Watching sci-fi movies is a hobby of mine.
I don’t just watch them I learn all there is to know about them. I like to know where the original story came from. Who’s idea it was. I like to research why the actors chose to be involved, what the director was thinking and so on and so on. I live a breath movies. I started this list as a little research project to see how many of my favorite Sci-fi movies were made before I was born. Well as it turns out, it’s a LOT.
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Who could ever get that crazy theremin soundtrack out of their head. I LOVE this movie. Even today if I am channel surfing and land on this flick I stop and HAVE to watch. An interesting tidbit about this film is that the book it was based on has a COMPLETELY different ending. In the original short story that Klatu the human was actually just a speaker and the robot was the MASTER.
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The War of the Worlds (1953)
H.G. Wells was a genius, lets face it. When I first saw this film as a kid I loved the colors, the scenery and the special effects. The movie lead me to read the actual novel which is quite different than the movie. Walter Lantz the creator of Woody woodpecker and George Pal the director were good friends and if you look close you can actually see Woody make an appearance in a treetop as the first Martian meteor crashes to the ground.
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Them! (1954)
A movie about giant, atomic, mutant ants is a movie you just HAVE to see. As a child I remember my dad playing this movie for me at his job in a pizza parlor on an old film projector. Although the beginning titles are in color the film itself is black and white. It was originally supposed to be in 3-D but the 3-D camera malfunctioned when they began to shoot the film.
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Forbidden Planet (1956)
Leslie Neilson, Flying Saucers, and Robbie the Robot. Nuff’ said!
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Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
Sitting in a dark room with al the lights off watching this movie will give you chills. I promise. I saw this movie as a teen after watching a pretty dull remake in 1978. It captures a sense of tension and isolation and fear that is very palpable. When the film was released nationally in early 1956, many theatres displayed several of the pods (made of paper) at theatre lobbies and entrances
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The Fly (1958)
One of THE quintessential monster movies of all time. Vincent price, technicolor, wild electrical and scientific equipment. Experimenting with living creatures What could possibly go wrong?
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The Time Machine (1960)
Considered the companion piece to the earlier War of the Worlds movie. Once again George Pal directed and produced this H.G. Wells masterpiece. The movie studio art director actually built the machine installing a plate stating that the machine was manufactured by H. George Wells as a tribute.
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The Day of the Triffids (1962)
Man eating, MOBILE plants that are the result of a meteor shower. Not the most inventive of films, but it holds a real lock on my heart because the idea really caught my imagination. You can actually see a “Triffid” plant on board the space craft in the movie E.T.
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2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
What can one say about this, the ultimate Sci-fi film. Not only is it often referred to as one of the greatest films of all time but it contains the pantheon of Sci-fi devices. Time shifting, aliens, space craft, robots, computers, space walks, space suits, the list goes on and on. The soundtrack is superb. The acting is good. The camera work and pacing are like nothing else. THIS WAS MADE IN 68′? It’s just amazing. Kubric pioneered the use of use front projection with retro-reflective matting to produce the backdrops for the African scenes showing ape-men against vast natural-terrain backgrounds, as traditional techniques such as painted backdrops or rear-projection did not produce the realistic look Kubrick demanded.
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Planet of the Apes (1968)
Charlton Heston is undoubtedly one of my favorite actors. He brings a great depth and humanity fo a film that tries its damnedest to be inhuman. Hallmarks of Sci-fi abound here. You have time travel, space travel, and a real Robinson Caruso feel. Jerry Goldsmith’s soundtrack is eerie and bleak and compliments the film perfectly. Best of all you have hundreds of folks running around in rubber ape masks!
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I would say that’s a pretty sound list of older Sci-fi. I love all these movies and more. Do yourselves a favor and check out ALL of these. Don’t let the fact that some are old or only black and white discourage you. These are ALL worthy additions to any movie buffs viewed list. Ciao!