8 Great Sci-Fi Movies With Only One Main Character (Most Of The Time)

2. Solaris (1972)

Under The Skin Scarlett Johansson
Mosfilm

Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris is a classic Russian sci-fi movie, regularly mentioned on greatest of all-time lists. It's long, meditative, psychological, and firmly on the hard side of the sci-fi scale, but if you can stomach the full two hours and 45 minutes, you'll be rewarded with great visuals and a challenging story.

After the crew of a space station, orbiting the alien planet of Solaris, are reported to be suffering from disturbing visions, psychologist Kris Kelvin is sent aboard to investigate what's been happening. Upon arrival, Kelvin finds the station in disarray and its crew confused and traumatised. Slowly, he begins to suffer the same fate.

Whilst there are a number of other characters in the film, Solaris is more focused on Kelvin's reactions to what he sees around him and how his human desires affect his willingness to accept the things he knows aren't actually real. It's a complex study of humanity and our place in the universe with a great ending. If you can get there.

Contributor
Contributor

Christopher is a freelance pop culture writer, podcaster and self-confessed nerd from Scotland. He's also the owner, founder and editor at "The Head Scratcher" and a host of "The Scratch Cast" podcast. Visit www.theheadscratcher.com to find out more.