The 10 Best Sci-Fi Movies of All Time
Submitted by SharpMan Editorial Team on Friday 15th October 2010In this article
- Movies with cool special effects.
- Movies from the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s.
- The Star Trek flicks: yay or nay?
A really great science fiction movie should dazzle you with its philosophy, its creation of a brave new world or its use of special effects. Grammatical correctness aside, the best sci-fi movies boldly go where no movie has gone before. Our ten favorite sci-fi movies…
In alphabetical order:
- Alien — (1979): Directed by Ridley Scott, Alien is the first and best of the quartet (Alien, Aliens, Aliens 3 and Alien Resurrection) about girl-action-hero Sigourney Weaver battling outer-space creature. Much has been made of this film’s return to traditional sci-fi movie roots, but everybody really watches it for the really gross special effects.
- Blade Runner — (1982): This 21st century thriller may list Harrison Ford as the star, but the real powers behind the film are director Ridley Scott and futuristic designers Syd Mead and Laurence G. Paull. Only downside? This visually breathtaking spectacle sports a pedestrian storyline about a former cop chasing down androids.
- Close Encounters of the Third Kind — (1977): The latest technological developments were used to great effect in Steven Spielberg’s 70s masterpiece. The movie is so thoughtful and thought provoking that one wonders if they made the movie today with all the new bells and whistles, would something be lost? Richard Dreyfuss is mesmerizing in his quietude as an ordinary man who becomes obsessed with meeting extraterrestrials after he encounters a UFO on an abandoned road.
- Dark City — (1998): This is another sci-fi movie where it’s nearly impossible to say what works best — the acting (Rufus Sewell, the hugely underrated Kiefer Sutherland and William Hurt), the directing (by Alex Proyas), the script (co-written by Proyas, Lem Dobbs and David S. Goyer) or the sets and special effects (production designer, George Liddle). This movie tells the tale of aliens conducting secret experiments on the human race and the poor confused guy valiantly trying to save the world. (Note: If you’re rushing out to rent this, don’t confuse it with Charlton Heston’s 1950 movie debut of the same name — it’s a different movie altogether). Dark City has been described quite accurately as "sci-fi noir."
- The Fifth Element (1997): Bruce Willis may have been born to play a 23rd century cabbie who reluctantly returns to his former identity as a "special forces" agent when a skinny, half-naked woman literally drops into his cab. Gary Oldman chews up the scenery with his bad-ass acting. Need we say more?
- The Matrix — (1999): This movie should be celebrated for its visual artistry, which is awesome. The plot for this film, starring Keanu Reeves and directed by Andy and Larry Wachowski and Bill Pope, is so convoluted, we won’t even attempt to describe it. To paraphrase Dante, "Abandon all hope of logical story telling, all ye who enter here." Don’t miss it.
- Planet of the Apes — (1967): The early 60s were not watershed years for good science fiction, so Planet of the Apes took the cinema-going public by surprise. Directed by Jack Martin Smith and Franklin Schaffner and written by Michael Wilson and Rod Serling, it’s worth seeing this movie if only to hear Charlton Heston growl, "Get your hands off me, you damned dirty ape." This movie generated four sequels and two TV series. As for the newest Planet of the Apes incarnation? Check out Charlton Heston first and then decide for yourself.
- Star Wars Trilogy — (1977, 1980, 1983): Watching the saga of Jedi knight Luke Skywalker and his band of comrades is the most fun you can have vegging out in front of the VCR. Lightning seems to have struck, not only twice, but THREE times for George Lucas and his comrades with Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Alas, his much anticipated 1999 Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace failed to live up to even Luke-warm expectations. VHS available through Amazon.com.
- 2001: A Space Odyssey — (1968) Following on the heels of Planet of the Apes for good 1960s science fiction, this cosmic metaphor of human evolution (we read that) was directed by Stanley Kubrick and John Hoesli — although nobody ever seems to remember Hoesli. Mysterious and intelligent with really loud music.
- Westworld — (1973): Michael Crichton wrote and co-directed this imaginative film about a resort of the future — sort of a Fantasy Island serviced by robots. You have to love anything with Yul Brynner playing a malfunctioning mechanical man. Followed in 1976 by the equally intelligent, if a little less action-y Futureworld.
Since only half the Star Trek movies were any good (remember the one with the whales?), they get a pass, but always have a place in our collective science fiction-loving heart. Live long and prosper, y’all.
Although comedies don’t fit our criteria for reviewing sci-fi, if you love the science fiction genre and also want to crack up, check out 1999’s Galaxy Quest, starring Sigourney Weaver and Tim Allen or Men in Black, the 1997 blockbuster with Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith.
This article last updated on Friday 15th October 2010