10 best sci-fi/horror movies

[TorontoReign]

What are your 10 favorite sci-fi/horror movies of all time? List trilogies and series as one.

Horror

1. Dawn of the Dead
2. Interview with a Vampire
3. Evil Dead 2
4. Bram Stokers Dracula
5. The Fly (remake)
6. Thing
7. The Last Man on Earth
8. Nosferatu
9. Exorcist
10. Pet Cemetery

Sci-fi

1. Blade Runner
2. Aliens (Liked the original, but I like the sequel more)
3. Minority Report
4. Source Code
5. Back to the Future
6. Road Warrior
7. Book of Eli
8. Planet of the Apes
9. Return of the Jedi
10. Terminator 2

Edit: I had reeeealllllyyyy bad taste in movies, so I edited a little bit (a lot). Butterfly Effect? Queen of the Damned? What the fuck was I thinking? I still have bad taste, but slightly better perhaps.

 

[Per]

Blade runner(haven't seen the REAL version, just the gay ass directors cut)

B&

 

[welsh]

Queen of the Damned? The Butterfly Effect?

That's pretty sad.

I also think posting an entire series is probably a bit unfair.

Edit- Aliens vs Predator? Dude.... I thought Malkavian had rotten taste in movies.

Ok, off the top of my head-
Best Horror-

Psycho
The Birds
The Evil Dead
28 Days Later
The Exorcist
The Shining
John Carpenter's "The Thing" (ok, so this could be sci-fi)
Alien
A Nightmare on Elm's Street
The Haunting

Science Fiction-
12 Monkeys
2001
Brazil
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (original- could be horror)
Clockwork Orange
Blade Runner
Vanilla Sky/Abre los ojos - if you prefer the original
Aliens
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
Solaris
Edit- Escape from New York

Honorable mentions-
Humanoids from the Deep
Galaxy of Terror
Jacob's Ladder
Ghost Story
Hell Raiser
From Hell
The Howling
American Werewolf in London
Creepshow
Twilight Zone
Se7en
Them
Colossus the Forbid Project
Road Warrior
Soyvent Green
Fail Safe

 

[Tannhauser]

4.Aliens(I don't like the rest)
...
5.Predator 1 and 2(what are you lookin' at pussy face?)
...
6.Total Recall
...
7.Queen of the Damned(the books better)
...
10.Butterfly Effect( I know I'll get flamed for this one,but I liked it...and yes it's sci fi)
...
Aliens vs. Predator
...
Running man
...
Blade runner(haven't seen the REAL version, just the gay ass directors cut)

*Sigh* I despair, seeing how much of the population will not only accept, but actually like the swill studios put out.

For God's sake, you don't appreciate Alien, a great and influential film; but you include "Queen of the Damned" on your top ten list? "Aliens vs. Predator" as an "Honorable Mention?" I know Welsh mentioned this, but it can't be stated enough. It's nearly beyond belief (sadly enough, only nearly).

Then there are films such as Total Recall and The Running Man, which are undoubtedly fun; but hardly anything more.

My own list:
Alien (one of the most influential films of the later 20th century, look at how it has shaped science fiction, horror, and the female film hero)
Dr. Strangelove
Blade Runner
Forbidden Planet (for shame Welsh, you forgot this?)
2001: A Space Odyssey
Metropolis (the new, archive-scouring, recreated version; the more common versions available suffer immensely because of the large gaps missing)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Brazil
Clockwork Orange
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (the tenth place is hard, there are quite a few films which compete in my mind, with no clear advantages)

By the way, Welsh, when you mention Solaris, do you mean the new version or the old?

 

[welsh]

Yes, I should have mentioned the Forbidden Planet. Monsters from the Id!

Never saw Metropolis, and I liked the more current, trimmed version of Solaris- though I understand the classic is better. Have to see the Stalker.

My choices are kind of strange. I was also tempted to put down AI and Minority Report - as I enjoyed both films.

Them-- really should be up there. I mean giant mutant ants swarming in the sewar system of LA? That's too cool.

 

[Lord 342]

SciFi is my favorite

Blade Runner (Criterion Collection LaserDisc edition, NOT the Director's Cut. Sorry Per!)
Alien (Its sequels through to Resurrection were good films as well, but as stated before, it was the groundbreaker)
The 5th Element
Heavy Metal
Star Wars
Zardoz
Escape From New York
Mad Max series
Forbidden Planet
The Thing (Orriginal B&W version)

Oh, and am I the only person who didn't like The Day The Earth Stood Still?

 

[The Man From Utopia]

Blade runner(haven't seen the REAL version, just the gay ass directors cut)

Whoa, whoa, whoa; The theatrical version was way more gay-ass than the director's cut. The voice-over wasn't very effective and the happy ending didn't fit in with the rest of the film. It's didn't really deal with Deckard's true nature.

The Blade Runner Director's Cut for the win.

 

[welsh]

Must see the Director's Cut.

Good call on Heavy Metal. I saw that when it was in the theater- cool.

Escape from New York.... must edit my list.

 

[Per]

Blade Runner (Criterion Collection LaserDisc edition, NOT the Director's Cut. Sorry Per!)

I haven't seen that. As far as I can tell from Imdb, it restores some violence that wasn't in the theatrical release in the US and some European countries including Sweden. If it retains the tacked-on happy ending and the voiceovers, I can't respect anyone who likes it, though.

Oh, and am I the only person who didn't like The Day The Earth Stood Still?

It's watchable, but not great. Also it's got something of a crypto-fascist "humanity sucks" message, which is probably why European intellectuals love it.

 

[[PCE]el_Prez]

I think for this crowd you should seperate sci/fi and horror as 2 completely different catagories as welsh did


Some of my Sci/fi favorites:

Star Wars series
mad max series
Terminator series
Escape from New York
The Matrix series
The Predetor
They Live
Tremors

Some my Horror favorites:

Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead (both versions)
The Shinning
Se7en
Saw
Alien
Silence of the Lambs

 

[Lord 342]

Blade runner(haven't seen the REAL version, just the gay ass directors cut)

Whoa, whoa, whoa; The theatrical version was way more gay-ass than the director's cut. The voice-over wasn't very effective and the happy ending didn't fit in with the rest of the film. It's didn't really deal with Deckard's true nature.

The Blade Runner Director's Cut for the win.

The Director's Cut didn' HAVE a propper ending, you see. It was never a real director's cut in the sense of other movies. It was assembled hastily and actually doesn't incude any new footage. (the unicorn was seen in the european version and the workprint that mistakenly got out) All it does is mutilate the existing movie to make it partly unintelligible (no narration) and have a dishwater-dull ending.

 

[Per]

All it does is mutilate the existing movie to make it partly unintelligible (no narration) and have a dishwater-dull ending.

WHAT

The origami unicorn/elevator door ending smashing into Vangelis' end theme is the best ending in the history of endings.

 

[welsh]

A couple movies to consider-

Race with the Devil- two couples fight off satanists from their RV.

Deliverance- wildnerness adventures encounter primitive evil and sodomy from crazed hillbillies. Did they kill the wrong guy?

Jaws- getting eaten by a giant shark works as horror. And it's also kind of a modern Moby Dick.

Dressed to Kill- a smart psycho-thriller.

Videodrome- That was kind of cool. Have you experienced the new video reality?

Dead of Winter- kind of cool.

Burnt Offerings- or a new way to remodel your house.

 

[The Man From Utopia]

The Director's Cut didn't HAVE a propper ending, you see. It was never a real director's cut in the sense of other movies. It was assembled hastily and actually doesn't incude any new footage. (the unicorn was seen in the european version and the workprint that mistakenly got out) All it does is mutilate the existing movie to make it partly unintelligible (no narration) and have a dishwater-dull ending.

Partially unintelligible? Dishwater-dull ending? No way. I say the narration actually dumbed the movie down. With it gone, viewers had to make their own conclusions about the characters and life in 2019 Los Angeles. And Per got it right; the ending is a classic and I don't know how you can say it was dull. The twist was utterly amazing, especially because the movie didn't spell it out for the audience. Again, the ending forces the audience to think and draw their own conclusions.

The Director's Cut of Blade Runner was a much more intelligent and thought provoking film than the theatrical release.

 

[El Chupacabra]

Ah, yes, the eternal Blade Runner versions discussion...I've only seen the director's cut myself, but i'll have to agree with Per that it's ending was very interesting and the whole thing was very mind-stimulating and open for interpretations.

My proposition for a good horror movie is The Island of Lost Souls from 1933 - the first(?) cinematic adaptation of the famous The Island of Dr. Moreau.

 

[Jarno Mikkola]

Just couple of questions,
Where are the matrix fans?, and no, I didn't like it. The end was good, Neo sacrefised himself, just so, that, they could win.
Or the Alone in the dark fans?, or are the movies too anti-American?, cause I liked it.

 

[Ashmo]

Matrix fans? Don't go there, please.

The Matrix was a neat action movie with a hint of philosophy in it (like bubble gum packs with Zen phrases on them), but that's it.

The halved sequel was shit and full of absurd "ZOMG intellectual" metaphors (I've seen wittier hyperbole in goth poetry).
The atmosphere was so bad the action sequences fealed out of place and "tacked on" and the whole cinema was laughing at some of the scenes intended to be romantic or "moving" (the Batman Returns style two-second jump beyond the clouds for example).

Cutting it in half only made it worse because neither half works on its own and both were quite obviously just planned as marketing tool for the computer game, MMORPG and all the other merchandise that lived off the movies' hype and the masses of intellectually untainted untermenschen who suddenly felt like Socrates because they understood the "subtle" underlying "layers" of meaning in a movie they suddenly considered to be "intellectual".

Don't you see all the levels of complexity hidden within the visual imagery of the filler scenes that connect the screensaver-like action sequences? The Emperor's new clothes are so pretty, nay?

Talking about screensavers -- Neo's fight in the "villa" would have made a good one. They could have just stretched that bullet-time sequence for four hours and sold it instead of the "sequels" and sold it as screensaver. I know I would have bought a copy.
It's absolutely random and pointless, but it IS kinda hypnotic.

 

[alec]

Let's see if I can come up with ten sci-fi flicks...

1 The Time Machine: the old George Pal version, mind you, and not the new one, because that one sucks donkey balls. This is certainly my all-time favourite sci-fi movie. It's like a fairytale, with wonderfull characters, a simply gorgeous Yvette Mimieux as Weena and a truly charismatic Rod Taylor. Told with wonder and amazement for young and old to enjoy. The perfect movie for Christmas and New Year.
2 The Omega Man: one of my favourite movies, on par with number 3 and number 4 in this brilliant list of mine. Low budget and all in all a stupid plot, but somehow it all feels just right. The opening scene is classic, as is the scene of Charlton Heston watching the Woodstock movie in the cinema. My dad loves this movie as well. Probably the only thing we have in common, so I should cultivate it.
3 Soylent Green: Charlton Heston is a hero, goddammit, who cares that he's president of the NRA or whatever that guntoting nutcase association is called...
4 Planet of the Apes: sure it's ridiculous, sure it's so farfetched that not even intelligent monkeys would believe one word of it, but it's also brilliant and it's got one of the most memorable ending scenes in the history of da moving pictures.
5 Blade Runner: no comment. You know that this movie is great. When Rutger Hauer gives that monologue on the roof, shortly before dying, my dick feels like rubber and the hairs in my neck start to rise and I'm feeling all weird and gooey inside.
6 ET: I'm sorry, people, but this is a classic. It's the finest piece of melodramatic sci-fi bullshit that will ever be made on this sad planet. All hail Steven Spielberg for inventing a shitbrown coloured alien that likes telephones and stuff.
7 2001: A Space Odyssey: this should actually be at the top of my list because the prologue alone pwns all the other sci-fi movies ever made, but - then again - it's also intellectual, symbolic, deep, full of metaphores and simply to difficult for your average sci-fi movie freak. Great, unforgettable stuff, though.
8 Close Encounters of the Third Kind: how can one not appreciate the mashed potato scenes, not to mention the truly creative use of synthesizer sounds mixed with colored lights?
9 Aliens: although I'm not a huge fan, I can see how influential this flick has been on the sci-fi genre. Without Aliens there would have never been a Pitch Black, for instance. Which is another great sci-fi movie, although not worthy of a place in my top ten list.
10 Uhm...

I guess all of the the next films are worthy to be on the tenth place: 12 Monkeys, Solaris, Star Wars series (except the new trilogy, 'cause it's just not very good), Mad Max 2, The Butterfly Effect (quite new, but very good, no kidding), Dr. Strangelove (huge, but too much talking, a little less conversation, a little more action, please), A Clockwork Orange (although I don't really consider that to be a real sci-fi, although it most certainly is, but I subcategorize these sort of flicks as "dystopias" like 1984 and shit, ya know, "dystopias"... ) and so on.

I really have to stop posting while at work, I'm going to get fired one of these days for not doing shit...

 

[ferdinand]

7 2001: A Space Odyssey: this should actually be at the top of my list because the prologue alone pwns all the other sci-fi movies ever made, but - then again - it's also intellectual, symbolic, deep, full of metaphores and simply to difficult for your average sci-fi movie freak. Great, unforgettable stuff, though.

I wonder if it's possible to work out what the hell the prologue on 2001 is about without reading the book... I'd never have picked that apes waving bones at a black monolith was about the birth of human sentinence... Pretty though.

 

[[PCE]el_Prez]

why am i seeing Dr. Strangelove on these lists? Don't get me wrong, Dr. Strangelove is a great movie, in fact my favorite movie of all time but Sci/fi - Horror?