Upon watching Johnny Mnemonic, a 1985 movie set in the year 2020, we saw that the world was predicted to be apocalyptic. Not only is the world in ruin and a ravaging disease infecting millions, but computers and technology have immensely grown.

The Impact

The machines turn out to be the cause of the deadly disease, The Black Shakes, causing seizures among many due to the high amount of waves emitted into the air from all technology. Johnny has an internal storage implant in his brain and he is given a file of 300GB but his capacity is only 160GB. Throughout the movie he is trying to relieve himself of the excess data so his brain doesn’t melt only to find out he is carrying the cure to The Black Shakes. The Yakuza are after the cure because it is more profitable to treat diseases rather than cure them, which makes me think, could that be happening today with cancer or AIDS or other deadly diseases?

Interactions with Computers

The people in the movie can go into the computer with a VR headset and gloves that allow them to interface with the internet and literally surf the web. There is also a girl who projects herself on the computer that seems to be a conscious computer who tries to help Johnny and the leader of the Yakuza to see the damage that’s being done by trying to hide the cure. All this sci fi stuff was predicted incorrectly by the writers of the movie but we do come somewhat close with interacting with our phones via Siri and creating bots that can run on their own in computers.