The sci-fi genre has given audiences some of the most groundbreaking, best-written stories ever put to film, with Denis Villeneuve’s Dune serving as one of the greatest. Based on Frank Herbert’s novel of the same name, the series, soon to be wrapped up with its third chapter, earned its spot as the ultimate sci-fi experience of the 21st century. When looking back on the history of the genre, some movies hold the rare distinction of being even better.
Using science, technology, and the mysteries of the universe to challenge the audience’s intellect and moral perspective, the genre has given audiences decades of unrivaled creativity and worldbuilding. At its best, it can be anything from mind-bending levels of confusion to stunning visual epics, and these films prove it. Dune is a brilliant feat of cinema, but some movies did a better job of bringing sci-fi to its height.
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Terminator 2: Judgment Day Perfected the Blend of Sci-Fi and Action
Following the success of his first Terminator movie, James Cameron continued his franchise with Judgment Day. Set fourteen years after the first movie, it follows a teenage John Conner in foster care as a reprogrammed T-101 travels back in time to protect him from a deadly T-1000. Realizing his institutionalized mother was right all along, John commands his new protector to help free her and set out to save their future from Skynet.
Terminator 2: Judgment Day became the gold standard for sci-fi sequels when it was released, and ensured generations of viewers would see AI as the ultimate threat to humanity. Exploring fate and destiny even better than Dune, the film became a generational sensation in much the same way as Villeneuve’s movies. It’s a relentless action masterpiece that infused the genre with more heart than its contemporaries.
5
Back to the Future is the Best Sci-Fi Family Film
In 1985, Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale teamed up to create the perfect sci-fi family film in Back to the Future. Focusing on Hill Valley high school kid Marty McFly as he’s sent back to 1955 by his friend Doc Brown’s time-traveling DeLorean, it became the ultimate time-travel movie on day one. Working better as a trilogy than a standalone film, the adventures of Doc and Marty dealt with everything from dystopia and fate to family and justice.
It’s no secret that Back to the Future appeals to an entirely different breed of science fiction fan, playing more into family-friendly time travel than epic world-building. The friendship between Marty and Doc quickly became the face of the genre, and the endless time loop and paradox shenanigans are nothing shy of perfect. It takes on a radically different tone from Dune, but the film is such a flawless piece of fiction that even Quentin Tarantino has acknowledged it as a perfect movie despite not being its biggest fan.
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Aliens is the Perfect ’80s Sequel
In 1986, James Cameron took over from Ridley Scott as director of the Alien franchise when he made Aliens. Set decades after the incident aboard the Nostromo, it follows Ripley after being awakened from stasis as she reluctantly joins a Colonial Marine mission to LV-426 to rescue colonists from a xenomorph hive. What follows is all-out war between the soldiers and aliens as swarms of xenomorphs force the humans to make their stand.
Aliens took an already brilliant story and added an action element, turning deep space cosmic horror into a gritty military flick that never lets up. Building on the commentary already present in the original film, it made the dystopian corporatist future the backbone of sci-fi villainy, something relevant in the Dune movies, too. The Weyland-Yutani Corporation and Harkonnens are cut from the same cloth, and Ellen Ripley’s ascension to ultimate heroine knows no equal.
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Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back Perfected Fantasy Science Fiction
After his runaway success with 1977’s Star Wars, George Lucas returned to the galaxy far, far away with Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. As the Empire reels from the destruction of the Death Star, Darth Vader hunts the Rebel Alliance, hoping to draw out Luke Skywalker to turn him to the dark side of the Force. As Luke seeks the mentorship of Yoda, Han and the others are forced to flee across the galaxy.
Nailing the same mash-up of sci-fi and fantasy that gives Dune its strength as a movie, The Empire Strikes Back has stood as an undefeated fantasy touchstone for four decades. While some would argue Lucas borrowed his ideas from Herbert, it’s undeniable that his sequel is king of its niche of science fiction. From its bleak ending and iconic twist to sublime special effects, countless directors have tried and failed to live up to its place in pop culture.
2
Jurassic Park is the Ultimate Sci-Fi Novel Adaptation
In 1993, Steven Spielberg and Michael Crichton revived sci-fi at an all-time low point for the genre when Universal Studios produced Jurassic Park. Focusing on a group of scientists during their trip to John Hammond’s park full of genetically-engineered dinosaurs, it shows how everything that can go wrong will go wrong. A warning against humanity’s efforts to play god with science, it raised the bar for sci-fi in every way possible, from its groundbreaking CGI quality to Spielberg’s structure.
Whether someone prefers the sub-genre of Crichton’s story or Herbert’s, the story and pacing of Jurassic Park are practically flawless. As the movie that proved the strength of big-budget, ambitious science fiction at a time when the genre seemed dead, the last three decades of the genre owe a lot to Spielberg’s classic. Above all else, it’s a masterclass in adapting sci-fi novels to the big screen, creating a blueprint for how to streamline the text to cinema.
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2001: A Space Odyssey Paved the Way For Dune’s Adaptation
In 1968, Stanley Kubrick teamed up with writer Arthur C. Clarke to make what would soon become the definitive piece of elevated science fiction: 2001: A Space Odyssey. The movie focuses on the voyage of space vessel Discovery One to Jupiter after the discovery of a mysterious black monolith in orbit around the planet. When their onboard AI HAL 9000 malfunctions, pilots Dave Bowman and Frank Poole are forced into a game of cat and mouse to survive its control over the ship.
Before Kubrick and Clarke’s story, sci-fi often struggled to be taken seriously by critics, relegated to the realm of low-budget B-movies with tacky alien monsters. After 1968, the genre was finally treated with the respect it deserved, and sparked decades of audience debate as viewers struggled to understand just what it meant. From its exploration of sinister AI to its slow-burning cosmic journey, 2001: A Space Odyssey is the ultimate sci-fi movie that paved the way for decades of cinema, including Dune.