20) Sunshine
It’s certainly not news that director Danny Boyle loves to dabble in multiple genres. You can mark drama, comedy, horror, psychological thriller, children’s fare and, yes, science fiction as segments of cinema that the man has successfully sampled. In 2007 he went sci-fi in a big way – the sun big – with his frequent collaborator Alex Garland, delivering a star-studded (no pun intended) adventure which finds a team of astronauts tasked with delivering a massive payload into the fiery center of our solar system. As our heat source continues to fade, it’s this last ditch attempt to kick-start the yellow dwarf after years of nuclear winter threatens to devastate the human race. With the slick premise in hand, the two ran with it and delivered some great horror inspired twists, performances and astounding visuals and set design.
As is also a staple of films exploring the vastness of space, paranoia and unhinging sanity play a large role and as things begin to go wrong about the shuttle Icarus II, things only escalate further. This is but emotionally driven another facet Boyle and Garland explore and certainly helps to create real characters – those whose fate we care about and whose sacrifices are all the more noble. While it may delve too deeply into slasher movie tropes at the eleventh hour, Sunshine still concludes in what is an explosive blend of nearly psychedelic aesthetics and melancholy satisfaction. It’s one of those rare films that will stay with you long after viewing and will offer different experiences with subsequent viewings.
19) Moon
It’s ironic that Duncan Jones’s directorial debut is celebrated for the gravity Sam Rockwell brings to our neighbouring rock-strewn tableau. Situated on the titular satellite, Rockwell gets suited up as astronaut Sam Bell, who has accepted a contract with duplicitous mining company ‘Sarang’ for three years in interstellar solitude.
In this time, Sam mines, cleans and maintains a relationship with his earthbound wife and child via delayed satellite messages. With only HAL-esque GERTY for company, played by the wonderful Kevin Spacey, Sam patiently counts down the days to his anticipated homecoming. However, science fiction wouldn’t be science fiction without some proverbial brown stuff hitting the proverbial fan.
In keeping plot details isolated in the infirmary, let’s just say this is a film that deserves your attention. An incredibly nuanced performance by Rockwell who is, essentially, the only tangible human character coalesces with the defining absence of glitzy CGI to deliver a true sci-fi gem. This is a throwback to the genre’s imaginative heyday in the 1970s and while Moon may seem simple in premise, the above synopsis is merely a stroke of paint from Jones’s artistic masterpiece
18) Return Of The Jedi
The epic conclusion to George Lucas’ Star Wars trilogy is widely regarded as the weakest of the three, but it’s still one of the most incredible and memorable sci-fi films of all time. It wraps up the trilogy so well, bringing together all the parts from the prior outings and answering all the lingering questions in such a satisfying way.
In Jedi, there’s a new death star operational, the battle of Endor occurs, and Luke is able to finally able to bring his father back from the dark side. Of course, Vader dies right after he’s no longer evil, but he’s able to die with his soul in a much more peaceful place than it originally was. That final scene between Luke and his father makes for one of the most emotional moments of the trilogy. Then again, it may not even be the most emotional moment of the movie, considering the death of Yoda happens as well. I’m starting to get choked up just thinking about the wise, green sage fading away.
Still, as emotional as the film is, there’s no stronger and more action-packed of a start than Jedi. When Luke puts his plan for rescuing Han into motion, we get some of the most suspenseful and exhilarating scenes that have not only been seen in sci-fi, but in cinema as a whole. Who can forget about the battle that takes place above the Sarlacc pit? Plus Slave Leia… Need I go on?
It’s almost hard to write about the iconic moments in Jedi because nearly every scene is a vital part of cinematic history. Most of the memorable quotes in the trilogy come from this movie, and it pulls out a wider range of emotions than many previously thought was possible for sci-fi. Return of the Jedi is not only one of the greatest science fiction films of all-time, but the cap to one of the best trilogies of all time.
And yes, Ewoks are awesome.
17) Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
Spielberg said that had he made Close Encounters after he started a family then the ending of the film would have been decidedly different. Instead of Roy Neary disappearing off into the spaceship to join the aliens on a voyage of discovery, he would have returned to the bosom of his family. Thank God Spielberg, who also wrote the screenplay after he rejected an earlier draft from Paul Schrader (a Schrader-penned movie about aliens is something I would actually pay good money to see), never had the hindsight to correct his mysterious, infamous ending.
Close Encounters is still a tremendous achievement nearly 40 years on. Vilmos Zsigmond’s brilliant Oscar-winning cinematography has provided us with some of cinema’s most everlasting imagery and John Williams’ score, all based around that epochal five-tone motif, has also passed into legend. Richard Dreyfuss impresses too, not just with his acting skills but with his ability to create a mean artistic interpretation of Devil’s Tower in mashed potato. This is sci-fi on a tremendous scale, sublimely executed with big ideas and big, impressive imagery.
16) The Planet Of The Apes
Tim Burton took it on the chin for his remake of The Planet of the Apes, but the project was damned from the start because the reality is, the original Planet is fairly perfect so far as storytelling goes. Sure, Rick Baker’s monkey masks were much more advanced in 2001, but from the power of Charlton Heston’s line delivery, to Rod Serling’s social commentary-loaded screenplay to the iconic twisty ending, it’s no wonder that Planet of the Apes remains an inspiration and a high-water mark for filmmakers whether they’re dabbling in science fiction or not.
The story is simple enough, a group of astronauts veer off course on their way home and find themselves on a planet where apes are the gun-wielding, horse-riding, talking overlords enslaving a population of primitive humans. The sole-survivor, Taylor (Heston), confounds the elders of the ape society, a human capable of speech and thought, and they’re worried. Meanwhile, a pair of young ape scientists are curious about this Taylor. Ape society has always touted its own superiority over humans, so what does the existence of an intelligent human mean? The film also toys a bit with the classic Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee play Inherit the Wind, putting Taylor on trial to determine his origins, because the mere idea that a human could be equal to an ape is heresy.
When you think about it, Planet of the Apes is not only one of sci-fi’s best, but it’s probably one of the most referenced of all time. On IMDb, the sheer number of callbacks made to it in other film and TV projects takes forever to scroll through, and like another timeless classic, Casablanca, it’s insanely quotable. “Get your paws off me you damn, dirty ape!” “It’s a mad house!” “The only good human is a dead human!” “You maniacs! You blew it up!” If Burton fumbled the landing in his Apes it’s because now you don’t even need to watch the ‘68 original to know how it ends. It’s part of the consciousness, and when a film has penetrated the culture so completely, it’s hard to imagine why someone would want to remake it in the first place. And that’s why this Apes endures.
15) A Clockwork Orange
Welly, welly, welly, welly, welly, welly, well, my droogs. When it comes to sci-fi movies, director Stanley Kubrick is best known for 2001: A Space Odyssey, but it so happens he had another horrorshow sci-fi sinny that was lighter on the sci and heavier on the krovvy, pol and strack. His adaptation of Anthony Burgess’ dystopian novella A Clockwork Orange had censors all spoogy and razdrez, and was a bit controversial when it was released. Kubrick stuck to his guns, though, and made no appypolly loggies for his bleak smot at the future. The result is a film that was a singularly distinctive cinematic accomplishment, O my brothers.
A Clockwork Orange is a look at a world overrun with youthful violence, and features some inventive street slang made up by Burgess for the novella (and horribly butchered in the paragraph above). Its teenage anti-hero Alex (played by Malcolm McDowell) and his gang of ne’er-do-wells commit all sorts of violent crimes, including robbery, rape, and murder. It’s not an easy watch, especially its notorious gang rape scene, but it is incredibly well done and certainly packs a punch. Kubrick’s version omits the novella’s controversial coda, which was excised from the American edition of the book and had a reformed Alex maturing and learning the error of his ways. It was a singularly unearned and unconvincing character development, and its omission makes the film’s message much stronger.
Like most of Kubrick’s works, A Clockwork Orange had a huge influence on many other films to follow it. It is really one of the premier examples of dystopian sci-fi films, and other directors who have worked in that genre since then owe Kubrick a debt of gratitude. It also still stands up on its own, though, despite having been imitated and parodied countless times. That it is still has the ability to shock viewers decades after its release speaks to how ahead of its time it was.
It’s not just shock value alone that makes it such a memorable film, though. Kubrick’s signature attention to detail and meticulous shot composition makes this one a timeless classic.
14) District 9
Neill Blomkamp’s thoughtful, action-packed directorial debut is one of the most politically conscious, and heart-wrenching sci-fi movies ever made. Taking on heavy themes of apartheid, xenophobia, and government corruption, District 9 turns conventional alien invasion sci-fi on its head by positing humanity as the oppressors when a large alien ship stalls over Johannesburg and its residents, nicknamed ‘prawns,’ are interned in an overpopulated, violent ghetto.
District 9 is shocking in its depiction of humanity’s unceasing brutality, and its terrific visual effects are equally unsparing, with stomach-churning violence and some of the most grittily realistic aliens to grace the big screen in recent memory. It’s also a taut thriller, which moves at a breakneck pace but remarkably without neglecting proper exploration of its core concept. And Sharlto Copley, as the obliviously racist bureaucrat Wikus, is a surprisingly strong protagonist, becoming noticeably more aware and humane even as he slowly transforms into a prawn after exposure to alien tech.
A killer finale drives home District 9’s stark originality, leaving the viewers with lots of questions, but really just one big one that the film does a lot to answer but ultimately leaves, in the manner of all great science-fiction films, up to the viewer’s discretion: “What does it truly mean to be human?”
13) E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
If you ask Steven Spielberg what film amongst his own impressive filmography he considers the best, his answer would most likely be E.T., and it is difficult to disagree with him. It is also the film he considers the most directly personal. The character of Elliot stands in for Spielberg, a young boy who is unable to come to terms with his parents’ divorce and feels, like all kids do at some point, deeply alone. Until of course he stumbles across an alien. The story, which follows the friendship between an emotionally frustrated Elliot and a lost alien, E.T., is one of the most profoundly moving ever to be put on film.
Like all great work in the genre, the sci-fi elements are really a conduit for Spielberg to tell a story which deals with themes and issues beyond the spectacle. It is a touching portrait of two souls find each other out of a feeling of being lost and alienated from their environment. If you get through the ending without bursting into floods of tears, then you are made of stronger stuff than most.
12) Aliens
Alien or Aliens? To separate the film geek wheat from the chaff, this point is often a benchmark brought up in discussion. There’s no need for comparison as James Cameron’s sequel to Ridley Scott’s space chiller stands entirely on its own as a dedicated sci-fi action assault. With hideous xenomorphs.
Picking up 57 years following the original flick, Aliens weaves in a cast of despicable bastards with likeable marines in order to convince Ripley to go back out to the planet where the Nostromo first landed. You know, the one covered in alien eggs ready to unleash a race of acid-for-blood beasties. Which had been colonized.
Similarly to Cameron’s cyborg sequel, Terminator 2, Aliens excels with a series of brilliantly-timed set pieces strung together without losing authenticity to the characters or the story. The tough-as-nails marines saddle up to kick some ass, each with their own backstory, quirks and individual traits. The real genius at play here is the construction; a plausible follow-up story driven by actual people. You care when they traipse into the darkness, and when they face the monsters.
With an ending that easily rivals the original, Ripley’s progression from survivor-by-circumstance into full blown warrior leaves you breathless in the awesome power loader finale. Twinned with Horner’s score, building up to one of sci-fi’s greatest victories, Aliens ends the franchise’s arguably strongest era with a benchmark so high no other entry has since bettered it.
11) Jurassic Park
Like many of the films on this list, Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park is not just a great piece of science fiction; it’s a great film, period. Memorable lines, memorable characters, and exciting set pieces make it a feast (hehe) for the eyes and ears. Never have dinosaurs looked so real.
As with most great science fiction films, Jurassic Park gives us just enough pseudo-science to convince us of its possibility. John Hammond’s plot to recreate dinosaurs and open an amusement park, with the endorsement of two paleontologists and a mathematician, is beautiful in its simplicity. The science isn’t exactly sound, but the film makes it convincing enough to suspend the audience’s disbelief. The dinos are awesome, and the performances blockbusting in their perfection. It’s straightforward, it’s fun, it’s 100% iconic and it still holds up, 20 years later.
Jurassic Park was made in 1993, and the special effects still impress. When the dinos first appear on the screen, there’s still a sense of wonder that says more about Spielberg’s special talents as a director than even the constantly impressive special effects. The film is relentless, a combination of tension, terror and real wonder, making Jurassic Park one of the most wholly satisfying sci-fi films ever made.