Best Sci-Fi Movies of All Time

Top 25 Sci-Fi Movies

Movies have long been at the forefront of space exploration, whether it's with alien encounters, time travel or just toying with way-cool technology. So when we sat down to compile our list of the best sci-fi movies of all time, we looked all the way back to the classics ('Forbidden Planet'), to the movies that defined their times ('2001: Space Odessey') and our childhoods ('Star Wars'). It was one small step for Moviefone, one giant leap for movie lovers. Join us as we count down the 25 best sci-fi films of all time. -- By Ed Tahaney

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25. 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' (1977)

Steven Spielberg's first nomination for Best Director finds him in truly terrific form examining all the urban legends of visiting aliens and flying saucers, grounded in the story of the everyman who longs for something outside of his suburban life. This one only gets better with age, and mashed potatoes will never look the same.

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24. 'Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan' (1982)

Ricardo Montalban reprises his role from a 1967 episode of the TV series, 'Space Seed,' as Khan Noonien Singh, exiled by Kirk and now back for his revenge. Too bad the rest of the film series never came close to being as good as this tale of vengeance that ends with the death of (spoiler alert!) Spock. Will the JJ Abrams prequel deliver a film that can live up to it? No pressure, but Trekkers can only hope. --By Ed Tahaney

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23. 'It Came From Outer Space' (1953)

A young astronomer watches a meteor crash that turns out to be a spaceship smashing into the sand. Folks who went to gawk at the spectacle returned oddly transformed. This eerie sci-fi flick was the first to introduce shape-shifting aliens as a plot device and the Arizona desert as a home base for UFOs. The 3-D movie won a Golden Globe for Most Promising Newcomer Barbara Rush.

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22. 'Galaxy Quest' (1999)

By far one of the best sci-fi sendups ever. Tim Allen stars as a Captain Kirk-esque actor expected to save real aliens from their galactic fate (adding to the fun is the echoes of similarity to his Buzz Lightyear character). With funny performances by Sigourney Weaver, Tony Shalhoub (Monk) and the always sublime Alan Rickman. Never give up, never surrender.

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21. 'Robocop' (1982)

Who knew Red (Kurtwood Smith) from 'That 70's Show' was such a bad ass? But the real star of this tale is Peter Weller as Murphy, a great cop made better -- with a little tinkering and some spare parts. Director Paul Verhoeven's tale of a crime-ridden future Detroit is sci-fi at its most cynical ... and entertaining. Part man. Part machine. All good.

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20. 'Tron' (1982)

Before cell phones and iPods and computers you could slip in your bag, PCs were the size of big-screen TVs with a fraction of the power of your kid's laptop. This film's hero was a hacker (Jeff Bridges) who gets sucked into his machine to do battle with a main frame. It's like 'Spartacus' for early computer geeks. 'Tron' mixed live action and animation and had some cool effects for its time, even if we didn't know what the heck RAM was. It also won an Oscar for Best Costume Design. Byte on that.

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19. '12 Monkeys' (1995)

Terry Gilliam's mind-bending film was inspired by Chris Marker's 1962 short, 'La Jetee,' which brilliantly captured a dark dystopian future world that falls back unto itself in a twisted tale of time travel and lost hopes. In a post-apocalyptic future a few survivors live underground to avoid a deadly virus, while Bruce Willis is sent back in time to try and save the future from a crazy Brad Pitt and his cohorts. Best line: "There's no right, there's no wrong, there's only popular opinion."

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18. 'Soylent Green' (1983)

Beware of the Soylent Green wafers. Soylent Green is well, we don't want to give away the secret ingredient if you don't already know, but let's just say some of us still avoid eating soy products to this day. Charlton Heston plays a New York cop, circa 2022, trying to beat the heat and synthetic foods. Edward G. Robinson, who was almost totally deaf during the production, was Heston's roommate who helps his pal figure out what the heck they are really eating.

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17. 'Brazil' (1985)

A box office bomb that was heaped with praise by critics at the time of its release, even winning the Best Picture honors at the Los Angeles Film Critics Awards, Terry Gilliam's trippy flick has aged well ... unlike Katherine Helmond's character, who goes to ridiculous lengths to remain youthful. Smart, dream-like, twisted, constantly entertaining and visually ravishing -- this take on the Orwellian nightmares of a humble office drone continues to amaze audiences. Just goes to show you that critics can be right sometimes. Really.

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