“Explore how a data company named Cambridge Analytica came to symbolize the dark side of social media in the wake of the 2016 U.S. presidential election.”
The Great Hack – A Netflix Original Documentary
Director / Producer / Writer: Karim Amer
Director: Jehane Noujaim
Writer / Producer: Pedro Kos
Producers: Geralyn White Dreyfous & Judy Korin
Executive Producer: Mike Lerner
Released at Sundance Film Festival January 26, 2019. Worldwide release by Netflix July 24, 2019
IMDb: tt9358204
They took your data.
Then they took control.
Data has surpassed oil as the world’s most valuable asset. It’s being weaponized to wage cultural and political warfare. People everywhere are in a battle for control of our most intimate personal details. From award-winning filmmakers Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim, THE GREAT HACK uncovers the dark world of data exploitation with astounding access to the personal journeys of key players on different sides of the explosive Cambridge Analytica/Facebook data scandal.
Academy-Award nominees Amer and Noujaim (The Square, Control Room, Startup.com) continue their tradition of exploring the seismic ripples of social media with this riveting, complex film. THE GREAT HACK forces us to question the origin of the information we consume daily. What do we give up when we tap that phone or keyboard and share ourselves in the digital age?
The Great Hack: Official Trailer – Website – Facebook
Watch Now on Netflix »
Interviews, Reviews & More Info
- Article: “The Great Hack: the film that goes behind the scenes of the Facebook data scandal” by Carole Cadwalladr, The Guardian, July 20, 2019.
- Article: “The Great Hack” Sundance Institute.
- Review: “‘The Great Hack’ Review: How Your Data Became a Commodity” – A new documentary examines the ramifications when private companies harvest online information about us. By Ken Kenigsberg, The New York times, July 23, 2019.
- Review: “‘The Great Hack’ Explains How Cambridge Analytica Made Trump President — Sundance Review” This sprawling look at the company behind Brexit and Trump will scare you from ever using Facebook again. By Eric Kohn, IndieWire, January 27, 2019.
- Review: “The Great Hack” is a misinformed documentary about misinformation. A new film chronicles the fall of Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy that used data to form psychological profiles of voters, without much insight or novelty. By Prospero, The Economist, July 24, 2019.
- Interview: “Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim on ‘The Great Hack’” – Amanpour & Co. July 29, 2019: Hari Sreenivasan sits down with the co-directors of “The Great Hack,” Karim Amer and Jehane Noujaim, whose new Netflix film takes a hard look at the ethics of big tech and how data is used to undermine democracies.
- Interview: Documentary: ‘The Great Hack’ – NPR’s Sarah McCammon speaks with filmmakers Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer about their Netflix documentary The Great Hack. Heard on “All Things Considered” July 28, 2019.