Sci-Fi.

Top 5 Most Inspiring Sci-Fi Movies.

I believe this list can help anyone that is interested in science fiction to discover more options for movies. On this list, I selected the 5 most inspiring science fiction movies for me. And, to understand why I chose these five, a few other works are also mentioned.

Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash

1. I know it can sound awkward but, for me, Matrix: The Making Of (1999) is a hell of a documentary. It shows you that to think about the original movie you must visit what the authors were thinking, and studying to deliver it. So, in the documentary you see that they were influenced by Ghost in the Shell (1995), philosophy (they actually mention Hobbes in the movie script, they criticize Reagan in a line, so it is about politics of course, and Simulacra and Simulation appear all the time in the documentary), Cowboy Bebop (1998), Akira (1998) and certainly more of eastern 90's culture. But when I say this, that the importance of Matrix is beyond the original movie, I say it because the original movie is about a few philosophical ideas and a bunch of aesthetics. The Making Of does shows us much more about the aesthetics. So, you want to take the red pill? Watch the Making Of.
2. Miracle Mile (1988). I really could list here any “end of the world” movie that includes zombies, diseases, or big natural catastrophes. But in Miracle Mile, the end of the world is coming (it is very very near) because of the cold war. We see everything from the perspective of common passionate civilians (which is an element that we see in almost every “end of the world” story). This element is used perfectly in Miracle Mile. In this movie, we find ourselves in a desperate, out of control situation, and it is constantly terrifying. And how many movies do really use these feelings from the beginning till the end? It’s almost like Escape from New York (1981) but with a little bit fewer action scenes.
3. Metropolis (1927). Not too much complex, but not so simple either. Even today this movie transports us to a possible future. What is very powerful for a 1920’s production. In this movie, we see oppressed people, flying vehicles, super robots, and cruel vs kind powerful people. Because of these elements, we could say that Metropolis is indeed the grandfather of so many stories like Star Wars (if we count it as Sci-Fi) and many others.
4. Enemy Mine (1985), like almost every Alien movie, gives us a humanitarian message. Teaches us not to be anthropocentric or selfish. These are kind of the most crucial elements of an alien movie. And if you did like it, you should try Hunter Prey (2009) also (it is less dramatic, and has much more action).
5. Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970). But I really could choose Animatrix (2003) also for the same reasons. In Animatrix for example, we follow sometimes the machine's point of view. Because of that, we perceive a few contradictions in the Matrix world. Most important: we see that the real oppressed ones were the machines. So, the hero of the original movie could be agent Smith, although he considers humanity a totally corrupt thing (what is actually a good point of view). In Colossus: The Forbin Project we also see that machines could rule the world very well (and it seems to me that it doesn't matter if the machines are a bit totalitarian or whatever). Like Kubrick once said: “I’m not afraid of science, I’m afraid of society”. This could also mean: “I’m not afraid of science, I’m afraid of scientists”.