Satire backdrop

Satire movies

Sharp comedy that targets society, politics, media, or workplace culture with irony and pointed exaggeration.

Babylon

1. Babylon

Drama Comedy Entertainment Industry Drama Satire
7.1
20223h 9min

Overview

A tale of outsized ambition and outrageous excess, tracing the rise and fall of multiple characters in an era of unbridled decadence and depravity during Hollywood's transition from silent films to sound films in the late 1920s.

Themes

Old hollywood power dynamics, Class ascent via gambling, Addiction and gambling debt, 1920s decadence and excess, Elephant spectacle, Cocaine fueled excess

Available on

Netflix
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

White Noise

2. White Noise

Comedy Drama Satire Psychological Drama
5.7
20222h 16min

Overview

Jack Gladney, professor of Hitler studies at The-College-on-the-Hill, husband to Babette, and father to four children/stepchildren, is torn asunder by a chemical spill from a rail car that releases an "Airborne Toxic Event" forcing Jack to confront his biggest fear - his own mortality.

Themes

"movie: white noise. genres: comedy, Drama, Comedy, Drama main themes: based on novel or book, Natural disaster, New hampshire, Based on novel or book, Natural disaster, New hampshire full keywords list: based on novel or book, Natural disaster, New hampshire, Dysfunctional family, Toxic waste, Airborne attack, Dartmouth. concept analysis: the film explores the pervasive fear of death and the lengths individuals go to confront their mortality. it critiques modern society's obsession with technology and pharmaceuticals as means to escape existential anxieties."

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

3. Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Comedy Crime Mystery Whodunit Detective Mystery Crime
7.1
20222h 20min

Overview

World-famous detective Benoit Blanc heads to Greece to peel back the layers of a mystery surrounding a tech billionaire and his eclectic crew of friends.

Themes

Class inequality, Deception and manipulation, Group dynamics, Satire and social critique, Corporate ethics, Power and reputation

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Spirited

4. Spirited

Comedy Satire
6.6
20222h 7min

Overview

Each Christmas Eve, the Ghost of Christmas Present selects one dark soul to be reformed by a visit from three spirits. But this season, he picked the wrong Scrooge. Clint Briggs turns the tables on his ghostly host until Present finds himself reexamining his own past, present and future.

Themes

Public image vs private life, Deception and accountability, Power and influence, Media manipulation ethics, Family obligation vs career, Memory and consequence

Available on

Apple TV
Amazon Video
Apple TV
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

BARDO, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths

5. BARDO, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths

Comedy Drama Psychological Drama Satire
6.7
20222h 39min

Overview

A renowned Mexican journalist and documentary filmmaker living in Los Angeles, after being named the recipient of a prestigious international award, is compelled to return to his native country, unaware that this simple trip will push him to an existential limit.

Themes

Memory and legacy, Public vs private life, Existential crisis under pressure, Media scrutiny and self, Artifice of docufiction, Family duty vs mobility

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Amsterdam

6. Amsterdam

Mystery Comedy Drama Whodunit Historical Drama
6.1
20222h 14min

Overview

In the 1930s, three friends—a doctor, a nurse, and an attorney—witness a murder, become suspects themselves and uncover one of the most outrageous plots in American history.

Themes

Framing and deception, Veterans reintegration, Corporate power and corruption, Foreign influence in governance, Cabal manipulation, Investigation and accountability

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Triangle of Sadness

7. Triangle of Sadness

Comedy Drama Satire Political Drama
7.2
20222h 27min

Overview

A celebrity model couple are invited on a luxury cruise for the uber-rich, helmed by an unhinged, alcoholic captain. What first appears Instagrammable ends catastrophically, leaving the survivors stranded on a desert island in a struggle of hierarchy.

Themes

Cruise ship dynamics, Food rationing reveals hierarchy, Class differences drive status, Wealth inequality reshapes power, Social media influencer reshapes norms, Power struggle reorders roles

Available on

Apple TV
Hulu
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Not Okay

8. Not Okay

Comedy Drama Satire Entertainment Industry Drama
6.1
20221h 43min

Overview

An ambitious young woman, desperate for followers and fame, fakes a trip to Paris to up her social media presence. When a terrifying incident takes place in the real world and becomes part of her imaginary trip, her white lie becomes a moral quandary that offers her all the attention she’s wanted.

Themes

Social media performativity, Online shaming consequences, Viral notoriety, Performative deception, Fame versus integrity, Ethical boundaries of influence

Available on

Hulu
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

9. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

Action Comedy Crime Satire Con Artist Crime
7.0
20221h 47min

Overview

Creatively unfulfilled and facing financial ruin, Nick Cage must accept a $1 million offer to attend the birthday of a dangerous superfan. Things take a wildly unexpected turn when Cage is recruited by a CIA operative and forced to live up to his own legend, channeling his most iconic and beloved on-screen characters in order to save himself and his loved ones.

Themes

Class inequality, Deception and manipulation, Moral compromise, Performative identity, Risk and loyalty, Organized crime and corruption, Commodification of fame

Available on

Amazon Video
Apple TV
Google Play Movies
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.

Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood

10. Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood

Animation Comedy Drama Family Animation Coming-of-Age Drama
7.2
20221h 37min

Overview

A man narrates stories of his life as a 10-year-old boy in 1969 Houston, weaving tales of nostalgia with a fantastical account of a journey to the moon.

Themes

Coming of age under pressure, Secret mission secrecy, Cold war anxiety, Space age nostalgia, Technology optimism vs risk, Family resilience amid danger

Available on

Netflix
Netflix Standard with Ads
Data provided by JustWatch.Availability may vary by region.