Overview
A whistleblower's journey reveals the dark side of digital surveillance and the price of truth.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- paranoid
- tense
- earnest
- political discussion night
- technology documentary double feature
What critics said
Critics found the fact-based story compelling and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's lead performance strong, while judging Oliver Stone's treatment too safe to deliver its full impact.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Edward Snowden's decision to expose mass surveillance is interwoven with his relationship with Lindsay Mills and the consequences for his identity and future.
The plot centers on the NSA's collection of ordinary Americans' digital communications and Snowden's alarm at its scale.
The Hong Kong hotel interviews with Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, and Ewen MacAskill frame flashbacks to Snowden's intelligence career.
Coding, NSA systems, digital communications, and classified data architecture are recurring dramatic and visual elements.
Films like Snowden, and why
The Report
fact-based political thriller about government secrecy, whistleblowing, and institutional surveillance
The Fifth Estate
journalistic conspiracy thriller centered on classified information and state power
A Most Wanted Man
real-world espionage drama featuring surveillance, moral conflict, and a pressured protagonist
Spotlight
investigative journalism thriller about exposing systemic wrongdoing through classified evidence
Movie Details
- Director
- Oliver Stone
- Release Date
- 2016-09-15
- Runtime
- 135 min
- Rating
- 7.1 / 10 (4793)
Cast
- Joseph Gordon-Levitt
- Shailene Woodley
- Melissa Leo
- Zachary Quinto
- Tom Wilkinson
- Scott Eastwood
- Timothy Olyphant
- Ben Schnetzer
- LaKeith Stanfield
- Rhys Ifans
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads, Starz Apple TV channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Snowden about?
- Edward Snowden risks his career, relationship, and freedom to expose the NSA’s sweeping surveillance of private communications.
- What is Snowden like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Snowden as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Snowden violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Snowden as mild.
- What did critics think of Snowden?
- Critics found the fact-based story compelling and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's lead performance strong, while judging Oliver Stone's treatment too safe to deliver its full impact.
- Which films are like Snowden?
- Films with a similar feel include The Report, The Fifth Estate, A Most Wanted Man, and Spotlight.
- How long is Snowden?
- Snowden runs 135 minutes.
- Where can I watch Snowden?
- In United States, Snowden streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads, Starz Apple TV channel.
