12 Best Sci-Fi Movies You Can Watch Online For FREE

12. Total Recall

And from the sublime to the silly, and oh is it glorious. If the previous entries were lovingly-crafted meals full of nuanced and varied textures and tastes, then Total Recall is a massive cheeseburger. But it's a really really really good cheeseburger. Total Recall is on par with the first two Terminators and director Paul Verhoeven's own RoboCop as one of the best sci-fi action films ever made, and probably one of the best practical effects movies ever made.

From the elaborate and incredibly-animated makeup realizing the Martian mutants, to the miniatures that still stand up some 30 years later, to the production and set design that still manages to feel futuristic and otherworldly even now. And that's not even getting into the action.

Arnold Schwarznegger, in all his snarling, quipping glory is at the top of his game in set-pieces that stay just as thrilling even on repeat viewings (sometimes even more so). The rest of the cast is equally great, with especially memorable turns from a pre-Basic Instinct Sharon Stone and Michael Ironside in all his bassy-voiced, ice-cold glory. It's like the jacked, slightly unhinged cousin of Blade Runner, and it's amazing for it.