50 Essential Sci-Fi Films of the 21st Century (So Far)
Counting down the 50 must-see science fiction films from across the last 25 years.
The 20th century defined the science fiction genre. As man-made tech came on leaps and bounds, growing far beyond what once seemed impossible, the fiction that sought to predict and outstrip it did the same. As a result, the century gave us the classic films of the genre: 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars, Blade Runner, Back to the Future, The Matrix.
This has given 21st century filmmaking a lot to live up to, competing with its forebears while facing the rapid development of the internet, digital systems, and AI. But live up to this, it has.
Across this century so far, we have seen innovations and explorations in sci-fi cinema that continue to surprise us, with creators predicting the trajectory of society, and film technology allowing the realisation of stupendous, out-of-this-world spectacles.
So now, at the quarter-century mark, it seems high time to identify the essential sci-fi films we have seen so far, with "essential" meaning not merely "best", but those films that offer something exciting, compelling, new, or unique in aesthetic, structure, character, sound, and narrative (or lack thereof). We look to established giants of the genre, like Steven Spielberg, as well as newcomers like Coralie Fargeat; technological behemoths like Christopher Nolan, and barebones operators like Shane Carruth.
Animated and live action, English and foreign language, black and white and colour, blockbuster and indie - all are considered, in these 50 essential sci-fi films of the past 25 years.
50. Edge of Tomorrow (2014)
Although the film has gone on to become known as Live. Die. Repeat. in some quarters due to its confusing marketing materials, those of us there at the beginning remember Doug Liman’s Edge of Tomorrow not for the size of the text on its posters, but for the way it took its big budget and stars and made something genuinely interesting that deserves its life beyond the standard blockbuster release cycle.
Tom Cruise is Major William Cage, a coward who serves as a handy poster boy for the United Defence Force (UDF), a planetary military tasked with expelling the alien "Mimics" vying for global domination. Abruptly thrown into combat alongside Sergeant Rita Vrataski (Emily Blunt), William finds himself face-to-face with the aliens in an unexpected offensive, and a close call with an “Alpha” grants him one of its powers - namely, the ability to loop back in time when he dies.
Handy. Or it would be, if he could get anyone to listen to his warnings about the impending attack.
A high-tech, sci-fi Groundhog Day with all the stylised action of a Marvel movie and none of the obligatory tie-ins, cameos, or kowtowing to a bigger universe, Liman’s film adapts Christopher McQuarrie’s screenplay into something that feels studio but remixes enough of the familiar elements to keep things fresh.