove
Gosford Park
The Ballad of Cable Hogue
Chocolat
Antz
Dead Man Walking
Dancer in the Dark
Mr. Death
The Life of David Gale
Twelve Monkeys
La Jetee
The Time Machine (old version)
Austin Powers II
Terminator II
Back to the Future
Time Cop
The Time Machine (2001 release)
Donnie Darko
1984
Animal Farm
We the Living
Fahrenheit 451
Equilibrium
Brazil
Persona
Memento
The Man with Two Brains
The Bourne Identity
Being John Malkovich
Dark City
Who is Julia?
Total Recall
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Paycheck
Solaris
Wild Strawberries
Stealing Heaven
The Fisher King
The Meaning of Life
Ghost World
O Lucky Man
SLC Punk!
On the Beach
Leaving Las Vegas
The Fisher King
Deliverance
Dead Man Walking
Seven
The Confession
Bladerunner
Matrix Revolutions or Reloaded
N.b. Most recent films have postmodern themes at times. Esthetically postmodern movies usually are philosophically postmodern.
Pretty much any Bergman film.
Bruce Almighty (problem of evil)
The Last Temptation of Jesus Christ
Life of Brian
What Dreams May Come
Winter Light
Contact
Inherit the Wind
Dogville
A Man for All Seasons
Kate and Leopold
Antigone
Lonely Are the Brave
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valence
Breaking the Waves
Spider-Man 2
Lord of the Flies
Hero
Matrix Revolutions
Failsafe
Hilary and Jackie
Requiem for a Dream
Rashomon
Bruce Almighty
The Rapture
The Seventh Sign
Theodore Rex
Dangerous Liaisons
Sling Blade
Dancer in the Dark
Constantine
Any Bergman film
Leaving Los Vegas
Love and Death
Crimes and Misdemeanors
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead
The Addiction
Twelve Angry Men
Proof
The Usual Suspects
Swimming with Sharks
Groundhog Day
Hollow Man
The Thin Red Line
Saving Private Ryan
Platoon
Full Metal Jacket
Kelly's Heroes
'Breaker' Morant
Deterrence
Rain Man
Quiz Show
Jacob the Liar
Extreme Measures
Crimes and Misdemeanors
In the Name of the Father
Burn!
The Battle of Algiers
Chinatown
Schindler's List
Matewan
Blow-Up
The Thin Blue Line
2001
He Said/She Said
Thelma and Louise
Boys on the Side
Something to Talk About
Sense and Sensibility
A Clockwork Orange
Cruel Intentions
Henry and June
Pollock
The Shawshank Redemption (a good anti-Crito movie)
Gladiator
Unforgiven
In the Bedroom
High Noon
To Kill a Mockingbird
Billy Budd
Chocolat
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Sirens
The Cube
Pi
Schindler's List
Men of Honor
Remember the Titans
Amistad
Braveheart (Specifically, one should point out: Hey, this Wallace dude says he's fighting for freedom, but he manifestly isn't. He's fighting to be horribly ruled by a Scottish jerk rather than an English jerk.)
Cool Hand Luke
South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut
The People versus Larry Flynt
The Fountainhead* (The movie sucks.)