50 Most 'significant' scifi films

[moviefan]

I'Brian i wouldent mind if there was a REAL star wars . It would be better then guns

 

[manuel]

Barbarella . Definately Barbarella .

 

[Shoegaze99]

no 2001 Space Odyseey mention is another one.

Look again, it's there. As well it should be.

Any list purporting to outline "significant" science fiction films that omitted Kubrick's masterpiece would instantly lose any and all credibility. More than merely a significant genre film, 2001: A Space Odyssey is one of the most significant works in the cinematic art form, period.

return of the jedi is a must sci fi

Widely consider one of the worst of the series, not particularly innovative or interesting when set next to the two films preceding it, with a hugely unsubtle attempt to draw in the kiddie market … I can’t see how anyone could consider this “must sci fi” (I’m assuming you mean “must see sci fi”). As part of the Star Wars saga it can’t be dropped, to be sure, but it hardly belongs on a list of significant science fiction films.

Starship Troopers and Total Recall may not have been faithful adaptations of their literrary sources but they were damn entertaining entries in the popcorn SF genre, as is the first Men in Black.
Entertaining? Sure. But significant? I don’t think so. All three features nice special effects for their time, but none are of particular significance for the genre or for film in general.

I would have liked to see the highly underrated Gatacca make the list, as well as the excellent (and clearly science fiction) Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, but then that would involve bumping other films from the list, and most belong there. I think I’d ditch Robocop from the list in lieu of either of those, but it’s largely not a terrible list.

 

[Rosemary]

I think it's reasonable, given he has to fit only fifty in and it's not a 'best-off' list (it seems, although many of the films are very good) so much as an innovation/influence thing. Mad Max 2, for example, whilst perhaps not to everyone's tastes, has been the major influence on post-apocalypse films since its release.

I really enjoyed Mad Max 2 which for a Fantasy Fan isn't bad!! Actually I think I have watched it 6 times now

 

[Shoegaze99]

Too late to edit my previous post. Forgot to close a QUOTE tag. Obviously the bottom portion should look like this:

Starship Troopers and Total Recall may not have been faithful adaptations of their literrary sources but they were damn entertaining entries in the popcorn SF genre, as is the first Men in Black.

Entertaining? Sure. But significant? I don’t think so. All three features nice special effects for their time, but none are of particular significance for the genre or for film in general.

I would have liked to see the highly underrated Gatacca make the list, as well as the excellent (and clearly science fiction) Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, but then that would involve bumping other films from the list, and most belong there. I think I’d ditch Robocop from the list in lieu of either of those, but it’s largely not a terrible list.

 

[moviefan]

Too late to edit my previous post. Forgot to close a QUOTE tag. Obviously the bottom portion should look like this:


Entertaining? Sure. But significant? I don’t think so. All three features nice special effects for their time, but none are of particular significance for the genre or for film in general.

I would have liked to see the highly underrated Gatacca make the list, as well as the excellent (and clearly science fiction) Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, but then that would involve bumping other films from the list, and most belong there. I think I’d ditch Robocop from the list in lieu of either of those, but it’s largely not a terrible list.

Taking Return of the jedi out is like taking the story away ? It shows what happens to the empire .

 

[Shoegaze99]

Taking Return of the jedi out is like taking the story away ?

Are you asking a question? If so, you might want to rephrase it; your question is quite unclear.

Thanks in advance for clarifying your question.

It shows what happens to the empire .

Yeah, but with all due respect … so what? It’s not a particularly good film, and it’s hardly “significant” in the world of cinema. It may be the conclusion of the Star Wars saga, but Star Wars is not cinematically significant because it tells an important or innovative story, it’s cinematically significant for a host of other reasons (which have been outlined to such an extent pretty much everywhere I won’t go into them here). The first film was groundbreaking on several levels and serves as a cultural landmark. Return of the Jedi? Just more of the same … only not quite as good.

I mean, by your logic, Alien 3 and Alien: Resurrection should make the list, since they tell us what happened to Ripley (not to mention the title creature), capping off the saga. Jurassic Park: The Lost World and Jurassic Park III tell us what happened after they left the island in the first film. Under your logic, those films should therefore be included on a “significant” list. So, too, does 2010: The Year We Make Contact clear up issues from the first film; and the follow-ups to Planet of the Apes do the same. Are they so significant they should bump other films on this list?

No, end of the Star Wars saga or not, Return of the Jedi does not belong on a list of “significant” science fiction films.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Return of the Jedi certainly suffered for the Ewoks - but the fleet battle around the part-constructed Death Star remains one of the best space battles ever put on screen and the stand-off between Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker define the trilogy entire.

2c.

 

[stencyl]

On a side note, modern day classics like Robert Zemeckis' Contact and Steven Soderbergh's Solaris in their commercial failure represent the tragic disinterest of audiences in well-made thoughtful (and thought provoking) mainstream science fiction films.

Well put, Ravenus. I agree.

I would have liked to see the highly underrated Gatacca make the list, as well as the excellent (and clearly science fiction) Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind, but then that would involve bumping other films from the list, and most belong there.

Don't both these film suffer from similar considerations? Both are smartly written (Kaufman is easily among the best living film writers), but less-than-glitzy style. Eternal Sunshine may have done some neat things with its narrative, but the fragmentation it uses is a bit that is sort of a standard in postmodern film, so I guess it isn't incredibly influential.

All four films deserve nods, though.

 

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy]

Gattaca was a good film, as was Contact. I agree with ravenus that Contact and Solaris are significant, if only in showing that really meaty sf-for-the-mind movies seem tragically underappreciated.

 

[moviefan]

sorry i was not asking a question all i was saying was taking Retun of the Jedi out is like taking the story away. Also if u did take it out how will luke know what his father looks like ?????????????

 

[Shoegaze99]

Don't both these film suffer from similar considerations? Both are smartly written (Kaufman is easily among the best living film writers), but less-than-glitzy style. Eternal Sunshine may have done some neat things with its narrative, but the fragmentation it uses is a bit that is sort of a standard in postmodern film, so I guess it isn't incredibly influential.

Eternal Sunshine won’t be particularly influential in the world of film, I agree, because the fragmented narrative is something we’ve seen a lot in smaller, buzzworthy films of late (the excellent 21 Grams being a good non-genre example). What makes it significant – at least for its time, i.e. now – is that it is a good example of science fiction that the general public won’t immediately think of as science fiction. It shows the genre in a light the masses aren’t used to seeing – no explosions, no spaceships, no massive fights, no creatures – just an intelligent look into the human condition by way of speculative science. And make no mistake, though a tale of memory and love and relationships and fate, it’s a tale sparked by theoretical science. I believe such films are important for the genre.

Gatacca is more overtly science fiction, but it also grapples with issues more relevant to society today, as we plunge headlong into tinkering with human genetics. Gatacca does what some of the best science fiction ever written does – it peers into our near future and paints a picture of what our world could look like, serving as a warning of sorts, a caution sign in our road to the future. This, I think, makes it significant. Certainly more significant that most science fiction that came out around the same time.

Though again I’ll note that while both of these films are worthy of consideration, adding them to the list would require bumping something else, and that list is solid enough that not much deserves bumping.

 

[Shoegaze99]

sorry i was not asking a question all i was saying was taking Retun of the Jedi out is like taking the story away. Also if u did take it out how will luke know what his father looks like ?????????????

Your points are well taken, but are in my opinion not relevant to a discussion of "significant" films.

 

[moviefan]

ohh ok put fans like the films .

 

[Foxbat]

I suppose this whole debate hinges on the original author's interpretation of significant. For me, one significant omission is the much overlooked Charly. Significant, that is, in the sense that it was one of those movies that showed how close to home Science Fiction could actually come....and not only that, was a beautiful and poignant movie no matter what pigeonhole it was put into.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Charly? That wouldn't happen to be an adaption of "Flowers for Algernon" by any chance?

 

[The Master™]

Nice to see so much discussion (and a little negativity) about this list... Maybe the Chronicles site should have it's own TOP 50 Sci-Fi movies... How about it, Brian???

We could all put in our TOP 50 (or so) and sort out the most rated... But who to send it to??? I don't mind...

Bet we could put a better one together than that putz!!! Brother from another planet??? SHEESH!!!

Hardly significant!!! What about Scanners??? Village of the Damned??? The Incredible Shrinking Man??? Attack of the 50 foot Woman???

 

[Foxbat]

Charly? That wouldn't happen to be an adaption of "Flowers for Algernon" by any chance?

Yes. A Fine film, and a very fine book.

Hardly significant!!! What about Scanners??? Village of the Damned??? The Incredible Shrinking Man??? Attack of the 50 foot Woman???

I've just finished reading Matheson's novel 'The Shrinking Man'. I thought the film was good but the book's even better.

A Chronicles Top 50 Sci-Fi films (could even do it for Fantasy & Horror) wouldn't be a bad idea, but compiling it could be one heck of an undertaking

 

[Princess Ivy]

i'll add to the list, but not compile. whew! what a job!

 

[kyektulu]

I like highlander that is still as good today as ever.

Would that be classed as sci fi or fantasy?