[ Spoiler Free ]
James Cameron created the 2009 movie Avatar in which ex-marine Jake Sully used technology to experience reality through an artificially created Avatar body, but many people might not know that this was not Cameron’s first movie about virtual reality. He produced, edited and co-wrote the screenplay for the 1995 movie Strange Days. It’s a science fiction thriller set in a grim near future where an underground market has flourished for illegal technology that allows someone to replay the recorded experiences of other people as if they were living them.
It stars Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, and Juliette Lewis, who all bring life and weight to their roles. The movie touches on issues such as addiction and using this technology to deal with loss, which are incredibly relevant today as virtual reality technology starts to become a reality. I enjoyed the movie a great deal, and recommend it to anyone who has an interest in science fiction, and doesn’t mind it’s R rating for sex and violence. I’ve rewatched it recently, and it still holds up very well. At the time of this post, it can be found on Netflix to watch instantly. If you’ve watched the movie, please post your thoughts in the comment section, and just add “Spoilers” at the top of your comment if necessary.
Virtual Emily 
I agree, Strange Days is a great movie. You might also like The 13th Floor – also a SciFi VR thriller.
I did like 13th Floor. I didn’t see it when it was first released, but saw it years later on DVD. It’s a shame that it had the bad luck to be released in the US a few months after the Matrix, and was overshadowed.