Audiences all over the world have fallen for Squid Game, an endearingly odd, viscera-soaked South Korean series that took Netflix by storm. The tale of desperate strangers whisked away to a mysterious island and enticed to play a series of deadly children’s games – starting with red light, green light – is an instant global sensation. In fact, it’s now tracking to become the streaming service’s biggest hit of all time, topping Lupin, The Witcher and Bridgerton in sheer numbers.
With its endearing characters and commentary, Hwang Dong-hyuk’s series seems to have everything audiences were looking for. And apparently, what audiences in every corner of Netflix’s global market wanted was character-driven melodrama, high-stakes survivalism and ultra-stylised dystopian settings.
The series’ popularity makes the Tiger King craze seem tame by comparison. There’s no way Netflix will let its surprise hit be a one-and-done phenomenon, but while we all wait for the next round of Squid Game, there are plenty of films and shows that share its DNA. The below – a mix of classics, survival sleepers and indie sensations – should keep you busy while we await a return to South Korea’s unique playground
1. The Running Man (1987)
The ultimate ‘80s game-show film is more neon gladiatorial dystopia in nature, but this loose Stephen King adaptation captures a similar spirit as convicts vie for freedom by competing in a televised deadly fight. That the so-called “everyman” at the center is Arnold Schwarzenegger at his most hulking and quippy is half the fun, and Family Feud host Richard Dawson’s villainous turn is a top-tier ‘80s scumbag. We await Edgar Wright’s mooted remake with bated breath.
2. The Hunger Games (2012-2015)
The Hunger Games in essence is an emo-kid combination of The Running Man and The Most Dangerous Game, but with its high-tech island setting and on-the-nose social commentary. There’s more than a dash of The Hunger Games in its South Korean counterpart. Plus, it comes with the added bonus of watching Jennifer Lawrence become a global superstar right before your eyes.
3. The Belko Experiment (2016)
Directed by Wolf Creek’s Greg McLean and written by Guardians of the Galaxy’s James Gunn, The Belko Experiment focuses on corporate drones locked in a high-rise and forced to get creative with the office equipment. The film doesn’t fully live up to its potential and isn’t nearly as smart as it thinks it is, but it’s still a solid Americanised companion piece to the South Korean import with enough thrills to complement the mixed messaging.
4. 13 Sins (2014)
Daniel Stamm’s dark tale of a downtrodden loser forced into an escalating game of “would you rather” plays like a watered-down episode of Black Mirror filtered through David Fincher’s The Game. While the results are muddled at best, its main character – a desperate man trying to repair a broken life through a series of humiliations and dangerous encounters – reads like a less fleshed-out version of Squid Game’s rock-bottom protagonist. Despite its hit-or-miss execution, Stamm orchestrates scenes with aplomb, and some are right up there with Squid Game.
5. The 10th Victim (1965)
Urbane AF Marcello Mastroianni is a mile from the jaded artiste of Fellini’s 8½ in this brilliantly offbeat Italian sci-fi. Here, he’s still urbane and still jaded, but his art is more violent He’s a successful hunter in the wildly popular TV entertainment of its stylishly dystopian world (it’s set in Rome, how dystopian are you realistically going to get?). In a precursor to the likes of The Running Man and Squid Game, Elio Petri’s film shares many of the elements but with a more pronounced satirical edge. Special props to Ursula Andress’ on-screen presence for her smarts and ruthlessness to outwit her arrogant male adversary.
6. Cube (1997)
This no-budget Canadian indie was doing the escape room thing way before it was trendy. It’s a piece of puzzle box cinema perfectly calibrated for modern gamers. Its story should be very familiar ground for those looking to supplement their squidding.
7. Alice in Borderland (2020)
Essential viewing for anyone still hungry for Squid Game’s extreme-gaming motif, this Japanese Netflix series drops unsuspecting low lives into a dystopian version of Tokyo and forces them into a game of survival. Extremely stylish and white-knuckle in its set pieces, it’s a collision of Battle Royale, Escape Room and the Cube movies, serving as the perfect thing for those looking to keep the game going after the finale episode of Squid Game.
8. Oldboy (2003)
Who needs squids when you have Oldboy’s hero scarfing down a live octopus? Park Chan-wook’s noir-flavored extremist mystery remains the gold standard of South Korean puzzlebox thrillers: a grimy, twisty crawl through the gutters featuring an all-time-great one-shot fight sequence and finale unlike any other. The game here isn’t exactly of the playground variety – though it does hinge on a primary school insult – but it does keep viewers guessing until the gut-churning finish.
9. Death Race 2000 (1975)
This Roger Corman-produced mobie is akin to the The Godfather of action films, wagging a finger at audiences. Death Race is a go-for-broke trash classic in which gearheads – among them young David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone – cruise the country as part of their game. It’s nowhere near as nuanced in its commentary as the Netflix show, but it does share a commitment to mayhem.
10. Platform (2020)
An elevator platform groaning with gastronomic delights slowly descends through multiple levels of a prison. Each floor is given a limited amount of time to eat their fill. Remove food from the platform or linger too long, and the room is heated or cooled to unbearable temperatures. Every month, prisoners swap floors: But up or down? Do you stuff your face, not knowing when the next proper meal is coming, or save some for the men below? Like the more politically minded cousin of Vincenzo Natali’s Cube, the Spanish Netflix sci-fi is seeded with pointed ideas about human nature.
