Year: 2016
Runtime: 119 min
Language: English
Director: Ben Wheatley
As Dr. Robert Laing embraces a life of luxury in a modern high-rise, unsettling events begin to disrupt the building's utopian facade. Recurring power outages and structural flaws trigger social unrest and a growing class conflict among the diverse residents. A charismatic documentarian, a bohemian single mother, and the building's enigmatic architect become entangled in the escalating chaos. As the structure descends into primal anarchy, the tenants are forced to confront their darkest impulses in a desperate fight for survival.
Get a spoiler-free look at High-Rise (2016) with a clear plot overview that covers the setting, main characters, and story premise—without revealing key twists or the ending. Perfect for deciding if this film is your next watch.
In a sleek, glass‑clad tower that rises on the outskirts of London, modern luxury promises a utopian lifestyle while hidden flaws fester beneath the surface. The building houses a self‑contained world of swimming pools, gyms, a supermarket and even a school, yet its very design separates residents by floor, creating an ever‑present tension between the affluent upper levels and the more cramped, isolated lower levels. This setting pulses with a quiet unease, as routine power cuts and structural quirks begin to disturb the carefully curated façade of comfort.
Dr. Robert Laing, a physician drawn to the tower after a personal loss, finds himself navigating this stratified community. He forms a tentative bond with Charlotte Melville, a single mother whose presence adds a touch of resilience and humanity to the building’s otherwise sterile atmosphere. Their interactions hint at deeper questions about belonging and responsibility amid an environment that seems to oscillate between indulgence and decay. Alongside them, Richard Wilder, a charismatic documentarian, arrives with a camera and a curiosity for the tower’s inner workings, his perspective offering a lens through which the rising social unrest can be observed. Overseeing the entire experiment is Anthony Royal, the enigmatic architect whose vision for the high‑rise teeters between avant‑garde ambition and unsettling control.
The film unfolds with a tone that blends clinical precision and primal dread, using the tower’s sleek interiors as a backdrop for a slowly intensifying class conflict. As amenities falter and the building’s hidden imperfections emerge, the residents are forced to confront the thin line between civility and animal instinct. The narrative asks whether the promise of a perfect, self‑contained society can survive the inevitable cracks that appear when human desires and fears collide within its walls.
Last Updated: October 05, 2025 at 16:55
Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.
Stories where meticulously designed societies violently crumble under internal pressure.If you liked the intense class warfare and descent into anarchy in High-Rise, explore more movies about societies breaking down. These films share a dark tone, complex narratives, and a heavy emotional weight, often set in confined spaces that become pressure cookers for human conflict.
Narratives in this thread typically begin with a flawed utopian ideal before introducing a catalyst that triggers a swift or gradual societal collapse. Characters are pitted against each other as systems fail, leading to a grim exploration of power dynamics, tribalism, and survival instincts in a confined setting.
Movies are grouped here for their shared focus on the collapse of a micro-society, a consistently dark and intense tone, and complex themes exploring class, power, and human nature. They deliver a claustrophobic, unsettling, and often bleak viewing experience.
Civilized characters succumb to their darkest impulses as order dissolves.For viewers who appreciated the bleak and heavy journey into primal behavior in High-Rise, this selection features similar stories of moral decay. These movies often have a variable pace, complex characters, and a profoundly bleak ending, capturing the unsettling process of losing one's humanity.
The narrative pattern follows a group or individual as their environment deteriorates, removing the safeguards of civilization. The story focuses on the psychological unraveling and moral compromises characters make, leading to a climax that is typically violent and concludes with a sense of irrevocable loss or a bleak new status quo.
These films are united by their central theme of de-evolution and the loss of humanity under pressure. They share a high intensity, a dark and heavy tone, and a focus on the psychological toll of chaos, creating a consistently disturbing and thought-provoking vibe.
Don't stop at just watching — explore High-Rise in full detail. From the complete plot summary and scene-by-scene timeline to character breakdowns, thematic analysis, and a deep dive into the ending — every page helps you truly understand what High-Rise is all about. Plus, discover what's next after the movie.
Read a complete plot summary of High-Rise, including all key story points, character arcs, and turning points. This in-depth recap is ideal for understanding the narrative structure or reviewing what happened in the movie.
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Discover the characters, locations, and core themes that shape High-Rise. Get insights into symbolic elements, setting significance, and deeper narrative meaning — ideal for thematic analysis and movie breakdowns.
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Discover movies like High-Rise that share similar genres, themes, and storytelling elements. Whether you’re drawn to the atmosphere, character arcs, or plot structure, these curated recommendations will help you explore more films you’ll love.
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