Horror and Sci-Fi go together like ham and cheese. These days, the idea of having to survive a post-apocalyptic wasteland full of blood-hungry genetic mutations feels less like a screenplay and more like a possible reality.
So we decided to share with you the top 50 best Sci-Fi movies we love most right now, in no particular order. Yes, this is written mostly for educational purposes but ...maybe...just maybe…
In 50 years, if you find yourself in an ‘us vs them’ situation with a rogue AI that somehow acquired corporeal form, you’ll be thinking about this article as you aim for the CPU located in the base of its neck. (You’re welcome btw)
Entertainment? We prefer to see it as ‘preparation’. But don’t worry- we’re pretty sure this will never happen. Like, pretty sure- 90%.
Let the training begin.
50. The Fourth Kind
Kicking off our list, this movie is all kinds of creepy. It makes use of two common ‘insta-spook’ horror tropes- The ‘found footage’ and ‘based on a true story’ go-to’s that have been around as long as your uncle’s favorite jeans. But this film might be one of the first to use them to such a skin-tingling effect.
The Fourth Kind isn't everyday viewing
Focusing on the tiny town of Nome Alaska, Mila Jovovich (of Resident Evil fame) plays psychologist/hypnotist Abigail Tyler. Treating an ever-larger number of traumatized clients. When the clients’ stories begin to sync up in weird and disturbing ways, it leads Abi to investigate the unexplained goings-on in the town.
So how much of this movie is real? Watch the film. Read the history. Freak out a bit before you go to bed.
49. Viral
The guys from the Paranormal Activity franchise are taking a new direction with this skin-crawling flick. A solid cast featuring the always-reliable Michael Kelly (House of cards) puts in a great effort.
‘Viral’ begins innocently enough and does a good job of establishing the story. Beginning with the Drakeford family trio and their all-too-human problems, the film quickly foreshadows a mysteriously gross ‘worm flu’ swarming across the world. With decently-paced suspense, we’re suddenly plunged into a grave and gritty quarantine that puts the Drakeford girls’ romances into laughable perspective
Fans of gross-out style horror, this is for you!
48. Sputnik
It’s well known that Japan ‘gets’ horror. Turns out, Russia does too! How do we best describe this movie...Imagine if the astronauts in ‘Alien’ were cold war-era Soviets. Set in 1983, ‘Sputnik’s’ older influence can be seen in subtle ways, but the movie more than holds its own.
A manned space mission goes wrong, resulting in sole survivor Konstantin (Pyotr Fyodorov) returning home with an alien visitor inside him. He gets a frosty USSR welcome back as a team of Kremlin operatives tries to work out what they’re dealing with. Can Konstantin be saved? Should he be saved?
More importantly...What IS this thing? ‘Sputnik’ is a badass in suspense. It does a great job keeping you guessing along with the characters and the blood pours so hard and fast in this movie you won’t even care that you need subtitles.
47. Assimilate
Three teen buddies run a web series that leads them to stumble across more and more bizarre happenings. The more they see, the more they’re convinced that there’s something SERIOUSLY wrong with their hometown. As they gradually put the pieces together the ‘OH S@#! factor turns up to 11.
But who are they turning to for help?
It’s ‘Invasion of the body snatchers’ with a modern facelift and a shot of pure fear-steroids. ‘Assimilate’ plays on the fear of uncertainty. The no-context opening scene is a great foreshadow and the unease you feel slowly grows into a hooking Friday-night motive!
46.Black Box
Imagine waking up one day to discover:
Your wife is dead.
You don’t remember her anyway
You don’t remember anything at all really.
Nolan (Mamoudou Athie) lives this reality with his bright spark 10-year-old Ava (Amanda Christine), his condition makes things like remembering she exists a little tricky. In sheer desperation, he volunteers for an experimental procedure involving the namesake tech known as the ‘Black box’.
In an attempt to reclaim who he once was, Nolan faces the horrors dwelling in his mind (we’ve all been there mate). A creative blend of tech/psyche horror, you can look forward to a frightening take on the age-old ‘who am I’ question. ‘Black box’ is a reminder that the REALLY scary stuff can be found in our heads.
45. Extinction
We think it was Tony Robbins who said ‘most of our dreams probably won’t come true ’.
Don’t fact-check us on that.
But then, most people aren’t like Peter. Peter(Michael Pena) is a family man having hardcore nightmares of alien invasions, death and destruction. Everybody around him thinks he’s losing his mind so eventually, he goes to a doctor.
But it’s here that he discovers he’s not alone in having these dreams, and that these dreams are coming true. Peter’s family and humanity itself are plunged into a chaotic fight for survival. Think like ‘independence day’ meets the club’s closest Mcdonalds at 2 am.
One to watch, for sure.
44.Circle
50 People go in, only one comes out.
We could do an essay on this movie! The premise may feel like a cheesy game show the genius of ‘Circle’ is deeper. Picture it as like the spawn of ‘12 Angry men’ . Oh, but with aliens. It’s been said that a great movie relies not on details of characters, but the ‘why’ of their motivations.
What makes the human element so strong is that these 50 random people truly ARE random. From all walks of life, their race, religions and social classes are explored. Psychological horror at it’s finest, all to answer one (not so) simple question: How do we measure the value of human life?
The obvious hook of ‘who is the last person standing’ means that there’s little rewatch value unless you're a student of human nature. But the fascinating twists and didn’t-see-it-coming ending make it one hell of a flick.
Honestly, it could be the best ‘one and done’ watch of its kind on netflix!
43.The Lazarus Effect
We gotta give points here. So often in horror, the dead are doomed to be nothing more than played-out zombies. ‘The Lazarus Effect’ is a creative take on life and un-death, without devolving into another ‘survive the zombies’ effort.
A team of Californian scientists develops an elixir that brings the dead back to life. But when big-tech moves in, these prideful pros make a fatal error. In their attempt to be credited for their discovery, our quasi-heroine Zoey (Olivia Wilde) is killed and resurrected.
And that’s when the spooky stuff starts!Any movie from Blumhouse productions deserves a try, and this is no exception. Childish Gambino fans rejoice- Donald Glover features in this eclectic acting pool as a solid support act. This movie is DEFINITELY underappreciated!
42. Nekrotronic
Man might go to hell when he dies, true. But anybody that’s used a TOR browser knows that the REAL demons are in the dark corners of the net. Barely making $100k at the box office, ‘Nekrotronic’ is a largely unseen gem. Still, the movie gives the feeling that we’re watching something unique.
Too comedic to be a serious ‘ horror ’ film, the gore-heavy Sci-Fi features a gang of demon-hunting badasses as well as a feeling of impending doom. Mostly because the violence is on par with the ‘Doom’ series of video games. The visuals are in the same vein as ‘Ready Player One’, which is a definite plus to us. On top of that, demon hunting in cyberspace- what a GREAT genre-blending premise!
Chuck in some Aussie accents for comedic effect and ‘Nekrotronic’ has something to offer everyone.
Cult classic? Quite possibly!
41. Resident Evil, The Final Chapter.
‘What are we going to do’?
‘We’re going to kill every last one of them.’
These simple words are the core of the ‘Resident evil’ series and prove you don’t always need a deep story for a great movie. With so many great offerings in the franchise, we decided to focus on two- the first, and the (allegedly) last. The famous Raccoon City is the playground for humanity’s last chance to beat the evil UmbrellaCorp.
That last hope? Alice (or Mila Jovovich if you prefer). The mission is simple- get inside UmbrellaCorp HQ. Release the antivirus. Kill all obstacles.
If your girlfriend has ever bemoaned the ‘helpless little girl’ trope so common in horror movies, you just might want to show her this. Because THIS girl kicks real monster-ass.
40.Rupture
At first glance, Renee (Noomi Rapace) seems like a typical suburban mother. She does typical suburban mother things
Fights with her son…
Struggles with her ex-husband…
Gets tasered, abducted, and experimented on…
Ok of course she’s not a ‘typical’ mom. This is a horror movie. She’s a bit weird. So when she pays the price for trusting strangers, we start to learn HOW weird.
Turns out, it’s in the genes. What’s in the genes? That’s the movie. So much of the film is the motive behind the creepy kidnappers. Working out the twofold problem of what they’re doing and why they’re doing it makes for a compelling late-night mystery.
And it is one grotesque-looking penny when it drops.
Moral of the story? There’s so much in our DNA we still have no clue about. And if more than one guy helps you out with your flat tire- it’s probably a kidnapping.
Also, black tape is a great improv for a gimp mask.
39.Tau
A cool little B-movie. For a film that focuses on 3 (well technically 2) people, it’s hard for ‘Tau’ not to engage you. By the end, we’re certain that you’ll be a bit more insecure about your humanness.
Julia (Maika Monroe) regains consciousness in a weird house with a chip in the base of her neck. Standard London weekender so far, right? Sure, but then there’s the murderous robot house slave keeping her within an inch from death.
Tech mogul/sick creep Alex (Ed Skrein) reveals he’s using her as a bizarre test subject. When Julia learns what happened to the other 9 ‘experiments’, her choices become clear:
A) Persuade the house AI Tau (Voiced by the legend that is Gary Oldman) to help her escape.
B) Die horribly.
This movie is a morbidly fascinating look at what makes us human. With an uneasy pull on the heartstrings, ‘Tau’ does an unsettlingly good job of making you feel for a machine.
38. The Crazies
It’s 2010 in Ogden Marsh, an armed civilian at a baseball game is still weird enough to cause suspicion. But as town Sheriff David Dutton (Timothy Olyphant) sees more and more disturbances he begins investigating. When he and his Deputy Russel (Joe Anderson) learn about a military vehicle that crashed into the water supply, they put two and two together. SOMETHING in that vehicle is making the townspeople go Gary Busey level crazy.
Just in time for the military to quarantine the fake Iowa town. Tough luck Dave.
Quickly, the mysterious infection gets out of control. With the military getting the ‘shoot on sight’ order, can David and Russel rescue David’s pregnant wife Judy (Radha Mitchell) and her assistant, surviving both the US military and the murderous maniacs chasing them?
We confidently claim this modern remake to be better than its 1973 daddy.
37. A Cure For Wellness
Looking at director Gore Verbinski’s prior work is enough to persuade anyone to give this flick a try. This meaty feature of 2 ½ hours grabs your brain stem. Then it slowly squeezes. Picture a modern movie take on ‘American Horror Story-Asylum’ and you get a rough idea.
‘A cure for wellness’ sounds almost Edwardian, conjuring thoughts of sexually dissatisfied women in hoop skirts and bonnets. The reality is anything but. Lockhart (Dane Hanaan) is easily unlikeable at first. But being at the mercy of the clinically cold and Nazi-esque Dr. Volmer (Jason Isaacs) our dislike turned to sympathy.
What’s progressively clearer as the movie rolls on is the attention to detail in each shot. Treat yourself to the DVD to hear from Verbinski himself about the labor that went into this picture.
If Stanley Kubrick were alive, he’d wet his pants to have a crack at this.
Round of applause for whoever handled all those eels on set too. Yuck!
36. Dark Skies
‘Either we’re alone in the universe, or we’re not. Both possibilities are equally terrifying’- Arthur Clarke. If ever a quote felt right for a movie, this is it.
When we see ‘Blumhouse Productions’’ these days we instantly think ‘Let’s watch this!’ With good reason- they’re like the DJ Khaled of quality horror films. (Another one!)
‘Dark Skies’ carries heavy energy throughout the movie. Note that ‘heavy’ does NOT mean ‘boring.’ As we’re led deeper into the Barrett family struggles, the vibe of the movie gets more...uh….well, dark. There’s a definite feel of ‘something’s coming ’ in this compact 97-minutes movie.
J.K Simmons deserves a shout out here. Having retired from chasing pictures of Spiderman, he’s unrecognizable as UFO know-all Edwin Pollard. AKA ‘The guy that gives the audience plot context’.E.T fans-have at it with this one.
35.Skinwalker Ranch
‘Skinwalker Ranch’ is a curious film. It’s safe to say the found footage niche of horror is a tad hit-and-miss right now. The OG ‘Blair Witch Project’ came out in ‘99 and within 5 years it brought a buffet of take-it-or-leave-it efforts with it.
And yet, something is compelling about this movie. We love when ‘based on a true story’ isn’t used as a lazy spook tactic. The film is a creative take on true events in the same vein as ‘The Fourth Kind’- just mixed with a little ‘ghost adventures’.
If you like movies with real-life lore behind them, this is one for you. Any fans of the supernatural are going to LOVE the narrative. It’s one of very few kid/family-friendly watches on this list.
34. Area 51
Honestly, has anyone NOT heard of the 1947 crash landing of an alien mothersh…...uhhh...I mean air force weather balloon?
Forget what I said.
When Reid (Reid Warner) reappears after going missing during a party near the famous military base, he’s noticeably different. His friends attempt to talk to him about it to no success. He has only one thing on his mind- breaking into area 51. He links up along the way with like-minded, suicidal brave adventurers. Together they make it their mission to gather evidence of what lies within.
Whack out the tin foil hats and give ‘Area 51’’ a try. Yes, it’s a found footage film. But this movie is a fun tickling of the imagination. You get to live vicariously through the story of Reid and co. After all, have you never wondered what it would be like to infiltrate the most famous paranormal site in modern history?
Come on, be honest!
3 for 3 in our unplanned found footage listings, is a humbly small viewing at barely 90 minutes. Imagine ‘Blair Witch Project’ on the moon and you’ve got the concept.
Filmmaker Gonzalo López-Gallego’s first offering in the English language, ‘Apollo 18’ is the found footage niche’s first foray into space. Ala ‘Skinwalker ranch’, this is another film inspired by real historical events. In this case, the movie’s 1970s namesake.
A small team of NASA astronauts is tasked with collecting rock samples from the surface of the moon. Pretty soon strange things begin happening. The mission and their lives are in danger from an unseen presence.
From an artistic standpoint, the grainy, color graded style was smartly done. Considering this movie was released in 2011, the old-school cinematography helps to suspend disbelief.Suspense is subtle but effective. At the very least, it gives a realistic window into life in space.
32. Doom Annihalation
This may be hard to believe for the younguns, but once upon a time, Dwayne Johnson was NOT in amazing movies. Arguably his worst is the original ‘Doom’.
It’s only since ‘Doom: Annihilation’ hit the big screen that the bitter taste of disappointment has left our mouths. It’s more fizzy-sweet now, like a can of Fanta.
This Tony Giglio remake succeeded where its elder failed. The action is intense, the story coherent without being too complex. The editing is smooth enough to the point where there are no gaps in the action sequences. A definite plus for a Sci-Fi action movie!
Lighter on the horror/gore elements than the video game fans will be used to. The amount of action compensates.
On behalf of ‘Doom’ fans everywhere- thank you Hollywood.
Let’s kiss and make up.
31 Resident Evil (2002)
It’s bittersweet to believe it’s been nearly 20 years since the original.
More gore-heavy than scary. Still.‘Resident evil’ has aged well. Like luxury scotch or Michelle Pfeiffer. The fact the franchise is still alive in 2021 speaks volumes about its popularity.Maybe it has something to do with the anti-corporate message in it. Or maybe the fact that it’s self-aware in its occasional cheesiness (sorry Spence, just what accent are you going for?). Could it possibly even be because it’s a GOOD movie?
‘Resident Evil’ has the feel of a bespoke piece of cinema. For fans of the games, you get EXACTLY what you were wanting. For those that haven't played the games?
We challenge you to watch this film and NOT feel the itch to dust off your copy.
30. Screamers
And now for something a little different..
Pre 2000 movies of the genre weren’t equipped to deal out the heart-stopping fright we demand nowadays. So attention had to be paid to intricate story and pacing.
That’s why ‘Screamers’ is here. A loose template of Philip K.Dick’s novel ‘Second Variety’, the movie’s book-worthy premise alone grabs you. Nearly 30 years on and its cult status is still secure.
Flashforward to post-apocalyptic 2077 and humanity is split into two factions- the NEC and the alliance. To win their war against the NEC, the alliance create advanced AI weapons known as-you guessed it-screamers.
And now they’re mutating. Looking just like humans, they’re hunting their creators. With merciless precision.
The only clue of their presence is that diabolical scream.
29. The Facility
Next up and reppin’ the UK is a low (LOW) budget flick. Not too often is being cheap as chips an option for a decent movie. Once you see ‘The Facility ’ ,you’ll be convinced it was a good thing.
7 strangers sell their bodies for two weeks to be used for an experimental drug known only as Pro9. What happens in the clinical trial is the bulk of the movie.
The lack of CGI monsters or complex monster makeup doesn’t hurt this little indie darling one bit. In fact it does the opposite, making the plot all too believably human. Therein lies the horror.
Of course, there are one or two moments that a super-critical eye could pick up on. The last ten minutes involve an easily spotted ‘that didn’t hit her’ moment. Generally speaking though, ‘The Facility’The creativity here is seriously impressive. Being shot without a tripod forces a voyeuristic feeling of being right there- Definite spook points.
Minimalists and full-on film nerds- this is for you.
28. World War Z
Seeing a Brad Pitt film is a bit like getting an Uber. Sure, you know who you’re getting. It’s just that you don't know what kind of guy it’ll be this time.
And that’s the anxiety.
Are you gonna get ‘Fight club’ or ‘The Counselor’?
Thankfully ‘World War Z’ is closer to the first one. The pulling geopolitical story rescues itself from being another generic zombie movie. Instead, the end-times atmosphere puts things in a bigger perspective.
Playing the role of Gerry Lane, the character takes on a death-wish level mission to secure governmental support for his family. One thing we appreciate is how Gerry’s motivations evolve through the story- naturally, in response to the story.Packed with more than a few ‘I didn’t expect that’ moments, including a heart-stopper on an airplane. The last 10-15 minutes make for an ecstatic finale.
27. Train To Busan
Korean movies are exploding in popularity. An argument could be made that they can go film-for-film with Tinseltown right now.
‘Train to Busan’ is one of those competing movies. It’s a solid horror with Sci-Fi undertones. If you thought the tube in Summer was horrifying, you ain’t seen nothin’!
Oftentimes in the zombie genre, we get to know the zombies before the actual characters. Although the action here is constant, there’s plenty of pause-time in between. This allows us to WANT the characters to survive, which is an important consideration for holding the viewer’s attention.
In a played-out niche, ‘Train To Busan’ is a fresh twist. A horror movie rarely has tear jerking potential on such a level.But don’t take our word for it- wait to hear Su-An’s song.
Awhhh!!
26. I Am Legend
Will Smith OWNED the box office in the 2000s. Starting in ‘01 the classics just did NOT stop. Until 2010. Then they pretty much stopped.
‘I Am Legend’ could arguably be Will's best acting. Critics loved his performance and so do we!
In depressingly believable post-pandemic New York, a virus was released in an attempt to cure cancer (Irony!). Smith’s army scientist character Neville is alive only because of an unexplained immunity. All the rest have died or turned into weird, vampire-mutant hybrids called ‘darkseekers’.
Weird thing is, Nevile and the monsters want the same thing- his blood. It’s just that they disagree on how they should extract it!
Genuine adrenaline rushes pour through the viewer. It’s hard not to play the hero’s cheerleader in this epic!
25. Overlord
‘Overlord’ is fantastic viewing. There’s no other word that fits. It's as if ‘Inglourious Basterds’ had a child with ‘The Winter Soldier’.
And then baby Wolfenstein goes on a rampage.
This is an awesome slow burn of a flick that doesn’t present it’s darkest self until around halfway in. Every time you feel you’ve figured it out-you haven’t.
First, it’s a period piece. Then it’s a war movie. No wait, it’s an action movie! By the midpoint mark, the context is as warped and twisted as anything hidden in the nazi’s bases.
It’s full ghastliness is revealed in the allies’ suicide mission. Badass, gorey, and full throttle. This is better than any WW2 history class you had in school.
And somehow, more believable.
24. Pandorum
‘Pandorum’ is a provocative piece. It could’ve even got Stephen Hawking to think twice on some things.
All that remains of humanity is placed on an ark and shipped out to space. 60,000 people are put to sleep for a 100+ year trip to an earthlike planet.
But getting there is the challenge.
Ben Foster and Dennis Quaid play the chief astronauts here. Having had their century-long spacenap disturbed sucks enough. On top of that, they’re dealing with a space-psychosis that features as our film’s title. With no clue where they are or what they’re there to do, life quickly gets grimmer and grimmer.
Seen by many as an homage to ‘Event Horizon’. ‘Pandorum’ is a solid enough effort to stand on its own. Inventive monster costumes and creative lighting effects make this movie a solid choice.
23. Alien: Covenant
The sequel to the prequel to the original. Yeah, bit of a head-spinner.
The ‘Alien’ timeline spans a 40+ year franchise. So it can be forgiven for becoming a little murky. Still, we find it hard to fault the newest instalment when we take it at face value.
Michael Fassbender’s double duty here is almost universally praised. He’s great in his roles as twin AI units David and Walter. In fact, a little TOO good now that we’re thinking..(We’d love to hear about your process Mike).
As any series grows and evolves, so too must the characters. The xenomorph is no exception here and there are a couple of new kids on the block. The newly-evolved Praetormorph exists as a plot device to make ‘Covenant’ less suspenseful, yet more guns-blazingly fast..
There’s more than enough blood and guts here to satisfy even the most morbid of us.So get in line, guys.
22. Arrival
‘Arrival’ poses an unusual question in its premise. Maybe it’s common amongst space-heads and diehard UFO buffs. But us Mr. Everyday guys have probably never thought too deeply-
‘How would it be if we were having PEACEFUL talks with aliens?
Grizzled army capo G.T.Weber (Forest Whittaker) recruits linguist Louise Banks (Amy Adams) and Hawkeye physicist Ian Donelly (Jeremy Renner) to answer this question.
In decoding the alien messages, the earth is plunged into geopolitical chaos as the ambiguous meanings create fear and panic.
This evocative view opens up bigger questions beyond the ‘are there aliens out there’ thoughts. It takes a philosophical stance on the future, exploring the truth behind the idea of free will.
21. Monsters
The US/Mexican border has always been seen as a war zone. A vicious no-man’s-land filled with sand, cartel hitmen and aliens.
No not Mexicans Mr. Trump, actual extraterrestrials.
Yes, a breed of massive and murderous ET’s occupy what is now the quarantine zone.
Poor Andrew (Scott McNairy) has been tasked with a search and rescue mission. Where? In the quarantine zone! The plot revolves around one question- ‘Can the cast make it back across the border?’
The budget for this one is about as low as the floor. Shot in Guerilla style, there are moments you don’t even notice. This speaks volumes about Mexico’s natural beauty. Because of the level of focus on the actors, you find yourself invested in whether Andrew and his friends succeed on their journey.
20. Bird Box
The end of the world begins with pregnant Mallory (Bullock) losing her sister (Sarah Paulson) to a bad case of ‘jumped in front of a moving vehicle ’. Still in disbelief, Mallory has no time to grieve. More and more of the population are barbarically offing themselves because of some unseen evil force.
Only the birds know what. Well, the birds and the pre-existing violent psychos. There’s quite a few of those too.
There are 2 overwhelming positives about ‘Bird box’:
One is the telling of two concurrent A/B threads and how well they fit together in the end.
The other is how the villain, much like Trump's taxes, is never seen.
As such, the real freak-out factor comes from gory deaths and playing with suspense. A lot of times we as the audience are as blind as the cast.
A novel story satisfyingly told.
19. Life
We want you to promise us that if you ever find alien DNA somewhere you won’t bring it back to life.
And if you do, don’t name it. Because that just makes it harder to have to kill it.
Learn from ‘Life’.
A solid cast such as Ryan Reynolds, Jake Gyllenhaal and Rebecca Ferguson plays a crack team of scientists/astronauts. When they animate ‘Calvin’ they quickly regret it. The thing begins a blood-hungry rampage, growing stronger whenever it feeds.
There are only two questions here the crew need to answer:
1) How do we stop Calvin?
2) Are we going to die out here??
‘Life’ is suffering. But it’s good to watch. The movie’s ending is a satisfying break from the resolution of ‘everything’s back to normal’.
Definite sequel potential here.
18. Underwater
Groundbreaking in its combination of location and genre. Not many horror movies take place beneath the waves. As for the premise? A team of researchers vs never-ending list of near-death experiences.
Dead simple. Which is a plus here, because there’s more time to enjoy the action.
Said action kicks off from the very first scene. It’s clear very early that ‘Underwater’ is very much story-driven. Suspense? Nah mate, not here.
This is a movie of frequent impending danger. Nobody has time for that foreshadowing business!
The cast here pulls together, selling the fright of their battle for survival. Hell, even Kristen Stewart was great! Her constantly panicked/animated acting is literally night and day compared to her ‘Twilight’ years.
‘Jaws’ ain’t got nothin’ on this deep-sea dive!
17. Invisible Man
(TRIGGER WARNING: This movie may be harmful to those that suffered/are suffering from domestic violence.)
This movie gets bleak, fast.
Cecilia (Elizabeth moss) drugs her husband and flees the house in the opening scene. That should tell you everything you need to know about the marital dynamic here.
When hubby allegedly kills himself soon after, weird stuff starts happening. He haunts Cecilia’s memory and she’s convinced he’s not dead. Of course, nobody believes it. So she sets out to prove it.
Aside from an ‘outta nowhere’ surprise in one restaurant scene, there’s virtually no violence until the final quarter.
Just the power of a camera. Pointing at mostly nothing.
No, this movie gaslights you the way a domestic abuser would. By the end of the film, you’re so unsure what to believe. So you’ll accept anything you’re told.
And you’ll want to watch it again.
16. High Life
Award for the cruelest community service sentence goes to ‘High Life’!
Robert Pattinson has bloomed as an actor in the last few years, constantly choosing under-the-radar projects and lifting them up. Here he plays Monty, one of a collection of violent criminals boarding a spaceship for an experimental mission.
From the opening moments, everything about the ‘High life’ just feels dark and heavy. Much like the black hole that plays a key role in the film. The woeful morbidity borders on sadistic.
But let’s be clear- it pulls these themes off well.
Overtones of existentialism haunt the scenes, and the gritty truth of human nature is not just attacked - it’s explored. The non-linear sequencing proves without a doubt this is a movie with a voice.
15. Prometheus
When this was first released, expectations were high. Just knowing it exists in the ‘Alien’ universe, there was heavy pressure on Ridley Scott. Did he deliver? Absolutely. Because he’s Ridley Scott.
By 2089 humanity has evidence of the location of their forefathers. A mission is planned to contact these beings, known mysteriously as ‘Engineers’. This being a full-length feature, of course the journey isn’t exactly smooth sailing.
Also FYI- there’s a crew of like 15 people. Less than half are main characters. So plenty of expendable background for monster yum-yum. (Hooray!)
Overall, ‘Prometheus’ does a great job of catching your bloodthirsty eye. Even a critical eye would struggle to fault the framing from one scene to the next. Idris Elba’s (Janek) talent for xenomorphing his voice is a beautiful thing.
A Londoner that can pull off a southern accent without it sounding cheesy or a little bit racist. Well done sir.
14. Brightburn
‘Imagine if Superman was evil.’
As close to a comic book movie as you can get without being sued. ‘Brightburn’ is a movie packing an almighty wallop inside a runtime as short and intense as the little psychopath it stars.
When a spaceship crashes to earth on a farm, a couple adopts the child inside. As he ages though, it’s clear to all that he’s just a little….murder-rampagey.
Paced immaculately, you can see a real evolution in the parents’ thinking, from ‘Brandon’s just acting out’ to ‘we need to kill this kid.’Rest assured, there is no hope here. ‘Brightburn’ is a 90-minute case study in how many creative ways you can murder everybody you’re supposed to love. Its gory visuals will leave you thinking ‘how could he DO that?’
13. Annihalation
Enter the shimmer.
A sparkly-bright zone full of….well, nobody really knows. But it’s getting bigger. And that’s scaring people. So five women (one of whom is Natalie Portman) go inside to try and figure this thing out.
The visual setting for ‘Annihilation’ looks a little bit as if heaven and hell ever worked their differences out. You’ll frequently catch yourself wanting to pause and appreciate a lot of the still shots.
No spoon-feeding information will be happening in this film. Audiences are going to have to figure this one out themselves. Much like the women in the film, spending their time having their internal selves literally reflected at them.
Fans of the very first ‘Tomb Raider’ game will also recognise one particular scene.
‘Annihilation’ was brought straight to Netflix in the UK. Distributors figured it was ‘too intelligent for average viewing’. So if you’re somebody who enjoys picking apart and rewatching movies...
You just found your match.
12. Pitch Black
Anything Vin Diesel that isn’t ‘Fast and furious’ tends to be critically savaged. With apparent reason- usually, it isn’t very good (we’re looking at you ‘Pacifier’).
‘Pitch Black’ is a Vin Diesel movie that isn’t not bad. It’s good. In fact, Diesel’s role as Richard B. Riddick was star-making to the point it got him ‘Fast and furious’.
Eleven survivors crash on an alien planet with three suns. Night doesn’t exist, but the planet is plunged into a total eclipse every 22 years. During this darkness, monstrous creatures rise out of the earth for a month to hunt and feed,
And what great luck it is to find out that our cast is right on time for the next eclipse!
Starting Sci-Fi, ‘Pitch black’ becomes a survival-horror that makes great strides in revealing each character’s true self. It’s only in the life-or-death scuffles with the monstrous Bio-Raptors we learn who the real good and bad guys are.Entertaining and imaginative, it’s what we all want from the genre.
11. Mimic
A crossbred ‘Judas breed’ mantis-cockroach is created to kill New York’s disease-carrying roaches problem. It works!
Well, technically. There are no teeny roach killers anymore. So let’s flash forward three years.
Now there’s roided-up giant killer mantis-roaches and a MUCH bigger problem.
The detailed costuming of the imagined superbug fits the dirty Manhattan setting well. In the gloomy urban lighting, it can be impressively scary.
Add a kid that doesn't say a word and it’s pretty creepy too.
For a pre-2000 entry in the SciFi/horror genre, it’s surprising how often ‘Mimic’ gives a good fright. It’s universally seen as a respectable flick. Although the studio and director Guillermo Del Toro clashed on the final product, there’s now a director’s cut.
Said director’s cut proves Del Toro knows his stuff. Watch it and you’ll be sure to agree.
10. Scanners
If you’ve seen it already, you’ll know. If you haven’t, you’ll understand when you do.
Notorious for THAT effect.
A simple good vs evil concept. Two warring bands of powerful telekinetic psychics called (you guessed it) ‘Scanners’ fight for supremacy. The good guys, recruited by the US Military to protect humanity. The bad guys? Led by a Jack Nicholson-Esque Darryl Revok (Michael Ironside).
Solid Sci-Fi with horror and espionage elements. This is a flick we love as a case study of how the genre began. Definitely cheesy in 2021, it’s easy to forget the special effects were revelatory at the time.
The final confrontation towards the end though?
Still so damn satisfying!
If you’re a fan of film history or a true diehard, ‘Scanners’ will appeal to you. While not talked about much today, there are several famous scenes from this movie that are still in the genre’s conscious awareness.
9. Under The Skin
For the past 15-odd years, many a man would fantasize about Scarlett Johansson picking HIM up.
Back in 2014 a couple of blokes kinda got their wish!
'Under the Skin’ is a movie where gorgeous ET Laura/ScoJo trawls around Scotland in a van trying to find a mate to seduce.
Except after she’s seduced them, Laura sends her victims to another dimension to be food for the entities dwelling there. Effectively killing them after seducing them, much like a Black Widow (sorry).
Possibly Scarlett’s best-acted lead role, it’s incredible to see real life and a mid-twenties electrician integrated into the overall story. These men had no clue they were being filmed and director Jonathan Glazer issued them all with release forms after their surprise scenes.
Low on the horror but Sci-Fi through the roof. If ever a movie could teach you beauty is skin deep, it’s this one.
8.Slither
A black comedy horror that became a stealth hit long after its box office flop.
‘Slither’ doesn’t bother with subtlety and pretentious double meanings. It's self-aware of what it wants to be- a comic horror grossout designed to kill an hour and a half.
Alien parasite comes to earth. Parasite finds host. Host goes crazy. Host kills people.
Simple stuff.
Grotesque body horror is everywhere in this James Gunn debut, paired with a humor that earns Slither's biggest laughs at the most inappropriate moments.
We lost track of the number of nods to other movies, with ‘The Shining’ being the most charming. Pointing these homages out as you watch with friends makes for an entertaining game. There’s even rewatch value here doing so.
For a 15 mil budget, you get a fair bang for the buck. Most of that probably went on the makeup budget, but it was money well spent.
7.They Live
‘I am here to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I’m all out of bubblegum.’ Roderick George Toombs (April 17, 1954 – July 30, 2015)
And with these words, a cult following was born.
John Carpenter’s ‘They live’ reads like a David Icke wet dream. Lizard-like ETs are posing as everyday people. These aliens control humanity from positions of governmental power with subliminal messaging. Oh, and they also use global warming as an excuse to terraform the planet to their liking.
Only after putting on a special pair of glasses does Roddy Piper’s character Nada see ‘the truth.’ Nada then spends the movie taking the fight to the overlords, eventually planning to destroy the source of the messages and alien frequencies with Frank (Keith David).
There’s plenty of action tied up in this metaphor for rampant capitalism. You can look forward to an increasingly cartoonish eight-minute fight scene that only a professional wrestler could sell you on.
Its a scene so beloved by pop culture that even ‘South Park’ spoofed it.
‘They live’ has left its mark EVERYWHERE in modern culture. Much like the aliens in the movie, you can’t see them.Solid Sci-Fi with horror themes, once you put your glasses on and watch this film, you can't un-see.RIP HotRod. You are missed.
6. The Thing (2011)
A prequel of another John Carpenter job- ‘The Thing’, this modernization tells the story of how the eponymous creature was originally found. So you’ll be pleased to know that the 2011 installment doesn’t tread on the 1982 classic’s toes
And if you HAVEN’T seen the original, this update does well as a standalone.
Buried deep in the Antarctic, a team of specialists crosses paths with an alien life that takes the form of whatever it kills.
This ‘Thing’ is a survival movie, mixed with psychological horror. How do you survive when you can’t even recognize your enemy? The acting here does a good job of displaying the character’s fearful response to this question and shows teamwork doesn’t always make the dream work.
Solidly simple storytelling makes the hook of ‘who is the thing’ even more suspenseful. Think of this movie as a deadly game of ‘Guess who’ and enjoy being wrong a few times as you watch.
5. Cloverfield
A movie about a monster. A decently done, engagingly told movie about a monster.
Possibly the best found footage movie made. If not, it has to be in the top three. The shaky handheld style used in ‘Cloverfield’ is one of the rare times it works. Not only does it work, it actually complements the panicked New York atmosphere and makes SENSE.
Self-aware enough to recognize that the audience is never SERIOUSLY going to believe this is based in reality. ‘This is a movie that avoids the enraging paradox of ‘dramatic interpretation of documented evidence of real events’ so many other films in this niche seem to like being.
Watching the mostly yet-to-be-known actors here give believable performances is entertaining. You may find yourself thinking- ‘yeah, I’d probably be like that too’.
Overall- thank you ‘Cloverfield’ for being a self-respecting picture. You could’ve been another lazy A to B cliche fest.
But you weren’t.
4. Event Horizon
Two premium actors from two of the greatest Sci-Fi trilogies, coming together. Sam Neil (William Weir) of ‘Jurassic park’ links up with Laurence Fishburne (Captain Miller) of ‘The matrix’.
In 2040 the eponymous ship went missing. Weir and Miller begin investigating when said ship reappears 7 years later.
Often described as ‘Hellraiser’ meets ‘Alien’. ‘Event Horizon’ may have been underwhelming upon release. But fans of this movie gush and sing like the hen party does at Karaoke (they do give it their all, bless them.)
The life-threatening stuff doesn’t happen until you’re sufficiently invested in the characters. Supported by a deliberate yet loose camera style and the terrific Jason Isaacs, fans of Sci-Fi/Horror owe it to themselves to check ‘Event horizon’ out.
3. The Fly
You know when you remember a movie as being totally awesome?
And then you watch it back MANY years later and it just isn’t what you remember?
It’s a heartbreaking feeling. We don’t feel that way about ‘The fly’.
Directed by David Cronenberg of ‘Scanners’ fame. This movie proves NOBODY can do body horror like him. We can’t even THINK body horror without images of some of his finest creations.
Seth Brundle (Jeff Goldblum) triumphantly creates a teleportation machine that will change the face of humanity. Or at least it will change HIS face, when a fly gets in and turns Seth’s world (and genetic code) upside down.
‘The fly’ is an unconventional horror movie. There’s nowhere we can point our finger and say ‘that’s the bad guy’.
All bad deeds are done by a well-intentioned man, pushed to the brink by his desperate situation. As the movie goes on we see Seth’s reasoning degrading the same way his face is.
Absolute classic. Watch it as soon as you can.
2. Cabin In The Woods
‘OH MY GOD he’s going to do it, he’s going to jump that--
Never mind.’ - Everyone that sees this movie.
When ‘Cabin in the woods’ was released around 10 years back, it quickly became most people’s new favourite horror. The spring break vibe in the opening would lead you to think this movie is going to be unoriginal and formulaic.
You’d be wrong.
This is an artful parody of all the unoriginal horror movie tropes that people are sick of. A simple premise does what it says on the tin- at first. A bunch of college kids holiday in a woodside cabin. Quickly, the story becomes more and more ‘meta’ to the point it’s almost absurd.
ALMOST.
Voyeuristic, fatalistic, goofy. It isn’t until the final half-hour that the blood and carnage POUR.Hat’s off to you Joss Wheedon. You gave us something original when we most needed it
Alien (1979)
The OG, the godfather, the granddaddy. Use whatever word you want. Despite not being a countdown list, it felt like a crime to not put ‘Alien’ in the #1 slot. ‘Alien’ could be argued as the film that launched the whole Horror/Sci-Fi genre.
A group of astronauts investigate a distress signal that leads them to bei attacked by an unknown creature.
That’s all you need to know. The creativity of this movie alone will lead you through it,
Not only is this classic a revolutionary story, it went against a lot of typical Hollywood conventions at the time. Sigourney Weaver’s turn as Ellen Rigby was one of the few times in horror where a woman was presented as more than a screaming victim.
The archetypal xenomorph alien/monster is still respected today. Though dated and updated in later films, it is still seen by many as a symbol of the genre.
If you haven’t seen it by now, you really should.
That’s it for our list of ‘Top 50 Best Sci-fi Horror Movies We Love’. If you made it this far, you deserve a reward.
Here, have another article. Don’t say we never do anything for you!
https://www.gamersdecide.com/articles/best-sci-fi-games
https://www.gamersdecide.com/articles/best-horror-anime-of-all-time
https://www.gamersdecide.com/articles/new-horror-games
