Snurched from stephen_dedman:
Time Out‘s list of essential science fiction films. Italicise the ones you’ve seen, and bold those you like, and strike-through the ones you disliked.
The Abyss (1989)
Alien (1979)
Batteries Not Included (1987)
Cocoon (1985)
Battle Beyond the Stars (1980) Battlefield Earth (2000)
The Black Hole (1979)
Cherry 2000 (1987)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
ET: The Extra Terrestrial (1982)
Contact (1997)
Sphere (1998)
Critters (1986)
Dark Star (1974)
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Dune (1984)
Earth vs The Flying Saucers (1956)
Enemy Mine (1985)
Event Horizon (1997)
Explorers (1985)
The Fifth Element (1997)
Sunshine (2007)
Flash Gordon (1980)
Flesh Gordon (1974)
Forbidden Planet (1956)
The Fountain (2006)
Howard the Duck (1986)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
The Hidden (1987)
The Last Starfighter (1984)
The Man Who Fell To Earth (1976) Mars Attacks! (1996)
Metropolis (1927)
Morons from Outer Space (1985)
Pitch Black (2000)
The Chronicles of Riddick (2004)
Planet of the Apes (1968)
Quatermass and the Pit (1967)
Red Planet (2000)
Mission to Mars (2000)
Repo Man (1984)
Brother From Another Planet (1984)
Serenity (2005)
Silent Running (1972)
Solaris (1972)
Solaris (2002)
Soylent Green (1973)
Spaceballs (1987)
Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone (1983)
Ice Pirates (1984)
Solarbabies (1986)
Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)
Star Trek Generations (1994)
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
Star Trek Nemesis (2002)
Star Trek (2009)
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Starship Troopers (1997)
Supernova (2000)
The Thing (1982)
Things To Come (1936)
This Island Earth (1955)
Total Recall
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
War of the Worlds (1953)
War of the Worlds (2005)
Independence Day (1996)
Zardoz (1974)
Classic Pack
I have some recommendations from your unseen list:
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) (Classic sci-fi morality piece, one of my favourites.)
Forbidden Planet (1956) (Cool classic sci-fi, also one of my favourites.)
Quatermass and the Pit (1967) (Historical antecedent to most British sci-fi.)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) (Probably the best classic Trek movie.)
Star Trek: First Contact (1996) (Probably the best TNG movie.)
This Island Earth (1955) (Only you’re better off calling it “Mystery Science Theatre 3000 – The Movie” (1996))
There’s a few more on the list I’d recommend, but these are my first picks.
Re: Classic Pack
Alrighty then, thanks!
Hmmmmm. Dark Star’s on the list, which lends it credibility, but so is Zardoz, which takes it away again. There’s a lot there which just doesn’t seem “essential” to me, though.
I think if there’s movies on here that I haven’t heard of, they can’t really be essential – I mean, I might not have SEEN all the essentials, but surely I would have HEARD of them at some point!
The omission of Blade Runner negates it even as a list, let alone one with credibility!
It’s a screwy list. It’s got true believer stuff, and … stuff that’s just stuff.
YEah. If I could speak to these people of “essential”, I would say:
“You keep using that word. I do no’ think it means what you think it does.”
Seriously: there is some shit on that list so stinky I wouldn’t even use toilet paper. I’d just, you know, call 000 and order a HazMat team.
All this, and no Buckaroo Banzai? Time Out needs to take a running fuck at a rolling donut.
Given what is on the list how could they have left off “The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension”!
Plus, how do they only have Episode V of the Star Wars movies??