26 of the Coolest Looking Vintage Sci-Fi Films
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Despite limitations of technology, film crews have been coming together to craft amazing Science Fiction worlds since moviemaking has been around. Sure, some effects don’t age as well as others, but there are some absolute gems in these vintage science fiction movies.
A Trip To The Moon - 1902
This silent film is one of the first sci-fi flicks ever made, adapted from a Jules Verne story by the French illusionist and filmmaker Georges Méliès. You can watch this slice of history very quickly, Méliès packed some phenomenal imagery into just 12 minutes.
Metropolis - 1927
Another pioneering silent science fiction story, this one out of Germany, Fritz Lang's Metropolis envisions a bleak but visually engrossing dystopia. This film helped establish cliches of sci-fi societies, like the futuristic city design where business tycoons live in sleek skyscrapers while poor workers toil away out of sight in underground dwellings.
Things to Come - 1936
This is a quintessential dystopian film adapted from the H.G. Wells novel The Shape of Things to Come. Wells also penned the screenplay, which goes 100 years into the future from 1940 to 2036 where humanity eventually ends up being ravaged by wars, plagues and Earth’s population reformed to live under a technologically-advanced dictatorship.
The Day the Earth Stood Still - 1951
This classic alien invasion film set during the nuclear arms race of the Cold War starred Michael Rennie as Klaatu, an alien emissary with a robotic companion Gort who visits Washington D.C. trying to deliver a message to humanity.
War of the Worlds - 1953
Another H.G. Wells novel adaptation, War of the Worlds, is well loved by science fiction nerds. This isn't the only famous adaptation. A radio play created by Orson Welles, which aired in 1938, actually caused legitimate fear of an invasion among listeners.
Godzilla - 1954
One of the most memorable sci-fi monsters of all time is Gojira, aka Godzilla, a radioactive giant monster, or kaiju, which raids Japan and also makes battle with several monsters as the film series develops. As entertaining as these films are, it’s also worth discussing the clear themes at play, with Godzilla representing the terror and destruction Japan faced at the hands of nuclear bombings by the U.S. Army at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
20,000 Leagues Under The Sea - 1954
This Jules Verne adaptation is an early precursor of the steampunk genre. It’s set in the 19th century when a professor, his assistant and a harpooner are investigating a monster at sea, and eventually learn it is the Nautilus, an advanced submersible piloted by Captain Nemo.
Forbidden Planet - 1956
Forbidden Planet was groundbreaking for breaking from the typical alien invasion story of most sci-fi films of the time to show an interplanetary journey instead. It also featured a major robotic supporting character, Robby The Robot, and an impressive all-electronic soundtrack.
Alphaville - 1965
This Jean-Luc Godard film combines sci-fi with the investigative noir genre. It stayed away from depending on fancy production design or special effects to sell a futuristic look, just filming on location on the streets of Paris and shooting interiors in newly-built glass and concrete modernist buildings.
Fantastic Voyage - 1966
Eat your heart out, Ms. Frizzle, this sci-fi adventure film shrunk a team of scientists into the human body first! For good reason, this film won the Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects and Best Art Direction in Color.
2001: A Space Odyssey - 1968
2001: A Space Odyssey, by Stanley Kubrick, is a sweeping science fiction epic which split critics upon its release, but is now looked pack upon as one of the pinnacles of the genre.
Barbarella - 1968
This 1968 Jane Fonda camp extravaganza, Barbarella, is another case of a film getting mixed reviews upon release, but a positive reevaluation as time went on for its visual imagination and over-the-top nature.
Planet of the Apes - 1968
The original Planet of the Apes spawned a huge franchise that still has entries coming today. A human crew crashes on this mysterious planet and becomes captured by an advanced and theocratic society of talking apes. If you happen to not already know the twist in this film, we’ll leave it out for you to discover on your own.
The Andromeda Strain - 1971
The Andromeda Strain is adapted from a novel by sci-fi master, Michael Crichton, which depicts an alien virus crashing on Earth and the team of scientists investigating it.
Solaris - 1972
Solaris by Andrei Tarkovsky is one of the most acclaimed sci-fi films of all time for its emotional depth, stunning visuals and great performances by its main cast. The basic premise is that the small crew of a space station is losing their grip on reality due to hallucinations potentially coming from Solaris, the planet they’re orbiting, and the audience follows a psychologist on board who attempts to evaluate the situation.
Westworld - 1974
If you’re upset about the Westworld HBO series’ cancellation in 2022, you can check out the original Michael Crichton film it’s based on if you haven’t yet. It establishes the fascinating world of several theme parks populated by lifelike androids in fascinating fashion, and Crichton was even in the director’s chair for this movie.
Rollerball - 1975
Rollerball is a dystopian sports film starring James Caan as the captain of a “Rollerball” team. In response to his refusal to retire, the corporation which runs Rollerball decides to remove penalties to increase violence in hopes that he will be killed in the upcoming matches.
Logan's Run - 1976
This action thriller starred Michael York and Jenny Agutter as two people in the 23rd century that attempt to flee their seemingly-utopian society which euthanizes all residents when they reach the age of 30.
Star Wars - 1977
George Lucas’ first journey a long long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away is still absolutely stellar from a visual perspective. Lucas was inspired by sci-fi properties like Flash Gordon, and it just so happened that this franchise would become even huger and more ubiquitous than that.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers - 1978
This was also a 1950s classic, but the 1978 version brought the terror-factor and paranoia up even further. Anyone in the film could be an alien-produced duplicate, making crowds of people much more terrifying than they usually would be.
Alien - 1979
This 1979 horror film provided one of the most terrifying onscreen sci-fi monsters there has ever been so far with the Xenomorph that stalks and terrorizes the crew of the USCSS Nostromo. Not only is the creature design terrifying itself, but the build of tension before it’s revealed and dynamics between the crew heighten anxiety to a fever pitch in this film.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - 1982
Don’t worry Trekkies, your bases are covered here too. Even if it began as a hit TV series, you can’t deny that the Star Trek film franchise is just as classic. The Wrath of Khan is many fan’s favorite entry in the series.
Nineteen Eighty-Four - 1984
This is a standout adaptation of the George Orwell novel, starring John Hurt and featuring Richard Burton’s final screen performance. If you haven’t experienced the totalitarian world of 1984, this is a great way to see it.
The Fly - 1986
This is a pretty classic iteration of the “scientist gone too far” trope we know well from stories like Frankenstein. David Cronenberg’s The Fly stars Jeff Goldblum as a scientist who accidentally merges his DNA with a housefly and begins transforming with some pretty terrifying special-effects makeup.
Tank Girl - 1995
Tank Girl is a post-apocalyptic action-comedy film based on the comic series by Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett. If you want a more screwball take on a Mad Max-esque desert wasteland adventure, this is a totally underrated gem with a great leading performance by Lori Petty, and Malcolm McDowell featured as the water-hoarding executive Kesslee.
The Fifth Element - 1997
One of the more recent entries here, The Fifth Element is brimming with odd charm, wacky characters and a colorful vision of a 23rd century Earth. It’s also got one of the best Gary Oldman performances of his entire career, so you really shouldn’t miss it.
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