Who directed the 1992 hacker-thriller film Sneakers?

Phil Alden Robinson directed the 1992 hacker-thriller film Sneakers.

The film follows a group of security specialists who test systems by breaking into them. Robert Redford plays Martin Bishop, the team’s leader. Their work changes when they are hired to retrieve a mysterious black box capable of breaking modern encryption, drawing them into a conspiracy involving government and corporate power.

Sneakers combines computer security, espionage, comedy and ensemble-caper elements. Its story reflects concerns about cryptography and surveillance that were becoming increasingly prominent as personal computers and digital communications spread. The film’s team includes characters with different specialties, such as electronics, social engineering and technical intrusion.

Robinson also directed Field of Dreams, The Sum of All Fears and The Last of the Mohicans? No—the latter was directed by Michael Mann. That common mix-up illustrates why Sneakers is best identified specifically with Robinson, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes.