Even before talkies, science fiction made its mark on film:
- A Trip to the Moon (1902) by the Frenchman Georges Melies
- Metropolis (1926) by the German Fritz Lang, the first classic science fiction film
In the 1930s several great classic films were produced:
- Frankenstein (1931), with Boris Karloff, followed by endless sequels and remakes, most notably The Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
- Invisible Man (1933), starring Claude Rains, from the novel by H.G. Wells
- Things to Come (1936) from the screenplay by H.G. Wells and based on his novel The Shape of Things to Come. This is the first great sound picture in the field and the first film to show a utopian future that includes the promise of space flight.
Two prominent serials of the era are Flash Gordon (1936) and Buck Rogers (1939).
An estimated 500 feature films and shorts that can be classified science fiction were made between 1948 and 1962.
Science fiction really began to proliferate on film after the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. This event prompted a rash of after-the-bomb and alien invasion films.
Destination Moon (1950), is a pseudo-documentary based on Robert A. Heinlein's juvenile novel Rocketship Galileo.
The Thing (1951), based on John W. Campbell's short story "Who Goes There?," features James Arness as a fearsome, defrosted alien carrot; the film was remade in 1982.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), combines the atomic bomb and alien invasion motifs with the appearance of an alien sent to warn mankind about its self-destructiveness.
This film is also famous for the line of dialogue "Gort, Klaatu barrada nicto," the first alien language on film.
Though never translated, the line is a message that Klaatu (Michael Rennie) tells Helen Benson (Patricia Neal) to give to Gort should anything happen to Klaatu.
The Beast from 20,000 Fathoms (1953), was successful enough to spark a trend of monsters emerging from anywhere as a result of radiation mutation.
Also in 1953 came George Pal's adaptation of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, which Orson Welles had already used to terrorize half of the East Coast in a famous radio broadcast on Halloween night, 1938.
1954 featured The Creature from the Black Lagoon and Them, about mutant ants invading Los Angeles.
Also in 1954 came 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, a Walt Disney production of the Jules Verne novel.
Forbidden Planet (1956), is a remake of Shakespeare's The Tempest with a decidedly Freudian perspective; the film is also notable for the first appearance of Robby the Robot.
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) is often viewed as a metaphor for McCarthyism; hero Kevin McCarthy has a cameo in the 1978 remake starring Donald Sutherland.
Village of the Damned (1960) is based on The Midwich Cuckoos, by John Wyndham.
Also in 1960 came The Time Machine, starring Rod Taylor, from the novel by H. G. Wells. A disappointing remake starring Guy Pierce appeared in 2002.
In 1968 Stanley Kubrick collaborated with Arthur C. Clarke on 2001: A Space Odyssey, the first $10 million science fiction film.
Despite its ambiguity, the film was a financial success and set the stage for the big-ticket films that would follow in the next decade; a sequel, 2010: Odyssey Two appeared in 1984.
In 1971 Kubrick made A Clockwork Orange based on the Anthony Burgess novel.
Also in 1971 came THX-1138, George Lucas' first feature, based on a student film.
Westworld (1973), from a Michael Crichton screenplay, stars Yul Brynner as an android gone amok.
In 1976 came The Man Who Fell to Earth with rock star David Bowie as the alien and Logan's Run, later a television series.
In 1977 the debut of Star Wars sparked a revitalization of science fiction.
Due to the huge success of this film, the market for and interest in science fiction as film and as literature skyrocketed into the stratosphere again, rejuvenating and expanding the entire field.
Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi (1983) comprise the middle trilogy of a projected three-trilogy cycle of films by George Lucas, based in part on Joseph Campbell's The Hero With a Thousand Faces.
The long-awaited first trilogy began with The Phantom Menace in 1999; Ewan MacGregor plays the young Obi Wan Kenobi. In its sequel Attack of the Clones (2002) Hayden Christiansen plays Anakin Skywalker who will become Darth Vader. Filming started on the third film in this trilogy in 2003.
Lucas has no current plans to develop the third trilogy.
Also in 1977 came Close Encounters of the Third Kind, a realistic version of a friendly alien encounter.
Steven Spielberg researched accounts of alien encounters on which to base his alien creatures.
An expanded special edition featuring additional footage of the alien mothership was released in 1980.
Superman (1978), starring Christopher Reeve, is a witty rendering of the comic book character's emergence.
It was followed by Superman II (1981), in which the Man of Steel battles a trio of supervillains from Krypton, and two less successful sequels.
Alien (1979) and its even better sequel Aliens (1986) feature Sigourney Weaver as Ripley; the trilogy was completed with Alien 3 in 1992. Alien Resurrection extended the franchise in 1997 with Weaver playing Ripley's clone.
Ridley Scott's director's cut of the original Alien, released in November 2003, contains new footage.
Time After Time (1979) is a charming time travel story in which H.G. Wells pursues Jack the Ripper into modern San Francisco.
The Black Hole (1979) is Disney's first PG-rated film.
The Star Trek phenomenon finally made its way to the big screen with Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979, based on and featuring the original cast of the Gene Roddenberry television series of the late 1960s.
The first film was followed by numerous sequels, the best being Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991).
In 1994 came Star Trek: Generations which features the casts of both the classic television series and its sequel Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Star Trek: First Contact (1996), the first film featuring only the Next Generation cast, is a time travel story about a Borg attempt to assimilate Earth just before Zefraim Cochran perfects the first warp drive and attracts the attention of a Vulcan spaceship.
Less successful was Star Trek: Insurrection. Perhaps the last NextGen film is Star Trek: Nemesis (2002).
Outland (1981) is a science fiction remake of High Noon.
Disney's Tron (1982) was one of the earliest examples of a feature-length motion picture that utilized computer animation.
Blade Runner (1982) is Ridley Scott's stylish film of Philip K. Dick's novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? A director's cut (1992) clarified the nature of the film's major character.
Another cult film from 1984 is The Adventures of Bucakroo Bonzai Across the 8th Dimension.
The film is famous for the line of dialogue: "Wherever you go, there you are!"
Back to the Future (1985), another blockbuster, is an excellent time travel film; it spawned two less-successful sequels.
Robocop appeared in 1987.
Alien Nation (1988) spawned a television series and a number of made-for-television movies.
Batman (1989) is a stylish telling of the story of the Caped Crusader (Michael Keaton); unfortunately Jack Nicholson dominated as The Joker.
The sequel Batman Returns is memorable for appearances by the Penquin (Danny DeVito) and Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer).
Batman Forever features a new Caped Crusader (Val Kilmer), the debut of sidekick Robin and villains played by Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey.
Batman and Robin (1997) stars George Clooney as Batman, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze, and Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy. Alicia Silverstone debuts as Batgirl.
Total Recall (1990), another Schwarzenegger vehicle, is loosely based on Philip K. Dick's short story, "We Can Remember It For You Wholesale."
Edward Scissorhands (1993) is a Frankenstein take-off.
Timecop (1994) became a television series as did Stargate (1994).
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994) was directed by and stars Kenneth Branaugh as Victor. Robert de Niro plays the Monster.
Several major films came out in 1997:
- Men in Black
- Contact, based on a novel by Carl Sagan
- Starship Troopers, based on the novel by Robert A. Heinlein.
- Face/Off, a fantasy thriller about stolen identities directed by John Woo
The Matrix (1999) explores the nature of reality. The first sequel, The Matrix Reloaded was released in May 2003. Matrix Revolutions,the final film in the trilogy was released in November 2003.
The Sixth Sense (1999), more fantasy than sci-fi, demonstrated M. Night Shyamalan's command of story.
Also in 1999 came the mind-bending Being John Malkovich.
