Waterworld
In a post-apocalyptic future where polar ice caps have melted, a mutant mariner searches for the mythical dry land.
Became synonymous with out-of-control production: 'Fishtar', 'Kevin's Gate'. At $235M it was the most expensive film ever made at that time — and still grossed $264M worldwide.
Mid-90s eco-anxiety about rising sea levels. Universal had a massive hit-shaped hole after Jurassic Park. Hubris filled it.
As the AIDS epidemic destroyed creative communities in New York and Los Angeles, it changed how cinema depicted death, the body, and queer life — from Philadelphia to Longtime Companion.
The web prompted questions about identity, simulation, and control. The Matrix, Strange Days, eXistenZ, and Dark City all interrogated what's real in a mediated world.