Sneakers (1992)

Sneakers

Does this 1992 take on information security hold up? What tech gadget was the forerunner for the Apple company? And how is this movie connected to WarGames? Listen now to find out! Scott Croco and Matt Janulewicz unhack Sneakers (1992) in this podcast episode.

When a crack security team gets hired by the NSA to retrieve a mystery box, they get more than they bargained for and must find a way to keep the world safe. Robert Redford stars in Phil Alden Robinson’s Sneakers (1992)!

A very special 50th episode! Join us on this milestone while we dive in to one of the greatest hacker movies of all time.

Episode Log:

  • September 1992 trivia (3:35)
  • Cast and crew credentials (4:35)
  • Summary of story/plot (11:55)
  • How the writers discovered “sneakers” (12:55)
  • Movie review (14:45)
  • Braille Playboy (21:25)
  • Meet the Sneakers team members (24:30)
  • Len Adelman – mathematical consultant on the film (34:05)
  • Impossible-to-defeat electronic door lock! (36:45)
  • The super-decryption box (40:20)
  • Braille terminals (46:55)
  • John Draper, aka Cap’n Crunch (52:50)
  • Whistler is a great character (57:00)
  • The “mantrap” (1:00:05)
  • Movie is fairly prescient (1:14:30)
  • Budget, Box Office, critics’ reactions (1:19:25)
  • “Fiction or Fake?” game (1:24:10)

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Episode 050 – Sneakers (1992) unhacked!
Download this episode

Research sources:
Siskel and Ebert review
Playboy in Braille
Robert Abbott
Cap’n Crunch Whistle
Braille Terminals
Google Quantum Supremacy

Movies Unhacked is a podcast about the portrayal of technology in movies. A podcast for fans of cinema and technology!

About Scott Croco

@MrSmartyMan on Twitter