Sneakers (1992)

Director:

Phil Alden Robinson

Writers (WGA):

Phil Alden Robinson (written by) and
Lawrence Lasker (written by) ...

Release Date:

9 September 1992 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

We could tell you what it's about. But then, of course, we'd have to kill you.

Plot:

Complex but lighthearted thriller about computers and cryptography, government and espionage, secrets and deception and betrayal.

Plot Keywords:

Computer | Encryption | Cryptography | Execution | Mathematics

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Jo Marr	...	College-Aged Cosmo (as Jojo Marr)
Robert Redford	...	Bishop
Gary Hershberger	...	College-Aged Bishop
Sidney Poitier	...	Donald Crease
David Strathairn	...	Erwin 'Whistler' Emory
Dan Aykroyd	...	Mother
River Phoenix	...	Carl
Bodhi Elfman	...	Centurion S&L Night Guard
Denise Dowse	...	Bank Teller
Hanyee	...	Bank Secretary
Timothy Busfield	...	Dick Gordon
Eddie Jones	...	Buddy Wallace
Time Winters	...	Homeless Man
Mary McDonnell	...	Liz
Jun Asai	...	Piano Prodigy

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for brief sexual references.

Runtime:

126 min | Canada:118 min (Ontario)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

UK:12 (original rating) | Australia:PG (TV rating) | Netherlands:12 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:L | USA:PG-13 (certificate #31961) | South Korea:15 | Peru:14 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-12 | Germany:12 | Spain:7 | UK:15 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

2nd Street Tunnel, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

The movie deals with the impact of a factoring breakthrough on encryption, an obvious reference to the RSA algorithm, the most popular public-key encryption algorithm in use today. 'Prof. Len Adleman', one of the co-inventors of the RSA algorithm, provided some technical guidance on the film in exchange for giving his wife a chance to meet lead actor Robert Redford.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): While the guys are videotaping Janek working in his office he gets up to open the door to let Dr. Elena Rhyzkov in you can see the electronic keypad on the door. However no one notices it as later we see Bishop practicing picking a standard door lock, and when he arrives at the door the electronic lock is a surprise to everyone. Since they are able to zoom in on the keyboard when they are trying to get his password they could have zoomed in on the door to see the electronic keypad, and been prepared for it.

Quotes:

Martin Bishop: How's the audio?
Whistler: Good, Mother's pretty close.
Donald Crease: He's just wearing four safety belts this time.
Martin Bishop: What, no parachute?

Movie Connections:

Featured in "20 to 1: Child Stars: Where Are They Now? (#6.6)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

The Girl From Ipanema

A hacker classic.

Sneakers is still fun to watch after 12 years and it was a great look at the time in which it was made. 12 years ago, the Cold War just ended and nobody was really sure how things were going to shape up geopolitically. Sneakers captured that mood perfectly and kept things tense with the soundtrack, locations and set work.

It's got the best balance of technical accuracy verses ease of viewing that I've ever seen on film. Not too many cartoon-like computer interfaces but no staring for minutes at a time at command line interfaces. Sneakers also gets points for being in the Bay Area and traveling among places that I visit every day (Hills Brother Coffee Building for the 'box drop' and the Dumbarton Bridge - for starters). Actors have fun with their roles although it's obvious that Sidney Poitier, Robert Redford, Ben Kingsley and James Earl Jones are not delivering their A-Game. It doesn't matter, it doesn't make it any less fun to watch. I like Phil Alden Robinson's camera movements; don't forget to look for the long, low slide across the Scrabble pieces right in a pivotal moment of the plot.

The movie still retains some relevance today. Ben Kingsley offers that gem " world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!" gains some credibility especially in the face of the post-9/11 news reporting on CNN, MSNBC and Fox News. Trash-diving is still a viable option to gain information on your opponent and social engineering will always work to help you gain some information.

Sneakers is still one of the best mainstream treatments on the subject of hacking. Watch, learn, enjoy.