A chronological list of my favorite sci fi feature films through the decades.
Not necessarily the greatest ones – though I consider many of them to be just that.
I’ve included some that combine sci fi and supernatural elements (like “House of Frankenstein” from 1944), which has the Frankenstein monster co-existing with Dracula and the Wolf Man.
Also represented are a number of sci-fi comedies. Hail Abbott & Costello!
The vampire and zombie titles I’ve cited all present those states as the results of scientific experiment rather than supernatural or occult forces.
Many of the acknowledged classics aren’t here. But that’s because they just didn’t please or entertain me the way they obviously did for so many others.
At the end is an addendum listing movies I’ve categorized as Sci Fi Adjacent. All titles I like very much. But – compared to the ones on the main list - their sci fi content tends toward the peripheral or the merely implied.
The 1920’s
AELITA(1924-Yakov Protazanov)
-Nikolai Tseretelli,Valentina Kuindzhi,Yulya Solntseva
DIE FRAU IM MOND/THE WOMAN IN THE MOON(1929-Fritz Lang)
-Willy Fritsch, Gerda Maurus
The 1930’s
DELUGE(1933-Felix E. Feist)
-Peggy Shannon,Sidney Blackmer,Lois Wilson
KING KONG(1933-Merian C. Cooper,Ernest B. Schoedsack)
-Robert Armstrong,Fay Wray
BLACK CAT, THE(1934-Edgar G. Ulmer)
-Boris Karloff,Bela Lugosi,David Manners
BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN(1935-James Whale)
-Boris Karloff,Colin Clive,Valerie Hobson
DEVIL-DOLL, THE(1936-Todd Browning)
-Lionel Barrymore,Maureen O’Sullivan
INVISIBLE RAY, THE(1936-Lambert Hillyer)
-Boris Karloff,Bela Lugosi,Frances Drake
MAN WHO CHANGED HIS MIND, THE(1936-Robert Stevenson)
-Boris Karloff,Anna Lee,John Loder
THINGS TO COME(1936-William Cameron Menzies)
-Raymond Massey,Ralph Richardson
WALKING DEAD, THE(1936-Michael Curtiz)
-Boris Karloff,Marguerite Churchill,Warren Hull
MAN THEY COULD NOT HANG, THE(1939-Nick Grinde)
-Boris Karloff,Lorna Gray,Robert Wilcox
SON OF FRANKENSTEIN(1939-Rowland V. Lee)
-Basil Rathbone,Boris Karloff,Bela Lugosi
The 1940’s
APE, THE(1940-William Nigh)
-Boris Karloff,Maris Wrixon
BEFORE I HANG(1940-Nick Grinde)
-Boris Karloff,Evelyn Keyes,Bruce Bennett
DEVIL BAT, THE(1940-Jean Yarborough)
-Bela Lugosi,Dave O’Brien
INVISIBLE MAN RETURNS, THE(1940-Joe May)
-Vincent Price,Nan Grey,John Sutton
MAN WITH NINE LIVES, THE(1940-Nick Grinde)
-Boris Karloff,Roger Pryor,Jo Ann Sayers
ONE MILLION B.C.(1940-Hal Roach,Hal Roach Jr)
-Victor Mature,Carole Landis, Lon Chaney Jr
THE DEVIL COMMANDS(1941-Edward Dmytryk)
-Boris Karloff,Anne Revere,Richard Fiske
DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE(1941-Victor Fleming)
-Spencer Tracy,Ingrid Bergman,Lana Turner
MAN-MADE MONSTER(1941-George Waggner)
-Lon Chaney Jr,Lionel Atwill,Anne Nagel
GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN, THE(1942-Erle C. Kenton)
-Sir Cedric Hardwicke,Lionel Atwill,Lon Chaney Jr
MAN WITH TWO LIVES, THE(1942-Phil Rosen)
-Edward Norris,Marla Dwyer
MAD GHOUL, THE(1943-James P. Hogan)
-David Bruce,Evelyn Ankers,George Zucco,Turhan Bey
HOUSE OF FRANKENSTEIN(1944-Erle C. Kenton)
-Boris Karloff,Lon Chaney Jr.,John Carradine
ZOMBIES ON BROADWAY(1945-Gordon Douglas)
-Wally Brown,Alan Carney,Bela Lugosi
ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN(1948-Charles Barton)
-Bud Abbott,Lou Costello,Bela Lugosi,Lon Chaney Jr
The 1950’s
ROCKETSHIP X-M(1950-Kurt Neumann)
-Lloyd Bridges,Osa Massen,John Emery,Hugh O’Brian
ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET THE INVISIBLE MAN(1951-Charles Lamont)
-Bud Abbott,Lou Costello,Adele Jergens,Arthur Franz
FIVE(1951-Arch Oboler)
-William Phipps,Susan Douglas Rubes,James Anderson
FLIGHT TO MARS(1951-Lesley Selander)
-Arthur Franz,Cameron Mitchell,Marguerite Chapman
WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE(1951-Rudolph Mate)
-Richard Derr,Barbara Rush,John Hoyt
RED PLANET MARS(1952-Harry Horner)
-Peter Graves,Andrea King.Marvin Miller,Orley Lindgren
ABBOTT & COSTELLO GO TO MARS(1953-Charles Lamont)
-Bud Abbott,Lou Costello,Mari Blanchard
ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET DR. JEKYLL & MR. HYDE(1953-Charles Lamont)
-Bud Abbott,Lou Costello,Boris Karloff
BEAST FROM 20,000 FATHOMS, THE (1953-Eugene Lourie)
-Paul Christian,Paula Raymond
WAR OF THE WORLDS, THE(1953-Byron Haskin)
-Gene Barry,Ann Robinson
KILLERS FROM SPACE(1954-W. Lee Wilder)
-Peter Graves,Barbara Bestar
RIDERS TO THE STARS(1954-Richard Carlson)
-William Lundigan,Richard Carlson,Herbert Marshall
CONQUEST OF SPACE(1955-Byron Haskin)
-Walter Brooke,Eric Fleming
IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA(1955-Robert Gordon)
-Kenneth Tobey,Faith Domergue
QUATERMASS XPERIMENT, THE(1955-Val Guest)
-Brian Donlevy,Jack Warner,Margia Dean
THIS ISLAND EARTH(1955-Joseph Newman)
-Jeff Morrow,Faith Domergue,Rex Reason
REVENGE OF THE CREATURE(1955-Jack Arnold)
-John Agar,Lori Nelson,John Bromfield
BEAST OF HOLLOW MOUNTAIN, THE(1956-Edward Nassour,Ismael Rodriguez)
-Guy Madison,Patricia Medina
CREATURE WALKS AMONG US, THE(1956-John Sherwood)
-Jeff Morrow,Rex Reason,Leigh Snowden
DAY THE WORLD ENDED(1956-Roger Corman)
-Paul Birch,Lori Nelson,Adele Jergens
INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS(1956-Don Siegel)
-Kevin McCarthy,Dana Wynter
MOLE PEOPLE, THE(1956-Virgil W. Vogel)
-John Agar,Hugh Beaumont,Cynthia Patrick
SATTELITE IN THE SKY(1956-Paul Dickson)
-Kieron Moore,Lois Maxwell,Donald Wolfit
X THE UNOWN(1956-Leslie Norman)
-Dean Jagger,Leo McKern,Edward Chapman
20 MILLION MILES TO EARTH(1957-Nathan Juran)
-William Hopper,Joan Taylor
27th DAY, THE(1957-William Asher)
-Gene Barry,Valerie French
ABOMINABLE SNOWMAN, THE(1957-Val Guest)
-Peter Cushing,Forrest Tucker
BLACK SCORPION, THE(1957-Edward Ludwig)
-Richard Denning,Mara Corday,Carlos Rivas
THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN(1957-Terence Fisher)
-Peter Cushing,Hazel Court,Christopher Lee
INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN, THE(1957-Jack Arnold)
-Grant Williams,Randy Stuart
KRONOS(1957-Kurt Neumann)
-Jeff Morrow,Barbara Lawrence,John Emery
LAND UNKNOWN, THE(1957-Virgil W. Vogel)
-Jock Mahoney,Shawn Smith,Henry Brandon
MONOLITH MONSTERS, THE(1957-John Sherwood)
-Grant Williams,Lola Albright
MONSTER THAT CHALLENGED THE WORLD, THE(1957-Arnold Laven)
-Tim Holt,Audrey Dalton
NOT OF THIS EARTH(1957-Roger Corman)
-Beverly Garland,Paul Birch
QUATERMASS 2(1957-Val Guest)
-Brian Donlevy,Bryan Forbes
VAMPIRE, THE(1957-Paul Landres)
-John Beal,Coleen Gray,Kenneth Tobey
ATTACK OF THE 50 FOOT WOMAN(1958-Nathan Juran)
-Allison Hayes,William Hudson,Yvette Vickers
BLOB, THE(1958-Irvin Yeaworth)
-Steve McQueen,Anita Corsaut,Olin Howland
COLOSSUS OF NEW YORK, THE(1958-Eugene Lourie)
-John Baragrey,Otto Kruger,Mala Powers
I MARRIED A MONSTER FROM OUTER SPACE(1958-Gene Fowler Jr.)
-Tom Tyron,Gloria Talbott
THE REVENGE OF FRANKENSTEIN(1958-Terence Fisher)
-Peter Cushing,Eunice Gayson,Michael Gwynn
BEHEMOTH THE SEA MONSTER/THE GIANT BEHEMOTH(1959-Eugene Lorie)
-Gene Evans,Andre Morell
JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH(1959-Henry Levin)
-James Mason,Pat Boone,Arlene Dahl
The 1960’s
LES YEUX SANS VISAGE/EYES WITHOUT A FACE(1960-Gerges Franju)
-Pierre Brasseur,Alida Valli,Edith Scob
VILLAGE OF THE DAMNED(1960-Wolf Rilla)
-George Sanders,Barbara Shelley,Martin Stephens
DAY THE EARTH CAUGHT FIRE, THE(1961-Val Guest)
-Edward Judd,Janet Munro,Leo McKern
PLANETA BUR(1962-Pavel Klushantsav)
-Vladimir Yemelyanov,Georgiy Zhzhonov
DAMNED, THE(1963-Joseph Losey)
-Macdonald Carey,Viveca Lindfors,Shirley Anne Field,Oliver Reed
UNEARTHLY STRANGER(1963-John Krish)
-John Neville,Gabriella Licudi
CHILDREN OF THE DAMNED(1964-Anton M. Leader)
-Ian Hendry,Barbara Ferris,Alan Badel
EARTH DIES SCREAMING, THE(1964-Terence Fisher)
-Willard Parker,Virginia Field,Dennis Price
ROBINSON CRUSOE ON MARS(1964-Byron Haskin)
-Paul Mantee,Vic Lundin
QUATERMASS AND THE PIT(1967-Roy Ward Baker)
-James Donald,Barbara Shelley
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY(1968-Stanley Kubrick)
-Keir Dullea,Gary Lockwood
FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED(1969-Terence Fisher)
-Peter Cushing,Simon Ward
The 1970’s
WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH(1970-Val Guest)
-Victoria Vetri,Robin Hawdon
YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN(1974-Mel Brooks)
-Gene Wilder,Teri Garr,Madeline Kahn,Peter Boyle
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND(1977-Steven Spielberg)
-Richard Dreyfuss,Melinda Dillon
MEDUSA TOUCH, THE(1978-Jack Gold)
-Richard Burton,Lee Remick,Lino Ventura
STALKER(1979-Andrei Tarkovsky)
-Anatoli Solonitsyn,Alexander Kaidanovsky
The 1980’s
BLADE RUNNER(1982-Ridley Scott)
-Harrison Ford,Rutger Hauer,Sean Young,Darryl Hannah
HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH(1982-Tommy Lee Wallace)
-Dan O’Herlihy,Tem Atkins
LE DERNIER COMBAT(1983-Luc Besson)
-Pierre Jolivet,Jean Reno
STRANGE INVADERS(1983-Michael Laughlin)
-Paul Le Mat,Nancy Allen,Diana Scarwid
BRAZIL(1985-Terry Gilliam)
-Jonathan Pryce,Kim Griest,Bob Hoskins,Robert De Niro
BRIDE, THE(1985-Franc Roddam)
-Sting,Jennifer Beals,Clancy Brown,David Rappaport
ENEMY MINE(1985-Wolfgang Petersen)
-Dennis Quaid,Louis Gossett Jr.
ALIENS(1986-James Cameron)
-Sigourney Weaver,Michael Biehn,Lance Henriksen
HIDDEN, THE(1987-Jack Sholder)
-Kyle MacLachlan,Michael Nouri,Claudia Christian
KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER PACE(1988-Stephen Chiodo)
-Grant Cramer,John Allen Nelson
THE ABYSS(1989-James Cameron)
-Ed Harris,Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
The 1990’s
UNIVERSAL SOLDIER(1992-Roland Emmerich)
-Jean-Claude Van Damme,Dolph Lundgren
MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN(1994-Kenneth Branagh)
-Kenneth Branagh,Robert De Niro,Helena Bonham Carter
STARGATE(1994-Roland Emmerich)
-James Spader,Kurt Russell,Viveca Lindfors
TIMECOP(1994-Peter Hyams)
-Jean-Claude Van Damme,Mia Sara,Gloria Reuben
BATMAN FOREVER(1995-Joel Schumacher)
-Val Kilmer,Jim Carrey,Nicole Kidman,Tommy Lee Jones
ARRIVAL, THE(1996-David Twohy)
-Charlie Sheen,Teri Polo,Lindsey Crouse
THE FIFTH ELEMENT(1997-Luc Besson)
-Bruce Willis,Gary Oldman,Milla Jovovich
STARSHIP TROOPERS(1997-Paul Verhoeven)
-Casper van Dien,Dina Meyer,Denise Richards
DEEP RISING(1998-Stephen Sommers)
-Treat Williams,Famke Janssen
THIRTEENTH FLOOR, THE(1999-Josef Rusnak)
-Craig Bierko,Gretchen Mol,Vincent D’Onofrio
The 2000’s
CELL, THE(2000-Tarsem Singh)
-Jennifer Lopez,Vince Vaughn,Vincent D’Onofrio
A.I. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE(2001-Steven Spielberg)
-Haley Joel Osment,Jude Law,Brendan Gleeson
REPLICANT, THE(2001-Ringo Lam)
-Jean-Claude Van Damme,Michael Rooker,Catherine Dent
MINORITY REPORT(2002-Steven Spielberg)
-Tom Cruise,Max Von Sydow,Samantha Morton
CORE, THE(2003-Jon Amiel)
-Hilary Swank,Aaron Eckhardt,Stanley Tucci.Bruce Greenwood
AVP: ALIEN VS. PREDATOR(2004-Paul W.S. Anderson)
-Sanaa Lathan,Lance Henrickson,Raoul Bova
I, ROBOT(2004-Alex Proyas)
-Will Smith,Bridget Moynahan,Bruce Greenwood
SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW(2004-Kerry Conran)
-Jude Law,Gwyneth Paltrow,Angelina Jolie
WAR OF THE WORLDS(2005-Steven Spielberg)
-Tom Cruise,Dakota Fanning,Tim Robbins
ULTRA VIOLET(2006-Kurt Wimmer)
-Milla Jovovich,Cameron Bright
HOST, THE(2007-Joon-ho Bong)
-Kang-ho Song,Byun-hee Bong
MIST, THE(2007-Frank Darabont)
-Thomas Jane,Marcia Gay Harden,Nathan Gamble
CLOVERFIELD(2008-Matt Reeves)
-Michael Stahl-David,Lizzy Caplan,Jessica Lucas
2012(2009-Roland Emmerich)
-John Cusack,Amanda Peet,David Oyelowo,Oliver Platt
DISTRICT 9((2009-Neill Blomkamp)
-Sharlto Copley,Jason Cope
OUTLANDER(2009-Howard McCain)
-Jim Caviezel,Sophia Myles,Jack Huston,John Hurt
SPLICE(2009-Vincenzo Natali)
-Adrien Brody,Sarah Polley,Delphine Chaneac
The 2010’s
RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES(2011-Rupert Wyatt)
-James Franco,Andy Serkis,Frieda Pinto
COWBOYS & ALIENS(2011-Jon Favreau)
-Daniel Craig,Harrison Ford,Olivia Wilde
CHRONICLE(2012-Josh Trank)
-Dane DeHaan,Michael B. Jordan,Alex Russell
IRON SKY(2012-Timo Vumorensola)
-Julia Dietze,Gotz Otto,Udo Kier
PERFECT SENSE(2012-David Mackenzie)
-Ewan McGregor,Eva Green,Denis Lawson,Connie Nielsen
DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES(2014-Matt Reeves)
-Andy Serkis,Jason Clarke,Gary Oldman
EDGE OF TOMORROW(2014-Doug Liman)
-Tom Cruise,Emily Blunt,Bill Paxton
LUCY(2014-Luc Besson)
-Scarlett Johansson,Morgan Freeman
ADVANTAGEOUS(2015-Jennifer Phang)
-Jacqueline Kim,Samantha Kim,Jennifer Ehle
JUPITER ASCENDING(2015-The Wachowskis)
-Mila Kunis,Channing Tatum,Eddie Redmayne
MAD MAX: FURY ROAD(2015-George Miller)
-Tom Hardy,Charlize Theron,Nicholas Hoult
10 CLOVERFIELD LANE(2016-Dan Trachtenberg)
-Mary Elizabeth Winstead,John Goodman
ALIEN: COVENANT(2017-Ridley Scott)
-Michael Fassbender,Katherine Waterston,Billy Crudup
MARJORIE PRIME(2017-Michael Almereyda)
-Tim Robbins,Geena Davis,Jon Hamm,Lois Smith
KONG: SKULL ISLAND(2017-Jordan Vogt-Roberts)
-Brie Larsen,Tom Hiddleston,Samuel L. Jackson
SPIDER MAN: HOMECOMING(2017-Jon Watts)
-Tom Holland,Michael Keaton,Marisa Tomei
COLOSSAL(2017-Nacho Vigalondo)
-Anne Hathaway,Jason Sudeikis,Dan Stevens
TIME TRAP(2017-Mark Dennis,Ben Foster)
-Reiley McClendon,Cassidy Gifford
WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES(2017-Matt Reeves)
-Andy Serkis,Woody Harrelson.Steve Zahn
AQUAMAN(2018-James Wan)
-Jason Momoa,Amber Heard,Nicole Kidman,Dolph Lundgren
BLACK PANTHER(2018-Ryan Coogler)
-Chadwick Boseman,Michael B. Jordan,Dana Gurira
EXTINCTION(2018-Ben Young)
-Michael Pena, Lizzie Caplan, Erica Tremblay, Lex Shrapnel
UPGRADE(2018-Leigh Whannell)
-Logan Marshall-Green,Harrison Gilbertson
US(2019-Jordan Peele)
-Lupita Nyong’o,Winston Duke,Elisabeth Moss
The 2020’s
EL HOYO/THE PLATFORM(2020-Galder Gaztu-Urrutia)
-Ivan Massague,Zorion Eguileor
STOWAWAY(2021-Joe Penna)
-Anna Kendrick,Toni Collette,Daniel Dae Kim.Shamier Anderson
ZACH SNYDER’S JUSTICE LEAGUE: JUSTICE IS GRAY(2021-Zach Snyder)
-Ben Affleck,Gal Gadot.Henry Cavill
EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE(2022- Daniel Kwan,Daniel Schinert)
-Michelle Yeoh,Ke Huy Quan,Jamie Lee Curtis,Stephanie Hsu
BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER(2022-Ryan Coogler)
-Letitia Wright,Tenoch Huerta Mejia,Lupita Nyong’o,Dana Gurira
MOONFALL(2022-Roland Emmerich)
-Halle Berry,Patrick Wilson,John Bradley,Charlie
Plummer
PARADISE(2023-Boris Kunz)
-Kostja Ullmann,Corinna Kirchhoff
DREAM SCENARIO(2023-Kristoffer Borgli)
-Nicolas Cage,Julianne Nicholson,Michael Cera
THE CREATOR(2023-Gareth Edwards)
John David Washington,Madeleine Yuna Voyles
GODZILLA MINUS ONE MINUS COLOR(2024-Takashi Yamazaki)
Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Himabe
Films Per Decade
1920’s 2
1930’s 11
1940’s 15
1950’s 44
1960’s 12
1970’s 5
1980’s 11
1990’s 10
2000’s 17
2010’s 24
2020’s (so far) 10
Total: 161 titles
Addendum: Sci-fi adjacent titles that I like
NON-STOP NEW YORK(1937-Robert Stevenson)
-Anna Lee,John Loder
NIGHT MONSTER(1942-Ford Beebe)
-Lionel Atwill,Bela Lugosi,Irene Hervey
ABOMINABLE DR. PHIBES, THE(1971-Robert Fuest)
-Vincent Price,Joseph Cotten
DR. PHIBES RISES AGAIN(1972-Robert Fuest)
-Vincent Price,Robert Quarry
EDWARD SCISSORHANDS(1990-Tim Burton)
-Johnny Depp,Winona Ryder,Dianne Wiest
DUDE, WHERE’S MY CAR?(2000-Danny Leiner)
-Ashton Kutcher,Seann William Scott
RUDRAKSH(2004-Mani Shankar)
-Sanjay Dutt,Sunil Shetty,Bipasha Basu,Isha Koppikar
10,000 B.C.(2008-Roland Emmerich)
-Steven Strait,Camilla Belle
COMET(2014-Sam Esmail)
-Justin Long,Emmy Rossum
MELANCHOLIA(2015-Lars von Trier)
-Kirsten Dunst,Charlotte Gainsbourg,Kiefer Sutherland
GREAT WALL, THE(2016-Zhang Yimou)
-Matt Damon,Jing Tian,Pedro Pascal
UNDER PARIS(2024-Xavier Gens)
-Berenice Bejo, Nassim Lyes
