If you were to pick the top 20 Science Fiction movies of all time, what would
you pick?  Wired picked a very strange group as far as I am concerned.  They
rated them based on  "determined our rankings by three calibrating factors:
a film's power to enthrall and excite (Adrenaline), how well it presents a
scenario for the future (Vision), and whether the science behind the fiction
holds up (Precision). "

20.  Barbarella
19.  Akira
18.  The day the Earth Stood Still
17.  Planet of the Apes (original version)
16.  Robocop
15.  Soylent Green
14.  Sleeper
13.  The Terminator
12.  Tron
11.  The Road Warrior
10.  Star Wars
 9.  Jurassic Park
 8.  The Boys from Brazil
 7.  Alien
 6.  A clockwork Orange
 5.  Brazil
 4.  2001
 3.  The Matrix
 2.  Gattaca
 1.  Blade Runner

 Where is "When Worlds Collide".  Where is "Forbidden Planet?"  Where is "War
of the Worlds?"

I could probably name 1 dozen other mSF movies that are not listed here. 
Barbarella?  Akira? SLEEPER?  Who would nominate these?  

58 responses total.

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Gotta admit, it's eclectic.  Not much like the list I would've
picked, but to each his or her own.

My list would include more 30s/40s/50s stuff -- "Things to Come",
"The Incredible Shrinking Man", "Forbidden Planet", e.g.  Probably
Spielberg's "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" and "E.T."

Glad to see Tron is on there.

check out www.tronkillerapp.com for a promo on Tron 2.0.

What about Logan's Run, or the Andromeda Strain?

Or Rollerball (again, the original)

Personally, I think _Brazil_ should be on the list.  But everyone's list is
goign to be different -- I bet we couldn't even all agree on the criteria,
much less the actual rankings. ;)

"Brazil" is #5 on the above list.  :P

Well, we can't all be disgruntled and unsatisfied.

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How 'bout "They Live" with Rowdy Roddy Piper?

Hm.  I'm actually a fan of "They Live", although I wouldn't
go so far as to put it on the top twenty list.

I loved "Tron".  I'd have put it higher.  I enjoyed the graphics, even though
they're "old".  They still look cool.

agreed, especially considering very little was actual computer 
graphics-- the sequel should be intriguing now that CGI tech could do 
the whole movie now.

My favorite Rowdy Roddy Piper Movie is "Hell comes to Frog Town."  But it is
not one of the 20 best SF movies of all time.

Here is my list

20.  Godzilla
19.  Terminator
18.  Total Recall
17.  2001
16.  The Time machine
15.  ST:The wrath of Khan
14.  Robinson Caruso on Mars
13.  Star Wars
12.  War of the Worlds
11.  When Worlds Collide
10.  This Island Earth
 9.  Them
 8.  Predator
 7.  Alien/Aliens
 6.  Stargate
 5.  Jurassic Park
 4.  Andromeda Strain
 3.  The Thing
 2.  Forbidden Planet
 1.  Day the earth stood still

Runners up:  Robocop, Things to Come, Daark Star, Daark City, Silent running,
Mad Max, Blade runner, Logans Run, Close encounters of the Third kind.

Which "Time Machine"?

I've not seen all of those.  But Rocky Horror should get an honourable
mention.

Robinson Crusoe not Caruso (oh, my, that would make a cool movie, though --
stranded opera singer on Mars!).
I think Bruce means the Rod Steiger one.

Bru: I'm curious why Stargate ends up so high on your list.

Stargate would be high on my list because James Spader is hunky! 

I'll bet thats not bruce's reason though.

originality of the script, how well done it was visually, Acting was good.
The aliens were well done, boththose on the planet and those in the ship. 
The technology was fun.  

Rocketeer should also have gotten a mention as it is technically a Science
Fiction film.  There are a lot of other good films that others might want to
put on the list as SF, such as Superman, Spiderman, adn a host of others, but
to me those are more Fantasy than SF.

And now I have to go write a story about a stranded opera singer on mars...

I'd be a bad person to make a list like this because I tend to like comic
book-ish sci fi movies that don't take themselves too seriously. ;)

Okay, just *how many* movies has Rowdy Roddy Piper been in anyway?

It's too pop.  We've had the Matrix debate before, but... #3?  All time?

Jurassic Park?  The Alien and Terminator series, while listed, deserved
better, in my opinion.  

I haven't seen DARK STAR on any of these lists.
Harrumph.

        Blade Runner, I have to concur with.  I can't really respect a list
that doesn't mention any European or Asian sci-fi, though - if Tron got on,
surely Akira should be there too.

Yeah, I don't think anyone's mentioned Metropolis (the original German
version, not the anime remake, although I highly recommend it.)

   Odd you should say that, pthomas.  I couldn't rank my top 20 science
fiction movies in any particular order, but here they are:

Logan's Run
Galaxy Quest
Farenheit 451
Enemy Mine
Alien Nation
Dr. Strangelove...
Soylent Green
Flash Gordon (the Buster Crabbe serials)
2001: A Space Odyssey
Star Wars: A New Hope
Metropolis (the 1929 version)
Fantastic Voyage
The Thing (1951 version, though the 80's one w/ Kurt Russell isn't bad)
The Handmaid's Tale
The Brother From Another Planet
The Andromeda Strain (though the book was better)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956)
A Clockwork Orange
Them!
Forbidden Planet

What about "A Boy and His Dog?"

Dr. Strangelove is science fiction???

Heh.  I haven't met a woman yet who liked "A Boy and his Dog".

I liked it.

I stand corrected.

   I've never seen "A Boy and His Dog."  

   Yeah, AFAIK "Dr Strangelove" is a science-fiction black comedy. 

resp:26 anime re-make?  I'm not sure I follow you.. there was a 
madeover version, so to speak, that had a bit of color in it, an 80s 
rock soundtrack, and had some restorations made from recovered footage 
and production stills.  With a few new changes in silent subtitles, 
the new producers and editors hoped to be more faithful to the 
original version of "Metropolis."

No, there's a new anime movie called "Metropolis", and very loosely based on
the same story.  I missed when it was the Michigan, though.  :(

Since "The Quiet Earth" missed the list and "Barbarella" (camp)
and "Star Wars" (space opera explicitly set LONG AGO) both made
it, I'd say that the Wired list-makers don't actually watch SF.

I've never even *heard* of "A Boy and His Dog."

Well, rent it some time, and you'll see why all women except Glenda don't
like it.  (But you have to keep watching until the end.)

I know other women that liked it as well.  But...we are all hard core Science
Fiction fans.

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