Mankind has long been obsessed with the universe outside of our little green and blue dot. And though the space program has been somewhat shuttered in recent years, it hasn’t stopped the Hollywood imagination from dreaming up what could be out there.
There are so many fantastic films that take place in space. Films use this setting as a way to explore a number of themes, whether it be about personal relationships or the existence of mankind in general.
What are some of the best space movies? Read on and we’ll walk you through some of our favorites.
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1. 2001: A Space Odyssey
The definitive space film is also one of the earliest, made by maverick filmmaker Stanley Kubrick at the height of his powers. It’s hard to talk about 2001 without unraveling the many different ways it impacted our culture.
It established the modern sci-fi genre as we know it, with an increasing focus on the intersection between human advancement and technology. It inspired many to dream big on what space travel could mean, and NASA even looked to some of the film’s design for inspiration in some of their later creations.
The film is a sprawling, challenging masterpiece that is in some portions so opaque and mystical that many are still struggling to unlock its secrets today.
2. Alien
There are a lot of movies about space travel that are triumphant, and then there are ones that get at what most of space travel is really probably like: horrifying.
‘In space, no one can hear you scream.’ So goes that tagline to Ridley Scott’s seminal Alien, one of the best space movies of all time. A crew of space workers heads through deep space on a mission only to find their ship with an extra entity on board.
What follows is a pitch-perfect blend of sci-fi and horror, with the cramped, dark and industrial setting of the spaceship serving as the perfect home for this nightmarish tale. Sigourney Weaver stars in a breakout role as Ridley.
The film, while brilliant on the surface level, also works so well because of what it explore underneath. At the heart of Alien, there’s an innate fear of reproduction, of the birth of life itself: to say more would be too spoilerific. But it’s safe to say it’s easy for a movie like this to get under your skin.
3. Wall-E
Most of the films on this list are live-action, but we would be remiss not to mention one of the most stunning animated films of all time, Pixar’s space-bound Wall-E.
The already classic tale follows an Earth-bound robot who cleans up the planet after humanity has left it behind. Soon, he’s bound to space and the future of human civilization, which mostly involved overweight people on hoverchairs.
Luckily, the story takes a heartwarming turn as Wall-E falls in love and teaches everyone in outer space a little bit more about what life is really about.
4. Star Wars
You might not have heard of this little independent film, which made next to no splash at the box office when it was first released… just kidding, you probably don’t need us to explain Star Wars to you. George Lucas’ landmark sci-fi fantasy film launched a literal empire that continues to expand to this day.
It was the seminal film that had many young men and women looking up towards outer space, wondering what could be out there. Today, that same interest lives on in many adults, who might buy a star or work in space research all because of the fire this cultural landmark helped light.
The film itself, of course, follows Luke Skywalker as he’s wrapped into an ongoing conflict between the Empire and the Rebels. He teams up with an escaped princess and self-interested scammer (Carrie Fisher and Han Solo, respectively) to help take down the bad guys and the evil Darth Vader.
5. High Life
The majority of films that take place in space are about the area right outside of our own atmosphere. Many of these films take place just above the planet, or maybe cover a brief exploration to the moon. Often, these are inspiring stories of human resilience. Gravity, Apollo 13, The Martian: you know the type of film we’re referring to.
And then there’s the bleak nihilism of French filmmaker Claire Denis’ High Life, which A24 unleashed into theaters early last year.
The film follows a ship deep in the uncharted throes of space, filled with convicts sentenced to life in the black void. Onboard, they’re forced to participate in a series of fertility experiments and dream of getting back to Earth at the end of their hard time. Robert Pattinson stars as Montie, one of the convicts on board.
High Life isn’t interested in any sort of hurrah celebration of the human spirit. This is a bleak film about humanity fighting to stay alive like some kind of cancer when we really might not have any reason to exist at all. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but for people looking for something a little different, this might hit the mark.
The Best Space Movies Of All Time
There’s nothing like the adventure of sitting down to watch one or two good space movies. The above are just a few of the amazing options out there that you can watch today. Here’s hoping Hollywood continues to explore the limitless possibilities of the Universe.
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