Strange Days
Virtual Insanity, Part V
Kathryn Bigelow’s STRANGE DAYS was a box office bomb when it was released in 1995. But nearly thirty years later, it feels like one of the most disturbingly accurate visions of our current media-obsessed, surveillance-saturated world.
In this two-part episode, we trace the film’s full story—from its origins as a scribbled idea in James Cameron’s notebook to its resurrection as one of the most visionary (and overlooked) sci-fi thrillers of the 1990s. We cover it all: the influence of the Rodney King riots, Bigelow’s uncompromising creative process, the development of the SQUID tech, and the massive, logistically wild production that nearly broke the film’s budget (and possibly a few extras).
We also explore the soundtrack that gave the film its pulse, its catastrophic box office rollout, and the critical reappraisal that’s helped turn STRANGE DAYS into a cult classic. Plus, we reflect on the film’s enduring legacy—how it predicted reality TV, body cams, and memory as entertainment—and why it might just be Bigelow’s most daring work.
Credits
Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
Screenplay by James Cameron & Jay Cocks
Story by James Cameron
Starring Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, Michael Wincott
Score by Graeme Revell
Produced by James Cameron, Steven-Charles Jaffe
Cinematography by Matthew F. Leonetti
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STRANGE DAYS, part 1:
STRANGE DAYS, Part 2
Coming soon.
ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS:
Andy Lancaster | asotirov | Benjamin Yates | Caverly | courtland ashley | curtcake5k | Elton Novara | Hunter D Mackenzie | Jackson_Baker | LillymckY | Lucy Lawson | MagicBloat | Nate Izod | Nathan Kelley | Robert Stinson | Spacemonkey73
Theme Song: "There's Still a Little Bit of Time, If We Hurry and I Mean Hurry" by Slasher Film Festival Strategy.
This episode was written, produced and edited by Gary Horne, Justin Bishop & Todd A. Davis.
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