Film

Take Your Pills

Name: Take Your Pills
Genre: Documentary
Released: 2018
Cast: Eben Britton, Dr. Wendy Brown, Ariana, Delaney, Jasper Holt-Teza

A documentary about the culture of prescription stimulant use in America—who takes them, why, and what we're really chasing when we swallow a pill to be faster, smarter, better. It's part investigation, part cultural mirror, featuring students, athletes, and tech workers alongside theorists asking uncomfortable questions about ambition, disability, and the myth of optimization.

TMDb rating

3.3

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like films that test a popular idea by following it into real lives, and you're happy to be argued with about ambition, work and the pill-sized shortcut.

Skip it if you want a documentary that balances both sides or lets its subject breathe, since this one leans firmly toward its argument and rarely lingers on anything else.

What it asks of you: Under ninety minutes of mostly seated conversations and argument, so attention matters more than atmosphere.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Social Dilemma2020

Examines how technology shapes behaviour and self-image in ways we don't fully understand. Like Take Your Pills, it asks what we're sacrificing for convenience and connection in a system designed to exploit our worst impulses.

But Feels didactic at times, and some of the dramatized scenes land less effectively than the expert testimony. Might feel preachy if you're already sceptical about tech.

Requiem for a Dream2000

Darren Aronofsky's brutal portrait of addiction in all its forms—drugs, diet pills, television, ambition. It captures the internal logic of dependency with more empathy and artistry than most films dare attempt.

But Genuinely difficult to watch. The final act is designed to disturb and disorient you. Not for a casual evening.

The Queen of Versailles2012

A documentary about excess, aspiration, and the machinery that convinces us more is always better. It observes human desire without moralizing, letting the absurdity speak for itself—much like Take Your Pills does.

But Follows a wealthy family for years, so the pacing is slow and observational. If you want a tight narrative arc, this isn't it.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Take Your Pills

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Limitless2011

Where Take Your Pills asks why we want enhancement, Limitless lives inside the fantasy. Together they're a complete picture of desire and consequence.

A thriller that takes the stimulant fantasy seriously—what if a pill really did make you invincible? It's a straight narrative that accidentally becomes a portrait of addiction and delusion more honest than most documentaries.

But It's a mainstream thriller, so it's glossy and fun rather than critical. If you want analysis, this isn't it—it just lets you feel the seduction.

Pumping Iron1977

The foundational sports documentary about bodies, ego, and the willingness to do anything to win. Shows how pharmacological enhancement has always been woven into certain cultures of achievement.

But It's a product of its era—some attitudes haven't aged well. The film itself is somewhat lightweight on analysis.

Generation Like2014

Another Ryan Hibbert investigation into how systems shape behaviour, this time through social media. The parallels to stimulant culture—performance, validation-seeking, artificial enhancement—are striking.

But Can feel dated already, since social media has moved so fast. Might seem quaint if you're under twenty-five.

HyperNormalisation2016

Adam Curtis's essay film about how we've all learned to accept insane systems as normal. Takes the pill-popping impulse and contextualizes it within decades of political and economic dysfunction.

But Dense, digressive, and deliberately challenging. Curtis assumes you'll follow him into the weeds. Not a passive watch.

The Pharmacist2020

A limited series about how prescription opioids flooded America, the money involved, and the individuals who pushed back. Exposes the machinery behind 'legal' drug culture in ways that contextualize Take Your Pills perfectly.

But Some episodes are uneven; the true-crime elements sometimes overshadow the systemic critique. Gets sensational when the documentary approach would be stronger.

Fyre2019

A masterclass in how ambition, performance, and the need to project an impossible self can corrupt everything. The parallel to optimization culture is unspoken but total.

But Feels like it's mocking people rather than understanding them. Some viewers find it smug about its own superiority.

The Corporation2003

A sweeping documentary about corporate logic and how it colonizes every part of life. Big-picture thinking about the systems that create demand for pills in the first place.

But Over two hours, sometimes repetitive, and the interview-heavy format can feel static. Made twenty years ago, so some references have faded.

Elephant2003

Both are about how systems of pressure and performance accumulate in bodies and minds. Elephant shows the cost through form itself—fragmented, repetitive, claustrophobic—in a way that mirrors what stimulant dependency feels like from the inside.

Gus Van Sant's experimental film about a school shooting, structured as overlapping timelines and ambient observation. It's not about the climax—it's about the texture of a hypercompetitive, digitally mediated life that feels suffocating.

But Not a traditional narrative at all. Some viewers find it pretentious or pointless. It requires patience and imagination rather than delivering answers.