The Platform 2’s storyline is unique in more ways than one, but viewers looking for something similar still have a wide range of thrillers to choose from. Serving as a prequel toNetflix’sThe Platform,The Platform 2unfolds in a vertical prison system like its predecessor. The primary driving force behind the movie’s narrative is a floating platform that lowers down from one level of the prison to another, carrying food for the inmates. However, when some prisoners from the upper levels act selfishly and eat way more than they deserve, an intense power struggle ensues in the system.
In many ways,The Platform 2serves as a solid allegory for both trickle-down economics and the downsides of communism. At the same time, with its character beats, the movie also dabbles with other relatable themes surrounding grief, identity, morality, and acceptance of one’s past. While bothThe Platformmovies have etched their own identities in the thriller genre, many similar movies adopt similar narrative structures and story elements that explore humanity’s dark tendencies and present metaphors for societal systems.
10Coherence (2013)
Directed by James Ward Byrkit
UnlikeThe Platform 2,Coherencedoes not present metaphors for class divides and capitalism. However, like theNetflix horror movie, it unfolds as a high-concept sci-fi flick set in an isolated and confined setting. Similar to thecharacters inThe Platform 2, the ones inCoherencereveal their true selves when a significant change in their surroundings forces them to make increasingly desperate decisions.
A follow-up movie toCoherenceis under development.
While playing around with abstract sci-fi ideas, both movies explore the darker aspects of human nature, highlighting how existential threats can either bring out the worst or the best in humanity. The two films highlight how one’s reality is a mere reflection of one’s perception. WhileThe Platformcaptures this by showing how different prisoners have varying philosophies on scarcity and privilege,Coherenceshows the same by portraying every decision taken by a character forks a significantly distinct alternate reality.
Coherence
Coherence is a 2013 American sci-fi thriller film written and directed by James Ward Byrkit. The film follows a group of friends whose dinner party is disrupted by a series of strange events that challenge their perceptions of reality. As the night unfolds, the group begins to experience a series of bizarre occurrences that question the nature of their identities and relationships.
9The Raid (2011)
Directed by Gareth Evans
Although the social commentary in Gareth Evans’The Raidis not as deep asThe Platform 2’s, the movie presents a similar vertical setting. LikeThe Platform 2’s characters, the ones inThe Raidhave to navigate through different levels of a high-rise building, facing increasingly dangerous enemies at each level. Similar toThe Platformmovies, this vertical setting allowsThe Raidto gradually increase the tension of its action and drama while keeping viewers guessing what will happen next. Both movies also take a no-holds-barred approach towards portraying brutal action sequences.
The Raid: Redemption
The Raid, released in 2012, follows an elite SWAT team as they attempt to infiltrate a fortified apartment block in Jakarta to apprehend a notorious drug lord. Led by martial arts star Iko Uwais, the team faces relentless adversaries in a battle for survival after their cover is blown.
8V For Vendetta (2005)
Directed by James McTeigue
BothV for VendettaandThe Platform 2unfold in harrowing dystopian settings with flawed social structures. While the characters inV for Vendettaface the rule of a totalitarian regime, the ones inThe Platform 2struggle to survive in a brutal prison system ridden with inequality. In both, some characters take it upon themselves to fight against the overarching oppressive systems.
Although both V and Dagin Babi mean well, their methods are extreme, violent, and morally questionable, raising discussions surrounding the ethical consequences of seeking radical justice.
The titular character V inV for Vendettasets out on a quest to dismantle the corrupt government and even prompts others to join his rebellion. Similarly, Dagin Babi inThe Platform 2creates a group of “Loyalists” who promote solidarity in the prison system. Although both V and Dagin Babi mean well, their methods are extreme, violent, and morally questionable, raising discussions surrounding the ethical consequences of seeking radical justice.
7Parasite (2019)
Directed by Bong Joon-Ho
AlthoughParasiteandThe Platform 2belong to distinct genres, they share many thematic parallels. For instance,both movies highlight how social inequalities and class struggles prompt the lower class to resort to extreme measures for survival. In both films, characters struggle to grapple with the idea that their worth is dictated by their wealth or the amount of food they have access to. TheBong Joon-ho movieshould be on every viewer’s watchlist who enjoyedThe Platform 2because it does an even better job at capturing these themes and is subtle with its satire.
Parasite
Parasite is a 2019 South Korean film directed by Bong Joon-ho. The film follows the destitute Kim family as they infiltrate the affluent Park household by manipulating their way into various household roles, leading to unforeseen consequences.
6Elysium (2013)
Directed by Neill Blomkamp
BothElysiumandThe Platform 2give viewers a glimpse of two distinct worlds. While one world lives in complete abundance, caring little about survival, the other is characterized by extreme scarcity and desperation. The class divide between the two worlds in both movies is challenged when characters take it upon themselves to rise in the ranks and destroy unfair socioeconomic structures.
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With Matt Damon as its lead,Elysiumis not as brutal asThe Platform. However, it still manages to capture the harsh realities of a divided society and the lengths its people are willing to go to for survival.Elysiumis more straightforward and far less abstract compared toThe Platform, but its social commentary is still powerful and emotionally resonant.
Elysium
Neil Blomkamp’s first film since District 9, Elysium, is a post-apocalyptic action film set in the year 2154, where the people of Earth live in desolation. Those fortunate enough to be wealthy live on Elysium, an orbiting space station that contains state-of-the-art medical facilities and all the comforts a human could want. Secretary Rhodes aims to protect this utopia from Earthly outsiders using strict anti-immigration policies. When protagonist Max sees his life take a turn for the worse, he has no choice but to embark on a mission to save his life that may bring equality to these polarized worlds.
5The Purge: Anarchy (2014)
Directed by James DeMonaco
BothThe Purge: AnarchyandThe Platform 2are follow-up films that criticize oversimplified societal structures. WhileThe Purge: Anarchyportrays the chilling moral implications of a lawless night in the United States,The Platform 2shows what happens when the distribution of resources is not carefully organized among citizens. As they progress, the two films create a sense of dread and tension by highlighting the lengths people will go to survive under extreme circumstances. They also feature righteous protagonists who hold on to their moral compasses despite their dire circumstances.
The Purge: Anarchy
As the sixth annual Purge commences, Leo Barnes plans to avenge the death of his son. However, he instead finds himself helping to protect four strangers: married couple Shane and Liz; single mother Eva; and Eva’s teenage daughter Cali.
4Cube (1997)
Directed by Vincenzo Natali
Cubenot only unfolds in a confined setting likeThe Platformbut also adopts similarly abstract ideas and leaves a lot to a viewer’s interpretation. As its title suggests, it is set inside a massive cube-like structure, and its characters must navigate its traps and inner workings to find their way out. Unlike the pit inThe Platform, the structure inCubeis not a self-imposed prison for the characters. However, it forces them to question everything they know about their identities, social hierarchies, and perceptions of the meanings of their lives.
Cube
Directed by Vincenzo Natali, Cube is a 1997 Science Fiction and Horror film starring Nicky Guadagni, Nicole de Boer, David Hewlett, and Andrew Miller. The plot sees a group of people mysteriously waking up in a cube-shaped room, only to realize they are trapped in a labyrinth of cubes, some of which feature deadly traps.
3Snowpiercer (2013)
Directed by Bong Joon-ho
Based on the French graphic novelLe Transperceneigeby Jacques Lob, Benjamin Legrand, and Jean-Marc Rochette,Snowpiercersets its story inside a moving train that carries the last remnants of humanity. The privileged in the front sections of the train live like the ones in the upper levels of the pit inThe Platform 2. Meanwhile, the ones in the last few carts on the trains are as desperate and impoverished as the inhabitants of the lower levels inThe Platform 2.
In both narratives, stark social divides dictate the quality of life between individuals, encouraging the less privileged to start rebellions.The Platform 2’s endingmoments are far more abstract thanSnowpierecer’s. However, both films feature ambiguous closing arcs that prompt viewers to think about them long after their credits stop rolling.
Snowpiercer
Snowpiercer is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi film directed by Bong Joon-ho. The narrative takes place aboard a perpetually moving train carrying the last remnants of humanity after a failed climate-change experiment freezes the planet. Chris Evans stars as Curtis, who leads a group of lower-class passengers in a rebellion against the oppressive elite at the front of the train. The film explores themes of class struggle and survival.
2Battle Royale (2000)
Directed by Kinji Fukasaku
Despite having an impressive Rotten Tomatoes score of 90%, the Japanese movieBattle Royaleremains underappreciated. Based on the 1999 novel of the same name by Koushun Takami, the movie follows a group of junior high school students who must fight to death in a game orchestrated by a Japanese totalitarian government. While its core concept may seem a little too familiar,Battle Royale, likeThe Platform 2, grips viewers with its raw and visceral portrayal of humans being treated as lab rats by powerful forcesand humanity’s desperation in the face of survival scenarios.
Battle Royale
The dystopian action movie Battle Royale takes place in a future Japan, where a group of high school students fight to the death in a deserted island until only one survivor remains. Directed by Kinji Fukasaku, the 2000 film gave rise to a whole genre of similar stories such as the Hunger Games books and movies, as well as the video game Fortnite.
1Circle (2015)
Directed by Aaron Hann & Mario Miscione
Unlike the characters inThe Platform 2, who willingly volunteer to enter the pit, the ones inCirclesuddenlyfind themselves in a macabre game that forces them to determine who among them deserves to live. As seen inThe Platform 2as well, the desperation to survive compels the characters inCircleto plot against one another, even if it means they have to cross many moral boundaries. Through this survival game setup,Circledives deep into the human psyche and examines how one’s primal instinct to survive can lead one to betray all values and morals.
Since the titular setting automatically kills individuals inCircle, it is not as violent and stomach-churning asThe Platform 2. However, it never leaves a dull moment with its twists and intriguing examinations of human nature. LikeThe Platform 2, it also ends on an ambiguous note, intentionally leaving audiences with more questions than answers.
Circle
Circle (2015) is a psychological thriller that places fifty strangers in a mysterious chamber, where they awaken in a circle with no recollection of their arrival. Facing an ominous device, they must confront the reality that one of them will die every two minutes until only one remains.
