Top 150 sci-fi films

[Kaka Tim]

fun list - comprehenisve with lots of detail on the films and a few ive not seen that id like to check out.
Quibbles - as mentioned above - no "village of the damned" and also no "28 Days Later"
And 2001 is a fucking borefest. The sequal 2010 is a much better film (and didnt make the list either)

 

[krtek a houby]

whats the science in time bandits? the magic map?

Time travel

 

[krtek a houby]

fun list - comprehenisve with lots of detail on the films and a few ive not seen that id like to check out.
Quibbles - as mentioned above - no "village of the damned" and also no "28 Days Later"
And 2001 is a fucking borefest. The sequal 2010 is a much better film (and didnt make the list either)

Liked until we entered an alternative universe where somehow 2010 is a better film than 2001

 

[Jennaonthebeach]

Yeah, I was thinking similar, in that the book is (far as I can tell, haven't read it ) considerably more rooted in sci-fi than the film.

oh, i read it a couple of years ago, back to back with the Andromeda Strain, also containing ideas that are adjacent to/ rooted in chaos theory.

 

[DaveCinzano]

one film that never comes up on lists even of cult films is

Sex Mission (1984) ⭐ 7.5 | Adventure, Comedy, Sci-Fi

2h 2m | 15

www.imdb.com

...people in Poland love this, its like Life of Brian for a certain generation. It deals with sexual politics including the slobishness of men - and is a dig at totalitarianism - its a scifi comedy made in the communist era - havent seen it in years but may be worth a watch if you're looking for something different....

I do like it but it feels very Two Ronnies

 

[ska invita]

And 2001 is a fucking borefest. The sequal 2010 is a much better film (and didnt make the list either)

Thats the spirit - good thread fodder. 2010 was very good i seem to remember but only saw it once years ago, would be curious to see it again.

My top two scifi films are space "borefests" ,2001 and the original Solaris - thats becasue space is a "borefest" - its not a place of zany fun and colonial-minded adventure like star trek would have us believe, its a zone of infinite nothingness, existential dread and profound sanity-destroying inhumanity - 2001 and Solaris both capture that in a way that is pure genius and unmatched in over 50 years.

 

[ska invita]

I do like it but it feels very Two Ronnies

i think the two leads were effectively the Two Ronnies of their day (?), as in they were well known comedians...maybe. Id love to have seen a Two Ronnie's space comedy

I wonder how Morons from Outer Space comes across today...I still remeber the theme tune i think it mustve charted


Ive heard Paul isnt quite as terrible as it looks and has some laughs

 

[krtek a houby]

Thats the spirit - good thread fodder. 2010 was very good i seem to remember but only saw it once years ago, would be curious to see it again.

My top two scifi films are space "borefests" ,2001 and the original Solaris - thats becasue space is a "borefest" - its not a place of zany fun and colonial-minded adventure like star trek would have us believe, its a zone of infinite nothingness, existential dread and profound sanity-destroying inhumanity - 2001 and Solaris both capture that in a way that is pure genius and unmatched in over 50 years.

Have a lot of love for Soderbergh's version, too. Different vibe but still mesmerising in its own way.

Stalker is in the zone, too.

 

[ska invita]

Have a lot of love for Soderbergh's version, too. Different vibe but still mesmerising in its own way.

Stalker is in the zone, too.

Stalker is amazing for sure....but its a bit more of a slog to watch in my experience...worth it though, leaves a strong memory

Probably everyone knows this already but i only came across it recently

Movie claimed the lives of director and his wife after they filmed in poisonous river

Some believe that the dystopian movie Stalker led to the pair's tragic deaths

www.unilad.com

“We were shooting near Tallinn in the area around the small river Jägala with a half-functioning hydroelectric station. Up the river was a chemical plant and it poured out poisonous liquids downstream.
"There is even this shot in Stalker: snow falling in the summer and white foam floating down the river. In fact it was some horrible poison.”
“Many women in our crew got allergic reactions on their faces.
"Tarkovsky died from cancer of the right bronchial tube. And Tolya Solonitsyn too. That it was all connected to the location shooting for Stalker became clear to me when Larisa Tarkovskaya died from the same illness in Paris."
It's never been confirmed if the deaths were indeed linked to the harsh surroundings while filming the movie.

 

[krtek a houby]

Stalker is amazing for sure....but its a bit more of a slog to watch in my experience...worth it though, leaves a strong memory

Probably everyone knows this already but i only came across it recently

Movie claimed the lives of director and his wife after they filmed in poisonous river

Some believe that the dystopian movie Stalker led to the pair's tragic deaths

www.unilad.com

“We were shooting near Tallinn in the area around the small river Jägala with a half-functioning hydroelectric station. Up the river was a chemical plant and it poured out poisonous liquids downstream.
"There is even this shot in Stalker: snow falling in the summer and white foam floating down the river. In fact it was some horrible poison.”
“Many women in our crew got allergic reactions on their faces.
"Tarkovsky died from cancer of the right bronchial tube. And Tolya Solonitsyn too. That it was all connected to the location shooting for Stalker became clear to me when Larisa Tarkovskaya died from the same illness in Paris."
It's never been confirmed if the deaths were indeed linked to the harsh surroundings while filming the movie.

Yes, read about the deaths, too.

If you want to revisit Stalker without the.... pauses... Try the original novel, Roadside Picnic, it's quite a different vibe (stronger sci-fi element) but essentially, the same story, just faster paced.

 

[ska invita]

Good tip....one day Id like to read more Soviet era scifi...I read a little Stanislaw Lem and enjoyed that a lot

But yeah on the slowness Tarkovsky films all seem to have that and I think he regularly successfully pulls it off as hypnotism rather than sludge...you do need to be somewhat in the mood...that said I remember Stalker to have got a little bit navel gazing in places....only saw it once though

 

[krtek a houby]

Good tip....one day Id like to read more Soviet era scifi...I read a little Stanislaw Lem and enjoyed that a lot

But yeah on the slowness Tarkovsky films all seem to have that and I think he regularly successfully pulls it off as hypnotism rather than sludge...you do need to be somewhat in the mood...that said I remember Stalker to have got a little bit navel gazing in places....only saw it once though

Wanted to see it years ago, but didn't didn't want to fork out for the DVD, also the various versions on YouTube were shit until found it on Mosfilm.

 

[ska invita]

Wanted to see it years ago, but didn't didn't want to fork out for the DVD, also the various versions on YouTube were shit until found it on Mosfilm.

wow amazing that theyve put so many of their films up on youtube

Mosfilm

Russian Cinema Masterpieces for all Mankind. The official channel of the Mosfilm Cinema Concern. Mosfilm's golden collection presents over 1000 Soviet and Russian films. You can watch the best comedies, melodramas, detectives, action films, dramas, adventures online in high quality on our...

www.youtube.com

...jsut saw KinDzaDza is on there too, i remember that being a good soviet scifi watch - they definitely dont make them like this anymore

 

[emanymton]

Used to be:

Science fiction = everything is scientifically possible if not necessarily possible yet.

Science fantasy = not all scientifically possible, likely got nonsense like magic and dragons and suchl.

So many (most?) sci-fi films are actually science fantasy.

I like to be controversial by calling Star Trek science Fantasy.

Because it clearly is.

 

[krtek a houby]

wow amazing that theyve put so many of their films up on youtube

Mosfilm

Russian Cinema Masterpieces for all Mankind. The official channel of the Mosfilm Cinema Concern. Mosfilm's golden collection presents over 1000 Soviet and Russian films. You can watch the best comedies, melodramas, detectives, action films, dramas, adventures online in high quality on our...

www.youtube.com

...jsut saw KinDzaDza is on there too, i remember that being a good soviet scifi watch - they definitely dont make them like this anymore

It's the best channel to see restored and decently subtitled soviet classics. Not just the sci-fi.

 

[Nanker Phelge]

Good to see Phase IV in there, sad to see The Quiet Earth is not. Both in my top ten Sci-fi flicks. SIlent Running is my favourite.

 

[Fez909]

Is La Jetee sufficiently different to 12 Monkeys to be worth including both? I have only seen 12M, but thought they were basically the same film.

I would have included Vanilla Sky, or even better, the Spanish original Open Your Eyes

 

[Spandex]

space is a "borefest" - its not a place of zany fun and colonial-minded adventure like star trek would have us believe, its a zone of infinite nothingness, existential dread and profound sanity-destroying inhumanity

 

[ska invita]

this is a really great video essay if youve got a couple of hours to kill ... Rob Ager does his homework and adds his own pretty unique perceptions and insights ...i know theres a lot of this kind of thing out there but its particularly good...highly recommended

 

[Kaka Tim]

Thats the spirit - good thread fodder. 2010 was very good i seem to remember but only saw it once years ago, would be curious to see it again.

My top two scifi films are space "borefests" ,2001 and the original Solaris - thats becasue space is a "borefest" - its not a place of zany fun and colonial-minded adventure like star trek would have us believe, its a zone of infinite nothingness, existential dread and profound sanity-destroying inhumanity - 2001 and Solaris both capture that in a way that is pure genius and unmatched in over 50 years.

Oh yeah - solaris. Another dreary "never mind the plot - check out the incredibly long tracking shot, thrill to the lack of dialouge and immerse yourself in the glacial pace" critics fave.

 

[ska invita]

Oh yeah - solaris. Another dreary "never mind the plot - check out the incredibly long tracking shot, thrill to the lack of dialouge and immerse yourself in the glacial pace" critics fave.

hypnotising not dreary

 

[AverageJoe]

The Black Hole isn't on there. The scariest Disney film.

 

[krtek a houby]

The Black Hole isn't on there. The scariest Disney film.

Absolutely love it, but despite the great cast, John Barry score and fx, it's a bit cheesy. Maybe in the top 200?

 

[JimW]

Rewatched Valley of the Winds with the kids several times and it really holds up. Not purr sci-fi though.

 

[PTK]

alternative reality is scifi though.
And why is Time Bandits not scifi but fantasy horror. All scifi is fantasy

All fiction is about an alternative reality.

 

[krtek a houby]

Not purr sci-fi though.

Maybe this is

 

[PTK]

That would make Star Wars a fantasy!

Star Wars is a fantasy.

 

[krtek a houby]

Star Wars is a fantasy.

There's overlaps, of course. Some of the franchise is fantasy sci-fi and some isn't.

Andor, for example, is sci-fi.

 

[Orang Utan]

Star Wars is a fantasy.

A fantasy with Western and scifi elements

 

[krtek a houby]

A fantasy with Western and scifi elements

... and Eastern